Bound by Bliss Read Online Free Page B

blue eyes. The man, Lord Paul, he thought, blushed, and then as if moving under a spell held out his arm and led her toward the dance floor.
    Bliss took a step forward, standing several inches too close to Lord Paul and peering up at him from beneath lowered lashes.

    Duldon felt his palms begin to tingle.
    Yes, the girl was looking for trouble and if she wasn’t careful she just might find it.
    He sighed inwardly. He’d warned more than one young gentleman away from Bliss and by the end of this night it might be time to warn another.
    His eyes swept about the room. Lord Dunston was busy flirting with one of Blankmore’s daughters. Mr. Middleham was at the punch bowl. Lord Temple—Lord Temple was staring at Bliss with a little too much fervor in his gaze. It might be time to have another chat with the man. He did seem to be about far too often for it to be merely coincidence.
    Bliss was his.
    She might not be ready to admit it, but she would soon.
    She’d given herself to his care when she’d asked him to marry her and he’d never forgotten it. She might have been twelve at the time and convinced that marriage would gain her his best racer, but from that moment on she’d been his, his to protect, his to care for, his to…
    When she’d been twelve and he twenty the feelings had been protective and brotherly.
    They might still be protective, but there was nothing brotherly about them now, and hadn’t been for several years.
    Bliss reached out and brushed something from Lord Paul’s cheek as the dance began.
    Duldon slammed a palm hard against his thigh.
    No, he was not dull and soon he’d be demonstrating to Miss Danser just how mistaken she’d been. He might never reveal his true inclinations to her, but that didn’t mean she would not know his displeasure.

Chapter Two
    It wasn’t working. No matter how fast she spun, how fast she twirled, Lady Perse’s glance of disapproval stayed with her. And it wasn’t as if she could twirl in every dance. Most young ladies longed for waltzes, but Bliss dreaded them. They were so slow and required her to place far too much of her attention upon her companion. She was trying to forget about men, not…
    Maybe that was where her plan had gone wrong. She shouldn’t be trying to forget about men, she should be trying to find one, to find the right one. She needed a man who was interesting, but not too interesting, a man who would leave her to be herself and place few demands upon her, a man who would be happy with her wealth and name and want nothing else. That was what she needed in a husband.
    And how was a girl supposed to find a husband if she didn’t pay attention to the men about her? No, from now on she would consider each one carefully.
    She glanced up at her companion, slightly surprised to find she was dancing with Lord Temple. How had that happened? She was normally more careful; he did have a habit of appearing far more often than she was comfortable with. The man had long fingers that reminded her of snakes in a bucket and like snakes they had a habit of slipping into places they did not belong. And he liked to pinch, and pinch hard. She never danced with him if she could help it. Just how distracted had she been?
    And she certainly wasn’t marrying him—not that she thought he’d risk rejection again. One of her refusals was normally enough. And besides, she might have the expectations of a small fortune and one priceless pearl necklace, but from what she understood Temple needed enough funds to purchase a small country if he were ever to free himself from debt. And while he might sometimes give tingles, they were most definitely the most unpleasant of tingles, not at all like…No, she was not thinking about him . She would stop her thoughts at the fact that Lord Temple was definitely not the man for her.

    It was a pity she hadn’t paid more attention to Lord Paul when she asked him to dance. He was very pleasant and had a wonderful sense of humor. He