Mission_Improper
Page 43
quipped back. "Can't I compliment my wife?"
Firm fingers took her champagne glass and set
it aside too. Then his hands cupped her face and
drew her closer. Her entire body pressed against
his, and Ingrid breathed in the subtle scent of his
aftershave.
"Of course you can," she whispered. "But
don't think I'll forget that you're hiding something."
Byrnes smiled, his pale eyes growing lazy.
"Always a challenge, Ingrid. Obviously I'm not
trying hard enough."
The kiss took her breath away as he caught
her hands and wrapped them around his waist.
Then his own hands captured her face and he drank
in the taste of her breath, every soft gasp... turning
her into a molten puddle of quivering need.
Yes, romance definitely seemed like a
suitable distraction.
Ingrid slid her hands inside his coat and
pressed him back against the desk. Byrnes caught
her wrists. "Ah, ah, ah." He murmured,
withdrawing from her. "You are not going to ravish
me on Lynch's desk."
She bit her lip, her gaze lifting to his. "Do you
think he'd notice?"
"Undoubtedly." Byrnes put a finger to her lips.
"Later. You're not going to distract me from my
purpose."
Ingrid bit his finger. "I could."
There was that smile, there and then gone
again. "This is important."
Ingrid rested her hip on the desk and folded
her palms in her lap. "You have ten seconds to
convince me it's interesting. Then I want my
present." A darting glance toward his erection told
him precisely what she meant by that.
"Maybe this is your present," he replied,
leaning his hands on either side of her hips and
pressing closer.
"Continue."
"You know I've been distracted lately."
Ingrid hesitated. Of course she'd noticed,
though she'd thought it the residual effects of his
mother's passing last year. "Ye-es...."
"I've been working on a gift for you," he said,
and the laughter vanished from his face, leaving
him darkly serious.
Once upon a time, she would have thought that
she'd done something wrong when he looked like
that. She understood him now, however. That
closed-off expression and the tight way he
pronounced his words meant that he was emotional
and trying to rein it in.
"A gift?" she teased, to lighten the mood.
"It's been perplexing me since the day we
married. I wanted to do something for you, but it
hasn't been as easy as I'd hoped it would be. In my
arrogance I assumed I would be able to present
you with this gift for our anniversary. Let's just say,
it took a little longer than expected. Come." He
took her fingers and drew her to the polished
walnut secretary, where he gestured her into the
seat. There was a creamy envelope on the
secretary, as well as a box somewhat larger than a
book. It smelled like paper and ink and the faint
chemical tang of photographs.
"What is it?"
"Not a puppy," he replied promptly. "Or a
diamond ring. Or all of the other foolish ideas
Rosa presented me with. I wanted to do something
special for you."
Ingrid looked up and he brushed his mouth
against her cheek. "It's the reason I disappeared for
two weeks last month, darling. I didn't go to
Edinburgh with Garrett for that Ripper case. I lied
about that, but I hope you'll forgive me."
"Byrnes." Her voice lowered, her heart
starting a rapid pitter-pat. She didn't know why, but
she was suddenly nervous. As was he. She could
see it in the tense line of his body. "I thought we
promised not to lie to each other."
"I didn't want to get your hopes up." Then he
let out an exasperated breath. "I didn't want to get
my hopes up. Do you know how frustrating this
case has been? I honestly didn't expect this lead to
go anywhere, as all the others haven't. And if I'm
being honest, this was a promise I made a long
time ago to you."
"Case?" Her spine straightened. "You were
working a case without me? And what promise?"
"Bloody hell, Ingrid. Just open the envelope."
Shooting him a sidelong glance under her
lashes that promised future retribution, she
obliged. A pair of first class tickets aboard a
steamer fell into her hand. "Oslo? But why...?" And
then she stopped speaking. She was fairly certain
she also stopped breathing. Her heartbeat echoed
in her ears.
Byrnes pushed the package toward her with a
faint, nervous smile. He rested his hip on the desk.
"I found them for you."
"Who?" she whispered, but she knew.
"Your family, Ingrid. I found them."
The world fell apart. Tears blurred her
vision, and she froze, unable to so much as speak.
Byrnes's
hand
clenched
around
hers
comfortingly. "Your legal name isn't Ingrid, which
has been the bother all along. It's actually Britta
Ingrid Apslund. Your Aunt Kristina, however,
decided you were most certainly not a Britta when
you were a one-year-old. They called you Ingrid
from that moment until your fourth year, when you
were taken by the English raiders. It's all there in
the package. I have photographs of your family. I
have your birth documents, your... your bill of sale.
