Not that it would have made any difference had a single one of them touched his heart. Since his failure on that searing continent to improve the family fortune – a fortune depleted by the poor judgement of his father and the profligacy of his brother – he had steeled himself for a long bachelor-hood.
Saving what was left of the Lark House estate would consume all his energies and as such he had considered himself impervious to romance.
Now Davina Shelford, this guileless and delicate creature, had somehow penetrated his defences. He was almost angry with himself for allowing it.
These thoughts so dominated his mind that when he arrived at Priory Park and Davina presented her hand in eager greeting, his eyes were hooded and cold.
Davina’s hand was trembling as she drew it away from his
