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drew his gaze to her heaving breasts and… hell … that thud was his tongue hitting the floor. She was beautiful.
    He forced his gaze upward in a vain attempt to control all manner of improper thoughts now bouncing around his befogged brain. He caught the angry flash of her eyes and their sudden softening, and groaned silently because that softness would be his undoing. But he had to resist her considerable temptation. He needed Laurel and wasn’t about to let her go.
    He waited for her to say something, because she’d obviously barged in here for a reason. When she didn’t, he took his time studying her, noting the gentle curve of her neck and the wayward dark gold curls that clung to her pale skin. Her hair was drawn back in a simple bun that just begged to be unbound.
    He’d give his right arm to be the man to set those vibrant curls free and watch them cascade over her slender shoulders in a sultry waterfall of gold.
    Great . He already had a busted leg and was now willing to lose an arm over the girl. There would be nothing left of him by the time she was through with him.
    Still worth it.
    His gaze fell back to her ample breasts because they were still heaving and… who gave a damn why? They were heaving and blessedly exquisite and… no, he had to concentrate. He doubted she was here because she desired him.
    First of all, he wasn’t at his enticing best at the moment. Second, he was never at his enticing best, being too much of an oaf ever to attract a respectable young lady, much less one as exquisite as Laurel.
    He felt for his sheet to make certain he was under it and not sprawled atop it. Ah, yes. Good. Safely under it and the important parts securely covered up.
    Laurel let out a sob and sank onto the stool at his bedside. “Lass, what’s happened? Has someone hurt you?”
    She shook her head, and he couldn’t tell if it meant yes or no or a little of both. “My father is going to sell Brutus.” She sobbed again and followed it with a hiccup. “He didn’t mean to run you down. You must believe me. What happened was all my fault and I’d do anything to take back those few moments.”
    Hell, he didn’t know what to do to calm her down. Completely lacking in ideas, he ran his fingers lightly through her hair to nudge the loose curls off her tearful face. “I know, lass. He’s a fine horse.” For a beast who almost killed me.
    “He’s the best! I picked him out myself and raised him from a foal.” She took in a great gulp of air. “Brutus would never harm me or my sisters, and he never meant to harm you. It’s just that he’s used to a daily exercise regimen and I… we… my groomsman… didn’t have a chance to take him for his usual early morning gallop, so he was a little friskier than usual by the time we started for the park.”
    She took in another gulp of air and continued. “And I was late for… well, it isn’t important. The point is, my father will sell him and I’ll never see Brutus again. And I’m not certain if by ‘sell’ he means he’ll order Brutus destroyed!”
    “Would you like me to put in a word with your father?” Lord, he never realized he was such a fool for a pair of tearful blue eyes! Ocean blue with turbulent swirls of green that had the power to draw a man in and drag him under like a dangerous riptide.
    Her lips spread into a smile. “Would you? Just to make sure he won’t order Brutus put down. And to be sure he’ll find a good home for Brutus with someone who loves horses and knows how to care for them. Someone who’ll appreciate and love Brutus as I do. Or perhaps you could convince my father that no one could ever love or care for Brutus as I do and it would be a terrible shame to punish Brutus for my mistake and that’s what would happen if he were taken from me. I’d be ever so grateful.”
    The stream of words took a moment to wend their way through his laudanum-fogged brain. “How grateful?”
    “What?” She inhaled lightly, slipped off