'Twas the Night After Christmas by Sabrina Jeffries Read Free Book Online Page A

insulted by his proposition that she would stop bothering him about his mother. That made far more sense than believing he actually meant it. She wasn’t the sort of woman whom notorious rakehells tried to seduce.
    She made herself look bewildered. “I’m afraid I don’t understand, my lord. How could I possibly entertain a worldly man like you?”
    His sudden black frown strengthened her supposition that his bargain was a humbug. “You know perfectly well how. After dinner is over, you and I will have our own party. Here. In my bedchamber, where you can slip in and out without being noticed. If I must spend dinner with her, then you must spend the night with me .”
    “Entertaining you,” she said primly, buying time to figure out what answer would best gain her what she wanted. “Yes, I understand that part. I’m just not sure what kind of entertainment you want.”
    He gritted his teeth. “Oh, for the love of God, you know precisely what kind of entertainment a ‘worldly man’ like me wants.”
    Now that she had caught on to his game, it was all she could do not to laugh at him. He was so transparent. What was wrong with all those women in London, that they didn’t see right through him?
    “On the contrary,” she said blithely. “I don’t know you well enough to know what you enjoy. Perhaps you would prefer me to sing for you or dance or read you a good play. I understand there is quite an extensive library at Montcliff Manor. Your mother says you bought most of the books yourself. I’m sure there is some volume of—”
    “I’m not talking about your reading to me!” he practically shouted.
    When she merely gazed at him with a feigned expression of innocence, he changed his demeanor. His eyes turned sultry, and a sensual smile crossed his lips. “I mean the kind of entertainment most widows prefer.”
    My, my, no wonder London ladies were rumored to jump into his bed. When he looked that way at a woman and spoke in that decidedly seductive voice, the average female probably melted into a puddle at his feet.
    It was a good thing she was not an average female. In her other posts, she’d seen plenty of rakehells seducing their way through halls and balls. So even though they’d never tried their skills on her, she had a good idea how to handle such scoundrels.
    This was a trickier situation, however. If she was not an average female, he was definitely not an average scoundrel.
    She pretended to muse a moment. “Entertainment that widows prefer . . . Works of charity? Taking care of their families? No, those are not actually entertaining, though they do pass the time.” She cocked her head. “I confess, my lord, that you have me at a complete loss.”
    Uh-oh, that was probably doing it up too brown, for understanding suddenly shone in his face. “Ah, I see you are deliberately provoking me. Well, then, let me spell it out for you. You’ll spend the night in my bed. Is that clear enough?”
    He said it in such a peeved manner that she couldn’t help but laugh. “Clear indeed, though preposterous.”
    His gaze narrowed on her. “How so?”
    Time to let him know she had caught on to his game. “I’m aware of your reputation, sir. I’m not the sort of woman you take to bed.”
    Something that looked remarkably like admiration glinted in his eyes. “I thought you said you didn’t know me all that well,” he drawled.
    “I know what kind of women you are most often seen with. By all accounts, they are tall, blowsy blondes with porcelain skin and clever hands.”
    He looked startled. “You do know my reputation.”
    She shrugged. “I read the papers. And your mother insists upon hearing all the stories of you, even the salacious ones.”
    Mention of his mother made his gaze harden. “Then you should know that men like me aren’t that discriminating.”
    “Oh, but I’m sure you’re discriminating enough not to wish to bed a short, mousy, freckled servant when there are any number of