Chapter Nine
Miranda had to pinch the inside of her cheeks to keep from laughing because Solway, this big, stern duke, appeared utterly bemused. She hoped he was not alarmed and regretting that he’d gotten himself into something more than he’d expected because she had just accepted his challenge.
Would he now beg off?
She meant to hold him to his word. He’d said he wanted to kiss her indecently, and she was all for it.
Was it not time to dismantle that protective wall of ice she had built around her heart? Having erected that wall and ensured every block she’d piled on it was frozen solid and impenetrable by any man, she had since resigned herself to living a cold and empty existence for these past fifteen years.
Indeed, cold and empty for the rest of her life.
Of course, as a wealthy widow, she could have taken on lovers. So many in the ton did this very thing, and there were plenty of fortune hunters offering her their services. She had not been in the least tempted, not even felt a smidgeon of desire for any man, until Solway had come along.
Her heart fluttered wildly every time he drew near. And since they were traveling together, he was always near.
Perhaps it was a question of trust, for she had never trusted any of her supposed suitors.
But Solway? He made her feel safe. He made her feel desired.
She was so afraid to believe him, and yet she did.
Was it not logical that he should be the perfect choice to thaw her icy barricades?
He was a big, growling bear of a man and she was wildly attracted to his ruggedness. He was not smooth with the ladies, not at all an accomplished rake, but this was what she liked best about him.
What you got with him was raw, primal man. No pretense. Just hot, male beast. And honesty.
Perhaps a little too much honesty.
He did not need to tell her what parts of her body would be affected by his next kiss because she was already feeling the heat of his first in the most improper places.
He hadn’t just kissed her. He had ravaged her soul with that kiss.
And now he was casting her hot, savage glances.
Or was she the one casting those glances at him?
Good gracious, they needed to get out of here before this got out of hand. “I’ll take these,” she said, having no idea which titles she had just grabbed off the shelves.
He took them from her hands and then smiled entirely too smugly. “Ye must love this one very much if ye wish to buy two.”
She glanced down at the books and groaned. Indeed, she had grabbed two of the Stitching with Wool books. “Ah…um, yes. It is an utterly fascinating read. I thought I would purchase this second one as a gift for a friend.”
That smug smile stretched wider across his face. “Ye must have some very exciting friends.”
“Yes, our knitting circle can be quite provocative,” she insisted, and then grabbed a third copy before she hurried to the counter, eager to pay for her purchases and leave.
Gwenys soon joined them with the books she had selected. Solway insisted on paying for them all, arching an eyebrow in warning when Miranda dipped her hand into her reticule to withdraw her coin purse. “Do no’ even think of it,” he said with a soft growl that had her heart in flutters again.
Sighing, she pulled the drawstring on her reticule tight again.
Gwenys just assumed he would pay for her selections and had made no attempt whatsoever to reach into her own reticule.
Well, it did not matter. Her niece was beautiful and young, and her smile dazzled. Men were always going to trip over themselves to spoil and impress her.
Solway took the parcels from the shop owner once he had wrapped them in paper and tied them each with sturdy string. When Miranda reached for one of the smaller parcels, Solway once again growled softly to stop her. “Tilda was very clear in her orders. Ye’re no’ to carry anything at all.”
She sighed. “I am not an invalid.”
“I know, but ye are under my care.”
The shop owner cast her a beaming smile. “Indeed, Your Grace. You must listen to your husband, especially in your delicate condition.”
“In my…” Dear heaven! Did he think she was with child and married to Solway? “I… Yes, indeed. I shall let His Grace serve as my beast of burden.”
She rushed out of the bookshop with her cheeks on fire.
Gwenys skipped after Miranda and laughingly locked arms with her when she caught up. “Slow down, Aunt Miranda. Running cannot be good for you.” She purposely held Miranda back as she tried to scurry off to the inn.
“Can you believe what that bookseller said to me?” Miranda grumbled.
“What, is his mistaking you for the duke’s wife so wrong? The two of you look like a happily married couple. You act so naturally around each other, even bickering like a husband and wife who have been married for ages.”
“Enough.” But Miranda also laughed. “Did you not hear him when he suggested I was in a delicate condition?”
“Well, you are. Cracking a rib is no trifling injury.”
“I know, but the shopkeeper thought I was… He thought I was in a womanly way.”
