Page 7 of A Virgin for the Duke of Depravity
He climbed in after her and took a seat. Margaret avoided his eyes, which was fine with him. It gave him time to take stock of her, to marvel at her. Here she was, a nun at his book club who had somehow managed to catch his eye.
She was much smaller than him, but that was not hard when he was so much bigger than everyone around him.
The perfect size to wrap an arm around.
He had to force his arm to remain at his side instead of reaching out to touch her.
His eyes lingered on the swell of her chest beneath her simple gown. It was nothing like the gowns of the ladies of the ton. It was made of simple, cheap fabric, with no fancy detailing on the bodice. He was surprised that Theresa would not loan her a gown so that she might blend into the ton better.
Her hair was braided the same way Theresa often styled her own long hair, likely because the same maid assisted both women. But Margaret’s fiery red hair matched the glint of defiance he had seen earlier while escorting her out of Olympus. Nothing as beautiful as that should be covered by something as meek and mousy as a nun’s wimple.
She had stumped him, truly. Had anyone else stumbled into one of his parties at Olympus, he would have thrown them out in an instant. But Margaret stood there, staring at his guests with those large, brown eyes, as if she had never expected that two people might do that.Orthat. Or most definitelythat.
As a nun, perhaps she had not considered it.
Then again, she had also suggested that he could read those books to her. Surely, she could not be so innocent if she were willing to return to the party after seeing what went on behind the closed door of his library.
He looked at the shell of her ear and imagined whispering those words, his lips trailing down the line of her jaw to the delicate skin of her pale neck.
What would she taste like?
He shook his head, refusing to follow that train of thought. He had brought her with him for one purpose and one purpose only: to find his mischievous nieces in their various hiding spots.
Leo sat in the silence of the carriage, trying to tear his gaze away from Margaret. He was better off staring out at the streets rather than thinking indecent thoughts of the nun-to-be across from him.
While he relished the silence, Leo could tell that Margaret was discomfited by it. He would not have thought thatanythingcould make her uncomfortable. Not when she stumbled into his book club, and definitely not when she stood up to him, concerned for his nieces’ well-being. She squirmed in her seat as she turned to look out the window.
As they made their way to Devishire Mansion, she stared with wide eyes at all the estates they passed by.
“Have you never been to London?” he could not help asking her as they made the turn toward the estate.
She only shook her head, and the conversation fell flat.
The carriage trundled into the stables at the back of the property. As soon as the horses halted, Leo bolted out of the carriage. He paused only briefly to help Margaret step down, and then he was off toward the mansion.
“Stick close to me, please,” he said over his shoulder as he made his way inside the mansion.
Once they crossed the threshold where only the servants could see them, Leo took off running toward the staircase, hoping that Margaret could accurately guess where Annie and Kitty were hiding.
It would be a miracle if she knew where they were hiding without having to conduct a lengthy search of the entire estate from stables to chambers.
“Annie,” Leo called as he ducked his head beneath the stairwell. “Kitty!”
He breathed a sigh of relief when he found the twins huddled together beneath the stairs. They looked disheveled, theirdresses dirty from the dust that accumulated in a space the servants often forgot to sweep clean.
Why should they think of cleaning where no one would go? Only Annie and Kitty would think to hide there.
And Margaret.
“What are you doing here?” He crossed his arms, demanding an answer from his nieces. “You have had everyone worried. The servants have been searching for you for Lord knows how long.”
The girls emerged from their hiding spot, but neither looked at him. Annie looked at Kitty with narrowed eyes, as if daring her to speak first. She reached out and took Kitty’s hand in hers.
In the end, Leo realized that he would not get a response from the girls. A deep sigh escaped his lips. He closed his eyes, trying to think what he should say to these two small girls who were left in his charge. Would they be so ill-behaved for their father?
Finally, he decided that the best thing for everyone would be if he did not lose his temper this evening.
Leo felt like he was constantly losing his temper with the girls. They had been in his care for only a year, but he was exhausted by them. He had never been a man who pictured himself having children when he returned from war, but they were thrust upon him when his brother passed.
