Maybe… just maybe… There could be something more.
The thought terrified him. She was his responsibility. The daughter of a man who had trusted him to keep her safe, to see her properly settled. And yet, as she lay against him, warm and trusting and perfectly right in his arms, he couldn’t bring himself to care about propriety or duty or what society expected.
He lifted her chin gently, tilting her face up toward his. Their eyes met, and he saw his longing reflected there, mixed with something that looked like hope and fear in equal measure.
“Evelyn…” he said softly, her name a prayer on his lips.
She blinked up at him, her lashes still damp with tears. She smiled—not the sharp, challenging smile she usually wore, but something soft and inquisitive and entirely for him.
The space between them seemed to shimmer with possibility. He could feel the warmth of her breath against his skin, could count the flecks of gold in her dark eyes. Her hand was still covering his, where it rested against her cheek, her thumb moving in small, unconscious circles against his knuckles.
Time seemed suspended. The fire crackled softly in the grate. Rain continued its gentle assault against the windows. And between them, the air grew thick with unspoken words and impossible wishes.
He leaned closer, drawn by a force stronger than duty or reason. Her eyes fluttered closed, her lips parting slightly in invitation. The scent of jasmine enveloped him, and he could taste the promise of her kiss in the air between them.
“I—” he began, not knowing what he meant to say, knowing only that this moment felt like the precipice of everything.
And then—hoofbeats. A loud crack of a carriage door.
The spell shattered like crystal. Nathaniel jerked back, his heart hammering against his ribs. Evelyn’s eyes flew open, wide and startled, her hand falling away from his.
He stood and crossed to the window, his heart still racing, as he tried to steady his breathing and quell his treacherous thoughts.
“Someone’s here,” he said, his voice rougher than he intended.
She joined him, peered out, and gasped.
“Oh no,” she groaned.
“Who is it?”
She sighed and shook her head, already moving away from the window, away from him. “My father.”
CHAPTER 19
Before Evelyn could come to grips with what was about to happen, her father flew through the front door, marching past the startled butler who blinked with confusion. Rain droplets still clung to his traveling coat. His boots left muddy prints across the Persian carpet as if he owned the very ground beneath his feet.
Evelyn’s stomach dropped. How long had it been since she last saw him? Months, not weeks.
She had known this moment would come, but seeing him here—in the flesh—made her feel suddenly, sickeningly vulnerable.
“Evelyn,” he said, his voice carrying that familiar tone of paternal disappointment mixed with iron authority. “Gather your belongings. We are leaving. Immediately.”
She remained exactly where she stood, though her hands trembled at her sides. Behind her, she felt Nathaniel step closer, his breath on her neck.
“Father,” she said, surprised by how level her voice sounded. “How… unexpected.”
“Unexpected?” His pale eyes flashed with anger. “What is unexpected is finding my daughter living in such circumstances. The entire ton is talking, Evelyn. The scandal you have brought upon our family name is?—”
“The scandal I have brought? I did exactly as you requested. I married the old man you chose. I fulfilled my duty.”
“Your duty,” he sneered, “was to provide your husband with an heir. Instead, you managed to be widowed within hours, in record time. And now, rather than returning home like you should have, you have taken up residence with another man entirely.”
“That man,” Nathaniel’s voice rose, “is standing right here. And I would appreciate being addressed directly rather than spoken of as though I were not present in my own home.”
Her father turned, and for the first time, seemed to notice Nathaniel.
“Your Grace,” he said with a bow that managed to be both technically correct and dismissive. “I trust you understand my position. A father must look after his daughter’s reputation.”
