The Widow's Auction by Sabrina Jeffries Read Free Book Online Page A

hadn’t occurred to him. Understandably so, since it was insane. “A stranger? You want to test the waters with a perfect stranger?”
    â€œEvery man is a stranger to a woman the first time she shares his bed.”
    Clever wench. Settling back against the seat, he eyed her with new respect. “An interesting point and one I’d never considered.”
    â€œWhy does that not surprise me, Lord Warbrooke?” she said dryly.
    â€œI thought you were going to call me Justin.”
    â€œThat was before you started acting as overbearing and pompous as–” She stopped herself with a look of chagrin.
    â€œAs who?” he prodded, though he’d swear she’d been going to say, “as usual.”
    She glanced away. “Another man I know, that’s all.”
    â€œAh. Your late husband, perhaps?”
    â€œNo, indeed!”
    His curiosity about her deepened. “Your husband wasn’t overbearing?” Kingsley had never been overbearing in public, but as she’d said, a man could be a very different person in the marriage bed.
    â€œMy husband was the most amiable man I ever knew,” she said softly.
    The pang of jealousy that struck him out of nowhere made him peevish. Why the devil did he care anyway? Of course she spoke well of her late husband. He’d think less of her if she didn’t.
    Instead of letting it pique him, he should be using it to bring her to her senses. “What would this ‘amiable’ husband of yours think of your going off with a strange man for the evening?”
    â€œHe’d be appalled,” she said in a small voice.
    â€œAnd that doesn’t matter to you?”
    â€œCertainly it matters.” She eyed him through the mask with a steady gaze. “But as a friend of mine recently said, I have to stop pining after my late husband and learn how to be with someone else.”
    So Justin was the “someone else” she planned to “be with” to test the waters? Like hell he was! And who was this bloody friend advising her to do all this nonsense anyway?
    He only had to think a moment to come up with the answer. Phoebe Chambers. No doubt she’d been somewhere on that dais, too. The two widows were as thick as thieves. Although he’d never heard any scandal attached to Mrs. Chambers’s name, she did seem the sort to know about sponges. “I suppose this is the same friend who urged you to participate in the auction.”
    â€œWhat if it is?” Her stubborn chin quivered. “She gave me good advice. I don’t regret following it.”
    â€œGlad to hear it,” he said wryly. “If you did regret it, it would mean I hadn’t proved much of a companion so far.” The carriage jolted to a halt, and lamplight flooded the carriage. In the next moment, the door was opened by a liveried footman. “Time for dinner,” Justin added.
    As they left the carriage, he slipped his arm about her waist to lead her inside, wanting to see how she might react. He’d expected her to flinch or draw away, but instead she leaned timidly into the curve of his arm and shoulder.
    Desire bolted through him, sudden and unanticipated. Bloody hell, she made him want to wrap his arms around her and kiss her senseless again. And all just by cozying up to him!
    This unaccountable lust was insane. Irrational. Infuriating.
    And no less infuriating because she seemed determined to satisfy it. That was the most outrageous thing of all. Lady Kingsley ready to leap into his bed for a night of wanton pleasure? It was impossible. She’d never really do it.
    Unfortunately, part of him was more than eager to test her willingness. Part of him thought that taking Bella to his bed was an enormously appealing idea. Which was why he must remember that she was not Bella but Lady Kingsley, no matter what she pretended.
    A few moment’s discussion with the hotel manager and a handful of gold coins was