Read Through the Looking Glass for Free Online

in this situation." Her tone was dispassionate rather than forgiving.
    "Will I?"
    "No. The carnival isn't logical, as you understand logic. Nor are the people here—including me. Your world is a million miles away."
    He shook his head. "I'm not that different. I haven't dropped onto an alien planet, Maggie."
    She smiled. "No. And this is Kansas, not Oz.
    But you expect order, and you aren't going to find that here. No schedules—except for Malcolm's tea parties. It's a place where you can wear a clown's face, or a toga or a kilt, and nobody looks twice. A place where you talk to the animals and they talk back, and it doesn't matter that you aren't speaking the same language. A place where being normal is to be slightly mad."
    "There are lunatics in my world," he pointed out.
    "Yes. But in your world, they aren't normal. In this world, they are." She was on the end of the love seat with the lamp beside it, and the soft glow made her hair gleam silver. Gideon thought she looked like an angel—except for the strange and enigmatic depth of her eyes.
    A mad angel.
    He cleared his throat. "Are we talking about the carnival? Or about us?"
    Maggie looked at him steadily. "Us? Didn't we close that subject?"
    "No. If I remember, you used the words 'unless and until' my motives change. They have." He was surprised to hear himself say that, but wasn't tempted to take back the statement.
    "What are your motives now?"
    "I thought you had a knack of seeing things like that?" he murmured.
    "If you expect me to be consistent," she said somewhat dryly, "you haven't been listening to me."
    "Sorry." He had to smile a little. "All right, then. My motives. I won't deny that I was—knocked off balance earlier today, or that you were right about my motives then. But I agree with what you said. Most of the questions should be answered first.
    I'd like to try to get those answers, and control has nothing to do with it. I want you, Maggie."
    To his surprise, the blunt statement drew a visible reaction from her. Her eyes widened and... she blushed. Blushed. Faint color flowed over her cheekbones like a delicate tide, making her appear very young and adorably confused. It was fascinating to watch.
    "I see," she murmured, her gaze falling.
    "Are you blushing?" He sounded as astonished as he felt.
    "Of course not. I outgrew that years ago." She looked back at him, mysterious ripples disturbing the serenity of her eyes. "I was just surprised."
    "Why? You knew I wanted you."
    Maggie didn't want to answer his question, partly because she thought her answer might well make him draw away. It was obvious that he hadn't heard his own voice, hadn't been aware of the implacable note in it. When he had said he wanted her, there had been more than desire in his voice, something unrelenting as if it came from instinct. And whatever it was, her response to it had caught her completely off guard.
    The sensation was strange, almost frightening. She could feel her heart beating, thudding against her ribs and in her throat in an uneven rhythm. Her skin felt hot, and she was suddenly, vividly aware of her body as being female. The cool rationality of her mind had become uncertainty and confusion.
    Always before, Maggie had felt detached from men. She had heard a number of men express interest and desire, men who, like Gideon, had questions because they were puzzled by her. Yet none of them had roused the slightest spark of response in her, and she had not gone out of her way to supply answers. Never one to accept half measures, she had long ago decided that if she didn't find the right man, she wouldn't make the mistake of settling for the wrong one. She had flirted, enjoying the verbal sparring—much as she had with Gideon. She had never been tempted to go beyond flirting. Until now.
    "Maggie?"
    She looked at him. Really looked. Less formal now in his jeans and sweater. His thick copper hair gleamed with gold highlights, and his eyes were the gray of storm clouds. His