Page 6 of Miss Ellis Unleashed

And they were alone for the very last time for him to do so.

He pivoted to face Daisy Ellis, and saw her smug smile drop off her face in an instant. “I’m sure nothing of yours has been forgotten,” she hastened to say.

He’d bet she’d written out lists of everything he owned long ago. And while he’d been doing his duty at yet another dull society ball as her guardian, for her benefit, her minions—the servants he’d placed his trust in all these years—had been hard at work evicting him.

He began to remove his gloves, one finger at a time.

“Miss Ellis, I did the best for you in a difficult situation. What should I have done with a grieving young girl, suddenly thrust into my life? Abandon her? Ignore her, like her father had? Take her away from everything she’d ever known?” He dropped one glove to the floor and started on the next as he took a step in her direction. “I never asked for this. Yet you show no gratitude for the sacrifices I’ve made. Ungrateful wretch. No doubt you’ll ruin yourself with the first idiot who gets you alone, or that sniveling solicitor will get you in the end. All I did was delay the inevitable, I suppose.”

Her mouth opened in shock. “How dare you!”

“Isn’t that why you hate having a guardian? Did I spoil your fun by insisting you follow the rules of proper society so you could marry a man better than your father ever was? But you were never serious about finding a husband, were you?”

“You only wanted to be rid of me,” she shrieked. “You never even asked if I wanted a husband!”

He flung his second glove away and stared down at her. “I’ve heard enough of you and your friends talking to know what you dream of when it comes to men. Any handsome fool with a pulse will do for a seduction, it seems.”

Daisy gaped but the silence was only temporary. “What I want from a man is utterly beyond your comprehension, I’m sure. Your cold, passionless mind could not begin to understand my need for companionship or affection.”

He was offended by her accusation. “You believe I lack passion?”

She glared at him. “Yes, I do! I doubt you know what to do with a woman, you poor man.”

Max’s honor was at stake now.

Passionless? Cold? Hardly!

He closed the distance between them, bent Miss Ellis over his arm, and planted a long kiss on her pretty pink lips to prove her wrong.

It was not a subtle kiss, nor was it brief. He’d been celibate for years because of her. And since she insisted he was no longer her guardian, he could be the scoundrel he used to be.

Daisy Ellis had never known the kind man he really was. He’d reformed for her sake. Kept back details of his life that might shock her. He’d given her no reason to doubt his character since the guardianship had started.

He softened the kiss and encouraged her lips to part, and although Daisy seemed surprised, he couldn’t help but notice she didn’t push him away either. When her tongue brushed against his, and her arms stretched up to embrace him, he knew he’d have to stop soon. Her soft moan of excitement had given him the vindication he sought.

This was passion, this was scandalous…and everything his days and nights had lacked since meeting her.

Max held her away from him, noting her dazed expression with immense satisfaction, then let her go. She seemed completely overcome and unable to find any more words to even scold him for taking liberties as she gaped at him.

Max bowed with an unnecessary flourish and faced her one last time. Well-kissed and shocked suited her very much. “Farewell, Miss Ellis. I wish you all the luck in the world for your future.”

And with that, he swept out the front door, satisfied in a way he’d not been in years, and squeezed into his carriage, surrounded by his possessions.

He’d bested the maddening creature at last. He was not without passion. And thanks to Daisy Ellis, his return to bachelorhood was off to an outstanding start.

Chapter Three

“I must compliment you, Miss Ellis,” Mr. Pinkerton announced suddenly.

She raised a brow. “Must you again, sir?”

“You are a vision in green,” he enthused, complimenting her choice of gown for the third time tonight.

“Why thank you,” she answered modestly, snapping out her fan. Behind it, Daisy’s face grew warm, made uncomfortable with hearing such excessive flattery uttered in the middle of a ballroom. She was not so obsessed about her looks that she sought such praise from her friends. She was not vain, or silly…despite Throsby’s claim one month ago.

Pinkerton gestured around them. “The other ladies are pretty enough, and Miss Dawes particularly so, but none can compare to you,” he said. “Don’t you agree, Freddie?”

“I do indeed,” Mr. Fredrickson replied, aiming a faint smile in her direction.