The Reluctant Duke

Unless that was the very reason Lucan was being so insistent?

This man was hard, cold, ruthless. A man used to people doing exactly as he wanted them to. Who insisted on it. By arguing with him Lexie had no doubt she was just making Lucan all the more determined to bend her to his indomitable will.

And Lexie, fool that she was, had placed herself—and Premier Personnel—in a position where she could do nothing to stop him.

Her eyes glittered her dislike as she glared up at him. ‘An hour, I believe you said?’

Lucan felt absolutely no satisfaction in having forced Lexie to his will. Just as he had absolutely no idea what thoughts had been going through that beautiful head while Lexie deliberated as to whether or not she was going to do as he asked. But whatever those thoughts had been they didn’t appear to have been particularly pleasant ones.

He couldn’t read this woman at all—which was unusual in itself; most women of his acquaintance seemed intent on either sharing his bed or attempting to get him to the altar. Usually with an avaricious eye on the fortune and power he had amassed these last ten years.

Lexie Hamilton made it obvious she was unimpressed with both him and his obvious wealth, and behaved towards him accordingly. Namely, she treated him with an offhand disdain that—contrary to what she’d obviously hoped—had only succeeded in increasing his interest in her.

Enough so that he welcomed the distraction of her presence, unwilling or otherwise, during this forced second visit to Mulberry Hall in as many weeks.

‘An hour,’ he confirmed abruptly.

She nodded. ‘Would you like me to find out the times of the trains?’

‘I intend driving up,’ Lucan dismissed. ‘Normally we would have flown up in the company-owned helicopter, but it’s being serviced at the moment.’

The St Claires really were a breed apart, Lexie decided slightly dazedly. Super-rich. Super-powerful.

How on earth her gentle and unassuming grandmother had ever dared to fall in love with the head of that rich and powerful family was a wonder in itself!

‘Silly me.’ Lexie grimaced.

He nodded. ‘You should pack warm clothing—’

‘I believe I’m intelligent enough to have worked that out for myself,’ she snapped in her irritation.

‘I don’t think I’ve ever given you reason to think I believe you lacking in intelligence, Lexie,’ he assured her huskily.

‘So far,’ she challenged.

‘Ever,’ Lucan corrected gruffly.

Lexie looked at him uncertainly, slightly unnerved by the throaty huskiness of his tone, and even more so by what she could see in those dark eyes as Lucan steadily returned her gaze.

Dear Lord, she was going away with this man for two days. Would be in his company for the same amount of time. Constantly in his disturbing company…!

‘I’ll be back within the hour,’ she confirmed.

But first Lexie had to go to the office of Premier Personnel and explain the situation to Brenda.

Attempt to explain something Lexie couldn’t fully explain to herself!

‘Put your seat belt on,’ Lucan advised as he turned on the ignition of his black Range Rover.

Lexie had looked disturbingly attractive when she’d returned to the offices of the St Claire Corporation an hour or so ago, carrying a thick calf-length woollen coat and an overnight bag, and dressed in a blue sweater the same colour as her eyes, with denims that fitted snugly over that shapely bottom and slender legs before being tucked into calf-high boots. The long length of that gloriously wild black hair was secured in a loose plait down her spine, revealing that she wore small pearls in the lobes of her ears. An oval gold locket was also visible against the blue of her sweater.

Closed in the confines of the Range Rover with her, Lucan was also aware of the subtleness of the perfume she wore, along with a softer, even more subtle smell that was provocatively feminine. In fact the small and very womanly bundle beside him was—as Lucan had hoped she would be—a distraction from the fact that their destination was Mulberry Hall.

Although Lucan knew that no one, and nothing, would ever make him feel completely relaxed about returning to the house he had lived in until he was eleven years old.

Lucan knew from attending Jordan’s wedding almost a week ago that the house had changed little since he’d last spent any time there. There was no reason for it to have done. The furnishings and draperies were antiques, the floors downstairs mainly marble, the paintings on the walls originals, as were the ornamental statues, and the impressive chandeliers that hung from the high ceilings were of very old Venetian glass.

No, there was no doubting that Mulberry Hall was a beautiful house. A gracious house. A house fit for a duke. The Duke of Stourbridge. A title Lucan currently held.

Something else he had avoided thinking about for the last eight years.

As the eldest child of a broken marriage Lucan had found it all too easy to blame Mulberry Hall and the demands of holding the title of Duke of Stourbridge, as much as his father’s and Sian Thomas’s affair, for wrecking his parents’ marriage and creating a schism in his own young life and that of his brothers. Lucan wanted to avoid all of those things. Mulberry Hall. His father. The title of Duke. Most of all, Sian Thomas—the woman Alexander had loved enough to sacrifice his whole family for.

Initially, after the divorce was over and emotions had calmed somewhat, Alexander had tried to encourage his three sons to meet and get to know Sian Thomas. An encouragement that had fallen on stony ground as they’d all refused to go anywhere near the woman they held responsible for their parents’ separation and divorce.

Damn it, Lucan wouldn’t be going near the place again now if John Barton, the caretaker, hadn’t made it so obvious that he thought Lucan should see the damage to the house for himself.

