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Page 19

| Her gaze swept quickly over the man. From his elegant attire and the diamonds sparkling on the fingers of both his hands, she realized that he must live in this mansion on whose steps she had taken refuge for the night. She bolted to her feet to run away, but the man grabbed her by the wrist and stopped her. After she explained her sad circumstances to him, he took her inside his home. |

| This man, Woodrow Rutherford, was a scion of a rich and highly respected English family, a bachelor in his late thirties. Intrigued by Sasha, and pitying her state of affairs, he made her his ward, proposing to instruct her in all the skills and arts necessary to become a refined and proper lady. . . . |

| Sasha stooped to pet Lightning, her troubled thoughts brought quickly back to the present when she heard the clinking of coins landing at her bare feet. She stared unblinkingly down at the two shiny gold coins, her heart lurching when she saw just beside them a pair of elegant patent-leather boots that were surely worn by a man of distinction. Could it be? Had Woodrow returned and was he teasing her with a repeat performance of their first meeting? |

| Sasha slowly lifted her eyes, a part of her truly dreading Woodrow's return, for she had never loved him the way a woman should when she gave her promise of marriage. Now, at this moment of truth, she knew that she loved Ashton York with all of her heart! Not only did she love Ashton, but he had taken her under his wing and employed her as a tavern maid in his pub. They were even planning an exciting adventure together! She had saved all of the money she had earned, and she and |

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