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finished his sentence.
    Adrien gnashed his teeth and walked away, clearing his mind of everything, except the captivating Catherine. Ironic that she’d be his pawn when he’d once been hers. But first, she was going to admit to her misdeeds.
    The next left turn in the corridor brought him to the door he sought.
    Catherine’s door.
    He stopped across from it and waited. Anticipation mounted by the moment. Adrien took a deep breath and let it out. He actually felt . . . nervous. He’d never been nervous around women. He hadn’t even been nervous with his first woman. The reactions she elicited from him were astonishing.
    The door opened. Catherine stepped out. A vision in a royal blue gown . His heart lost a beat.
    Adrien stood transfixed, his cock thickening. Her breasts, exquisitely defined, were an inciting sight to behold. His eyes feasted on the creamy skin above her décolletage, her delicate bare shoulders and her elegant neck adorned by several strands of pearls. A slight purplish mark just under her ear grabbed his attention. A love bite.
    His mark on her.
    The sight inflamed him further.
    The moment she saw him, her body went rigid. The servant with her gasped.
    Catherine dragged her gaze from him, turned and walked down the hall, regal as a queen, dismissing him as if he were a common hand. As vexing as she was, he had to admit she was refreshingly different from any female he’d ever known. Hers was not the sort of greeting he was accustomed to receiving from women. The fact that she was going to be a challenge spiked his interest tenfold.
    “Catherine . . .” He raced to her side, falling in step with her quickened pace. “I’d like a word with you.”
    “I have nothing to say to you except, go away.” She kept her gaze straight ahead. “And stop addressing me in such a familiar manner,” she added curtly. The older woman with her scurried along beside her, casting him the occasional timid look, seemingly distressed if the way she chewed her bottom lip were any indication.
    “I thought since we were well acquainted, you wouldn’t mind,” he said.
    “We are not well acquainted. I don’t know how many times I have to tell you—I’ve never met you before. We haven’t even been introduced.”
    “Ah, well, I agree with your last statement. If it’s an introduction you require, allow me to introduce myself—”
    “Please don’t bother.”
    “I’m Adrien d’Aspe, bastard son of Louis XIV, and yes, most of the rumors you’ve heard about me are true. But, of course, you know a good deal about me. You’ve made inquiries.”
    She shot him a sharp look without breaking her stride. “I most assuredly have not made inquiries. You have the women here atwitter. They openly speak of you. I don’t care who you are . . . or, in fact, to know anything about you.”
    “Come now, Catherine, don’t be difficult. Dismiss your servant. Allow me a private moment. I promise you’ll not be late for supper.”
    She surprised him when she stopped abruptly. “Sir, you are deranged. I have no interest in anything you have to say. If you don’t leave me alone, I’ll be forced to tell our hostess about your deplorable comportment.” She turned and stalked away.
    Despite himself, he felt a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. When she was all afire like that, her eyes took on the most seductive glow.
    He caught up to her and her servant again and stepped in front of Catherine so quickly that she walked into him and would have fallen back had he not caught her arms.
    A mixture of frustration and outrage erupted from her throat. She opened her mouth, likely to toss out a few hot words at him, but he placed his finger over her lips, silencing her.
    “Whatever your relationship to Suzanne may be, I can assure you she’ll not ask me to leave. She’s been begging me to fuck her for months.”
    Her eyes widened, obviously caught off guard by his blunt answer. He removed his finger from her mouth. How many