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Chapter Thirteen
Kitty was looking at him like he’d sprouted a third head, which he supposed he had in a way. Sebastian had only intended to give her an explanation for his behavior, as difficult as doing so had been. A love confession had somehow forced its way out of him, and he couldn’t remember the last time he’d blurted something without thinking. Laying his soul bare had been far from what he’d intended, especially to someone with the ability crush his heart as thoroughly as Kitty did. As much as his heart sang when she’d responded positively to his admission, he feared it would only be a matter of time before he ruined things again.
A hand waved over his face, and he left his anxious musings with a blink to see Kitty frowning at him. “Sebastian? Are you with me?”
“Pardon?”
She rolled her eyes with a scowl. “I’ve been speaking to you for a solid thirty seconds. You were overthinking things again, weren’t you?”
He didn’t dare lie, knowing she wouldn’t fall for it. “I was thinking upon our future with some trepidation.”
“Well, that makes two of us. I really did not want to be a duchess, you know.”
“I believe you, now,” he replied mildly, even as guilt flooded him once more.
“It only took me nearly dying for you to get it through that thick skull of yours.”
“I’m sorry.” He brought himself to meet her eyes and give her hand a squeeze. Sebastian wasn’t used to apologizing for anything, but he suspected he would have to become accustomed to doing so on a more regular basis.
She gave him a soft smile in return, her gentle gaze alone lightening his heart. “I’ll forgive you soon enough.”
A small huff of amusement forced its way out of him. “Soon enough?”
She crossed her arms with a resolute nod. “Well, you didn’t think it would be that easy, did you?”
“Given that it is you I am speaking to, I should have known better.” Of course, Kitty wouldn’t let him off just like that, the woman had far too much pluck.
“You’ve been an utter beast to me, no matter how much I understand your viewpoint. It’s going to take some time for me to trust you again.”
“What can I do?”
She put a finger on her chin, a slow, mischievous smile forming on her lips. She was about to ask for something absurd, he was sure. “Hmm. I think I’d like a kiss.”
“That’s it?”
Kitty sat up on her knees and turned to face him with a laugh. “Well, no. But this is a good start.”
He raised an eyebrow, even as his body heated at the thought of kissing those soft lips again. “You’re stringing me along, aren’t you?”
Kitty rested a warm hand on his thigh, leaning so close that he could smell her vanilla perfume. “Maybe just a little,” she murmured teasingly.
It was too much to resist, and he hauled her onto his lap, delighting in the surprisingly melodic sound of her giggle. “As much as I love that hag’s cackle of yours,” he said as he snaked a hand to hold the back of her neck, “that little sound you made was far more pleasant.”
She opened her mouth with a frown as if about to make a rejoinder, but he was far too impatient for any further conversation and pulled her down for a kiss. The touch of her lips felt electric, and he held her warm body tighter in his arms, letting out a rumble of appreciation as her tongue rather shamelessly invaded his mouth. She rocked her hips against him, and it took Sebastian everything he had not to toss her on her back and lift her silken skirts. He pulled back from her mouth after a playful nip on her bottom lip, amusement filling him at the sight of her petulant frown.
“You have guests downstairs, my dear. And your father, too.” Even he was not so depraved as to seduce a man’s daughter in broad daylight whilst the man in question was residing only one floor down. Sebastian’s presence alone was already enough to feed the scandal sheets for weeks, though he cared far less about the opinions of those seedy gossipmongers.
“Oh, fine,” she replied with a harsh sigh, looking like an adorable kitten that had just been denied its treat. Kitty’s shoulders drooped, and she prodded at the counterpane. “I did run off in a rather embarrassingly dramatic manner.”
He nodded without hesitation and gave her thigh a reassuring pat. “Quite understandable, however. You could have done worse. Swooned to the ground like a gothic heroine, perhaps?”
“I certainly felt like one for a moment there.” She squared her shoulders with a resigned sigh. “I am going to go back downstairs, I think. We still have to work out this blackmailer business, and I want to speak to my…mother.”
Her eyes grew uncertain, and he stroked a finger down her cheek in response. “You are being very brave. I am quite impressed with your fortitude.” With her stubbornness and bravery in the face of strife, Kitty would do just fine as his duchess. Would be quite formidable, in fact.
She gave him a wry smile. “I mostly just want answers.”
“And we will find them, together. Whether you like it or not, this is a Haverston problem now.”
