about mess it up?”
Clearing his throat, Harrowby stifled a delayed chuckle. “Not at all, I rather think you were more accurate regarding my dependant s ’ expectations with your initial assessment.”
He laughed aloud then and Kate ’s breath caught. Damn, she had known that he would be gorgeous if he smiled and he was. His lips parted revealing straight white teeth that flashed in contrast again st his t ann e d skin. The dimples appeared and the crow’s feet deepened around eyes that danced with humor. Oh, Lordy, she thought. He is a hotty.
Catching herself before she began to sigh dramatically and ogle the earl, Kate pushed herself from the chair. “Well, I will leave you laughing then. I better go find the others and let them know I’m not in trouble. It was nice talking to you, Mr.… my… err, Harrowby. May I just call you Brand? ”
With brows raised, Harrowby meant to sound a denial but instead felt himself nod.
“Thanks, Brand. You have a nice day, okay?”
Her name escaped her lips easily as if formality and titles meant nothing to her . P erhaps they didn’t, he realized. The Americans had a very diverse perspective on England’s nobility. E ither they fawned over the nob i lity in a most piteous way or they treated them as if they were just another person. While h is experience with American wome n had always been those of the former inclination, perhaps Kate was simply one of those rare few who dismissed a noble’s title as unimportant. She simply didn’t care.
Liking that idea more than he should, Harrowby watched Kate stroll to the door, her bustle and skirts swishing behind her. She had a very nice figure. He had noticed as much the night before. Nicely round ed in all the right places without seeming plump. Tall enough not to make his height awkward in comparison, she had fit just right in his arms allowing him to kiss her without bending his neck too far.
Her dark brown hair was like mahogany though there were dozens of lighter streaks running through it creating a cacophony of color he had never seen on a woman. He could make out each and every one of them, too, for unlike all the other women he knew, she wore her hair simply bound at the back of her head. No complex knots or braids, just a tail of hair about a foot long that swung behind as she walked like a pendulum.
Why did she wear it that way? Why did she walk and talk and move like she did? They were questions he wanted answers to though he couldn’t say why . She roused a curiosity in him, an intrigue that he had n’t felt in a very long time. But Harrowby knew in his position as master of this house, that he couldn’t continue fraternizing with the help. It would cause talk and gossip among the staff and bring speculation down upon Kate that could make her life very uncomfortable here and if he had understood her well enough, she had nowhere else to go.
Therefore, he should leave her alone, the earl told himself once again. Let her lose herself into the bowels of this mausoleum of a house and he wouldn’t have to see her again. It was what he should do, what he knew he should do, but still…
“ Miss Kallastad?” A pause. “ Kate ?”
“Yes, Brand?” S he stopped and looked at him over her shoulder, her cat-like green eyes reflecting the sunlight from the windows as she stared at him in that disconcertingly direct fashion she had.
A thousand questions sw am through his mind. Things he wanted to ask. Answers he desperately wanted to know. He wanted to know her. It was inappropriate given his role as her employer. Wrong , given the expectations that were facing him.
Shaking himself back into the role of earl, Harrowby simply said, “It was nice talking to you, as well.”
Kate flashed him a rueful smile and left , shaking her head … .
…as if, she knew those were not the words he wanted to say.
Chapter Twelve
A week
Clearing his throat, Harrowby stifled a delayed chuckle. “Not at all, I rather think you were more accurate regarding my dependant s ’ expectations with your initial assessment.”
He laughed aloud then and Kate ’s breath caught. Damn, she had known that he would be gorgeous if he smiled and he was. His lips parted revealing straight white teeth that flashed in contrast again st his t ann e d skin. The dimples appeared and the crow’s feet deepened around eyes that danced with humor. Oh, Lordy, she thought. He is a hotty.
Catching herself before she began to sigh dramatically and ogle the earl, Kate pushed herself from the chair. “Well, I will leave you laughing then. I better go find the others and let them know I’m not in trouble. It was nice talking to you, Mr.… my… err, Harrowby. May I just call you Brand? ”
With brows raised, Harrowby meant to sound a denial but instead felt himself nod.
“Thanks, Brand. You have a nice day, okay?”
Her name escaped her lips easily as if formality and titles meant nothing to her . P erhaps they didn’t, he realized. The Americans had a very diverse perspective on England’s nobility. E ither they fawned over the nob i lity in a most piteous way or they treated them as if they were just another person. While h is experience with American wome n had always been those of the former inclination, perhaps Kate was simply one of those rare few who dismissed a noble’s title as unimportant. She simply didn’t care.
Liking that idea more than he should, Harrowby watched Kate stroll to the door, her bustle and skirts swishing behind her. She had a very nice figure. He had noticed as much the night before. Nicely round ed in all the right places without seeming plump. Tall enough not to make his height awkward in comparison, she had fit just right in his arms allowing him to kiss her without bending his neck too far.
Her dark brown hair was like mahogany though there were dozens of lighter streaks running through it creating a cacophony of color he had never seen on a woman. He could make out each and every one of them, too, for unlike all the other women he knew, she wore her hair simply bound at the back of her head. No complex knots or braids, just a tail of hair about a foot long that swung behind as she walked like a pendulum.
Why did she wear it that way? Why did she walk and talk and move like she did? They were questions he wanted answers to though he couldn’t say why . She roused a curiosity in him, an intrigue that he had n’t felt in a very long time. But Harrowby knew in his position as master of this house, that he couldn’t continue fraternizing with the help. It would cause talk and gossip among the staff and bring speculation down upon Kate that could make her life very uncomfortable here and if he had understood her well enough, she had nowhere else to go.
Therefore, he should leave her alone, the earl told himself once again. Let her lose herself into the bowels of this mausoleum of a house and he wouldn’t have to see her again. It was what he should do, what he knew he should do, but still…
“ Miss Kallastad?” A pause. “ Kate ?”
“Yes, Brand?” S he stopped and looked at him over her shoulder, her cat-like green eyes reflecting the sunlight from the windows as she stared at him in that disconcertingly direct fashion she had.
A thousand questions sw am through his mind. Things he wanted to ask. Answers he desperately wanted to know. He wanted to know her. It was inappropriate given his role as her employer. Wrong , given the expectations that were facing him.
Shaking himself back into the role of earl, Harrowby simply said, “It was nice talking to you, as well.”
Kate flashed him a rueful smile and left , shaking her head … .
…as if, she knew those were not the words he wanted to say.
Chapter Twelve
A week
Similar Books
