A Most Unladylike Proposition - Chapter 14
It had gone too far. He had gone too far. James could only forgive himself for it because he didn’t think that any flesh and blood mortal could stand against such a tender-hearted creature. What type of woman felt guilty for betraying a man she had not met and did not love?
Instead of giving her the thrilling night she’d wanted, James had scared her. He’d made her cry. And he couldn’t stand her tears. He told himself that that was why he’d revealed himself to her, and it was. But the other truth was that he didn’t want to touch her as someone else. He wanted to touch her as her fiancé, as a man of her choosing, as a man she wanted touching her.
Diana stood before him, her chest heaving, her grey eyes storming—and he had never wanted her more. ‘Was your intention to embarrass me?’
‘No,’ he insisted vehemently.
‘To test me then,’ she countered.
His moment of silence was deafening.
‘And I have failed.’ She clenched her fists and closed her eyes. ‘I am ruined.’
‘You are perfect.’
Her eyes snapped open and fastened on his face. ‘Do not do that. Do not play any more games with me.’
‘I am not.’
‘What do you want from me?’ she asked. ‘Now that you have satisfied your curiosity, what do you want from me?’
‘A lifetime.’
‘Because you have proven my innocence,’ she demanded hotly. As if the reminder humiliated her anew, she buried her face in her hands. ‘Oh, God.’
James couldn’t stand it anymore. He had kept his distance as to not intimidate her, but her anxiety, her humiliation, her fear he would not accept. He closed the distance between them, and when she dropped her hands to take a hurried step back, he stopped. He held out one hand for hers and said, ‘Trust me.’ She eyed his hand warily. ‘Let me explain.’
She hesitated, and she didn’t take his hand. She stepped past him, giving him a wide berth, and walked to the bench, her mistrust glaring. The loss of her closeness was physically painful.
This time, he did not settle her on his lap, even though he wanted nothing more. He picked up his discarded jacket from the floor and placed it on the bench for her to sit on, before taking a seat beside her. ‘When I saw you tonight, it occurred to me that a masquerade ball would be the perfect time to get to know you without the pressure of our nuptials looming over us.’
‘So, you tricked me.’
‘I assure you, if I tricked anyone, it was myself. I thought I could hide behind my mask and get to know the real you, all your flaws and vices, and instead, I discovered that you have very few and it is I with all the flaws and the vices.’
Diana frowned. ‘Very few?’ she queried. ‘What vices do I have?’
‘My lady, by your own admission, you snore. Rather loudly too.’