Page 121 of The Truth Serum
She lifted her chin. “Do you imagine that I cannot dress and cook for myself until Monday? How long have you gone without a servant?”
“For most of several years, but—”
“But I am a lady of leisure? Do you forget that I have tended the sick, managed a household, and often done so without benefit of help?”
He flushed at her arch tone. “Yes, I suppose I had.”
And right there was the crux of why she was afraid of leaping ahead with him. “You still think me a pampered child of sixteen. Even though I was never all that pampered.”
“Not a sixteen-year-old,” he said. “More a…” He glanced down at the book she’d been reading.
She guessed what he was thinking without him saying the words. “I am the heroine of your books, aren’t I?” It wasn’t conceit. She’d already seen similarities between herself and the women in his books.
“That’s not how I see you.”
She arched her brows.
“It’s not how I see you now.”
She wanted to believe it. She wanted to believe that he understood she was a lot more capable than anyone had ever given her credit for. But she was so used to being under-appreciated that she doubted anyone could see her true self. And as her husband, he needed to see her.
“Let’s go upstairs,” she finally said. “I want to know what you really think.”
He swallowed but held out his arm for her to show the way. “You think this will tell you?”
“Yes,” she said. Then she hedged. “Maybe. We will have to try it to find out.”
He agreed, and very soon they were seated in two cozy chairs by an unlit fireplace. She poured the appropriate amount in two glasses of wine. They clinked, then drank, watching each other’s eyes over the rims.
And when they were done, Nate set his glass down and pulled off his cravat. “How long will it take to go into effect?”
“Fifteen minutes or so. Not long.”
“Hmmm.” His gaze held hers for a long moment before looking away.
“Lord Benedict visited this afternoon,” she abruptly said. “We spoke for nearly an hour.”
“Today! That was fast.”
She nodded. “He doesn’t seem to be a man who waits, once he’s made up his mind.”
“No, he isn’t. What did he want?”
“He wants me to assist the Foreign Office. Nothing fancy, he said. Little stuff to see how I adjust and learn.”
“Is that all?”
“No. He mentioned that he is interested in finding a political wife. According to him, gentlemen with talented wives are the most valuable diplomats.”
Nate’s expression tightened. “You are not a political woman. You have never been involved in such things.”
“I haven’t,” she said, feeling a twinge of guilt that she was enjoying Nate’s discomfort. “But a smart woman can learn, can’t she? And I—”
“You are teasing me,” he said. “You have never expressed interest in marrying Lord Benedict.”
She cast him a coy glance. “That wouldn’t be the polite thing, would it? To speak of one suitor with another.”
He leaned forward, capturing her hands. “I thought we were beyond such games. You do not need to tease me to make me jealous of all the men who prance after you.”
