She blinked. “I beg your pardon?”
“You did not force anything upon me,” he elaborated. “I…kissing you…’twas not a chore, milady.”
Not a chore.
She could not stifle the bubble of laughter rising within her, almost hysterical. Would his insults know no end?
“Not a chore? Next you shall tell me kissing me is not as dreadful a task as emptying chamber pots.”
He winced. “Christ.”
“I do think you are right, sir. We ought not indulge in any more lessons of any sort,” she said on a rush, hoping to get out the words before humiliation swamped her. “I am sorry for imposing upon your time and…mouth. I shall not repeat the insult. Good day, Mr. Winter.”
“My lady…”
She did not want to hear another word more. Evie was feeling foolish and furious and sad, all at once. She had managed her first kiss, but to a man who apparently had found little enjoyment in it. And she was betrothed to another who was wooing a mistress but had never attempted to so much as kiss her lips.
Evie held up a hand, silencing him, and then she dipped into a curtsy and fled.
Chapter Seven
Devil finished checking in with the men he had charged with watching the perimeter of the townhome. He made his way back to his chamber using the servants’ stairs, determined to get an early night’s worth of sleep. To get any sleep at all, as it happened. The last two nights had been plagued with thoughts of her.
He gritted his teeth and tamped down the reminder to settle his mind upon the task at hand instead. He was not meant to lust after his charge. He was meant to protect her. And protecting her thus far had proven far easier than before, now that they had moved to Devereaux Winter’s spare home.
The reports from his men had been excellent. Nothing had changed. No suspicious persons had been seen. All had been quiet. Another week and this nonsense would be over. His duty to Dom would be done. He would persuade his brother that everyone would be far better served with Devil returned to his post. If the Suttons had indeed been behind the shots which had been taken at Lady Evangeline, Devil would find out everything there was to know. He would discover who, why, and he would bloody well end them.
And then, milady would be someone else’s problem.
He ought to be relieved.
Except, the sensation roiling in his gut at the moment was not relief at all. Because as much as he relished his days at The Devil’s Spawn, presiding over the staff and aiding Dom in making certain all their family businesses ran smoothly, he had to admit, he had enjoyed spending time with Lady Evangeline.
Which was why he had been spending as little time in her presence as possible since their lessons exchange had descended into pure Bedlam. The best sort of Bedlam. But altogether wrong Bedlam.
Kissing her had been a mistake. He never should have done it. She was not for him. She was going to marry a nib. And he was nothing like a nib. He was as far as one reasonably diverged from a fancy bloody lord.
But her mouth. Lord above, fucking fuck and all the saints and angels, her mouth. Having it beneath his for a few moments had been worth every bit of penance he would have to do. And anyway, he had committed enough sins for two men. What was the harm of one more? So long as he never repeated it…
Dom would kick his arse if he found out Devil had been playing at kissing lessons with his wife’s sister. Hell, Devil wanted to kick his own arse for the stupidity he had been indulging. He certainly had a knack for lusting after petticoats who could never be his.
On an irritated sigh, he opened his chamber door and slipped inside. Darkness greeted him. Unlike other evenings since he had reluctantly taken up residence at yet another Mayfair mansion, the manservant who kept a brace of candles burning for him had failed to do so.
The moment Devil crossed the threshold, the hair on the back of his neck rose.
His senses never failed him.
This time, they were alerting him to the fact he was not alone.
Someone else was in his chamber, waiting for him, hiding in the cloak of darkness. His hand went to the hilt of the knife he kept hidden in a pocket sewn into the lining of all his coats. There was also another tucked into his boot for the same purpose.
Tense, ready for a fight, he moved slowly, treading deeper into the chamber, the plush Aubusson silencing his footfalls. A floorboard creaked, giving away the location of the unseen intruder.
If Sutton had finally sent someone to murder Devil, he was far too late. And he had also chosen the wrong man for the task.
“Mr. Winter?”
The hell?
Had he lost his mind, or was the trespasser in his chamber Lady Evangeline?
He stopped, still gripping the hilt of his blade. “Milady?”
The scent of succulent, sweet, ripe fruit hit him.
It was her.
He sheathed his knife and stalked toward the direction of her voice. “What are you doing here in my chamber, in the dark?”
Damn her. Could she be any more trouble? If she was not occupying all his thoughts, then she was here, in his chamber. Where he could touch her. Or kiss her again. Both actions which he must avoid at all costs.
“I wished to speak with you.”
“You could have done it all bloody day,” he growled, furious with her for invading his chamber. Even more furious at what he could have done to her, had she failed to say his name…
The mere notion made his stomach churn with violent upheaval. He found his way to the tinderbox and struck away at the flint. His irritation proved a boon for the task. In no time, he had the brace of candles lit, filling the modest chamber he had taken with warm, golden light.
A dreadful mistake, as it turned out.
Because milady was wearing a night rail.
A thin, virginal white affair buttoned to her throat. But it clung to her curves as if it had been fashioned for the sole purpose of tormenting any man who gazed upon her whilst she wore it. It was the sort of gown a man could not help but to imagine tearing off her.
Her eyes were wide, lower lip caught between her teeth. “I wanted to speak with you alone. That could not have been accomplished by any other means than awaiting you here.”
He withdrew his knife, candlelight glinting off the sharp blade. “I could have stuck this between your ribs, milady. That’s what I was about to do, when you spoke.”
Her gaze settled on the knife, her pallor undeniable. “I…did not think of such a possibility. Forgive me.”
“You may have been born to ballrooms and silk, but in the rookeries, when a man is hiding in the darkness, there’s only one reason for it. He intends to kill you, and you’ve got to draw your blade first and sink it deep.”
She frowned. “I did not want the servants to know I was in here awaiting you. I thought it would be easier to hide myself if one of them were to return if there was no light. I did not think…”
“Aye,” he bit out, losing his patience. “You did not think, did you, milady? You never do, else you would not commit half the reckless actions you take.”
The expression on her face only filled him with further fury. She looked stricken.
Damned spoiled duke’s daughter. He threw his knife. It hurtled through the air, the blade landing in the wall on the opposite end of the room exactly where he had intended, the tip buried inside Devereaux Winter’s fine plaster. He would pay for the repair to the wallcoverings later. For now, he was too damned irritated to care.