The Perfect Temptation Read Online Free

thighs
    within casual glance! It was
patently obvious that he had
    abandoned the major tenets that
ruled the public conduct
    of gentlemen. The man was a
rake at best At worst, an unabashed
    hedonist
     
    Yes, she should have spoken up when
asked if she had any
    concerns about or objections to the arrangements Mr. Stanbridge
    had made. She should have said
that she preferred to
    avoid being in the presence of
John Aiden Terrell if at all
    possible, that he made her feel
really quite ...
     
    Well, frightened wasn't
entirely accurate. He was so very
    different from all the other
gentlemen she'd ever met that
    she couldn't help but be a bit
intrigued by him. Her heart
    skittered when she met his gaze
and she held her breath every
    time he opened his mouth to
speak. And the way he moved ...
     
    Good God, the man was nothing
short of a feast for brazen
    eyes. It was all most
unsettling. Yes, Alex decided, "unsettled"
    was the proper word. John Aiden
Terrell made her feel
    horribly unsettled. She should
have said that when Mr. Stanbridge
    had asked for any objections.
     
    But she hadn't said anything of
the sort Terrell had goaded
    her until stubborn pride and
dignity had seized control of her
    better judgment Now she was stuck
with him for the immediate
    future. The only recourse was to
make the best of the
    situation, to remember that
protecting Mohan came before all
    other considerations. H Terrell
proved himself to be anything
    short of stellar at the task. she
wouldn't hesitate to send him
    packing back to his employer.
With any luck at all, he'd be
    on his way before sunset
     
    The door of the rented carriage
opened and Terrell, his
    sun-burnished head uncovered,
bounded in and dropped unceremoniously
    onto the opposite seat. "I
presume," he said,
    stuffing his hands into the pockets
of his greatcoat, "that
    you've instructed the driver as
to your address?"
     
    The vehicle began to roll even as
be asked and so she refused
    to dignify the question with an
answer. Instead, having
    decided that there was no time
like the present to finally establish
    her authority as his employer,
she said, "I wish to be
    absolutely clear on one point at
the very outset, Mr. Terrell.
     
    While in Mr. Stanbridge's office
you referred to my situation
    as desperate. It's not. It's
merely vulnerable. There's a significant
    difference between the two."
     
    One tawny brow slowly rose to
disappear under the hair
    tumbling over his forehead. A wry
smile lifted one comer of
    his mouth and dimpled a
handsomely chiseled cheek. ''The
    difference, Miss Radford,"
he countered dryly, "between vulnerable
    and desperate is generally about
a half-second.
     
    Which is roughly the time it
takes for someone to pull a
    trigger."
     
    "No one from India is going
to use a firearm," she replied,
    struggling to contain her
irritation. ''A blade of one sort or
    another would be the weapon of
choice. It's tradition."
     
    ''And does that bit of reality
make you feel better?"
     
    "I have been trained in the
defensive arts," she supplied,
    meeting his gaze unflinchingly.
     
    "Are you proficient enough
that you could turn an attacker's
    weapon against him?"
     
    It depended entirely on the skill
and determination of the
    assailant. A small child or a
cripple might have reason to
    think twice
before launching an assault against her, but no
    one else would. Still, she wasn't
prepared to share the truth
    with the likes of the tiger in
the opposite seat. "I assure you,
    Mr. Terrell," she said
evenly, "that I would be able to delay
    any attacker long enough to
afford Mohan the chance to escape
    capture."
     
    He considered her as a smile
tugged at the comer of his
    mouth. Finally, he asked,
"Would he take it or would he stay
    to help you?"
     
    The man had all the persistence
of a rat terrier. And none
    of the charm. "Mohan has
been instructed to run away under
    such circumstances."
     
    "You didn't answer the
question," he observed with a
    slight shake of his head.
"You