His Reluctant Lady (21 page)

“
She’s much more fun than he
is.”

“
Oh?” An eyebrow
rose.

“
We’re just friends, like
you and Ethan. You are the only lady I desire.” He lowered his head
and kissed her. “Now, may I read what you’ve done so far in the
story you’ve been writing?”

“
Well…” As unnerving as it
was to know he’d be reading her work, she didn’t have anyone to
discuss her work with who made it a habit of reading gothic horror.
“All right.”

She rose from the settee and headed
over to the desk. After she took out the papers, she organized them
and handed him all but the ones that were part of the chapter she
was working on. “I’m halfway into it.”

He stood up and pulled her into his
embrace. “Thank you for trusting me enough to read it.”

“
If I can’t trust you, then
I can’t trust anyone.”

“
I don’t take that for
granted,” he replied then gave her a kiss that took her breath
away. “Now, I’m going to take this to my bedchamber and read it
while you continue writing.”

As he turned to leave, she said, “I
hate to disappoint you, but there are no intimate scenes in the
book.”

He paused and glanced over his
shoulder. “Pardon me?”

“
If you’re hoping to satisfy
some of your needs while up there, I wanted to warn you that you’d
get no inspiration from my book.”

He stared at her for a moment then
chuckled. “Oh, that’s what you think I’m going up there for. Well,”
he walked back to her, “as it turns out, I haven’t taken care of
any needs since we married.”

“
I thought since you haven’t
come to my bed that…” Intentionally pausing, she shrugged and sat
at her desk. “Never mind.”

“
I’ve been a pillar of
strength.”

“
I’m impressed. I honestly
didn’t think you could do it. Of course, the wager isn’t over
yet.”

“
Not until you come to my
bed and demand I satisfy
your
needs.”

She smirked and dipped her quill in the
inkwell. “You’ll be waiting forever if that’s your
plan.”

“
I almost feel sorry for
you, my love.” He leaned over and kissed her, and she pretended not
to notice the way her heartbeat raced. “You’re not used to losing
and this time you’re going to lose miserably. Or maybe not so
miserably. Losing will mean moaning in pleasure, after
all.”

She snorted and turned her attention to
the paper in front of her. “It’s sad when a gentleman entertains
such strong delusions. I’m afraid there’s nothing I can do to cure
you of that.”

With a chuckle, he headed out of the
room, closing the door softly behind him.

Chapter Eighteen

“
It’s no trouble at all,”
Agatha assured her aunt two evenings later as she stood in her
aunt’s drawing room. “I have a feeling tonight is going to end very
well for Sophie.”

Her aunt glanced at Christopher who
shrugged.

“
I can’t give away
everything, but there’s a certain earl who’s taken a fancy to her,
and he plans to propose to her at the ball.”

“
An earl?” her aunt
asked.

“
Yes, and if she’s smart,
she’ll accept.”

“
Is this the same earl she
rode a horse with at Hyde Park?”

“
Yes. He’ll make a good
husband.”

Her aunt slowly nodded.

Sensing her hesitation, Agatha asked,
“Does that bother you?”

“
No, of course not. I want
Sophie to marry well. If her husband is a good gentleman, then it’s
all the better but…”

“
But?”

“
I haven’t heard of that
particular gentleman for some time. Lately, all she talks about is
Mister Landry.”

“
Mister Landry?” she
carefully asked, hoping she heard the name wrong.

“
She seems to think he’s
witty and charming.”

“
And nearly bankrupt,”
Christopher added then glanced at Agatha. “It’s all over
White’s.”

She gritted her teeth, hoping her aunt
wouldn’t detect her panic. The sooner Sophie accepted Perry’s
proposal, the better. Forcing herself to smile, she told her aunt,
“Lord Clement is the sensible choice, and when it comes to
marriage, a lady is wise to be sensible.” Especially when there was
money involved.

“
Mister Landry could use the
money for his family, but he’s not dishonorable. I don’t believe
he’d harm Sophie,” Christopher softly said.

“
All gentlemen needing money
seem nice until the vows are exchanged.” She shot him a pointed
look, hoping he understood that her first husband had come off as
kind as well until the wedding was over.

Before he could reply, Sophie entered
the drawing room. They exchanged greetings then Agatha wished her
aunt a pleasant evening and led her husband and sister to the
carriage.

Once the driver led the horses forward,
Agatha opened her mouth to speak but Sophie asked, “How are things
between you two?”

Surprised since Sophie hadn’t made it a
habit of jumping into a conversation so quickly in the past, she
stumbled on a reply. Her mind had been focused on advising her
sister to seek out Perry as soon as they arrived at the ball. Now
as her sister looked expectantly at her, her mind drew a blank,
something that rarely happened.

Christopher gently took Agatha’s hand
and smiled. “We’re doing very well. We couldn’t be happier. Right,
my love?”

Agatha’s face warmed. “I don’t believe
we should be so open about our…our marriage.”

“
There’s nothing I didn’t
just tell your sister that she couldn’t tell by looking at us.” He
turned his gaze to Sophie. “You can tell we’re happy, can’t
you?”

Sophie offered a shy smile. “I didn’t
want to say anything in case I embarrassed my sister, but I can’t
recall a time when I’ve seen her as happy as she is
now.”

“
Sophie!” Agatha
admonished.

“
Oh, there’s nothing to be
embarrassed about,” Christopher assured Agatha. “We’re not in front
of strangers. This is your sister. If we can’t be open and honest
with our family and friends, then who can we be open and honest
with?”

“
I’m glad your marriage has
turned out so well,” Sophie said. “Agatha had her misgivings before
the wedding, and when she came over to see me and our aunt a week
ago, I began to fear this marriage was as bad as her
first.”

