Bronwyn Scott's Sexy Regency Bundle (257 page)

156

The Viscount Claims His Bride

again, on equal with Trewithen and

He cited

two large, nearby estates famed for their botany.

Valerian sobered a bit. 'I was gone a long time and this place shows it.'

sensed he was scolding himself. She wanted to say something to ease the guilt she heard in his voice, but what could she say? She had no idea why he'd stayed away so long. She'd always thought he'd liked being away, that it had been a choice. Now, something in his tone indicated it might have been otherwise.

Valerian shook himself and his smile returned.

'Would you like to see inside? See what you're up against? Beldon won't be back until supper.'

Valerian had been right-the house did need a lot of work.

made mental notes as they strolled

through the large, airy rooms of Roseland. Beeswax and lemon could only do so much. Wallpapers were faded and needed replacing. Curtains were dusty.

She wouldn't know how deteriorated they would be until they'd had the dust beaten out of them. Carpets were thin with wear over time. But she was up to the challenge. She'd cut her teeth on Cambourne's townhouse in London and had turned it into a showcase for his works of art by the time she was finished.

Valerian threw open the double doors leading to the

was not ready for the rush of

memories the empty room evoked. The room itself was not special. The floors were scarred from years of hard dancing, the polish having worn away. The paint was faded, chipped in places. Curtains hung

Scott

limply at the long

windows that lined

the far side. The niches where enormous crystal vases could stand, filled with flowers from Roseland's hothouses, were empty. The room's only piece of furniture, a long pianoforte, was covered with a dust cloth in the far comer.

No, the room was nothing spectacular. In fact, it was just short of shabby. But to her eye, she was twelve again, seeing the ballroom for the first time.

'I remember you bringing me here,'

said

softly, drifting into the centre of the room.

Valerian followed her in. She was acutely conscious of his presence behind her. He gave a warm laugh. 'You declared this your favourite room in the house. You told me that yellow was the best colour for a ballroom.'

'And I was right,'

teasingly protested.

'Look how well it has weathered the years.'

'You tried very hard that day to cheer me up,'

Valerian said quietly.

'I don't remember.'

replied awkwardly.

She didn't want him to do this-to be so nice, so to make her believe she hadn't imagined the man she'd once known. Of course, she did remember, quite vividly, what she'd done to cheer him up.

'I remember.' Valerian swung her around to face him and swept her into his arms. 'You danced with me, you talked the whole time about all the parties we'd hold here later, how

would be a

happy place again.'

'I must have been very annoying,'

said,

158

The Viscount Claims
His
Bride
startled to find herself in his arms, his body moving them into the opening turns of a silent waltz. Good lord, he was irresistible. How was she to stop her heart from loving him in spite of her better judgement?

'Val, is this wise?'

asked, letting him

whirl them down the length of the ballroom floor at an exhilarating pace.

'We won't run into anyone. We're quite alone.'

'Don't be glib, Val. I am well aware that we're alone. That's what has me worried. We can't fall in love again, or whatever you want to call it.'

Valerian brought them to a hard stop. 'What are you saying?'

Better to eat her pride now rather than later, thought. 'If you invited me here to help with decoration efforts, that's all right. However, if you invited me here with other intentions, perhaps those of a-a-a-romantic

sort.. .

paused, groping for the right phrasing. But there wasn't any. 'If you invited me here to seduce me or romance me, or to relive an

of your youth, I'll

have no part of it.' She shook her head. 'I understand what constitutes a relationship with you and I can't do it. I loved you all those years ago and I fear that I could love you again. I would be devastated when you left. I wouldn't survive such heartache again.'

She gathered the courage to meet his eyes after her foolish speech, feeling much more like an eighteen-year-old girl than a full-grown woman of twenty-seven.

'Shh.' Valerian put a finger to her lips, his voice

Scott

a mere whisper. 'What if I told you I loved you, that I never stopped loving you? That the night I played the jilt, it was all a lie? That is what all your worries are based on, isn't it?'

wild hope surged in her, raising all kinds of confusion. Did she dare to believe these fantastical claims? Then she remembered and her hope fell.

'And the women, Val? Was all your wenching on the Continent a lie too?' she asked in a sad, teasing tone, trying for a brave smile.

'They were a fool's stratagem to try to forget what I had left behind,' Valerian whispered, his eyes pleading for a chance.