“I beg your pardon?” Outrage replaced mortification. “I never lied to you!”
“You led me to believe that you were a woman of experience.” His jaw could have been carved from granite, save for the ominous ticking of the muscle there. “You acted like you’d played that particular game before. You never, not once, mentioned the fact that you were a damned virgin.”
Was he upset that he’d bedded a virgin…or a disfigured woman?
What does it matter?she thought bitterly.He regrets lying with you.
“The state of my virginity is no business of yours,” she said stiffly.
“The hell it isn’t. I am not the sort of man who goes around deflowering innocents.”
His eyes flared, hinting at the predatory instincts behind his sensual charm. A wise woman would not poke the sleeping beast.
“Oh, please, you deflowered no one.” Wisdom had never been one of her finer qualities. She gave a dismissive wave. “I was an equal and willing participant.”
“Be that as it may, my cock was inside your theretofore untouched cunny. That, I believe, is the very definition of deflowering.”
“Yourlanguage, sir.”
Her remonstration didn’t sound as indignant as she planned. This was due to her sudden breathlessness, in turn due to the memories steaming up her brain. The body part he referenced suffered an indelicate spasm.
“You didn’t seem to mind my vocabulary during our interlude.” He raked a hand through his hair, pinning her with a baleful stare. “I would never have spoken to you in that fashion had I known that you were untouched. Hell, I never would havetouchedyou.”
Which was exactly why she’d disguised her lack of experience. Hearing that he regretted their encounter, no matter that he had good reason, cinched her throat. In the light of day, her fantasy was unmasked for the delusional and desperate ploy that it was. The truth was there, staring at her every time she looked in a mirror: she would never have a real lover.
No man would want to wake by her side and make love to her in the sunlight. No man could accept her imperfection. No man would bring her happiness…for that, she had to rely on herself.
Feeling the terrifying prick of heat behind her eyes, she took a breath and regained control. Yes, she’d acted like a fool. She, of all people, ought to have known that there were always consequences for the choices one made: the taut pull of her scar served as a constant reminder. The important thing was not to compound her stupidity. She had to manage the situation with Murray and get on with her life.
She drew her shoulders back. “If I misled you, then I apologize. I would point out, however, that we are both adults who consented to spend an evening together. One evening. I believe I made it clear that there would be no messy entanglements, and you agreed.”
“That was before I was in full possession of the facts.” He’d started pacing before her, the latticed sunshine picking out the bronze in his hair as he muttered, “How could I have known that you were a virgin? How many maids would infiltrate a blasted orgy? Only one…and I had the luck to find her. Of course.”
His obsession with her prior maidenly state was beginning to annoy her. As was the fact that he seemed to be talking as if she were not there.
“I may have been a virgin, Mr. Murray,” she said crisply, “but I was never a lunatic. I was—and am—fully capable of making my own decisions.”
“There’s no other choice.” He came to an abrupt halt, his gaze locking on hers. “I must make you an offer.”
Surely, he couldn’t mean…
“An offer for what?” she asked warily.
“For marriage.” His brows slammed together. “What else would I be referring to?”
Pressure built at her temples.Breathe in, breathe out…stay in control.
“Seeing as you’re also trying to buy my estate,” she said acidly, “there could be a variety of offers on the table. None of which I’ll be accepting.”
“Your estate. Right.” He exhaled. “That is a complicating factor we’ll have to deal with.”
“No, we won’t. Because I’m not going to marry you.”
“You don’t have a choice, Miss Brown. Your honor and mine are at stake.” His tone gentled, as if he were explaining things to a slow-witted child. “I took your innocence, and I must do the right thing.”
If he mentions my innocence one more time…
The tension in her head burgeoned, but she managed to hold onto her temper.
