Page 31 of His Scandalous Lessons
Extraordinary. Like Richard — even like Montgomery, for all his roguish ways. Anne had always thought men who fought against women’s suffrage were shouting against a tide, willing it to stay put. There was a pointlessness in commanding the sea to bend to your will.
But even the sea had rhythms. It came progressed and retreated, as a rule. Progress could never come, it seemed, without backsliding along the way.
“Bollocks,” the duchess snapped, to Anne’s surprise. “We’re not property, Anne, to be treated no differently than a piece of furniture to come home to when convenient. We ought to have a say in our futures. We ought to—” Caroline inhaled sharply and looked away. “I beg your pardon. I've said too much.”
Anne swallowed hard. “I never asked why your husband was not here as a host. It felt impolite, but...he left you, yes?”
“Yes. You’re a kind girl,” Caroline said, gazing out into the trees that surrounded them. “And so I will tell you this: Hastings has a great many positive qualities, but being a good husband is not one of them. I would not wish such a fate on any woman if she could choose differently.” The duchess squeezed Anne’s hand. “You must ask yourself if you can live out the remainder of your days with a man who sees you as nothing more than something to be owned.”
“What if I don’t have a choice?”
“You have a choice, Anne.” She smiled softly. “Surely you know by now that sometimes what we think we need isn’t what we truly want.” She stood, her skirts rustling. “If I may be so bold: Scotland requires neither a special license nor a father’s permission for a girl your age to wed. And the weather, I’ve heard, is very lovely this time of year. I think Richard would enjoy it.”
* * *
Anne slidthe note under Richard’s door and went to the cottage.
It wasn’t long before she heard the quietsnickof the door. She looked over to find Richard standing with his shoulder against the stone column of the archway. His blue eyes shone with some complex emotion that made her shiver. A gentleness. An understanding that she had never seen in a man and likely never would again, because it was all for her.
She’d been a little bit in love with him, to start. Now she felt as if he’d taken up the whole of her heart, wore a groove inside of it until he’d fit inside, just so. Perfectly right.
“Granby is a ridiculous bastard who doesn’t deserve you,” Richard said, instead a greeting.
Anne burst out laughing. Had she been standing, she would have collapsed onto the settee. God, she loved him. “Richard.”
“I’m completely serious,” he said, coming forward to kneel at her feet. “I ought to have known anyone that obsessed with horses was only hiding his utter idiocy. And he has the stupidest goddamn hair I’ve ever seen in my life.”
She only laughed harder as her arms came around him. “Oh, Richard. I do adore you.”
Richard held her tightly. “You deserve better than him, Anne. You deserve better than any man here.”
Anne was quiet as she pressed her lips against his throat for a brief kiss. His breath shuddered and his grip around her tightened. No wonder women wanted him. No wonder her father feared him. He was a radical, a revolutionary, and she loved him for it. She loved him. She loved the way he encouraged her voice, and taught her to expect more than what she had been given.
Todemandmore.
His words made her glow. They made her feel strong. They made her want him with a fierceness she had never felt before, and it both frightened and exhilarated her.
“What if I don’t want better?” she whispered against his skin. “What if I just want you?”
He made sound, one that spoke of need and desire. There was power in this, she realized. Power in intimacy. Perhaps one of the few moments of power women wielded over men, that she felt him tremble beneath her hands.
He groaned. “Do you know what you’re saying? What you’re asking?”
“I’ve never asked for anything in my life except with you. With you, I always know what I want.” She pressed her forehead to his. “Elope with me, Richard Grey. Be my husband.”
Richard’s face broke into a smile. “Anne. You’re stealing my line.”
“You’re the one who taught me to make demands. Ask for what I want. Be b— What are you doing?”
“Unbuttoning your dress. I’ve got to start over. Make you forget you asked.”
“And why is that?” She couldn’t stop herself from laughing again.
His grin turned devious. “So we can pretend I proposed first.”
Chapter 18
Richard wanted to be gentle with her.
