Morgan crossed the shop on silent feet, determined to leave without interrupting them. Harriet, however, turned and caught his eye.
“I suppose we have that dreadful Captain Davies to thank for this change of heart,” she said loudly, addressing him, as well as her father. “Since he was the one who introduced you to Doctor Saunders.”
The older Montgomery chuckled. “True. At least you know who to blame if the operation isn’t a success.”
“Of courseit’s going to be a success,” Harriet countered firmly. “I have every confidence in Doctor Saunders.” She sent a threatening glare back at Morgan. “If anythingdoesgo wrong, I’ll wring Captain Davies’s neck.”
Morgan threw her a mock-terrified look as her father laughed.
“I doubt you’d have much luck strangling the man. He’s twice your size, Harriet. Might as well try strangling a tree. You’d be better to shoot him.”
Henry was clearly joking, but Harriet’s teeth flashed white in a smile. “Oh, I will definitely consider it.”
Morgan deemed that the perfect time to take his leave. With a silent wave at Harriet, he opened the shop door and slipped out into the street.
A ripple of anxiety caught him as he walked toward his carriage. Despite Harriet’s teasing, hewasresponsible for prompting her father to undergo this operation. He’dfeel dreadful if anything went wrong. Not merely for the older Montgomery’s discomfort and disappointment, but for subjecting Harriet to such stress and worry.
And what if the operationwasa success? If her father regained his sight—and therefore a large part of his independence—Harriet would indeed be free to start having all those adventures she’d been putting off for years.
What if she had them without him? What if she had them with someone else?
It didn’t bear thinking about.
He supposed he should want her to be happy, even if it wasn’t with him, but he wasn’tthatnoble. He hadn’t wanted her for so long, hadn’t sailed halfway around the world, to watch her marry someone else.
He didn’t deserve her, of course, but that was beside the point. No other man deserved her either. They’d had their chance to charm her while he was away. None had succeeded, and he was arrogant enough to think it was because Harriet harbored feelings for him that she didn’t feel for anyone else.
He was still humbled by the fact that she’d allowed him to show her pleasure, but he had a sneaking suspicion she’d used him as some kind of sexual adventure. Not that he was complaining—he’d happily participate in every debauched and scandalous thing she could dream up—but she needed to see him as less of a temporary experiment and more of a permanent solution.
He would have to wait until tomorrow night to see her again. They’d both been invited to Lady Scarborough’s, and he planned to do exactly what Harriet had told him to do, namely, set about selecting his ideal fiancée.
How long would it take for Harriet to realize it washer?
Chapter Twenty-Five
Harriet hadn’t been sure whether to attend Lady Scarborough’s gathering. She’d barely slept; her mind kept flitting between worry over her father’s impending surgery and amazement at the wicked things Morgan had done to her for kiss number three.
I’ve dreamed of tasting you for fucking years.
The impassioned words echoed in her brain. Had hereallysaid that? Or had she just imagined it in her lust-addled delirium?
No, she was sure he’d said it.
Maybe men always said things like that to women at the height of passion? And yet there had been nothing practiced or suave about it; the guttural growl seemed to have been ripped from his throat, unbidden.
Dare she believe it? She’d always thought her attraction was one-sided, that Morgan saw her as an amusement to torment and then forget the moment she was out of his sight. He flirted with her, true, but he’d flirted with plenty of other women over the years and he was certainly no virgin. She’d been jealous whenever she’d heard rumors that he was seeing someone.
But what if all those years of superficial teasing had been hiding an attraction as dark and as burning as herown? What if he’d stayed away because he thought she wasn’t interested?
Her skin tingled. He must know she was interestednow. What they’d done yesterday had changed everything. How would she ever look at his lips without knowing they’d tasted her most private, feminine parts? How could she see his beautiful hands and not dream of having them back on her skin?
She had no idea how she should act when she saw him next. At his house she’d hardly been able to look at him for mortification, but Morgan had done a remarkable job of coaxing her back toward their usual state of pointed bickering before he’d left.
A liveried carriage pulled up outside the shop, and she took a deep breath to fortify herself.
She’d sent Maddie a note that morning, just after Doctor Saunders’s carriage had collected her father, telling her of his sudden change of heart. Maddie had insisted on coming to escort her to Lady Scarborough’s so she wouldn’t sit around worrying all night on her own.
Gryff had accompanied his wife. “Good evening, Harriet. You look lovely.”
