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“These conditions of yours are getting out of hand, my dear,” he drawled. “May I remind you that I can compel you to obey me?”

She looked him dead in the eyes. Or, at least, where she assumed his eyes would be. The desire in her gut was not easing, muchto her annoyance. A stomachache would be so much simpler to deal with than this conflicting emotion.

“And are you going to?Compel me,that is?”

He heaved a sigh. “No. I am not.”

“Well then, Your Grace,” she said, getting briskly to her feet and brushing stray bits of grass from her skirts, “I must bid you goodnight.”

She turned to go, but his arm shot out, grabbing her hand.

“Call me Theo,” he said quietly.

Her skin prickled.

“Goodnight, Theo,” she whispered, and he let her go.

Anna almost ran back inside.

CHAPTER 14

“His Grace breakfasted early and left shortly after,” Mrs. Haunt explained, with just a hint ofit’s none of your businessin her voice.

Perhaps it wasn’t any of Anna’s business. Her husband—Theo—had made that abundantly clear.

However, the events of last night were still rocketing around in her head. She hadn’t slept much, going over and over what had happened. The kiss, the feelings it had evoked inside her—not proper feelings, that was for sure—and her subsequent turmoil was upsetting, to say the least.

She was meant to be busy disliking this man, spreading her wings as a duchess, and generally trying to pretend that she was not married at all.

Except for one area, of course—she was supposed to be carrying his child as soon as humanly possible. So far, there had been exactly no attempts to conceive the said child, and Anna felt…

No, not disappointed. She couldn’t possibly be disappointed at not havingthatman near her. It was only because he was good-looking, which only a blind woman would deny.

No, not even a blind woman, upon reflection, as Theo had a very smooth, deep voice which she supposedmightbe pleasant to listen to, if a woman was intrigued by such a thing.

And Anna was not, naturally.

“I see,” she said, at last, seeing that Mrs. Haunt was still waiting patiently for her response. “Well, I intend to visit my family today. I thought I might take Kitty with me. It would be a change of scenery for her, and my mother is practically her grandmother.”

Surprise flickered on Mrs. Haunt’s face. “What a kind idea, Your Grace. I’m sure Lady Katherine will be thrilled. I’ll instruct Martha to get her ready, and of course, the carriage will be ready for you whenever you wish to depart.”

“Thank you, Mrs. Haunt. And… um…”

Anna felt heat rush to her face. She had been rehearsing what she intended to say all morning, and it still felt as clunky andawkward in her head as it had when she’d first decided to broach the subject.

Mrs. Haunt, cool and collected as always, folded her hands in front of her and waited patiently.

Anna cleared her throat. “I was told I would have an allowance, as the Duchess?”

Money. Always a painful topic, and generally considered vulgar in just about any setting, if one was a woman. Mrs. Haunt, however, did not blink.

“That is true, Your Grace, although I do not know if His Grace has yet made the arrangements. I shall be sure to mention it to his steward.”

“Thank you, it’s just that… well, some of my mother’s servants haven’t been paid for a while.” Anna shifted in her seat, uneasy and uncomfortable. “We owe them back wages, and they haven’t even complained. I should like to settle those debts right away.”

Mrs. Haunt blinked. “That is very honorable of you, Your Grace, if I may say so. Write the sum you require, and I shall collect it for you. I’m sure His Grace will be happy to supply your needs in this regard.”

Anna let out a slow sigh of relief. Her heart was hammering. For such a long time, money had never been discussed in their home—although it was all anybody thought of, due to the marked lackof it—and asking for money was an almost laughable idea. There was none to be had.