Page 99 of Harpy of the Ton
Then Lawrence saw it.
“Are those—spectacles?”
The boy nodded. “They’re new! Mama took me to Midchester today and got them special. Do you like them?”
Lawrence glanced at his wife. “Shouldn’t Jonathan have been in school?”
“She told Mrs. Chantry I was sick!” Jonathan said. “Do you like my glasses? They cost a whole pound!”
“Awhat?”
“A pound!” Jonathan replied. “Twenty whole shillings—I’ve never seen so much money in my life.”
“No,” Lawrence said, fighting to temper his anger. “Neither have I.”
“We brought gifts for Bobby and Billy too, didn’t we Mama? A toy horse for William, and a toy boat for Roberta—it looks just like Nelson’s ship theVictory. And we bought a gift for you. Mama insisted.”
“In heaven’s name!” Lawrence cried. “How much did this excursion cost?”
“Two pounds,” Jonathan said. “I want to go again.”
“I’m sure you do, seeing as you’re not the one who’ll have to pay for it,” Lawrence said.
Bella lifted the boy off her lap. “Jonathan, why don’t you take the book upstairs and read in your chamber until supper’s ready?”
“Yes, Mama!” He skipped out of the parlor.
Bella stood, wiping her hands and smoothing back her hair. Lawrence approached her, and she tilted her chin, defiance flashing in her eyes.
How he’d longed to see her spirit again. But at what cost?
“Two pounds, Bella?Really?”
“It’s for my son.”
“He’s not your…” He checked himself.
“What?” she snapped, placing her hands on her hips. “Not my responsibility? Whose responsibility is he, then? Didyounotice he couldn’t see close objects?”
“No—but I’m not the one who’s spent money that we can’t afford,” he said. “It’s no guarantee that Mr. Trelawney will hire me.”
“Ifhe exists.”
“Are you accusing me of deception?”
“I’d like to know what you’re accusingmeof.”
“Of having no sense when it comes to managing money!” he cried. “Don’t you know that’s how families get into debt—when they spend beyond their means on frivolities they don’t need?”
“Jonathan is not a frivolity!” she said. “He needed spectacles. Can you swearyou’venever wasted money on frivolities?”
“Of course I haven’t!” he replied. “What the devil are you accusing me of?”
“I’mnot the one making accusations,” she said. “But rest assured, I didn’t waste any of your hard-earned money today. If you have no use for the gift we bought you, then I suggest you sell it, seeing as you care more for money than your family.”
Her eyes flashed with fury, and he caught his breath. Infuriating she might be, but whatever straits she’d placed them in, he couldn’t deny his attraction to her. Trembling with passion, she parted her lips—and he wanted nothing more than to claim that mouth of hers and bury his hands in her hair.
He fisted his hands as his cock sprang to life. To have her writhing beneath him, teeth bared, body trembling with life, while he claimed her for his own…! It was all he could do to stop himself from tossing up her skirts and fucking the anger out of her on the parlor floor.
