He forced the very thought out of his head.
Not the least put out by his musings, his cock was overjoyed to know Aurora was waiting, stiffening to marble at the mere thought of her in his drawing room. He should have worn his coat after all. A hum was lighting across his skin, stirring at his arousal in a vicious manner.
I’m a rake. I’m too old for her. I don’t want to marry. Her brothers will murder me.
Charles silently chanted the words while Ropely led the way to the drawing room, instructing his cock to stand down, or at the very least, not be so noticeable.
“Lady Aurora.” He stepped into the drawing room, the delicate sweet scent of honeysuckle immediately filing his nostrils. Aurora’s petite, rounded form—
Christ, those curves.
—sat perched on the edge of the settee. Hands tightly clasped in her lap. Her chin tilted toward Charles as he entered, the bits of green in her hazel eyes sharpening at the sight of him.
“Good afternoon, Mr. Worthington.” Aurora looked quite fierce sitting on those tufted silk cushions, tapping one foot impatiently. Determination, an abundance of it, lit her beautiful features.
Charles wavered. The same determination with which he’d seen in the maze. His cock pulsed in his trousers, completely pleased to see Aurora.
Not now.
He’d been at the mercy of his cock for more than half his life. He supposed most men were. Terrible weakness.
Ropely closed the drawing room door with a soft click.
“You shouldn’t be here, unescorted in the middle,” Charles took a deep breath trying not to inhale the sweet honeysuckle clinging to her, “of the bloody afternoon. I’ll have my carriage brought around to take you home.”
“There’s no need to curse, Worth. And I’m not returning home, not until I’ve had an opportunity to to speak to you about this.” Reaching beside her, Aurora pulled outThe Bloom of the Rose.
“Shocking, isn’t it?”
“Incredibly,” Aurora agreed.
“You wish to return the book to me and never speak of this again. I quite understand.” He moved forward, not bothering to examine why some tiny part of him was…disappointed?
“Shocking is a tame description. This book,” she lifted the slim tome, “is quitefilthyin nature, Worth. There are illustrations along with details that would make even Aunt Lottie blush. And she has an entire collection of rather scandalous works. But none reaching these heights. Hers are rather mild in comparison.”
Charles wasn’t the least shocked to know that Miss Maplehurst, the worst sort of chaperone for a young lady such as Aurora, had her own collection of erotic works. “I’m sorry, Aurora, for offending you with such reading material. I’m sure you can see now why it would be best to take any remaining questions to Miss Maplehurst, or better, wait until you are wed and can explore”—he stumbled over the word—“these things with a husband. I’ll take it back and we can forget—”
“On the contrary,” Aurora drawled, interrupting his speech. “Further discussion is merited.”
“Further discussion?” Charles didn’t care for the mischievous smile pulling at her lips. Nor the fact that her breasts, thosedelightful mounds hesalivated over, kept threatening to burst out of her bodice with each breath she took.
“Chapter four.” Aurora smacked the slim, leather clad tome on the table before her.
Charles wracked his brain. He had no idea what was in chapter four, though if it was that close to beginning ofThe Bloom of the Rose, the situation couldn’t be too depraved. The debauchery worsened the further one read as Rose experienced a variety of sexual pleasures.
He plucked the book from Aurora’s fingers and riffled through the pages until he reached the beginning of the chapter.
Bloody hell.
Charles looked away, his resolve shredded. Desire for Aurora ached along his skin. His fingers curled into fists at his side to keep from touching her.
That bloody book was the worst idea I’ve ever had.
“You need to leave. Immediately.” A surge of absolute lust heated beneath his skin at the thought of tasting—
“I disagree.” Aurora lifted her skirts, exposing a pair of slender calves encased in silk. “Chapter four.”
Chapter Eleven
