Her husband stepped into the bedchamber. Their eyes locked as he paused in the doorway. Tall and intimidating, he wore a robe of forest-green silk tied with a gold cord at his lean waist. He wasn’t smiling. The harsh angles of his face hid all trace of those attractive dimples.
No one would mistake Nathan Atwood, Viscount Rowley, for a proper gentleman. Not with his shoulder-length black hair drawn back by a leather thong at the back of his neck. Not with his brawny muscled build and the sun-burnished tone of his skin. And certainly not with the avid manner in which he eyed her.
His bold gaze swept over her as if he could see right through both her negligee and the gossamer nightgown beneath it. Perhaps he could.
Maddy crossed her arms in an instinctive attempt to shield herself. Other men had looked at her with lust, but none had seen her in such scanty attire with her hair unbound. It was jarring to reflect that she’d met Nathan only two nights ago.
Although they’d exchanged solemn vows in church, he was still very much a stranger to her. She knew little of his private thoughts. When she’d agreed to participate in his scheme, Maddy had only had a glimpse of his dark side. Rather, he’d seemed to possess the arrogantly charming nature of many noblemen. But the witty gentleman who’d coaxed her into this hasty marriage had vanished.
Perhaps he had never truly existed.
In his place was a ruthless lord who’d wed her for the purpose of vengeance. The hatred he’d directed toward his father today had been unsettling, to say the least. If Nathan was capable of holding such a powerful grudge for so many years, it stood to reason he might be dangerous, volatile, aggressive.
How much could she really trust him?
Shutting the door, he walked toward her, watching her closely as if to identify her weaknesses. Fear leaped inside her, the fear of being at the mercy of such a dominant male. Would he take her straight to bed? Would he strip her naked and ravish her? A sizzle of excitement scorched her veins. Her knees wobbled and she reached out to grip the back of a chair. The clash of emotions within her made no sense. How could she dread him and crave him all at the same time?
As he drew near, Nathan veered suddenly toward the fireplace. Only then did she notice that he carried a champagne bottle and two glasses, which he placed on a side table. There was something civilized about his action that helped to assuage her nerves.
Coming closer, he put his hands on her shoulders. The warmth of the contact quickened her heartbeat. But if he intended to seduce her, he made no move to do so. “Madelyn, I must say—”
He broke off at the sound of footsteps behind her. Gertie trotted into sight and bobbed a curtsy, her manner respectful. “Good evening, Lord Rowley. Should ye or milady be wantin’ anything else?”
His attention flicked to the maid. “No. And pray see to it that we are not disturbed for the remainder of the night.”
His deep voice held the promise of intimate secrets soon to be unveiled. He still gripped Maddy’s shoulders, and she wondered what it would feel like for his hands to slide all over her body. She wanted him kiss her again as he’d done at the close of their wedding ceremony. To overwhelm her so that she didn’t have to think.
The maid left, the door shutting quietly. Nathan stepped away, leaving Maddy frustrated. As he went to pour champagne, she said rather breathlessly, “What did you mean to tell me just now?”
He brought a glass and pressed it into her hand. Their fingers brushed and a spark scurried up her arm, raising the fine hairs on her skin. Nathan lifted his own flute in a toast, clinking glasses with her. “I wanted to offer you my compliments on a fine performance today. You could not have been more perfect in your role.”
She took a sip of champagne, the bubbles bursting on her tongue. “I’m not sure your family would agree with you.”
“That’s the plan.” He reached out to catch a lock of her unbound hair, letting the golden strands sift through his fingers. “May I say, your beauty is an unexpected bonus. It will make this marriage so much more enjoyable.”
The cool calculation in his tone crept down her spine. It was a reminder that first and foremost, she was his tool of retaliation. Any desire he felt for her was merely sweet icing on the bitter cake of his hatred for his father.
She took a step back, out of his reach. “Nathan, I must ask you. Why does your father despise you so much? He can’t be entirely coldhearted. He appears to love your sister. And at dinner, he had no end of praise for your late brother.”
