Page 75 of Seducing the Knave

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ELLE AWOKE WITH A GENTLE start.

Darkness surrounded her yet she could hear movement nearby. Movement and the low murmur of voices. And water. Pouring water.

Confused and disoriented, she sat up and glanced around.

It took another minute to realize she was naked in Max’s bed, but the heavy velvet drapes of the canopy had been drawn closed, completely concealing her. In the next moment, she recognized the low voices as belonging to Max and Langworth and the sound of water was that of a bath being prepared.

For just a second, she considered being embarrassed that Langworth likely knew the reason the curtains had been drawn around the bed. But she quickly dismissed it.

She’d been staying in Max’s bedroom for days. Any point in preserving her reputation was long past. Jasper’s machinations had ruined her long before the activities of last night.

Last night...

She sighed and fell back into the plush pillows, pulling the velvet coverlet over her head.

She wanted to laugh and dance and shout.

But she also wanted to melt back into Max’s arms...feel his mouth on her skin...his hands gripping her softness...his thrusts between her trembling thighs.

Biting her lip to stem the flood of memories and desire, she listened intently to the activity in the room beyond until she was certain Langworth had left. She held her breath, thinking Max would return to her, but then she heard the sound of water sloshing in the giant bathtub.

He was bathing?

She thought the bath was for her. Any gentleman would have seen to his lady’s needs before his own.

But Max wasn’t a gentleman, she reminded herself.

And perhaps...perhaps she wasn’t much of a lady anymore, either.

A reckless impulse claimed her and she flung the blankets aside, then rose up onto her knees to reach for the bed curtains and sweep them open on the side that faced the bathtub.

He was reclined against the slanted edge, his arms spread along the curved copper rim, his head back and his eyes closed. Steam drifted around him, making the scene hazy in the low-slanted morning light.

At the sound of Elle’s movements, he cracked one eye.

The second his gaze found her, there was an instant shift in his manner. A sudden readiness. An acute awareness. As though—without moving or changing position at all—his body was poised for action.

His stare intensified, pinning her to where she kneeled in the center of his rumpled bed.

A predator catching sight of his prey.

Her nerves sparked to life and desire swirled thick in her belly. Squeezing her thighs together, she gave a toss of her head, sending her tousled hair over her shoulder.

“What are you doing here?” she asked. A sudden sense of vulnerability gave her an imperious tone. “Aren’t you supposed to be off running around somewhere by this hour?”

The corner of his mouth lifted and curled. “I’m s’posed to be wherever I fucking choose to be.”

She hadn’t the slightest idea what to make of that reply. In truth, it might have been nice to have the room to herself this morning so she could take the time to properly assess what had happened last night.

Instead, he’d chosen this morning to hang around.

“I usually bathe first thing in the morning.”

“That’s easily solved,” he noted as he lifted one hand to extend it toward her, palm up. “Come on, then.”

The look on his face was teasing. Another test.

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