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“We thought so, too, but everyone checked out.”
At least her family’s protectiveness made a bit more sense now. He just hoped it didn’t interfere with his plans. It could be difficult courting a woman who wasn’t allowed to leave her home.
“Enough about my family drama,” she said, waving the subject away like a pesky insect. “What is your family like?”
“Simple,” he said, then quickly added, “Not intellectually. But they prefer to live a … humble lifestyle.” One that didn’t include him.
“What do your brothers do?”
“Two own a business together in England. They sell farming equipment. My youngest brother is something of a … wanderer. Last I heard he was working a cattle ranch in Scotland.”
“I’d like to meet them,” she said, with an eagerness that surprised him. “Maybe they could all come to the castle for a visit.”
Considering he was trying to impress the royal family, that probably wouldn’t be wise. “I’m not so sure that would be a good idea.”
She frowned. “You’re not ashamed of them?”
Once again, her directness surprised him. “I’m afraid it’s quite the opposite.”
Her eyes widened. “They’re ashamed of you?”
“Maybe not ashamed, but they’re not very pleased with the path I chose.”
“How is that possible? Look how well you’ve done. All that you’ve accomplished. How can they not be proud?”
He’d asked himself that same question a million times, but had long ago given up trying to understand their reasoning. He no longer cared what they thought of him. “It’s … complicated.”
She patted his arm. “Well, I think you’re amazing. The instant I saw you I knew you were special.”
He could see that she truly meant it, and in an odd way he wished he could say the same of her. He was sure that Louisa was very special in her own right, and maybe someday he would learn to appreciate that.
“Tell me the truth,” she said. “Did my family scare you off?”
He could see by her expression that she was genuinely concerned, but he was a man on a mission. It would take a lot more than a grilling by her siblings to get in his way.
He gave her arm a squeeze. “Absolutely not.”
Her smile was one of relief. “Good. Because I really like you, Garrett.”
Never had he met a woman so forward with her feelings, so willing to put herself out on a limb. He liked that about her, and at the same time it made him uncomfortable. He was taught by his father that showing affection made a man weak. If he loved his sons, his father never once said so.
But Garrett had the feeling that if he was going to make this relationship work, he was going to have to learn to be more open with his feelings. At least until he had a royal title and Louisa had a ring on her finger.
He smiled and said, “The feeling is mutual, Your Highness.”
Four
Louisa gazed up at Garrett, looking so sweet and innocent. So … pure. He felt almost guilty for deceiving her.
“I think at this point it would be all right for you to call me Louisa,” she said.
“All right, Louisa.”
“Can we speak frankly?”
“Is there ever a time when you don’t?”
Her cheeks blushed a charming shade of pink and she bit her lip. “Sorry. I have this terrible habit of saying everything that’s on my mind. It drives everyone crazy.”
“Don’t apologize. It’s a welcome change. Most women play games.” Unless this was some sort of game she was playing. But his instincts told him that she didn’t have a manipulative bone in her body.
“You should know that I’m not looking for a temporary relationship. I want to settle down and have a family.” She stopped walking and looked up at him. “I need to know that you feel the same. That you’re not just playing the field.”
“I’m thirty-seven years old, Louisa. I think I’ve played the field long enough.”
“In that case, there’s something else I should probably mention.”
Why did he sense that he wasn’t going to like this?
“We should talk about children.”
She certainly didn’t pull any punches, although oddly, he was finding that he liked that about her. “What about them?”
“I want a big family.”
He narrowed his eyes at her. “How big?”
The grip on his arm tightened, as though she was worried he might try to make a run for it. “At least six kids. Maybe more.”
For a second he thought she might be joking, or testing him, then he realized that she was dead serious.
Six kids? Bloody hell, no wonder she was still single. Who in this day and age wanted that many children? He’d never felt the desire or need to have one child, much less half a dozen of them! Marrying a royal, he knew at least one heir would be expected. Maybe two. But six?
Despite his strong feelings on the matter, he could see by her expression that this was not a negotiable point for Louisa and he chose his next words very carefully. “I’ll admit that I’ve never given any thought to having a family that large, but anything is possible.”
A bright and relieved smile lit her entire face and he felt an undeniable flicker of guilt, which he promptly shook off. This was business. Once they were married, he would lay down the law and insist that two children at most would be plenty and she would eventually learn to live with that. Or maybe, after the first child or two, she would change her mind anyway. He’d seen the way his parents struggled with a large family, the emotional roller coaster rides. Who would want to subject themselves to that?
Louisa gazed up at him, a dreamy look on her face. “It would be okay if you kissed me now,” she said, then added, “If you want to.”
Oh, he wanted to. So much that it surprised him a little. The idea had been to wait until their second date before he kissed her, to draw out the anticipation. Did she intend to derail each one of his carefully laid plans? “Are you sure that’s what you want?” he asked.
“Just because my family treats me like a child, that doesn’t mean I am one.”
There was nothing childish about her, which she proved by not even waiting for him to make the first move. Instead, she reached up, slid her hands behind his neck, pulled him down to her level and kissed him. Her lips were soft but insistent, and she smelled fantastic. Delicate and feminine.
Though he had intended to keep it brief, to take things slowly, he felt himself being drawn closer, as though pulled by an invisible rope anchored somewhere deep inside his chest. His arms went around her and when his fingers brushed her bare back, what felt like an electric shock arced through his fingers. Louisa must have felt it, too, because she whimpered and curled her fingers into the hair at his nape. He felt her tongue, slick and warm against the seam of his lips and he knew he had to taste her, and when he did, she was as sweet as candy.
