It was…risque.
The words on the page were not those of polite poetry or scholarly musings. No, rather it was filled with things no lady ought to read. Certainly, it was not literature that was available in libraries that she’d had access to before.
And yet somehow, it only added to her growing curiosity. Slowly, she reopened the book again.
Violet’s eyes widened, but her gaze remained firmly fixed on the lines before her. The descriptions were vivid.
“Oh,” she breathed, her cheeks heating.
Her fingers lingered on the edge of the page.Who on earth keeps such things in the library?she thought, scandalized.
Hesitantly, she flipped the page, her heart hammering in her chest.
“What are you doing, Violet?”
CHAPTER 9
The deep voice startled her so thoroughly that Violet let out a small gasp. Behind her stood Nicholas with a bemused expression on his face. She must not have noticed him walk in.
With impressive speed, she hid the book behind her. “Oh, I did not… I was just…” Her face burned as she struggled to force a coherent sentence.
Nicholas blinked, now leaning casually against a nearby shelf, his arms crossed and a knowing smirk tugging at his lips.
“You were…?” he prompted. “By all means, continue. You seemed rather absorbed.”
“I wasn’t—I mean, I didn’t realize—” Violet stammered, “I did not see you there, that is all. You caught me by surprise.”
“Oh, did I?” Nicholas raised an eyebrow, clearly unconvinced. “You seemed to be rather… engrossed in the literature. If you don’t mind sharing, I wouldloveto know what it was that you were reading.”
Does he know?Her blush threatened to grow deeper, and her grip tightened on the book she had hidden behind her.
“Oh, I was merely browsing through, that is all. Nothing specific caught my eye,” she said. “I was curious to see what is housed here in this rather large collection.”
“Curiosity can be dangerous,” Nicholas remarked.
“Well, I assure you,Your Grace, my curiosity is quite under control,” she said primly though her voice trembled at the edges.
Nicholas’ lips quirked upward, the faintest hint of mischief in his expression. “Is that the case?” His eyes flicked pointedly to the book she clutched with white-knuckled determination. “Then why, Duchess, are you guarding that book as though it is your personal diary?”
“It does not concern you,” Violet retorted, stepping back instinctively. But Nicholas began to close the distance between them.
“Oh, but it does concern me,” he countered. “Itismy library after all. Therefore, it is only natural for me to want to know what has caught the Duchess’ eye.”
“Must you call me that?” Violet mumbled, backing up another step. She was desperate to change the subject. Knowing the Duke, it would be difficult to talk herself out of this situation. “Besides, I should remind you that it isourlibrary now.”
“Staking claims already?” he smirked and then took another step forward.
“You might put it like that.”
“Well, even so, my inquiry still stands,Violet,” The use of her name—so casually spoken and yet still so intimate —made her pulse flutter against her will. “Do you prefer that I call you that instead of Duchess?”
“There is nothing to inquire.” Violet looked away, feeling the intensity of his gaze on her. The grip on her book tightened yet again, and she was certain her knuckles must have turned white by now. “Now if you’d please excuse me…”
“You’re being evasive,” Nicholas replied easily. He tilted his head, his dark gaze flicking from her flushed face to the book and then back again. “I can see that you are hiding something behind you. May I see it?”
His nearness now was unmistakable, his tall frame casting a shadow over her. Her breath caught as her back met the bookshelf with nowhere left to go. The Duke was far too close to her now. The realization sent a ripple of panic and… something elseentirelythrough her. He braced one arm against the shelvesbeside her head, leaning in just enough so that she could feel his breath fan across her face.
“It is n-nothing,” she sputtered out, but all her defenses were crumbling.
