Chapter 4

"You did what?" James asked, spitting the drink he had been about to swallow everywhere.

Alexander gave him a reproachful look, wiping his waistcoat with the table napkins provided.

If he hadn't spent his three years at Oxford as a roommate with this man, he would have doubted his noble upbringing due to his brutish mannerisms.

"Sorry." James winced. "But you have to admit that was rather surprising. Why would you get a special license when you are not sure she will agree to marry you? And even then, why don't you just marry her properly? You're a downright cad."

His tone was full of disapproval but still held humor, so Alexander didn't take his words seriously.

"Why would I do that?" Alexander asked. "If I wanted to go through all of that, I'd have gone through the whole ordeal of courting her. Besides, I'm the Duke of Blackhill…"

"And you always get what you want. Yes, but I'm not sure that applies to your beautiful betrothed if I've been rightly informed. How was tea with her yesterday? Was she everything you wanted?"

Of course, James already knew all about Alexander's outing with Helen, even though Alexander hadn't told him. Truly, the man's network of spies scared Alexander sometimes, even though he frequently made use of his friend's network to get an advantage over other competitors.

"She was just perfect. The perfect gentlewoman," he answered, making a show of staring into his glass, swirling its contents.

Perfect was definitely not the word he would have used to describe his bride-to-be, but he would be damned if he said otherwise. James would have laughed at him, and there was only so much Alexander could take before he punched him.

The right word for her would have been a harridan because she had behaved so poorly that he would have been embarrassed if he hadn't seen through her attempts to get him to call off the wedding.

Her beauty, even while performing her theatrics, had stunned him so much that he found himself struggling to maintain a grasp on his self-control. He had never considered a woman's neck to be erotic, but since he met Helen, he had been consumed by a strange desire to kiss her thoroughly.

Her full pink lips were just begging for it, and her curves begged his hands to worship her body. When she had stood up to him in her father's house, red in the face and neck, he had wondered if she flushed with desire the way she did with anger.

She had somehow invaded both his dreams and his waking hours, and he had woken with his member harder than it had ever been before after a night when he had been haunted by thoughts of licking and nibbling his way down the length of her neck and curvy body. He had come very close to acting on that impulse once.

A snort from James made him look up.

"Why don't I believe you?"

"Because you're a cynic who doubts everything he hears?"

"True, but I also happen to know a lot of things about you," James said with a smug grin. "So, tell me what happened. I know you are holding something back. I promise not to laugh too hard."

"I don't know why I keep you around."

"You do because I help you make money." James laughed, rolling his eyes. "And because you're secretly in love with me."

"You wish," Alexander scoffed. "But all right, I'll tell you. She is unlike any other lady I've met."

"In a good way or a bad way?"

"A little bit of both, actually," he admitted, shaking his head. "She damn well stood up to me and told me to shove my marriage contract."

"She really did that?" James asked between bouts of laughter.

"Yes, but not in such colorful terms." Alexander laughed. "It was almost cute if I was in the mood, and then she attempted to embarrass me at the tea shop. I've never seen a woman eat so shamelessly."

"Your lady is sure inventive. I withdraw my previous advice on how this is a bad idea because you're a prick. I think she is way too good to be wasted on the likes of you. She might help break your stiff personality."

Alexander gave him a warning look, but James was definitely not apologetic and was enjoying his laughter at his friend's expense. It was not every day that he laughed heartily, courtesy of his stuffy friend.

"I am astonished that you still invited her to go on a promenade with you, knowing full well she'll be looking for ways to embarrass you," he commented, giving Alexander a teasing look. "I have always known you to be the fastidious sort and not one to spend time on such nonsensical frivolities. You claim you don't want to court anyone, but you're effectively courting her. A display like that would have been most likely to have you scaring the poor girl silly. You must really like her company for you to want to keep it. Careful, Blackhill, she just might be the one to melt your cold heart."

Alexander rolled his eyes at the absurdity of James' words. Yes, he found himself wanting to be around Helen more than he cared to admit, but that was only because in some way, he wanted to see just how much temptation he could take before he finally gave in and not because he necessarily enjoyed her company.

"You are insinuating that I might have feelings of a softer nature towards the lady, and that is quite far from the truth," he explained. "I just need to marry her because she will be the best aristocratic wife to impress the Earl and Countess. I will admit I find her resolve interesting, but that's about it."

The amused smile on his friend's face confirmed that James didn't believe him, but Alexander didn't blame him. Even as he spoke those words, he found he didn't completely believe himself either.

