Page 2 of The Rake I Wished For
Jocelyn shook her head quickly, ready to promise anything to make her mother smile again. “I won’t, Mama. I promise.”
There was a smile, but it didn’t quite reach her mother’s eyes.
“What was your mistake?” she finally asked.
Her mother sighed. “I fell in love, poppet. And that is something a lady should never do.”
Jocelyn stared uncertainly as her mother began to weep again.
Jocelyn nurse read her fairy tales at night. Stories of princesses who find their princes, and they always fell in love…
But her mother had finally explained why she wept all the time, and Jocelyn’s smile faded as she tried to make sense of it.
Her mother cupped her face in the palm of her hands, her expression suddenly earnest. Nearly frantic. “Promise me you’ll make a good match, my dear. And promise me you’ll never ever fall in love.”
Jocelyn smiled, hoping to see it reflected back at her.
But her mother didn’t smile.
Jocelyn swallowed hard. “I promise, Mother.”
CHAPTERONE
Jocelyn leaned so far forwardin her seat, her hair brushed against her opponent’s as they stared down at the chess board.
“The clock is ticking, Jo,” her opponent said blandly.
Jocelyn huffed with irritation, the action sending a lock of dark brown hair flying from where it had fallen into her face as she lifted her head to face Mr. John Harlow, her brother’s lifelong friend. “I don’t nag you when you’re thinking, Harlow.”
But far from being chastened, Harlow gave her the slow, crooked smile that madeweaker women swoon. “I’m not nagging. Merely stating a fact.” He glanced at the small clock set on the table between them.
“You’re distracting me,” she said, once more returning her gaze to the game at hand.
Fortunately, Harlow chose to lean back in his seat, giving her space to breathe.
She narrowed her eyes at the pieces on the board. Space to breathe…and strategize.
Forcing aside all other thoughts, she cleared her mind and let the pieces speak to her. Despite the clock, which was, in fact, ticking rapidly toward her time limit, she found that peace that always settled over her when she got lost in the game.
This was the reason she loved playing so much. Well, that and winning.
She really loved to win.
A few more ticks of the clock went by and then in one decisive gesture, she reached out and moved her queen. “Checkmate,” she said.
Harlow sighed. Jocelyn grinned.
Yes,thiswas why she loved playing chess.
Harlow feigned annoyance as he ran a hand through his slightly too long, dark blond hair. “Have you been practicing without me?” he accused.
She laughed. She couldn’t help it. Jocelyn had known Harlow, known rake and unrepentant charmer, for as long as he and her brother had been friends.
Which was to say, most of her life.
She knew quite well when he was really irritated—almost never, particularly with her—but his antics never failed to make her laugh.
And today, she needed that more than ever. It hadn’t been easy saying farewell to three of her newfound friends at Madame Bellafonte’s finishing school, and soon she’d have to say goodbye to her brother Liam and his wife Rose as well.
