By Love Undone by Suzanne Enoch

only slightly embarrassed by the whole worshipful crowd, and not at all out of sorts.
    “What shall I do with all the flowers they’ve given me?” he asked, as they returned to the curricle.
    “I always make them up into a bouquet for your uncle’s room,” she said, dumping the empty baskets back into the carriage.
    He examined the substantial handful of spring wildflowers for a moment, then met her eyes. “These are usually meant for you, then,” he said, and held them out to her.
    “Don’t be silly,” she said, embarrassed, and turned for the mercantile shop. No man had ever given her flowers before. Not even Charles. And she certainly had no intention of accepting a gift from the Marquis of Warefield. “We’d best put in an order for those planks.”
    “But I want you to have them,” he insisted, not moving.
    Maddie sighed heavily to cover her sudden discomfiture. Damn him for unsettling her so . Making a show of annoyance, she turned back around and took the bouquet from his fingers. “Thank you.” She placed them in one of the baskets and faced him again. “May we go now?”
    He smiled at her, though she couldn’t see what in the world he was so pleased about. She’d only give them to Mr. Bancroft once they returned to Langley.
    “By all means,” he said, gesturing her to precede him. “Let’s order those planks.”
     
    The next morning Malcolm had fresh roses in his bedchamber, which meant that Maddie either had kept thewildflowers for herself, or thrown them away. But she had accepted them from him, and without a negative comment.
    Considering the opposition she’d been putting up, Quin felt a bit like Wellington at Waterloo. Perhaps the victory wasn’t as definitive, nor as spectacular, but nevertheless he whistled as he rode out to the fields. She’d been in hiding all morning and had failed to appear for breakfast altogether. Most likely she was licking her wounds and readying for another attack—but Quin had been doing some battle planning of his own.
    There was something about her—something he needed to pursue. He didn’t quite know whether it was out of curiosity, or because he was, after all, a male and she was lovely. But the more skeptically she viewed him, the more determined he became to erase that look from her face.
    He dismounted, leaving Aristotle to graze in the meadow while he headed for the group of farmers. Better yet, he wanted the opportunity to show Maddie Willits that not all of the nobility were as pompous as she apparently thought. And he knew just where he’d like to prove that to her, as well. In his bed, with her long auburn hair swept out across the white pillows, and….
    “Look out, my lord!”
    Quin blinked and stepped back just in time to avoid being run down by a very large plow horse. The nearest of the fanners eyed him, but immediately went back to clearing the field when he looked in their direction. He shook himself and bent down to clear a few of the last stones out of the plowed earth.
    He was helping unload sacks of seed when he realized he’d forgotten about Eloise’s correspondence. Rarely did he answer her letters on the same day he received them;he was often extremely busy, and besides, it seemed somewhat weak-kneed of him to do so. After all, he was not a dewy-eyed romantic, and he had had an understanding with Eloise since they were children. But forgetting completely was entirely uncharacteristic.
    Remembering Maddie’s harsh words about his concern over his uncle, Quin made a point of returning to the manor for luncheon with Malcolm. Again Maddie was nowhere in sight. “Where is Miss Willits this afternoon?” he asked offhandedly.
    “Potting.”
    Quin looked up. “Beg pardon?”
    “In the garden shed,” Malcolm explained. “Maddie’s roses have become quite popular in Somerset. They’re in great demand in the spring, so she roots cuttings and sends them to the neighbors.”
    So she didn’t hate everyone, then. Just