Regency Spymasters 01 - Spy Fall by Diana Quincy Read Free Book Online Page B

one, am famished.”
    Marcel’s suspicious gaze darted between the two of them. “What are you doing out here?”
    “It is a beautiful evening,” she said, her demeanor as cool as a spring rain.
    Cosmo nodded, barely hearing the conversation over the pounding in his chest. “We were taking some air,” he said idiotically.
    Marcel glowered at him. “If I were you, monsieur, I would be careful about taking what is not yours.”
    Mari tsked. “We are Monsieur Dunsmore’s guests and the air is indeed his.” Taking her brother’s arm, she gave an easy laugh and playfully bumped her shoulder against Marcel’s. “Which you, brother, are polluting with your scowls and threatening stares.”
    They started inside, but Mari paused when she noticed Cosmo had not made to follow. “Are you coming?” she asked over one soft exposed shoulder, which he longed to nibble on for a good while.
    His mind felt a little fuzzy. “In a moment. I thought to breathe a little more of my air first.”
    As she turned away, her lips tilted into a subtle smile that provoked an achingly tender sensation in his chest. Once alone, Cosmo rolled out his neck, trying to calm the strange emotions swirling inside of him. Being in the parachutist’s presence nourished him in a way he couldn’t explain; he felt diminished by her departure.
    He shook his head against the absurdity of that thought. Clearly, he’d been isolated here in Dorset for too long. And he hadn’t had a woman since before the parachutist landed on him. Isolation and deprivation were obviously to blame for his unsettling reaction. Nothing else in his experience could explain it.
    He exhaled, feeling a measure of relief at being able to clarify the reason for Mari Lamarre’s disconcerting impact on him. Whistling quietly to himself, Cosmo went inside to rejoin the party.

Chapter Five
    “ Sacré bleu !” Mari kicked the leg of the chair in her chamber, energy snapping along her nerves. What had possessed her to flirt with Dunsmore like that? To invite his kiss!
    And what a kiss. Closing her eyes, she touched a finger to her lips, still sensitive from the heat of his mouth on hers. Dunsmore certainly knew what he was about in that area. Another string of curses erupted out of her mouth. Next she’d be writing poems about the man’s sensual expertise.
    Of course Dunsmore would be proficient in matters of the flesh. The man was a profligate rakehell. Only an imbecile wouldn’t manage to learn something of use after bedding so many women. Yet, despite being fully cognizant of the man’s reprobate ways, she’d still been tempted to accept his proposition.
    She sighed, her hand trailing from her lips down her throat with a feather-light touch. She missed lovemaking, the warm slide of skin on skin, the murmurs of intimacy, the act itself. She’d been too long without a man. Two years since Pascal.
    If Cosmo came to her tonight, while this mood gripped her, she might be tempted to let him stay. She’d expect none of the loving tenderness she’d experienced with Pascal. With Cosmo, the sex would be raw and primal, devoid of emotion, an expedient way to satisfy a basic physical need. Chewing on her thumbnail, she reminded herself how disastrous swiving Dunsmore could be for her mission. Her objectivity might be compromised, and she couldn’t chance it, not with Maman and the rest of the family at risk. She couldn’t bear it if they met the same fate as Papa.
    Emotion clogged her throat at the thought of her dear, sweet father. How she missed his kindness and wisdom. Even now, she longed for his steady, reassuring presence. With a deep exhale, she pushed the painful memories from her mind, and her resolution firmed. She must find the damning list and protect her family at all costs. She couldn’t afford any distractions. Especially not now.
    Besides, Dunsmore would likely prove disappointing between the sheets. Pascal had been a gentle and considerate lover, but, from what