The Pursuit Of Marriage Read Online Free PDF Page A

victory, my lord.” Cassie gazed coolly into Lord Berkley’s intriguing gray eyes and tried to ignore just how intriguing they were.
    “And did you win a great deal, Miss Effington?” Lord Berkley raised her hand to his lips. His gaze never left hers, in a manner both disconcerting and altogether too polished. No doubt he’d had a great deal of practice.
    “If indeed I wagered at all, why on earth would you think I had wagered on you?” She resisted the urge to pull her hand from his. Doing so would be an admission of sorts that the intimacy of her hand in his was the tiniest bit uncomfortable, and such realization would only add to the smug twinkle in his eye. The man was obviously far and away too arrogant as it was. “After all, your contest was with my brother.”
    “In truth, Miss Effington, I don’t know that you had wagered on me.” His gaze trapped hers, and she was gripped by the disturbing idea that he saw far more than other people. As if his gray eyes, his most intriguing gray eyes, looked beyond the surface of her words to the privacy of her thoughts. “I can only hope.”
    “Your words are as practiced as your manner, my lord.” She withdrew her hand from his in a most deliberate way. “But I daresay, from what I have heard about the infamous Viscount Berkley, you have had a great deal of experience.”
    Christian groaned. “Cassandra.”
    “Infamous?” Berkley raised a brow in what appeared to be surprise, then he laughed. “I don’t believe anyone has ever called me infamous before.” He flashed a grin at Lord Pennington. “What do you think, Pennington? Am I infamous?”
    “Becoming more so every moment, I should think,” Pennington said coolly. Berkley laughed again, and she ignored the nearly irresistible urge to join him. No doubt that contagious laugh was a large part of his charm. Infamous or otherwise.
    “May I ask you, Miss Effington, if you find men of an infamous nature interesting?”
    “Not in the least. Indeed, I find they should all be avoided.” She tried not to cringe at the overly prim tone in her voice. She hadn’t meant to sound quite so stuffy.
    “All of them?” His eyes widened in surprise.
    “Every one.”
    “But you have not met every one.”
    “I have met enough.”
    “You have never met me.”
    “Nonetheless, I do think—”
    “I think you should allow me the opportunity to persuade you that underneath this infamous facade is a delightful and really quite charming—”
    “I have no doubt of your charm, my lord,” she said firmly. “Nor do I have any doubt you employ it whenever possible.”
    He shrugged in a manner of feigned humility. “When one has a gift, one finds it necessary to share.”
    “When one is presented with something unpleasant in the street, one finds it necessary to avoid stepping directly in it,” she said pleasantly, gazing at him with an innocence every bit as contrived as his modesty. Christian groaned again. Pennington snorted.
    Berkley stared for a moment, then smiled slowly. A smile that crinkled the corners of his eyes and triggered the oddest sensation deep in the pit of her stomach. “Excellent, Miss Effington. Really very good. I am most impressed.”
    “I’m pleased you enjoyed it,” she murmured and tried to ignore the heat that flushed up her face. Whatever had possessed her? While she was typically forthright, she was never actually rude. Until now.
    “I did. Very much so.” Berkley chuckled. “Now, would you allow me the privilege of escorting you to the luncheon tables? I know I am famished, and surely the severe nature of your observations has honed your appetite as well as your words.”
    This time Pennington groaned, and Christian no doubt winced, although she didn’t see him. Indeed the rest of the world seemed to fade into the distance.
    Berkley’s gaze locked with hers and carried a distinct challenge. Cassie lifted her chin and met his gaze without flinching. The moment between them stretched,