He knew he was supposed to keep his distance from her because most of his fantasies about her were not appropriate for polite company. But he quite craved her presence, even though it always had him debating whether to strangle or bed the minx.

His only consolation was the fact that Helen was just as affected as he was, and even if she might not have identified the feeling yet, her body revealed that she felt the heated attraction between them just as well.

He suspected her attempts at embarrassing him were her attempt to run from the intensity of her feelings, and he was not above using the mutual attraction between them to get her to agree to marry him.

"So, you don't want to bed her?" James asked as he was about to swallow a sip of his drink.

He coughed, trying to get rid of the drink that had lodged in his throat. When the coughing finally ended, he glared at his friend.

"You haven't answered my question," James pointed out with a wide, knowing grin.

"I don't want to bed her?" Alexander answered, even though it sounded more like a question.

"What about me, Your Grace?" A beautiful blond woman stopped at the table. "Do you want to bed me?"

Alexander raised his eyebrow as he noticed that it was time for the courtesans to serve guests at the club. Usually, he left before the time came.

"Lady Fallon," he greeted. "It's a pleasure, as always."

She smiled, coming to run a hand down his arm with a sultry smile.

"Indeed. I'm surprised you're here," Lady Fallon said, curving her lips seductively. "You usually leave before the festivities."

He read the meaning behind her words, disgust filling him. Lady Fallon was a fashionable widow who'd turned to selling her body when her husband had died, and over the years, she had always expressed her interest in having Alexander as her lover. Alexander had always graciously declined, but her boldness in touching him now and something about her presence there grated on his nerves and tested his patience.

Oblivious to his mood, she placed a dainty hand on his shoulder.

"I heard tale that you were about to get shackled to some high-bred chit. Congratulations," she said cheerfully. Then dropping her voice to a sultry whisper, she added, "You could come visit me later. I promise to give you the time of your life. Consider that my parting gift."

She batted her eyelashes in a way that was supposed to be seductive but just served to inflame his annoyance.

Firmly holding her hand, he removed it from his person.

"I don't appreciate people touching me without my permission, Lady Fallon, and I am not interested in your proposition. Please, in the future, refrain from touching me without my permission."

A flush of embarrassment appeared on Lady Fallon's face. "I only wanted to?—"

"Yes, I know, and you can bestow your favors on a more willing customer."

She shrank back in anger. "How dare you?" She sneered. "Do you know how many men would die for a night with me?"

"You should go meet them, then."

She gasped, trying to hit him, but he gripped her hand in his and glared at her.

"There are a number of stupid things you could do, but hitting me should never be one of them."

He threw her hands back, and she stumbled back. "Have I made myself clear?"

She nodded, before running off as fast as she could.

When he turned back to his friend, he saw a look of shock on his face.

"You should close your mouth, or the flies will go in," he said with a sarcastic curl of his lips.

"Was that really necessary?" James asked, although his tone lacked heat.

"Was what necessary?"

"You just humiliated Lady Fallon. I know you never wanted her, but you were usually more gracious while handling it. What happened?"

"I just made my position clear. Seems to me that was the only way she was going to stay away from me."

"I still think you could have handled it better than you did."

The look on Alexander's face warned him to drop that line of discussion.

"I handled it the only way I thought she would finally understand," Alexander explained unapologetically. "If you want her for yourself, you can have her."

"Damn you," James said, shivering in disgust.

"I just thought you wanted her, since you want to defend her so much."

James shook his head, obviously disappointed, but Alexander didn't care. He wasn't one to dally with women who made a hobby of selling their bodies, especially one who would so readily try and trap him with a pregnancy.

"Anyway, what's your plan to tame your spitfire bride?" James asked, crossing his hands.

"I look forward to seeing what tricks she comes up with."

They shared a laugh.

"Is she really as beautiful as they say?"

Alexander thought back to how she had come on their outing with an odd-looking hairstyle and quite possibly the ugliest dress he had ever seen, and yet she still outshone every other woman present.

He recalled how beautiful she had looked standing in front of him, even when he had backed her up against the coach and how he had wanted to kiss her.

The sound of James clearing his throat pulled him out of his train of thought.

"What is it?"

"Nothing." James smiled, rising from his seat. "I have a feeling that things are going to be very interesting from here on out."

"How do you mean?"

"I'll let you know in due time." He smiled. "Come, I'm in the mood to fence."

"More like you're prepared for me to beat you."

"Oh, I'm more than ready to beat you."