Page 30 of One Night with an Earl

Ana was growing desperate. “Please, you must cease with this notion.”

She knew her pleas fell on deaf ears when Penelope gave her a mischievous look. “Why? I find matchmaking delightful when it doesn’t involve myself.”

…

The sound of flesh hitting flesh was just what Oliver needed. He circled his opponent in the ring, rocking back and forth on the balls of his feet, in a smooth, athletic dance. He ducked and wove and avoided blows from the fighter who faced him, the Duke of Warwick—a tall, large, and broad-shouldered man. A square ring was roped off with stakes and anchored to the hardwood floor at each corner.

Both men were bare-chested and wore boxing gloves.

A towering hulk of a man with a gold front tooth stood outside the ring and rested his arms on the ropes while bellowing instructions to both fighters. Tom Cribb was a champion and one of the few men Oliver respected.

Sweat glistened on Oliver’s brow, his chest, and ran down his back into the waistband of his trousers. Honest, brutal, and a test of one’s strength, skill, and stamina, boxing kept his mind sharp.

Unlike his brother’s friends who wasted their days drinking, gambling, and whoring. It was the perfect pastime to relieve his frustrations.

And he had many.

Last night had not gone as he’d planned. He hadn’t been able to cease thinking of his night at the Silver Chalice, and now that he’d confirmed Miss Gardner was Lady Scarlet, it did nothing to alleviate the tension in his chest. It only served to whet his appetite.

Only she wanted nothing to do with him.

Bloody hell.

He understood her nervousness regarding her position in the Malvern household. He’d never meant to expose her, and he’d told her that was not his intent. But her dislike of him, her scorn, was surprising.

Why? He hadn’t mistreated her at the Silver Chalice. She’d received as much pleasure as he had.

God, every time he thought of her naked in his arms, his desire…his longing for the special evening they’d shared rose. And despite what she’d claimed, the fact that she’d been a virgin mattered to him.

“Watch your right side, Drake. Don’t drop your guard or—”

Umph. Oliver’s opponent took advantage of his distraction to jab a fist into the right side of his chest. Pain seared Oliver’s side, and he fought the urge to bend over and clutch his ribs.

Serves you right for losing focus!

Oliver breathed through the pain and, with great effort, kept his fists raised to shield his face. His feet shuffled on the hardwood floor, and his gaze narrowed on the duke.

“Don’t get overly confident, Warwick,” Crib warned a second before Oliver’s uppercut connected with Warwick’s chin.

Warwick’s head whipped back, and he staggered, then stumbled forward to catch himself on the ropes.

“That’s enough for today,” Cribb declared.

Both men climbed out of the ring. Two boys ran forward to remove their gloves, then dipped metal cups in a bucket of water and offered them to the fighters.

Warwick drained his cup and handed it back to one of the youths. “Good fight. Although I would have beaten you if Cribb let us continue.”

Oliver lowered his own cup and laughed. The effort made his ribs ache. “I don’t think so. Too bad I bruised that ugly face of yours.” The insult was far from the truth. Fair-haired and tall with a muscular build, Warwick was the type of man women stopped to admire on the street. Barmaids lingered and offered him more than just tankards of ale. Not that Warwick would notice or care.

“Ha! I’d like to see your ribs tomorrow.”

Oliver rubbed his aching side. “Let’s say it was a draw.”

Warwick rubbed his chin, then nodded. “Fine. I’d say a drink is in order to ease our aches.”

“I thought you gave up spirits. They interfere with your work.”

Warwick was one of Oliver’s closest friends. The two had met as boys at Eton, then attended Oxford together. Before either had grown into men, and when they were just skinny boys, Warwick was teased by a school bully. Oliver had stuck up for the young duke, suffered a black eye, and they had been close friends ever since.