Page 11 of Scandal With A Viscount

“Indeed. I could use the rest. The country air does not agree with me.” Their voices faded, but Louis could still hear them. “You should not be wandering about alone at this hour, Georgiana. Anyone might see you, and the last thing we need is more whispers about your behavior . . .”

Louis stayed in the alcove until the sound of their voices disappeared. His pulse pounded in his ears. His hands shook. His cock was still half-hard while the rest of him was terrified, and that was a combination he never wanted to experience again.

That had been close. Seconds. If her mother had come around the corner instead of calling from the staircase, she would have found her unmarried daughter pressed against a wall with a viscount's hands up her skirts. Well, not quite. But close enough that no amount of charm would have helped him talk his way out of it.

He ran both hands through his hair and took the stairs to his corridor. He was going to his room. He would lock the door. Whatever this was, it needed to stop before it destroyed them both.

He was halfway to his chamber when Maddie stepped out of hers.

She was still dressed. Either she hadn't undressed for bed yet, or she had been waiting for him. Knowing Maddie, she'd been waiting. She leaned against the doorframe with her arms folded and an expression that told him everything he needed to know about how the rest of this conversation was going to go.

“Don't,” he said before she could open her mouth.

“Even John has noticed that something is going on with you, and that man doesn't notice when I've changed my hair.”

“That's because John is focused on other attributes of yours.”

“Don't deflect.” She stepped into the corridor and pulled her door half-closed behind her, keeping her voice low. “How long has this been going on?”

“Maddie—”

“How long?”

He should lie. He was an excellent liar when the occasion called for it. Years of charm and misdirection had made it second nature. But Maddie had known him since they were children. She'd shared his bed. She knew every trick he had because she'd been there when he learned most of them.

“A few nights.” He leaned against the wall and crossed his arms. “It's not what you think.”

“It's not? Because what I think is that you're sneaking around a house party with your closest friend's unmarried sister while her mother is three corridors away. You can’t keep your eyes off of her, and I imagine your hands, as well.”

He didn't have a response to that. Mostly because it was accurate.

Maddie's expression shifted. The sharpness stayed, but something else crept in underneath—something that looked like genuine concern, and that was worse than the teasing.

“When I ended our arrangement, I told you why,” she said. “Do you remember?”

“Of course. You have always been in love with John. And I am happy for you. You know that, don’t you? John is perfect for you.”

“I know that.” She stepped closer, lowering her voice. “What I’m trying to say is that our arrangement was so that I could avoid the pain of admitting what I actually wanted. Because facing your fears is terrifying.” She held his gaze. “You told me I was brave. Do you remember that?”

He did. He also remembered it being a great deal easier to say that when it was someone else's life on the table, and not his own.

“That's not what this is,” he said. “We have an arrangement. It's physical. It ends when the party ends.”

“Whose terms are those?”

“Hers.”

“And you're content with them?”

He shrugged. “They're sensible terms.”

“That's not what I asked you.” Maddie stepped closer. “Are you content with them, Louis? Does physical and temporary feel like enough? Is that truly what you want for yourself? I know now that it would have never been enough for me.”

He didn't need anyone. He never had. Not in the way Maddie was implying. His father had taught him that lesson before Louis was old enough to understand why, and time had proven the old man right. People left. Women left. The ones who stayed wanted something from you. The ones who didn't want anything were the most dangerous of all, because they made you forget the lesson. He wouldn’t allow himself to risk his heart in that way.

“Louis.” Maddie's voice pulled him back. “You didn't answer me.”

“Because I don't need to.” He pushed off the wall and straightened his coat, pulling the charm back into place, the way he'd done a thousand times. “Georgie and I have an understanding. We enjoy each other's company. When the party ends, we will part ways and things will go back to the way they were. That is all there is to it.”