Married: The Virgin Widow by Deborah Hale Read Free Book Online Page B

an almost sensual thrill of satisfaction.
    “H-husband?” she repeated as if the notion never would have occurred to her in a hundred years.
    Once the idea sank in, Ford was certain she would seize this opportunity, pretending to accept only for the sake of her family. No doubt that was how she had justified her marriage to Cyrus—the little hypocrite!
    “Does it not make admirable sense?” He took care to contain his eagerness in case it might make her suspicious. “We were once betrothed, but you required a husband of greater fortune to provide for your family. Now I am in a position to assist them and you are free to remarry. Shall we make a match of it at last?”
    Laura flinched, as if from a sudden blow. It surprised and vexed Ford that her dismay brought him so little pleasure.
    What surprised him more was her guarded response to his proposal. “Why should you want to marry me if you do not love me? You don’t, do you?”
    If she had drawn a loaded pistol and held it to his head, Ford could not have felt more threatened than by that one simple question.
    Of course Ford did not love her! What on earth had made her ask such a daft, pathetic question?
    It must be the place, Laura decided as she awaited his answer. The soft rustle of a breeze through the beech leaves, the melodic trill of birdsong, the woodsy fragrance of bluebells all revived long-buried memories and threatened to thaw long-frozen feelings. Ford had not forgotten the significance of the bluebell wood. He had brought her here on purpose to propose once again. But why?
    “Love? I am quite cured of such nonsense, as I’m sure you must be.” His scathing tone reminded Laura so much of his cousin’s, it made her bilious. “That is precisely why we should marry. Neither of us is blinded by bothersome romantic delusions. You need a home for your family and I would like an heir to keep Hawkesbourne in mine. Would I not be wise to wed a practical woman who knows better than to seek other things from me that I cannot give?”
    His question sent a clammy chill through Laura. Five years of loveless marriage to a domineering husband had been more than enough to last her a lifetime. But an even more urgent fear seized her by the throat and squeezed.
    “An heir?” she whispered. Hard as she strove to keep her composure, her lower lip trembled.
    “Naturally.” Ford’s predatory gaze fixed on her lips.“What our marriage may lack in the warmth of love, I trust it will make up in the heat of physical desire.”
    He leaned toward her, as he had in the drawing room on the day of his return. This time Laura tried to retreat, only to stumble over a tree root. As she fell backward, Ford seized her, pulling her toward him. His lips bore down on hers and took possession of them, igniting a volatile brew of passion and panic within her.
    How many nights of her marriage had begun with a kiss only to end in curses and blows? Those memories haunted her, as she feared they always would whenever a man tried to kiss or touch her. And yet, Ford’s overwhelming desire kindled an unwelcome spark of arousal within her. Pulses of wicked heat coursed through her flesh, searing fiercest in her breasts and loins. Her husband’s attentions had never provoked such sensations. If they had, perhaps her marriage would not have been such a wretched failure.
    What dismayed Laura even more was that she’d never had such a wanton reaction to the tender kisses she’d shared with Ford during their long-ago betrothal. How could her traitorous body now burn for a man who so contemptuously proclaimed he cared nothing for her?
    Ford’s body sizzled with raw lust.
    He hadn’t meant to claim a kiss from Laura before she accepted his proposal. But when she’d backed away, he could no more resist the temptation to follow her than a questing hound could ignore the scent of a vixen.
    He could tell his mention of an heir had shaken her poised detachment. Her tremulous whisper when she’d