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Every time the front door opened, she felt him stiffen. The poor man seemed so distressed by the commotion she just wanted to hide in the bedchamber with him all day and night. Of course, then she wouldn’t have to meet all the beautiful people of the ton and feel terribly out of place.
Even with all their attempts to be away from the house, there was one time they both had no choice in the matter: dinner. There were an additional twenty people tonight. Caroline had told her they were mostly close friends and distant relatives, but that didn’t put Mia at ease.
Her fingers twitched against the emerald silk gown as she waited for Simon to dress for dinner. She had never worn silk until her wedding, yet in only ten days, she was coming to love the feel of it against her skin. It felt decadent and slightly erotic when it slid across her like a lover’s caress.
“We should really go downstairs now, Simon,” she called out from the bedchamber salon.
He opened the door to the bedroom. “I suppose we should.”
Mia suddenly had no desire to leave this room. The man looked incredibly handsome in his black jacket, silver waistcoat, and snowy white cravat. She wanted to strip each piece of clothing off him until she was down to hard muscle and warm skin.
“If you keep looking at me that way, we will not leave this room,” Simon warned with a slight grin.
“Would that be so terrible?”
“Caroline might think so. She would be dreadfully embarrassed to have to tell her guests that her brother and new sister-in-law were upstairs making mad passionate love to each other.”
Mia shrugged with a catlike smile. “I think she would be all right with it. She does want her children to be close in age with ours.”
Simon laughed. “She told you that?”
“I do believe she was trying to determine if I had trapped you into marriage. I quickly relieved her of that notion.” Mia stood and walked toward her husband. “But I do believe she was a little disappointed.” She skimmed her fingers up his jacket, then around his neck. Pressing her body against his, she whispered, “We really shouldn’t disappoint your
sister. If she wants our children close, we have to get busy and make that happen.”
He kissed her quickly, then pushed her away gently.
“All right, my temptress, we should go now.” He held out his hand and led her down the hall. At the top of the stairs, he halted. The sounds of conversations from the salon floated upward.
“Simon, we can do this,” she urged softly.
He gave her a strange look. “Of course we can.”
They walked down the stairs as the front door opened. A couple walked in and stopped when they noticed Simon. Relief surged through Mia.
“Selina!” Mia threw herself into her dearest friend’s arms. “I am so glad you’re here!”
“I’m not,” she whispered. “But I’m glad I’m here for you.”
Mia pulled back slightly. “You didn’t want to attend?”
“I will tell you why later. Colin insisted we come to give our assistance to you and Hart.”
“Thank you. Why didn’t you tell me you would be here too?” Mia asked. She would have felt so much more relaxed knowing Selina would be here.
“We weren’t positive we would attend. I didn’t want to disappoint you if we couldn’t get away.”
“Mia, we should move to the salon and let North and his wife get settled,” Simon reminded her.
“Yes. Will you be joining us for dinner?”
“Not tonight,” Selina said, stifling a yawn. “I am exhausted from the drive.”
Caroline and Richard came into the entryway with smiles. “Your Graces, welcome to our home,” Richard said with a bow.
As they made their greetings, Mia and Simon walked into the crowded salon. Several conversations stopped as they strolled in. But just as quickly, the room buzzed with whispered exchanges. Mia wanted to run from the room but could not embarrass Simon in such a manner. Of course there would be talk, she convinced herself. No one had heard of his marriage before now. She just had to get used to being the center of attention until people found out.
Richard and Caroline reentered the room and walked directly to them. Several gazes followed them.
