Heat.

Bianca fought against the urge to reach up and tug on the collar of her dress as sweat caused the fabric to cling to her skin. She thought to request for the fire in the fireplace to be put out, but she doubted anyone would pay her any mind. Certainly not her father, for he sat on the chair across from her, visibly furious. His foot tapped loudly on the wooden floor, two deep lines pulled on the edges of his brows and his hand stroked his grey mustache in what she recognised to be his way of calming himself down. Her step mother too would prove to be of no help, for she was too busy gloating. And her sister...

Sighing softly, Bianca glanced down at her sweaty palms. Surely it was delight she saw in her half sister's eyes, surely the news of Bianca's stupid mistake delighted her.

And a mistake it had been. It had been a mistake to agree to her sister's suggestion to deliver the letter rejecting Mr. Belington's proposal to him in Bath. It had certainly been a mistake to allow herself be offered a room in his house. But her ultimate mistake was giving herself to him and enjoying every second of it. Nobody told her how delightful it would be to be in a man's arms and how difficult -impossible even- to pull away from his seduction. Nobody told her that such a seduction would most likely cause her to pay a big price.

"It's quite obvious to me, Mr. Belington, that you would have done anything to be married into my family, including seducing my daughter." Lord Leeds' voice was dangerously low.

Bianca snuck a peek at Mr. Belington who was seated on the couch beside her. It was the first time since the night they had been together, that she would catch a glimpse of him for he avoided her. She had woken up that morning -with the memory of the night before, filling her with dread- to an empty bed. Not long after, a maid had shown up, helped her get dressed, before a footman brought her home to Camden. At first she had been horrified and confused. What was she going to tell her father once she returned? Would he believe her tale of mistakenly sharing a stranger's bed? Would he forgive her? And where was Mr. Belington anyway? Would he even admit to ruining her, or would he deny it, vindicating himself?

Some of her questions were answered the moment she arrived home; Mr. Belington had arrived before her, and had informed her father. She imagined her father's reaction when he was told, but she was thankful Mr. Belington had gone ahead of her to take most of the blame for their actions.

A small frown creased his face as he sat beside her, most likely borne out of frustration. Nonetheless, he was indeed handsome. His curly brown hair fell to his forehead in a boyish display, his eyes were as blue as the sky, and his lips -she sighed as a wave of heat washed over her skin at the memory of his lips pressed to hers. His rosy red lips possessed the power to cause any woman to give in to his demands.

No doubt her sister found him attractive as well. In fact, Bianca knew most women of the ton found him attractive, they just would not admit to being attracted to the bastard son of a Marquess. He could have the face of an angel, for all they cared, his lack of a title, and an honourable background, made him unwanted.

"I certainly did not intend to, Your grace, this was an unfortunate misunderstanding. " He folded his hands in his lap, frustration visible on his face.

"How so, Mr. Belington? Surely you meant for this to happen! Surely you meant to shame my father before all of England and look, father, what great scandal this shall cause!" Carla said, trying and failing to sound displeased.

Mr. Belington turned to Carla. "Did you not get my letter, my lady? It was my intention to be wed to you, I sent a marriage certificate. "

"Of course it was, of course you didn't mean to be stuck with Bianca here. " She motioned to Bianca. "Nobody wants her. How unfortunate, really, that she would seduce you like that."

"That will be all, Carla." The duke waved impatiently, ending Carla's verbal abuse. He turned to Mr. Belington, "It is only proper that you marry Bianca. "

Bianca watched closely for Mr. Belington's reaction. She knew her fate even before her father announced it, and she imagined Mr. Belington would anticipate it as well, but a part of her needed to know what his reaction to it would be.

She watched his Adam's apple move downwards in reflection of a deep swallow. Then, his eyelids snapped shut, and he clenched his jaw. She studied a muscle work in his jaw for several seconds.

"This is not a request, Mr. Belington, you must marry her immediately for we cannot risk the scandal getting any worse if perhaps she is found to be with child."

His eyelids snapped open once more, and from her position on the couch, she could see his face had turned white.

His lips parted and he made to speak, but the words seemingly would not form. Swallowing, he nodded and a sigh of relief immediately escaped her lips.

Nothing else was said after that; no one sought her opinion, and she didn't try to give it. There was no wedding, just a signing of their marriage certificate that afternoon, and then, they were in a carriage -this time together- headed back to Bath.

Mr. Belington sat silently beside her, his jaw set. Perhaps she was thankful for the silence, for she didn't know what to say to him. She knew nothing about him and had never had a conversation with him. In truth, the only time she ever set her eyes on him -before sharing his bed - was two years ago, when he walked into her father's ballroom with his half brother, Lord Camden. She thought he was handsome then, and while he had been dressed in a fine tailored suit, he was different from the men of noble birth. She could tell -even before she heard the rumors about his birth- that he wasn't a part of London's elites.

Bianca too, didn't always feel like she was a part of anything. She was the duke's daughter, but there was a part of her that didn't truly believe herself to be his child for he was somewhat indifferent and distant. Her mother had died while giving birth to her and she had been raised by nannies until she turned four. Then, her father got married to her step mother. At the time, she imagined she would form a bond with her step mother, but Lady Regina Sterling made it clear early enough, that she was uninterested in forming a bond with her stepdaughter.

Perhaps her marriage to Mr. Belington would ease her deep yearning for love? She could only hope so. She also hoped that Mr. Belington would turn out to be worlds apart from her father.

The carriage pulled to a halt after several hours. Visibly tired and in desperate need to stretch her cramping legs, Biance was glad when the footman helped her down the carriage and into the darkness.

"We board here tonight." Mr. Belington's announcement startled her.

She jumped, and turned wide eyed to him, surprised. She opened her mouth to respond after a few seconds, but was silenced as he turned around and made his way into the grey building.

She followed silently behind, standing by the side while he made arrangements for a room.

"There is only one room left," He said, once they were alone in the small room. "I am unable to get a second for myself," Bianca thought it odd that he would have a problem sleeping in the same room with her, and she was about to say so when he motioned to the door. "I'll sleep in the carriage."

He didn't wait for her response, before turning around and making his way out of the room.

She frowned, unsure of how to feel. Would he always avoid her? For he certainly was working hard to do so. Was he upset they had been forced into marriage? Did he blame her for it, like Carla had done only a few hours ago?

Bianca stayed up all evening tossing and turning in bed, her mind plagued with questions. Just when she was about to fall asleep, it began to rain, the constant thundering sound keeping her awake.

Groaning in frustration, she clutched her pillow to her chest and closed her eyes. Surely she needed to fall asleep, for in only a few hours, they would be journeying again. But it didn't matter how hard she tried, she couldn't sleep.

The door pushed open a few minutes later. Stiffening, she laid frozen in bed, until Mr. Belington was settling beside her. The familiar scent of his skin drifted to her, and her body warmed at the memory of being in his arms. Would he reach for her again tonight? She blushed and moved toward him in anticipation. But he didn't reach for her, he instead rose to his feet and made his way to the single wooden chair in the room.

His action stabbing at her chest, she curled on her side and closed her eyes once more; perhaps he would always avoid her.