Page 52 of The Duke's Rules Of Engagement
“You’re right,” he said softly. “I’m sorry. Forgive me. I wasn’t thinking.”
She suddenly felt weak. She leaned heavily against her desk.
“I was living in the moment, so happy to see you, and I wanted…” He jerked his gaze away. “I wantedyou. But you’re right. I wasn’t thinking of the repercussions of that, to either of us. It was unfair of me.”
She had expected him not to listen to her. To continue to try to seduce her. Or maybe simply to be angry with her for refusing him. She hadn’t expected this.
It made her love him a little bit. A little bit more.
No.No, no, no.
“I was…greedy.”
Greedy was how she’d felt as well, at Lady Campbell’s ball when her hands had been all over him.
He blew out a shaky breath. “I find it impossible to be near you and not want you.”
“Your Grace—”
“But I am not a green boy. I am a man, and I can control myself.” He gave her a wobbly smile. “Just know, Jo…I find you beautiful.”
She stared at him, her jaw dropping. Beautiful?Her?
He continued. “I find you intelligent and intriguing, and I miss you when I’m not near you and think of you constantly. When I am with you, I can be myself. I can be truetomyself, and I can tell you the truth. It’s been a very, very long time since I’ve felt that way with anyone.” He gazed at her, his expression full of wonder. “I’ve never encountered anyone like you.”
He could not know how deeply his words touched her. No one had ever spoken to her like this. No one had ever called her beautiful. And he wasn’t lying to her—she could see it in his face. He truly thought her beautiful. And he thought her all those other wonderful things as well.
She shook her head slowly. “I’ve never encountered anyone like you, either,” she whispered.
He leaned closer, closer, until the space between them crackled. She held herself still, fighting it so hard, struggling against the connection between them, the desire, the intense longing. But how could one conquer electricity? It bolted through whatever it desired, and the power of no man could thrust it aside.
But then he pulled back, forcing the connection to fizzle away. They gazed at each other for a long moment. Jo took the time to catalog every part of him, remembering how they felt under her hands and lips. She would never forget that first kiss, nor those moments in Lady Campbell’s garden. She would hold the memories close late at night. Use them as comfort when she felt like the loneliness might be too much to bear.
She closed her eyes in a long blink then opened them. It was time to move on. She’d done the right thing—the proper thing. She’d maintained her self-worth. Even if a part of her had wanted to give him everything. It wanted her to sink to her knees and beg him to do whatever he wanted to her, as long as he kept his promise to make her come.
She pressed her lips together and resettled her businesslike demeanor over her like a cloak. “You still wish to marry, don’t you?”
“I don’t want to,” he said, shaking his head. “Ineedto.”
“And Ineedto find a proper bride for you. That is what you have employed me to do.”
He nodded, lips tight. Good. Those thinned lips were definitely a step in the right direction.
She took her seat. “Please sit down, Your Grace.”
“Very well, Miss Porter,” he murmured, enunciating the more formal version of her name. Even if it was awkward and stilted, they both were doing what needed to be done.
“Tell me…how was Almack’s?”
“It was fine,” he said tightly. “I commend you for your choices for me. All of them were quite appropriate. But I have chosen a favorite.”
She sucked in a breath. This was it—the moment that would decide Lilly’s future. “Who was it?”
“Miss Harriet Cherrington.”
Chapter Sixteen
A butler opened the door to the Cherrington townhouse. “Good afternoon, sir.”
