An Encounter at the Museum

  Water dripped from her spiked eyelashes. Alex Hastings. He could have his pick of any woman, and he chooses her?

  She was indeed blind. Except her blindness went far deeper. She was blind in her heart. By refusing to see her own worth, she wasn't just hurting herself. She was hurting Alex, too.

  She was ever so grateful to him. What she saw as the least of women, he saw as a princess, above all the rest.

  "Why me?" she muttered, and immediately she understood Malak's riddled message. The answer really was more illuminating when asked out of humility than out of discouragement.

  Malak pushed the wet strands away from her face. "I hope you spend the rest of your life contemplating the wonderful answer to that question."

  He bent his head low and placed a warm kiss on her wet lips.

  Malak smiled, his mischievous dimples creasing his incandescent skin. "Mmm. I'll never understand how you're able to do that. You make me feel…so good. I expect that as you become the woman you're created to be, you'll make others this happy too.

  She smiled as a blush pinked her cheeks. And when her eyes opened once more, Malak had vanished.

  Though darkness had fallen upon the meadow, there was oh, so much brightness in her heart. Coursing through her body was a new blood, an innate awakening. It showed her the power in her tenderness and the tenderness of her power. The humility of her beauty and the beauty of her humility.

  She turned back toward the house, seeing the candlelight flickering in the window. Though the night had grown chill, she felt gloriously warm, more alive than ever. Every step she took became the tip of the spear, the point of the wake. She was charging ahead on her new life, and she felt the limitless breadth of herself. Nothing would make her take steps backward again.

  And for the first time, she was ready to share that with someone else.

  Lucky Alex.

  Michelle Marcos is the award-winning author of several historical romance novels for St. Martin's Press. She lives in Miami, Florida, and loves to hear from readers. You can connect with Michelle on:

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  Discover other titles by Michelle Marcos at

  http://www.michellemarcos.com

  Unmasked, ISBN 9781301801442, E-Book

  Lessons in Loving a Laird, ISBN 9780312381790, St. Martin's Press

  Secrets to Seducing a Scot, ISBN 9780312381783, St. Martin's Press

  Wickedly Ever After, ISBN 9781429925150, St. Martin's Press

  Gentlemen Behaving Badly, ISBN 9781429926485, St. Martin's Press

  When a Lady Misbehaves, ISBN 9781429959346, St. Martin's Press

  "A talented storyteller, Marcos gives a very human face to all her characters and the moral dilemmas and situations they face."

  -- Fresh Fiction

  "The depth of emotions, realistic characters, history and sensuality make her novels keepers."

  -- Romantic Times Book Reviews

  "When I want a great historical romance, I’ll reach for anything by Michelle Marcos!"

  -- LISA KLEYPAS, New York Times bestselling author