Page 15 of The Duke's Bride in Disguise

Wonder what? Raff raised his eyebrows incredulously. Was she daring to suggest that she viewed being his bride as a sufferance comparable to a squalid disease?

"There are dozens of women who would kill to be in your place," he responded, his deep voice low with anger.

"If that is the case," Emily gave a Gallic shrug and threw him a challenging smile, "Then why don't you marry one of them instead?"

To Raff's surprise, his dainty bride sashayed away from him, swinging her hips in a way that he had never seen before. It was infuriating. It was rage inducing. It was also incredibly alluring.

What on earth had happened to Emily to make her change so much, almost overnight? It was as though she had been replaced by another woman altogether. A woman with spark. A woman with spirit. A woman with a bottom that Raff's eyes still lingered on, even though it was now on the other side of the room.

You do love a challenge, he thought, and despite having just told Lady Emily that a dozen other women would readily take her place, Raff realised with a jolt that another woman would not do. He wanted Lady Emily and, from the stirring of desire he felt, he knew he wanted her as soon as possible.