She had two married sisters and a houseful of females, especially since moving into Haverston Hall. Staff members gossiped and they didn’t always pay attention to who was lurking about. Information abounded. She’d only needed to ferret it out.

Now, after much eavesdropping and snooping, she could say that she understood the basic mechanics of sexual congress. She even knew beyond basic mechanics. She knew there were ways to stimulate outside of traditional coupling.

She had learned there was more than one way to achieve release. Her sister had actually provided her with that gem of knowledge when explaining how the tonic had affected her. Nora was above all a scientist and demanded all details necessary to conduct her research.

“Come now,” she coaxed. “Let me relieve your suffering.”

His fingers loosened around her wrist and she knew he was relenting.

“What if I can’t stop?” His voice came out choked. “What if this tonic makes me . . . insistent. What if I become . . . rough?”

“I don’t believe that will happen.”

A pained grimace crossed his face. “What if I don’t care . . . and take you like a beast regardless of your wishes?”

At his words, her skin broke out in gooseflesh. Her stomach gave a sharp twist that she felt all the way to her core. What was wrong with her? She fidgeted, pressing her thighs together and trying to ease the sudden throb. The suggestion of Sinclair taking her like a beast should not elicit a response and fill her with dark cravings.

“You won’t. Not without my consent. I trust you. This tonic can’t change your character. You’re a decent man. No beast. You respect others too much.”

His body jerked with another spasm. A fresh grimace passed over his face.

“Allow me.” She pushed a little bit more, her voice dropping a pitch—sounding almost seductive. Except she knew she was not capable of such a thing. Seduction and flirtation were beyond her. Other people knew how to do those things. Not Nora.

Still, she persisted. She had to do this for him. “Let me help you.” She scooted closer on her knees, looming over him. Releasing a determined breath, she instructed, “Now no more fussing and worrying. I am going to end your suffering.”

Resolved, she nudged his hand aside and touched him. Closed her fingers around his throbbing shaft before the outrageousness of what she was doing chased away her resolve.

She was touching a man’s member. His manhood. A . . . cock.

Yes, that was another word she had learned in her quest for knowledge. Just the sound of it in her head rang wicked and crude.

She was not touching just any man though. A man she had drugged with mind- and body-altering medicine. A man who affected her, who intrigued her on a cerebral level. And there was also the way he made her feel. Physically.

He made her feel physically.

That was new and profound.