Nearly a Lady

Nearly a Lady (2011) Alissa Johnson (Haverston Family)

Set in Britain during the Napoleonic Wars.

“What the devil would I do with a London season?”

“Find a husband, I imagine,” was Gideon’s reply.

It only served to mystify her further. “What the devil would I do with a husband?”

“Obtain long-term financial stability,” Lilly told her. “Something more reliable than sheep that can fall ill or crops that can fail.”

“Do you play an instrument?”

“I’m afraid not.”

“Watercolor, sketch?”

“No.”

“Can you sing?”

“Not well.”

“Do you know any French?”

A corner of her mouth hooked up. “A bit.” She cleared her throat. And then proceeded to recite a list of French invectives so extensive, so obscene, that she actually hit upon one or two he’d never before encountered.

He gaped at her for a moment. “It is a sad state of affairs, indeed, when a young lady can out-swear a sea captain.”

Gideon threw the glass against the fireplace where it shattered into hundreds of bright and jagged shards. He whirled on her, his face hard and angry, his muscles bunched so tight she feared he’d shatter as the glass had. “Children! What the bloody hell did I know of children?!”

“Gideon—”

“I’ll tell you what I know now! What I learned soon enough! It takes no more than a metal ball and the space of a heartbeat to rip through nearly a half dozen of them!” He dragged a shaking hand through his hair. “Just one ball. One ball and the captain responsible for placing them in the way of it.”

She’d never thought of herself as a woman with notable charms before. But there they were, pushed up, laced in and practically spilling over the top of her bodice. What hypocrisy that she should be forbidden to acknowledge in the company of a gentleman what was being so blatantly revealed for the benefit of that gentleman.

Rating: 9/10

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