Bronwyn Scott's Sexy Regency Bundle (160 page)

Scott

hope and, in his experience, hope was a dangerous thing, especially for a desperate man.

Beside him, Julia stirred, her hair loose and warm from the sun. She was beautiful and he felt his body surge, wanting to take her again and lose himself in her.

But he was a man of honour now, and he could not justify such selfishness again.

'How long did I sleep?' Julia asked, raising up on one

'Not that long. half-hour,' Paine said carelessly. He reached for the hamper. 'Hungry?'

He waited until they'd finished off the picnic before bringing up the subject plaguing him. He smiled as Julia wiped her hands on a cloth napkin. Even outdoors with bare feet she had good manners. He'd known from the first she was a lady, a real lady.

'Julia, we have to talk about our future,' he began.

Julia looked up from folding her napkin, a small frown knitting her brow. 'I thought we'd agreed not to talk about Oswalt today.'

Paine shook his head. 'This is not about Oswalt. This is about us. You and me.' He rushed on before she could break in or misunderstand him. 'I must apologise for what happened on the blanket. We should have talked about this before anything like that happened. Our agreement has been fulfilled and I don't want you to feel obligated to have sex with me as any further part of our relationship.'

He felt awkward saying the words with Julia. In the past, he'd talked about sex quite conversantly with

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Notorious Rake, Innocent Lady

numerous women. In his past liaisons, such negotiations had been commonplace.

Julia

at his frankness. Then she surprised

him, putting her hand over his where it rested in his lap.

'You have done me an enormous service by bringing me here. Without knowing me, you have offered yourself as my protector. It never crossed my mind that you were a man to provide those services and expect an exchange of favours.'

'Perhaps it should have,' Paine said wryly. 'You know what I am, how I live. I'm a dark rake. I sleep with hundreds of women and play in the underworld. I am thoroughly debauched by the ton's standard.'

Julia gave a soft laugh. 'So they all say. I am hard pressed to believe it. They don't understand you.' She looked down at her lap, biting her lip in contemplation.

'Paine, I owe you an apology. I came to you for sordid reasons, but even so, you've treated me with far more respect than what I reserved for you. I looked at you through society's eyes and I misjudged you.'

'And now, Julia? What do you see?' He was heady with desire, swamped by it, in fact. He exhaled heavily, fighting her effect on him. She had no idea how much he wanted to wrap his body around her.

She reached up to stroke his cheek. 'I see a good man who hides his true self from others.'

There it was.

Was it possible that in one sentence, she'd seen what everyone had missed? Julia made him think the impossible-that he could be saved, drawn back from

Scott

the abyss, that perhaps he could offer her more than he thought.

He wrapped a strand of her heavy hair around a finger. 'Why do you think that is?' he mused.

Julia shrugged. 'I don't know. I am sure this good man has his reasons.'

'No, that's not what I meant,' Paine whispered.

'Why is it that you see a good man when everyone else sees a rake?'

Julia tilted her head and gave him a contemplative smile. 'I'm not the only one who sees it. Your family sees it, too.' She tugged at him. 'Now, make love to me because you want to. No more talk of agreements, Paine.'

Chapter Thirteen

was waiting for them, for him, when they got back. Paine hid a smile. Peyton wasn't overtly waiting for them in the foyer, that wasn' t his style. But he'd been on the lookout for them. The sudden hustle of servants upon their return indicated as much. Paine would have bet good money he'd barely turned into the stable yard before news of his

reached Peyton in the study.

The door to the study was open. It would be difficult to get by there without being seen. This was, of course, what Peyton had planned. Paine turned to Julia in the wide main hall and nodded towards Peyton's open door.

'I need to see my brother. Will you excuse me?' There were many things he and Peyton had to talk about. He wasn't ready to have Julia hear the family laundry aired and he wasn't sure how diplomatic Peyton would be about it. But he was ready to face it, armed with Julia's confidence and a new sense of hope.

Paine saw Julia up the stairs and then strode towards