Page 56 of The Virgin Who Humbled Lord Haslemere
Chapter Thirteen
The trouble with kissing a rake was that one became so distractedduringthe kiss they didn’t consider what might happen once it wasover.
Georgiana had never kissed a rake before. She’d never kissed anyone, so she hadn’t understood how heady a kiss could be until Benedict’s lips took hers. She hadn’t known she could lose herself in a man’s scent, his touch, or that a simple kiss could steal her thoughts, her breath—even her reason.
But by the time she reached the top of the steps the haze of passion had receded, and doubts were already crowding into its place. By the time she gained the entryway, it occurred to her it might not have been wise of her to kiss Benedict, and by the time she closed the door behind her, she was convinced the kiss had been a dreadful mistake.
Not theduringpart. No, that had been…delightful? It seemed too stiff a word to describe it. Splendid? No, that was the sort of word one used to describe a particularly delicious slice of tea cake. Benedict’s kiss had been something else entirely, something out of her experience.
He’d seemed to enjoy it, but according to Sophia and Cecilia, a man’s passions were easily aroused. To hear them tell it, a mere touch to a man’s hand was enough tostir his lust.
Benedict was lustier than most, but what worried her wasn’t thathe’denjoyed it. It was thatshehad. It was shocking enough a man had even kissed her at all. She’d never imagined such a thing would happen, much less that she’d tumble headlong into it.
She leaned back against the door, closed her eyes and raised her hand to her lips. They felt tender, swollen, the memory of his kiss lingering likea warm caress.
Dangerous. That’s what hiskiss had been—
A step in the hallway made her look up. Lady Clifford was standing there, watchingher. “My lady—”
“I think it’s time we had a chat, dearest.” Lady Clifford disappeared into the drawing room, and Georgiana, who knew a summons when she heard one, followed after her.
“Sit down, Georgiana.” Lady Clifford nodded at a chair. She seated herself on the settee across from it, and Gussie crawled into her lap, turning in a circle before settling down with a contented snort.
Georgiana perched on the edge of her chair, her heart pounding. Had Lady Clifford seen her in the carriage with Benedict? If she had, what must she be thinking right now?
“There. Isn’t this cozy?” Lady Clifford stroked her hand rhythmically over Gussie’s sandy head. “Now, let’s get right to it, yes? Suppose you tell me all about Lord Haslemere.”
Georgiana twisted her fingers together, eyes downcast. “I already told you everything, my lady. Lord Haslemere has proven to be far more…persistent than I imagined, and he’s managed to wriggle his way into the middle of our business with the duchess.”
“Wriggled, has he? My dear child, I’ve never known you to let anyone wriggle their way around you. But I’m not asking for details about the Duchess of Kenilworth’s business. You’ve already told me about all that. I want you to tell me what’s happening betweenyouand Lord Haslemere.”
Oh, no. “I—there’s nothing to tell, my lady.” Georgiana winced at this feeble reply. She was quite an accomplished liar, but Lady Clifford—and strangely enough, Benedict—seemed able to see through her every falsehood.
“No?” Lady Clifford raised a slim, blonde eyebrow. “Well, if you insist, dearest. I suppose there’s a perfectly innocent, rational explanation why you were dallying with him in the carriage just now, then.”
Dallying?Oh, dear God. Heat flooded into Georgiana’s cheeks, and she buried her face in her hands with a groan, all of her defenses collapsing at once. “That’s just it, my lady! Nothing about this is rational. If it were, I’d know just how to proceed, but it’s messy and confusing and…and now he’s gone and kissed me, and I don’t know what to do!”
Lady Clifford didn’t look at all shocked at this confession. She continued stroking Gussie’s head, her face calm. “Ah, I see. Well, kisses do tend to complicate things. Perhaps you’d better start there. Lord Haslemere kissed you, and what did you do?”
“Nothing at all!” Georgiana’s words were too quick, however, and too vehement. It was a pathetic attempt at a denial, and Lady Clifford, predictably, saw through it at once.
“Well, you must have donesomething, dear, to put such a blush on your cheeks.” Lady Clifford chuckled. “Now isn’t the time to be secretive, Georgiana. A kiss is nothing to be ashamed of, you know. Lord Haslemere is exceedingly handsomeand charming.”
“Yes, he is. It’s quite provoking of him.” But the real trouble was that Georgiana wasn’t as immune to those charms as she should be. She still had no idea how he’d managed to sneak under her defenses. It wasn’t as if he’dtriedto charm her. Indeed, when he had been trying, she hadn’t had the least trouble resisting him. It was this blasted sincerity that was doing her in.
As for the kiss…well, it meant nothing. Less than nothing. It had simplyhappened. No doubt Benedict had already forgotten it, and she’d do well to do the same. Nothing would come of it, and she didn’t want Lady Clifford to know what a fool she’d been.
“I kissed him back!” she blurted, then slapped a hand over her mouth, horrified. She hadn’t meant to confess to it, but since this business with Benedict began, her natural reticence seemed to have fled. She was like a cracked teapot now, with hot tea leaking fromevery fissure.
To Lady Clifford’s credit, she didn’t squeal or fall over in shock. “And?”
“And what? And nothing. He kissed me, and I kissed him back, and that was it.” Thathadbeen it, too, unless one counted the flood of emotions and confusion that had followed that kiss. Georgianadidn’tcount them, so there was no reason to mention them, was there?
“You mean to say, my dear, that Lord Haslemere—the same Lord Haslemere every lady in London either wants to seduce or marry,thatLord Haslemere kissed you, and that was it?”
Georgiana fussed with the folds of her skirt, studying them as if they were the most fascinating folds she’d ever seen. “Yes, that’s it.”
Lady Clifford reached over and plucked the fabric from Georgiana’s fingers. “Look at me, Georgiana. Lord Haslemere kissed you, and you kissed him back. None of that sounds terribly shocking, so what hasyou so upset?”