Nathan’s face hardened. “Never mind why. Our agreement is for you to play your prescribed role without question.”
“But shouldn’t I at least have an inkling as to what caused the strife between you and your father? You both looked fit to kill when you came into the drawing room after dinner. You must have quarreled about something.”
He paced to the table to refill his glass. “You really wish to know? Then I’ll tell you. Gilmore wants me to meet with his lawyers in the morning. He’s pressuring me to annul my marriage to you.”
“Annul!” Maddy gripped her wineglass. If the marriage was invalidated, would Nathan still pay her the stipend? Would she lose the funds to open her shop? Would Lord Dunham once again prey upon her? “Well, what did you say to him? Surely you refused.”
“Good God, of course I refused. I won’t play into that devil’s hands.”
A measure of tension seeped out of Maddy, and she sank down into one of the plush chairs by the fire. Sipping her champagne, she watched Nathan prowl the bedchamber like a caged lion. Perhaps this was her chance. She might never have a better opportunity to improve her distasteful role in the household.
“I imagine the earl was only considering your sister’s situation,” she said. “Lady Emily is making her debut, and even I know that our marriage is bound to harm her reputation.”
Nathan sent her a fierce glare. “Emily will be fine. I’ll make certain of it.”
“How? By turning that scowl on some hapless young stripling until he agrees to court her? Honestly, Nathan, that’s hardly a sensible plan.”
“So what do you suggest? That I should reconsider the annulment?” He stepped aggressively to her. “No, you wouldn’t want that. You’re a fortune hunter, Madelyn. You need this marriage as much as I do.”
Unnerved by his attack, she stared up at him towering over her. His temper was a powder keg set off by the smallest spark. She wanted to defend herself, but that would mean exposing her private plans, plans he must not know. “All I meant was that perhaps there’s a way to improve the present state of affairs—at least somewhat. So that I’m not such a ruinous liability.”
He paced away a few steps and turned to glower at her. “How? You’re a common actress, a woman of ill repute. I purchased you at an auction where other men were bidding to win you as their mistress. By tomorrow morning, all of society will be buzzing with the scandal.”
“Yes, I’m well aware of that.” Maddy cringed to think of being branded the villainess who’d enticed the Earl of Gilmore’s heir. She would be the target of every vicious gossip in London. Draining the last of her champagne, she held out her empty glass. While Nathan refilled it, she went on, “However, I’ve been thinking. Perhaps it isn’t necessary for me to behave in quite such a vulgar manner. Perhaps I could tone down my act. I’m sure your father would still detest me even if I were to pretend to be a refined, dignified lady.”
Nathan frowned. “You speak like one already. Where the devil did you learn the diction of the upper class?”
At the quizzical look on his face, she strove for a wide-eyed, innocent expression. He mustn’t guess that her mother had been born and bred a lady. Or that Maddy hoped to confront her grandfather, the Duke of Houghton, sometime in the near future.
If Nathan kept secrets, then she could do likewise.
“I’m an actress, aren’t I? My talent is mimicking speech and mannerisms. With your permission, I’ll convince the dowager to give me lessons in deportment. Over the course of a week or two, I’ll transform myself into the epitome of propriety.”
She braced herself for his attack. After all, her idiotic behavior today had been Nathan’s idea, a key component of his plot against his father, though for what reason Maddy still didn’t know.
But Nathan only gave her a keen stare. “And you truly think this will improve matters for Emily?”
“If I don’t slurp my soup or blather like a silly chatterbox, then I won’t be a constant embarrassment to the family. And it will perplex the gossips if the notorious Lady Rowley proves to be quiet and circumspect, the model of ladylike behavior.”
Unexpectedly, Nathan chuckled. “You, quiet and circumspect? I’ll wager you could never manage that.”
She gazed up at him from her chair. His lips were tilted slightly, not quite a smile but enough to reveal a beguiling hint of dimples. The champagne must be having an effect, for she suddenly felt giddy and vibrant. “Then I accept your wager. And you will pay me a token if I succeed.”
