Chapter 1
Centre London , England 1814
Juliet Wells stopped struggling and stared at the ground. How in the devil was she going to get down from her window without anyone seeing her ? The middle child of the late Duke and Dowager Duchess of Norchess, Juliet had been sneaking out of the London town house window of her bedroom for as long as she could remember. Of all these times, never, not once had her dress ever been caught on anything when she made her escape.
Today was different. She was dangling outside of her bedroom window; her dress ripped and hung on something in the window frame. She could feel a cool breeze on t he back of her legs and knew her backside was exposed. She tried to figure out how long she had been hanging, a half-hour? Well, that meant she had another half hour before someone noticed her absence.
Her brother, Clinton Wells, the Duke of Norchess had recently wed Lady Emily Moncrief. Her mother was so wrapped up in the wedding affairs it had taken her focus off Juliet for a while. She usually snuck out for an hour at a time, and her mother was oblivious to it. She began wiggling her body again in a back and forth motion trying to tear the fabric of her dress when she heard her mother calling her name in the bedroom. She held her breath and ceased to move. She let out her breath in a whoosh when she heard her mother close the door; she was safe for the moment.
She resumed her struggling for a few more minutes, and then paused as a scent caught her nose. Someone was smoking. And it smelled as if they were very close to her. She tried to peer through the trees to discern whom the figure was standing at the end of the house.
Bloody hell, of all the rotten luck! It was Jonathan Radcliff e, Viscount Cornwell, her brother’s lifelong friend, and the love of her life. He was ignorant to the fact he had Juliet’s affection, and so far she had not been able to make him see her as anything other than a kid sister. She was ten years old when she started having feelings for him.
She loved his thick dark hair and his green eyes that always seem to have laughter in them. He was tall, but not as tall as her brother Clinton was. He was well built and his legs were splendid in the right pair of breeches. She had imagined herself in his arms on more than one occasion. Although she was not exactly sure of what went on between a man and woman, she knew she wanted him to be the one to teach her.
If he caught her dangling with her bloomers showing he would chastise her like a child. She went very still. Hopefully he would finish his smoke and go back into the house so she could get herself down without any embar rassment. Her eyes narrowed into slits as she watched one of the kitchen maids come from the house and wrap her arms around his waist in a familiar fashion.
He said something to her, to which she giggled. He patted her on the behind and sent her scurrying off. That despicable cur, their help was not even safe around the man. Why did she have to be cursed with a love for this man? She made a vow to herself at that moment. She would not chase after him anymore. She would suck up her feelings and allow her mother to arrange her courtships so she could make a suitable marriage. God help the poor girl who was stuck with Jonathan Radcliff e as a husband.
Jonathan Radcliff e, Viscount Cornwell, took a long drag off of the cigarette he was enjoying and wondered how long he should let Juliet hang from her window. He had seen her almost immediately and decided to take his time helping her. She had been unusually hateful to him over the past week. He told himself that he was scaring off her
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