Alex concentrated on thinking about horse racing. Horse racing bored him to tears and so it had become his private instrument for bodily control. Wonder crept through him. His betrothed had just had an experience that many women never had, and she was coolly eating a sandwich. His eyes narrowed and he looked closer. Charlotte’s hands were trembling. In fact, as he watched, a tear snaked down her cheek.

Alex sighed. Miraculously the uncomfortable bulge in his pantaloons disappeared. He grabbed a cucumber sandwich for himself and slid over to sit beside his teary betrothed.

“Actually,” he said meditatively, “it won’t just happen again; it will be much better next time. Because this time I gave you pleasure, but next time we’ll give each other pleasure.”

Charlotte started. She hadn’t thought about him at all. “Is there something?” she asked.

“Oh, no. If you even touch me, I’ll detonate,” Alex said cheerfully. “You see,” he continued in a silky voice, “my body is clamoring to leap on top of you and ruin you, as they say, and it is only my great gentlemanly control and sense of honor that is keeping me here, eating this dry sandwich.” He put it back on the tray and frowningly selected another. “What I ought to do is kiss you in the carriage and then stroll into my club wearing these deuced uncomfortable pantaloons, and it would end all the rumors about my capabilities.”

Charlotte looked at him from under her lashes. His dark eyes slanted over to meet hers, the message in them undeniably seductive … and amused. Suddenly Charlotte giggled. It was rather funny, although not exactly as he thought. He didn’t want to ruin her by going any further on her mother’s Chinese divan, but he already had ruined her.

She touched his sleeve, still feeling a bit guilty. “Thank you,” she said.

At that Alex looked really startled, even shocked.

“What’s the matter?” she asked.

“Only one woman ever thanked me before—” He broke off, taking a bite of his sandwich.

“Have you had many lovers?”

“Hundreds … thousands …” Alex waved his sandwich in the air. Charlotte made a little moue of disapproval. He leaned over and looked into her eyes. “A gentleman never discusses his other conquests,” he said. “But since you will be my last conquest, I might as well tell you that I don’t remember ever being as aroused as I have been this afternoon … not in my whole life, and with all those thousands of women.”

Charlotte blushed.

“We stopped,” Alex said, “because I want to make love to you for an hour, two hours, on a comfortable bed.” His eyes glinted wickedly at her. “And I want us to be married. You’ll be wearing my ring, and you’ll be mine, and no one else’s. And I want your first experience to be the beginning of a long series of nights and days together.”