Chapter 3

3

The infuriatingfemale was gaping at Nathaniel from behind his desk, one of his ledgers open in front of her. Her beautiful eyes were wide, her delicious, plush lips parted. And a rosy blush crept over her high cheekbones, the same blush that he remembered from the night of the Royal Navy ball. When they had danced that waltz and she was all breathless in his arms.

He had been breathless, too, afraid to spook that creature of lush auburn hair and big, intelligent blue eyes.

Her fingers still lay on the pages of the ledger. “I—” she said. “I—”

“You sneaked in here after you promised to leave,” he said, letting his voice roar as he marched towards her, maneuvering between the desks. “I knew you’d be trouble.”

She shook her head, a single wavy auburn curl falling onto her flushed cheek, and straightened her back, her chin raised high. Every bit a duke’s sister, proud and well-bred. His own three sisters should take her example, as there was no female in their lives who could teach them.

“What are you doing here?” Lady Calliope demanded indignantly, as though this was her desk, and he was the intruder. “I thought you were gone.”

He went into his drawer and took out a brown leather folder. “I forgot this.”

It was a copy of his father’s will. Nathaniel was meeting his solicitor in an hour at his home and had forgotten the final payment to Mr. Cadden, the money he’d borrowed from Admiral Robert Langden, an old friend of the family. The man who had sponsored Nathaniel’s navy service when Nathaniel had needed him.

Lady Calliope’s earlier words were too close to the truth. He wasn’t as responsible as he should be, taking care of three younger sisters. Otherwise, he’d have done his duty and found a rich wife years ago.

The Kelford line was, perhaps, not as old as Grandhampton, but it was much, much richer. In fact, had Nathaniel had access to the inheritance his vengeful father had locked in that damned will, Nathaniel would now be the richest man in England. He would own tens of thousands of acres of land, including numerous counties in Wiltshire, Somerset, and London, and have thousands of tenants, including those renting farmland and houses in towns and villages.

The annual income of one hundred thousand pounds and estates worth five million pounds were out of reach thanks to his father’s conditions and Nathaniel’s refusal to meet them. With access to his fortune, he wouldn’t have to come to the Admiralty and write papers all day. He wouldn’t sink into gambling debts hoping the next win would finally set him free. He wouldn’t need to watch his sisters sew their own clothes, patch and wear their mother’s old dresses, and stare at the empty squares left on the walls from paintings he had sold long ago.

Lady Calliope stood a few inches from him, and he couldn’t look away. How could one female be the most impressive he’d ever met and the most annoying one at the same time?

She baffled him with her courage. What well-bred aristocratic lady would dream of sneaking into a building full of hundreds of men? Clearly, she was spirited and stubborn.

“You don’t mind, then, if I look through this, do you?”

Like a little fox—the resemblance made even stronger by her gorgeous coloring—she picked up the ledger.

But he was faster. Catching her by the arm, he ripped the ledger away from her graspy fingers, pulling her close to him. Her sweet, small body hit his. She was so close, he could feel the warmth of her smooth skin, could smell her. A delicate, citrusy, and flowery scent…like bergamot, and something spicy, like ginger…and her. Just…indescribable, feminine, delicious. He ached to drink it in.

She was scandalously, scandalously close. He remembered how good it had felt to hold her in his arms as they’d swirled around the ballroom. How much he’d wanted to kiss her.

Not as much as he ached to kiss her now.

“No, madam,” he murmured. “You may not have this. In fact, you must leave, and you mustn’t come back. Otherwise, I will be forced to tell your brothers.” Her eyes widened in concern, and he knew his guess was right. The little fox was here without their knowledge or consent.

She swallowed hard, and he watched her delicate neck move. He wondered how her skin would feel under his lips. Warm. Smooth. Like a petal.

They were alone. He could just lean down and taste her.

Why wasn’t she protesting? She was enjoying it, as intrigued by him being near as he was by her. Her chest rose and fell quickly. Her full lips were parted. And that gorgeous blush tinged her cheeks. Her pupils were dilated. Oh, she was just as affected as he was.

“Don’t tell my brothers,” she said, her voice like honey. “They’d lock me up and not allow me to investigate. They’d put me on a tight leash.”

“Tell me, Lady Calliope…do you like to be a naughty girl?”

His cock liked the thought of her spread naked under him, just for him.

She parted her lips, speechless. Perhaps she felt him harden against her as her eyes widened.

Only, unfortunately, it wasn’t lust he saw now.

It was embarrassment. And fear.

She pushed him away and rushed back so fast, she slammed against the desk behind her. A spyglass rolled from the desk and fell onto the floor with the unmistakable sound of shattering glass. He watched her in astonishment as she glared at him like a cornered, hunted animal.

“Back off, sir,” she said through gritted teeth.

He cursed under his breath. She was a virgin, no doubt. Of course she was confused and shocked by his body’s reaction. He’d forgotten how delicate virgins were. He didn’t take virgin lovers on principle. The women he took were experienced and very willing.

“Your rakish ways won’t work with me,” she said. “You do not behave like a gentleman. You won’t affect me like you do all those other women.”

With her head high, she marched towards the door, her heels clicking against the floor.

As he watched her depart, her body swaying under her thin white muslin dress, he shook his head. Part of him regretted her leaving his proximity. But it was better, anyway.

As soon as she was gone, he realized he needed to investigate what she had been looking for.

She’d said the third of September 1812. He could look up any orders he’d signed for that date. Putting the folder with his father’s will down, he went to the bookshelf with the ledgers for the last year, found the one for September, and looked through the dates one by one. There was a page missing.

He looked at the door again. No, that couldn’t be right.

He looked at the whole ledger again, one document at a time, hoping perhaps it was misplaced and out of order.

But after looking through twice, it was clear to him.

The page for September 3 was not there.

Had Lady Calliope taken it?

He’d call on her tomorrow and learn the truth. As he put the ledger back onto the shelf, he realized he’d very much look forward to seeing the little fox again—seeing that gorgeous blush on her cheeks, inhaling her scent.

He picked up the brown leather folder and walked towards the door. Her scent lingered in the room, and he shamelessly took a lungful of it, craving every last drop.