Beauty Tempts the Beast Read Online Free PDF

way.
    Martin narrowed his eyes. “I repeat: where is she? You must know where she has gone.”
    Lord Whistlebury’s mouth twitched. His bulbous nose reddened. For a moment, Martin thought the man might cry.
    “Shall I let on about your desire for—?”
    “No.” The baron wiped his palms across beefy thighs. “She did not tell me where, but I do have a cousin in town. Vivian might have gone there.”
    Power surged into Martin’s bloodstream, He curled his lip. “Now we are getting somewhere.”
    He sank down into the chair opposite the baron, crossing his long legs at the ankle. Most people eventually saw their way to reason. Martin was not a man to be crossed. Both his mother and Mary Yeardley learned that lesson.
    Now it was Vivian Suttley’s turn.
     
    Bringing up warm water was an issue in Silverstone Manor. After the sweat and dirt from the garden, Vivian hoped for a cleansing bath. But it seemed impossible for the servants to bring enough water for even a hipbath.
    “Me and Pinkley, we’s too old and weak to carry it,” Mrs. Plimpton had told her. When Vivian inquired as to any other servants, the answer was “none to be spared”.
    She would have carried the damn water up herself if she knew where to find its source. And if she were able to leave a trail to find her way back to her room.
    Vivian was reaching for cloth from this morning’s toilet when a knock resounded on the heavy door.
    Perhaps they found a servant to spare. “Enter,” she called.
    “I was told you wanted water for a bath.”
    Her breath caught. “My lord. I did not expect you to bring the water.”
    “Ah, but I have.” He held out two cans then set them on the scuffed floor. “But where is the tub?”
    “I am awaiting that, as well.”
    Lord Ashworth grinned, his scar softening like the gentle curve of a feather. “It must still be in my bedchamber.”
    “But—but you can’t possibly move that yourself.”
    Rain tapped at the window as he raised his eyebrows. “Good point. As we’ve not had overnight visitors in such a long time, I had not thought to your needs properly.” After a bow, he said, “Forgive me.”
    Vivian nodded, a smile playing upon her lips. Something had altered his mood. Or was this his true nature, the one she remembered? Either way, she needed a plan to convince him to keep her here and the sooner she thought of it, the better.
    “So—” She took a few steps closer to him in order to gauge his reaction. He did not move. “—am I to bathe or not?”
    “To do so would require you to be in my room.”
    “Does that disturb you?”
    His chest rose, straining the fabric of the shirt. “Does it disturb you?”
    She gathered up the bathing linens left by Mrs. Plimpton. “Of course, you will not be in the room with me.”
    Lord Ashworth stared at her for a long, tortuous moment then picked up both cans of steaming water and crossed the room to his adjoining door. “Of course not.” He nodded toward the knob. “If you don’t mind.”
    Vivian hurried over and opened the door for him. He led her across the apartment, past his large bed with intricately carved mahogany posts. The black woolen bed hangings had something stitched upon them but its design was no longer discernable. She noticed a walnut cabinet similar to the one in her room as well as an enormous tapestry that took up an entire wall. Obviously the two rooms were created to complement one another with only coloring and small design to differentiate between the sexes.
    The sound of splashing water reminded her why she was in his room. The white tub stood several feet from the fireplace, beckoning with its comfort, frightening her with its possibilities. The last time she’d been alone with a man…
    “How high do you want the water?”
    She glanced inside the basin. His two cans had barely been enough to cover the bottom, and yet she didn’t want him going up and down the stairs for her. Not when she needed to convince him she would not