When Harry Met Molly

colonel’s wife while my friends got ambushed. But it’s not how it looks.”

Molly’s eyes stung, but she wouldn’t cry. “What do you mean?”

His eyes were hard. “It’s not my secret to tell.”

She felt sick. He was acting like a stranger—cold, unyielding. “Harry, tell me. Please.” She laid a hand on his arm, but he brushed her hand away.

“I told you. I can’t.” His words were clipped. “Do you trust me? You said once that you did.”

She stared at him. Her whole insides felt stripped away. But she couldn’t say yes.

She simply couldn’t.

He stared at her a moment, his expression impenetrable. “Very well, then,” he said, like a stranger again.

And moved past her.

She watched him stride away.

Is he not going to say anything else?

Her heart was beating so hard, she felt it would burst out of her chest. “Where are you going?”

“To the lake,” he responded curtly. “You’ll be fine.”

“Of course I will!” She felt her cheeks heat up. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

“And I won’t be back for hours,” he said, as if she hadn’t spoken, and strode down the trail.

“Fine!” she called after him.

She watched until his figure disappeared over a crest.

Let him stew and sulk at the lake. She would do well up here on the hill all by herself. It was what she wanted anyway. He’d best not try to come back any time soon, either. If he did, she would tell him exactly what she thought of him and his Impossible Bachelor ways.

They were far more lethal than she’d realized. And she would not succumb to them.

She made sure she was still scowling when she walked through a flap in the front of the tent—and stopped short.

She’d no idea that the interior of the tent would be so gorgeous!

The floor was covered in colorful rugs strewn with large silk pillows in exotic patterns. A small wooden chest to one side held an ornate brass lamp and a pitcher with two goblets. Several fringed blankets were folded in one corner, and in another, hanging from a tent pole, was a beautiful outfit, the likes of which she’d never seen. A small moan of appreciation escaped her when she touched it—it was see-through in parts, silky, and had slits in the oddest places. She wasn’t quite sure how to wear it. But she knew if she tried it on, she’d want to twirl in it. Or stand on the hillside and let the wind blow through it while she stretched out her arms like a butterfly.

She looked down at her own gown that had been in service all day. It was covered with little bits of leaves and dirt.

Very well. She’d change into the harem outfit, not to play dress-up or to please Harry but to be more comfortable.

After several attempts, she finally figured out how to don the exotic costume. Leaving off the veils she surmised were meant to cover her head and face, she lay down on the luxurious pillows, closed her eyes, and said her prayers. God could help her avoid total ruin, couldn’t He?

But why would He want to? She’d been flouting every bit of wisdom she’d ever heard!

She may have been a false mistress, but she’d also been a fool.

She closed her eyes and vowed to get a good night’s sleep.

Five minutes went by. Then ten. Still no ridiculous man returning to apologize or explain his disgraceful behavior.

A lone bird cawed.

Molly opened her eyes and stared at the colorful walls of the tent.

“Harry,” she whispered, a tear slipping down her cheek.

She would never let him know how she felt about him. She’d endure until this ridiculous week was over, and if all went well, she’d go back to her old life.

A life without Harry.

But a life of respectability.

She unfolded the second blanket and drew it up to her chin. Even though it was soft and of a pleasant weight, it was no comfort at all. Sort of like her existence would be when she left this glorious place.

The place where Harry was.

Another bird sang its nighttime song, and she sighed. Stupid bird! Didn’t it know her life was practically in ruins?

Yet somehow her eyelids felt heavy, and despite her cheerless thoughts—or maybe because of them—she slipped into a deep, dreamless sleep.

Around Molly Harry had kept his anger banked to a slow burn, but when he’d left Prinny’s camp, he’d let it flare. On the trail he stomped and fumed and eventually gave up on reaching the lake the civilized way. He headed straight into the woods, crashing through brush to get to the water faster. Once there, he’d headed straight for the diving rock, stripped off his clothes, and plunged in. He’d suffered a few scratches of thistle and thorn in the woods, and those cuts now stung.

But he wanted the pain. And the coldness of the lake. It almost helped him stop thinking about Molly.

And his past.

He swam to the shore, and when he strode onto the beach, the moon was climbing the sky, illuminating a bank of clouds in the west. A soft breeze rippled the lake surface and flirted with the trees.

Arrow had been right. A storm was likely on the way.

Harry retrieved his clothes and put them back on, but he wasn’t ready to go back to the camp. Bending down, he picked up some flat rocks, skimmed them over the lake’s mirror surface, and watched them skip and sink. Sort of like his mood today. It had started out so well. And now—

Now he felt like he had lead in his stomach.

It was a moment for him to face some truths.

Doing his duty had gotten him into trouble in the army, hadn’t it? He’d given up on leading a respectable life and fully immersed himself in the lifestyle of an Impossible Bachelor—a title he’d spent several debauched years earning.

He’d deserved Molly’s rejection of him tonight.

Based on what she’d heard from friends and family alike, she was right not to trust him—not to believe he could protect her. He was the one who pursued women as playthings, wasn’t he? The one who didn’t care what happened to them after he crawled out of their warm beds at night.

Knowing what she knew of him, Molly was right to be frightened about her future. How could a wayward bachelor protect her from the likes of Sir Richard? If he uncovered her identity, she’d be hopelessly ruined. She’d spend all her time at the side of her cousin Augusta, and after Cousin Augusta departed this world, she’d be lucky to go back to her father’s house. There would be no assemblies, no church bazaars. No family of her own. No husband to love her and for her to love back.

She would be hidden away. Disgraced.

And it would be all Harry’s fault.

He should have forfeited the damned wager and taken her straight back home from that blasted inn.

He dropped the rock still in his hand. He was a cad. A coxcomb. And if Molly were ruined, he’d never forgive himself. He kicked up some sand and began heading back to camp.

She was probably asleep. He wanted her to feel safe. So he would sleep outside the tent. Perhaps it was the only way to show her that his intentions toward her were—if not entirely honorable (his mad lust for her had already disproved that)—at least not despicable. He wanted her to leave this week at the hunting box with her reputation intact. And he wanted her to be able to marry a good man who would appreciate her humor, wit, and beauty.

He would do whatever it took to make sure her reputation was secure. And to hell with their previous agreement. He’d find her a good man, even if she didn’t win the contest. He owed her that.

There was the sweet, cushiony hush of nighttime in the woods. By the time he reached the camp, he felt