I even met your mother. She's still alive, after all
this time, and looks remarkably like you. You have
aunts, uncles, sisters, nephews and nieces—"
Ingrid couldn't bear to hear anymore. All this
time.... With trembling hands, she opened the box
and lifted a pile of photographs out. The top one
showed a smiling woman resting a baby on her hip
whilst another child clung to her skirts. The man
beside the woman was tall, with dark hair and
light-colored eyes that—even through the sepia
portrait—she knew were bronze. The image
seemed to suddenly open up a previously locked
box in her memory. She could almost hear his
voice in her mind, reading to her before bed. A
deep, patient voice, and her favorite book, The
Snow Queen.
With a gasp, she clapped a hand to her lips,
but her tears were more difficult to contain. "My
father."
"Yes." Byrnes kissed her forehead. His voice
lowered. "He was killed by the hunting party that
took you. Your mother searched for you for years,
but there was nothing to find. The English raiders
were good at their job, and some of them were
even rogue blue bloods. They didn't leave any
scent, or any trail. She never knew what had
happened to you, but she never gave up hoping."
She couldn't stop herself from crying harder.
"Ingrid?" Byrnes gathered h
er into his arms,
where she sobbed against his chest. "You're
starting to make me nervous. You're happy about
this, yes?"
In response, she simply nodded wetly against
his shoulder.
"There's nothing I wouldn't do to make you
happy, darling." His strong arms drew her tight into
a hug that shielded her from the world. "I would
even resort to flowers and poetry if I thought that
would put a smile on your face."
She couldn't help laughing at the thought.
Dashing the tears from her eyes, she pushed away
from him just enough to try and gather herself. "I
should make you write me a poem, just to see if
you would."
He grimaced. "I'd pay Garrett to do it. He's
better at that sort of thing than I am."
"I don't want empty words, Caleb." Ingrid
tugged at his lapels, trying to compose herself.
"Just you. Always you. You always know exactly
what I need."
Gruff, and slightly embarrassed, he couldn't
quite hide his pleasure as he cleared his throat. "I
love you, Ingrid. They're the only words that I
know, and they're not empty." Pressing her hand to
his chest, he gave a faint smile. "They fill me up, in
here. I never knew there was so much emptiness
inside until I met you, but you fill me up. You make
every day a revelation."
Ingrid gave a hiccupping laugh that was filled
with more tears. Her family.... She still couldn't
believe it. "Thank you."
"I thought we could take an extended
honeymoon," he suggested, offering her his
handkerchief. "Since we missed out on our first
one, thanks to that debacle at Malloryn's wedding."
"A honeymoon?"
Fingers tiptoed down her bodice, pausing at
the lace along her décolletage. "We leave in two
days time. So you'll have to pack. But that's
unimportant. I believe you were saying something
about another type of present?"
Ingrid curled her fist in his collar. "Come
here," she growled, and hauled him against her for
a kiss.
Lynch's desk be damned.
BEFORE YOU LEAVE LONDON...
IF YOU ENJOYED MISSION: Improper, then get
ready for The Mech Who Loved Me! Book two in
the Blue Blood Conspiracy series, it features
Kincaid and Ava, and continues the mystery of
figuring out just who is the figurehead behind the
dhampir and SOG. If you want to know more about
its release date, cover reveals, and pre-order links
click here.
IF YOU'D LIKE to receive notification of future
Bec McMaster titles, giveaways, and exclusive
first looks at new covers, sign up for my
newsletter.
CAN'T WAIT for more blue blood action and
romance? Or did you miss the first arc of the
series, London Steampunk? Check out the whole
series. I recommend starting with Kiss Of Steel.
Not only is it the first book, but it also features a
cocky, bad boy anti-hero who captured my heart
from the very first moment he came onscreen.
There's humor, heroes-to-die-for, dangerous plots,
sexy corsets, kick-bustle heroines, duels, steamy
kisses (not-just-kisses), and vampires.
DON'T FORGET to keep an eye out for new
releases. Hexbound, the second book in the Dark
Arts series is out in October 2016, and features the
reclusive and scarred assassin, Adrian Bishop, and
a thief who just might be able to help him recover
the Chalice she stole from him. Then in December,
The Last True Hero, continues the Burned Lands
series, with the story of what happened to Adam
McClain.
THANK YOU FOR READING MISSION:
Improper! I hope you enjoyed it. Please consider
leaving a review online, to help others find my
books. Read on for more information on the Blue
Blood Conspiracy series.
