The Perfect Temptation (34 page)

Or was it just the natural
consequence of his having

been immersed in her decidedly
unique existence?

"Which are you really,
Alex?" he mused aloud. "Indian or

British? Deep down inside."

She gave him the slightest of
shrugs and a cryptic smile
.

"I can see the strengths of
each way."

As usual, she hadn't really
answered the question. Undaunted,

he pressed in a more roundabout
manner. "What's

your fate in this lifetime?"

"Today it's to educate Mohan
so that he can better serve

his people. What it will be
tomorrow, I don't know. What

comes, comes. I'll accept the
challenge as best I can and
try

to do good whenever and however
possible."

What comes, comes.
'That would be very Hindu of you,"

he observed, feeling smug for
having maneuvered her into

revealing the truth.

"It
wouldn't be an approach frowned upon by Christians,

either," she countered, her
eyes still dark, still inviting him to

search. "Or Buddhists."

He had no idea about Buddhist
beliefs; he'd have to take

her word on it. What he did know,
though, was that she had

perfected avoidance and
resistance to a fine art. That and she

intrigued him in so many ways.
Far more than was good for

either of them at the moment.

"I should let you get back
to your reading," he suggested,

reaching out to pet one of the
sleeping kittens.

Alex willed herself to keep
breathing, willed herself still

as his fingertips grazed the
curve of her breast and a thrilling

current of heat arced through her.
If
she
confessed that the

book wasn't nearly as interesting
as he was
...
If
she invited

him to stay ...

"Good night, Alex."

There was a solace of sorts in
seeing the reluctance in his

eyes as he eased out of the
pillows.
It
was nice to know that

she wasn't alone in regretting a
commitment to good judgment

and the dubious value of sterling
virtue. "Good night,

Aiden," she bade.
"Sweetest of dreams."

His smile was quirked as he
winked and walked off into

the shadows. Alex watched him go,
feeling suddenly adrift

and sadly incomplete.

Chapter 11

Three consecutive days in the
saddle, Aiden silently grumbled

as they made their way into the
rear yard, would make

one, if not weak, then at least
acutely aware of discomfort.

Especially if it had been well over
a year since you'd last

thought about saddles,
stirrups, reins, and using certain muscles

in your body. Thank God for
long hot baths and whatever

was in the tincture that Alex
had been giving him before

dinner every evening.

There were two consolations in
it all; the first being that

Mohan was well on his way to
becoming an excellent rider,

the second that Alex was a
delightful caretaker who winced

every time he did and spent
considerable effort seeing to his

physical comfort. The only
drawback was that he'd been too

tired
too
soon in
the evening to reap the larger rewards of her

tender caretaking.

Although, he reminded himself,
there was something

nicely domestic about having
her gently wake him, help him

up from the pillows, and send
him off to his own bed.
It

would be even nicer if he ever
had the presence of mind to

ask her to come with him.

"Perhaps we should put my
horse back on the lead."

Aiden looked over
at
the boy
and cocked a brow. "Do you

think we need to?"

"I am quite comfortable
without it," Mohan assured him.

"It
is Miss Alex's comfort which concerns me. She is not

likely to be pleased to see the
lead gone. She has a habit of

worrying about me
unnecessarily."

That she did. And the last
three days of riding in the parks

of London had brought that home
in a way he hadn't expected
.

"We won't tell her that we
'
ve taken
it off."

"And you do not think that
she will be at a window,

watching through the new iron
covers for our return?"

"If
she is and if she protests, I'll assure her that you
deserve

the freedom and can manage it
ably."

"And you believe that she
will accept
Y9Uf
word on this?"

he posed, clearly skeptical.

"Yes
.
"

Mohan snorted and countered,
"Then you would be the

very first man to have such an
influence on her."

"And just how would you
know that?" Aiden asked as he

reined in his mount and swung
down. "You're only ten
.
You

couldn't have seen too many men
try to sway her on anything."

"British officers come to
see my father all the time," he

retorted, climbing down as
Aiden pulled open the doors of

the stable. "They notice
Miss Alex. And when Mrs. Radford

was alive, she took Miss Alex
to parties at their summer headquarters.

Always one or two officers
would come back after

them. I have seen many men
talking sweet to Miss Alex. She

is always polite but unaffected
by them. Eventually they go

away and do not return."

Which, when it came right down
to it, was exactly what

he was doing now, what he was
going to do in the end
.
Aiden

frowned, not liking that he was
falling into the same pattern

as the other men who had passed
through Alex's life.

"Fairness compels me to
admit that you are different,"

Mohan added as they led their
mounts inside. "She does not

keep the same distance with
you. You may have a chance the

others did not. So perhaps it
is all right to leave the lead off

my horse after all."

As though it weren't far too
late to put it back on. "Sometimes,"

Aiden grumbled, "I think
you're an old man in a

child's body
.
"

"Perhaps I am."

The movement was in the
lengthening shadows outside

the stable door, furtive and
silent. Aiden pulled the revolver

from the small of his back even
as he whirled and stepped

between it and Mohan
.

Hands instantly went up.
"Kindly don't."

Barrett. Aiden exhaled in
relief and dropped the muzzle

toward the floor, muttering,
"Well, look what the cat

dragged in."

"The cat is out
T
Mohan
asked, looking around quickly,

clearly panicked at the
possibility.

"It
'
s an
expression,
"
Aiden clarified as Barrett sauntered

toward them
.
"It
means that something unexpected has

turned up rather
unceremoniously." He nodded toward Barrett

while tucking the gun back into
the waistband of his

trousers. "That would be,
in this particular case, one Barrett

Stanbridge."

Mohan bowed but never took his
eyes off Barrett. "Sir
.
"

"Since you appear to be
hale, hearty, and reasonably

happy," Barrett said,
looking the boy up and down with a

smile, "I'll assume that
Mr.
Terrell
is doing his job to your

satisfaction
.
"

"My satisfaction is of no
consequence, sir.
It
is Miss Alex

who passes judgment on the
situation."

Barrett cocked a brow and Aiden
seized the moment to
turn

to Mohan and say,
"
Speaking
of Alex ... Please go tell her

and Preeya that we'll be having
a guest for dinner. Mr. Stanbridge

and I will take care of the horses
before we come in."

"Yes, sir."

"And then stay in the
house
.
"

Mohan nodded crisply and took
off. Aiden waited until

he'd disappeared before he
turned to loosen the girth of the

gelding's saddle and ask,
"Where have you been, Barrett?"

"In the country," his
friend supplied, stepping up to Mohan's

animal and beginning to work.
"My father summoned

me for the annual lecture on
accepting my various obligations

to the Stanbridge name. Quincy
said you'd been by the

office looking for me."

"Four damn days ago,"
Aiden griped, pulling the saddle

and blanket away. He flung the
tack over the top rail of the

open stall, adding, "And
your secretary told me you were in

Wales."

"I never tell Quincy where
I'm really going.
If
I did, he'd

send people like you trotting
right after me. And he'd send a

huge satchel of papers to be
signed with you." He tossed the

saddle over the railing.
Mohan's horse strode into its stall on

its own as Barrett asked,
"What do you need?"

"Nothing now," Aiden
supplied, leading the gelding in.

He removed the bit and bridle.
"I solved the problem myself

by hiring Sawyer. He's my
second, keeping an eye on the

flock when they split up from
time to time. Nine to five