The leather ankle boots she’d worn for riding sank into the soft sand, slowing her progress, but the wind whipped at her hair and gown, the sun gleamed on the azure water, and the scent of salty freshness filled her lungs, instilling her with a heady sensation of freedom unlike anything she’d ever known. A delighted laugh escaped her, then another, and she ran faster, kicking up golden grainy arcs of sand behind her.

She ran on toward the water, watching Dr. Oliver reach down twice for her bonnet, only to be eluded both times, before finally capturing the elusive hat by one of its long dark green satin ribbons. He was brushing sand from it when he caught sight of her running toward him. He stilled, watching her approach. She halted several feet away from him, laughing, breathless, and invigorated.

“You rescued my hat,” she said, her words coming out in breathy pants, her chest heaving. “Thank you.”

He handed her the runaway bonnet. “You’re welcome. Although I would have returned it to you. There was no need to exhaust yourself.”

“I’m not exhausted. I’m invigorated!” She threw her arms wide and spun around twice. “I have never been anywhere as refreshing as this beach. It seems as if the air is vibrating with energy. Yet, it somehow manages to also feel… serene.” She made a dismissive gesture with her hands, then laughed. “I’m afraid I cannot explain what I mean.”

He looked at her intently. “There’s no need to explain, as I understand precisely what you’re saying. It is a place that simultaneously inspires excitement and infuses the soul with peace.”

“Yes! That’s it exactly.”

A slow smile curved his lips, speeding up her heart in an altogether different way than her impromptu run. She felt bewitched by his gaze, captivated by the way the breeze ruffled his hair and how the sunlight bathed him in golden warmth. She managed to force her gaze downward, only to find herself again transfixed by the way the breeze molded his linen shirt to his chest and torso, offering a teasing hint of his masculine form that was at once entirely too much and not nearly enough.

Determined not to be caught staring again, Victoria turned her head, and her gaze fell upon a shell in the sand. She quickly pulled off her gloves, then bent down. “My first treasure,” she said as she rose, holding up the delicate pearly white shell.

“Lovely,” he murmured. She glanced at him and noted that he wasn’t looking at the shell, but at her, with that same unreadable expression. What might wipe that expression from his eyes and fill them with something easily decipherable, such as… desire?

She wasn’t certain, but she realized she wanted very badly to know.

Eight

Today’s Modern Woman must master the art of kissing, especially the hello kiss and the good-bye kiss. The hello kiss because it sets the tone for her encounter, essential when it comes to enticing and enthralling a gentleman. And the good-bye kiss because she wants to leave him with something to think about-namely her.


A Ladies’ Guide to the Pursuit of

Personal Happiness and Intimate Fulfillment

by Charles Brightmore


After fashioning a basket of sorts by tying her bonnet strings together, Victoria set her shell in her makeshift carrier, then looped the ribbons over her arm like a reticule. No sooner had she done so than she spied another shell several feet away. She pounced on the treasure, exclaiming over the unusual find. “I’ve never seen shells such as these,” she said, scooping up several more.

“And we haven’t even reached the best location this beach offers,” Dr. Oliver said.

Victoria shaded her eyes with a sandy-fingered hand and looked up at him from her crouched position. “You cannot mean that there is a better place than this?”

“That is precisely what I mean. Would you like to see it?”

“Do ducks quack?”

He laughed. “As the owner of two ducks, I can attest that they do indeed quack. Often very early in the morning when you’re not particularly eager to hear it.” He extended his hand. “Come. I’ll show you a magical place, and you may fill up your bonnet on the way.”

Victoria slipped her hand into his and allowed him to help her to her feet. Their palms only touched for several seconds before he released her, but the impact reverberated through her. His hand was large and strong and warm. She’d detected the hard roughness of calluses on his palm, an intriguing texture she’d never felt before, as none of the gentlemen of her acquaintance would ever build an animal pen or ride without gloves.

With her bending down every few seconds to pick up another shell, their progress was slow, but even if she hadn’t been adding to her collection, she couldn’t have rushed. The sound of the waves crashing against the sand and cliffs offered a hypnotic background to the dramatic scenery. After absorbing the sound for several minutes, she said, “May I ask you something?”

“Yes, although based on your tone, it sounds like a topic that might incite an argument-a pity, as we’re doing so well thus far.”

“Not an argument, but the topic is… personal.”

“Ah. Well, ask away, and I shall endeavor to satisfy your curiosity.”

“You said earlier that after your last mission failed, you had a falling out with your father and brother and that it was best for all concerned you left here.”

He looked straight ahead and a muscle ticked in his jaw. “Yes.” He turned and his gaze bore into hers. “I suppose you want to know what caused our estrangement.”

“I cannot deny I am curious, but what I actually wondered was if your return meant that the rift between you was now healed.” When he continued to simply look at her, she fell into her hated habit of babbling when unnerved. “I only wondered because I know how hurtful the severing of family ties can be. My mother was estranged from her sister and I witnessed firsthand how harmful the situation was to both of them before Mother died. I was merely hoping that your situation had been resolved.” Her words came out in a rush, and she had to physically press her lips together to stop the torrent.

A frown pulled down his brows, and he turned to once again stare straight ahead. “The rift is still there, although we’re all maneuvering carefully around it, as if it’s a pile of something we’ve mucked from the stalls and don’t wish to step in. I don’t know if the break can ever be completely healed. Trust, once broken, is difficult to repair. And words, once spoken, cannot be unheard.”

