Free Winning a Lady's Heart by Christi Caldwell

grandfather’s seat.
    She leaned down and kissed his wrinkling cheek. “Thank you so much, Grandfather. I love you,” she whispered.
    His throat bobbed up and down, and he deliberately cleared it. “Off with you now, Alex.”
    Alexandra rose and hurried to Nathan’s side. She smiled up at him and they took two steps to leave when Grandfather’s next words reached them.
    “Oh, and Tewkesbury, with only three days until Christmas, I’m going to insist you return to London. I’ll not have you spoil any of my offspring’s Christmastide.”

Alexandra sneaked down the second stairwell of Danby Castle, stealing a peek over her shoulder to make sure one of the many cousins, aunts, uncles, or various other relatives in attendance for Christmastide were not privy to her actions.
    An eager excitement to see Nathan flooded her, filled her, and for the first time she wasn’t able to count steps, stairs, or anything other than the moments it took to see him.
    She reached the kitchen doors and shoved them open. In dire need of oil, the door hinges creaked. She flinched as the sound resonated from the walls like a gunshot in church.
    The Duke of Danby’s doors did not creak. But then the Duke of Danby did not display affection or play the role of matchmaker, and yet this Christmastide he’d done all those things. Looking around to verify she remained alone, she stepped inside.
    The soft glow from the kitchen fireplace illuminated the large room, casting the room in flickering shadows.
    Until the day she was an old woman gone grey, Alexandra would always remember Nathan that Christmas night, as he stood looking at her across the long kitchen like she was the only woman in the world.
    “At last,” Nathan called quietly, his deep mellifluous voice flowing over her like a silken caress. He stood beside the long, rectangular table where the staff would take supper. There were two flutes of champagne.
    She moved deeper into the kitchen and stood before him. His hands clasped her at the waist, as he gently tugged her towards him.
    Alexandra sighed and twisted her fingers in his luscious, dark locks and kissed him like it was their last night in the world. He tasted of dark chocolate and spice, the perfect delectable Christmas treat. Their tongues boldly sparred as they reacquainted themselves with their lover’s embrace.
    Nathan’s hands traced a path over her body, the pale blue wrapper and shift she wore offering little hindrance to the heat of his skin on her own.
    His hand cupped the underside of her breast and gently flicked the swollen tip as her head fell back on a guttural moan. Her legs went limp and she collapsed in his arms, but he was guiding her back to the table. The cool, hard wood of the table met her buttocks, and he settled himself between her legs.
    Then his lips were tracing a seductive trail from the corner of her lips, down her cheek, along the sensitive skin on the inside of her neck. Her head fell back on a whimper.
    He made to lay her down and—
    Crash!
    The thunderous sound of shattering crystal rent the midnight silence, and they parted, breathless, frantically searching around for the intruder.
    When no cries or shouts met their scandalous actions, Nathan dropped his forehead atop hers and rubbed it back and forth, chuckling.
    “I suppose that was a reminder that with all Danby’s done, I should not disrespect his household.”
    Alexandra groaned in protest but wrapped her arms around him and held tight. She pressed her cheek against the crisp, clean, white linen shirt and felt the steady thump-thump-thump-thump of his heart.
    “My grandfather has never been a romantic. I’ve never felt like anything more than a troublesome child to him. He’s always been a stickler for propriety and respectability, and I can never know why he was so accepting of our scandal.”
    Nathan’s fingers traced a patterned circle over her back. There was a stretch of silence before he spoke. “Danby had a man in London