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Harry tilted his head back and stared at the white ceiling. “Simon should have told you to return to your home.”
“If he did, I wouldn’t be here right now.”
As if to emphasize her point, she rubbed her back against his shaft, which immediately started to harden. “Not fair, love.”
She turned around to face him and then smiled flirtatiously at him. “You are rather insatiable, are you not?”
“Around you, yes.” He kissed her loving how quickly she responded to him. “I was trying to be a gentleman.”
“You can be that later and show me the house. Right now, I want a scoundrel.”
“As you wish, Miss Drake.”
Chapter 22
THEY FINALLY ROSE FROM their bed in the early afternoon. Louisa didn’t want to consider what the servants must think of them. After a lovely dinner, Harry gave her a tour of the enormous home. Louisa figured that about twenty of her mother’s home could fit inside this grand manor. They walked into the family salon, and Louisa was struck by the extravagance of the room. Gilt chairs, gilt frames, even a gilt family crest on the fireplace.
“It’s very...very...”
“Indulgent?” he replied with a slight scowl.
“You don’t like this place much, do you?” They continued down the hall to the music room, which was double the size of her mother’s salon.
“No. This was my father’s favorite home, mostly because it was the ducal estate. But I much prefer the intimacy of Northwood Park.”
She nodded. “I agree. Northwood is smaller and feels more like a home and not a grand palace.”
He smiled down at her. “True, but I do believe there is one room you will love here.”
“The library! I remember you telling me about it years ago. Show me!”
“Yes, ma’am.” He led her down the long marble corridor lined with large portraits of former dukes and duchesses.
She noticed one portrait and stopped. “Wait,” she said, pointing to the picture. “Is that you?”
“Yes, when I was twenty. A year or two before we first met.”
Louisa studied the portrait. Harry appeared quite a bit younger, even though only ten years had passed. Now, he had a maturity that made him look far more handsome than in his youth. The painting showed the rascal he’d been and not the gentleman he had become. “You look every bit the rake I know you were for a few years.”
“If you remember, I was in my rakish days when I met you.”
“True, but I don’t remember hearing much about that after we met.”
Harry looked away, knowing she was the reason for the change in his behavior. She had disapproved of his rakish manner. After meeting her, he had settled down until that awful night in India. “Come along. I want to show you the library.”
“Yes, of course.”
He’d forgotten about describing the library to her, and now he couldn’t wait for her to see it. They approached the heavy door, but he stopped her from entering the room. “Close your eyes.”
“Harry!”
“Close them, or I won’t show you the room.”
She muttered a low curse at him. “Very well.”
He swung the door open and led her into the room.
“I smell leather,” she said in a giddy voice. “Can I open my eyes now?”