Lucan had insisted on Lexie Hamilton coming with him because he had hoped her sharp-tongued presence would be enough of a diversion for him to repress these grim and disturbing thoughts—at least until he actually reached Gloucestershire and could no longer avoid them!

A scowling glance in her direction showed Lucan that she was, in fact, gazing out of the side window of the car as they drove out of London, obviously enjoying the winter wonderland England had become following yet another heavy snowfall two days earlier. The roads had been cleared, at least, but the countryside was still covered in a thick layer of cold and haunting beauty.

Those blue sooty-lashed eyes were bright with pleasure when Lexie turned to return his gaze. ‘Everywhere looks so beautiful when it’s covered in snow, doesn’t it?’

Lucan’s mouth twisted derisively. ‘Much like papering over the cracks in life and hoping no one will notice!’

Lexie frowned slightly as she became aware of Lucan’s obvious tension. ‘It doesn’t have to be like that.’

He gave a weary sigh. ‘Please tell me you aren’t one of those people whose glass is always half-full rather than half-empty?’

Lexie felt her cheeks warm at Lucan’s obvious derision. ‘It’s preferable to being a cynic!’

‘I prefer to think of myself as a realist,’ he rasped.

‘Which is just a polite way of saying you’re a cynic,’ she dismissed.

He gave her a derisive glance. ‘I don’t believe that politeness is exactly your forte, Lexie!’

‘Or yours!’ she came back tartly.

‘True,’ Lucan murmured softly.

Lexie gave him a sharp glance. ‘Don’t tell me we actually agree on something?’

‘Unusual, but the answer to that would appear to be yes,’ he drawled ruefully.

‘Wow!’

‘Wow, indeed,’ Lucan echoed dryly. ‘This is going to be a long drive, Lexie, so why don’t you pass some of the time away by telling me a little about yourself?’ he encouraged.

Lexie stiffened warily. Lucan wanted her to tell him about herself? Such as what? Who her parents were? Her grandmother?

Every part of Lexie’s life was a minefield of facts that, if revealed, would probably result in Lucan stopping the car right now and simply throwing her out into this stark and snow-covered landscape!

Which wasn’t an altogether bad idea, considering the circumstances.

She moistened dry lips. ‘Why don’t you tell me about yourself instead?’

His mouth tightened. ‘Perhaps we should just put on some music?’

Lexie slowly breathed her relief that Lucan wasn’t going to insist on pursuing the subject of herself. It was also interesting to realise that Lucan was as reluctant to talk about himself as she was.

She couldn’t help wondering why that was. Surely the life of Lucan St Claire, billionaire entrepreneur, was pretty much an open book? The business life of billionaire entrepreneur Lucan St Claire, maybe, but obviously there were things about his private life that Lucan preferred not to talk about.

His reticence instantly made Lexie wonder exactly what those things could be.

Perhaps a woman…?

She looked at him from beneath ebony lashes. The darkness of his hair really would look more attractive if worn a little longer, and the bleak expression in those almost black eyes as he concentrated on driving was off-putting, but neither of those things detracted from the fact that his was a magnetically handsome face. As for the leashed power of that taut and obviously toned body—

Oh, please, no…!

Lexie recoiled with inward horror. She had only wanted to meet Lucan St Claire—to see for herself how cold and ruthless he was. Becoming physically aware of him, actually finding him attractive, had not been part of her plan.

As much as accompanying Lucan to Mulberry Hall in Gloucestershire hadn’t been part of Lexie’s plan.

‘What sort of music do you like?’

Lexie blinked before focusing on Lucan with effort. ‘Classical, mostly.’ She shrugged.

Dark brows rose over those almost black eyes as he glanced at her. ‘Really?’

‘Yes, really,’ she confirmed sharply. ‘Did you imagine I might like heavy rock or something?’ she added scathingly.

‘Not at all. I’m just surprised that we have the same taste in music, that’s all.’ He reached forward to switch on the radio, and the car was instantly filled with the soft and haunting strains of Mozart.

It would have to be Mozart!

Her grandmother’s favourite composer.

Lexie had occasionally stayed with Nanna Sian on her own for several weeks during the school summer holidays when she was growing up and her parents had had to work. Weeks when Mozart would invariably be playing on the CD player her grandmother kept in the kitchen.

In the kitchen of the cottage where her grandmother still lived—which was only half a mile away from Mulberry Hall.

Lexie was starting to feel ill—and it had nothing to do with travel sickness.

‘Perhaps when we get there you’ll find the damage to the house in Gloucestershire isn’t as bad as Mr Barton thinks it is and we’ll be able to return to town tomorrow?’ she said hopefully.

Lucan glanced at Lexie from between narrowed lids as he heard almost a note of desperation in her voice. Because she didn’t want to spend a couple of days in rural Gloucestershire with him? Or because she had a need to get back to something—someone—in London as soon as possible?

Both of those explanations were somehow unsatisfactory to Lucan.

