Read Nothing to Commend Her for Free Online Page A

for so long?
    "Did you need something?” he asked, sounding more the fool. Of course she needed something, a man worthy of her.
    And that man was not him.
    Agatha felt like an idiot standing there blinking owlishly at her new husband, her mouth opening and closing like a codfish.
    Heavens, what have I done? This man wants nothing to do with me. And why would he?
    She cleared her throat and tipped up her chin. “No. Good day.” She fumbled with the handle a moment before gaining entrance to her rooms and dashed inside. She couldn't bear the look on this face at her ridiculous display, for she knew, without a doubt, that she'd looked on him with adoring eyes.
    Her heart hammered against her breast as she pressed her back to the closed door. “You are such an arse, Agatha,” she grumbled.
    Where had the silly, foolish girl come from? How could she have forgotten that she wasn't wanted, that any man of Lord Leighton's stature would not want a plain wallflower for a wife?
    "But I am his wife,” she muttered, moving to the window. Looking to the few trees in the distance, she focused on the subtle sway of the branches, imagining the ocean's breeze against her skin. Her heart calmed as her mind worked on the puzzle of her husband.
    He doesn't feel anything for her, that much was painfully obvious yet logical. After all, they'd barely spoken more than a few words to one another. They were strangers.
    "Then why choose me for a wife? Why choose a wife at all?” The empty room gave forth no answers, but she could not let go of the conundrum.
    She sat on the window seat, her thoughts turning, working, ciphering for nearly an hour before the clatter of carriages brought her attention to the drive. The guests were leaving, and with that she smiled. She would take a long walk toward the cliffs and feel the sea air against her skin.
    Her years in London in her father's townhouse had been good ones, but she'd always felt constricted. She couldn't go on a simple walk in the park without an escort or maid with her. Nor had she cared for the forced gentility whenever she met with a passing acquaintance. She craved freedom from such stifling proprieties, in her work and in her day-to-day life.
    The stream of guests slowed, and she contemplated venturing out, doubting she would be seen by the few remaining. Yet before she could move to don her cloak, Miss Hayden lifted her head and stared directly at her. With a twisted grin, she nodded slightly, then turned to climb into her carriage.
    "How strange,” Agatha murmured. A slight earlier at the breakfast and now a nod of what, challenge? “Very strange indeed,” she said, watching the coach clatter down the lane.
    With a pensive frown, she pulled on her cloak and headed down the hall to the servant stairs. Within moments, she was free of the house, and relished the feel of the wind pulling at her hairpins, daring her to let it down as she followed a well-worn footpath toward the cliffs.
    "Perhaps this marriage has something to offer after all,” she said, her voice lost to the wind.
    [Back to Table of Contents]

 

    Chapter Three
    * * * *
    Agatha's jubilation waned as evening came. Her husband had taken his meal in his study with orders not to be disturbed, leaving her to eat a sparing meal alone in her rooms. She knew he would not be coming to her bed that night. These were not the actions of a man bent on seduction. No, these were the actions of a man who wished to not be bothered—in any way, especially by a virginal wife.
    She set her book and glasses aside then pinched the bridge of her nose. Fatigue weighed heavily on her, in body and spirit. Gazing into the dancing flames in the hearth, she reconciled herself to her new life. She'd wanted freedom, she'd wanted privacy, and now she had it tenfold.
    "Be careful what you wish for,” she whispered with an uneven chuckle. “But,” she said, rising from the settee, “I will be able to work without interruption.” Since her husband