Nancy felt a flare of indignation, quickly doused by the realization that he meant it as a compliment, sort of. “You ask for perfection, but offer me only efficiency. That hardly seems equitable.”
He smiled, slow and wicked. “If you wish for more, you are welcome to negotiate.”
She shot back, “I am not accustomed to negotiating before breakfast.”
His mouth curved further. “Then let this be your first lesson in marital diplomacy.”
She fought to maintain composure, but he was watching her with such intensity that it was impossible not to feel the energy crackling between them. Her heart banged against her ribs.Do compose yourself, Nancy! He is only a man. And a deeply annoying one, at that.
He seemed to sense her discomfort, and it pleased him. He pushed off the desk and advanced a step, closing the space between them.
“Was there anything else?” he asked.
She set her jaw, unwilling to give an inch. “Do you expect me to fulfillallduties?”
He raised a brow while one corner of his mouth slanted. “All duties?”
The cad knows!Nancy’s cheeks burned, but she kept her voice steady. “You know precisely what I mean.”
“Do I?” He took another step, until they were nearly touching. “Elucidate, if you please.”
She could have boxed his ears. Instead, she folded her arms, mimicking his earlier posture. “Is an heir required?”
For a moment, Oscar said nothing. Then, in a movement so fast she barely registered it, he circled behind her and leaned down, his mouth near her ear. “I am in no hurry to repeat the mistakes of my parents, Nancy. You need not concern yourself with producing an army of little heirs.”
The scent of him—citrus and something dark, something almost dangerous—washed over her.
She turned, but he was already there, inches away, eyes locked on hers. Her back bumped the edge of his desk. He placed one hand beside her on the polished wood, caging her in.
Oscar looked at her, really looked, and in that second, all the bravado in her chest melted into something far more perilous.
His voice, when it came, was velvet and gravel. “That is a lovely dress you have on. It makes the green in your eyes… very hard to ignore.”
Nancy’s breath caught, and she cursed herself for the betrayal. “You should not be speaking to me like that, Duke.”
He smiled, slow and devastating. “Why not? You are my Duchess.”
She swallowed. Her tongue felt thick, her pulse tripping all over itself. “You have a talent for unbalancing people.”
He tipped his head, considering. “Only the ones worth the effort.”
She glared at him, but it was a half-hearted thing, and he knew it.
“Is that all?” he asked, the words a hair above a whisper.
She nodded, not trusting herself to speak.
He leaned in, so close she could feel his breath, warm against her cheek.
“I already have an heir,” he murmured. “Henry.”
With that, he stepped away, the sudden absence of him as shocking as his presence.
Nancy let out a breath she didn’t know she’d been holding.
Oscar moved to the door and opened it, the gesture precise, final.
“Good day, Duchess,” he said, and vanished into the hallway.
