“I was thinking a man named Jack Granger.” He said it casually, as if he were telling his valet which waistcoat he’d selected for the day. “He’s not a lord. He was born a bastard but made something of himself. He’s accumulated wealth through his investments, and he can keep you in the style to which you are accustomed…but he cannot give you a title. Doors previously open to you might close because you would be tying yourself to a man who is not your social equal.”
She stared at him. “You created this…this entire identity?”
“More than this one, love. Habit of the trade.” His smile didn’t reach his eyes. “But I like this one for you because Jack, whilst not blue-blooded, is an honest man. One who sleeps well at night knowing he’s put in a good day’s work. He is loyal, committed, and doesn’t harbor secrets because, at heart, he is a simple man. Most importantly, he loves you as much as Sebastian Courtenay did. Perhaps even more, because he knows what you would be sacrificing if you took him on. He knows you deserve better, but he would fall to his knees in gratitude if you said yes.”
Her head spun as she contemplated what he was proposing. How it would change her life as she knew it. To be married to him…but not him. She would no longer be Lady Charlotte Fayne, but Mrs. Jack Granger.
“What if someone recognizes you?” she asked. “A friend or even an acquaintance?”
Unreadable emotion flitted through his eyes.
“As you know, I had an isolated upbringing. My health prevented me from making friends, and since I was so rarely in London, I had few acquaintances. Moreover, twelve years have passed, and I doubt anyone would remember me.”
“I see.” She chewed on her lip, wondering if his plan could work.
“I am sorry.” Sebastian studied her. “I am asking too much?—”
“No. That is, this isa lotto take in, but I am glad you are being honest with me. I want to know what you are thinking, Sebastian. I want to knowyou,” she said tremulously. “As for your proposal, I need time to think about it. About the consequences of any decisions I make.”
“I hate that you would have to give up?—”
“The title is not my concern.” She waved dismissively. “It’s true that I once wished I could have had a more conventional upbringing, that my papa had seen fit to raise me as a proper earl’s daughter. Having circulated in Society for several years now, I realize that I wasn’t missing much. Ironic, isn’t it? What I truly miss is the freedom of traveling and the world beyond ballrooms.”
“I can give you that,” he said. “Travel and adventure, whatever your heart desires. As for ballrooms, we shall avoid them like the plague.”
His boyish eagerness lifted her heart.
“My biggest consideration is my society,” she said, thinking aloud. “My Angels are important to me. I will not do anything to jeopardize them or the crucial work we do.”
“Of course not, love. They are your family, your team. I would never ask you to give them up or do anything that would compromise your purpose.”
She loved how well he understood her.
“There shouldn’t be a reason why I cannot have both you and the Angels in my life,” she conceded. “But it will require forethought and careful planning.”
“You will consider it then?” Hope roughened his voice. “Consider marrying me again…only this time as Jack Granger?”
“I will think on it.”
“Christ, you’ve made me the happiest of men, and you haven’t even said yes.”
His exuberance rustled a laugh from her. He kissed her, pushing her back on the bed, and the full extent of his enthusiasm, hard and heavy as an iron pike, became evident. Their mouths and hands roamed, and they tangled and rolled in their eagerness to get closer. She ended up on top, but he dragged her by the hips to kneel over his face. She rode his agile tongue, gasping as he drove her to a climax that made her fall forward in a boneless, shivering heap.
“Hold that thought, sweeting,” he murmured.
He slid from under her. He was back in moments, and she twisted her head to see him donning another French letter.
“What can I say?” He shrugged, his smile smug. “I wasveryhopeful.”
She was giggling when he gripped her hips. Her laughter dissolved as he pushed inside her, thick and strong, filling her up.
She pushed back on him, pleasure bowing her spine as his wide head butted a transcendent place. “Ohthere, darling. Right there. That feels so fine.”
He withdrew and thrust, hitting the exact spot. He did it repeatedly until her insides turned molten, and she spent with another gush. He groaned, the slick sounds of his plowing accompanied by the disciplined smack of his hips. His self-control unraveled, and she loved it, clutching the bedsheets for purchase so she could take the full force of his pounding. Take everything that he gave her.
“I’m going to spend,” he grunted. “I want you to go over with me.”
She wasn’t sure it was possible, but then he reached under her, finding her pearl, working the slippery bud against his pistoning shaft. The waves of bliss rose again as he drilled his cock deeper and deeper, pleasured growls coming from his chest. Like magic, they crested as one, his body curving over hers, her lips turned to meet his kiss.
