" Lucas,” she started again. “You may release me now.”
“And if I refuse?”
“Then we shall be found in short order in a position most scandalous by my servants.”
“And we do not want that to happen?” This time, it was a question, not a statement.
Pippa wanted nothing less than to be released. “Surely, the wisest decision would be that.”
“Are you a wise woman, Pippa?” he asked, his breath fanning her face. “Because, I assure you, at this very moment, I do not feel like a wise man. "

― Christina McKnight , A Kiss At Christmastide