Once Upon a Rake by Holt Samantha

Author:Holt, Samantha [Holt, Samantha]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi, azw3
Published: 2014-11-22T08:00:00+00:00

Chapter Thirteen

Are We Nearly There Yet?

“Will we be there soon?”

Lucian gritted his teeth. How had he let himself get in this situation? His ride had meant to clear his head and help him avoid her company. Instead he had found himself toying with her upon his return, hoping his flirtatious manner might drive her away. What a disaster.

It was those blasted tears. They had softened him. The mortification on her face as she had spilled the tea as if she had just committed some grave sin had eaten into him and turned his insides to jelly. And now he’d given in to letting her accompany him.

He peered out of the window. They would be lucky to get there before nightfall and what would he be able to do then? Nothing. He would have to install Ellie into a hotel and stop at his own house in town.

“One more stop,” he muttered, “then another hour.”

An hour. A full hour of sitting opposite Ellie and watching her chew on that cherry red bottom lip, of hearing the rustle of her skirts and watching her fiddle with the tip of her gloves. The air of the carriage smelled of her—of vanilla—like a tempting French pastry. He imagined darting his tongue over that lip and tasting her. She would be sweet too. Everything about her was far too alluring.

Lucian ground his teeth and fixed his gaze on the hills moving by, aware of her little fidgety movements and each huff of breath. He had nearly kissed her again. Well, maybe not nearly, but that was what he had been considering on the floor in the study. It would have been ideal too. He could have pressed her back against the carpet and slid himself between her legs.

But, damnation, he did not need to be kissing the lady who was making his life so hard. Besides which, what would come of it? He could never bed her. Why should she want a scarred, miserable man with his fortune tied up in cotton and who had behaved like an utter ass towards her seven years ago?

A smile teased his lips. Oh, the irony. Once he had been handsome, rich, well sought after. He would never have deemed to consider bedding the plain daughter of a baron and now here he was, imagining hitching up her skirts and pressing his fingers into the soft flesh of her thighs.

When she had transformed into someone he desired, he was not entirely sure, but there was no denying it now. That was the only thing that had changed however. He did not want her in his life and he definitely did not want her interfering with his mill.

“Will they have closed the mill for the day?”

“Unlikely, though it depends on the nature of the accident. It must have happened first thing this morning.”

She leaned forwards and placed a hand over his. Even through the gloves, he felt the warmth of her hand and was far too comforted by it. He withdrew his own hand from under hers as quickly as he could.

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