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Thaddeus chuckled. “It tells me the intensity of our feelings are the same. However, if you wish to ignore this for now, I will oblige.”
A door opened in the distance, illuminating the hallway with more light. With a muttered curse, he reached behind him, gripped the doorknob, and twisted. The door opened and he spilled inside backway, taking Perdie with him.
It seemed to be a smaller parlor, and blessedly a fire roared in the hearth.
“And why have you whisked us in here? I daresay no one would have seen us in the hallway.”
“Never say you think I am acting the scoundrel,” he drawled.
“Most assuredly.”
“For what purpose?”
“To kiss me of—”
Thaddeus stole the rest of the provocative words from her mouth and greedily covered her lips with his. She was soft, pliant, and tasted tart, of lemonade. He took his time exploring her mouth, fueling their connection. When he broke the kiss, her lips were glossy and her eyes heavy lidded. She swayed toward him, using her grip on his biceps to hold herself up.
As much as he’d like to kiss her until the sun came up, he still had enough of his wits about him to remember where they were.
“You cannot just kiss me whenever you want,” she said huskily.
“It is a part of courting, lass.”
She laughed and the sweet sound hooked into his heart and tugged.
“This courtship seems more dangerous than I thought.”
“Deliciously dangerous, say it properly, lass.”
“You are incorrigible.”
“Yes, and you like me that way. I must give you fair warning that I will be kissing you a lot.”
Her breath audibly hitched.
“That does not mean I will marry you.”
“Who said anything about marrying. I ken we are talking about kissing. Clearly it has muddled your thinking. If everyone who kisses married, there would be no unattached ladies and gentlemen about.”
“Ah, so you are giving me permission to kiss you as much as I want, without worrying about you racing suit.”
“You never need permission to kiss me. My mouth is yours to ravish at any time.”
Standing on tiptoes, Perdie touched her lips to his. “I quite like the sound of that,” she murmured.
“Dance with me.” His voice was hoarse.
She blinked and pulled back an inch, seeming to return to herself. “I can’t. I told several gentlemen that I haven’t the constitution for dancing tonight, and if I dance with you now, our names will be on everyone’s lips. We might even make the scandal sheets again.”
He leaned closer and pressed a kiss to her cheek, then the corner of her mouth. “Bugger them.”
She laughed and turned her face to meet his mouth. Her kiss was enthusiastic and made his head spin. Lord, did he ever need to make this woman his wife. The sooner the better.
She pulled away and flirtatiously tapped a finger against his lower lip. “You may not care for decorum, but I’ve been raised differently. Especially with the Dowager Duchess of Hartford, also known as mama, looking on.”
He groaned under his breath. “Then promise me the first dance at the next ball.”
Her lips lifted in a sweet smile. “Now that, I can do.”
