Page 23 of Desperately Seeking Seduction

Did that make her one of the weaker sex now?

She put her hand to her empty belly. She was growing anxious about what was keeping Lord Stratford away. He threatened marriage. She hoped he wasn’t serious about that. Although if he was…

She sank into a chair, mortified.

At least he knows how to kiss.

She raked a hand through her short hair and growled under her breath. Lord Stratford had not come back to change for dinner yet and the realization that the day was nearly gone made her doubly cross with him. She did not want to leave the estate in darkness. There could be thieves hiding in the woods who would waylay any unwary traveler and take what little she would have.

She sat back in the window seat again and put her hands flat on her knees, attempting to find some semblance of calm. She should never have taken on the position as valet to the lord. Handsome, charming men were turning out to be more trouble than she cared for.

She should have let Lord Stratford tie his own cravat. But the next time she got her hands about his neck, she’d most likely want to strangle him with the freshly pressed linen.

She glanced at the clock on the mantel and noted the time was crawling by. The evening meal would be served soon, and Sweet family dinners tended to go on for hours and hours. The servants would certainly have noticed by now that she’d shirked helping but were likely too busy to come find out what delayed her. They would chide her for laziness when they did. If they did get that door open, they’d soon realize it wasn’t her damn fault but her scoundrel of an employer.

She fiddled with the window latch and opened the window to look down. Below her was an unappealing long drop to a flagstone path. There was nothing to cling to if she attempted to climb down either.

She closed the window and sat back facing the door. When it opened, she’d be ready to sprint to make an escape.

Unfortunately, when it burst open at last, it was slammed and locked promptly again behind Lord Stratford. He looked about the room quickly, even as he slipped the key into his shirt front. “I had a bet with myself that there wouldn’t be anything broken as a result of a feminine fit of temper.”

She bared her teeth at him. “Your head may be in danger the minute you get any closer.”

He merely laughed at her threat. “I’m pleased to see you also did not attempt to climb out the window. Believe me, the drop would bring a lingering death. I bring a peace offering,” he said, gesturing to a sack she hadn’t noticed.

She eyed the lumpy sack sourly, heard the clank of glass inside, but was unwilling to be diverted by its contents. Lord Stratford didn’t heed her lack of curiosity. He proceeded to lay out a feast upon the very bed he wisely put between them. Bread, ham, cheese, fruit, and even a bottle of wine and glasses. He gestured her toward it all as if she should be pleased.

Her stomach growled but she held her ground. It had been hours since her last meal, but she could wait until she was free.

“Come closer. You must be hungry again,” he begged, producing a knife to cut the cheese with. “I won’t bite.”

“I am not afraid of you,” she assured him, remaining where she was. She was a little afraid, mostly of how relieved she was to see him and that he’d returned alone.

He patted the bed again. “Come and eat with me then since you are so brave.”

She shuffled her feet, unwilling to be lulled into trusting him. “Are you not expected to join your family tonight?”

“I’ve cried off. Told my brothers to bear the chore of dealing with our cousins without me for one night.”

“Were they happy about that?”

“Not truly, but I was so helpful today they did not complain very much.”

Curiosity got the better of her. She’d spent the whole of her day alone or with him. What went on out there seemed a world away. “What did you do today that was so important?”

“Oh, the usual brotherly duties. Deflected the attention of any unsuitable woman trying to catch my esteemed elder brother alone. You have no idea how often the silly twits have tried to catch his eye with the hope of eventually marrying him.”

She relaxed a little. “Does he not want to marry?”

Stratford grimaced. “He must, of course. But none gathered here have the size dowry a duke requires to make a match with them. They are all cousins. The duke will go to London for a bride in due time.”

Winston understood the responsibilities of a firstborn son only too well. She’d been lectured on the subject numerous times. Increasing the wealth and importance of the family was closely followed by the need to marry well and get an heir and a spare when she was the right age. That had been Mother’s problem. She’d possessed a large enough dowry and connections to catch herself an important husband but had only delivered a solitary daughter after a string of failures in the years before. To this day, Winston had no idea how the woman had intended to dupe anyone into marrying Winston. “The money issue.”

He looked at her strangely. “What do you know about that?”

She shrugged. “There’s never enough, is there? Not for important families like yours.”

Lord Stratford exhaled and then patted the other side of the bed one more time. “I really must apologize for being away for so long. I had not intended to keep you locked in all afternoon. But I couldn’t trust that you would remain when my back was turned. You had the look of someone planning to run away from me.”