“A token.”
“Yes. Something with diamonds, perhaps.” Had she really said that? Maddy wanted to call it back. Demanding jewels would fortify his view of her as a fortune hunter.
But it was too late. He set down his glass and extended his hand to her. “Agreed. We’ll shake on it to seal the bargain.”
She stared at his outstretched hand. His fingers were long and masculine, the nails neatly trimmed, his skin bronzed by the sun. The prospect of touching him reawakened that earlier tug-of-war in her, the battle between the need to flee and the desire to stay. “That isn’t necessary,” she demurred.
“I’ll be the judge of that,” he said in a commanding tone. “Come, give me your hand now.”
By the shrewd gleam in his eyes, it was clear that he’d noticed her hesitancy about their night together. He was challenging her to reach out and touch him. And why shouldn’t she do so? She’d made her choice upon agreeing to this marriage. In church, she had vowed to be his wife in every sense of the word. And if truth be told, she wanted to lie with Nathan, to learn everything he could teach her.
No matter how much the darkness in him might alarm her.
Leaning forward in the chair, she lifted her hand and his fingers firmly closed around hers. The contact sent a flash of warmth up her arm and over her skin, tightening her breasts and hitching her breath. He must have felt it, too, for the fire in his eyes scorched her.
Rather than shake her hand, he firmed his grip and tugged her up out of the chair, using momentum to propel her into his arms. He plucked the champagne glass from her fingers and set it down on the table before drawing her fully into his embrace.
Her heart hammered at his sudden closeness. With every inhalation, she drew in his scent of soap and sandalwood. As she clutched at his muscled shoulders to steady herself, the pattern on his dressing gown suddenly caught her attention.
Seizing the distraction, Maddy traced the embroidered design with her fingertips. No wonder she hadn’t noticed it until now. It was very subtle since the mythical winged creatures were sewn of the same rich green threads as the garment itself. “Dragons?”
His eyes gleamed an identical green. “Indeed. The Chinese are quite fond of them.”
A hundred questions about his travels in China crowded her mind. But now was not the time to ask them.
“The workmanship is exquisite.” She slid her fingers across the broad expanse of his chest, appreciating both the fabric and the warmth imbued by his skin. “The silk is amazingly soft. It’s finer than anything I’ve ever seen in a shop.”
“My warehouse is full of silk. I’ll give you as many bolts as you like so long as you keep fondling me like that.”
He looked quite rakish with a smile playing on his lips, reminding her of the dashing gentleman he’d been at the auction. Maddy’s insides tightened into an aching knot. The deep V of his collar revealed a swath of his chest. She had been trying not to dwell too much on the bare flesh beneath his dressing gown.
But now she could think of nothing else.
He seemed to be waiting for her to say something, so she murmured, “I do very much want to be here with you tonight.”
By way of response, his hands skimmed downward to cup her bottom and lock her against the solid column of his body. They stood with his chest to her breasts, his loins to hers. Her breathing grew shallow as the heat of him penetrated her flimsy nightdress.
He stared down at her, his gaze intensifying, desire evident on his face. A thrill unfurled inside her. He’d kept his hot-blooded passion hidden behind a mask of caustic wit and cool authority. But now he looked ready to take what he desired.
His eyes glittered in the candlelight. “We’re in perfect accord, then,” he stated. “There will be no annulment. I intend to make certain of that. Tonight. Now.”
The wild hunger she sensed in him called to her deepest feminine urges. Warmth flowed through her in a knee-weakening rush. “Yes,” she whispered.
His head swooped down and he took her mouth with aggressive fire. One of his hands moved upward to hold the back of her head while his tongue delved between her lips to explore her thoroughly. Her blood quickened and surged. It felt as if he were branding her as his personal property. And in the doing, he awakened every forbidden part of her. Clinging to his shoulders, she felt the burn of his kiss spread throughout her body until her breasts ached and her privates throbbed.
