Page 12 of The Good Girl's Guide to Rakes
She bit back a yelp as he pressed a finger to his lips.
Her pulse thundering in her ears—it wasn’t every day that she encountered astoundingly handsome rakes in a modiste’s fitting room—she managed to whisper, “What in heaven’s name are you doing?”
“Waiting for you.” He flashed her a smile so devastating in its charm and attractiveness, she pressed herself into the corner of the little chamber.
And itwasa very small area, barely more than five feet by five feet. Hardly any distance separated her from Kieran. He wasn’t exceptionally tall, andpossessed a lean frame, but he still managed to take up most of the space by sheer presence.
“How did you get back here?” she demanded lowly.
His smile widened. “They know me at Madame Jacqueline’s.”
“Little surprise,” Celeste muttered. A man with Kieran’s reputation was likely familiar with the fitting rooms of every ladies’ shop between here and Paris. “And you bribed Dolly and madame, of course.”
“Of course.” The rascal actually winked at her, and her perfidious heart sped up in response.
“It’s almost admirable, your network of cohorts and conspirators.” She was rather impressed with how she managed to keep the giddiness from her voice, but it was not an inconsiderable struggle. She’d never been alone with Kieran Ransome before. Every part of her, from her body to her mind, was in eager disarray.
It trulywasa problem that he was so handsome. He’d inherited his mother’s black wavy hair and dark eyes, over which slashed a pair of dramatic and thick brows. His mouth was wide and full, as arresting as his other bold features, including a strikingly proportioned nose and hewn jawline.
Both Ransome brothers were exceptionally attractive, but it had always been Kieran who made her feel dizzy and breathless and aware of every inch of skin on her body.
She envied her brother for many reasons—his gender, which permitted him a freedom she could never have, and his ability to push against Society’s constraints by doing whatever he pleased, wheneverit pleased him. But she also envied Dom’s time spent with Kieran Ransome. She could never hope to spend more than five minutes alone in Kieran’s company, not if she wanted to maintain her own rigidly patrolled reputation.
Today, however, was proving the exception.
“I cannot fathom what might possess you to engage in such a complex scheme,” she whispered.
“They aren’t precisely throwing wide the doors to the Kilburn home,” he answered. “Not to me, at any rate, and not in the current climate between our families.”
“I do recall my father using some language to describe you that harkened back to his time on the London docks.”
“I’ve earned every single one of Mr. Kilburn’s epithets.” A corner of Kieran’s mouth hitched up. “And in such a pungent atmosphere, I deemed it wisest to reach you through more secretive means.”
It was rather thrilling, to have him go through such lengths forher. And to be unescorted with him like this, so clandestinely.
Still, half a lifetime of behaving in the most circumscribed manner made her ask, “Are you certain you haven’t mistaken me for one of your sophisticated paramours?”
“Impossible.” His disbelieving laugh wasnotflattering, with all of its implications.
“Why seekmeout?” She folded her arms over her chest.
His expression sobered. “You’re aware of the ultimatum your father and my parents have placed onme, Finn, and Dom. That we all must find brides of good repute within a year or we’re to be cut off.”
“I’m aware.”
How could she not be? Dom had moved back home a little over a fortnight ago, and thunderous arguments between him and their father had ensued. Since their mother had passed away five years ago, the lack of Ma’s soothing, mitigating presence was acutely felt whenever Dom and their father were together. The trouble was that Dom and Ned Kilburn were far too much alike, and loved each other deeply, resulting in almost constant conflict. Though Dom was poised to join the family business, contention was ever present between father and son, especially because Dom seemed to enjoy flouting convention at every opportunity. His preferred methodology had been tearing a path through London’s wilder corners with the Ransome brothers, but now that carousing had to come to a stop.
Not that ithad, not for Dom.
“Then you understand my need for a respectable wife,” Kieran said.
She held up her hands, warding him off. “I’mnot going to marry you.”
“Oh,God, no,” he answered at once.
Well, that was also exceptionally unflattering.
“Dom knows precisely what manner of scoundrel I am. If I married you, he’d use my entrails as a necklace.”