He was aware that this was moving too far, too fast, but as she leaned in closer, pressing her body against his, he felt helpless to stop her. Never had the simple act of kissing a woman aroused him so thoroughly, but Louisa seemed to put her heart and soul, her entire being, into it.
To him, self-control was a virtue, but Louisa seemed to know exactly which buttons to push. Not at all what he would have expected from a woman rumored to be so sweet and innocent. Which had him believing that she really wasn’t so sweet and innocent after all.
Her hands slipped down his shoulders and inside his jacket. She stroked his chest through his shirt and that was all he could take. He broke the kiss, breathless and bewildered, his heart hammering like mad.
Louisa expelled a soft shudder of breath and rested her head against his chest. “Now that was a kiss.”
He couldn’t exactly argue. Although the whole point of this visit had been to prove to her family that his intentions were pure, yet here he was, practically mauling her out in the open, where anyone could see. If someone was watching, he hoped they hadn’t failed to notice that she’d made the first move and he’d been the one to put on the brakes.
She nuzzled her face to his chest, her breath warm through his shirt. He curled his hands into fists, to keep from tangling them through her hair, from drawing her head back and kissing her again. He wanted to taste her lips and her throat, nibble at her ears. He wanted to put his hands all over her.
“It probably isn’t proper to say this,” Louisa said, “but I can’t wait to see you naked.”
Bloody hell. He backed away and held her at arm’s length, before he did something really stupid like drag her into the bushes and have his way with her. “Do you ever not say what’s on your mind?”
“I just gave you the censored version,” she answered with an impish grin. “Would you like to know what I’m really thinking?”
Of course he would, but this was not the time or place. “I’ll use my imagination.” He glanced up at the darkening sky and said, “It’s getting late. I should get you back inside.”
“Lest I turn into a pumpkin,” she said with a sigh and took his hand, as naturally as if they had known each other for years, and they walked down the path toward the castle.
“I had a good time tonight,” he said.
“Me, too. Although I get the feeling that I’m not quite what you expected.”
“No, you’re not. You’re more intriguing and compelling than I could have imagined.”
As she smiled up at him, he realized that was probably the most honest thing he’d said all night.
Louisa stood in the study, watching as Garrett’s car zipped down the drive, until the glow of his taillights disappeared past the front gate.
She sighed and rested her forehead against the cool glass. This had been, by far, one of the best nights of her life. Kissing Garrett had been … magical. Even if she had been the one to make the first move. Later, when he had kissed her goodbye, it was so sweet and tender she nearly melted into a puddle on the oriental rug.
He was definitely the one.
“He’s using you.”
Louisa whipped around to find Anne leaning in the study doorway, arms folded across her chest, her typical grumpy self. Typical for the last week or so, anyway.
“Why would you think that?” she asked.
“Because that’s what men like him do. They use women like us. They feed us lies, then toss us aside like trash.”
Louisa knew that, like herself, Anne hadn’t had the best luck with men, but that reasoning was harsh, even for her. “Are you okay, Anne?”
“He’s going to hurt you.”
Louisa shook her head. “Garrett is different.”
“How do you know that?”
“How do you know that he isn’t?”
Anne sighed and shook her head, as though she pitied her poor, naive sister. Louisa would have been upset, but she knew that attacking her was Anne’s way of working through her own anger. Not that she didn’t get a little tired of being her sister’s punching bag.
“I can take care of myself,” Louisa told her.
Anne shrugged, as though she didn’t care one way or another. Which she must, or she wouldn’t have said anything in the first place. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
“Did something happen to you?” Louisa asked, and she could swear she saw a flicker of pain before Anne carefully smothered it with a look of annoyance.
“You think that just because I don’t like Garrett, something is wrong with me?”
“You can talk to me, Anne. I want to help.”
“You’re the one who needs help if you think that man really has feelings for you.” With one last pathetic shake of her head, Anne turned and left. Her sister was obviously hurting, and Louisa felt bad about it, but she wished Anne would stop trying to drag Louisa down with her. Why couldn’t Anne just be happy for her for once?
Maybe she was jealous. Maybe Anne wanted Garrett for herself. Or maybe, like Louisa, she wanted someone to love her, to see her for who she really was. Even though Anne could be a real pain in the neck sometimes, deep down there was a sweetness about her, a tender side, and she was loyal to the death to the ones that she loved.
“You’ll meet someone, too,” Louisa whispered to the empty doorway, knowing with all her heart that it was true. Even though Anne was a little pessimistic and occasionally cranky, there was a man out there who would appreciate all her gifts and overlook her faults. He would love her for who she was, just the way Garrett would love Louisa.
Worried for her sister, she started out the door, intending to collect her Shih Tzu, Muffin—who had spent the afternoon with his groomer and behaviorist—and tell him all about her day, but she ran into Chris in the foyer.
“Poker game over already?” she asked. Typically they played well past eleven. Louisa didn’t play cards, unless you counted War and Solitaire, but occasionally she liked to sit and watch them.
“Melissa was tired and Liv wanted to get back to the lab. Some new research project she’s working on. I assume your evening was a success.”
She smiled and nodded.
“Have you got a minute?”
“Actually, I was just on my way to get Muffin.”
His expression darkened. “I suppose you heard what your little mutt did to the pillows on the library sofa. There was stuffing everywhere.”
She cringed. “Yes. Sorry.”
“The day before that it was Aaron’s shoes.”
“I know. I offered to replace them.”
“He’s a menace.”
“He just wants attention.”
“What he’s going to get is a nice doghouse in the gardens.”
Even if she thought Chris was serious, that wouldn’t work either because every time Muffin was let outside unsupervised he made a run for it.
“I’ll keep a closer eye on him,” she promised. “What did you want to talk about?”
