Page 70 of The Seductive Love of a Lady
‘Why can we not dally here? We could lie on the bed and feed each other in the way of ancient Romans.’
‘Or…’ She uncurled her legs and slid from the bed, smiling at him as she reached for the towel and threw it at him. ‘You could stop procrastinating and dress. Then we can go down to dinner.’
He caught the towel.
‘Just remember, Andrew, I am on to you now. No shocking my family and hiding behind deviltry. I want them to know you.’
Laughter was his answer as he rubbed the towel across his chest.
When they eventually progressed to dinner, the smooth satin of Mary’s dress caressed her skin, in a way that made her feel both beautiful and elegant.
‘You look gorgeous, by the way,’ Andrew whispered through the edge of his lips, his eyes on the footmen in the hall below.
When he offered his arm to her before they left the room, he said, ‘You may take me to my sentence.’
‘It is not a sentence. Please do not upset them,’ she had chided.
‘I will behave, Mary, I promise, no nonsense.’
Despite his promise, her heart beat in a firm, fearful pace as she heard the hum of conversation.
‘How many are here?’ he asked.
‘All my uncles and aunts and their families, and my older cousins with their husbands. The younger children are in the nursery, but the older children will be dining with us. The boys are back from college.’
‘We are speaking of a horde then, and your father?’
‘Of course.’
Andrew stopped halfway down the stairs and took a deep breath.
‘Andrew?’
He took another breath, and sighed it out, then lifted her hand from his coat sleeve. ‘You asked me to show you how I feel. This is how I feel right now.’ He pressed her hand to hischest, over his heart. She could feel the pulse even through his waistcoat and her glove.
She smiled reassuringly. ‘If you are nice to them, they will be nice to you.’
‘I think I should speak to your father alone first. If I go to the library would you fetch him?’
‘Why?’
‘Because I need to put things straight, sweetheart.’
40
Drew had been waiting alone in Pembroke’s opulent library for ten excruciating minutes. He wiped his damp palms on the front of his waistcoat. He held his hands together behind his back and stared up at a portrait of John’s Duchess, her hair was half up and half down, and her shoulder turned to the room, showing a perspective that made her look like any other woman.
The door handle turned. Drew’s heart pounded.
‘Mary said you asked to speak with me, Framlington?’ Marlow did not look pleased about it. ‘You do realise you are keeping us all away from the dinner table.’
Drew sucked in a deep breath. Humble pie had a bitter taste. ‘Lord Marlow, may I ask you for Mary’s hand in marriage.’
The man looked at him askance. ‘It is a little late, don’t you think?’
Drew sighed. ‘Yes, sir, I know, but I did not ask, and now I wish to rectify the matter.’
Marlow’s arms folded over his chest. ‘What folly, what game is this, Framlington?’
