His Lady Mistress

Elizabeth Rolls101Curse it! How could he ever have any sort of trust or affectionfor her when she had trapped him? And as for herridiculous claim that she now didn’t wish to marry him! Whatnonsense!A movement beside him caught his attention. Miss Scottappeared to be wiping her eye. Wonderful! Now she wasgoing to cry at him. Cynically he waited to hear the inevitablesob. And waited.With a curse he pulled up the horses and set the brake.There were a few things that they might as well have clearbetween them right now. Such as that he would not be manipulatedby a few spurious tears. He’d had quite enough ofthat in his life, thanks very much. Setting his hands to hershoulders, he swung her around to face him. And froze asshe jerked her face away. He had seen enough.Her eyes were red and swollen, her cheeks stained withtears. He could even see the marks where her underlip hadbeen gripped between her teeth. All he had intended to sayto her fled in the face of one scorching question: for howlong had she sat there beside him, weeping silently? Hehadn’t even known a woman could cry silently. How did sheintend to manipulate him if he couldn’t hear her?And she looked exhausted, her face white and the greyeyes wreathed with shadows. Yet she had been sitting spearstraight beside him. What to say? Anger at her still grippedhim, but he reached out to put his arm around her shoulders,to draw her to him. He couldn’t help it. His whole angry,confused being cried out in protest before those shattered,reddened eyes.She jerked back from him. Again.Without a word, he released the brake and set the horsesin motion. Of all the things he resented about Verity Scott atthat moment, the most excoriating was that she had madehim feel like the lowest of scoundrels.Never before had Max driven into London delighted toknow that his Aunt Almeria was in residence. Usually it took