Page 52
His hands shook. The tremor grew until his entire frame vibrated with it.
“This was a mistake,” he said hoarsely. He sucked in a breath, but it was instantly obvious it wasn’t enough.
He turned sharply and clumsily tore from her chamber. She ran after him. Slipped around him, stopping in his path just before the end of the hall. He pulled up short, barely avoiding crashing into her.
Theo pointed back toward her chamber. “Go sit. Now.”
He hardened himself, a framework of iron forging around him before her eyes. Not a single tremor would escape that fortress.
“You cannot order me about.”
She lifted her chin. “I believe I just did.”
“I’m a duke.”
“That’s lovely for you.”
His nostrils flared.
She leaned forward, voice low. “I don’t give a bloody damn who you are. You could be Prinny himself. In my house, you follow my rules. You will go to my chamber. You will sit your arse down.” Theo crossed her arms and cocked her hip, not giving a bloody damn that she was practically naked. She arched a brow. “Duke.”
His jaw ticked. Then he spun and stomped to her bedchamber. She grinned. That’s what she thought.
Theo ambled into her bedroom and was met with a glare from where His Grace sat on the edge of her mattress. She padded up to him, stepping between his thighs. Then dropped to her knees. His glare evaporated, eyes going wide.
Give and take. She had a feeling he needed her to press him. But not too hard. She skated her palms up his thighs. The linen of his trousers was so fine it was practically as soft as silk. He hadn’t taken off anything except his cravat. He hadn’t arrived donning a coat, now that she thought back to it, just shirt sleeves and a waistcoat.
He stared down at her, shadows playing over his face. There was a guardedness to his grey eyes. Something hid behind the walls. Something that wanted to find its way out.
Something he didn’t want to let out.
“Why did you come here tonight?”
His eyes searched hers. “I said I would.”
Theo shook her head. “That’s not why you showed up hours earlier than expected.”
He didn’t elaborate.
“All right. Why was this a mistake? What was a mistake?”
His gaze darted away. She squeezed his thighs, the muscles barely giving under the pressure of her fingertips. His tension hardened every part of him.
“I used you,” he said tightly.
She frowned. He still stared off in the distance. “Is that not…the basis of our agreement? You do not owe me anything except for respect, Your Grace.”
His attention flew to hers. “And where was the respect in how I just treated you?”
The words were biting, but they failed miserably in their aim. She rested her chin on his knee, a small smile curling her lips. “Ah, yes, ensuring I was ready to take you, ensuring I found pleasure—most definitely disrespecting me.” She rose on her knees, coming slightly closer to his level.
She trailed her fingers under his linen shirt and over his stomach, reveling in the way his skin quivered beneath her touch. “Roughness does not equate disrespect. Hard. Fast. Even pain… does not equate disrespect. You respect my consent. I said, do whatever you need. Do you know what I expected from that?”
He gave a slight shake.
She gripped his chin. “I expected to be used. I expected to be used solely for your purposes. And I was all right with that. If I give you my body, that’s my choice. But you didn’t do that.”
His lips quivered, cheek ticking.
