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He obliged her by kissing her on her lips in a gentle, almost soothing way. She whimpered.

She wanted more. So much more.

Thorn ran his hands down her arms, and Lydia relaxed against him. He nipped on her ear playfully… and then, still holding her hands behind her back, wrapped her wrists with a cloth.

Lydia frowned. “What are you doing?”

“I am tying you up,” he bit out, his tone suddenly cold.

“Are you out of your mind?” She flailed against the restraints, wiggling beneath him.

Her bottom caressed his engorged cock, making him groan. Thorn lightly smacked her bottom, leaving his hand on her butt cheek. “Do not move. Or you’ll fall off the table.”

Then he stepped away, leaving her on the desk, tied up and confused.

“Obviously, you cannot be trusted,” he said as he disappeared from view. When he reappeared, he was tying a sash over his banyan at his waist. He slid his arms beneath her stomach, then easily lifted her up, hauling her over his shoulder.

“Let me go, you brute!” she bit out, kicking air with her feet.

“Do you want me to tie up your legs, too?” he warned, as he readjusted her over his shoulder before unceremoniously depositing her onto the bed.

“I can’t believe I thought you were a decent man!” She blew her hair out of her face only for it to return.

He leaned over her and brushed her hair away, tucking the strands behind her ear. “Darling, you just promised me you won’t leave. I am just making certain that you keep your promise. Understand?”

“You are keeping me prisoner.”

“No.” He shook his head and pressed a kiss to her lips. “I love you darling, but I am starting to realize that I can’t trust you. I need to run an errand, and I am just making sure you won’t slip away in the meantime. When I get back, we shall head north.”

“North?”

He moved toward his dressing room. “Scotland. We shall marry.”

“If you think that I shall marry you after this, then you have truly gone mad,” she bit out angrily.

Lydia shifted in bed, unsuccessfully trying to free herself of the restraints.

He walked back into the room just as she plopped onto her side, her unruly hair covering most of her face.

“Listen, sweet,” he soothed, as he propped her into a sitting position. “If I don’t wed before my father dies, my mercenary stepmother will get my inheritance. And while that doesn’t matter as much to me as it mattered before I found you, I won’t be able to keep you safe without my riches. Understand? So, yes, I might have gone mad, but if acting mad will help me keep you safe, then so be it.”

“Your father is dying?” She always thought she’d be happy to hear the news when the old marquess left this world but hearing it from Thorn didn’t bring her pleasure.

“Yes.” Thorn’s face was emotionless.

He shifted to sit behind her and untied her wrists, but before she could rejoice, he tied them back up in front of her. “I want you to be able to scratch your nose if you have to,” he said calmly as if discussing dinner plans. “But don’t get any ideas.”

“Thorn, this is madness,” she pleaded. “Untie me. I’ve already promised I shall not run. But we need to talk this through. I am not going to Scotland while every man in England is looking for me. It isn’t safe.”

Thorn ignored her pleas. Instead, he rang the servants’ bell before propping pillows carefully behind her back, making her as comfortable as he could.

He leaned in, his face just a few inches from hers. “I am not letting you go again, Lydia. And as far as getting caught, let me worry about that, would you?”

She looked at her tied up hands, then spread her fingers in a vain attempt to free herself.

“Thorn—”

“Yes, my lord?” A young man with a slight accent appeared in the doorway.