Secrets for Seducing a Royal Bodyguard Read Online Free PDF

answer carefully.
    “I’ve not allowed you a moment’s pause since we escaped the caves,” he replied. “I needed to assess your degree of injury.”
    She frowned. What odd phrasing. “I have a notion you’re not being completely truthful with me, Mr. St. George. What, exactly, worries you?”
    He exhaled a quick puff of breath. Not a laugh, really, but something close to it. “Why Lady Vivien, what in the world could we possibly have to worry about?”
    She couldn’t help starching up. “As happy as I am to serve as a source of amusement to you, sir, I would appreciate an answer to my question.”
    He pulled her an inch closer. His mouth skimmed the crown of her head, and she shivered again, swearing he’d just brushed his lips against her hair. But that couldn’t be right. Perhaps he was simply adjusting his seat, which would not be unlikely given the size of his—
    Don’t think about that.
    “Forgive me,” he said, all trace of amusement now absent from his voice. “Thus far we’ve been extremely fortunate to escape without raising the alarm. With a little luck, we’ll reach my carriage and be on the road back to London before your abductors track us down. But if something should occur—”
    She must have made some kind of noise, because he gave her a reassuring squeeze.
    “—if something should occur,” he carried on in a calm voice, “I need to know what more you can tolerate. You’ve been through a grave ordeal already, after all.”
    Vivien’s throat grew tight once more, but this time with gratitude. It had been so long since anyone, especially a man, had worried about her. That this stranger’s brave kindness should affect her so deeply surely said something about the quality of her relationships, and not in a way that could mean anything good.
    “I’m quite well, sir,” she managed to reply. “Whatever is required of me to complete our escape, I will gladly do it.”
    “I have no doubt of it, my lady,” he said.
    The approval in his voice brought warmth flooding to her limbs and her heart lifted. On the heels of those lovely sensations, however, came caution. St. George had made it clear they were still in peril and more might be asked of her.
    A quiet voice in her mind issued an additional warning, too. If she wasn’t careful, she was in danger of elevating her rescuer to some exalted, almost godlike status. That would be a mistake. He was clearly composed of flesh and blood and could be injured or shot, even killed, as easily as she could. And there hadn’t yet been a man she could depend on since her father died, not even her beloved Kit. As much as she loved her little brother, he had a tendency to make life both complicated and difficult, and to fail her when she needed him most. As for Cyrus, her elder brother, the less said the better.
    No, St. George had taken her this far, and she had no doubt he would do his best to see them safely the rest of the way home. True, he was formidable, resourceful, and handsome—not that handsome figured into the equation, of course—but she’d learned long ago not to put all her eggs in one basket. It was best to have some kind of plan to fall back upon, in case something bad did happen to them . . . to him.
    She drew in a shaky breath, trying to think. But after pondering a few moments, she decided that more information was required to formulate a workable plan. She had questions, and perhaps St. George had some of the answers.
    “Mr. St. George,” she began, “do you have any idea who—”
    “Hush,” he murmured against her hair. “We’re nearly there, but let’s make sure we arrive in one piece. We’re not out of danger yet.”
    Vivien froze. She hadn’t noticed, but the trees had thinned out. A moment later, they broke from the forest and the shadowy outlines of a hamlet came into view. Only a field and a few hedgerows stood between them and civilization. Two days ago she would have laughed to call such a place civilization,