Page 28 of How Not to Marry a Duke

She pursed her lips. “I wouldn’t listen to whomever recommended him on any subject.”

One dark eyebrow rose. “You are quite opinionated, aren’t you?”

“Only when I’m right.”

His hoarse laugh filled the room. “Fine. I grudgingly agree regarding the physician’s treatment.”

Beneath his gaze, awareness rushed through her, and she lowered her gaze. It was safer to focus on her work rather than the man. Once she finished, she bandaged his arm with clean cloths. If he noticed that she already had her own and Hasmik’s departure was unnecessary, he didn’t mention it.

She sat back on the sofa. “I’ve been thinking about what you said.”

“You mean my offer to court you for the Season.” The degree of warmth in his voice caused her heartbeat to leap.

She bit her lower lip and raised her gaze to his. “I’m uncertain how we are going to convince the world, let alone my half brother.”

“It does pose a minor dilemma.”

“Minor! I’d hardly call it that.” She glared and pressed her lips together. If Warwick believed it would be simple, her concern tripled. Edwin was no fool and—if he was in as much debt as she thought—then he had strong motivation to want her to marry the moneylender.

“What can I do to ease your mind?”

“Like I said before, we know little about each other.” It was only a start. She feared they’d need to know a lot about each other before they ventured to London.

Warwick hesitated for a moment before nodding once. “Then we must address that.” He stood and offered his good arm. “Come with me.”

…

Adeline placed her fingers on Warwick’s sleeve. Without his coat and her gloves, she could feel the heat of his skin beneath her fingertips. She had an overwhelming urge to run her hand up and down his arm, to feel each muscle and the warmth of his skin. She hadn’t bothered to ask where he was taking her. She supposed it didn’t matter, as long as it wasn’t his bedchamber. She swallowed her earlier annoyance. If he truly believed it would be only a minor problem when they returned to London, he was not as intelligent as she’d thought.

He passed several closed doors, a music room, a dining room, a library, and stopped outside the last door in the hall. It had to be either another library or a study.

He opened the door and she gasped.

It was unlike any other study she’d seen.

It wasn’t a study at all, but a large workshop. A carpet had been rolled and pushed aside. A long wooden worktable lined the entire length of the back wall, its oak surface scarred and stained. Tools, nails, oil pots, and iron parts were haphazardly strewn across the table. Smaller worktables held various machines and objects that she assumed were inventions or ideas he was working on.

“Welcome to my workshop.”

Her jaw slackened. “You moved all this from London?”

“I have a much larger workshop in my London home. To my butler’s chagrin and my housekeeper’s disapproval, I brought only the necessities with me to the country.”

The necessities? She couldn’t imagine what he’d left behind and the size of his London workshop. “You are like a mad professor.” The statement left her lips before she could catch herself.

Rather than take offense, he chuckled. “Others have called me worse.” He leaned on a workbench and spread his arms wide. “Medicine may be your passion. This is mine.”

She still wasn’t sure what this was. Her breath caught in her lungs, and she stilled. The shock of walking into the room hadn’t fully worn off. He’d told her he was an inventor. She hadn’t anticipated the extent of his ambitions.

“I see you are confused.”

She walked to one of the tables and scanned the contents. “Perhaps if you tell me what these things are, I may understand.”

“Come and I’ll explain.” He stopped by what looked like a large iron contraption and waited for her to follow. “This is a high-pressure steam engine. It was invented by a man named Trevnick years ago, and I’ve been perfecting the efficiency of the pistons.”

“What is it intended for?”

“The engine powers a train. His invention was too heavy, and it broke the rails. But I believe trains are our future and that someday they will change our everyday lives.”