Page 32 of The Tempting of a Devilish Lord

Alex’s brows lifted. “What did you do that for?”

“Well, I did nearly die.”

A slow smile spread across his face. “I think that was far worse than nearly falling off a rock.”

“So I should kiss you more then?”

He nodded, his grin widening. “Most certainly.”

It was utter scandal. Completely shocking. Entirely unlike her too. However, she could not resist. All she could think on was that if she had died in that well, she would not have known what it would be like to be kissed by a man like him.

Or more to the point—by Alex.

He set aside his glass, curved a hand gently about her face and eyed her, his gaze searching hers for a few heartbeats before pressing his lips to hers. She sank into the kiss, following his lead, and slowly opening her mouth to his, a sound escaping the back of her throat at the thrill of it all.

He kissed her deeper, sweeping his tongue over hers, his hand cradling her face so perfectly. Any idea of being cold vanished, and she curled her free arm around his neck to move closer. A swirl of heat and excitement combined low in her stomach.

The clearing of a throat made them spring apart, and Lucinda stared at the glass in her hand when Mrs. Jones entered the room, her cheeks so hot she feared she might be at the point of overheating now.

“Miss Evans’s sister has arrived with her garments, my lord,” the housekeeper said, her tone betraying nothing. “Shall I take her to one of the bedrooms to change?”

Alex’s throat bobbed and he nodded. “Yes, thank you, Mrs. Jones.”

Lucinda’s stomach sank. She could not believe it. Ten years of nearly perfect behavior and she had ruined it all. And if Mrs. Jones was a gossip, she might well have ruined herself all over again.

Chapter Ten

“We need to discuss Leo.” Adam paused in the doorway to the study and smirked. “And whatever is happening here it seems.” He gestured broadly at the desk in front of Alex.

Alex set down the quill and leaned back in his chair. Across the desk, unfinished and unread letters were spread over the surface. He usually had estate business down to a fine art, especially considering he hired only the best to aid him with it, leaving him enough time to escape the duties of a marquis at a moment’s notice. Today, however...and well, yesterday and the day before and he supposed the day before that, he had struggled to even finish a letter discussing issues as simple as cows.

He grimaced. He had struggled ever since kissing Lucy.

“What about Leo?” Alex asked.

Adam strode into the study, glanced outside the door and shut it swiftly. “He’s acting strange. You must have noticed he keeps slipping off after dinner to goodness knows where.”

Alex pinched the bridge of his nose. “A woman?”

Adam lifted his shoulders and snatched the chair by the window, dragging it across the floor with a screech that made Alex wince. “What else could it be?”

“I wonder if Mrs. Jones has noticed.”

“Think she’s spying for Mother?” Adam dropped into the chair, made a space amongst the debris on the desk and lifted his feet onto it, leaning nonchalantly back in the chair.

“Could be.”

In which case, Alex’s promise to his mother had already been broken. She would know of the kiss Mrs. Jones had interrupted. She might also know Lucy had fled immediately after said kiss, all flustered and utterly unwilling to talk.

He ground his teeth together. Whilst Mrs. Jones might be willing to inform their mother of all their comings and goings, she was no gossip, and she would certainly never ruin a lady’s future over a simple kiss. If that was the case, she’d have had all of them married off as boys because they certainly did their share of kissing when they were younger.

But it seemed Lucy did not care to listen to him tell her that. She had been avoiding him ever since. No more visits to the house, no more impromptu hill climbs, and she darted away when he spotted her in town—twice!

“I think we need to talk to him.” Adam laced his fingers behind his head. “And you need to tell me what this is all about.”

“This is work, Adam. I know you are not familiar with it,” Alex replied dryly.

“This is a mess.” He removed his feet from the table and picked up a letter, reading from it. “Mr. Lowe, I was pleased to receive your letter about the cows at Haystack Farm. Indeed, I think we can...” He looked to Alex. “I think we can what, Alex? You cannot even finish a letter about damned cows.”

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