Lady Hawk's Folly by Amanda Scott Read Free Book Online Page A

my father’s room.”
    “I know that, sir,” she replied evenly. “My room, however, is still in its same place.”
    “Not tonight, Mollie.”
    She let out a small sigh of resignation, but gave it one last effort. “Please, my lord, I need time to accustom myself to your return. You have no right—”
    “I have every right, sweetheart. You are my wife.”
    Her eyes flashed and she controlled her voice only with an effort. “So I am, my lord. Do you expect me to prove my gratitude for the fact by bedding with you once or twice every four years?”
    She saw the muscles contract in his jaw and knew she had angered him, but the words had been said. She could not unsay them.
    Hawk looked into her eyes, and his voice was tight, so his words surprised her that much more. “I deserved that, Mollie, and I no doubt deserve to hear a good deal more of the same, but I’ll be damned if I’ll listen to such stuff here in the gallery, where the world can overhear us.” He placed a firm hand beneath her elbow. “We have much to discuss, you and I, and it is even possible that we might discuss some of it tonight. But whether we do or not, you are coming with me now. For, like it or not, you are my wife and will obey me when I wish to be obeyed.”
    She glared at him, but she knew she had lost. He was perfectly capable of carrying her if she refused to go with him peacefully. And it occurred to her as well that she ought not to fling her anger at him until she had discovered how much he had learned about her activities. She would not give in meekly, however. Head high, she placed her hand upon his forearm.
    “Very well, my lord, if you insist. It is indeed your right. I should prefer time to prepare properly for bed, however.”
    “Never mind that,” he retorted, his voice suddenly gruff. “I’ll attend to any preparation you need.”
    Flushing deeply, Mollie realized her last hope that he might merely be taking her to his bed to sleep had just been swept away. His words made it clear that he meant to claim his full marital rights. Her hand trembled slightly on his arm, and Hawk looked down at her. Her face retained its unnatural color, and her lips were drawn tightly together.
    Hawk patted her hand. “Don’t be afraid, sweetheart. I’ll be gentle.”
    Her gaze flickered upward. “I am not afraid, sir.” She wasn’t. He had, four years before, been a patient, considerate lover. So considerate, in fact, that he had scarcely touched her. On their wedding night he had dallied so long with her that she had been nearly ready to scream at him, to beg him to take her. Not that she had not been frightened at first, for she had been. She had known very little about the act of coupling. But with Hawk her fears had soon dissipated, and she had been fascinated by everything he had taught her. But he had been distressed when he had hurt her. It had been he who had insisted upon caution and patience, he who had insisted upon waiting until she had fully healed before indulging himself again in the delights of her body. Those had been his words, but Mollie had doubted him and wondered what she had done to displease him. His insistence upon departing for the Peninsula soon afterward had only reaffirmed her doubts. She wondered why, after so long away from something he had not been enthusiastic about to begin with, he was so anxious to bed her now.
    Nevertheless, even before they reached the huge master’s suite, her body had begun to respond to him. She could feel her blood stirring, feel the tiny hairs at the back of her neck tingling, the tips of her breasts pressing against the fabric of her gown. Even her toes seemed to want to curl in her satin slippers, and there was a stirring between her legs as well. Before he had shut the door, closing them into the candlelit room with its cheerful fire, its heavy, carved furniture and dark, ornate wall hangings, and the huge, beckoning bed, her knees had weakened and her nose and cheeks felt