She blushed lightly at the touch and he smiled. He saw she was not so immune to him as she would like him to think.
She sna
tched her hand away as Germaine continued to smile at him like a lovesick puppy. Madame Necker had excused herself and Sophie took this moment to excuse herself as well to join the line at the coffee and tea table.
She saw large porcelain pots containing tea and coffee that was being poured into cups with saucers and she concluded that the duke must have provided everything for this game. He was a wealthy man who enjoyed showing off.
“Don’t run away, I’m not the one who bites.” Sophie heard a whisper in her ear from behind her.
She sighed at the intrusion and turned to Sebastian as he licked his sensuous bottom lip, where she had inflicted the damage.
“Perhaps if you could behave yourself as any gentleman would, you wouldn’t be bitten,” she explained.
What gentleman could resist the temptation of tasting those delicious lips, he wondered.
“I’ll try to work on my proper behavior, mademoiselle,” he replied in a serious tone.
Sophie turned back to the queue and tried to ignore him. “What you do is of no concern to me, monsieur.”
“Bash.”
“I’m sorry?” She turned to him, confused.
“I’m called Sebastian. Though my friends and intimates call me ‘Bash,’” he clarified.
“Then I will call you monsieur.”
Sebastian laughed as the line advanced. “I came to find you. I have a message for you from the duke.”
Sophie frowned and then realized he spoke the truth. “The secretary. You’re the secretary.”
“I am.”
“The message?” she asked impatiently.
He gave her the time and place of the duke’s residence and informed her that a carriage would arrive a half hour before dinner to transport her and her grandmother to the duke’s home in a few days’ time.
“Merci, monsieur.”
“You should be careful, mademoiselle,” Sebastian said seriously.
“Excuse me?”
“The duke’s reputation.”
Sophie almost laughed. “His reputation?”
“Yes, with women.”
Sophie laughed and her creamy throat was exposed. Sebastian wanted to run his fingers down its length and cover her mouth with his.
“You mean he kisses strange women in the park without asking?”
Sebastian shook his head at the girl’s sharp tongue. “Sophie—”
“Excuse me.” The line had reached the front. She received her cup and saucer filled with tea as requested, and returned to the table with Germaine.
***