Passionate Read Online Free PDF

withdraw my offer.”
    Damnation. Taking along a botanist made sense, and Sir Edward was the only botanist James knew that was willing to travel. The only botanist he knew, period. If there was to be any hope of success, the man needed to be included. But his family?
    James thought of the fresh-faced Richard. He had handled his horse well this morning by the front gate, and without aid of a saddle. His sister, Isabelle, had also shown herself to be adept. But riding skills were not enough. In Africa they might well face things more dangerous than a charging artist with bared legs. At the very least, the family would make travel excruciatingly slow.
    He turned to Sir Edward. The man’s eyes shone with hope and desire. Perhaps the same desire that had led James’s grandfather to discover the valley in the first place. James brushed his hair back with his fingers.
    If the journals had by some miracle survived, then a delay of a week or two would hardly matter. If they had not, then speed would make no difference at all—except to his sanity.
    “Very well,” he said. “But your hounds are staying behind.”
    Sir Edward reached out and shook his hand heartily. “You will not regret it. We will find the valley, collect the flower, and perhaps even recover your grandfather’s lost journals. I do not doubt that we will be successful, Mr. Huntington. Not for a moment.”
    “We are agreed, then?”
    “We are agreed.” Sir Edward rolled the map and replaced it in its tube. “But enough business—my appetite tells me it is time for tea. Come and meet my niece, whose work you were admiring, and the rest of my family.”
    James walked with his host to the door of the library then paused. “There is one more thing. It, well, it has to do with the Duke of Hereford’s son…”
    “In the rump!” Sir Edward chuckled as he opened the door.
    “Yes, your uncle was kind enough to inform me.”
     
    Lily’s maid helped her peel the green riding-habit off.
    “Toss it out, Bess. I never want to see that dress again.” It was too much a reminder of that mortifying meeting by the front gate. Lily stepped into the steaming bath and sank down with a sigh.
    “What happened, Miss?”
    “I’d rather not discuss the matter. Please, bring more hot water from the kitchens.”
    Lily squeezed the sponge over herself, rinsing until the last memory of mud had left her skin. If only the memory of Mr. Huntington’s gaze could be washed away as easily. She lay back and rested her neck on the rolled rim, but could not relax. The humiliation still hummed through her. It simply was not done, to let an unknown gentleman see so much. What must he think of her!
    She prayed he had finished consulting with her uncle and returned to wherever it was he came from. She would feel more settled when she knew he was no longer beneath the same roof. And even better knowing that she would never have to encounter him again.
    “Miss? The family will be gathering for tea in a half-hour. I have heated towels for you.”
    Lily rose from the tub. It would be easier if she could plead a headache and remain in her room, but after her fall that would cause undue concern. Aunt Mary would insist on calling the doctor. No, she would have to join the family. Surely Mr. Huntington would be as eager as she to avoid an awkward second meeting.
    Or would he?
    There had been an unmistakable flash in his eyes as his gaze had followed the curve of her thigh. It was a look not easily forgotten. It haunted her still, causing the incident to play and replay in her mind.
    The tension in Lily’s shoulders eased as she entered the drawing room. There was no brown-haired man waiting to turn his knowing gaze on her, only her cousins and aunt, and Mrs. Hodges, Isabelle’s governess-turned-companion.
    “Come, sit, my dear,” Aunt Mary said. “I heard you had a difficult morning.”
    “Difficult may be understating it. But I feel much better now.”
    Mrs. Hodges glanced up from her