Page 11 of An Unforeseen Kiss (Captivating Kisses #4)

M iss Snow intrigued Val.

More than she should have.

She had entered the drawing room, catching his eye immediately.

Hers was a fresh, natural beauty, using no enhancements as some women of the ton were wont to do.

She dressed plainly, her honey-blond hair pulled back severely, which only emphasized her beautiful bone structure and hazel eyes.

He’d had an immediate longing to take down her hair to see how long it was.

This was madness. He was a duke. A man rarely affected by any woman. She was a governess. They had only just met. There could be no relationship between them, especially because she served as a teacher to his two young cousins.

Then why was he so taken with her?

Possibly because she was unattainable. She was an employee of his aunt’s.

Nothing more, nothing less. Val had always been drawn to a challenge.

Knowing he could not have any kind of relationship with her only made him want to do so, though.

He would have to be careful. Not only did he have the eyes of his sisters upon him, but his cousins were also present.

He would need to watch his step and not give these girls even the hint of impropriety on his part.

As he strode down the corridor, hoping she followed him to the library, he wondered how Miss Snow had wound up in her sad situation.

From his understanding, most governesses were impoverished gentlewomen who’d had no chances of making a match.

Since they had not wed and oftentimes no one in their families wanted them underfoot, they had been sent out to earn their living as governesses or companions.

But who would not have wanted this magnificent creature?

He liked that she had stood up to him. For all his affability, Val was a stubborn, determined man, one used to having his way.

His own family knew not to cross him—and that was before he even became a duke.

And yet, here was this beautiful stranger, in a lowly position.

She had not wanted to be present at tea and voiced her opinion that she would look at the library on her own.

Well, Miss Snow would simply have to deal with the fact that he was a duke and destined to get his way. If he wanted to show Miss Snow the bloody library, then that is what he would do.

Still, he couldn’t help but wonder about her background and why she had not wed.

Since Aunt Agnes had mentioned to him that they were the same age, Miss Snow would have made her come-out while he was at Oxford.

Val could not imagine her not receiving a plethora of offers.

His aunt had also said that Miss Snow had been with them for five years or so.

Either she had not had any offers or she had rejected them.

Even with her great beauty, if she had no dowry to back it up, many gentlemen would not have given her a moment’s thought.

Perhaps even her family had been too poor for her to do a Season and had sent her directly to work.

Val determined to learn something of her while they were alone, especially since she would be residing under his roof and in his care.

When he reached the library door, he paused before it. Glancing to his right, he saw Miss Snow had followed him. Her face was hard to read, however. She would make for an excellent player at cards because of that.

“This is the library,” he announced, opening the door and ushering her inside.

He watched as she walked about the room, standing with his hands behind his back, admiring the slender curve of her neck and the look on her face as she studied all about her. Miss Snow moved up and down the length of the room, and he tried to see the library through her eyes.

It had several groups of seating throughout.

One table was exclusively used for chess, and the chessboard was set up on it, ready for two players to go toe to toe.

Two other tables were used for cards, one on the far side of the room, one sitting beside a window looking out over the front lawn.

Other groupings of seats, as well as two chaise lounges, also stood in the room.

Miss Snow stopped at an atlas resting on a stand, turning a few of its pages.

Then she took her time perusing the shelves of books, ignoring his presence.

It gave him more time to study her, however.

He liked the graceful way she moved. The curve of her breasts and hips.

How a solemn look crossed her face when she investigated something.

Finally, she made her way back to him.

“I hope you will consider using the library for your lessons, Miss Snow.”

“It would be a wonderful place to engage my charges in their lessons,” she admitted, her tone neutral.

“We could use some of the tables for when the girls are working on everything from conjugating verbs to perfecting their handwriting. The room receives good light, which is always a plus in my book. It is a good library, as well. Not so extensive as to be overwhelming, but it possesses a great number of decent books within it, particularly regarding history and geography.”

