Convincing Leopold Read Online Free PDF Page B

Thorn, who had the weight of his wealthy father’s title behind him, but the mere suspicion of sodomy would lose Arthur every single client. He had explained that once before. Did he have to bar Thorn from his office? Hell, he didn’t want to. He looked forward to the man’s afternoon visits, those little breaks in the seemingly endless days. Well, he used to look forward to them. Now he wasn’t at all certain he could trust him.
     
    “You gave me your word.” “ I will be the very image of a proper gentleman .” Thorn’s vow from three months ago echoed in his head.
     
    His glare was lost on Thorn. Chin tipped down, Thorn tugged on one of his pristine white shirt cuffs, straightening it beneath his black coat. His upper lip curled slightly, defiance etched in the line of his shoulders. “And I have kept it. The door is locked. It’s only the two of us.”
     
    He gaped at Thorn. And that made it acceptable? “Have you no common sense?”
     
    Thorn’s fingers stilled. His features blanked, without a hint of expression. Any trace of defiance long gone.
     
    “I’m sorry, Arthur.” The low words were almost lost in the muffled snap of a drawer closing from the other room. He flicked his gaze up at Arthur through his dark lashes, then went back to toying with his shirt cuff. It had barely been a glance, a mere instant, yet the vulnerability, the true hurt in those gray eyes, gave Arthur pause.
     
    He dragged a hand across the back of his neck and let out a heavy sigh. The frustration drained out of him. Ah hell . Thorn wasn’t an adolescent. He shouldn’t speak to him as if he was one. The man had simply been himself. Wicked and sinful and tempting as all hell when they were behind closed doors. And Arthur couldn’t help but admit that, technically, Thorn had kept his word.
     
    “You don’t need to apologize. I’m the arse .”
     
    Thorn shook his head. “No, you’re correct. I should have been more discreet.” He gave his cuff a final tug, then dropped his hand to his lap. He opened his mouth, shut it for a moment, and then asked, “Did you enjoy it?”
     
    What was almost the start of a chuckle shook his chest. “Of that you should have no doubt.”
     
    One edge of Thorn’s mouth lifted, finally breaking that melancholy line.
     
    Arthur tapped the edge of the document on his desk, straightening it. A contract to lease a property. Mundane and boring, just like himself. Was Thorn getting bored with him? They didn’t do much of anything besides meet at Thorn’s town house or Arthur’s bachelor apartments. Not three months ago, Thorn had led a very different life. From what he knew, or rather what he’d overheard, Thorn used to rarely spend an evening at home. Could that be the source of his…restlessness of late?
     
    He studied the man across from him. Wavy midnight black hair fell over his brow. His aristocratic heritage marked every feature. Even with Thorn sprawled in the chair, his perfectly tailored black coat still managed to highlight the sleek lines of his body. He was a creature of London, elegant and beautiful. And Arthur had been practically keeping him locked in the house.
     
    He would admit to some initial hesitation as to Thorn’s ability to comport himself in the manner of a gentleman and not like the debauched rakehell he had once been, but except for the afternoon’s incident , the man had given Arthur no cause to doubt him.
     
    That little concern placated, he asked, “Would you like to perhaps go out tonight?”
     
    Thorn’s gaze snapped up to meet his. “Out?”
     
    “Yes, like to the theatre or…” Not a gambling hell. Definitely not that. He wanted to spend an evening out with Thorn, not tempt him with an old vice. “Perhaps supper at White’s?”
     
    “My uncle is hosting a supper party.”
     
    That might do, and he could easily explain his friendship with Thorn—they were of the same age, had known each other since Arthur worked for his uncle, who