Page 105 of The Earl’s Forbidden Temptation

Darcy considered him for a moment before turning fully into his embrace. Her arm slipped around his waist, and she nestled closer, resting her cheek once more over his heart.

“No.”

Sebastian’s fingers stilled against her back. “No?”

“I am right where I want to be.”

The simple words sank deep.

For years, Sebastian had pursued diversion almost from habit. Cards, drink, women, laughter, scandal. He had enjoyed all of it and rarely questioned what pleasure might await him next. Yet with Darcy curled against him, the entire establishment below could have vanished, and he would not have missed a damned thing.

Sebastian drew her closer and pressed his lips to her hair.

Darcy was exactly where she wanted to be.

And so was he.

CHAPTER 34

Darcy hurried down the narrow staircase, one hand gathering her skirts as she descended, her pulse still unsteady from a night that seemed at once real and dreamlike. Pale afternoon light slanted through the fanlight above the door, laying soft bars of gold across the polished banister and the faded runner beneath her feet.

The little townhouse, though modest, had already begun to feel like a place of her own choosing. This morning, however, it seemed altered, as though the happiness swelling within her was too great for its quiet walls to contain. She paused midway down, one hand curled around the railing, and then laughed aloud, unable to believe all that had happened at Aphrodite with Sebastian.

Joy kept escaping her in helpless smiles and breathless little bursts of laughter until she felt absurdly like a fresh-faced debutante after her first dance. She drew a steadying breath as the last of her uncertainties pressed against the edges of her happiness.

“He loves me,” she whispered to herself. “And I love him. Whatever comes, we shall build our life from that.”

The words warmed her anew, and she hastened down the remaining stairs. Barbara, the young maid she had engaged to assist with her dressing and personal needs, met her upon the landing with wide eyes and a voice brimming with barely concealed astonishment.

“A duchess, miss. And a countess. They have been waiting in the parlor for several minutes. Mrs. Hodge has served tea and a plate of tarts. I was just coming to inform you.”

Darcy paused, startled despite herself, before offering a small smile at the girl’s wonder. “Thank you, Barbara.”

The girl bobbed a curtsy and hurried away, and Darcy suspected that within moments every member of her small household would know that illustrious callers had crossed their threshold. Composing her expression as best she could, Darcy entered the parlor. The room was bright, the scent of warm pastry mingling with bergamot from the tea.

Agatha and Elizabeth sat close together upon the modest sofa, their heads bent over a news sheet spread between them. At her entrance, both ladies looked up at once, their expressions warming with genuine affection.

“Darcy,” Elizabeth said, smiling. “You are simply glowing, and you look…”

“Entirely as though she has not slept,” Agatha supplied, though her tone held amusement rather than censure.

Darcy laughed softly even as a blush warmed her cheeks. “I should be the one to call upon you,” she said as she joined them, settling upon the sofa opposite. “It is most kind of you to come here, though I fear this neighborhood is quite unaccustomed to such distinguished callers.”

“Nonsense,” Elizabeth said lightly. “We go where we please.”

Agatha, however, hesitated, her gaze searching Darcy’s face with more serious intent.

“We wished to see you without delay,” she said. “Tell us, what transpired after Raine carried you away like some conquering behemoth? There were a few gasps of alarm, but everyone soon returned to the evening’s pleasures. Then my earl carried me off only minutes later, so I did not see you again. Dare I presume to guess what happened?”

Darcy’s composure deserted her entirely. Color rushed into her cheeks, and she lowered her gaze, unable to conceal the memory that rose with vivid, intimate clarity.

Elizabeth gasped softly, her eyes bright with deviltry. “He did not…” She paused, then shook her head with mingled scandal and amusement. “Of course he did. Rakes are an absolute menace.”

Darcy pressed her lips together, though a helpless smile curved them. “He declared himself,” she admitted quietly. “He said he loved me and wished to court me. I am so happy that I scarcely know what to do with myself.”

Both ladies stilled and exchanged swift glances.

Agatha’s brows lifted. “Court you? Those were his exact words?”