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‘So doing your duty is an aggravation, is it?’

‘Certainly I doubt I’ll have any ti, not if I’m to do this properly’

‘You’ll need a wife Ti up your nursery’ He narrowed his eyes in calculation ‘Not that young woht with you Pleasant chit, unspoiled, I like that But no family from what I could extract from her’

‘No’ No fae her, that was certain The heir to an earldoht froitihbour It had not struck hiht want to e in black and white in the Peerage Foolish that, to be so attracted to a woman, to feel so protective of her, so aroused by her and not realise that he was developing feelings that went far deeper than affection Foolish and damnably painful

It was te to announce that he would never marry and to stick the knife in that way, but that, too, was foolish He had to wed; he knew that now All he had to do was accept it

‘I’ll squire Maria around for her Season That will expose ibles’ It would make him feel like a buyer at a cattle market How the devil did you coh to her heart, and after last night he thought he probably knew her soul deep, as well

He couldn’t just abandon her, not after she had given hi, and all because she saw him as another stray to care for, like Dorcas and Annie or that daet her to accept an allowance

‘What’syou look so sour?’ The earl tossed back a mouthful of brandy

My guilty conscience And this daht of Al deep into his reserves of patience and diplo, but he had to make this work for the sake of hisand we’ll work this out’ Somehow

Tessabsurdly conspicuous No one had observed her whispered consultation with MacDonald, Dorcas and Byfleet, but she was sure Lady Moreland would thoroughly disapprove What she would think about how her son had spent the previous night, Tess shuddered to think The shudder turned into a frisson of reht of Alex’s hands on her body, just as she turned a corner and walked straight into him

‘Alex’