The Heiress - Lynsay Sands [46]
However, Richard had said he should leave and indicated he would handle things. Daniel supposed he would just have to hope for the best and go downstairs to wait and see what happened. There was very little else he could do at the moment. Shaking his head, he turned to start up the hall, but slowed as he spotted Suzette standing by her door in the hall facing him.
She looked beautiful to him in a gown of white muslin, her dark hair falling about her shoulders in soft waves. But her face was a little pale and there were dark smudges under her eyes that suggested she hadn’t slept any better than he had last night. It made her look oddly vulnerable and delicate and as he came to a halt before her he couldn’t resist reaching out to brush his fingers down her cheek.
“You look beautiful this morning,” he said quietly, his gaze settling on her lips. They were slightly swollen and rosy at the moment as if she’d been biting them with worry and he had a strong urge to kiss them better, but made himself resist the urge.
“Thank you,” Suzette murmured and managed a smile. She then blurted, “You look beautiful too. I mean handsome.”
Daniel chuckled slightly, and let his hand slip back to his side before asking, “How did you sleep?”
“Horribly, I kept fretting,” she admitted baldly, verifying what he’d suspected, and then she just flat out asked, “Are you going to marry me?”
Daniel supposed he should be surprised at such a bold question, but he wasn’t. He wouldn’t expect any less from Suzette. Smiling wryly at his own thoughts, he nodded rather than actually speak the lie. The moment he did, a whoosh of air slid from Suzette. A smile crested her lips and she threw her arms around his neck and pressed those lips to his. Daniel stilled, fighting the urge to kiss her back. He wanted to, but knew where that would lead and it wouldn’t lead to getting to know her better, unless one meant in the biblical sense. He was determined to get to know her in other ways, so reached up to catch her arms and withdrew them from around his neck so that he could urge her away.
“We need to talk,” Daniel said gently, when Suzette stepped back to peer at him uncertainly.
“Oh,” she breathed with relief. “Yes, of course.”
She glanced around and then reached for the door next to them, opened it and started in.
“We need to discuss when to leave, and I should pack and—” Suzette’s babbling died as she realized he wasn’t following and she glanced back to where he still stood in the hall and said, “Come in, my lord. There is much to discuss.”
Daniel grimaced, but shook his head. “I don’t think it’s a good idea for us to be alone for a bit. We seem to have difficulty behaving ourselves and—”
His words died as she moved back and caught his hand with a laugh to pull him into the room. “I promise I shall not throw myself at you again, my lord. I realize I must have seemed very forward last night. I can only assure you I am not normally so bold with men. In fact, I have never been that bold before in my life with anyone else.”
“I didn’t think you had,” Daniel assured her solemnly, taking several steps away to put a safe distance between them the moment she released his hand. Her lack of experience had been painfully obvious