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“Life is about a lot more than sex.”
“Yeah, well, you don’t play golf, either.” He stalked off toward the car, looking far more upset than he had any right to be.
She marched after him. “You are the most selfish, self-centered, person I’ve ever known. I’ve just told you how my life’s falling apart, and all you can think about is how it affects you.”
“You’re damn straight.” He turned to confront her. “You listen to me, Emma. The only way I get back on the tour is to keep what’s left of my reputation so clean that it squeaks. Now, near as I can gather, that puts the two of us at cross purposes, because you seem hell bent on destroying yours.”
“I don’t have a choice.”
“You sure do. The answer to your problem is as clear as the nose on your face.” He jabbed his finger toward his car. “Get on that phone right this minute and tell that pussy duke you have no intention of marrying him!”
“Didn’t you hear anything I said? If I don’t go along with this, he’ll sell St. Gert’s.”
“That’s not your problem. You can get another job.” He unlocked the door and climbed in.
She raced around to the other side and jimmied the handle until he finally unlocked it. “You don’t know what you’re saying.” She climbed inside. “St. Gert’s is special. I’ve started a new program for scholarship students. If the school closes, they’ll be abandoned. And St. Gert’s is my home. The only one I’ve ever had.”
“It’s just a pile of old bricks.”
“Not to me. Oh, why am I even bothering? I knew you wouldn’t understand.”
“What I don’t understand is how you’ve let this whole thing get so complicated.”
“Beddington isn’t stupid. If my behavior is too blatant, he’ll see right through what I’m trying to do and get rid of St. Gert’s just to punish me for defying him. I have to be subtle, make him believe he’s misjudged my character at the same time I pretend to go along with him.”
He scowled and jabbed his keys into the ignition. “Well, I’m not sleeping with you, if that’s what you’ve got on your mind.”
“I don’t want to sleep with you!”
For some maddening reason, that seemed to calm him down. His hands went slack on the key, and his eyes made a lazy journey along the buttons of her blouse. “You sure did want to the other night, Queen Elizabeth.”
She hoped he didn’t notice the gooseflesh that broke out on her skin. To compensate, she sat up straighter in the seat. “That was when I thought you were honorable.”
“Honorable?” His exasperation returned. “I told you I was a gigolo.”
“At least you were open about it.”
“I was lying through my teeth.”
“Yes, well, I didn’t know that at the time.” She sniffed. “And if I make up my mind to sleep with someone in the next two weeks, it won’t be you.”
“You aren’t sleeping with anybody in the next two weeks. As long as Francesca’s looking over my shoulder, you’re going back home in exactly the same pristine condition as the day you arrived. When you lose your virginity, Lady Emma, you’re damn well going to do it on somebody else’s watch.”
She began to respond, only to have the words slip away as his eyes locked on her mouth. Slowly his expression changed. She watched his lips part ever so slightly and his eyes darken. She felt light-headed. After all her talk about not wanting to sleep with him, she was the one lying through her teeth because everything about him stimulated her—his extravagant good looks, lanky body, Texas drawl, even his peculiar sense of humor. She hated herself for it, but some part of her wished she hadn’t discovered that magazine cover until after they’d made love.
He jerked his eyes away from her. “That’s it! You’re staying at a hotel!”
“I am not!” She couldn’t stay at a hotel. It was exactly what Beddington expected from her. “I didn’t want to mention this, but I’m afraid you’re forcing me to remind you that I can call Francesca at any time.”
“You leave Francesca out of this.”
“You keep forgetting that I’m desperate. And I’m certain Francesca will be very upset when she hears how you got me drunk, then dragged me to that horrible tattoo parlor where I was disfigured for life.”
“Can’t you see that I’m doing this for your own good? Don’t you realize that putting the two of us together under one roof is just plain stupid?”
“I know we’ve argued a lot, but if we both try a bit harder to be polite—”
“I’m not talking about us arguing.”
