Part Two
The Bargain
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
VIRGINIA KNEW HER SURPRISEwas evident. She felt her jaw drop, and it certainly seemed as if her eyes popped. She was only given an instant in which to react, however, an instant in which Mrs. Hill turned grim and severe, a knowing glint in her eye, while Mr. Tompkins flushed. “Come, darling,” Devlin murmured, tugging on her hand.
What game was this?
Anger rushed over her in one hot wave. She refused to move, turning what she hoped was a murderous glare upon her captor. Still, her disbelief knew no bounds.What could he possibly be doing?
Devlin swept her up into his arms and carried her into the house. “Do not argue with me,” he murmured. “And do not kick.”
“I’ll do better than that! Put me down and I am not—”
He covered her mouth with his.
Virginia could not have been more surprised. She stiffened, but his mouth was far more than terribly familiar. When she did not kick or beat at him with her fists, his lips softened. She felt him push open the door as her heart lurched wildly and then picked up an insistent, faster beat. His mouth covered hers, demanding that she open and admit him. How she wanted to yield…Her anger vanished, as did all thought. Her lips parted; her hands curled around his shoulders. His tongue swept deep inside her.
And the answering desire was a piercing bolt, directly to her heart.
He raised his head as he trotted up the stairs and their gazes met. His gray eyes smoked, but otherwise, Virginia could not fathom what he was thinking—much less what he was doing. And what was she doing—kissing him back, her entire body burning with a desperate need? On the landing he paused, finally breaking their stare, glancing around.
“Put me down, Devlin,” she said more calmly than she felt. Her sex was full, a terrible testimony to how easily this man aroused her, but she was not about to share his bed, no matter how he might attempt to seduce her, no matter what he had said.
His answer was to push open the first door with his shoulder, glance within and back out. “Be quiet,” he said tersely. “And stop squirming.” He strode to the next door.
“I am not squirming,” she said rather breathlessly. “And I—”
He entered the next room, sliding her to her feet. Virginia made contact with the singular most fascinating piece of his anatomy, and she went still. He was also aroused. He still wanted her. How was she going to manage this?
He turned and closed the door, faced her, and said low, “This is only a pretense. I will sleep on the…” He looked around, and resigned, said, “Floor.”
“What?” she gasped, realizing that the master bedroom, if it was that, had a fine four-poster bed and one chaise, two end tables, a bureau, a hearth and that was all.
He walked over to her.
Virginia tensed, still breathless and still wishing desperately that she did not burn to be in his arms. “What are you doing, Devlin?” she asked quietly.
“Unfortunately, I will have to provoke your uncle into paying a ransom,” he said flatly. “You will live in my rooms as if you are my mistress, and in public, we shall act like a very shameless pair of lovers. I expect your cooperation, Virginia,” he warned, “and I remind you that your interest remains in being freed quickly. The sooner Eastleigh cannot stand my parading you so openly about, the sooner you will be on your merry way home—or wherever it is that you choose to go.”
She simply gaped.
“I once thought to enjoy toying with him over this.” He was so grim. “But actually, I am sorry he will not pay me directly so that we might be done.”
It took her a moment to truly understand his plan and her comprehension of it made it impossible for her to hear his last words. “We willpretendto be lovers? We willsharethis room? You will ruin me in the eyes of theworld—but you are not going to share mybed?” She heard disbelief and the tremor of hurt in her own tone. What he suggested was more than incredible, more than shocking. He would ruin her good name—flaunt her in society. She was stunned.
“That is the gist of it, yes,” he answered, his hands on his hips and his strong thighs braced. In fact, he looked braced for a very real storm.
“A gentleman does not live openly with a woman other than his wife—a gentleman does not escort his mistress about his neighbor’s halls.”
“There is no other way.”
“How can you do this to me?” She found it hard to breathe now. For here was the ultimate proof that Sean was wrong and Devlin did not care—he would callously use her and ruin her name, all for the sake of the ransom.
Maybe you are the one who can help him find his soul.
Absolutely not, Virginia thought in response to Sean’s terrible words. Devlin could not care about her, not at all, if he thought to destroy her reputation this way. To use her so deliberately, he could not have any soul left to save. She was now horrified.
