‘My lord, I was merely returning to my room—’
‘There is no need for explanations.’ He stepped closer, blocking her path with leisurely confidence. ‘A woman of your beauty ought not hide herself away in schoolrooms andnurseries. You deserve more attention than that... from the proper sort of man.’
His fingertips brushed the ribbon at her throat.
Charlotte’s stomach twisted violently. For the first time since arriving at the estate, she felt truly afraid.
‘You are drunk, my lord,’ she said sharply, stepping back. ‘Please stand aside.’
He only smiled wider.
‘I prefer the term enchanted. You’ve been tempting me ever since I arrived.’
Blood rushed hot to her ears. She retreated another step.
He followed.
Then another voice cut cleanly through the corridor.
‘Wolverton.’
Both turned.
Lord Stanley lounged at the far end of the passage, coat unbuttoned, his posture deceptively careless.
‘You appear,’ he drawled lazily, ‘to have mistaken my governess for one of your gambling-hall amusements.’
Wolverton stiffened visibly. ‘Your governess?’
Lord Stanley sauntered forward with infuriating calm and slipped an arm around Charlotte’s waist.
She gasped outright.
The sheer audacity of it stunned her into silence.
‘Mine,’ he said smoothly. ‘And I dislike sharing.’
Charlotte could only stare at him in astonishment.
The heat of his hand burned through the fabric of her gown, and the look in his eyes was scandalously convincing.
Wolverton’s gaze moved slowly between them, measuring.
Lord Stanley drew her still closer.
Another startled breath escaped her as her side pressed fully against him, sending an unwelcome awareness skittering through every nerve in her body.
‘Ah,’ Wolverton said with an oily laugh. ‘So that is the way of it. I had no idea you were keeping such diversions hidden in the schoolroom.’
‘Then you ought to observe more carefully,’ Lord Stanley replied coolly. ‘Good night.’
Wolverton bowed, thin-lipped, before stalking off.
As soon as he left, Charlotte shoved Lord Stanley away from her.
He released her instantly.
His hand fell from her waist, and his entire demeanour changed. The mocking drawl vanished from his voice.
