A Lady Undone by Máire Claremont Page A

my esteem. Whatever Clare does, she deserves the support of those who love her.”
    When he turned to her, Clare’s eyes were fixed, glossy with tears.
    “I’m ready to leave now, Lord Wyndham.”
    He held out his hand, and she took it, her delicate fingers trusting in his.
    Still, before they could depart there was one last thing to be said. “Lord Soames, you are going to be watched. Anyone you see will also be watched. I have the means to ensure this, and if anything seems at all amiss, I will expose you to all of London for your nefarious behavior. Do you understand?”
    Soames’s fingers gripped his brandy glass so tightly, it seemed possible the glass would shatter. But he nodded.
    Without another word, he led Clare out of that house, away from her uncle and away from the cruelty of the men who should have been her dearest protectors.

Chapter 10
    They arrived back at the cottage in silence. Byron had offered to take her to Mary and Edward if she wished, but to her astonishment the only place she wished to be was there, in the hideaway that had given her her first taste of true happiness. And it was there that she might lose it all.
    As she sat in one of the great old-fashioned chairs in the room where they had first made love, Clare hardened her resolve. She couldn’t lie to him, not when he believed in her so much. The pain of it was more than anything she’d ever known, for finally, she’d found love. It hardly seemed fair that she wouldn’t be able to keep it.
    Byron entered the room, two glasses of red wine in his hand. “You need this, sweetheart. Your cheeks are nearly white.”
    She took the offered glass and waited for him to sit across from her.
    Once he sat, he gazed on her with such kindness she almost cried out.
    “What is it?” he asked.
    “There is something I must tell you.”
    “Then tell it,” he said easily.
    “You seem to think so highly of me.”
    “Clare, I have seen inside your heart. It is pure—”
    “I am a murderer,” she burst out.
    He lowered his wineglass and stared at the deep red liquid for several long moments.
    Those moments stretched into a horrifying eternity. He must hate her now.
    “Your husband, I assume.”
    “Yes,” she said, fighting back a sob. She started to place her glass down, ready to leave.
    Byron looked up, his face hard. “Good.”
    “What?”
    “Good, I say. Clare, he was making your life hell. His first wife died in suspicious circumstances and what you said to Soames? I’m sure that was only half of what you endured. You survived, my love. You chose life, and I am so grateful.”
    “I love you,” she said suddenly, the words unbidden but more true than anything she’d ever said.
    “I love you too, Clare. I know you’ve been hurt by men, by your husband and uncle, but I hope you will consider that I am different.”
    “I do,” she said, flying out of her chair and kneeling next to him. “You listen to me in a way no one ever has done before.”
    “I always will, if you’ll let me. Spend the rest of your life with me, Clare, as my wife? I’ll sign away all my rights or live with you in sin if you insist, but now that you are in my life I cannot imagine it without you.”
    “How could I ever deny you? You, who have brought joy into my heart. I’ve told you the very worst thing about myself, something most could never forgive, and you didn’t even flinch. If you truly mean it, then yes. Yes, please, let us spend our lives together.”
    He leaned forward and yanked her into his lap. “Then, my love, we have both found our dream.”
    “I never thought it possible,” she breathed.
    He tilted her head back. “We must never give up on our dreams.”
    Her lips parted in the smile that only he seemed able to evoke. “Never, I will never give up again.”
    “Nor I, my love, nor I.”

Read on for a sneak peek at a tale of redemption and love,
    Máire Claremont’s
    The Dark Affair: A Novel of Mad Passions
    Available from Signet