"Only when I agree with what they say." He stepped closer and trailed a fingertip down her wan face. "Tell me, Rachael. What's wrong?"
"Oh, hell," she said, then pressed herself into his shirtfront and sobbed.
He patted her awkwardly, feeling her hot tears wet through to his skin. Even miserable, she felt entirely too good in his arms. He sent a murderous glance back toward Alexandra before patting Rachael some more. "Whatever it is," he said soothingly—at least, he hoped it sounded soothing—"it cannot be that bad."
"I'm not a Chase," she whispered through a sob.
"What?" His hands froze on her slim back. "How can that be?"
"I found a letter." She pulled away, not looking quite so beautiful as she swiped at her reddened eyes. "This morning, when I was clearing out the master suite for Noah's homecoming. It was from my mother to my father. From before I was born."
He dug a handkerchief out of his pocket, and she took it and blew her nose. Noisily and not prettily.
Good, he thought. She was getting less sultry and tempting by the minute. "What did the letter say?"
"It said…it said she would always be grateful to him for wedding her even though she was a widow already with child. She prayed I would be a girl so he wouldn't be stuck with another man's son as his heir. She—"
"Did she say she loved him?" he interrupted pointedly.
She nodded. "But—"
"They were in love, Rachael. Anyone could see it just looking at the two of them. Don't you ever doubt it."
She shrugged, following that with a long, sorrowful sniff. "But he wasn't my father. Whoever my real father was, he wasn't a Chase."
"Did the man who raised you ever, for one minute, treat you as anything but his daughter?"
"No." The tears continued to flow as she shook her head. "But I'm not a Chase. I don't know what I am if I'm not a Chase."
"You're Rachael," he said. "Noah and Claire and Elizabeth are still your brother and sisters. You still live at Greystone. Nothing has changed. What's in a name? It will change when you marry, anyway."
But her family name wouldn't change if she married him. And he was aware, quite suddenly and uncomfortably, that the cousin standing before him wasn't actually his cousin.
Thankfully, she hadn't seemed to make that connection. "You're right," she said, straightening her shoulders and taking a big breath.
She didn't look like she really believed him, but she looked like she wanted to believe him. And the shaky little smile she aimed at him had nothing to do with seduction and everything to do with family comforting each other.
"Thank you," she added. "I don't know when you became so reasonable, but I do appreciate your calm, considered approach."
If only she knew. He hadn't been calm and considered since inheriting the marquessate. All in all, he'd felt calmer on campaign with the enemy bearing down.
Panicked would describe his current state better.
He had two more sisters to marry off, an estate that came with entirely too much responsibility, and now a cousin who wasn't his cousin.
And since she'd stopped crying, she was looking sultry again, damn it. Those huge, amazing eyes would bring any man to his knees.
In fact, his knees seemed to be aching right now. "I am glad I could help," he said stiffly.
His voice wasn't the only thing that was stiff.
"I think…" she said, licking her lips, "I think I'm ready to go back to the others."
"Thank God," he said under his breath.
"Hmm?"
"I'm thankful to God that you feel much better."
She cocked her head at him, no doubt remembering he'd never been a man given to prayer, his frequent use of the Lord's name notwithstanding. But she followed him back down the row, and for that he was thankful, too. Mostly because she was behind him, which meant he didn't have to watch her swaying derrière.
It was a good thing she'd said she'd never marry him, because the last thing he needed was a wife.
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If you'd like to learn more about the real places in Lost in Temptation, read on for my Author's Note...
BONUS MATERIAL
Author's Note
Books by Lauren Royal
Regency Chase Family Tree
Excerpt from TEMPTING JULIANA
Contest
About the Author
Acknowledgments
Jewels of Historical Romance
Contact Information
AUTHOR'S NOTE
Dear Readers,
Do you know any sleepwalkers? Two of my children occasionally sleepwalk, so I know firsthand that it doesn't look as scary in real life as it's usually portrayed in movies. Sleepwalkers look and act quite awake—if a little bit addled—but they never remember anything of their escapades in the morning.
Much mystery has been attached to sleepwalking, yet it's really no more mysterious than dreaming. The main difference between the two is that a sleepwalker's brainwave patterns are a combination of the type produced during deep sleep mixed with awake patterns. This second type of brainwave reflects waking behaviors like walking and talking while the person is still asleep enough so that he's not aware of
