Rhys drew her close, his gaze holding hers in that electrifying manner that never ceased to send her heart racing. “Shall we do it again?”
“Rhys—”
He was kissing her before she could finish.
“Now, shall we continue?” He laughed, his dimple threatening to undo her entirely. “Swim in the Serpentine—bold, but hardly criminal.”
“Rhys, I don’t think you should be reading that aloud.”
“Why not? Do not tell me that you are still embarrassed by something you penned yourself.”
She lunged for the paper, but he held it above her reach, delighting in her struggle. “Give it back!”
“In a moment.” He scanned the list, his lips twitching. “Swim in the Serpentine. Now, this is properly rebellious. You realize the water is likely lethal?”
“All the best things are,” she said, putting her hands on her hips.
He laughed again, holding the page between two fingers as if it were a particularly interesting artifact. “You’re determined to tarnish my reputation, aren’t you?”
She snatched at it again, this time catching his wrist and holding it fast. He grinned, then softened as he looked at her—reallylooked, in the way that sometimes made her feel like the only person in the world.
“You’re trembling,” he noted.
“I am not,” she lied. “I’m simply… eager.”
He tilted his head, studying her. “Is this about last night?”
She bristled, ready to deny it, then stopped. “Yes. Or perhaps about all the nights before it.” She loosened her grip on his wrist but did not pull away. “I want to do something. Anything. I don’t want to be afraid anymore.”
His eyes were serious now, the playful edge tempered by something deeper. “You were never afraid, Celine. Not really. You’re the bravest person I know.”
She scoffed. “You haven’t met many people, then.”
He caught her hand, threading his fingers through hers. “Let’s prove it, shall we? What do you want to do first?”
He signed the bottom of the page with a flourish and presented it to her, official as a royal proclamation.
“There. A binding contract between the Duke and Duchess of Wylds, to commit acts of mild to moderate wickedness together, so long as we both shall live.”
She took the sheet, trying not to smile. “You realize the servants will gossip if you keep reading my list aloud?”
“They already do,” he said, waving off her concern. “Besides, if you are to be the Wild Duchess, you ought to give them something worth talking about.”
Her mouth quirked. “Very well. I’d like to swim in the Serpentine.”
A very slow, very wicked grin spread across his face.
Chapter Twenty-Four
“You’re certain no one saw us?” Celine’s whisper carried through the blue dusk as Rhys reined in the horse beside the embankment.
“Not unless the squirrels have suddenly taken to blackmail,” he said, swinging down from the saddle with a flourish calculated to annoy her. “And if so, I’ll simply outbid them.”
She rolled her eyes, but the corner of her mouth betrayed her. “I still insist that midnight was safer.”
“Cowards move at midnight. My Duchess swims at twilight or not at all.” Rhys held up an arm. “Unless you’d rather vault from the saddle yourself?”
“Perhaps I will.”