In the midst of it all, Maddy knew his primary purpose tonight was to thwart his father. To make the marriage real so that no man, no matter how devious, could tear their vows asunder. But she no longer cared what drove Nathan. She only knew what drove herself, and that was a keen desire to experience physical union with this man.
Her husband.
A moan rose from deep inside her throat. Her fingers traced over his chest and up to his face to stroke the roughness of his shaven cheek. She found the slight indentions that she so loved on either side of his mouth. How divine it was to touch him at last, to feel his arms clasping her so close. She wanted to absorb his heat and strength into her very core.
He broke off the kiss and moved his lips down over her jaw, her throat, her collarbone, and she tilted her head back to accommodate him. He was right; they were in perfect accord. It seemed he couldn’t get enough of her taste, and she couldn’t get enough of his kisses. The damp hunger of his mouth made her quiver with yearning.
Dimly, she felt his hands at her waist. With one expert tug, he untied her robe. He pushed the garment from her shoulders, letting it slither to the floor. Then he drew back slightly to stare down at the jut of her breasts against the sheer fabric of her nightdress.
His fingers traced over the gauzy material, trekking over one lavish mound, traversing the valley in between, and arriving at the second peak. There, the play of his fingers unleashed a storm of sensations that made her gasp. Before she could even catch a shuddering breath, he deftly freed both breasts from the confinement of her bodice.
Just like that, the wisp of a nightdress slipped down to pool at her hips. Only the filmy skirt protected her from full nudity.
The rush of cool air on her bare skin penetrated the stupor of her passion. Maddy trembled, aware that candlelight bathed her naked bosom. All the flames that she’d meant to blow out before his arrival were still lit. Whenever she’d imagined her first time with a man, it had always been under the covers, in the darkness, with long ardent kisses preceding furtive caresses.
But they still stood by the fireplace, and Nathan had disrobed her with the practiced skill of a seducer. She had never expected him to proceed so swiftly. Or to stare so boldly at the decadent display of her breasts. His teeth were slightly bared, his face ravenous, a dragon intent on devouring her.
He lowered his head as if to consume her.
Her heart drumming, she reached out to stop him. One of her palms flattened over the exposed skin between the folds of his dressing gown. His chest felt like the furnace for a fire-breathing monster. “Nathan, wait!”
He glanced up at her, frowning, the dragon denied his feast. “What is it?”
Her gaze flicked to the four-poster with its turned-down coverlet and plump pillows. “Oughtn’t we retire to the bed?”
He cocked his head in a faintly quizzical look. His eyes bored into her as if he were trying to comprehend her meaning. Had she said something wrong?
Then he moved his rough-textured fingers over her breast, leaving a trail of sparks over her sensitive skin. Under the insistent caress of his thumb, her nipple shrank into a taut, tender bead. “Am I not pleasing you here, darling? I could swear that I am.”
Maddy could scarcely think when he stroked her like that. If not for his arm wrapped around her waist, holding her upright, she might have melted into a puddle at his feet. The raspy pads of his fingers aroused a keen craving in her that only he could soothe. He seemed to know exactly how to touch her in order to wrest a response.
But he also seemed to expect her to know things.
She blinked in startled realization. Of course. Nathan believed her to be experienced in the bedchamber. He had not lived in London these past ten years, so he was unaware that she was famous for rebuffing many gentlemen. He would assume her to be a strumpet as other actresses often were. And because Lady Milford had interceded on his behalf, he had not received a written invitation to the auction.
His fingers feathered over her nipple, stirring a deep shiver that rippled through her body. As he watched her, his teeth gleamed in a provocative smile. “You do like this,” he said. “Don’t deny it.”
She caught hold of his wrist to still the delightful action. It was impossible to think coherently while he caressed her. “Yes. Yes, I do. It’s just that … I’m not accustomed to this. I’ve never done it before.”
His dark brows lifted. He looked truly puzzled. “This? It?”
