“I haven’t decided,” he said, taking another step in her direction. “It depends.”
She swallowed. “On what?”
He’d halved the distance between them. “On you,” he said softly.
She knew what he meant, or at least she thought she did, but the last thing she wanted to do just then was acknowledge what had transpired in London, so she backed up a step—which was as far as she could go without actually fleeing the room—and pretended to misunderstand. “Don’t be silly,” she said. “Kilmartin is yours. You may come and go as you please. I have no control over your actions.”
His lips curved into a wry smile. “Is that what you think?” he murmured.
And she realized he’d halved the distance between them yet again.
“I’ll have a room readied for you,” she said hastily. “Which would you like?”
“It doesn’t matter.”
“The earl’s bedchamber, then,” she said, well aware that she was babbling now. “It’s only right. I’ll move down the hall. Or, er, to another wing,” she added, mumbling.
He took another step toward her. “That may not be necessary.”
Her eyes flew to his. What was he suggesting? Surely he didn’t think that a single kiss in London would give him leave to avail himself of the connecting door between the earl’s and countess’s bedchambers?
“Shut the door,” he said, nodding at the open doorway behind her.
She glanced backward, even though she knew exactly what she’d see there. “I’m not sure—”
“I am,” he said. And then, in a voice that was velvet over steel he said, “Shut it.”
She did. She was fairly certain it was a bad idea, but she did it anyway. Whatever he planned to say to her, she didn’t particularly care to have overheard by a fleet of servants.
But once her fingers left the doorknob she scooted around him and into the room, setting a more comfortable distance—and an entire seating group—between them.
He looked amused by her actions, but he did not mock her for them. Instead, he merely said, “I have given matters a great deal of thought since you left London.”
As had she, but there seemed little point in mentioning it.
“I hadn’t meant to kiss you,” he said.
“No!” she said, too loudly. “I mean, no, of course not.”
“But now that I have…Now that we have…”
She winced at his use of the plural. He wasn’t going to allow her to pretend that she hadn’t been a willing participant.
“Now that it is done,” he said, “I’m sure you understand that everything is changed.”
She looked up at him then; she’d been quite intently focusing on the pink-and-cream fleur-de-lis pattern on the damask-covered sofa. “Of course,” she said, trying to ignore the way her throat was beginning to tighten.
His fingers wrapped around the mahogany edge of a Hepplewhite chair. Francesca glanced down at his hands; his knuckles had gone white.
He was nervous, she realized with surprise. She hadn’t expected that. She didn’t know that she had ever seen him nervous before. He was always such a model of urbane elegance, his charm easy and smooth, his wicked wit always a whisper from his lips.
But now he looked different. Stripped down. Nervous. It made her feel…not better, precisely, but maybe not so much like the only fool in the room.
“I have given the matter a great deal of thought,” he said.
He was repeating himself now. This was very strange.
“And I have come to a conclusion that surprised even me,” he continued, “although now that I have reached it, I am quite convinced it is the best course of action.”
With his every word, she felt more in control, less ill at ease. It wasn’t that she wanted him to feel badly—well, maybe she did; it was only fair after how she’d spent the last week. But there was something rather relieving in the knowledge that the awkwardness was not one-sided, that he’d been as disturbed and shaken as she.
Or if not, at least that he had not been unaffected.
He cleared his throat, then moved his chin slightly, stretching his neck. “I believe,” he said, his gaze suddenly settling on hers with remarkable clarity, “that we should be married.”
What?
Her lips parted.
What?
And then, finally, she said it. “What?”
Not I beg your pardon. Not even the more succinct Excuse me. Just What?
“If you listen to my arguments,” he said, “you will see that it makes sense.”
“Are you mad?”
He drew back slightly. “Not at all.”
“I can’t marry you, Michael.”
“Why not?”
Why not? Because…Because…“Because I can’t!” she finally burst out. “For heaven’s sake, you of all people ought to understand the insanity of such a suggestion.”
“I will allow that on first reflection, it seems highly irregular, but if you simply listen to my arguments, you will see the sense in it.”
She gaped at him. “How can it make sense? I can’t think of anything that makes less sense!”
“You won’t have to move,” he said, ticking the items off on his fingers, “and you will retain your title and position.”
Convenient, both items, but hardly reason enough to marry Michael, who…well…Michael.
“You will be able to enter into the marriage knowing that you will be treated with care and respect,” he added. “It could take months to reach the same conclusion about another man, and even then, could you really be certain? Early impressions can be deceiving, after all.”
She searched his face, trying to see if there was anything, anything behind his words. There had to be some sort of reason for this, because she just couldn’t grasp that he was proposing. It was mad. It was…
Good God, she wasn’t sure what it was. Was there a word to apply to something that quite simply removed the earth from beneath one’s feet?
“I will give you children,” he said softly. “Or at least, I will try.”
She blushed. She felt it in an instant, her cheeks turning a furiously hot pink. She didn’t want to imagine herself in bed with him. She’d spent the last week desperately trying not to do that.
“What will you gain?” she whispered.
He appeared momentarily startled by her query, but he quickly recovered and said, “I will have a wife who has been running my estates for years. I am certainly not so proud that I would not take advantage of your superior knowledge.”
She nodded. Just once, but it was enough to signal for him to continue.
“I already know you and trust you,” he said. “And I am secure in the knowledge that you will not stray.”
“I can’t think about this right now,” she said, bringing her hands to her face. Her head was spinning with it all, and she had the horrible sensation that it would never quite recover.
“It makes sense,” Michael said. “You need only consider—”
“No,” she said, desperately searching for a resolute tone. “It would never work. You know that.” She turned away, not wanting to look at him. “I can’t believe you would even consider it.”