The Duke of Her Desire by Sophie Barnes

Author:Sophie Barnes
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: 0
Published: 2017-12-25T18:30:00+00:00

Having shed the fine clothes he’d worn for the better part of the day and replaced them with a plain pair of brown trousers and a jacket to match, Thomas hailed a hackney carriage and directed it toward Seven Dials. From there he walked the remainder of the way to the Black Swan Inn, locating it easily enough on account of all the noise the place emitted.

Stepping inside, he pushed his way past a thick throng of people who’d gathered next to the door. The sound of violins and the stomping of dancing feet produced a boisterous atmosphere that he couldn’t quite say he disliked. There was something unrestrained here—no rules to govern one’s every move, except for the rule of common decency, though he knew many of the patrons did not even practice that.

Still, he could feel the weight of his responsibilities begin to lift from his shoulders as he crossed the floor to the door leading out to the courtyard beyond. Stepping through it, his blood began to sing in response to the fight that he saw taking place. It was masculine power at its best, just pure muscle and strength against one’s opponent. Moving forward, he joined the crowd of onlookers and considered the men whose faces were both puffy and swollen, their bodies soaked from the onset of rain.

“Well, well, well . . .” The thick voice that spoke at his shoulder had Thomas turning around to find Carlton Guthrie grinning back at him. “Didn’t think to see ye ’ere, Yer Gr—”

“Heathmore will do,” Thomas said, offering up his last name to prevent the man from revealing his title. “You should know that by now.”

“Aye.” Guthrie glanced around. “Matthews ain’t with ye?”

“No. He is abroad at the moment.” Figuring Huntley would not approve of him sharing details about his life with a man he disliked, Thomas refrained from elaborating. “So I have come alone this time.”

“Need a good thrashin’ do ye?” Guthrie’s lips curled back to reveal a row of surprisingly perfect teeth. In fact, if it weren’t for his mustache, the stubble that dotted his jaw and the unkempt state of his hair, the man would actually be quite handsome. He would also look a hell of a lot younger than one imagined him to be at first glance.

“I’ve had a bad week,” Thomas confessed. “I believe hitting something might do me good.”

Nodding, Guthrie stuck out his hand. “It’ll be three pounds to enter.”

“When I was last here, it was free,” Thomas muttered, not because he couldn’t afford the sum but because he didn’t want to be taken advantage of.

“I ’ad to lure ye in first.” Guthrie smiled broadly, eyes flashing with devilish glee. “Now that ye’re lured, it’ll be three pounds.”

“What about them?” Thomas asked with a nod directed at the two men who were still throwing punches. “How much did they have to pay?”

“They’re me men, Heathmore. I’m trainin’ them fer the next match so I’ll be payin’ them an’ not the other way around.

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