Free A Little Bit Wicked by Robyn DeHart Page A

unable to help it. “There is a language of the fan? And a covert language, at that.” He released a low whistle. “The queen really ought enlist some women to serve in the espionage department. You lot are a clever bunch.”
    “Yes, well, don’t allow our secret to escape. Were it known that we actually could do everything, you men would stop earning your keep. Now then—“ She held the fan up to her face, staring at him over its blade coquettishly. “There is much a woman can say to you with only her fan.” She dropped the fan and waved it quickly in front of her. “See how rapidly I am fanning myself? This means I am engaged. If I slow it down, it means I am already married.”
    He leaned back in the chair and watched her. This was going to be a most interesting afternoon. She might not have realized it, but this little exercise was allowing Vivian to flirt with him, and he found that to be most entertaining.
    “This,” she said, opening and closing the fan, “means that I find you cruel. But this,” she said, touching the closed fan to her right ear, “means that you have changed.”
    “For better or worse?”
    “I suppose that depends on the individuals involved.” She continued moving the fan about and it all seemed a ridiculous means of communication to him, but he found her charming.
    She was intent on finding him a bride, and he had to wonder what it was about him that ruffled her so. Vivian was no longer a young miss on the marriage mart. She was a woman of means old enough to make decisions of her own. She had no men in her life dictating her every move. Why, then, was she so reluctant to give in to her own desires? He knew she wanted him. Her fan might be saying otherwise—at the moment she was telling him she despised him—but her eyes said something else entirely.
    “This means I want to speak to you alone.” She moved the fan so that the handle touched her lips. “And that means I want a kiss.”
    “I want a kiss, too,” he said.
    “Marcus, be serious, will you?”
    “I was being quite serious. I never jest about kissing.”
    She shook her head fervently. “It is important to remember that even if a woman makes such a gesture, you mustn’t give in to every girl who makes the request. There are plenty of lightskirts out there doing everything in their power to compromise themselves into a marriage with a titled gentleman.”
    “This all seems nothing but nonsense to me.”
    “Oh no, women can be quite crafty. Marriage is highly competitive in London. There are only so many handsome men who have other fine attributes such as your title and your wealth. Women will do what they can to make such a match, so as to not be saddled with an older gentleman with soured breath, despite his title and full coffers.”
    “That’s not what I meant,” he said. He leaned forward, bracing his elbows on his knees. “It seems foolish that women would have to come up with such a creative way to speak to a man. Would it not be more simple for her say what she wants?”
    “Oh, no, that would be unheard of. Improper, really. A woman should never admit to a man that she wishes he would court her or that she wants a kiss. Nor should she tell a man she believes him to be cruel. This is polite society, after all.” She placed the fan on the occasional table next to her.
    “We all certainly pretend to be polite quite well. It is so much simpler with animals. Do you know that when a lioness is ready to mate, she simply rolls around on the ground growling, and the male lion comes and mounts her? It’s that simple.”
    Vivian’s mouth had fallen open. Her breathing had tightened and her hands clenched the fabric of her skirt. He had obviously scandalized her with his information, but was it possible that he had aroused her as well? The very thought had lust surging through his veins, making his trousers uncomfortable.
    Vivian recovered quickly. She frowned. “That is not the type of conversation you