So it was imperative the child never discover the truth of his origins, and yet Aiden was well aware that long-buried secrets had a way of being uncovered. His mum’s garden proved that. Within it, she had laid to rest the first two children brought to her. Mick’s discovery of an unmarked grave when he was eight had led to them all learning that she hadn’t given birth to them but that they had been handed over to her because others had not wanted them. Fear of others discovering what she had done kept her tethered to her shambles of a residence when they all wanted to move her into something more luxurious. Yes, secrets had a way of haunting their holders.

Noting that she’d stirred him awake, she straightened. “We’ll be arriving soon. You might want to move over here in order to catch the view at its most impressive.”

She scooted nearer to the window, giving him ample room to settle in beside her. The strawberries that had been a faint whiff on the air now wrapped in earnest around him, and he was tempted to lean in and nibble on her neck, outline the shell of her ear with his tongue, nip at her lobe. Resisting her was testing the limits of his endurance when it came to the Duchess of Lushing. Never before had he found it so difficult not to succumb to his desires. Insisting on making this journey had been foolish because it kept them in such close proximity, made him begin reordering his priorities. Perhaps he was being overly stubborn to take such care to never plant his seed. His father certainly hadn’t cared. Perhaps that was the reason Aiden did.

As the carriage turned onto a narrower road, he rolled into her, buffeting his chest against her shoulder. He could have sworn she very nearly turned into him because he felt the subtle shift in her body, as though it recognized where it belonged, nestled up against him.

She stiffened, straightened, moved nearer to the wall of the coach. He was tempted to taunt her, tease her, skim his knuckles along her cheek, convince her with strategized touches to give herself over to him without his capitulation to her terms. To be content to have him, even if it meant no offspring.

“You can see it as easily if you lean the other way and look out the window nearer to you.” Her voice was flat, and he suspected she’d meant for the words to come out as tart as a lemon. Instead they held a bit of regret.

“I prefer this view because even if it does not impress me, what I see out of the corner of my eye is most pleasing.”

She gave a curt laugh. “Aiden, you are such a flirt. Please don’t try to charm me. I wish I could make you understand how serious this matter is.”