Free Duke of Scandal by Adele Ashworth Page B

any discussion they might have. If that was the case, the poor, arrogant man would be in for a true challenge of female proportions. He just had no idea who he was dealing with, and that would serve her purpose.
    With a sweep of her skirts and a polite nod, Olivia grinned and walked elegantly to the waiting food.
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    He couldn’t possibly be more angry with himself for taking advantage of her like that, for using the situationto his benefit by confronting her not with words, but with overt lust. And yet he still wasn’t convinced she’d been all that surprised. She had come into his life, after all, and certainly with her own plans of attack. Yet tonight she had surprised him. Instead of storming out of the house, or breaking into tears, or even just slapping his face like any other woman might, she’d managed instead to remain composed, sitting across from him now, eating orange duckling and chestnut stuffing with grace and charm after a shockingly simple kiss that even she knew had numbed them both. The Lady Olivia Shea was different, an astute female, one who apparently enjoyed matching wits with the gentlemen in her life, and Sam wasn’t sure if he approved of her unusual nature or not. Not that his feelings were relevant in the least at this point.
    â€œHow is your dinner, Olivia?” he asked pleasantly.
    She glanced up from across the table as she delicately piled stuffing on her fork with her knife. “Delicious, thank you. And how is yours, your grace?”
    He grunted at her stilted demeanor. “Perfect.”
    She smiled agreeably and sliced once more into her roasted game. “You’ll have to mention to your friend that he’s employed a marvelous cook. Is he here this evening?”
    Sam had to shake himself from actually cursing aloud. Such a pointless and banal conversation. “Let’s discuss that rather enticing kiss we shared instead.”
    He watched her hesitate for only a fraction of a second, her fork halfway to her mouth. Then, without looking at him, she lowered it and remarked, “If we’re going to talk about something besides the weather andthe food, I’d rather discuss Edmund and what you’re going to do to help me get my funds returned to me.” She sat back and patted her mouth gently with her napkin. “I’ve been away from Nivan too long as it is, your grace; I need to return home soon to oversee my business. Though being a man of inherited wealth you may not completely understand that.”
    Although she impressed him with her ability to appear self-possessed and focused on her task in light of his somewhat improper suggestion, Sam nevertheless felt insulted from nothing more than the simple smile on her pretty pink mouth. Oddly enough, her feigned confidence both disgusted and aroused him.
    Shifting his chair, he placed his own knife and fork on his plate and relaxed against the cushion, resting his elbows on the armrests as he eyed her carefully. “I have a proposition for you, Olivia.”
    She raised her wineglass to her mouth, swallowed a sip, and licked her lips. “A proposition for retrieving my money, I’m assuming,” she said rather than asked, lowering her glass back to the table.
    This time her pleasant assurance absolutely did annoy him, though he refused to let her have the satisfaction of knowing it. Instead, he nodded slowly, pursing his lips in apparent thought. “Perhaps, although I’m not certain you’ll be so smug with yourself after hearing my thoughts.”
    Her mouth dropped open a bit, then closed again to form a tight line. “I am not smug, but that’s beside the point, your grace. Frankly, what you think of me is irrelevant.”
    â€œThe point is,” he explained, darkening his voicewith intensity as he sat forward, “what we think of each other is less important than what we can do for each other in this matter, Olivia.”
    Her smile gradually