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The Duke went to take a seat on one of the sofas in the drawing room, leaving Louisa standing, watching him as he folded his tall frame and made himself comfortable.

“If you have not come to blackmail me, what did you hope to gain by claiming to be betrothed to me in front of my family?”

“You reached out to me first, or have you already forgotten, beautiful Louisa?” he retorted, stressing the syllables in a way that felt like a caress.

Warmth bloomed in her belly in response.

She had always thought her name was too simple—stuffy even. But when he said it, he made the simple syllables sound like something sinful. Something to be whispered in dark corners at night.

She had to make a conscious effort to pull herself back to reality. What exactly was it about the man that drove her to distraction?

“Yes, I did. Was that the reason you decided to break your self-imposed seclusion and visit us?”

“Well, it would be rude of me not to answer your letter, especially after you had gone through the trouble of using a dashing gentleman to deliver the letter,” he said with an aggravating smile. “Besides, I am a gentleman, and I would never allow a young lady to fall into disgrace on my account. You should have expected my proposal, especially considering the scandalous nature of your letter and the fact that we had spent time alone in my manorunchaperoned.”

“But nobody saw us,” she pointed out in outrage.

“Are you sure about that?” he asked, his eyes glittering with barely concealed mirth.

He was enjoying this, damn him.

“You live alone. Who could have seen us?”

“Do I? Live alone, that is?” he asked with a raised eyebrow, staring at her steadily until she came to a horrible conclusion.

“Your butler? He wouldn’t,” she gasped.

“I do not control what Tobias says or does beyond his duties. He is usually discrete, but I could never expect him to enjoy solitude the way I do. He must talk to someone. Besides, I am sure thatyou are familiar with the saying that the walls have ears. Believe me, the ton would have learned about this somehow.”

Louisa dropped her folded arms in defeat. “I will not be the only one ruined if they find out. Little Diana might be affected as well. There is enough noise about me amongstle bon ton. I certainly do not wish to add scandal to the list,” she said in a hopeless tone.

“I just did not want to be coerced to marry a man who pitied me and held no affection for me. My last suitor just wanted to marry me as a broodmare of sorts. I could never settle for that no matter how hideous the world thinks I look.

“I would not be able to bear the pity and pain for a lifetime. I am sure it sounds unrealistic, but I had thought to escape it by inventing an imaginary suitor. Forgive me, but I thought you did not exist, that the stories about you were just fantastical tales conjured by members of the ton to entertain themselves.”

“I do not blame you. I do live like I do not exist,” he acknowledged, a somber expression on his face. He patted the space beside him on the sofa. “Come, Miss Louisa. I believe we have much to discuss.”

Louisa came to sit on the other end of the sofa, keeping some distance between them.

“I do have an offer that could put your current problems to rest.”

“That does sound intriguing, Your Grace. Do tell,” she said, leaning forward and staring at him with rapt attention.

For a moment, he was distracted by the warmth of her wide brown eyes. But then he cleared his throat and spoke up. “I propose that we marry.”

Seeing her frown, he raised a hand to stop her asking questions until he could frame his words.

“It would not be a marriage in the true sense of the word—a marriage of convenience if you will. You will no longer have to deal with the pressure of your family forcing you to marry a man you strongly dislike, and you will certainly not receive pitiful looks from me. I know people who deserve such an emotion, and you, my dear, are not on the list.

“You will have your freedom to come and go as you wish. You will have the protection of my name and the freedom that neither married nor unmarried ladies of the ton can boast about.”

Louisa was stunned into silence, worsened by his unwavering stare. He was a man confident in himself and much used to getting his way, and while that should have annoyed her, she found she was somewhat… excited by it.

“Your offer is attractive, Your Grace. Maybe a bit unrealistic. You promise things that seem too good to be true. In exchange, what do you want from me? I do not particularly like to be indebted to anyone,” she replied, a skeptical look on her face.

“Do not worry, dear,” he said, leaning forward to stare intently into her face.

His gaze felt like a hot caress on her skin. Louisa swallowed hard, doing her best to appear composed.