Gwenys frowned, obviously not understanding her.
Miranda sighed. “He thought I was carrying the duke’s child!”
“Oh, isn’t that lovely? What a sweet thought.”
“No, it is not.” Miranda rolled her eyes, for Gwenys was being quite dense. “The point is, have I gotten plumper? Filled out more than usual? Do my clothes look too tight on me?”
She was getting older and there was no denying this. She was five and thirty now.
Where had the time gone?
Solway had followed them out and now caught up to them. “Gwenys, will ye run ahead to the dining room and reserve us a table for this afternoon’s tea?”
“Yes, of course.” Gwenys cast Miranda a dazzling smile and skipped off.
Miranda sighed once more, knowing this was quite a lame excuse for Solway to give in order to have a moment alone with her.
How much had he overheard?
He casually tucked the parcels under one arm and offered the other to her. “Ye seem overset.”
She winced. “How much of my complaining did you hear?”
“Bits and pieces,” he said as they walked toward the inn in no particular hurry.
“I was embarrassed.”
“That he thought we were married?”
She laughed gently. “No, that wasn’t it.”
“Och, that’s good.” But he regarded her in obvious confusion, for he was being as dense as Gwenys had been. “Then what?”
“Solway, he thought I was carrying your child!”
He cast her the gentlest smile. “It’s a nice thought. I am no’ going to pretend it does no’ warm my heart.”
“You are missing the point…and now you will laugh at me and think me ridiculously vain when I tell you.”
“Och, dinna make me guess. I will no’ think ye vain, Miranda. Ye have the loveliest heart and that’s a fact. Just tell me straight out what is troubling ye.”
“All right,” she said, hesitating a moment because this was going to be painfully silly to describe. “When a woman is with child her body naturally…um, spreads out and fills out. That shopkeeper took one look at me and thought… Well, am I that filled out?”
Solway stared at her a long moment, clearly not understanding.
Then it must have dawned on him, because his gaze fixed on her bosom.
He threw his head back and laughed. “That’s what has ye put out?
If ye’re asking my opinion, then here’s my answer.
Ye are the most beautiful woman I have ever beheld, and it is no’ only that ye have a pretty face or a body that leaves me aching every time I look at ye.
Ye are round in all the right places and I would no’ change a thing about ye.
Ye’re delightfully soft to the touch. No man wants to put his hands on a woman and feel jutting bones. ”
He paused in his stride and cast her a tender look. “Ye are beautiful on the inside, too. Yer inner beauty is what makes ye glow, makes yer smile dazzle, and makes ye grow lovelier in my eyes with each passing day.”
She let out a breath. For a blunt man, he certainly had a lovely way with his words. “Thank you, Solway.”
“Will ye call me Bram? I’d much rather hear ye call me that.”
She nodded. “All right, but not in public or even around Gwenys. She already has ideas about matching us.”
“So do I. Is it no’ obvious? It is my heart’s desire to court ye. I only wish I were better at it, but I hope my intentions are clear—that I would like our acquaintance to end in marriage.”
She was spared having to respond because they had reached the inn and Gwenys was waiting for them beside the entry door.
“The sun has come out and we really ought to do a little touring while the weather holds up. The innkeeper said there is a popular market set up on Wednesdays and Saturdays near the cathedral, so it must be going on today. Shall we take a stroll through it?”
“Are ye up for it, Miranda?” Solway asked.
She nodded. Anything to distract him from pursuing this discussion.
Marriage meant giving herself and everything she owned over to this man. This still scared her too much.
“I’ll take those parcels,” Gwenys said, breaking into her thoughts. “The inn’s porter can help me carry them. Aunt Miranda, do you need anything from our bedchamber?”
“No, dear.” Miranda glanced down at her fashionably practical travel outfit. Her pelisse was of the softest wool in the same shade of dark green as her gown. “I am fine.”
Solway was still studying her, no doubt eager to resume their conversation. She was not, for he would not be pleased with her answer if he attempted to propose to her now.
In truth, she was not pleased either. She was growing to care for him very much. But to trust him enough to marry him?
No, she did not yet have the courage to take this leap and be hurt again.
Besides, they hardly knew each other. How could he be so certain of his feelings when they had met less than a fortnight ago? Did he have some scurrilous agenda that he was hiding from her?