Gasping, Beth started once more to struggle. Surely any woman, nomatter how experienced, would struggle when so handled against her will.It was impossible to break his iron hold.
Beth remembered her purpose and stilled herself. Victory was so close,and she must not quail now. What was he watching for? What would betrayher ignorance and virtue?
She felt his thumb begin to rub lightly over her breast, over hernipple. It was a shocking sensation. She closed her eyes before theybetrayed her desperation. Extraordinary things were happening in herbody.
Instinct told her she could improve her impression of boldness byresponding, by kissing him perhaps. He would hate a display of wantonlust. But she simply could not, nor did she know how to do it right.
Instead she wanted to scream and fight. She wanted to escape. If shescreamed, his parents would come and stop this torment but would that gainher end?
She forced herself to stay as still as her trembling body would allowas she racked her mind for a way to use this moment. To use it to give himsuch disgust of her that he Would never consider marrying her, no matterwhat his parents wished. And quickly. She could not endure much more ofthis without betraying something . . .
She remembered, long ago, eavesdropping on a conversation between twoof the middle-aged daily maids who cleaned the school. They had beentalking of their husbands and the marriage act, and though Beth hadscarcely been able to understand them, the words came back now.
“He’s a good enough man, my Jem, and lusty, but he does so like to makea meal of it, and there’s times I’d just rather have it done and get mesleep.” Now she had a glimmer of what “making a meal out of it” mightmean.
Summoning up her courage, and with a prayer to whatever deity lookedafter poor beleaguered women, Beth opened her eyes and drawled, “Do youalways make such a meal of it, my lord? Can’t we just get on with it?”
He released her and stepped back. There was in his face all therevulsion for which she could wish.
They stared at each other in silence. His face looked white, but thatcould be the moonlight. Beth thought not. She wondered if she’d live tomake the journey back to Miss Mallory’s.
“Are you pregnant?” he asked bluntly.
“Of course not!”
“Can you be so sure?”
Beth clenched her teeth to stop them chattering. “Yes.”
He took a visible breath. “Will you give me your word,” he saidcarefully., “not to . . . not to indulge your passions before the wedding.I think there are enough bastards in this affair already.”
“Really, my lord ?”
“It’s a little late for offended delicacy, Miss Armitage. I want yourword.” His lips tightened with distaste. “If your needs are so great theycannot be controlled, I will, with reluctance, accommodate you before thewedding. Any child you bear will be mine.”
“You still wish to marry me?” asked Beth in horror.
“I never wished to marry you, Miss Armitage,” he said. “Now I wouldgive a fortune not to have to touch you. But I have no choice, for thoughI would give a fortune, I will not give up my heritage. My father willleave me only the property without the means to maintain it unless I marryyou.”
A great chill washed over Beth, and she wondered if she wouldfaint. “So you are helpless, too,” she whispered, wondering how she couldundo what she had done.
“But not powerless,” he said coldly. “I will not acknowledge bastards,and I will not be cuckolded. I think I am able to keep you satisfied. Iwill beat you silly and lock you up with a keeper if you show any sign ofgoing to another man. Do you understand me?”
Sick with horror at what she had done, Beth could only whisper,“Yes.”
“Now get out of my sight.” He turned away from her.
Beth stared at his back. “My ? my lord...”
“If you value your skin, Miss Armitage, you will leave.”
Beth looked at one tightly clenched fist on the cold stone balustradeand fled.
If the duke and duchess, sitting quietly reading, noticed anythinguntoward in Beth’s appearance, they did not show it. When she said shewished to retire after a tiring day, the duchess rang the bell by herhand. One of the footmen came to escort her back to her rooms whileanother went to inform Redcliff she was needed.
Beth would have forestalled that if she had known how, but she simplyendured the woman’s ministrations. Then alone in the dark room sheassessed the bleak situation.
The duke had said he could compel his son, but she had not reallyunderstood him. Now her fight for freedom had backfired disastrously. Themarquess had not been insensitive to the awkwardness of her position andhad been disposed to be kind. She had destroyed that and in a way thatwould shame her to her dying day.
