Some Enchanted Evening by Christina Dodd Read Free Book Online Page B

Highness," Henry said.
    She threw back her head and laughed, a merry laugh without artifice, and the old men's eyes glowed.
    Benneit pleaded, "M'lord, ye'll let her come, won't ye?"
    Never . Never was Robert letting her out on her own. He would bribe her, of course, and seduce her, and finally blackmail her if it came to that, but she might balk at taking part in his scheme and he couldn't afford to lose another woman. Not so soon before the ball. "I'll bring her myself."
    She flashed him a disdainful glance.
    "The road between MacKenzie Manor and Freya Crags can be lonely," he explained gently.
    Smoothly she removed her hand from Tomas's grasp and came to Robert. Looking up into his eyes, her gaze direct and accusatory, she said, "Perhaps, my lord, you should police the road for the safety of your people as well as for that of your family."
    She wasn't afraid of him. She wasn't afraid at all. Robert's blood warmed like brandy over a flame, and he felt the heat of intoxication. He had thought the next few days would be hell. Perhaps so, but he had his own private angel to enter the flafries with him.
    She reached for Blaize's reins.
    Robert let her hands brush his. "Your advice is sound. I shall take it under consideration."
    As he stared back down at her and allowed his touch to linger, he saw her swallow. She didn't look away.
    Good. Good.
    Then Blaize nuzzled her ear as if whispering a secret, and she led the horse a few steps away, leaving a fresh scent behind her. Like . . . like fresh flowers and homey spices. Robert liked her perfume.
    "Ach, Yer Highness, it's na so bad as all that." Henry, a withered, stooped man who had once been the mayor of Freya Crags, leaned on his cane. "A couple of highwaymen are preying on travelers when they're t' be had and crofters when they're na. Bullies, both o' them; they've got a way wi' a cudgel and as long as the odds are in their favor, they're na afraid t' lay aboot them. But Lord Hepburn has put oot a patrol and that's chased them doon the road toward Edinburgh."
    Clarice cast a triumphant smile at Robert. "Then I can ride into Freya Crags without worry."
    "I fear with the advent of rich coaches on the road to MacKenzie Manor, they'll find the pickings irresistible, and return." Robert did fear that. He also rather hoped they would return, and on one of the many nights when he found sleep elusive. He would like to encounter them and explain, in exquisite, painful detail, why they should find another career. "So you see, Your Highness, why I must accompany you when you come to Freya Crags."
    "Young buck," Gilbert grumbled. "Ye're afraid we'll steal her away from ye."
    Clarice's smile froze on her face. "I'm not his."
    Robert almost — almost! — grinned. Let Gilbert get himself out of this one !
    "Nay, I didna mean that, Yer Highness, I meant . . ." Gilbert glanced frantically at his cohorts.
    Hamish rescued him. "Ye must know fascinating stories, Yer Highness."
    She glowered at Robert as if this were his fault.
    He raised his eyebrows in studied innocence.
    "For instance," Hamish persisted, "how did ye come to own such a magnificent horse?"
    "Isn't he beautiful? He's part Arabian, part Beaumontagnian, and one of the finest beasts I've ever been privileged to ride." She petted Blaize as if he were a large dog and not a gigantic horse whose hooves could crush her into the ground. "He was a gift from my father, the king."
    The falsehood rolled off her tongue, Robert noted, with the ease of practice. That pleased him, as did the faint, indefinable accent and the husky note he found — indeed, every man must find — so appealing. She was a liar, an accomplished liar, and he needed her to complete his mission.
    Her gaze rested on Henry, who was swaying as if standing for so long had exhausted him. Turning to Robert, she said, "I'm ready, my lord." She was solemn when she spoke to him, a marked difference from the gaiety she shared with the old men. Turning back to her new friends and