Read What a Woman Desires for Free Online Page B

resuming his old ways of tormenting her. “Didn’t you say you drew Stephanie a bath?”
    Her beautiful eyes immediately flashed fire. “There’s no need to look so shocked. I also know how to boil a kettle and cut some bread and cheese. My newfound skills since I left this house are boundless.”
    “Is that so?” The irony in her tone brought a bubble of laughter and admiration to his throat. “I’m intrigued. I never saw you slice as much as an apple when you lived here.”
    Silence.
    He briefly closed his eyes. Damn it. He’d gone too far. He’d expected her to stretch her claws and scratch him right back. A woman’s silence—Monica’s silence—was infinitely worse than any number of inflicted scratches and hissing. He opened his eyes. “I apologize.”
    Triumph briefly lit her gaze . . . and pushed at something in his chest, before her gaze dropped to his mouth. “Your lip is smeared with blood and you have the makings of a nice bruise on your cheekbone. I’ll see what I can find to take care of you.”
    He swallowed. How would he bear her touching him? “There’s no need.”
    Her gaze wandered over his face and lingered on his split lip. “There’s every need.” The atmosphere charged with unspoken tension once more. She wet her lips before she blinked. “Thank you for coming to our rescue, Thomas. I needed you, and as always, you were there.”
    She moved away and he stared at her turned back as she pulled open drawers and cupboards. It was still there. The tension. The care for one another. Nothing . . . yet everything, had changed. He had to protect himself from her beautiful eyes, body, and heart. She was his employer now and held the power to strip him of everything he’d worked for. He lifted his chin and pulled on a coat of invisible armor.
    She didn’t want him. Had never wanted him. His yearnings had been futile before, and they would be again if he allowed them to resurface. He must watch her like a falcon watched his prey. They were on opposite sides. There was every chance she’d returned with an agenda and he’d be a damn fool not to come up with one of his own pretty damn quick.
    She straightened and fisted her hands on her hips, her brow furrowed. “You’d think I would know where Mrs. Seton kept her gauze and the like, wouldn’t you? Then again, considering it’s been five years since I stepped inside this house—”
    “Why did you leave?” Thomas gritted his teeth. He’d regained his voice and the first thing he asked her sounded as accusatory as if he’d pointed his finger in her face. As much as he wanted to expose her plans, he had to tread carefully. “I mean, why didn’t you ever come back? For a visit, at least. Your father would never have said it, but he missed you.”
    Her gaze darkened with passion. “He would never have said it because as much as my father drove me mad with frustration, he never lied. The man wouldn’t utter a falsehood even if meant saving someone he loved from being hurt. He didn’t miss me. I wrote to him time and again, and not once did he reply. If my father had wanted to see me, he would have. You and I both know Noel Danes did whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted to do it. Seeing me was never an option once I failed to marry the man he and Mama deemed to be a perfect match.”
    “What happened to him? To Baxter?”
    The skin at her neck shifted as she swallowed. “Nothing. We . . . went our separate ways.”
    “You loved him.”
    She lifted her chin. “Love blinds. That’s all you need to know.”
    Thomas ran his gaze over her exquisite face. Love blinds. Never was a truer sentiment spoken, and one he’d do well to heed. “Your father is laid out in the parlor. The funeral is set for Thursday.”
    She nodded, her shoulders dropping. “In two days.”
    He held out his hand, wanting to see whether or not she’d take it. “Leave your nursing. Sit. Please.”
    Hesitation flickered over her face before she slid her palm