“I am glad you think the room appropriate.”

“I must insist upon one rule, Your Grace.”

“And what that might be?” he inquired, biting back a smile at a woman demanding something of him.

“That the library must remain undisturbed while lessons are in session. While Verina has excellent concentration, Justina sometimes lacks focus. If her cousins or others come and begin conversations, I am afraid I would lose her attention.” She paused.

“If that proves to be inconvenient, I can always use the schoolroom or even a small parlor for the girls’ studies. ”

He thought this her way of keeping him out of the library, especially since he had expressed an interest in sitting in on a lesson every now and then. For some reason, she did not want him around.

And that only made him more curious about her.

“No, Miss Snow, the library is the best place for lessons to occur. I will make certain that Mama and my sisters understand that you need to be left alone so that my cousins are not distracted.” He wondered if she noticed that he had not included himself in that group.

She inclined her head. “Thank you, Your Grace. If you will excuse me.”

“Wait,” he said, and she froze, her gaze falling to the floor. “Since you are to be at Millvale, I would like to know a bit about you.”

Her head tipped up, their gazes meeting, and he saw fire in her eyes. It surprised him.

What surprised him more was that he liked her all the more for it.

“Begging your pardon, Your Grace, but I am not in your employment. Lady Traywick hired me. You seem to be close to your aunt, and I would suggest that you trust her judgment. She believes I am qualified to teach her daughters. That is all that matters. There is no reason for you to know anything about me. We will not be speaking to one another again, and we will only see one another in passing, if that.”

Val was attracted to both her looks and her spirit. “Why do you say that, Miss Snow? We will see each other at tea every afternoon, as well as at meals.”

The fire remained in her eyes as she responded.

“This afternoon was an exception, Your Grace. I will not be taking tea with the family, nor will I be dining with any of you. As I mentioned earlier, it is a quiet life at Traywick Manor. For the months of the Season while Lady Traywick is gone, it is just the girls and me. Yes, I have shared meals and tea with them, but they need to prepare themselves for moving amongst Polite Society. Being in a duke’s household for an extended period will be good exposure for them.

I am no longer of that world. I will make this clear to Lady Verina and Lady Justina. Now, if you will excuse me.”

“I will not,” he said quietly, his tone still commanding.

Her eyes widened in surprise and she started to speak, then she closed her mouth.

He couldn’t help but look at her lips. They cried out to him, begging to be kissed.

He was at a loss as to why she affected him so.

They might be the same age, but he was a duke, brimming with power and youth, while she was a governess, already on the shelf.

Val had always been able to have any woman he desired.

Yet suddenly, he wanted a woman entirely inappropriate for him.

It was not as if she were loose in her morals and would be willing to have a quick romp in the hay.

This was a woman who would cling to her dignity and never make a false step as far as a man was concerned. Her entire livelihood depended upon it.

And tempted by her beauty as he was, he had never taken advantage of anyone, male or female, in any kind of situation.

“I still wish to know something of you, Miss Snow,” his tone brooking no exceptions. He was determined to learn about her and how she came to be in her present situation.

She managed to look defiant and resigned at the same time, no small feat. “I am the daughter of Lord and Lady Brownley. My father’s country seat was in Buckinghamshire, near Aylesbury.”

Val knew of the current Lord and Lady Brownley.

The viscount was but a couple of years older than he was, and Brownley and his viscountess had wicked reputations, even for Polite Society.

Brownley was the kind of man who would have tossed out a relative such as Miss Snow without a second thought.

Anger seized him, his gut telling him that is what happened to this lovely young woman.

Calming his temper, he asked, “I assume your parents are no longer with us since I have met Lord and Lady Brownley, and they are not much older than the two of us.”

For a moment, he saw her mouth tremble and thought she might burst into tears. Instead, she rallied, glaring at him, her hazel eyes going from green to amber.

Her voice tight, she said, “My father perished in a riding accident when I was ten and eight.”