Moon Dreams by Patricia Rice Read Free Book Online Page A

partner to return, he
placed himself at her elbow and whispered, “Have you chosen your husband yet?”
    Far from being surprised either at his sudden appearance or
at the tone of his question, Alyson merely flipped open her fan and inquired, “Who
asks?”
    “That trio over there. They wish to know why you have never
been introduced to society before, if we are by any chance engaged, and if your
wealth is as fabulous as they have heard.”
    She leaned closer to his shoulder so no other could hear
their words. “And what did you tell them?”
    She was laughing, and that served only to annoy him more,
along with the heady fragrance of her perfume. “I told them your grandfather
thought you too ugly to be presented, that I have compromised you quite beyond
repair, and that your wealth consists of a derelict tin mine on an island
covered with water half the day.”
    Alyson’s laughter rang out loud, causing heads to turn. “Since
I am now so thoroughly ruined, would you mind leading me someplace where I
might breathe? I have only lately come from the country, and I fear there is
something in this mixture of perfumes that does not quite agree with me as well
as fresh air.”
    Rory offered his arm with alacrity and escorted her toward
the hallway. “I suspect it is not the perfumes so much as the stench of a
hundred unwashed and overheated bodies melting in the brilliance of a thousand
candles. I’d rather smell sweating sailors any day.”
    “Ugh.” Alyson turned up her pert nose as he steered her into
the semidarkness of the library. A small fire burned in the grate, and candles
on the table illuminated the brandy decanter. “I cannot think the salt air
would quite eradicate that smell.”
    Rory opened the casement windows and seated her on the
settee below it. The ballroom might be packed with malodorous bodies, but hers
wasn’t one of them. She still smelled fresh and sweet. The urge to touch her
was almost uncontrollable, but he was a strong man, and he had already made up
his mind that he would not be the one to corrupt her innocence. He had every
intention of leaving the country as soon as his ship returned.
    “That is no topic for conversation in any case.” Rory
propped his elbow against the mantel a polite distance from her. “Tell me, do
you have any preferences among all the eligible suitors my aunt has presented
to you tonight?”
    Perched on the settee, Alyson shrugged off his inquiry to
look out at the steeple of the church next door. “Will I disappoint Deirdre
greatly if I do not make a grand marriage?”
    “What? Would the heiress settle for less than a marquess?”
Fascinated despite himself, Rory pulled up a chair and straddled it, crossing
his arms over the back as he stared at the winsome wench in the window.
Firelight flickered across the soft flesh rising above her bodice, and he
fought back a stirring in his groin. He’d found a willing whore as soon as he
reached London, but obviously she wasn’t enough. He wriggled into a more
comfortable position.
    “I see no purpose in marrying. Why would any woman
voluntarily hand over her freedom to some man to do with as he wishes? Why
should I take a husband so he might make himself free with what is mine, while
giving me only what pittance he chooses out of the charity of his heart? I can
see no reason to do such a mad thing.”
    Rory smiled at this innocence. “That is spoken like a woman
who knows nothing of love.”
    To his surprise, Alyson snapped her fan vehemently. “Don’t
be patronizing. I know of love. That’s why I know women are fools to believe in
it. We love with our hearts, while men love with their heads. Well, I’ve
learned my lesson, and I won’t forget it. I can see no advantage in marriage.”
    He had apparently hit a chord that roused the drowsy miss to
battle. Rory raised his eyebrows and replied menacingly. “Tell me who the cad
was and I’ll slit his throat.”
    Alyson ran her fan down the bridge of his nose and