“Looks like we have quite a bit in common,” the woman said with a grin as she glanced toward Lydia’s hair. Out of instinct Lydia touched it and then she realized that beneath the hooded cape the woman wore, she too had bright red hair.
Lydia laughed. “So we do.”
The woman’s smile fell when she glanced over Lydia’s shoulder, but it was bright once more as she turned back to Lydia. “Must be off. Sorry again!”
And then she was scurrying away as Lydia got to her feet, looked down to brush off her skirts and then—
“There you are.”
She froze, her gaze still down on the ground. That voice. She’d heard it so many times in her memory these last few days, she’d recognize it anywhere.
Her heart slammed against her ribcage and for a moment, she thought about running. But she’d frozen in place for too long, because she felt his shadow fall over her before his feet came into view.
“I’ve been looking all over the city for you,” he said.
Her head snapped up and her gaze met his, which was incredulous. And for a moment, her heart stopped. Her lungs seized. Her belly did a fantastic flip before diving down to her toes.
He’d been looking for her.
The world seemed to spin and for a moment she felt as if she’d tumbled headfirst into one of her novels.The dashing hero falls head over heels for the damsel in distress…
She blinked, coming to her senses when he stepped closer.
He was a stranger. She had no reason to believe he was a hero. She was not so foolish as to believe that a handsome face meant he was pure of heart.
And besides, she was no damsel.
Shy, yes. But she didn’t need saving.
So, with his next step forward, she took a bigger step back. Reason finally fully restored.
“Don’t run.” He held his hands up, palms out. His voice was soothing like he was speaking to a spooked colt.
Who are you?She wanted to ask.
Actually, there were a dozen questions that filled her mind, but her tongue refused to budge.
Drat. She resisted the urge to stomp her foot in frustration.
And then he smiled, the curve of his lips making her heart give a harsh thud. “You have no idea how glad I am to see you.” His smile remained but now she noticed that glimmer in his eyes.
Curiosity, perhaps. Or something far more clever...
The look wasn’t quitedeviousbut it still set her on edge and cut through that silly, dreamy, swoony sensation brought on by his smile and his words.
“I think it’s time we talked, you and I. Don’t you?” His voice was soft and warm, and Lydia was fairly certain it melted over her.
Talk. He wanted her totalk?
The thought had a hysterical laugh rising up in her before she could stop it and it came out as a high, embarrassing giggle. She clamped her mouth shut as his brows arched in surprise, his smile seeming more genuine.
“Is that so amusing?”
No. Of course not. But then again she thought of what he was asking ofher.Lydia. The shy, awkward, bookish girl best known for disappearing behind curtains and hiding behind ferns.
And he wanted her to talk. To him. The most dashing man she’d ever met.
He was waiting for her to speak. Heat snuck up her neck and into her cheeks. The most dashing man she’d ever met?
