The Earl's Bargain (Historical Regency Romance) by Cheryl Bolen Page B

revealed nothing of himself.
    She stopped midway through donning her
woolen night shift and wondered what she really knew of him. That
he possessed a great deal of money was a certainty. His cousin
boasted of Lord Wycliff's ability to build a sizeable fortune after
being left virtually penniless by his squandering father. Louisa
also knew without doubt that the lord who was to share her room was
fiercely devoted to his mother. An admirable trait in a man, she
thought.
    But what else did she really know of him?
She recounted their many visits together and realized she knew only
the little he had allowed her observe, and little of it was
personal. She had no idea even of how he had amassed his fortune.
Nor did she know if he had ever been close to matrimony. She wrung
her hands, learning just now as she was about to share her bed with
him that the handsome nobleman was a virtual stranger.
    She donned her night rail, slid beneath the
warm blankets and blew out the candle. Weary from the day's travel,
she went to sleep almost immediately, careful to take less than
half of the bed.
    * * *
    Lying beneath the warm covers some hours
later and listening to the rhythmic breathing of the feminine
creature beside him, Harry could barely hold back the desire to
laugh. The silly woman had actually believed him when he told her
he had no desire for her. With every rise and fall of her breasts,
he wanted her. His desire for her was more keen than even the
desire to command his first ship. Or the desire to reclaim Wycliff
House. Or to regain his mother's portrait.
    Yet he had instinctively known Louisa
Phillips was not a woman to be taken lightly. She would certainly
not give herself to a man who did not plan to make her the center
of his life, and Harry knew the complex reformer was not the woman
for him. Why, she didn't even like men!
    He gave himself to trying to unravel the
puzzle that was Louisa Phillips. Why did she hate men with such
vehemence? The source, of course, pointed to the vile man who had
been her husband. What manner of man would leave a young thing like
that without provisions for a roof over her head?
    From something she had begun to say before
amending her words, Harry felt certain that Godwin Phillips had
raised his hand to his young bride. Harry could barely hold back
his curse. If Godwin Phillips were still alive, Harry would take
pleasure in beating him until his ugly face looked like a can of
maggots.
    As he lay beside her, Harry vowed he would
see that Louisa Phillips was comfortable for the rest of her life.
Whether she aided him in his quest or not.
    * * *
    The following morning they ate a hearty
breakfast before renewing their journey. He had awakened before she
did, slipped on his pantaloons -- for he had slept only in his
silken shirt -- and gone downstairs without disturbing her.
    That she had survived the night with her
virtue intact undoubtedly loosened her tongue this morning when she
met him in the parlor for breakfast. Gone were the scowls of the
night before.
    Through his restraint, he had earned her
approval.
    "I believe the innkeeper keeps fires blazing
in the rooms so they are warm when guests arrive," Louisa told him
between spoonfuls of porridge. "You must be generous to the man, my
lord."
    An amused grin lighted his tanned face. "As
you wish, madam."
    "From the indentation on the bed I surmise
that you slept in our room," she said, "but I declare I never knew
when you came."
    He watched as her cheeks grew rosy. He had
learned to detect her propensity to blush when things embarrassed
her. "Have I earned your trust, madam?"
    She shyly nodded. "I daresay it's because I
hold no appeal to you."
    He would play along with the charade.
"Please don't think you're not attractive, ma'am. I vow that any
number of men would find you desirable."
    Her scowl returned. "Then you lied when you
said I was the prettiest woman at Lord Seymour's?"
    He fairly spit out his tea. "Not at all,
madam. You were the prettiest