Page 28
She tossed her head back, her eyes directed heavenward, her milky-white neck bared for his gaze. “For a little while.”
“And then what?” William’s eyes traced her neck, down to her chest, and lower still, pausing at two soft mounds of her breasts peeking above her bodice.
“And then we can officially separate.”
His eyes snapped back to her face. “Separate?” He would never let that happen.
“Yes, and I shall have no need to lie to anyone anymore. I shall be able to live my life the way I want to.”
“What about me?”
“You’ll gain whatever you wanted by marrying me in the first place, be it notoriety or open doors to society ballrooms.”
William snorted. Did she truly think that’s what he wanted? All he’d ever wanted was her. “I care about none of that.”
“Then what do you care about?” she whined.
He narrowed his eyes on her. “You know what I want; you’re just not willing to let yourself believe it. I want you.”
“And you’ll get me,” she said, feigning excitement. “Here’s the deal. We pretend to be blissfully married for a month. However, I shall continue living with my uncle, and we shall appear three times a week at social events of my choosing to perpetuate the picture of marital bliss. And we separate after that.”
“No.” He pushed off the hearth, took a couple of steps, and settled in the chair she had occupied a few moments prior. He picked up her book from the side table and read the title. The Scoundrel. He’d heard about the book; Hades’s new bride was the author. He wondered if anything in there had been written about him. He would never risk reading it to find out.
“No?” Victoria’s question was a hoarse whisper.
William shook his head as he nonchalantly put the book back on the side table. “No.”
She cleared her throat. “You refuse to help me?”
He pursed his lips and slowly, thoughtfully shook his head. “No.”
“No…” She sucked in a breath. “You don’t refuse to help me?”
“You shouldn’t have expected me to accept your terms,” he said as he shifted in the chair, finding a comfortable position.
“I expected nothing less.”
Bending his right leg, he rested his foot on his left knee. “If you want to parade me around like a prized stallion, you shall do so on my terms.”
She gritted her teeth. “Which are?”
William took out a cheroot and clamped it between his lips. “We continue the charade for six months. You stay with me during that entire time, and we go out to social engagements together once a fortnight. And if, after that, you still want to leave me, I shall petition the courts for divorce.” William felt confident that she would not accept these terms, just as he was confident that even a month with her would turn things in his favor.
Her head snapped back in surprise. “Do you truly think you’ll be able to get a divorce in England? How do you plan to accomplish it?”
William shrugged. “Easy. Bribery.”
Victoria’s eyes fell closed. “Why am I even surprised?”
“I bribed our minister to marry us, and although more cumbersome, I can arrange a divorce as well.”
“Ugh!” Victoria waved her fists in the air, so adorably frustrated. “How is our marriage even legal?”
William let out a chuckle. “I am sure your powerful friends have checked; otherwise, we wouldn’t be here.”
Victoria mumbled something under her breath before raising her eyes to his once more. “You want me to live with you for six months?”
“That’s right.”
