After all, if she was going to become a goddess of the demimondaine, she could not afford to stumble when she was amazed.
He studied her slowly as the water slipped over his skin like a caress.
“You’re very bold,” he said.
“Thank you,” she replied.
“I’m glad you take it as a compliment.”
“Was it meant as an insult?” She queried, averting her eyes from his sheer nakedness. She did not think she could face him fully just yet.
“No, it was not,” he said. “But I have not met many young ladies of the ton who would be willing to do what you are doing now. Perhaps you are not so very unlike your brother, after all.”
“Take it back,” she snapped, fury crackling through her.
“I beg your pardon?” he queried.
“I am nothing like him, and I do not wish you to ever couple my name with his again.”
“I apologize,” he said. “I did not know that you thought so poorly of him. Though he was a cad, he was determined.”
“How could I not?” she demanded.
“Well, I don’t know you, Cat,” he said softly. “You might be as villainous as he. After all, you’ve snuck into my house, you’ve cornered me, and you’ve made demands of me. I do not know if you are a good person. I only know what you have told me, which is an interesting and sympathetic tale.”
She licked her lips, his words resonating. “I do not know if I’m a good person. I hope I am. But I am nothing like him. I can promise you that.”
“I’m not interested in promises,” he said. “I’m only interested in action. So you’re going to have to show me the sort of person you are. If I’m honest, I like what I see.”
She swallowed. “Do you? I tempt you?”
“Oh yes, Cat.” His gaze slowly began to trail over her. “You tempt me very well indeed, but not by your body, which I can barely see underneath your cloak. Your eyes are fiery, for sure. I love your stance, which is all but daring me to come up and fight with you. And the tilt of your chin? It is a glorious thing to behold. Perhaps I shall cup it, tilt your head, and take your mouth.”
She swallowed.
Those words danced through her like wicked fire, and suddenly she realized she wanted him to do just that. Since she had abandoned all the rules that she had lived her life by, why not embrace the wildness that he suggested?
“Do it,” she commanded.
A slow laugh rumbled out of him. “Oh, Cat, if you think you are going to be a mistress, you are a fool. Mistresses do what their masters want.” His eyes met hers and he growled, “You’re a queen.”
“I am not a queen,” she stated, determined to keep her gaze locked with his and not wandering south.
“You are,” he countered. “It runs through your blood, that command. I can feel it emanating from you.”
“And what am I to do about it?” She demanded, feeling panic rise in her. Panic that he was going to turn her away.
“Keep it,” he replied. “We shall find a way to make it work for you. It certainly does the most interesting things to me when you tell me what to do. I have not had someone dare to do so since I was small.”
“And you like it?” She queried, astonished.
“I think I likeyou,” he said. “A very dangerous thing indeed. But I cannot tell as of yet.”
He stilled and something danced through his gaze she could not read.
A shadow. An echo of pain, and then it was gone as if he had banished it.
He arched a brow and cocked his chin towards the chair beside the fire. “Bring me that linen towel.”