Page 94 of To Hunt the Hunter

“You’ve endured enough?” she retorted indignantly. “It was your idea to wait so long.”

She blushed a little as he cast her a smile that made something hot and liquid erupt deep inside her.

“Ah yes, you’d have had your wicked way with me back in Matlock Bath if I’d not protected my virtue so fiercely.”

“Oh, you devil!” she whispered as her blush increased and turned her scarlet. “I can’t believe you said that.”

“Truly?” he replied, all innocence. “My, you are in for a shock, wife. For I have many things I want to say to you that will make you blush far harder than that.”

She met his gaze and held it, recognising the challenge there.

“I should like to see you try,” she said, watching his eyes grow dark as a sloe berry, the silver almost swallowed entirely.

“Should you?” he asked, leaning in, his breath fluttering against her ear.

Matilda shivered and turned back to him, returning the favour, brushing her lips against his ear as she spoke.

“I dare you….”

There was a brief, electric silence and then he stood, so fast his chair would have toppled back if Gabriel hadn’t been passing and caught it.

“In a hurry, Lucie, old man?” He said, his voice warm with amusement and quite obviously a little foxed.

Lucian turned to glare at Matilda in outrage.

“I didn’t!” she squeaked, realising he thought she’d told Gabe of Thomas’s pet name for him. “My word, Lucian, I never told him.”

Gabe snickered at Lucian’s narrow-eyed glare.

“You’re lucky I have more important things to consider,” Lucian grumbled. “But I promise dire consequences if you ever say that aloud again.”

“Yes, my lord marquess,” Gabe replied, with as much insincerity as he could muster.

Lucian growled at him impatiently and took Matilda’s hand, hurrying her out of the room before anyone else could waylay them.

“You like him,” she said happily, while Lucian dragged her across the hallway towards the stairs, struggling to keep up as her heavy skirts weighed her down.

“He’s a pain in the neck,” Lucian replied succinctly. “He’s rude, has almost as many enemies as I do, no respect whatsoever for my station, and insists I muddy my hands with some dreadful moneymaking scheme he’s all excited about.”

He turned then, his silver eyes glinting.

“Of course I like him.”

Matilda laughed as they got to the top of the stairs and then squealed in shock as she was swept off her feet and into his arms.

“You’re too slow,” he said, smiling at her as he carried her along the corridor to the bedroom.

“It’s these dratted skirts, they’re so heavy.”

“Then we had best dispense with them at once.”

Matilda gave a happy sigh as the sounds of the wedding breakfast below grew quieter the farther they got from it. Lucian kicked the bedroom door shut behind them, and set her gently down, his hands at her waist. She looked up at him and he leaned in, pressing his forehead to hers.

“I love you, Lady Montagu.”

Matilda let out a breath. “How marvellous that sounds.”

“It does,” he agreed. “And you are magnificent, love. I think my heart stopped when I saw you walk into that church. You looked so exquisite.”