Page 27 of The No Good Irresistible Viscount Tipton
Rayne placed his hands on the desk in front of him and leaned forward, his stance intimidating. “My staff isn’t your concern. Devona is. The woman is quick off the mark and you, nor any other member in this household, has an inkling about how to handle her.”
“Do you dare presume to tell me how to look after my gel?”
“I do.” He paused, awaiting the explosion of temper. When none came, he continued. “Locking her in her room isn’t going to correct something that is born of spirit. She needs someone who can appreciate her reckless tendencies, yet can channel them so the consequences are benign.”
“By God, Tipton. Are you asking for her hand?”
Rayne found the older man’s disbelief insulting. Shrugging, he said, “We deal very well with each other. She could do no worse.”
“The question is: could she do better?” Satisfied with the insult, he moved on, not waiting for a response. “Why should I accept you? You are an outcast to your family, to society. You are a surgeon!” He said the last as if it were something quite vile. “I’ll not have my Devona scouring the graveyards to satiate your need for dissecting corpses.”
Rayne’s left eyelid twitched. He rubbed his thumb across the fragile skin to quiet the spasm. His lid twitched again. Trying to reason with a Bedegrayne was like reasoning with a corpse. Maybe he should reconsider his proposal. Marrying into this family could result in his commitment into an insane asylum.
“Sir, if you believe the role of a surgeon’s wife is to play at being a resurrection man, then you know nothing of me or my chosen profession.”
“You tell me marriage is what she needs, specifically marriage to you. Seems to me there is little in your life that is settled, Tipton. I hear that buck, Nevin, wants my girl. He has a title, one he plans to do right by.”
Rayne resisted the urge to rub the tic. “If you need a title, I have one as well. Recently, I have taken steps to secure my position in society.”
“Money?”
“On my own, I have built up a respectable fortune with several lucrative investments. When you consider there is the title, and the lands, even an old mercenary like you should be satisfied.”