‘And perhaps I’ll find it’s worse than I thought and we’ll have to stay for a week,’ he drawled mockingly—a remark that resulted in those blue eyes widening slightly in dismay before the emotion was quickly controlled. ‘Do you have personal commitments that make being away awkward for you?’ Lucan asked, and scowled.

‘Personal commitments? ‘ She frowned.

‘Husband? Live-in-lover? Boyfriend?’

‘No, of course not,’ she answered irritably.

Lucan relaxed slightly. ‘And I’m sure you must have had to go away on business before with your employers?’

‘Well… I—Yes. Of course.’ She seemed slightly flustered. ‘It’s just—I’m only supposed to be working for you for a total of three days,’ she reminded him tersely.

‘I’m sure your agency will understand if our return is delayed for any reason,’ Lucan growled unsympathetically.

‘I’m not sure that I will!’ she came back pertly.

Lucan felt his irritation increasing at Lexie’s continuing arguments. Damn it, hadn’t his New Year got off to enough of a bad start already without—?

Redirected anger, Lucan recognised grimly. Not that Lexie wasn’t infuriating—she undoubtedly was. But Lucan knew it was his own frustration and annoyance at having to return to Mulberry Hall again so soon that was making his mood so volatile. Otherwise Lucan knew he would have put this woman firmly, chillingly, in her place by now.

Except Lucan wasn’t completely sure what her place was.

Stretched out naked on his bed, that glorious long dark hair splayed behind her on the pillows as he explored every inch of her silken body with his lips and hands, was the place he could most easily picture her.

Lucan shifted uncomfortably in his seat as he felt himself harden just at imagining kissing every silken inch of her naked body. ‘As I believe I have already made clear—several times,’ he added grimly, ‘your own requirements in this matter are of little importance to me.’

Lexie gave a snort as she shook her head disgustedly. ‘With a selfish attitude like that I have no idea why you were in the least surprised when Jessica Brown walked out on you without notice!’

Lucan gave a hard and humourless smile. ‘What a pity you aren’t in a position to do the same…’

‘Isn’t it?’ Lexie returned, saccharine-sweet.

Really, this man was totally obnoxious. Arrogant. Haughty. Cold. Mocking.

And so darkly attractive he took Lexie’s breath away. Something that certainly wasn’t going to help her through the next trying couple of days.

CHAPTER FOUR

‘WELL,’ Lucan bit out tersely, having climbed out of the Range Rover to pull on his heavy jacket, before moving round to the passenger side of the parked vehicle to open Lexie’s door for her.

Lexie’s heart was beating a wild tattoo as she slowly got out of the car to look up at the mellow-stoned magnificence that was Mulberry Hall as it towered majestically over the snow-covered grounds of the Stourbridge estate.

A house and estate Lexie was more familiar with than she wanted the man at her side ever to know.

She turned to look up at him challengingly. ‘Well, what?’

He raised dark and mocking brows. ‘It’s been my experience so far in our acquaintance that you usually have something to say about most things…’

Lexie deliberately kept her expression non-committal as she glanced back at Mulberry Hall. ‘I’m betting the electricity bills are high!’

Lucan’s bark of laughter was completely spontaneous. Something that seemed, surprisingly, to have occurred several times in the company of this particular woman. Rare indeed, Lucan acknowledged ruefully, for a man usually known for his grimness rather than his sense of humour.

Even rarer for Lexie not to have made some sort of cutting remark on the obvious and exclusive grandeur that was Mulberry Hall.

‘Shouldn’t we go inside? ‘ she prompted pointedly.

Lucan nodded abruptly. ‘Time to assess the damage.’ He took a firm hold of Lexie’s arm as he glanced up at the blue tarpaulin that had been fixed temporarily over part of the roof of the west wing of the house. ‘I wouldn’t want you to fall over and break a leg,’ he drawled mockingly when she frowned up at him.

‘In case I sue you? ‘ she taunted.

‘The way this year’s gone so far, it’s a distinct possibility!’ Lucan’s other hand reached out instinctively to steady her as she would have slipped on one of the icy steps leading up to the huge front door, the movement turning her slightly and bringing her into close contact with the hardness of his chest.

Lexie stopped breathing as she felt the warmth of his body envelop her. As she became totally aware of the hardness of his chest and abdomen against her breasts, his firmly muscled legs against her much softer ones.

Even the air about them seemed to still in recognition of that awareness. There had been another fresh fall of snow the previous day, and several inches now covered the surrounding countryside, seeming to surround them in eerie silence.

Lexie slowly raised her head. And then wished she hadn’t as she was immediately held captive by the intensity of Lucan’s dark and fathomless eyes. The stillness of that air about them became charged, heated, as Lexie found herself unable to look away.

Close to, like this, she could see that those eyes were a deep chocolate-brown surrounded by a ring of black. Dark and compelling eyes. Eyes that Lexie knew she could drown in. Deep and fathomless eyes that seemed to turn to the deep brown of hot liquid chocolate as she continued to stare up at him.

Eyes that Lexie suddenly realised were coming closer as Lucan lowered his head and that firm and yet sensual mouth came within touching distance of her own.

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