He wanted to spare her sensibilities. Somewhat. But he couldn’t resist a smirk when she blushed furiously.
She scowled at his grin, and he made an effort to control his outward amusement. “I propose such attempts should occur a minimum of six times a month, at least twice a week, every week, save for when you may be…” He froze, trying to think of a delicate way to put it. “Indisposed.”
She scowled again but didn’t object to his phrasing. “However, should one of those weeks be missed for any other reason, then a third day should be added to the following week.”
She frowned, and he braced for her to argue against the frequency he suggested. “I do not agree.”
As he suspected.
“Six times a month won’t be nearly sufficient.”
His eyebrows hit his hairline, and her blush deepened so much he was surprised her eyes weren’t watering. That…was not what he had expected her to say.
She took a deep breath. “I simply mean that only attempting twice a week will greatly reduce our odds and could make this drag on for months. As the objective is to accomplish this in as little time as possible, certainly within a year, I suggest, just for the sake of expediency, that we alter this to nightly relations. When possible. Until conception occurs. Upon which time I will immediately retire to the country, and you may do…whatever it is you wish to do.”
“Nightly?” His eyes widened further, and his lips quirked up in a half grin he couldn’t contain. “You must really want my…library.”
Her mouth gaped open and closed a few times, and poor Lady Waterstack looked as though the vapors might overtake her at any moment. Or…perhaps she was trying to keep from pummeling him with the crystal paperweight her fingers kept caressing. He edged his chair a little farther from her, just in case, though not before plucking the paperweight from her grasp. She glanced at him in surprise.
“Just in case you decided to put this to use in some misguided attempt to defend your friend’s honor,” he said, jiggling the paperweight in his hand before placing it on a shelf. Well out of their reach.
Lady Waterstack snorted. “It would serve you right, Your Grace.”
He dropped back into his chair. “It would not. By all rights, it is my honor that should be defended.”
“Yours?” Lady Waterstack said, incredulous.
“Yes!” He wagged a finger at Arabella. “She came to my door asking for my hand in marriage and now she’s demanding nightly attentions from me. Not that I’m complaining, mind you,” he said with a quick wink for Arabella, who sat stunned and gasping for outraged breath on the other side of the table. “But still.”
He glanced back and forth at the women who were both doing admirable impersonations of suffocating codfish. Arabella seemed to recover her sensibilities after a moment, though not her powers of speech. Very well, then, he’d continue.
“Are there any stipulations you wish to place on our…attempts?” he asked her…with some trepidation, but also a great deal of curiosity. She had done nothing but surprise him from the moment she’d fallen out of her carriage and into his arms.
She blinked up at him, then straightened her spine and faced him full on. “Yes, actually, there are.”
“I can’t wait to hear them.”
She gave him a skeptical look, but he meant every word. He was completely intrigued. And relieved, frankly. He’d thought he might have shocked her into permanent silence. He waited with bated breath.
“I would prefer these attempts to proceed as efficiently as possible and to only occur with the lamps lit throughout the process.”
His eyes widened. The woman was a never-ending source of delight. He cleared his throat and ran a finger over his lips, trying to force the smile from them. “Lights on?”
She nodded. “I prefer to see what is occurring. I don’t like surprises.”
Charlotte choked on her chocolate and clapped her napkin to her lips. Silas’s lips nearly screamed in agony from the effort to keep them in line.
“If tha—” His voice came out in a croak, and he quickly cleared it. “If that’s what you prefer.”
She nodded again, and he moved on to her second stipulation. “And…efficiently?”
“Yes. No…dillydallying about,” she said, waving her hand in the air. “Our touching should remain as limited as possible for as little time as possible.”
Well now, that was just insulting. His brow creased. “You may need to explain further.”
She sighed as though he were the biggest dolt on the planet. “I know some degree of touching is, of course, necessary.”
“Oh good. I wasn’t sure you understood that part.”
She grimaced at him and continued. “However, kissing and other such activities are not things in which I am experienced, and I have no desire to be as I shall have no use for those particular skills once our contract is fulfilled.”
He had no earthly idea how to respond to that. Which didn’t seem to matter as she barreled on ahead without waiting for comment from him.
“From what I understand, such…activities aren’t strictly necessary in order for…to…” She waved her hand limply again. “You know.”
His frown deepened while he struggled for a diplomatic way to abjectly refuse her request. “I…cannot speak for other men. But for myself…I will find the act of procreation quite…difficult without being able to touch and kiss my partner.”
She contemplated that for a moment and glanced at Lady Waterstack.
“I…” Lady Waterstack started before pausing to clear her throat. She darted a look at him before leaning closer to Arabella, her voice lowered, though Silas could still hear her. “Lord Waterstack also prefers such activities during…”
Her words choked off and she flashed another glance at Silas, who had to pinch his thigh under the table to keep from laughing.
Arabella released a deep sigh. “Very well. If it is truly something you need, then I will agree to kissing and whatever other proclivities you deem necessary,” she said, grimacing like she was describing some sort of disagreeable clinical examination.
She made him seem like such a deviant. He wasn’t sure if he should be flattered or offended. Watching the heat climb in her cheeks and her chest shudder with the slight hitch in her breath, he decided he was flattered, because the lady was most definitely intrigued, despite her claims to the contrary.
And suddenly he couldn’t wait to get her alone. He was going to teach her that such proclivities could not only be tolerable but the most pleasurable experience of her life.
(c) Michelle McLean, Entangled Publishing, 2022. Shared with permission from the publisher.
Bookish Arabella Bromley never gave a fig for society’s rules—until her sister ran off with a man below her station. Now Arabella is desperate to restore her family’s ruined reputation to favor amongst the ton. She’ll have to marry quickly and well. But in order to carry off her plan, Arabella needs a duke… and she has just the rakish fellow in mind.
The Duke of Whittsley has an ungentlemanly tendency to disregard the rules. Unfortunately, a sense of mischief doesn’t excuse a high-ranking noble from family duty—especially where it concerns producing a son. And that’s where he can’t quite resist Arabella’s distinctly outrageous plan: if he saves her family, she’ll give him an heir.
Now the deal’s been struck. They have one year to achieve their goals and ten iron-clad rules to keep them on track. Like long, scorching kisses and ensuring they’re both exquisitely satisfied. And the only thing that could ruin their plan is the one thing they never planned on: love.
Romance Historical [Entangled: Scandalous, On Sale: January 31, 2022, e-Book, ISBN: 9781649372499 / eISBN: 9781649372499]
Michelle McLean is a jeans and t-shirt kind of girl who is addicted to chocolate and Goldfish crackers and spent most of her formative years with her nose in a book. She has a B.S. in History, an M.A. in English, and loves her romances with a little heat, a lot of humor, and always a happily ever after.
When Michelle's not working, reading, or chasing her kids around, she can usually be found baking or diamond painting, which she accidentally got addicted to while bored one day. She resides in PA with her husband and two teens, the world's most spoiled dog, and two cats who absolutely rule the house. She also writes contemporary romance as Kira Archer.
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