Page 22 of Five Nights with a Rakish Duke
Chapter Eight
“Five nights?” Penelope repeated in surprise. She veered backwards on her feet a little, across the room in awe of what had been said. The Duke continued to smile as he sat at the piano stool, leaning forward with a keenness in his gaze and a sultriness to his smile.
“Ha! I have shocked you,” he said laughing. “You already knew I was a rake; what about this surprises you?”
“The proposition itself!” she said loudly, flinging a hand in his direction. “You are asking me to…” she trailed off and glanced to the door, fearful of being overhead. She crossed the room toward him again until she was beside him then lowered her voice. “You are asking me to behave like a lady you’d find in the backstreets of Soho, are you not?”
“Hardly,” he said, with a shake of his head. “If I wished to visit a brothel, I would. That is not what I am asking.”
“Then what are you asking?” she said, fidgeting with her hands.
He slowly stood to his feet. The movement startled her, making her step back till she collided with the piano. She reached out her hands behind her, pressing the piano keys so that they tinkled in the air. He reached out to her, blocking her in against the piano and placing his hands on the piano keys either side of her. As he leaned down on her, he had a smile upon his features, one that made her gaze flit down to his lips.
She was thinking of that kiss and his offer.
If he is asking me to share his bed…
An image flashed in her mind of what it could be like. A cad he may be, but clearly that experience would mean he would know what he was doing, able to bring a lady pleasure. The idea thrilled her with this image of him above her in a bed, wearing nothing at all with her legs wrapped around his hips.
She had read of such things once. She had heard two maids talking of lovemaking in the corridors when they thought she couldn’t hear them. With no mother to tell her of what happened between men and women, she had asked Veronica to tell her what could happen. Veronica had given her the plain details before pointing her in the direction of a book that could tell her more. The book had made her blush.
“You are blushing again, Lady Penelope,” he said, with a deep whisper.
“Is there any wonder?” she said tartly. “After what you just asked, and how close you are standing?” He came even closer, bracing against the piano either side of her until his hips were practically brushing hers. The proximity made her gasp and glance down at their bodies.
“Let me explain my proposition to you a little more,” he said softly. “Five nights in my company does not mean five nights of sharing my bed. It means we spend five nights together, with one another, yes, and if we end up sharing a bed, well…” he paused, offering a wink, “I’ll be very happy indeed.”
“You are insufferable,” she said, biting her lip regardless.
Why does the idea thrill me!?She couldn’t make sense of her own thoughts, let alone come up with an answer to give him.
“It is merely a few nights together,” he said with a soft chuckle. “I can assure you, I would try to make sure you enjoy my company as much as I would enjoy yours.”
“I’m tempted to ask how you would do that,” she said, attempting to make her tone defiant as she lifted her chin, but he smirked all the more, taking another meaning entirely.
“I can show you if you like,” he said, moving his head down to hers. She pulled her head further back from his, stopping him from kissing her.
“Why five nights?” she asked.
“What?” He looked startled by the question.
“Why five nights?” she asked. “It seems an arbitrary number.”
“It is my rule,” he said, moving his hands either side of her on the piano keys. As well as the tinkle of the keys echoing in the air, his arms brushed the side of her waist with the movement. It was such an intimate and yet brief touch that she felt a shiver travel up her spine, one of excitement. “No more than five nights with a woman.”
“Ah, I see,” she said, biting her lip in thought. “You wish to enjoy yourself with me and then forget me?”
“I never forget anyone,” he said with surprising strength. “It is merely that I embrace what other men may deny.”
“What do you mean?”
“Desire.” His voice lowered an octave, making her lean toward him a little more. “I see no point in denying that lust and desire exist in the world, and you seem to be staring at me with just as much lust in your eyes at this moment.”
“I am not!”
“Ha! Really?” he said, chuckling away. “My point is that five nights allows such desires to be explored, without attachment.”
“I see.”