“
That’s enough Sophie,”
Agatha replied.

“
I’d be lying if I said that
I wasn’t concerned in the beginning,” he began, not even bothering
to look in his wife’s direction. “But Agatha is the best thing
that’s happened to me. It helps that she agrees I’m the best thing
that’s also happened to her.”

Sophie’s smile widened. “That’s so
romantic.”

“
Indeed, it is.”

“
That’s enough,
Christopher,” Agatha warned, wondering why they needed to talk
about her as if she wasn’t right there to hear everything they were
saying. Not that she’d want them to say these things when she
wasn’t around. It’d be better if they didn’t say anything at all.
“I think we can find something else to talk about.”

He lifted Agatha’s hand to his lips and
kissed it. “All right, my love. I’ll stop praising you.”

Sophie giggled. “It truly is lovely to
see you two together. You’re good for my sister,
Christopher.”

When her sister didn’t say anything
else, Agatha pressed, “Aren’t you going to say I’m good for
Christopher?”

She shrugged. “I have no idea what he
was like before you two met.”

“
Well, I am good for him,”
Agatha insisted. “Before I came along, his life was boring.” She
paused as she recalled how he’d gotten expelled. “Well, maybe it
wasn’t boring.” She had a feeling he had some exciting times. “But
it’s certainly better now.”

“
It is,” Christopher agreed.
“You needn’t worry I’ll argue your point. I knew from the moment I
saw you at the ball that you would complete me.” Winking at Sophie,
he added, “That’s why I pursued her as relentlessly as I did. When
you find someone worth marrying, you don’t let the opportunity pass
you by.”

“
I couldn’t agree more,”
Sophie replied.

Agatha frowned. Was her sister thinking
about Perry or Mister Landry when she said that?

The carriage came to a stop, and Sophie
let out a nervous chuckle. “I’ve been looking forward to this
evening for days. I hear Lord Pennella has one of the finest
townhouses in London. I’m curious to see what all the fuss is
about, aren’t you?”

“
Not really,” Agatha
replied. Noting the way Christopher raised his eyebrows, she
cleared her throat. “I’ve heard some things about him that lead me
to believe he’s done some,” she glanced at Sophie, “shady things to
acquire some of his fortune. I’m not impressed by such gentlemen.”
Under her breath, she added, “If one could call him a
‘gentleman’.”

The footman opened the door and Sophie
hurried out of the carriage.

As Agatha made a move to follow her,
Christopher held on to her hand. Curious, she turned to face
him.

“
Let it be your sister’s
decision,” he whispered.

“
Your cousin is a good
gentleman, the kind who’ll treat her as she deserves to be
treated,” she whispered in return.

“
And what good does that do
when he bores her to sleep? There’s no crime against a gentleman
who excites a lady. Mister Landry’s done nothing that would make me
believe he’d be a bad husband.”

“
That’s not your decision to
make,” she pointedly stated, hoping he knew better than to
interfere when Perry proposed to Sophie.

“
It’s not your decision to
make either,” he replied, not breaking eye contact with
her.

They stared at each other for a long
moment, neither one willing to let the other win the
debate.

Sophie groaned. “What are you two doing
in there?” They turned their attention to her as she motioned for
them to leave the carriage. “I can hear the orchestra. Please don’t
make me miss this ball.”

Relenting, Agatha stepped out of the
carriage, Christopher following behind her. With any luck, Mister
Landry wouldn’t be at this ball. It was an unlikely possibility.
Plenty of gentlemen and ladies looking to marry for money were
active during the Season, but maybe this would be one time when
Mister Landry couldn’t make it.

***

Agatha clasped her hands and watched as
Sophie danced with a duke. The duke already had his gaze on another
lady, so she didn’t concern herself with him. What concerned her,
though, was the fact that Perry was nowhere in sight. Where could
he be? They’d arrived a half hour ago. Most of the guests were
already there. Being late didn’t seem like something he would do.
Christopher, she could see being late. But not Perry.

She scanned the room and found
Christopher laughing at something Ethan said. There was no denying
those two were good friends. They could probably joke around for
hours and not notice the passage of time. Maybe she shouldn’t have
been so hasty to encourage him to talk to Ethan. As soon as they’d
entered the ballroom, she’d suggested he ask Ethan if he’d like to
attend a dinner party. She didn’t really want to host the dinner
party, but she knew how much he wanted to invite their friends over
for an evening of games and food so she agreed to it. The plan
worked and it left her free to get Perry and her sister together
without Mister Landry getting in the way. But without Perry, the
whole thing was pointless. At the moment, Mister Landry wasn’t here
either, thank goodness, but who knew how long that would be the
case?

“
I hate to see a lady
standing in the ballroom all alone,” someone said from behind
her.

She spun around and saw Lord Pennella
standing before her. “Yes, well, I’m not truly alone. My husband is
not far away.” She nodded in Christopher’s direction. “My intention
is to chaperone my sister. It’s her first Season.”

His gaze stayed on Christopher. “Mister
Robinson. That’s who you married?”

“
Recently,” she slowly
replied, wondering how he couldn’t know it since he belonged to
White’s and Christopher made it a point of bragging about their
marriage to everyone wherever he went.

“
Is your dance card full
this evening?”

“
No. I’m only here to
chaperone my sister.”

Though she gestured to her sister who
turned her attention to another gentleman before the next dance, he
didn’t bother looking at her. “Perhaps we can share this dance
together?” He extended his hand toward her and waited, his eyebrows
raised, his expression confident.

“
You do realize I have no
desire to take a lover,” she told him, suspecting there was
something he wanted but not sure what it could be.

“
I only want a dance, not to
slip into your bed.”