Besides, she had a feeling that to this gambling man, losing a wager—to a lady—and then having to apologize wouldn’t come easy.
No matter that right now he thought it would be easy to do.
“You have my word,” he said with an unusual tenderness.
His expression was gentle and his promise heartfelt and nourishing after the battle they’d had. One she felt she had won—at least for now.
“If that’s all you want, I’ll do the grandest of apologies,” he added. “Instead of the banns to announce our forthcoming marriage, I’ll take out an ad in theTimesand all the newsprints proclaiming the errors of my ways and your victory. Would that make you happy, Mrs. Feld?”
She drew in a heavy breath. “I don’t need anything so ostentatious. At midnight, the last ball of the Season, a simple apology will do.”
“If I fail and you win, I will comply.” He folded his arms across his chest. “If I refrain from all you have dictated, at midnight, the last ball of the Season, you will agree to accept my proposal of marriage.”
Brina swallowed hard. Suddenly she didn’t want to agree. Fear he might somehow win pounded in her chest.It had been easy when they were dancing and their hands touching to play tit-for-tat with their words. But now, this was serious.
Could she go back on her word?
“Do we have a bargain, Mrs. Feld?”
She willed herself to be calm once again and remember she had proof of his rogue ways and had to believe with all confidence he could not change them for her. “Yes.”
He answered with a nod. “I assume you know the stipulations you’ve placed on this arrangement of ours means we’ll be spending a lot of time together.”
Brina felt a twinge of unease.A lot?That was something she hadn’t thought about. “Even though I’m committed to try, I’m not sure how much time I can devote to helping you in your endeavor to change your ways.”
“It’s not only that. You’ll want to be with me as much as possible to make sure I don’t swear, take a drink, or—”
She suddenly cleared her throat and he paused.
“Commit any other offense that would keep me from upholding my end of the bargain and winning your hand.”
A humorous light shone in his eyes, and despite her best effort she warmed to it. It should infuriate her, but now that their connection was set, she found his easygoing manner charming and tempting her to go along. This entire affair should have her feeling wretched. She didn’t want a man in her life. In any capacity.
“I have other commitments, my lord. People who depend on me for certain things. I cannot be constantly watching to make sure your behavior is acceptable, and I don’t believe I need to. Different people heard portions of our exchange tonight. By tomorrow everyone will put together the bits and pieces they heard and the terms of our agreement will be known.”
She stopped and drew in a deep breath, wondering if she could handle the scandal of it. “Anyway,” she added. “You will have a thousand eyes watching you. If you step out of line once, someone will see or hear, and I have no doubt they will let me know if you stray.”
“I have no doubt of that either, but just in case, I’ll be over tomorrow afternoon and we’ll ride in the park.”
Tomorrow?
Tension caused by what she’d done coiled inside her once more. “We certainly don’t have to start this charade that soon. No reason to hurry with anything.”
“I want to.” He stepped closer to her once again and lowered his voice. “You have much to teach me, Mrs. Feld, and I am eager to learn.”
His closeness always filled her with a shiver of desire and made Brina wonder if it would really be the other way around. She had unwittingly given Lord Blacknight a reason and a way to pursue her in front of everyone.
And he had just started.
A faint gleam of humor shone in his eyes. “No time to waste. If I’m going to have to live without a game of cards, no drinking, and other things of a nature too primal for a gentleman to mention in your presence, you will have to live with seeing me. Often.”
“Oh, you are a beast,” she exclaimed in a frustrated tone. “Because you will be suffering, you want me to as well.”
He gave her such a charming grin, her displeasure over the entire affair almost faded away. Brina had no idea exactly what she’d gotten herself into. Yet, much to her chagrin, apprehension and anticipation twisted together inside her, troubling her even more.
“All right,” she said, feeling somewhat like she’d agreed to a prison sentence. “If you insist, half past two for a ride in the park will be fine.”
“There’s one thing I should remind you of before we seal this,” he said. “I always play to win.”
