Free Her Notorious Viscount by Jenna Petersen

her breath when he did so. It was unfortunate that her gown was so plain. A drab muslin that was too big for her slender frame. But he had always had a fine imagination when it came to women, and Nicholas was still aware of the smooth curve of her breasts, the narrow expanse of her hips. He could easily imagine just how lovely she had looked when she wore fine silks and satins.
    “Is there anything you will require?” Gladwell asked, startling Nicholas into reality. He had actually forgotten that his servant was still standing there.
    “No, thank you. I will ring if we do,” Nicholas said with a nod of dismissal. The butler left, but did not shut the door behind him.
    With a roll of his eyes, Nicholas moved forward and did it himself before he turned to Jane with a smile. “He does not approve of our being alone. I assume he believes I’ll be ravishing you tonight.”
    Jane swallowed hard before she moved into the center of the room. “As long as he doesn’t share that belief with anyone who might tell those outside of this household, his misguided thoughts matter very little. There will be no ravishing.”
    Nicholas smiled. “Pity.”
    He expected her to turn or blush or acknowledge his quiet comment, but instead, she continued to look around the room, a finger pressed to her full bottom lip.
    “Hmm. We have much work to be done and I believe we can start much of it here. Later, of course, we shall need use of the dining room. And your ballroom. Do you think that can be arranged?”
    She turned to look at him, and Nicholas stared for a moment before he said, “Of course. If you tell me what you require, my staff will ensure it is done. I am at your beck and call, my lady.”
    He gave her a gallant bow and an audacious wink, but she did not react to either. Instead, she withdrew a small notebook and a small charcoal pencil from the pocket of her ugly gown.
    “Proper address,” she murmured as she scribbled something.
    Nicholas couldn’t help but notice that several of the square sheets were covered with her broad scrawl. He wrinkled his brow.
    “And just what is that?”
    She looked up at him as if she had forgotten his presence entirely. “It is a list of some of the items we will need to cover in your education.”
    She flipped the notebook to its first page and then turned the sheets until she reached her latest entry. Nicholas’s heart sank when he realized there were at least twenty-five entries on her list.
    “Is that all?” he said, sarcasm dripping from every syllable.
    She shrugged as she pocketed the notebook and pencil. “Probably not. I tend to think of a few additions every day. I’m certain I will find more as I come to know you better.”
    Nicholas suddenly wanted a drink, but he forced himself to remain where he was. He watched as Jane took a slow turn around him, examining him from head to toe. Normally such bold scrutiny by a lovely young woman would have been shocking. And this was. Only for a different reason than one might have expected.
    Jane seemed to be sizing him up as she would a pony or a fillet of beef at market. There was nothing blatant in her stare. In fact, she appeared to be unmoved by him in the slightest. No amount of flirtation seemed to make her even aware of him as a man at all, beyond her first unguarded moments when she stepped into the room.
    Despite himself, Nicholas was fascinated by this. This woman was a challenge. An utter riddle, and he found himself wanting to solve it. Find some way to break the protective shell she had put around herself.
    “Well, you are certainly going to look very well once you have some proper clothing,” she said, but it seemed she required no answer. “However, it is often not the clothing that makes a man, but how he wears it. If you stagger or lumber about like a giant, your fine accoutrements will do you no good.”
    “Do you require my participation in this conversation at all?” Nicholas asked, folding his arms across his