Christmas with the Duke by Katrina Cudmore

Author:Katrina Cudmore
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2018-07-09T01:32:05+00:00

* * *

Later that evening, Ciara wobbled on her high heels, fully understanding now why Storm struggled so much on the smooth marble floors of Loughmore. Stopping at the entrance to the dining room, she tugged on the bottom of her dress, questioning once again if she had made the wrong choice in what to wear for dinner.

It was embarrassing enough that she had looked blankly at Tom when he’d earlier suggested they change for dinner. It had taken her a few minutes to realise he meant they should dress up for the occasion...well, dress up more than they already were.

Given that she spent the majority of her days outdoors, she didn’t have many dressy outfits in her wardrobe, and as she had already worn two of her limited supply in recent days she had spent the last half an hour agonising over whether the high street dress she had purchased for the nightclubs of Ibiza when she had gone there on holidays two summers ago was suitable for Christmas dinner with a duke in his fairy tale castle.

No, was probably the correct answer to that question.

Entering the candlelit room, she willed herself to remain calm when Tom stood up from his seat at the top of the table. Dressed in a dark navy suit, white shirt and a navy tie with small red polka dots, gold cufflinks glittering in the candlelight, he looked completely at home in his opulent surroundings. His gaze slid down her body, his expression darkening, and Ciara’s heart kicked wildly in her chest.

When she neared him he held out the chair to his right for her to sit on. Maggie and Stephen had set the table before they’d left for their break with their usual meticulousness. A huge centrepiece of fresh red roses scaled to accommodate the vastness of the twenty-two-seater table sat in the middle, with four tall candelabra on either side. A smaller version of the centrepiece sat between her and Tom.

They had spent hours in the kitchen together, with Tom patiently explaining what he was doing and how she could help and the radio playing Christmas songs in the background. Even though she had been hyper-aware of him, the mood had been relaxed as they’d worked together. But now all that had changed. Was it the dimness of the room? The act of eating dinner alone? The fact that her dress was probably a tad too short?

Then, as she was about to take the proffered seat, her attempt at calmness became a distant memory when he bent and kissed her cheek. His lips were warm...tingle-inducingly firm. She breathed in citrus and leatherwood. Her hand reached for his arm to steady herself. But the strength, the hard muscle she found there, only made her feel even more breathless.

His lips lingered for long seconds. And then he murmured, ‘Happy Christmas, Ciara.’

Her head swam.

Tom stepped back, his gaze moving over her once again. ‘Please tell me you’ve never worn that dress out in public.’

His voice was unsettlingly husky.

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