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Poppy was dressed in her best gown, a violet silk that shiht moved over it The unique color had been achieved with a new synthetic dye, and it was so striking that little ornamentation was needed The bodice was intricately wrapped, leaving the tops of her shoulders bare, and the full, layered skirts rustled softly as she moved

Just as she set down the powder brush, Harry came to the doorway and surveyed her leisurely "No woht," he murmured

Poppy smiled and h "fine" seemed an entirely inadequate word to describe her husband

Harry was severely handsome in the formal scheme of black and white, his cravat crisp and snowy, his shoes highly polished He wore the elegant clothes with unselfconscious ease, so debonair and beguiling that it was easy to forget how calculating he was

"Is it ti a watch from his pocket, Harry consulted it "Fourteenno, thirteen minutes"

Her brows lifted as she sa battered and scratched the watch was "My goodness Youti it to her Poppy took the object carefully The watch was s war it open, she saw that the scarred and scratched metal had not been inscribed or adorned in any way

"Where did it come from?" she asked

Harry tucked the watch into his pocket His expression was inscrutable "Fro for London He said his father had given it to him years before, with the advice that when he beca a much finer watch And so my father passed it on to ht one for yourself?"

Harry shook his head

A perplexed smile touched her lips "I would say that you’ve had h success to ht he , but there was no humor in his expression Perturbed and fascinated, Poppy wondered how ain, how h

Perhaps there was no such thing as "enough" for Harry Rutledge

She was distracted fro froular leather case

"A present," Harry said, giving it to her

Her eyes rounded with surprise "You didn’t need to giveThank you I didn’t expectoh" This last as she opened the case and beheld a dialittering fire It was a heavy garland of sparkling flowers and quatrefoil links

"Do you like it?" Harry asked casually

"Yes, of course, it’sbreathtaking" Poppy had never i such jewelry The only necklace she possessed was a single pearl on a chain "Shall Ishall I wear it tonight?"

"I think it would be appropriate with that gown" Harry took the necklace froently around her neck The cold weight of the diaers at her nape elicited a shiver He rehtly on the curves of her neck,in a warm stroke to the tops of her shoulders "Lovely," heis as beautiful as your bare skin"

Poppy stared into the looking glass, not at her flushed face, but at his hands on her skin They were both still, watching their shared reflection as if they were two forms encased in ice

His handsa priceless work of art With the tip of his er, he traced the line of her collarbone to the hollow at the base of her throat

Feeling agitated, Poppy pulled away fro around the little chair "Thank you," she ed to say Cautiously sheover his shoulders

It wasin Harry’s expression that touched her She had sometimes seen the same expression on Leo’s face in childhood, when he had been caught in one to their mother with a bouquet of flowers or so her farther up against him He smelled delicious, and he arm and hard beneath the layers of linen, silk and wool The soft gust of his breath against her neck was ragged at the finish

Closing her eyes, Poppy let herself lean against hi up to the juncture of her neck and jaw She felt warm from the botto surprising in the eether, softness and hardness, pliancy and tension It seemed that every curve of her was perfectly reconciled with his ainst hier

But Harry chose to take more than had been offered His hand went to the side of her head, easing her back at just the right angle to kiss her His mouth descended swiftly Poppy arched and twisted away fro an aard collision of their heads

She turned to face him, refusal stamped on her expression

The evasion seemed to have stunned Harry Sparks of wrath kindled in his eyes, as if she had been vastly unfair "It seeinal theatrics has been lifted"

Poppy replied with stilted dignity "I don’t think it’s theatrical to pull ahen I don’t want to be kissed"

"A diaain?"

Her cheeks went scarlet "I appreciate your generosity But you’re wrong to think that you can buy or bargain for my favors I’m not a mistress, Harry"

"Obviously Because in return for such a necklace, a ly and offer to do whatever I wanted"

"I’ve never denied you your o to that bed willingly and do whatever you want, this very ave me a necklace, as if it were part of soarded her with gathering outrage "The thought of you laid out like a martyr on the sacrificial altar is not what I had into sub "Why er to lie with you, when you’re not the husband I wanted?"

The very second the words left her lips, Poppy regretted them But it was too late Harry’s eyes turned to ice His lips parted, and she braced herself, knowing he was about to say so

Instead, he turned and walked from the room

Sub repeatedly

Submit to himas if he were some loathsome toad, when soed for his attentions Sensuous, acco to satisfy his most exotic desiresin fact, he could have one of theh that he could function normally, Harry went back into Poppy’s bedrooo down to supper She sent hi, but she had the sense to keep her mouth shut

"You’re not the husband I wanted"

And he never would be No ae it

But Harry would continue to play out his hand Poppy was legally his, and God knew he had money on his side Time would have to take care of the rest

The forlanced at the other end of the long table, he saw that Poppy was acquitting herself splendidly She was relaxed and s to charm her companions It was exactly as Harry had expected: the sairl were admired in a married woman Poppy’s acute observations and her enjoy than a deaze