It Takes a Hero Read Online Free PDF Page A

was of you to come all this way," she repeated, her brows arched in annoyance. "Very generous, indeed."
    Of course she was annoyed. He was staring again.
    Rafe shook his head, not so much at her question, but at his own odd thoughts. Naked spinsters? What was he thinking?
    Perhaps there was something to Cochrane's fears about this village and its matchmaking reputation. He hadn't been here more than five minutes and already he was seeing a seductress in the guise of a spinster.
    Cochrane would probably say that was how it always started…
    "Nothing so generous," he told her. "Actually this charming village was hardly out of my way and I make it a habit to lend a helping hand when I can. Besides, when my friend spoke so highly of Miss Briggs, I knew I'd be only too delighted to make her acquaintance." He supposed he was laying on the charm a bit thick, but perhaps this as yet unsusceptible miss wasn't going to be such a challenge to charm after all.
    He couldn't have been more wrong.
    "Indeed," she mused, crossing her arms over her chest. "Now was that Miss Mary Briggs or Miss Millicent Briggs?"
    Rafe coughed. "Two of them?" Just his bloody luck.
    "Perhaps it says inside the packet," she said, holding out her hand. "You can trust that we are both the epitome of discretion."
    The postmistress nodded enthusiastically.
    Yes, and he was about to be named a Knight of the Garter.
    "Mary Briggs," he said, offering up one of the names. Besides, if he was wrong, there was always his next course of action—bribing the innkeeper and explaining to Cochrane that his next meal would not be forthcoming.
    Miss Tate nodded. "Of course! Miss Mary Briggs would make more sense. If you would like, I am sure Miss Stone would see your packet delivered promptly and you could be on your way."
    While her lips curved sweetly, her eyes held all the predatory wiles of a cat stalking its prey.
    "No, it really isn't any trouble," he said, tucking the papers back into his jacket for safekeeping.
    "And it would be no trouble for Miss Stone, for in truth, it is her job," the insistent miss said, folding her arms across her chest. "Especially since, I assume, you have no real business here."
    Little minx
, Rafe thought. With little or no effort she'd boxed him into a corner—challenging his story and essentially calling him a liar—all the while with a pleasant, deceptive smile on her face.
    Mierda
, he cursed silently, reverting to his mother's native language.
She was more wily than Napoleon
.
    Rafe almost felt sorry for the man who woke up and found himself matched to this termagant.
    Then again, it was no wonder she was still
Miss
Tate. For what did it say about a lady when she couldn't even find a husband in Bramley Hollow?
    The postmistress picked up her friend's cue. "You must be in a hurry, sir. Please feel free to leave Miss Briggs' packet with me and I will see it delivered to her forthwith."
    The pair of cats smiled at him, looking as innocent as two young country misses could. Why he could almost smell the sweet roses and fresh manure behind their offer to help him.
    "I thank you, ladies," he said. "But I fear I am under strict instructions to deliver the packet to Miss Briggs personally."
    "Yes, I suppose you would want to do that," Miss Tate said, her eyes sparkling with new mischief as she slanted yet another glance at her friend behind the counter. And not to be diverted from her self-appointed mission to aid him, she then turned and said, "Mr. Danvers, if you are under such strict directions, then please allow me to take you to Miss Briggs."
    "Rebecca!" Miss Stone whispered. "What are you doing?"
    "Offering to help this man," she said to her friend while smiling at Rafe.
    "Oh, you needn't go to any bother," he insisted, having never meant something more in his life, though he suspected his protest wouldn't matter in the least to this Miss Tate. The pushy miss was determined to make his business her business. "Perhaps you could just give me