On A Cold Christmas Eve Read Online Free PDF Page B

dismissing the thought she'd just had.  "No, he knew about the contract with Mac and Covent Garden.  There is no way he could not."
    Nodding in agreement, Adam closed his eyes for a moment.  Archibald would have to be dealt with, but not tonight.  "I agree.  However, at the moment, there is a more pressing issue.  I have no idea what to do with Miss Cavendish.  Somehow, I don't think I can buy another husband."  He also didn't even want to contemplate where he might find a suitable candidate, one who would treat Lucy with the respect she deserved.  No, she needed a very special man for a husband, and that ruled out a good many of his friends, if not all of them.
    "You could marry her."  
    Amelia's words were so soft that Adam wasn't certain he'd heard her correctly.  "Me?  Marry Lady Lucy?  Are you insane?  Did childbirth addle your brains, woman?"  He scoffed, trying to ignore the soft ping in his heart and the stirring in that same dark place that his softness towards her sprang from.  "I am not ready.  You know that."
    Though, he was, really, and had actually been considering seeking out a wife during the upcoming Season, though he saw no reason to inform his sister of his plans.  In fact, he had only just decided at the end of the Little Season that it was time for him to start filling his nursery and getting on with the business of protecting the dukedom.  He hadn't even told his man of business or Harry, who would have to vet the woman before Adam would even consider seriously courting her.
    "I'll not take offense to that remark about childbirth," Amelia snapped before softening her tone a bit, taking in her brother's nearly panicked state.  "And yes, Adam, you are ready.  I think you know it as well.  It is past time you began filling a nursery, and you well know it.  You have already admitted on several occasions that it's unlikely you will ever make a love match, especially with a town full of chits who are terrified of you and whom you despise in return."  She glanced at the closed door.  "Lady Lucy, on the other hand, has seen the rougher side of life, I suspect, even though she is a lady.  There is a look in her eyes that I see reflected in yours, Adam.  You are alike in so many ways that I do believe you would suit."
    "She knows nothing of me or of men," he replied, remembering the way Lucy had stiffened at his touch.  He also tried not to think about how soft her hand had felt in his or how good she smelled.  He hadn't been that close to a woman who wasn't scrambling to be away from him or find a quick way to his fortune in a good long time. 
    Amelia huffed in annoyance, clearly thinking that her brother was a fool. "She can be taught.  All woman can."  Then she regarded him thoughtfully, as if remembering something she'd seem.  The damn busy body.  "Though I do not think she fears men, nor, in particular, does she fear you.  That is an excuse, one you conveniently thought up just now."
    Reaching out, she laid a hand on his arm.  "Adam, Lucy met your eyes when she spoke.  There was no fear in her, no simpering or quaking as if you meant her harm or wanted to devour her whole.  No other woman has ever managed that."  She took one of his hands in hers and clasped it firmly, a sure sign that she wanted him to listen.  "You do not frighten her as you do the others."
    Pushing away from the wall and his sister, Adam began to walk away before turning back, his agitation obvious.  "And that is all you think that I need for a happy marriage?  For my wife not to fear me?"
    Shrugging again, Amelia leveled him with a gaze that had terrified the men of the  ton  for years.  The duke wasn't the only St. Vincent to strike fear into the heart of society London.  "It is a start, Devil Duke, and better than you could hope for otherwise, quite frankly.  You are not the most kind looking of men on a good day, my darling brother, and you well know it.  Not to mention that your