Page 31 of How to Tempt an Earl

“And what do you want?”

“To resolve our financial burdens, but by a different means.”

“Ah, fortunate for me.”

He didn’t know the viscount’s youngest son. He shouldn’t care. Grace was to tutor him, nothing more. His immediate concern must be his sisters. He needed to be accepted as the new earl, a member of the beau monde. He must be able to escort Ellie and Olivia to balls and parties and not blemish them with his black reputation or embarrass them with his coarse manners and dress.

What did he care who the baron sought for his daughter? An uncomfortable heat centered in his chest. What the bloody hell was wrong with him? He was never jealous of the women he’d been with. And he had never even bedded Grace. He’d also never pursued a woman or become emotionally attached. Women came to him, and his intentions had always been made clear. When a liaison had run its course, he had easily parted from them.

Don’t be a fool, he mused. She was not for him.

What he was feeling was lust, simple lust. He’d been working long hours at the club and had neglected his base needs.

She worked her lower lip again and met his gaze. “I cannot come tomorrow night.”

“Why?”

“I have to attend a ball.”

“Need I remind you the Crowley ball is not long away,” he said tersely.

“I’m aware.”

“We cannot afford to miss an evening of instruction.”

Her lips thinned with irritation. “It’s only one evening, and you needn’t behave rudely. That’s not the way a gentleman speaks to a lady.”

“Was I being rude?”

“Quite. I’ve done everything you’ve asked so far of me. I even cut your hair.”

He ran his hand through the clipped locks. “I suppose I should be grateful.”

“Yes, you should.”

Frustration roiled in his gut. Was it because she wouldn’t come tomorrow? Or because another man would dance with Grace, hold her in his arms. Take a turn with her in the gardens. Steal a kiss.

His frustration made his iron-clad control slip.

He leaned across the bench seat, watching as her eyes widened in slight alarm.

“I enjoyed it when you touched me.” His knees brushed her skirts. “Tell me. Did you enjoy it as well?”

Her breath hitched, and she stirred uneasily across from him. “You mustn’t ask such questions.”

His gaze fell to the creamy expanse of her neck above her cloak. She was a challenge he needed to conquer. He knew she felt desire for him as she’d stroked his hair. He needed her to acknowledge it.

“Since you seem unable to speak the truth,” he said, “let me confess. I liked it very much. I didn’t want you to stop.”

She gasped. “You didn’t?”

“That’s right. I longed for you to touch me more, to touch me elsewhere.”

Her pink lips parted.

He leaned closer until he could see the darker blue specks in her magnificent eyes. He had an undeniable urge to have his kiss be the last on her mind…for his kiss to block out the possibility of any others.

“I wanted to turn in that damned chair, pull your head down to mine, and kiss you senseless.”