The Heart of a Hellion: The Duke’s Bastards Book 2 by Michaels Jess

Author:Michaels, Jess
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: The Passionate Pen LLC
Published: 2020-07-13T16:00:00+00:00

* * *

Derrick stepped into Selina’s chamber and quickly shut the door so no one coming up the hall might see him. He looked around and his brow wrinkled. She’d left the festivities of the gathering downstairs with a headache, or so he’d been told when the gentlemen rejoined the ladies a short while ago. And yet she wasn’t here in her bedroom, resting. He didn’t hear her in the adjoining sitting room, either, but he went there regardless and opened the door.

He was startled to find Selina’s companion, Vale, sitting by the fire, a book in her hand. She glanced up, and instead of panicking at the sight of a strange man in her mistress’s chamber, she arched a brow at him and set her novel aside.

“Mr. Huntington,” she said. “This is unexpected.”

“Miss Williams,” he said, trying not to shift with discomfort. “I apologize for disturbing you. I ought not have entered the room.”

“No, I suppose propriety dictates such,” Vale said, getting to her feet and taking a step toward him. Pale blue eyes swept over his face and down his body. “But Selina and I have never stuck much to the rules of propriety.”

His brow wrinkled at the purr in her tone. The way she glided toward him. “Selina most definitely marches to her own beat,” Derrick said. “And you two are obviously close.”

“Very,” Vale said. “So you can understand why I might be protective of her.”

“You are well within your rights to be so. It’s good to know Selina has someone on her side.”

“Are you on her side, Mr. Huntington?” she pressed, arms folding across her chest. “Or are you just tupping her?”

His lips parted at the unexpectedly blunt question. Part of him wished to deny it all, to act as though he didn’t know what she was talking about. But it was evident this woman did know what he’d been up to with Selina. Perhaps she’d told her friend. Selina had made it clear she didn’t have a prudish mind when it came to sex and sin. Or perhaps Vale had overheard something, put the pieces together when tidying up for her mistress.

Or maybe they were just too obvious in their ardor. After all, he could tell Barber suspected them, as well.

“You would have to speak to your mistress about that,” he said, refusing to reveal anything that Selina hadn’t, herself, said out loud.

Vale arched a fine, blonde brow. “I’m asking you.”

He frowned. So much for trying to go the gentlemanly route. Not that he could. He’d thrown gentlemanly out the window the moment he took Selina against the library wall.

“You are clearly a clever woman and I can see you know what you think you know. So I won’t deny that Selina and I have grown…close…since our arrival here.” He blinked. “More close than I ever could have imagined. But I’m not…using her, Miss Williams.”

Her eyes narrowed. “You truly care for her?”

She acted as though that was a strange thought. Why? Did she not believe

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