“It’s notallyou can do,” he retorted.
Now she did stand, shoving her shaking hands behind her back. “You want something from me. Something as compensation? What is it?”
He glided forward again and held out his hand. To her shock, his fingers moved across her jawline, tracing the skin there with intimate and utterly inappropriate slowness.
“What would you say if I told you I wantyou?”
Chapter Three
Alexander watched as understanding dawned across Marianne’s face. He waited to see her disgust at the notion, for her fear because of his monstrous appearance. But there was none. Her eyes instead lit up with interest at his suggestion, coupled with confusion.
“I-I’m a lady,” she stammered at last.
He nodded slowly. “Indeed, you are that. Does that mean you pretend not to understand what I desire?”
She licked her lips and his cock hardened at the swipe of her pink tongue. He wanted to feel the same across his skin. He had from the moment he first touched her and realized his intruder was a woman.
It had been a long time since he wanted something or someone so much. He found himself quite desperate for her, despite what she’d come here to do. Despite the fact that she was not the kind of woman one made this type of offer to. Despite the fact that she could talk and talk and talk, it seemed. Despite it all, he wanted her.
“You wish to…” Her cheeks flamed and her voice dropped to a whisper. “…bed me.”
“Say it again,” he ordered. “Louder.”
She cleared her throat and glared at him before she said, “You wish to bed me.”
He nodded. “For a time, yes, I want tobedyou. But you know there will be consequences to that action. I assume you are a virgin?”
The blush of her skin grew darker. “Of course I am, Your Grace. My father was a thief—that does not make me a wanton.”
“I hope youarea wanton once you let me touch you,” he said with a rusty laugh. “That will make this so much more fun. But youwillsurrender your virginity. That will limit your future.”
She pondered that a moment. “My future is already severely limited, as I’ve told you. My virginity isn’t what will keep a man of means and standing from offering for me. Still, it will put an end to any future I might have once wished for. What will I gain in return for this?”
His eyes widened at her strength and grit. Rather than mincing or blushing or fainting, she wasnegotiatingwith him.
“You said you are about to be put out of your home. That your inheritance is hardly enough to keep you,” he said. “How long is your cousin allowing you to have to find a new arrangement?”
“A month,” she said, and her voice broke. Her fear was obvious, and for a moment he wished he could comfort her.
Of course, he did no such foolish thing. He hardened his tone and said, “I have a cottage on my estate in Avondale that used to be let but is currently empty. I would guarantee you to have it for a very reduced rent. Low enough that your purse would stretch.”
She met his eyes, and he could see her interest growing. “But if anyone found out what I had traded for, it would hurt my sister even more than this mess with my father has.”
He shrugged. “I have no interest in telling tales, not that I have anyone to tell them to. And if it would strengthen my offer, I would be willing to add to your sister’s future dowry. I think a few thousand pounds when she turns eighteen would certainly make her a viable prospect for a man of respectability.”
Her lips parted, and for a moment it seemed he had stunned her into silence. He watched as she attempted to regather herself. “A few thousand pounds,” she breathed at last. “That is a great deal of money. What will you expect from me in return? What will you have me do?”
He stepped closer, drawing in a long drag of her sweet scent. Slowly, he caught her arms and pulled her tight against him. God’s teeth, but she was soft and molded to him like she’d been made to do so.
“Anything I desire,” he responded. “You will come with me to the estate as soon as possible. Have your servants prepare your sister for travel in a month when she will come to join you at the cottage. Until then, you’ll be mine. All mine. How and when and where I desire it.”
“A month,” she breathed, her gaze flitting to his lips. She wanted him to kiss her, and he would. To seal the deal.
“For now you would live in my home, though you would move to the cottage once your sister arrived on the estate. We might be able to come to a discreet arrangement for more time if we were equally pleased by each other.”
“And if you are not pleased with me?” she asked. “Would that mean your bargain would not stand?”
He pursed his lips. She was tenacious, he could see. That would serve him well if it were put to use as his lover. But right now she was only interested in protecting her sister.
