If I ' m to have the Clockwork Blue , it is. "
" Have more faith, mi lord. "
His knee rubbed her thigh as he turned to drape his arm along the back of the bench.
Alarm shot down her spine. " Must you sit so near? "
He gave her a knowing look. " What better manner in which to get acquainted? " He played with a strand of her hair.
With an effort, she resisted the urge to squirm under his idle play. Instead, she concentrated on their discussion and what she wanted to say. "I can think of a much better way to get acquainted." For instance, what is your stance on Enlightenment, and in educating the masses? What do you enjoy reading? Have you read Candide, the novella by Voltaire? "
"Please, no politics. And, although I enjoy reading, it is not a subject I would like to broach at this time. Let's move on to a more interesting, pertinent topic , and discuss the details of what happened this morning. T ell me, what did your father say about me? "
Nettles scratched her scalp at his determination to control the conversation. With an inward sigh, s he concentrated on answering. " That you were a cheating rake . "
He threw her a startled glance. " That bad, eh? "
" Are you? "
He stroked her neck, sending a riot of tingles along the backs of her arms. " Not a rake. I have never enticed a woman to my bed . "
Unexpected relief surged over her. But he had not answered her question of being a cheat. Evasiveness was ye t another quality to add to his character. " You purposely mistake my meaning. "
He stared at her black bowler hat decorated with an old watch face, antique lace and thin gears of varying sizes. As she wondered what he was thinking, he suddenly plucked it off her head.
"What are you doing?" Her h air must be flat to her head. And mussy. Heat flared against her cheeks. " Give that back."
"Easy, princess. I just want to try something."
Leaning over, h e plucked a rose from the nearby bush and broke off the thorns . He held it against a lo ck of her hair, one that dangled nearly to her shoulder. The hank of hair had fallen from her coiffure . The nearness of his hand caused her to gulp. She followed his gaze. Her barley-color hair glowed against his tanned skin . She was conscious of how close his broad, masculine fingers hovered near her cheek . Agitation skittered through her. " You never answered. Are you a cheat? "
He continued to stare. " What does it matter? Just like this flower, I will break the thorns from your prickly nature . " He settled it behind her ear.
" You had best not make the comparison. I ' m more like a weed. The harder you chop at me, the more I ' m apt to grow back in a place you won ' t want me. "
" Ah, but I know where your roots are—at my stables, shoveling horse droppings. "
She gritted her teeth. " So, you aren ' t going to tell me whether or not you stole from Mr. Hill?"
He blew gently in her ear and, despite her resistance, a delightful shudder tickled her senses. " What would you do if I said ye s? "
His li ps were dangerously close to hers . Bay rum tinged with his musky scent sur rounded her, causing her head to swirl with the pixies . " Why … I would ... I would knock you unconscious and bind your hands and feet. Then I would hide you so that no one discovered you for several hours. That would give my family enough time to make a getaway. "
Falcon threw her a look reserved for an escapee from Bedlam. " You have fanciful thoughts. "
" Fanciful? " If only he knew. She stared off in the direction Allegro had flown.
" Knocking me out? Saving your family from my evil grasp?" His sensual mouth curved upward. " Don ' t tell me you write novels. You own a very active imagination, although I do not think the heroine would be popular if she decked the hero. "
" You wouldn ' t be my hero. You are more of a villain. "
" Perhaps you can reform me. "
" I have never trained a