Page 31 of The Scarred Duchess Deal
Tension rose between them and she knew that she could not deny him anything. Shewantedhim to kiss her. She wanted to kiss him and have him carry her up the stairs to finish what they had started the other evening. More than anything, she wantedhim. No matter how improbable she felt they might be as a couple.
All of the thoughts rattling around in her head stopped the moment that his lips found hers. He wrapped his other arm around her to close that small distance; his other hand slid up the line of her spine to cup the back of her head. She fit so perfectly into his arms that he was convinced that she was made for him, and him alone.
She wrapped her hands up in the loose fabric of his shirt and used the leverage to hold onto him. His lips traveled down from the corner of her mouth to her jawline and then left a heated trail along the side of her neck.
She should stop this. She knew that she should stop this. It went against their agreement. There was still too much left unsaid between them, but she could not deny herself this pleasure. Heat pooled in her core and surged lower. A soft gasp of pleasure left her lips as Leo nipped at the exposed column of her neck.
“Ahem.” An irritated person sharply cleared her throat.
Both of them froze as if ice water had been dumped over their heads. Water would have been the kinder fate when the other option was turning to see that of all the people to have walked in on them, it was Sophie standing there. She was dressed to impress. Diamonds in her ears, and her hair styled in a very elaborate fashion. She wore her very best dress and had added even more rouge to make herself appear even more alluring. Her arms were crossed in front of her chest as she stared at them.
Tessa was unsure if her cousin was simply waiting for an explanation or if she was deliberating how best to handle the situation. Sophie wore her outrage on her face plain and clear. All parties in the room knew that should Sophie say anything to anyone about what she had walked in on, it would lead to ruin and scandal for her by association… or a forced marriage for Leo and Tessa. As Sophie wished to have the Duke to herself, that would likely not be the option she would choose.
“You wrote the letter,” the Duke commented softly. “I should have known–”
“Ofcourse,I wrote the letter!” Sophie spat.
Tessa had not known that it was possible to scream and whisper at the same time while still, somehow, being shrill. The admission that she had attempted to lure the Duke here to enact her nefarious plans of trapping him into a marriage was shocking nonetheless.
Pleading would do no good. Tessa knew this. Saying anything at all would only serve to further inflame her vindictive cousin’s temper. Sophie’s eyes narrowed as she turned her focus from the Duke to Tessa. It was perhaps the angriest that she had ever seen her look. Tessa could feel the small hairs on the back of her neck stand on end as she waited for Sophie’s next move.
Sophie lifted a single finger and pointed it at Tessa, her face turning red with the effort of keeping her thoughts and words to herself. Finally, just when Tessa was certain that her cousin was going to explode, she stomped her foot on the ground and spun to leave the room in a quick, dramatic retreat.
The door burst open before Sophie could wrench it herself, depriving her of her dramatic exit.
A feline cry of distress came rocketing into the space so swiftly that the gray blur collided gracelessly with Sophie’s legs. The poor, terrified cat was so frightened that it rolled under Sophie’s skirts and likely scratched at her legs, causing her to nearly fall on her face. Then Colonel Floppy Ears dashed into the library, chasing after the cat with the grace of a charging bull. Sophie yelped and was forced aside by the thundering canine intent on playing tag with its unwilling partner.
It was a wonder that Sophie was not trampled.
Less fortunate, however, was the fact that the Colonel was not alone. Just as quickly on his heels were none other than Aurelius and Theodore, both of whom were shouting different things at different volumes. Each of them was loud – and passionate – advocating for a different animal in the fray.
Tessa felt almost as if the walls were closing in on her. She could only imagine where their minds would go to first. Sophie smirked like the cat who got the cream as she slunk into the background. She would love nothing more than to see her unworthy cousin ruined forever. Tessa struggled to find words to explain herself as her uncle’s eyes locked on her. Colonel danced in happy circles around them, attempting to nip at Leo’s trousers with the hopes of enticing his friend to play.
Aurelius snatched up his cat and began speaking in soft, soothing tones while stroking the creature who looked very much like it had just lost one of its nine lives, if not two. He did not seem to realize the hush that had fallen until he finally noticed the couple in the room.
He passed through the stages of shock quickly. Each one passed over him so swiftly that it did not last more than a blink or two. First, he was flabbergasted, then appalled, then angry at his grandson – then he smiled. That was perhaps the most frightening of all of the expressions yet.
“What is the meaning of this?!” Theodore demanded. He looked as if he were going to burst a blood vessel in his neck or forehead. If Tessa was not mistaken, her uncle was turning a shade of purple.
“I can explain,” Leo said calmly and put himself between Tessa and her uncle.
“Explain?!” the man started to shout, but shockingly, Aurelius interrupted.
“Nothing to explain. The matter is settled.”
“What?” Leo sounded every bit as shocked as she presently felt. “What is settled?”
“Never mind that now. Come, Theodore, we have much business to discuss.” Aurelius said as he clutched the cat to his chest. Whatever secret plan Aurelius was referencing, it was lost on Theodore.
“What infernal business? We have matters to discuss right here and now!” Theodore demanded as he snatched Colonel Floppy Ears by the collar and pulled him away from the indecent couple as if he needed to shield the dog’s innocent nature from something he deemed to be scandalous.
“Why, wedding plans of course,” Aurelius answered happily and set his cat down on the nearest couch. He neatly folded his hands in front of himself and smiled as if he had seen this all coming. “Ah, to be young and infatuated once more.”
“W… wedding p… plans?” Theodore echoed comically.
“Pardon? Hold on a moment,” Leo started to interject but Aurelius spoke over him firmly.
“There is nothing to consider. If I had known that the couple was so excited to announce their clear and apparent engagement that they forgot themselves for a moment, I would have taken more care to provide them with more privacy!” Aurelius spoke as if were the most obvious thing in the world and they were all simply the last people to be in on the story.
