Angel's Devil Read Online Free PDF Page B

chuckled.
"Exactly. Though I hadn't realized how much of a distraction you would be.
A stranger would have done quite well, but the Devil—" Angelique stopped,
flushing. "I'm sorry," she muttered.
    "It's all
right," he murmured, abruptly wondering how she would look with her long
hair loose. He cleared his throat. "I worked quite hard to earn the
epithet."
    "So I've
been hearing," she returned.
    "Now you
disapprove of me," he said, irked that her criticism bothered him. "I
told you I've been attempting to reform."
    "To use a
clich é , talk, sir, is cheap."
    "I begin
to understand your parents' concerns, my lady.” Two could play at insults, if
that's what she wished.
    Angelique
flushed. "How dare you?"
    "You see,
my lady, I can be far more blunt than you."
    She lifted her
chin. "If this is how you become respect able, I can see why you're having
such difficulty being accepted." Angelique glanced over at Simon.
"Perhaps you need a wife to show you how to speak properly to woman."
    "Ah, a splendid idea. Perhaps you could find one for me.”
      That stopped her, as he had
thought it might. “What?"
    "A wife."
He gave a goading smile. "Someone who would suit me and my needs."
    She looked up at him suspiciously. Her eyes had small flecks of green
deep inside them, he noticed. "What would suit you then, my lord?"
    "Someone .
. . mild, and respectable, from a good family," he responded slowly, though
he found that that was no at all what he wished to say.
    "Someone
not like me, you mean," she scoffed.
    "You are
spoken for," he pointed out, wondering if Simon had any idea what a
spitfire his future bride was.
    "I am
aware of that, sir." She cleared her throat. "What other qualities
must this perfect wife possess, then?"·
    "I require
nothing else."
    "Sense of
humor, intelligence, shared interests? Beauty?”
    she pursued,
her expression becoming skeptical.
    "Not
necessary."
    She hesitated.
"Love?"
    "There's
no such thing," he returned bluntly, beginning to regret having brought up
the matter, even in jest. She asked more questions than his grandmother.
    "You don't
believe that," she protested.
    "How do
you know what I believe, Lady Angelique?" he responded coolly.   “I require a wife who will bear me an heir and
stand beside me at social functions. I do not expect, nor do I require,
anything further."
    The waltz
ended. Angelique freed her band from his grip, then after a moment wrapped her
fingers around his forearm. She looked about the room with a frown. Abruptly,
her expression cleared. "Well then, my lord, allow me to assist
you."
    "Why so
suddenly cooperative, my lady?"
    “You and I are
to be cousins, after all," she returned. “Your respectability will reflect
on me."
    "I
see." Exceedingly leery, James nevertheless allowed her to guide him to
one side of the ballroom where several young women stood.
    "Pearl?"
she said, and one of the girls turned around.
    "Angel?"
the young lady replied, obviously surprised, then looked over at James and
blushed.
    "Pearl,
may I present James Faring, the Marquis of Abbonley? My lord, Miss Pearl
Wainwright."
    "My
lord," the girl curtsied.
    "Miss
Wainwright," James acknowledged, looking sideways at Angelique. Miss
Wainwright was blond and slim, and not at all unattractive, and be couldn't
guess what Simon's chit might be up to. The music for a quadrille began, and
he glanced back at the girl. "Would you care to dance?"
    "Yes, my
lord," she responded, and took his proffered hand.
     
    As Angelique
watched them step into line with the other dancers, she barely refrained from
laughing. If all James Faring required was a quiet, proper female, she would
see that he found a plentitude. Then he would see whether affection or
attraction had any importance in his match. No such thing as love, indeed.
    "Angel,"
her mother motioned from the line of chairs set against one wall. '
    With a last
glance at the couple, Angel stepped over to the countess. "Yes,
Mama?"
    "You know
your father and I