Page 59 of Falling Into Bed with a Duke
Her words were said softly, and yet they struck home with a force that nearly toppled him off the bridge. She couldn’t possibly know about his financial situation, that he was willing to do whatever necessary to rectify it. She was probably referring to the photographs he took at the Nightingale. While he’d never shown them to anyone, he knew that not all the ladies who posed as his models were discreet. But he didn’t care if people knew he took them. A few gents had even asked to see them; they’d been disappointed to learn he didn’t share.
He knew what she had to hide. Her visit to the Nightingale. But her hiding her identity caused problems in his pursuit of her. There was a chance he would slip, take a misstep. He couldn’t have both Lady V and Minerva Dodger. He was going to have to settle on one. Minerva wouldn’t want him if he had an affair with Lady V at the Nightingale. Even if she was the same woman, she wouldn’t know he knew that. He needed her to trust him, completely and absolutely, if he was to have any chance of winning her over—either as a lover or a wife.
“What do you want to happen, Minerva?” he asked.
Her eyes widened slightly, her lips parted. “You’re being a bit familiar using my given name.”
“You’ve led me away from the house and into the shadows. What do you want to happen?” he repeated.
“Are you going to make me say it? Surely you can guess.”
“You’re the daughter of a wealthy, powerful man who wouldn’t hesitate to drown me in that pond if he thought I took advantage. So, yes, I want to ensure there is no misunderstanding regarding what you want.”
Silence eased in around them, thick and heavy, holding even the music and din from the ball at bay. A splash interrupted the quiet. A fish, perhaps. Or one of the swans. It wasn’t important. All that mattered was that they were alone, in near darkness.
“I want you to kiss me,” she said boldly.
She might as well have latched her mouth onto his. Desire ripped through him at her brazenness. And then, perhaps, because he didn’t immediately take her into his arms, she wilted at the edges, the doubt began to creep into her expression, and he cursed every man who had ever made her feel less than she was, every man who had looked at her and seen only a stack of coins.
Reaching past her, he cupped his hand on her shoulder and turned her slightly until she was facing him squarely. “Good, because I’ve been dying to kiss you ever since you sent your brother and his friends on their way in the ballroom.”
Then he settled his mouth over hers and took.
MINERVA could hardly countenance that in the darkness of her brother’s garden she was being kissed with such fervor and passion, as though she was one for whom ships set sail, wars were fought, and kingdoms razed. She’d only ever brought one other man here, a gentleman she’d been quite fond of. She wouldn’t go so far as to say she loved him, but she thought in time her affection for him would grow and deepen. While staring at the swans, he’d proposed that they marry.
No bended knee, no gazing into her eyes, no taking of her hand.
His tone had been similar to the one she used when selecting a blend of tea in a teashop. When she suggested they not rush into anything, he’d merely shrugged and walked off. A week later, she read of his engagement to another.
She knew that later she would analyze this moment and every moment that came before it. Six Seasons had taught her that a man’s attentions came with a price, and when she was unwilling to pay it, they faded away as though they’d never been. But for now she shoved aside all the doubts that clamored for attention and locked them away. For now, she allowed herself to believe she was desired. That this man longed to be with her as much as she yearned to be with him.
She nearly cried out in disappointment when his mouth left hers, before sighing with wonder as he cradled her face and rained kisses over every inch of it as though he adored what she had never learned to appreciate. Returning his mouth to hers, he gave no quarter as he deepened the kiss, and she fell irrevocably into the fiery passion burning within her. He stoked the flames with so little effort.
Drawing back, he skimmed his thumbs over her cheekbones. His grin flashed white in the darkness. “Well, hello, Lady V.”
MINERVA’S heart slammed against her ribs, her breath backed up in her lungs. She considered denying it, but how could she do it with any level of believability? What was she to say?I haven’t a clue regarding what you’re referring to.On the other hand, she was somewhat relieved to have it out in the open. “When did you know?”
With a finger, he slowly outlined where the mask had been, along her hairline, around her lower cheek, across her upper lip. “I suspected when we were talking at Lady Greyling’s party. Your size and shape seemed right, but it was more the passion with which you spoke. Your voice gave me pause, and your clothing. Women’s clothing can be so ghastly deceptive. But then I danced with you at the Dragons, and my certainty increased. Plus, there was the verbena.”
He’d known that long and had continued to pursue her, to meet with her at the Nightingale? “It’s not an unusual fragrance.”
“However, perfume provides a subtle difference in bouquet based on the skin to which it is applied. But the kiss just now sealed it. Your taste, your boldness, the manner in which you kissed me back. I could no longer deny the truth of who you are.”
“This changes nothing between us.”
“It changes everything. Knowing what can be between us, you can’t expect me to blithely walk away, especially when there can be so much more between us. And I know you like me immensely; otherwise, you’d have not asked me to kiss you. Nor would you have allowed me the liberties I took last night.”
“Shh. You don’t know who’s lurking in the shadows.” She’d pressed two fingers to his lips to gain his immediate silence. Now he took her hand, turned it over, and placed a kiss in the heart of her palm, before curling her fingers over it as though for safekeeping.
“You weren’t too concerned with who might be lurking about when we were kissing,” he said.
“A kiss is one thing. The other is something else entirely.”
“They’ll both get you to the altar just as quickly if a father finds out about either one.”
“No. My father’s finding out about the other will get you a casket.”
He seemed unconcerned, and he’d yet to release his hold on her hand. “Not if I have honorable intentions where you’re concerned,” he said.
