‘I’m Hazelmere.’
A blunt statement of fact. For a moment she thought she had not heard aright. But that face, arrogant amusement deeply etched in the lines about the strong mouth, surely belonged to no one else?
She had heard the rumours. Their old friend, Lady Moreton, whose estate encompassed these woods, had died while they were at Darent Hall. Her great-nephew, the Marquis of Hazelmere, had reputedly inherited Moreton Park. The news had set the district abuzz. In a small county backwater the possibility that one of the acknowledged leaders of the ton might be the new owner of a major local estate was, in any circumstances, likely to generate a certain amount of curiosity. When the person in question was the Marquis of Hazelmere the curiosity was frankly rampant.
The rector’s wife had primmed up her mouth in a most disparaging way. ‘My dear! Nothing on earth would induce me to acknowledge such a man! Such a shocking reputation! So notorious!’ When Dorothea had, not unnaturally, asked how this reputation had been gained, Mrs Matthews had suddenly recalled to whom she was speaking and rapidly excused herself on the pretext of passing around the scones. At Mrs Mannerim’s she had heard such charges as gambling, womanising and general licentiousness laid at the Marquis’s door. Although she was inexperienced in wider society, common sense was her forte. As Lord Hazelmere continued to grace the ton presumably the gossip, as usual, was exaggerated. Besides, she could not imagine the eminently respectable Lady Moreton having a licentious great-nephew.
Dragging her mind from contemplation of his mesmeric hazel eyes and long sculpted lips, she rapidly revised her opinion of the Marquis of Hazelmere. Put simply, the man was even more dangerous than his reputation indicated.
Her thoughts had flowed across her face, a clear procession from initial bewilderment, through dawning realisation, to awed and scandalised comprehension. The hazel eyes glinted. To a palate jaded by an unremitting diet of society’s beauties, on whose simpering faces no trace of genuine emotion was ever permitted, the beautiful and expressive countenance was infinitely attractive.
‘Precisely.’ He said it to see if she would blush so delightfully again and was amply rewarded.
Dorothea indignantly transferred her gaze to contemplation of his left shoulder. She was hardly short, but her topmost curls barely reached his chin. Which left his chest, very close, at eye-level. Nothing in her limited experience had taught her how to deal with a situation like this. She had never felt so helpless in her life!
With her attention elsewhere, she missed the deepening curve of the severe lips which had so recently claimed hers. ‘And precisely what is Miss Dorothea Darent doing, trespassing in my woods?’
The proprietorial tone brought her head up again, as he had known it would. ‘Oh! You have inherited the Park from Lady Moreton!’
He nodded, reluctantly releasing her and almost imperceptibly moving aside. The hazel eyes did not leave her face.
Relieved of the distracting intimacy, she paused to gather her wits. In a manner as imperious as she could muster she replied, ‘Lady Moreton always gave her permission for us to gather whatever we wished from her woods. However, now that you own the Park-’
‘You will, of course,’ Hazelmere interposed smoothly, ‘continue to gather whatever you wish, whenever you wish.’ He smiled. ‘I will even undertake not to mistake you for the blacksmith’s daughter next time.’
Dorothea swept him a contemptuous curtsy, green eyes flashing. ‘Thank you, Lord Hazelmere! I’ll be sure to warn Hetty.’
The comment stumped him, as she had intended. She turned to pick up her basket. Still mentally adrift from the after-effects of that kiss, she hastily concluded that in this instance retreat was the better part of valour. She had reckoned without Lord Hazelmere. ‘And who, exactly, is Hetty?’
Arrested in the act of ignominious flight, she gathered together the shreds of her composure to reply acidly, ‘Why, the blacksmith’s daughter, of course!’
Under her fascinated gaze the striking, almost harsh-featured face relaxed, the satirical amusement replaced by genuine delight. Laughing openly, he put out a hand to grasp the basket, preventing her from leaving. ‘I think we’re quits, Miss Darent, so don’t run away. Your basket is only half full and there are plenty of berries left on this bush.’ The hazel eyes were quizzing her, his smile disarming. Sensing her hesitation, he continued, ‘Yes, I know you can’t reach them, but I can. If you’ll just stand there, and hold your basket so, we’ll soon have it full.’
It dawned on Dorothea that her qualifications to deal with the gentleman before her were inadequate. Unwise in the ways of the world, she had no idea what she should do. On the one hand, the rector’s wife would expect her to withdraw immediately; on the other, curiosity urged her to remain. And, even if she did make up her mind to go, it was doubtful whether this masterful creature would allow her to leave. Besides, as he had positioned her here with the basket in her hands and was even now filling it with the choicest berries from the top of the bush, it would hardly be polite to walk away. Thus reasoning, she remained where she was, taking the opportunity to more closely inspect her tormentor.
Her initial impression of quiet elegance owed much, she decided, to the excellent cut of his shooting jacket. Honesty then forced her to acknowledge that broad shoulders set atop a lean and muscular frame significantly contributed to the overall effect of masculine power only superficially cloaked. His black hair was cut short in the prevailing mode and curled gently over his brow. The hazel eyes, so appropriate, she thought, in the Marquis of Hazelmere, were disconcertingly direct. The decidedly patrician nose and firm mouth and chin declared that here was a man used to dominating his world. But she had seen both eyes and mouth soften with humour, making him appear much more approachable. In fact, she decided, his smile would be utterly devastating to young ladies more impressionable than herself. Then, too, there was that subtly attractive aura, which fell into the category of subjects no well-bred lady ever discussed. Remembering his reputation, she could find no trace of dissipation. His actions, however, left little doubt of the existence of the fire that had given rise to the smoke.
Correctly guessing most of the jumble of thoughts going through her head, Hazelmere surreptitiously watched her face from the corner of his eyes. What a jewel she was! The classically moulded face framed by luxuriant dark hair was arresting in itself. But those eyes! Like enormous twin emeralds, clear and bright, they mirrored her thoughts in a thoroughly beguiling way. Her lips he had already sampled-soft and yielding, deliciously sensual-and he could readily imagine developing a fascination for them. The rest of the package was equally enticing. Nevertheless, if he was to further their acquaintance he would have to go carefully.
Removing the loaded basket from her hands, he retrieved his hunting rifle from the opposite side of the clearing. Correctly interpreting the question clearly written on her uncertain face, he said, ‘I’m now going to escort you home, Miss Darent.’ Inwardly grinning at the mutinous expression that greeted this calm pronouncement, he continued before she could speak. ‘No! Don’t argue. In the social circle to which I belong, no young lady would ever be found out of doors alone.’
The pious tone made Dorothea’s eyes blaze. Lord Hazelmere’s tactics were proving extremely difficult to combat. As she could find no ready answer nor see any way of altering his resolve, she reluctantly fell into step beside him as he started down the path.
‘Incidentally,’ he continued conversationally, pursuing a subject guaranteed to keep her on the defensive, ‘satisfy my curiosity. Just why are you wandering alone in the woods, without the presence of even a nitwit maid?’