A Perfect Groom Read Online Free PDF Page A

candlelight. With a single, practiced stroke of the eye, Justin’s gaze encompassed the room full of partygoers, the sea of shimmering ball gowns and elegant coiffures…until at last it settled across the room.
    “I see you’ve found her.”
    Justin responded with a lift of his brow. “I daresay you were right. She’s impossible to overlook.”
    “Yes, she is that, isn’t she? And I see she’s garnered her usual audience.” Gideon snared two glasses of champagne from a white-gloved servant, handing one to him. “Silly young pups! Fools, all,” intoned Gideon, “that they fancy themselves in love.”
    Love. For the swell of a heartbeat, an odd emotion churned in Justin’s gut. It wasn’t that he was incapable of that tender emotion. But he knew no woman could ever love him .
    “So what was it if not love that sent you sniffing about the lady’s skirts?” he inquired.
    Gideon’s half-smile left him in no doubt.
    Justin’s regard returned to the woman across the room. He’d noticed her right off, and it wasn’t just the brightness of her hair that set her apart from every woman here tonight. Gideon was right, he surprised himself by admitting. The Unattainable was exceptionally tall for a woman, yet she didn’t shirk from it or try to hide it. A twinge of reluctant admiration cut through him. She carried herself like one who was proud of it — and God knew, she carried it well.
    She was gowned in ice-blue satin, a shade that should have clashed hideously with her hair, yet didn’t. The empire waist fell in soft, delicate folds to the toes of her slippers. It made no secret of the fact that her breasts were delectably full and high on her chest. God knew he was a man who was an ardent admirer of bountiful, curvaceous breasts. Her shoulders were slim but broad for a woman, which somehow made the column of her neck, long and slender, appear all the more feminine, particularly when she tilted her head as she did just now. A froth of curls spilled over her shoulder, onto the generous expanse of her bosom.
    Desire stirred, a dark stab in his middle. Her legs would be fashioned like the rest of her, he decided, long and slim and lithe, strong enough to wrap around his hips as he drove inside her. Granted, it was just as he’d told Gideon. He wasn’t partial to redheads. And he’d always avoided virgins like the plague. But this one…
    He had to stop himself from taking an involuntary step forward. He only caught himself just in time! For the first time tonight, he experienced the ripeness of anticipation. He’d yet to gain a glimpse of her face, just a hint of her profile, which held a great deal of promise, her figure a great deal of allure. No, he wasn’t worried. His taste in women, as in everything, was fastidious. He wouldn’t bed a toad and Gideon knew it. Ah, yes, he reflected in mute satisfaction, to win this wager would be no hardship at all.
    Gideon had noted his appreciation. “Stunning, isn’t she?”
    There was no need to answer. “Well,” Justin murmured almost lazily, “I suppose it’s time I sent the pups scattering.” Suddenly he laughed.
    “Bedamned!” he said. “No need to bother after all. She’s ducked behind the column near the dining room. And now another young woman has joined her —”
    “Yes, that’s Georgiana Larwood, I believe.”
    “No wonder she’s known as The Unattainable. It appears she’s determined to evade them. Or perhaps someone in particular.”
    “Probably you,” injected Gideon with a smirk.
    “Highly improbable,” Justin said smoothly. “Now, wish me luck, old man.” He drained his champagne and placed it on the tray of a passing footman. “Oh, and don’t bother calling for details early in the morn. I fear the night may be a long one.”
    Gideon hastened to help himself to another glass of champagne. “Ah, the master at work! Perhaps I should take notes.”
    “Oh, I’m certain you’ll find another diversion.”
    Justin ambled across