THE MECH WHO LOVED ME
COMING 2017
The Sons of Gilead are rising, threatening the very heart of the
Empire: the Queen herself. Only a secret handful of people dare
to stop them, though they may be risking life and limb–and even
their hearts–in the process.
Freed from the grips of a madman, Miss Ava McLaren has had a
difficult time fitting back into the life of a gently bred young lady.
Stricken by the craving virus, she found solace in the laboratories of
the Nighthawks trying to create a synthetic solution for blood, until
one day a strange missive arrives, asking for her help in thwarting a
plot against the Queen.
Thrown into the Company of Rogues, Ava finds herself intimidated
by the dangerous men and women who form the core of the group,
particularly the brutish mech, Kincaid. The man's a devilishly
handsome rake who barely notices that she's even female. Indeed,
he considers her blue blood status a personal insult and makes it
clear he'll never trust her.
Until an assassination attempt proves that Ava's experiments just
might have caught the attention of the Sons of Gilead. Kincaid's the
only one who can protect her from the dangerous anarchists–and
together they are forced to discover just why Ava is suddenly the
most sought-after bluestocking in London...
ALSO AVAILABLE:
LONDON STEAMPUNK SERIES
Kiss Of Steel
Heart Of Iron
My Lady Quicksilver
Forged By Desire
Of Silk And Steam
Novellas in same series:
Tarnished Knight
The Curious Case Of The Clockwork Menace
LONDON STEAMPUNK: THE BLUE BLOOD
CONSPIRACY
Mission: Improper
The Mech Who Loved Me (Coming 2017)
DARK ARTS SERIES
Shadowbound
Hexbound (Oct 2016)
BURNED LANDS SERIES
Nobody's Hero
The Last True Hero (Dec 2016)
SHORT STORIES
The Many Lives Of Hadley Monroe
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Bec McMaster is the award-winning author of the London
Steampunk series. When not poring over travel brochures, playing
netball, or cooking things that are very likely bad for her, Bec spends
most of her time in front of the computer. A member of RWA, she
writes sexy, dark paranormals, and adventurous steampunk
romances, and grew up with her nose in a book. Following a life-long
love affair with fantasy, she discovered romance novels as a 16
year-old, and hasn't looked back.
In 2012, Sourcebooks released her debut award-winning novel, Kiss
of Steel, the first in the London Steampunk series, followed by: Heart of Iron, My Lady Quicksilver, Forged By Desire, and Of Silk And Steam. Two novellas - Tarnished Knight and The Curious Case Of The Clockwork Menace - fleshed out the series.
She has been nominated for RT Reviews Best Steampunk
Romances for Heart of Iron (2013), won RT Reviews Best
Steampunk Romance with Of Silk And Steam (2015), and Forged
By Desire was nominated for a RITA award in 2015.
In 20
16, she debuted the Dark Arts series with Shadowbound, and
the second London Steampunk: The Blueblood Conspiracy series
begins in July 2016 with Mission: Improper.
For news on new releases, cover reveals, giveaways, and special
promotions, join her mailing list.
@BecMcMaster
BecMcMaster
www.becmcmaster.com
becmcmaster@bigpond.com
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The storyline in Mission: Improper first began to
rear its head in My Lady Quicksilver (book three
in London Steampunk). We were rapidly heading
toward the revolution, but what happened next?
After all, there were a lot of threads to tie up, a
few characters who needed to find their HEA, and
just how well was the Queen going to rule now that
she was out from under the grip of her tyrannical
husband? One of the things I liked exploring in this
book is the fact that not everything is perfect. We
like to pretend that when we overthrow the
villains, the world is suddenly sunshine and roses.
But mistakes get made, and sometimes those
changes don't just happen in the blink of an eye.
London is now changing, but slowly, my friends.
Slowly. And we've got a bit of a ways to go yet.
I enjoyed every second of writing this novel, but as
with every project I take on, I couldn't have done it
without a lot of help from these amazing people:
I owe huge thanks to Jennie Kew and Kylie Griffin
for the beta read–who else highlights every cat
reference in somebody's manuscript *grin*–to
Olivia from Hot Tree Edits for all the editorial
efforts on this project, and my wonderful cover
artists at Damonza.com for that glorious cover.
Special thanks go to my very own beta hero,
Byron–who encourages and supports me every step
of the way–and to the Central Victorian Writers
Group, for all of the tea and chocolates consumed
at our meetings/brainstorming sessions.
And to everyone who read/loved/reviewed/ or
talked about this book, you guys are awesome! And
yes, Charlie is coming! He just has a little bit of
growing up to do. I hope you enjoyed Ingrid and
Byrnes's HEA!
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright
MISSION: IMPROPER
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11