A blush warmed her cheeks. “I’ve never lain with a man. The auction was for … my virginity.”
He straightened up to stare down at her from his superior height. His gaze probed into her, his chiseled features fraught with stunned skepticism. Maddy felt uncomfortable under his scrutiny, and embarrassed by the need to make such an intimate admission. If only the wedding hadn’t been so rushed, if only she hadn’t been so distracted by the turmoil in his family, perhaps she’d have come to this realization earlier.
All at once, his thunderous disbelief cleared and his mouth twisted in wry irony. Much to her astonishment, he threw back his head and laughed. “Of course. I see what you’ve been about tonight, why you’re acting so shy and missish.”
His mirth mortified her. Did he find her innocence amusing?
She yanked a handful of flimsy bodice back up over her bosom. “Jackanapes! I should hope you understand since I just told you why.”
He chuckled again. “You’re practicing your new role, that’s what. The model of ladylike behavior … refined and circumspect … the epitome of propriety. But you needn’t playact with me, Madelyn. Not when we’re alone together.”
Her eyes widened. How could he have misunderstood her so completely? “That isn’t what—Oh!”
In a swift move, he snatched her up into his arms. His smirk gleamed down at her. “However, if you wish to retire to the bed, my lady, then so be it.”
Maddy clung to his neck as he carried her across the room. Her head nestled in the lee of his shoulder, her cheek to his hot neck. For a moment, she couldn’t form a clear thought. Her senses swam with his masculine aroma of sandalwood, the beat of his pulse in her ear, the feel of his strong arms cradling her to his chest.
With great fanfare, he laid her down on the mattress. The coverlet felt cool beneath her bare back, while the front of her burned from the torch of his skin. Nathan loomed over her, his arms braced on either side of her waist, as he brushed an intoxicating kiss over her lips. The taste of him was a dizzying effervescence that bubbled through her veins.
“I may just change my mind,” he murmured against her mouth.
“Change…?”
“Indeed, I see how it can be stimulating for you to play the fair maiden, untouched by any man. So I will do my part and be the lusty conqueror, intent upon ravishing you.”
Maddy snapped to attention. He didn’t believe her. He still thought her virtue was a pretense, that she was concealing her expertise at lovemaking for the purpose of some erotic fantasy. It irked her that Nathan would brush off her honest confession—especially one that had so flustered her to admit.
The rat!
She parted her lips to blister him with a reproach.
But he chose that moment to step back from the bed. He unfastened the sash at his waist. The green dragon robe slithered down his body and dropped to the carpet.
Her eyes widened at her first view of a naked man. Without conscious thought, she pushed up on her elbows, the better to see him. Candlelight glowed on the sculpted muscles of his arms and torso. Across his wide chest, a light furring narrowed to a thin line on his flat abdomen. It led her gaze on an irresistible downward path to his loins. There, in a nest of black hair, his manhood jutted in all its glory.
She stared, transfixed by that virile thickness, the ropy veins, the smooth head. Never had she imagined a mature man could be so imposing. A heated dampness softened her nether region, and she trembled inwardly. How was it even possible that he would fit inside her?
He stepped closer, affording her an even more spectacular view. “There’s naught to fear, my lady. You may touch me if you like.”
Maddy averted her face. A blush swept through every crevice of her body. Her fingers curled into fists to keep from doing as he suggested. “Coxcomb!” she chided breathlessly. “Have you no shame?”
“None at all,” he said, amusement in his deep voice. “But I imagine the sight must be quite shocking for an untried innocent like yourself.”
He spoke teasingly, a nod to the game he assumed she was playing. The game that was utterly, frustratingly false. But how was she to convince such a pig-headed man?
She tried again. “Nathan, truly, you must believe me—”
“Methinks the lady doth protest too much.”
As he joined her on the bed, the thread of her thoughts unraveled. He pressed her back against the coverlet, crooking his knee over her legs to pin them in place. She was keenly aware of his member resting hot and heavy against her upper thigh. He bent his head and his hungry mouth sought her bosom, tasting one peak as if it were a rare delicacy.
