Page 58 of Romancing the Artist

“No.”

“You cannot stop me.”

She snatched the shoes from the wardrobe and danced out of his reach as he lunged for them, his wig nearly toppling off. He caught it at the last moment, then followed after her, casting the pantaloons aside.

Caroline wove her way through boxes and cloth-draped furniture, deeper into the attic and toward another wardrobe. “You may not have the shoes.”

“You are very cruel.” He grinned and sidestepped a stuffed dear’s head that had alarmingly large glass eyes. “I thought we were friends.”

“I am doing you and everyone who could possibly see you a favor.” She pointed to the wardrobe, holding the shoes in one hand over her head. “Check in there for what we came for.”

“Are you blackmailing me with footwear?” He held the wig, which looked more unkempt than before, in place with one hand and opened the wardrobe with the other. He shuffled things around inside, but blocked Caroline’s view.

“Have you found anything useful?” she asked from behind a table, a bust of a scowling man, and a somewhat hideous statuette of a lion. At least, she thought it was a lion, but whoever had created the piece hadn’t seen the same drawings of lions that she had.

“Perhaps.” He glanced over his shoulder at her, then in a flourish he turned and twirled around a red cloak around his shoulders, the size of the cape made it terribly impractical for use. The thing had at least two feet of its length puddled on the floor behind him. “A Titan’s cape?”

Oh. That might work. “That will do marvelously.”

“Now may I have my shoes?”

Caroline wrinkled her nose at him. “Never.”

Edward pounced. Despite the cape, wig, and distance between them. Caroline squeaked and tried to move out of reach as he cleared the edge of the table, his cape knocking everything off its top. But she didn’t anticipate the speed of his attack.

Edward’s arm came around her waist, and he tried to pull her back. He didn’t know, however, that Lord Neil Duncan had trained his stepdaughter on how to evade someone of greater size and strength. He’d taught her for far more serious reasons, but his lessons came in use in that moment, too.

Caroline threw herself backward into Edward, startling him and knocking the wind from him, before dropping down out of his hold. He stumbled backward, catching hold of the table, and Caroline made to slip around him.

His dratted cape caught her slipper, though, and slowed her escape. Which gave Edward enough time to regain his balance and catch her wrist in his hand. The hand not holding the shoes, so she stretched the other as far away from herself as she could, keeping the dreaded footwear out of reach.

Edward pulled her closer, arm around her waist, pinning her to him, while his free hand stretched down her arm to grasp the heel of one of the ridiculous old shoes while the gold studded fabric glinted at them.

The look of determination he wore, coupled with the laughter dancing in his eyes, fully captured Caroline’s attention. How could they not, with her pressed so near to him? His handsome face with its strong jaw, smiling lips, and high brow? She’d studied him for weeks, from every angle. And every angle was quite perfect. At least in her eyes.

He looked down at her, and his teasing grin faded slowly as he realized she wasn’t engaging in the game anymore. Their laughter had faded away, and Caroline’s heart was now the organ in most jeopardy. It thudded against her ribs, banging about like a hammer on an anvil, as loud as a military band’s drums.

His arm stayed around her, and the hand reaching for the ridiculous shoe touched her cheek instead. His fingers grazed the burning flesh, then traced over to just below her ear, then gently down to cup her chin.

“Sometimes,” he whispered softly, “merely being near you feels like part of an adventure.”

Caroline leaned into him without realizing it, and then she couldn’t be certain if he bent or she raised on her toes first. But they both moved. And together, they met. His lips grazed hers, and she closed her eyes the instant before she kissed him back.

Warmth spread through her, as she lost herself in the moment. His kiss was soft and tender, yet full of promise, sending shivers down her spine. He held her close, cradling her chin as though she was made of glass, yet his arm was firm and protective.

It was everything she could hope for in a first kiss. Yet nothing she could have explained, written, or painted about with any accuracy.

They parted slowly, their eyes meeting once more as they both took a deep breath. Edward’s gaze softened, and sudden panic wrapped around Caroline’s heart. This wasn’t supposed to happen. They were pretending. They had made a deal. The long summer stretched before her, with all her hopes pinned to a single painting and the man who would decide if she was good enough, if there was any hope for her dreams.

She had to put a stop to whatever it was that was happening. And when Edward’s lips parted, as though to speak, she dropped the shoes to the floor with a clatter and stepped away from him.

“That didn’t happen.”

He blinked at her. “Caroline?”

“It never should have happened. I am terribly sorry, Edward. I haven’t any idea what came over me. It seems I took the game too far.” She spun away from him and picked her way through the relics of Inglewood’s past. “Please don’t mention it again. For my sake. It was terribly inappropriate.”

“But Caroline, I—”