Jaded Moon (Ransomed Jewels Book 2) by Laura Landon Page B

I’m right. If you can for one minute stop thinking of me as some dangerous villain out to destroy everyone in my path, you will be able to see that bringing in cattle will help not only the tenants of both estates, but the children of the orphanage as well.”
    “Can you guarantee without a doubt there is a profit to be made?” she countered.
    “My every instinct tells me there will be a handsome profit.”
    “And if you’re wrong?”
    “I’m not.”
    Josie stopped arguing long enough to hear the growing sound of an approaching rider. They both turned.
    “Someone you know?”
    Josie lifted her head. “Yes. It’s Baron Lindville. He must have recently returned from London.”
    The man sitting beside her changed. Gone was her relaxed companion who’d found humor in her objections. In his place was a wooden replica, complete with his defenses firmly in place.
    “Are you acquainted with Baron Lindville?”
    “No, I haven’t had the honor,” he answered, but Josie thought from the tone of his voice he didn’t consider meeting Baron Lindville an honor at all.
    Before she had time to wonder more, Baron Lindville had stopped and was smiling at her.
    “Miss Foley. What a delightful surprise.”
    Geoffrey Lindville removed his hat and bowed slightly in the saddle. His golden hair was brushed back to expose a high forehead and sharp, striking features. While his thick eyebrows were not terribly dark, they did serve to draw attention to the piercing blue of his eyes. Lindville graced her with a smile that spoke of a long-standing friendship and years of acquaintance. The smile on his face hardened, however, when his eyes took in the man sitting beside her.
    Josie felt the need to speak first. “Baron Lindville. I didn’t know you’d returned from London. Have you been here long?”
    “No. Just a few days. I see you’re out enjoying this fine day.”
    “Yes. Baron Lindville, allow me to present the Marquess of Rainforth. Lord Rainforth, Baron Lindville of Lindville Grange.”
    “Lindville,” Rainforth said, his voice containing a hint of iciness she hadn’t heard since the first time she’d met him.
    “Rainforth.” Lindville’s brows arched. “My, what a surprise. Did you… tire of London?”
    The Marquess of Rainforth shifted the reins from one hand to the other in a most casual gesture. But casualness was not what Josie felt sitting next to him. There was a tension that sifted through the layers of her skirt and rasped against her skin. When he spoke, his acidic tone only heightened the uncomfortable wariness that settled about her.
    “Actually, I did,” Rainforth said. “The drawing room topics were becoming extremely tedious.”
    “I’m sure you found them less than palatable, at least the comments that were said to your face.”
    Josie felt the blow of Lindville’s words as if his attack had been aimed at her and couldn’t stifle a shocked gasp. Lord Rainforth, however, buffered the assault with nothing more noticeable than the slight lift of a brow. For the first time, Josie wondered how often he’d had to endure such condemnation since the rumor of his father’s traitorous activities had been uncovered. And how many times he’d been unjustly blamed for his father’s crimes.
    “I can’t imagine Lady Clythebrook approved of your accompanying Rainforth, Miss Foley. Let alone without a chaperone.”
    Josie bristled, unable to let Lindville’s insult go unchallenged. “It’s been several years since I’ve required a chaperone, sir. And even longer since the company I keep has been questioned.”
    “Perhaps Miss Foley is not familiar with the reason your presence is not welcomed in London’s social circles,” Lindville said, leaning forward in his saddle. He kept his glaring gaze focused accusingly on Rainforth and didn’t lift it.
    The Marquess of Rainforth smiled. At least the corners of his mouth lifted in an outward indication that he was smiling. Nothing else in his features