Jade Lee - [Bridal Favors 03] by What the Bride Wore Read Free Book Online

looked at her, saw the desire in her eyes, and remembered the feel of her body swaying in his.
    Seduce her, his madness whispered.
    He refused to do that. And yet her gaze shot to his and held. In it, he saw thoughts upon thoughts. Calculations, most likely—the rolling scroll of numbers in the brain that made one’s head ache. He knew the feeling well. And he knew if he let it continue, good sense would prevail, and he would be lost.
    So he distracted her. He touched her cheek as a man might stroke his lover. He hadn’t intended it to be so intimate, but once his fingers met her cheek, his touch became a caress. His gaze slid to her lips. Her mouth was parted, an unconscious invitation. How he wanted to kiss her. How he wanted something a great deal more from her.
    But he couldn’t. Not now. Probably not ever. So with a silent curse, he pulled back on his lust. Eventually, all he managed to do was moderate his words to a hoarse rasp.
    “It is a good bargain,” he said. “For us both.”
    You’re a fool, his madness said.
    “Yes,” she whispered. For a moment, he thought she was agreeing to something else entirely. But then she elaborated—because she was a smart businesswoman—making her wishes very clear.
    “Yes, Mr. Grant, I will buy everything you have for five hundred pounds.”
    Idiot! You’re worth more than that!
    “Sold.”
    ***
    Grant’s madness was strangely silent as he sauntered into Mr. Rigby’s office. It made him nervous, but nothing could suppress the simmering excitement in his blood. Meanwhile, he was startled to see that Lord Lawton was already in the solicitor’s office. He was reading the newspaper as he sat across from Rigby’s huge desk. Both aristocrat and solicitor rose to their feet as Grant entered. In truth, Grant was somewhat surprised to see Lawton there. Certainly the man had been invited to this meeting, but aristocrats, as a rule, did not arrive at appointments on time. In fact, Grant had once thought himself punctual if he reported within an hour of the agreed-upon moment.
    He greeted each man cordially, but then quickly got down to business. He couldn’t suppress a grin as he handed the solicitor a neat stack of papers that included Mrs. Knopp’s banker’s check right at the top.
    “It’s all there,” he practically crowed. “Took me until this morning, Lawton, but I finally did it.”
    “You’ve enough to buy back your lands?” Lawton asked, surprise clear in his voice. Mr. Rigby wasted no time in sitting down to inspect every sheet. As he worked, Lawton peered over the man’s arm. “Amazing. And here I thought I’d been summoned to endure begging for an extension.”
    Grant stiffened at the insult, though God knew there’d been reason to doubt. That was exactly what the old Grant would have done. Five years ago. Before he’d turned over a new leaf. Before he’d learnt what it meant to work in a factory, day in and day out, until his hands bled and his mind screamed.
    “I wouldn’t insult you like that,” he said stiffly.
    Lawton shrugged as he straightened up. “Wouldn’t be an insult. Besides, I would have just said no. Got plans for that land.”
    Grant leaned back in his chair. “Of course you do. You’re selling it back to me. Every last rock, leaf, and drop.”
    Lawton looked over to where the solicitor was making a neat column of figures. The man was tabulating. Grant barely minded. Solicitors had to make their money somehow, and he would personally damn any man who wasn’t excruciatingly correct with his accounts. So, he didn’t begrudge the man the time he took. Well, he didn’t begrudge it much. Not until the man started going through it again. For a third time.
    “It’s all there,” Grant said. “A statement from my bank and my solicitor detailing the amount I have at my disposal. Add in Mrs… er, Mr. Knopp’s check, and it’s more than adequate.”
    “Of course, my lord,” the solicitor answered without more than a cursory