Sarah's Duke: and Ellie's Gentleman (The heir and the spare, book 1) Read Online Free PDF Page A

allowing him to kiss her fingers as was proper, Sarah bowed down, turned his hand over and pressed her soft, warm lips to his palm instead.
    Oliver was shocked into immovability. It was only last week he had lain with a woman and yet the feel of Sarah’s kiss on his gloved hand felt more intimate, and oddly more arousing, than anything he had done with that other woman.
    “Go.” With one more backwards glance at her saviour, Sarah tucked Oliver’s cloak around her and slipped quickly into the carriage.
    Whereas Oliver took a deep breath and exhaled just as slowly. He felt like he’d been in a fight and come out the loser. His arms and legs ached and he had to wait for his carriage to come back anyway. He inclined his head at Charlotte, turned on his heel and headed towards the male-only den. Whilst he waited, he could plot all the different ways he could destroy Patrick Millington.
     
     
    Two
     
         Sarah’s mother climbed into the carriage when it stopped outside the house. She took one look at Sarah and pulled her onto the seat next to her.
         “Lay your head on my shoulder Sarah, and we will discuss this when we get home.”
         Sarah nodded and let her head fall onto her mother’s shoulder, the nights events racing through her mind as they drove through the London streets.
        When they arrived back at their rented town house, her mother excused herself and went to change into her night gown. Sarah went up to her own room, took off her ruined gown, laid it on the bed and called for a bath. If the servants minded the timing of her request, then no one said anything, and that was how her mother found her when she stepped back into the room.
    Her mother stepped into her room and stood before the tub, her chin lifted and worry lines marring her forehead as she appeared to prepare herself for the worst. “Sarah, now tell me. What happened to you tonight?”
    Well, quite simply… “I was attacked.”
    Her mother’s eyebrows rose high on her forehead making her look quite silly. She sank onto the bed with one hand at her throat as she stared at the ruined gown. An evening gown, Sarah knew, that they had saved years to pay for. Sarah was only getting one season, it was all her family could afford, and destroying her prettiest ball gown wasn’t a good beginning.
    “Tell me what happened,” her mother demanded as the colour drained from her face.
    Sarah related what had happened to her, right up to the point that Oliver had put her in his carriage. She left out Oliver’s kiss at the end of the night. Her mother didn’t need to know everything after all.
    “And you have no idea who this ‘Oliver’ is? Are you sure he can be trusted not to talk about what happened tonight?”
    Her mother was wringing her hands as she often did when she was nervous. Sarah sighed, knowing her mother could fret until she had a headache, but what was done was done now.
    “I don’t know who he was, Mamma, but he seemed to be a gentleman. I don’t think he would tell anyone about something that wasn’t really my fault. He was the brother to a Duke, I think.” She wasn’t totally sure on all the details. Everything around the time of Oliver’s kiss seemed to be a little fuzzy.
    “You think?” Her mother all but screeched.
    Sarah grimaced. Whether her rescuer was a brother to a Duke was hardly a detail that one should forget.
    “Mamma, I’m sorry, I’m still a little shaken up.”
    Her mother jumped up and reached out to her, concern written in her sad blue eyes.
    “Don’t be sorry, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have reacted like that, but you know if someone finds out... You know you’ll never make the match we were hoping for you.”
    Her mother accompanied her words with a reluctant shrug.
    “You say he was trying to... ahh... undo his breeches?” Her mother turned beet red in embarrassment.
    “Yes Mamma. That is how I managed to get away from him, because he had to let go of me for a minute.”