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Not that it should matter.
But for some reason she didn’t care to explore, it did.
So much for honesty.
{ Chapter 4 }
“There.” Juliet’s arm lifted as she pointed forward past the slope of the hill in front of them. “Is thatBicester? Tell me it is, as this poor horse has suffered the brunt of us too long.”
Evan scanned the buildings coming into view beyond the alley of trees they were riding through and he notedthegothic bell tower of St. Edburg's Churchshooting up from the surrounding buildings. “Aye, it is.”
He shifted on the saddle behind her, trying for the thousandth time that day to set the slightest sliver of space between them.
Miss Juliet Thomson was not what he expected. Not at all. Peculiar, even.
He looked down at the top of her head, her auburn hair twisted into a simple chignon. The color of the strands mesmerizing, her hair swung between red and brown, never fully committing to either color. Her bonnet not in place, she’d tied the ribbon of it through one of the buttonholes in front of her pelisse and let it hang in front of her. It had still been more wet than dry this morning, and he doubted the shape of it would ever fit onto her head again, but she hadn’t wanted to leave it behind.
No matter the cause, he rather liked the thickness of her hair bared to the light of day. Not to mention that she smelled of citrus—not quite an orange, more of a grapefruit.
She’d rode in front of him on the horse for the full of the day, as there hadn’t been any other option for leaving the village they’d stopped in the previous night.
But now they were close to Bicester where he could rent a carriageand she would be back in the luxury she was accustomed to—not that she’d complained once about the current situation.
Though he had a complaint.
A major grievance that had to do with seeing her fully naked the night before, and then having to sit with her backside rubbing against him the entire day.
A naked woman that close in proximity to him usually had him two steps away from driving his shaft deep into her. And Juliet was not just any naked woman. She possessed beauty from head to toe, with full, round breasts and a slim waist that flared out to hips he could grip without fear of breaking her. His cock had been peeved and perplexed about the lack of any relief not only all night, but all day as well.
He heaved a breath.
Sex was not a part of the bargain he’d made with her, even if he’d now like to renegotiate the terms of their deal. There wasn’t any honor in that.
He couldn’t make it to a carriage fast enough.
And he was still attempting to wrap his head around what she had told him last night.
What kind of a courtesan didn’t have sex with her clients?
He’d assumed Juliet lived the life of the brothel thoroughly, but after he reflected on his night at the Den of Diablo when he had first seen her, he realized that he never saw her exit the main room for more than a few minutes at a time—not nearly long enough to pleasure a man.
Any man worth his salt, that was.
She would disappear up the stairs at the rear of the Den, arm in arm with a man, then quickly reappear, descending on any man in the main room that looked out of place.
Canny.
“You haven’t been around a lot of women, have you?”
Evan stiffened, looking down at the top of her head. “Of course, I’ve been around women—I thought we covered last night where my interests fall on that matter.”
She chuckled and gave him a quick glance over her shoulder. “I’m not about to insinuate again that you don’t like women. I’ve just noticed that it seems as though you haven’t spent a great deal of time around them.”
“Why would you say that?”
“You swear in front of me. You’re direct with your statements. You answer questions with as few words as possible. The only thing you asked of me for when I am to be set in front of your grandfather is that I am docile.” Leaning to the side, she craned her neck to look directly back at him. “All of those things point to you not being around women very often. Probably only to relieve yourself of base needs, if I guess correctly.”
His look met her blue eyes, her face far too close to him. “This is part of your uncanny ability to control men at the Den—first look into their souls?”
