Moonwitch by Nicole Jordan Page A

light—died away, Selena sighed in the lonely silence. It was at times like these when she felt keenly what her life was missing. She would have liked very much to have a son like Colin…But now it seemed she wouldn’t even have a husband.
    Feeling restless and despondent, she rose and made her way down the steps to the edge of the moonlit garden, where she stood gazing out at the distant horizon.
    Kyle found her there a short while later—her shoulders drooping dejectedly, like a slender reed bowing before the wind. He thought he understood her misery. In the drawing room a moment ago he had observed her stepmother making a play for her betrothed husband, and the not-so-Honorable Avery Warner responding to every blatant word of flattery, puffing out his chest like a stuffed peacock. It hadn’t been difficult for Kyle to put the pieces together then or to understand why Selena had proposed to him this morning. And he could sense her distress now, even across the stretch of garden that separated them.
    He ought to stay away, Kyle warned himself as he descended the stairs from the veranda. He knew enough about Selena Markham to realize she spelled trouble and more trouble. And yet he felt drawn to her quiet beauty. Her gown shimmered silver in the faint light, making her appear as tantalizing and elusive as a moonbeam.
    Occupied by her own thoughts, Selena didn’t hear his approach until Kyle was directly behind her. She started and turned, glancing up at him in alarm. She relaxed slightly when she recognized him. “Thank you,” she said almost at once, “for being sensitive to Colin’s feelings. That was kind of you.”
    Kyle shrugged. “I know how a boy dreams of the sea.”
    “Yet you seemed taken with him, not as if you viewed him an encumbrance.”
    He cocked his head, assessing her. “I like children well enough. I just never had much time for them in my line of work.”
    “Do you really mean to give it up?” she asked curiously as he advanced another step.
    “Give what up?” The question seemed absent, but his deep voice stroked her like a caress.
    Selena felt its impact even as she realized how intently he was studying her face. He was too close, she thought suddenly. Too close and too masculine. His potent virility made her feel entirely too vulnerable. “The sea,” she replied vaguely, hardly remembering her question.
    Kyle took one last step to close the distance, his gaze focusing on her lips. “I must.”
    Selena caught her breath. She could feel Kyle’s warmth, could feel the vital power within him, indeed could almost feel again the bold thrust of him between her thighs. Sensations of unexpected pleasure flickered through her at the memory, making her quiver. She was powerless to prevent what she knew would happen next.
    Slowly he reached up to run a slow finger along her lush bottom lip, tracing its curving outline. How, he wondered, could he possibly have mistaken her innocence before? She was so cool and virginal. His other hand slipped behind her neck, his touch light and sensual as he drew her against his hard body.
    “You shouldn’t…” she said breathlessly, reading the amber glow of his eyes as he held her.
    “I know,” he murmured quite seriously, and bent his head.
    His kiss was just as devastating as before, each slow, probing thrust of his tongue stealing another measure of her resistance. For a full minute she could do little more than savor the taste and feel of his lips as they moved possessively over hers.
    When he finished a thorough exploration of her mouth and allowed Selena to come up for air, she opened her eyes to find Kyle looking down at her, his heavy brows drawn together in bemusement. “You’re too tempting by half, Moonwitch,” he breathed, his voice quite husky now. “I don’t know what it is you—”
    “So!” The exclamation exploded the silence of the garden. “The gossip was true!”
    Recognizing Avery’s voice, Selena sprang back guiltily from