To Tempt An Angel (Book 1 Douglas series) by Patricia; Grasso Read Free Book Online Page A

amusing? Sacred sevens , the plague must bring tears of mirth to your eyes.”
    “I never heard anyone apologize to a dead man before,” Robert told her. “I find your kindness endearing.”
    “Thank you.”
    In silence, Angelica watched him work. Though their task was morbid, she couldn’t help but admire the way he looked by lantern light. Those borrowed evening clothes fit him as perfectly as if they’d been custom-made for him.
    A perfect specimen of manhood, Robert Roy had dropped into her life like Prince Charming coming to her rescue. Perhaps someday, when her revenge was complete, they could have a life together. She had no dowry and never expected to catch any man’s attention.
    “Thank you, God,” Angelica whispered her thought out loud.
    “Did you say something?” Robert asked, and held the shovel out to her.
    “No,” she answered, blushing.
    Without complaint, Angelica took the shovel out of his hand. She pitched it into the mound of earth and then tossed the dirt with such ferocity that she toppled headfirst into the grave.
    Robert laughed and pulled her out, saying, “You don’t know your own strength, angel.”
    Angelica smiled in spite of being covered with dirt. Robert lifted the shovel out of her hands and finished filling the grave. Together, they replaced the flowers the mourners had left for Mr. Lewis
    “Thank you for your help,” Angelica said, settling herself onto the carriage again.
    “The pleasure was mine.”
    The sky had lightened considerably by the time they reached the cottage. Dawn was only moments away.
    First, Robert and Angelica disposed of Mr. Lewis’s burial clothes. Then they watered the horses.
    “Is there anyplace we can wash?” he asked.
    For a long moment, Angelica worried her lip in indecision. She should probably retire now and send him home, but she couldn’t bring herself to part from him.
    “There is a stream on the other side of the woods,” she told him.
    “We don’t need the lantern,” Robert said, glancing up at the brightening sky. “We do need soap, though.”
    Surprising them, a cake of soap flew out of a bedroom window. “Darlings, wash the grime away before you come inside,” Aunt Roxie called, her smile feline in the growing light.
    Robert chuckled. “I think your aunt likes me.”
    Already walking toward the woodland, Angelica blushed and said nothing. Her aunt was an incorrigible matchmaker, bent on seeing her penniless nieces well-placed in marriage.
    Oak and beech trees stretched their ancient limbs and thrust green fingers skyward. Lush foliage in every shade of green lay on either side of the well-worn path, and wildflowers mingling with moss scented the air in the woodland. Emerging from the woods, Angelica saw that the morning mist on the stream was beginning to dissipate.
    Graceful willows with drooping limbs dotted the banks of the stream, and Angelica reached out to touch one. “I love these trees,” she murmured.
    Robert and Angelica sat down at the stream’s edge to remove their boots and stockings. He stood first pulled his shirt over his head, and then dropped his breeches.
    Sacred sevens, the man is naked, Angelica thought, staring with wide eyes at his backside. He looked nothing like Mr. Lewis.
    Mesmerized by his masculine beauty, Angelica admired his broad shoulders, his tapered waist, his tight buttocks. What would it feel like to have his strength pressing her down? She snapped her eyes shut when he moved to turn around.
    “Were you planning on bathing,” Robert asked, “or blushing yourself clean?”
    Angelica heard the laughter in his voice, but her mind remained humiliatingly blank. No witty reply slipped from her lips, nor could she summon the courage to look at him.
    “You’re naked,” she said in a choked whisper.
    “Yes, I am,” he agreed. “Do you bathe with your clothes on?”
    Angelica shook her head but kept her eyes shut.
    “There’s nothing to fear,” Robert assured her. “The cold water