Page 13 of Kiss the Duke Goodbye
Laughter bubbled from deep in her throat. “He kisses like a fish.”
Knox slapped his glass to the floor, a curse shooting from between his teeth. “You bloody kissed him after what we shared in your shop?”
“I had to.” Clarissa released an exaggerated sigh, fanning her face for effect. “Fair is fair. Don’t look so displeased. You won the contest.” Of course, she hadn’t kissed Clarence. But there was no reason to let this arrogant toad have the upper hand when he’d bedded half the women in London.
He opened his mouth to quarrel, then closed it with a snap. His gaze when it circled back to her was a burning emerald blaze. “I’m so bloody possessive of you, in a way I’ve never been. I yearn for you. Your taste, your touch. Quiet conversations in that damned shop of yours. I don’t keep mistresses, no matter what you think of me. My nights are becoming quite tame as the Troublesome Trio is no more. I’m the only man standing. You are the woman I want yet—”
“You must marry.”
“It’s more than merely having to supply the next male in the DeWitt line.” He dropped his head to his hand and massaged his brow. “Not to go on about it, but my father was a brute with a title and grand expectations for his sons, especially his heir. I spent my youth protecting Damien and Cort, leaving myself exposed to his brutality. In addition to a ghastly nature, he managed money poorly. He left the duchy in a dire situation, the coffers lighter than a feather. To be blunt, I can’t go on much longer without an infusion of cash.”
Oh,she thought,this is it.Her heart ached for him—and for herself. They had no chance. “You need a plum settlement.”
He glanced up, his face a mask of misery. “I have nearly a thousand people under my care, love. Tenants who need firewood, food, and medical care. Roads in one village are a disaster, and a church’s roof in another is close to caving in. Staff, children of staff, animals, elders, estates bound to me until I breathe my last. Five of them at last count. My options are becoming rather limited. Noose around my neck limited. I had a small emergency fund built up last year, but I let Damien have it for his marriage, and I’m incredibly glad I did.”
Pushing to his feet, he crossed to the window, nudging the curtain aside to gaze into the late afternoon mist. Despair lay heavy upon his broad shoulders, it was plain to see. Snow was falling madly, the roads impassable at this point. No one wouldbe coming to her shop until the weather cleared. Her customers would know why it was closed.
Clarissa pressed her hand to her heart. She wanted Knox to stay a little longer. Another day. Perhaps two.
Then, shewouldkiss the duke goodbye.
She crossed to him, making no effort to hide her step. His shoulders tensed, but otherwise, Knox held his stance. “I’m sorry if the play got out of hand,” he murmured, his gaze still fixed on the wintry scene outside the window. “I lost myself somewhere along the way. I know we had an agreement. I don’t mean to break it.”
Emotion overcoming her, she wrapped her arms around him, resting her cheek on his back. She wanted to shield him, the most protective sensation she’d ever felt. “Can you stay until the storm clears?”
He turned, keeping her in his arms. His emerald gaze was searching. “My driver knows where I am in case anything urgent arises.”
“I have enough food for days.” Clarissa burrowed her nose in the crisp linen of his shirt. He smelled of her and it nearly broke her. “The Petal and Plume is closed, always, at times like these. My customers know to expect it. They won’t be shopping for bonnets in this muddle.”
Sighing in relief, he tucked her against his chest, propping his chin on the crown of her head. His heartbeat skipped beneath her ear. “More play, then?”
Clarissa hummed low in her throat, deciding. “Maybe more than play, Your Grace.”
CHAPTER 5
WHERE A MAN MARVELS AT HIS EXTREME GOOD FORTUNE
More than play.
Knox turned her statement over in his mind as he followed Clarissa up a narrow staircase, his blood dancing frenetically beneath his skin.
More. Than. Play.
To calm himself, he tried to think of other things. One corner of her runner needed repair. Her banister was shaky. There might be a leak in the roof. He cataloged the tasks he could complete on his next trip. She had no man about the place and an admittedly modest staff. He was useful,very, for a society nob. Good with his hands like her cobbler. However, Clarissa wasn’t his mistress and never would be. He had no jurisdiction here. Even if he offered, which he’d considered a time or two on those random visits to her shop, she’d sock him in the lip.
Watching her exquisite hips swing while she strolled down the corridor, he decided to reflect on the color of her nipples (unknown) and the thatch of gorgeous flaxen hair between her thighs (known) instead of the impossibilities of his life.
His female fascination was offering him exactly what he’d wanted.
Time.
He meant to take it.
Halting her, Knox pulled her into an embrace not far from one he’d employ if dancing the waltz. The kiss was light, her lips opening beneath his in surprise, then passion. He backed her into the wall, running his hands from her shoulders to her waist before tucking her tightly against him. “I love kissing you,” he murmured against the corner of her mouth, “when I’ve never appreciated the act this much. You are divine in every sense.”
She nipped his bottom lip, launching air in a spiral through his lungs. “You were in a hurry for other things, Your Grace.”
He cradled her cheek, watching her steely eyes glaze and glisten. “There isn’t anyone else. Not in my heart or my mind. It’s as if you’ve magically erased my past. I…” He halted, unsure how to tell her without telling her too much when she still meant to kiss a duke goodbye.