An Affair So Right (Rebel Hearts #4)(35)

After five years of Adele’s theatrical thrashing, he was taken aback by Theodora’s quiet confirmation that his passion was exactly what a woman wanted. “Theodora?”

She licked her lips, chest heaving as she came down to earth again. After a while, her eyes opened and she stared at him sleepily. “Yes.”

He released her arms, fearing he’d been too rough. “Are you well?”

“Oh, indeed.” She slid her fingers up his arms to his face, and she brushed his lips with them.

Still hard and eager to tease this woman, he took one digit into his mouth and sucked deeply. Theodora groaned, quivered around his cock until he released her finger. She moved, tightened her legs about his hips, forcing him to slide within her body, creating glorious friction.

“Do that to me again,” she whispered.

“Which part?”

“All of it.”

He thrust again, pleased with her request. He wasn’t ready to come yet, and he certainly wasn’t ready to end their night so soon. “If you would allow me the honor, I’d have you stay in my bed until dawn,” he whispered.

“Yes!” Her smile was slow as she slid her palms down his sides. One delicately arched brow lifted. “Give me everything you are and more, please.”





Chapter 13





“Ah, Mr. Bellington. So good to meet you. I am Lord Templeton’s new secretary, Miss Theodora Dalton.” Theodora held out her hand to Lord Maitland’s rent collector, noting with approval the hard gleam in his eyes. They shook hands, hers almost crushed in his.

“Miss Dalton.” The man’s voice was like gravel, and she shivered imperceptibly. Rent collection was not for the weak of heart or the timid. She doubted Lord Maitland had ever missed a collection from one single tenant, thanks to the first impression this man made.

Bellington’s stare intensified, and then his attention darted about the room. She understood his apprehension perfectly. He was utterly out of place among Lord Maitland’s elegant furnishings. But then again, Bellington was not here to take tea.

Theodora adjusted the satchel on her shoulder containing the addresses and details of rents due to be collected that day. “Whenever you are ready, we may leave.”

“A moment,” Lord Maitland called as he rushed down the staircase toward her and Bellington.

Theodora’s breath caught. She’d been hoping to avoid her employer this morning. She wished to escape the inevitable after-sex conversation. She experienced a moment of acute discomfort as Lord Maitland smiled so warmly at her that her sex throbbed eagerly in response.

Theodora returned his smile politely, hoping to maintain her usual professionalism around him. The events of last night were not easy to set aside, unfortunately. She’d been satisfied in his bed. Far more thoroughly than she’d anticipated. “Good morning, my lord.”

Bellington tipped his head and mumbled out a rough, grumbled greeting to the viscount.

“Miss Dalton, I need to claim a moment of your time.” The viscount regarded her gravely, and then gestured her toward the drawing room.

Theodora acceded to Lord Maitland’s request reluctantly and stepped into the room. “Have I forgotten an appointment?”

“I will accompany you today.”

Theodora blinked, dreading the close proximity of a carriage with a man who’d set her senses on fire. She shook her head. “I assure you, I am more than ready for the task of collecting a little money.”

“Oh, I believe you.” His attention flickered to Bellington, where he waited in the entrance hall. He frowned at the man. “It has been some time since I toured my properties. We shall do so together, along with your chaperone.”

Theodora held back a wince. “I do not need a chaperone. I am in your carriage and will be protected by your staff. Do you not trust them to look after me?”

He clenched his jaw a moment before speaking. “Of course I do.”

No, he didn’t. This is exactly what Theodora had feared. Lord Maitland had an “I’m responsible for you” gleam in his eye today. She’d experienced his protectiveness on the night of the fire. To her mind, intimacy should change nothing between them. “I am on official business for you.”

“This is not a negotiation you can win, Theodora,” he warned. “I am coming with you.”

Theodora closed her eyes as a rush of heat swept her face when another memory from last night rose in her mind. They’d done that, too—found release at exactly the same moment because he’d demanded she wait until he allowed her to let go.

However much his bossiness in the bedchamber excited her, she could not afford to be distracted by him during the day.

She smiled and curtsied, lacing her expression with extreme deference. “As you wish, my lord.”

His eyes narrowed, and he held out his arm for her to take.

Theodora made a show of collecting the list of addresses from her satchel as she swept out ahead of him. “Mr. Bellington, shall we go?” An older housemaid appeared before Theodora could escape out the door. “Ah, Clare, there you are.”

The woman smiled warmly, probably pleased by her unexpected outing. Escape from the drudgery of cleaning was always welcomed by any servant. Theodora could not begrudge the woman her easy day, but she could remain annoyed by Maitland’s highhandedness for as long as she wanted to.