“True, but there is great power in forgiveness, for both those who extend it and those who receive it.”

“Then I shall hope that someday my brother and father can forgive me.”

Forgive you for what, she wanted to ask, but managed to hold her tongue, hoping he would volunteer the information. Nearly a minute of silence passed before he said, “The failure of that mission rests on my shoulders. Colin and Gordon were both shot and easily could have died. The jewels disappeared. It was believed that I betrayed the mission in order to secure the jewels for myself.”

“Who believed that?”

“Everyone who mattered.” The words sounded flat, bitter. “Nothing was proved against me, but the rumors were damaging enough.”

“Did you do it?”

He turned to face her, and she found herself pinned by his intense scrutiny. “Do you think I did?”

“I hardly know you well enough to say.”

“And I hardly know you well enough to admit to committing a crime.”

Victoria nodded slowly, noting that he didn’t proclaim his innocence. “So the note from my father provides information about these jewels. Information that could either reunite you with your supposed ill-gotten gains-which I’m guessing are worth a great deal…?”

“A king’s ransom,” he agreed.

“Or provide you with a way to clear your name-also worth a great deal.”

He raised a brow. “Or even better, perhaps a way to accomplish both tasks.”

“Since my father sent you this information, it seems clear he believes you innocent.”

“Does it? That’s a rather naive deduction, Lady Victoria. It is equally possible he has other reasons.”

“Such as?”

“Such as a plan to entrap me. Or perhaps to have the jewels recovered for his own financial or political gain.”

He clearly read the outrage that flooded heat into her face because before she could speak, he said, “I’m not making any accusations or even a suggestion. I’m merely pointing out that things are not always as they seem and that there is usually more than one reason or explanation for any set of circumstances.”

“That reeks of making excuses, which sounds like a convenient method for you to explain away any past indiscretions.”

Instead of looking offended, a devilish gleam sparkled in his eyes. “Surely something everyone is guilty of at one time or another. Even you, Lady Victoria.”

“I’ve done nothing for which I need to make excuses.”

“Never? A beautiful woman such as yourself? Come come, now. Surely at one soiree or another some impertinent rogue was smitten by your charms and convinced you to part with a kiss.” He tapped his finger to his chin. “Hmmm. Perhaps your suitors Lords Bransby or Dravenripple?”

“Branripple and Dravensby,” Victoria corrected in a cold voice at complete odds with the heat of embarrassment creeping up her neck. “And that is none of your business.”

“And surely afterward,” he continued, taking no note of her icy tone, “you blamed your behavior on any number of excuses rather than accepting the actual reason.”

“And what reason would that be?”

“That you found the gentleman as attractive as he found you. That you were as curious to know the taste and feel of his kiss as he was to know yours.”

Victoria often cursed her inability to think up a suitable reply until hours or days after the fact, and never more than she cursed it now. Chagrin burned her cheeks for she knew perfectly well that he referred to the passionate kiss they’d shared. And the fact that he so accurately pinpointed that she’d made excuses for her scandalous behavior only served to fluster her further. He paused to pick up a perfectly formed small conch shell which he then held up for her examination. “Shall we add this one to your collection?”

Grasping the opportunity to change the subject, she held out her bonnet and said, “It’s lovely. Thank you.”

“Something to remember me by,” he said, placing the treasure in her bonnet.

The last thing Victoria wanted was something to remind her of Dr. Oliver when her entire purpose in coming here was to erase him from her memory. But she certainly wasn’t going to tell him that. Instead, she looked at the soaring stone cliff rising before them and said, “We’re almost at the end of the beach. Are we nearing this magical place you mentioned?”

“We are. In fact, it is directly ahead of us.”

“The cliff?”

Instead of answering, he smiled and held out his hand. “Come. Let me show you the magic.”

Unable to resist the intriguing invitation, Victoria settled her hand against his. His long, strong fingers closed over hers, shooting a warm tingle up her arm. When they neared the jutting stone cliff a moment later, it looked as if he intended to walk right into the rough surface. Victoria tried to slow her pace, but he urged her onward. To her amazement, he led her into a cleverly hidden narrow crevice in the stone, so narrow they had to turn sideways to navigate it.

“Careful,” he said, moving slowly. “The rocks can be sharp in places.”

She followed his lead, stepping carefully on the hard-packed sand, avoiding brushing against the craggy black rock. The air in the narrow passage was still and cool, and the farther they walked, the dimmer the light became. The sound of the waves receded to a distant echo. The passageway widened enough to allow them to walk single file, but by then they were swallowed in complete darkness. He was no more than a foot in front of her, yet she couldn’t see him at all.

He must have felt her apprehension because he whispered, “Don’t be alarmed. We’re almost there.”

She sensed they turned a corner and was relieved to note what looked like a wan patch of light ahead. They rounded another corner, and Victoria suddenly found herself standing in a circular cavern approximately twelve feet in diameter. A swatch of pale light dimly illuminated the area, and she looked up. A small piece of blue sky was visible through an oblong opening in the stone far, far above her head.

“What is this place?” she asked, setting down her bonnet then turning in a slow circle.

“A favorite haunt of mine. I discovered it as a boy, quite by accident during one of my endless explorations. I dubbed it Crystal Cave.”