Page 6 of A Bargain with the Rakish Duke
“You expect me to believe this was an accident?” he murmured, his lips dangerously close to hers.
“Yes,” she whispered, her voice barely audible. “And if you think I am here to seduce you, you are sorely mistaken. I do not want to be ruined.”
He leaned even closer, his breath mingling with hers.
How long had it been since he was this close to a woman?
He reveled in it.
“Ruined? Perhaps it wouldn’t be so bad,” he teased, “I’ve been told I can be quite… persuasive.”
“Your Grace, this is highly improper,” she managed to say, her voice trembling slightly.
“Improper, perhaps,” Kenneth relented, his lips brushing the shell of her ear. “But undeniably thrilling, don’t you think?”
She shivered at his touch, her resolve wavering. “I am not here to play games,” she insisted, her voice quivering.
“Who said anything about games?” Kenneth’s lips hovered just above hers, a tantalizing promise of what could be. “Unless, of course, you’re afraid to see where this could lead.”
“I am not afraid of you,” she responded.
“Oh, I knew that. What I am saying is that you’re afraid of your own desires, My Lady,” he challenged with a smirk.
“And what would you know of my desires?” she asked, her expression unwavering.
He smirked.
“Enough to know they are worth exploring,” he answered.
“Is that so?”
“Oh yes. And you know fully well that I can fulfill them all.”
She did not immediately respond this time, leaving the words to hang between them; a silence charged with unspoken desires and challenges.
Kenneth’s eyes bored into hers, searching for any hint of deceit. But all he found was a defiant determination that matched his own which did nothing to ease the thrill coursing through him.
So, he dared to lean even closer.
However, before he would dare to do more, a sudden knock on the door shattered the tension. Both their eyes widened in surprise.
“Kenneth,” came the voice of his aunt, Lady Bernmere, from the other side of the door.
Thinking quickly, Kenneth placed a hand over Beatrice’s mouth and pulled her against him.
Her eyes widened in shock, but he silently pleaded for her cooperation, mouthing, “Stay quiet, and she will go.”
Lady Bernmere persisted, however, calling out, “Kenneth, a footman alerted me you had arrived. Are you in there?”
Kenneth growled softly, knowing his aunt would not leave if he did not respond. “A moment, Aunt. I am not decent.”
Removing his hand from Beatrice’s mouth, he signaled for her to hide behind the door. She nodded, her eyes still wide, and hurried to stand next to the doorway, out of sight.
Kenneth grabbed a shirt and hastily pulled it on before opening the door.
“Good evening, Aunt Marjorie,” he greeted, trying to keep his tone neutral.
“Kenneth, you are quite rude for not coming to dinner,” Lady Bernmere chided, her tone reproaching and concerned at the same time.
