Caught tangled in her own arguments, she turned away from him and slipped the pamphlet back where she’d found it. She wasn’t sure how to answer his legitimate counter. She paused. If it was for women, then why was it here? She looked at him, but pointed to the document. “Why did you buy that, then?”
He held his palm out. “To know what was written in it. I do not limit myself only to information written for men. I read books for women, children, the educated, the uneducated, the scholars, and the artisans.”
Back on firmer intellectual ground, she countered. “And so women should be allowed the same freedom.” He pointed to the pamphlet she’d returned and opened his mouth, but she raised her hand. “I said the freedom, meaning they would be given the opportunity. If they don’t want to read about certain topics until say, they are married,” her cheeks heated even as she made her point, “then they should have the choice.”
He moved closer, forcing her to look up at him. “But what if they want to read pamphlets like this and it is inappropriate as you determined, then what?”
She had no answer. “It is a possibility I had not thought on yet.”
He reached past her, his unique fresh bergamot scent filling her nostrils as he pulled the pamphlet out again. “Perhaps to make a clear decision, you should read this.” He held the pamphlet on his palm like the servants offered glasses of wine.
Either he was standing too close or the pamphlet itself had her flustered. She lifted her hand to wave off his offer and knocked the pamphlet to the floor. “Oh, I apologize.”
He crouched to retrieve it. Looking up at her from his position he offered it again. “Do you not wish to be educated on this topic, or do you already have a book on it?”
A wave of heat filled her at the realization that the book she’d stolen was of the same vein as the pamphlet he so willingly offered. The small smile that played about his lips and the carnal knowledge in his crystal blue gaze had her dress feeling far too heavy. “Please, Your Grace, do get up.”
He rose like a tiger she’d seen at the Royal Menagerie, uncurling himself in one graceful movement, his gaze never leaving her face. Somehow though, in doing so, he seemed to have moved closer. He didn’t say a word, just held out the forbidden literature, the socially forbidden literature.
Part of her wanted to take it, just to prove her point, but then he might wish to discuss it and that was a topic she’d discuss with no one. “I will decline for now. When you said I could borrow a book on feminine education that wasn’t what I had in mind.”
“No, I’m sure it wasn’t.”
The arrogance in his voice and the grin he gave her almost had her changing her mind. His eyes told her he knew everything while she remained ignorant. She hated ignorance.
She took a deep breath as her sister Belinda had taught her to do whenever her emotions were overruling her intelligence. Though it did calm her, she didn’t miss the change in the duke’s face as he stiffened. Maybe he was having second thoughts about allowing her the privilege of borrowing a book. Quickly, she turned to scan the shelves. “Is there something else you would recommend that specifically discusses education for women?”
He cleared his throat. “I do, but I doubt you would enjoy it as it supports my opinion on the matter. Then again, it might behoove you to learn more about where your opponents stand.”
As much as she disliked it, he did have a point. She continued her perusal of the volumes before her as she spoke. “Which would you recommend that best supports my argument and which that best supports yours?”
She sensed more than heard him step behind her. His hand appeared next to her, lightly brushing her shoulder as he pointed. “This is an excellent discussion on why education should be separated by gender.”
His proximity made the conversation feel far too intimate. She bent to retrieve the book, expecting him to step back, but he didn’t. To dispel the feeling, she read the title aloud in a sing song cadence. “Progression of the Intellect by Age. If I had seen this in a bookseller’s window, I would have thought this a philosophy text.”
He chuckled, his breath brushing the side of her neck. “That’s exactly what I thought. It’s one reason why I read each before it gets shelved. You can’t always gauge the subject by the title.”
Clasping the book to her chest with both arms, she looked over her shoulder and up at him. “And the text that would best support my position?”
His lips quirked up. “Allow me.”
Before she knew what he was about, his arm lifted and he leaned into her as he pulled a volume from an upper shelf. She felt entirely surrounded by his large body and the bookcase. The sentence she’d read flitted through her mind.A woman must allow her husband free use of her body whenever he wants it.Her own flesh suddenly understood exactly what that might mean, and a strange craving started deep inside her.
The duke lowered the book and held it once again on his open palm as his arm encircled her. “I believe you’ll enjoy this one much more.”
She took it, trying to remember what they’d been talking about, her mind filled with his presence. She forced herself to read the title. “The Quandary of Female Intellect.” Her train of thought returned. She examined the binding. “It’s a rather brief study, is it not?”
The duke stepped back and chuckled. “That observation does say much about your position.”
She turned to face him and lowered her brows. “Not at all. It is only one book. And I doubt that you’ve made it a personal pilgrimage to find more with this point of view.”
“A valid point.” His grin was back. “Then again, I saw no reason to spend more time searching out such a minority perspective.”
“At the moment.” She grasped the book to her chest with the other. “But I’m confident the body of work on this topic is growing. I’m anxious to start reading this.” She pointed toward the small nook with the beautiful view.
He stepped aside. “Of course. Be my guest while I return to your father to see if he has any points he’d like to discuss.”
She walked past him. Now that her equilibrium was back, she could be magnanimous. “Thank you for inviting us. I know he won’t stop talking about this visit for weeks. It’s rare he finds someone who is as well-read as he.”
