Page 26 of Duke of Chaos

“I am fine. You said I only had to stay off it until four and I did! Put me down right now!”

“Make me,” Ezra chirped, but when she began to push at his chest he let out a warning growl as he carried her toward the stairs.

“You are an absolute beast!” she seethed, crossing her arms defiantly while still in his hold.

Ezra merely shrugged as he continued walking.

“You knew this when you agreed to marry me.”

Annoyed, livid, and embarrassingly aroused, Lydia bit the inside of her cheek and continued to mumble her dissatisfaction as he carried her into her rooms. Upon reaching her bed, he let her drop onto it, somehow keeping her foot elevated so it would not land with a soft thump like the rest of her body.

“You are no good to me broken and bruised,” he told her as she glared at him. “Take the rest of the day to let it heal. I will need you in the morning.”

“And if I do not?” she hissed.

Ezra gave her that wolfish grin again, and this time he leaned in so close to her face that she could feel his warmth and catch his musk. She breathed in the heavy, masculine scent, and thoughshe was annoyed, the image of his lips on hers flashed through her mind again.

“Remember that punishment we were discussing?” Ezra whispered, his gaze riveted to hers.

She tried to come up with a sarcastic response but found herself unable as she became caught in his mesmerizing blue eyes. Instead, she only gave the slightest of nods. Would he truly spank her? And if he did, would he force her to lift her skirts? Heat flooded through her at the thought.

As if he was reading her mind, Ezra’s lips twitched, and he let out a low murmur of approval.

“I must confess,” he said, his eyes slowly raking down her figure. “I do enjoy this partnership that we have created. I truly suspect that if I had stayed with my original choice of Juliet, things would not be going so swimmingly.”

“That was almost a compliment,” Lydia retorted sarcastically.

“And Ialmostmeant it,” Ezra purred with a playful if not dangerous look in his eyes as they made their way back to hers.

Lydia felt a fever pulse through her veins as Ezra continued to study her intently, and she knew he needed to leave soon. Their playfulness was fun, yes, but only to a certain point. Once they passed that, Lydia had noticed that her attention span shortened, her body tingled with heat, and her pulse seemedto slow and drum rhythmically in her ears. Goosebumps would then erupt, her skin would become hypersensitive, and a warm wetness that made her blush would form between her legs.

“You want something,” Ezra stated, and lowered himself to take a seat on the bed next to her.

Lydia jerked and blinked rapidly at their sudden closeness.

“I beg your pardon?” She breathed, sliding herself up onto her pillows. He was far too close.

“My accountant,” he stated flatly, still gazing at her intently. “He said you spoke with him about accessing my accounts.”

Lydia drew in a sudden breath, relief flooding through her so fiercely that she had to stifle a relieved laugh.

“Oh, yes,” she replied, gathering herself. She had nearly forgotten.

“I was having Mr. Porter show me the expenditures of the Earl’s and Barbier’s visits to try to gain an understanding of what I needed to request,” she explained, “and when I compared them, I realized that both families are quite expensive guests and there were several additional purchases that needed to be completed tomorrow.”

She paused, deciding that now was just as good a time to bring up the topic, and added,

“Also, when I first arrived you said I may change my rooms if I desire, and I have decided that I wish to do so. I want modern furniture, new wallpaper, tapestries, all of it, and I want it to be exactly the way I envision it.”

Ezra suddenly barked out a laugh, surprising her so much that she crossed her arms in annoyance and demanded to know what was so hilarious.

“You were so polite in the beginning but got rather demanding toward the end,” Ezra chuckled, rubbing the bridge of his nose. “You truly are the most interesting creature, Lydia.”

“I am not a creature, I am a woman,” she huffed, growing more annoyed.

“Not like any woman I have ever met,” he replied, a smile still lingering on his lips.

“Another almost compliment.”

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