Unable to resist him, she stroked the black silk of his hair. The pleasure he ignited in her was so seductive she felt on the verge of swooning. Honeyed lava coursed through her veins, flowing downward to her loins. He blew lightly on her dampened nipple and a feverish shiver swept over her skin.
As he applied the same ardent attention to her other breast, she gave up trying to persuade him of her purity. Let Nathan believe what he willed. It didn’t matter anymore. She wanted only to satisfy the gnawing ache inside herself, to experience more of the irresistible sensations he’d awakened in her.
With his knee, he nudged her legs open. Somewhere, she’d lost her nightdress and she couldn’t remember how, perhaps when he’d carried her here to the bed. The fleeting thought vanished as his hand glided downward, over her smooth belly and lower still, to play with the silken thatch at the apex of her thighs.
She tensed, her fingers gripping his shoulders, her entire being focused on that one spot. His fingers probed her with light strokes, feathering over the place that no other man had ever touched. A sigh arose from the depths of her being. “Ahhh, Nathan.”
He seemed to take pleasure from her response, rubbing his raspy cheek against her bosom. He kissed her throat, licking the hollow there, nuzzling her neck, nipping at the tender lobe of her ear. But it was the masterful caresses below that drove her half mad with desire. She closed her eyes, the better to appreciate them. Her hips strained toward his hand, seeking more of the delight.
He moved his mouth downward, his kisses leaving a trail of sparks over her bare abdomen. As he neared her privates, she opened slumberous eyes to gaze down at his dark head. A dim awareness of his intention seeped into her passion-beleaguered brain.
He couldn’t … he wouldn’t … yes, he would.
He parted her soft folds and blew lightly on her dampness. That one simple action unleashed a torrent of intense pleasure. It was so unexpected, so darkly alluring, that she gasped and tried to squirm away. Her hands pushed at his hard shoulders. “You mustn’t…!”
He looked up over her naked form, a fierce passion on his chiseled face. “Enough pretense, Madelyn. You want this. You know you do.”
He bent his head between her open legs again, and at the first lap of his tongue, she was lost. Her insides clenched with a heat so powerful that she melted onto the bed. Nothing in her tame fantasies had prepared her for the wicked joy of his mouth on her. With panting whimpers, she strove for something beyond her reach. She teetered on the verge of a precipice, and her fingers grasped at the satin coverlet to anchor herself. Then a sudden series of rapturous spasms flooded her. She felt herself being swept away on a wave of pleasure so deep, so intense that it blotted out awareness of all else.
As the ripples ebbed, Maddy came back to herself. Dazed and blissful, she lay sprawled in the bed, her heartbeat slowing. She blinked up at the canopy overhead, trying to grasp what had just happened. So that was the pleasure she’d heard whispered …
Nathan slid his heavy body over hers. A few strands of his black hair had come loose from the fastening at the nape of his neck. The angles of his face looked taut and strained, his green eyes glittering with unquenched passion. Through her languor, it struck her that he had not experienced that ecstasy. Wanting to soothe him, she reached up and cupped his cheek in the palm of her hand.
At the same moment, she felt a burning pressure between her legs as he pushed himself partway inside her. He stopped and frowned, his jaw rigid as he stared down at her with an uncomprehending look. His harsh breaths filled the silence.
Growling deep in his chest, he gave a quick, hard thrust. A flash of pain wrenched a cry from her. She clutched at him, gasping, aware that his heated length had penetrated fully into the depths of her body.
His eyes went unfocused, the black lashes lowering slightly as he began to move inside her. He bent his head close to her, burying his face in her neck. Heat came off him in waves. In a guttural tone, he whispered her name, “Madelyn.”
The discomfort of his entry had subsided to a slight sting. She instinctively tilted her hips, the better to feel him inside her. His plunges increased in intensity, and a sheen of sweat made his skin slick. The rub of his chest hairs against her breasts fanned the embers inside her. She wanted to experience that bliss again, yes, she craved it with unladylike fervor.
