The Art of Ruining a Rake (50 page)

He laughed and hugged her to him. “Very well, I captained our skiff, while an able-bodied sailor rowed.”

She smiled and laughed with him, her eyes sparkling. “You were quite the rogue that day. That was when I first knew I would do anything—
anything
—to hold your interest.”

She sobered. “I told Celeste of my desperation to have you. She advised me not to seek your bed. She said marriage must be my asking price. I thanked her, but I knew in my heart I would never hold you to it. Marriage, to a man like you, would be a grievous mistake.” Her gaze fell to his lips. “I set out to seduce you instead.”

His heart beat harder. While he’d gladly take her any way he could, he hoped that was not all she’d come to say.

He nudged her chin up with his finger. “I can’t promise I won’t hurt you, Lucy. But I’ll never stray. I vow on my life.”

She smoothed the tip of her finger over the edge of his waistcoat, moving from linen to silk in nervous little movements. “I
am
frightened of you. But I am more frightened of
me.
I loathe the thought of anyone else touching you, especially another woman. But living without you…” She drew a shaking breath. “I hate that more.”

His arms tightened around her as he bowed his head against hers. “I will never give you cause to doubt.”

“Oh.”
She touched his cheek and smiled at him. One arm still snug around his waist, holding him close. “You wonderful man. I love you. I’ve loved you since you were scarcely more than a boy. I loved you when you were a penniless, extravagant dandy. I loved you through every scandal and lost love and foolish wager—I even loved you when you broke my heart.”

She pressed her fingers into the small of his back. “But it’s you who must decide. Are you willing to devote yourself to a mercurial, possessive wife? One with her own interests and income? A stubborn, independent woman who will never be classically obedient? Will you accept me as I am, faults, foibles and eccentricities included?”

Before he could answer, she pulled away and took his hands in hers. “Roman Valerius Alexander, will you marry me?”

He didn’t hesitate. He kissed her.

“Yes, Lucy,” he said, when they were both breathless and glowing. He cupped her face so he could gaze at her in wonder. “Yes, I’ll marry you. You’ll make me the happiest man in the world.”

Epilogue

ONE MONTH LATER, they were man and wife. Roman had only spared a passing glance for the announcement in
The Times;
the version he cared about wasn’t printed until a week later.

He brought the latest edition of the
Ladies’ Companion
into Merritt House’s library and held it out to his new wife. She didn’t look up from her desk—formerly Tony’s, once again in its rightful place at an angle to Roman’s—giving him a moment to appreciate the way she bit her bottom lip as she filled another page of foolscap in her neat, looping scrawl.

“Ahem,” he said when she seemed to pause.

She startled. Then a pleased smile lit her face. “Is it out already? I could have sworn it was only Saturday.”

He smiled indulgently. It was Tuesday, but she hardly noticed the passage of time when she was lost in her work. He wasn’t surprised. For four solid weeks, she’d done little but pore over her next story. Well, that and warm his bed. She had to have her ideas from somewhere, didn’t she?

She took the magazine from him and flipped until she came to the last page. “Here it is! An announcement penned by Mrs. Avery herself. ‘It is with great pleasure that I am able to announce the union of Miss Lucilla Lancester to the marquis of Montborne. With this marriage, we see happy endings are not only the purview of fiction, but may be found in everyday life, as well.’”

Lucy passed the magazine back to him. “Perhaps this will put an end to the gossip.”

“Doubtful. Quick weddings are always suspicious.” He waggled his eyebrows.

“You!” Even after a month of long, delectable nights, the thought of being in his bed made her blush. “All the same, I’m delighted to think the editor of the
Ladies’ Companion
is aware ours is a love match.” She bent her head as if to begin writing again.

He went to his desk and looked down at the street through the large window behind it. After a time, he slanted a glance at her over his shoulder. “Do you think our marriage will sell more books?”

She pretended to look offended, but a gleam in her eye betrayed her. “How mercenary of you.”

He laughed. “Is it wrong? I think it a fair question. No tale is more relished than one filled with violence, romance and the
haut
ton
. Nor is every authoress is a viscount’s sister with a scandal in her past. Your adoring public is insatiable in its demand for news of you, and here,” he rapped the magazine against his palm, “you’ve delivered.”

She stood and thrust a bundle of papers in his direction. “Read this. If it’s a story they want, it’s a story they shall have.”

He returned to her desk and glanced at the top sheet. Three neat lines of script stretched across it.

The Inamorato

By

A Lady

“This is quite titillating,” he mused, turning the first page.

She sauntered around the desk and dropped her hip against the front edge. He quickly forgot the manuscript as she smoothed his cravat. “I certainly hope so.”

He turned into her embrace. “One might suspect you’re not the typical marchioness.”

She kissed the side of his mouth. “It could be said.”

“You might even be trying to seduce me.”

“
Trying
…is not the right word.”

He grinned wolfishly. “Thank God I have a writer to correct me. Are there any other words I can misapply?”

She smiled against his lips. Then she hopped onto the desk.

It was awhile before he remembered to ask again.

Thank you for reading

The Art of Ruining a Rake

I hope you enjoyed this story!

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Did you know t
here are more Naughty Girls books?

This novel is the fourth story in a tightly connected series. To receive updates on future book releases, please sign up for my mailing list at
http://emmalocke.com
.

In order, The Naughty Girls books are:

The Courtesans

The Trouble with Being Wicked (available now!)

The Problem with Seduction (available now!)

A Game of Persuasion (extended prologue for this book, available now!)

The Art of Ruining a Rake (this book!)

The Innocents

The Cheer in Charming an Earl (available now!)

Miss Conley’s book (untitled, TBD)

Miss Abigail’s book (untitled, TBD)

The Hoydens

The Danger in Daring a Lady (coming next!)

The Importance of Being a Scoundrel (TBD)

The Hazards of Loving a Rogue (TBD)

Did you miss the novel that started it all?

He put her on a pedestal…

When Celeste Gray arrives in the sleepy village of Brixcombe-on-the-Bay, she thinks she’s one step closer to leaving her notorious past behind. She even suspects the deliciously handsome—if somewhat stuffy—viscount next door is developing a
tendre
for her. That is, until the day Ashlin Lancester learns she’s not the unassuming spinster she’s pretending to be.

Now she has farther to fall

After a decade of proving he is nothing like his profligate father, Ash is horrified to have given his heart to a Cyprian. He launches a campaign to prove his attraction is nothing more than a sordid reaction he can’t control. But he soon learns that unlike his father, he can’t find comfort in the arms of just any woman. He needs Celeste. When he takes her as his mistress, he’s still not satisfied, and the many late nights in her arms only make him want more…

Continue the series with

An outrageous proposition

Elizabeth Spencer needs a man. Preferably one who won’t be too picky about the morality of her proposition, or his reputation. Lord Constantine Alexander can’t afford another trip to debtors’ prison, which makes him the perfect candidate. She doesn’t expect him to have a heart of gold, or to hold up his end of the bargain—particularly when his high-in-the-instep family gets involved. Nor does she expect to find him irresistible, because while she needs a man, she doesn’t particularly want one.

A wicked bargain

When a beautiful courtesan offers to satisfy his creditors, Con leaps at the opportunity. Never mind his mother and brothers are suspicious of his newfound fortune—being with Elizabeth is intoxicating enough to wipe any thought of scruples away. He soon realizes it’s not just his future he’s been gambling, but his future family. How can he convince London’s premier courtesan he’s more than a callow rake?

Then make sure you’ve read the bonus extended prologue for The Art of Ruining a Rake!