But it was not to be. With one last fierce thrust, he gave a hoarse cry. His powerful body convulsed in the throes of release. Then his weight settled heavily over her.
* * *
She had been a virgin, after all.
Nate pushed away the intrusive thought. He didn’t want to reflect on his blunder. Not while he was still sheathed inside Madelyn, his body relaxed and replete in the aftermath of their coupling. Not while he lay with his face tucked in the fragrant disarray of her hair. Beneath him, her skin felt as smooth and warm as melted candlewax. Everything about her was feminine perfection, from the soft globes of her breasts to the shapeliness of her legs entangled with his.
She had been untouched. More insistent this time, the thought pulled him back to cold reality. He had only realized the truth upon meeting the resistance of her maidenhead. Even then, he had been too caught up in passion to absorb that fact.
But he did now. Fully, completely, gallingly.
No wonder she’d had that charming hesitation about her, the shy reluctance to touch him, the qualms when he’d caressed her intimately. Looking back, he could see that she’d behaved exactly as one would expect of a virgin. But he’d convinced himself she was acting.
Blast it. He felt like a cad. To make matters worse, he’d lost control at the end in a fit of madness. He should have taken the time to pleasure her again. That, at least, might have compensated for his mistake.
He rolled onto his side, separating their bodies. Glancing down, he spied the rusty smear of blood on her thighs, proof of her plundered innocence. She gazed at him, her eyes big and blue in the perfect oval of her face. Her blond hair was rumpled, her lips moist and rosy from his kisses.
He wanted to kiss her again. To make it all up to her.
The notion irked him. What the hell was he thinking? He had nothing for which to atone. Madelyn was his wife, bought and paid for. He could use her as he willed.
He pushed up onto his elbow. Without preamble, he said, “If you’d told me you were a virgin when we first made our bargain, I’d have been gentler with you.”
She turned toward him, and he tried not to ogle her beautiful breasts. “I thought you did know,” she said. “I’d made it clear in the invitation to the auction that I sent to the other gentlemen. But then, just a little while ago, I realized I never wrote one to you.”
It annoyed Nate all the more to think of her sending out invitations as if to a party. “How the devil did you word such a note? Please submit your bid for the chance to plough my virgin soil?”
A pink blush swept over her cheeks. She drew the covers up to her chin. “Of course not. I put it more delicately than that. The gentlemen knew, anyway, because I’d spurned every one of them in the past. I had a reputation, you see.”
“A reputation.”
“Yes, for being chaste. Apparently everyone knew it but you. And I did try to tell you, Nathan.” Her expression softened in a dreamy look. “Nevertheless, I can’t say that I have any regrets. Being with you tonight was truly … sublime.”
Her lashes were half lowered, her lips tilted in a heartfelt smile. His cock stirred. The rest of him recoiled. He didn’t want Madelyn to look at him that way—as if she adored him. As if she hoped their mating meant much more than just satisfying a raw sexual need.
Rising from the bed, he yanked on his dressing gown and secured the sash firmly at his waist. “As I said, you should have made certain from the start that I knew that you were a virgin. I might have offered you a larger sum for your services.”
As he’d intended, the warmth in her eyes cooled at the reminder that she’d sold herself to him. She stared at him a moment, then lifted her chin. “I’ll be the Countess of Gilmore someday. And you’ll be long gone from England. So tell me again, who has the better end of our bargain?”
A chuckle stirred in his chest, but he stifled it. Dammit, he didn’t want to trade wits with her. She was supposed to be offended, to blister him with one of her colorful curses.
He bade her a terse good night and strode out of her bedchamber, firmly closing the door on temptation. Madelyn had turned out to be quite different from his initial assessment of her. She wasn’t the vulgar strumpet, free with her favors, opening her legs to the highest bidder.
No. She had opened her legs to the highest bidder. She had married him in order to further her social-climbing ambitions.
And that was all he needed to remember.