Tempted by a Rake’s Smile: A Historical Regency Romance Book

by Meghan Sloan

  “Simple,” Cassandra turned to him, still giggling. “I saw you were jealous, and I wanted to tease you.”

  Gabriel growled.

  “That was not teasing, Cassie. That was just cruel.”

  “I hardly think so, seeing as you tease women all the time,” Cassandra pointed at him. “But I was right, wasn’t I? You are jealous of what I might have with your brother.”

  “I’m not jealous.”

  “Are you not?”

  Gabriel glowered at her. Then he reached out and grabbed her. Cassandra squeaked, barely having time to cry out before she was spun around and pressed against the door. Moments later, Gabriel was blocking her in, his hands against the door by her head as he crowded her.

  He was standing far too close, barely touching her. And Cassandra could still feel his body heat; feel the tension press against her chest. The throbbing between her legs was building, and Cassandra’s giggles faded as she saw the heated desire in Gabriel’s eyes, his head bowing with his mouth inches from hers.

  “No. I’m not.”

  #

  Gabriel couldn’t believe that she was even laughing at him. Did she not know that this was not a time to jest? But that laugh, and that brief sparkle in her eyes as she’d goaded him had the lust stirring. She thought she could stand there and say all that without him reacting?

  Now he was reacting, and he had crowded Cassandra against the door. Gabriel knew he should back away immediately; being this close to her was a dangerous thing to do. Once he touched her again, he wouldn’t be able to stop.

  Already, Gabriel could feel his heart racing as he saw the dark flush appear on her cheeks and spread. Her chest was reddening, and not for the first time Gabriel had an overwhelming urge to strip that dress off her to see how far that blush really went.

  His trousers were certainly feeling a lot tighter now. Gabriel swallowed, allowing himself to drink in the sight of this infuriating woman.

  “You think I would be jealous of my brother?” he murmured. “Over you?”

  “Why not? And you shouldn’t lie,” Cassandra prodded his chest. “I can tell when a man is jealous.”

  Gabriel gritted his teeth. She should not be touching him; his control was already slipping. That had not been the intention when he first came in.

  “You’ve not met enough men, then.”

  “I’ve met enough to recognise the signs.”

  “You’ve met enough to know how to be cruel, certainly,” Gabriel frowned. “That was not amusing, Cassie.”

  “I thought it was.”

  Cassandra shrugged. If it weren’t for the flushed expression and her eyes seeming darker than before, he might have thought she was being nonchalant. Her lips parted and Gabriel could see her pulse racing in her throat. He leaned in, feeling her rapid breath on his face.

  “You really have no idea what sort of fire you’re playing with.”

  “Do I not?” Cassandra shot back. “If you’re not jealous, why are you getting angry?”

  “Because I don’t like my feelings being played. I have done a lot of things in the past, granted, but I don’t wish to be played around with.”

  Cassandra glared at him.

  “How do you think all the women you’ve seduced feel when you take them to bed? You think they liked being played with? That their feelings were inconsequential?”

  “They knew exactly what they were getting into when they first entered into an affair with me. I make it perfectly clear that I was not looking for love, only fun to pass the time.”

  Cassandra’s eyes flashed. God, she was stunning when she was riled up.

  “But do you ever wonder if they did start to have feelings towards you? It’s not something you can turn on and off. You may be able to bank down emotions, but you can’t not have them.” She lifted her chin, seeming to be gaining confidence, “Ever thought they might be in love with you?”

  “No.” Gabriel didn’t even need to think. “Because when we ended our flings, they walked away without any crying or pleas to come back.”

  “Except one.”

  Except one. Gabriel had done his best to forget about that one particular woman. He closed his eyes and growled.

  “I take it you’re talking about Jessica Gibson.”

  “I am.” Cassandra folded her arms. “She warned me off last night.”

  “She what?” Gabriel’s eyes snapped open. He stared at her. “I thought she had left.”

  “She will today. I don’t think she’s coming back, not if her family has anything to do with it.” Cassandra pursed her lips, “Even if you do finally decide to marry, she’s going to cause problems for you. Your wife would have to be a saint to deal with her. This is what happens when you have affairs and those women fall for you. You’re not going to get rid of them that easily.”

  Jessica was still here? Her father had said she wasn’t going to be around for much longer. They should have left Ipswich already. Gabriel made a mental note to go and see the Gibson family and tell them to get her out of there before Jessica did anything further to his woman.

  Wait, did you say Cassandra was yours?

  Gabriel tried to focus on Cassandra. Which wasn’t easy when her folded arms had pushed her breasts together and they looked like they were in danger of bursting out of the low neckline. Gabriel was trying his hardest not to stare.

  “Miss Gibson is an unstable woman.”

  Cassandra snorted.

  “That’s your response to it? She’s unstable. If she is, all the more reason why you shouldn’t conduct affairs. If she isn’t, that’s just a callous way of disregarding her feelings.” She jabbed him in the chest again, “I thought you would be better than that.”

  Gabriel simply reacted. He grabbed her wrist, watching as Cassandra faltered, her eyes widening. He couldn’t take his gaze off her mouth, lips parting on a gasp. Cassandra tried to tug her hand back, but Gabriel tightened his hold. She had touched him, and now his self-control was barely hanging on.

  “When it comes to that woman, I have nothing good to say.” He lifted her hand to his mouth and pressed a butterfly-like kiss to her wrist. Gabriel smiled when he heard her gasp. “I told her what was to happen, and she ignored me.”

  “You shouldn’t have taken her to bed in the first place.”

  Now she seemed to be almost panting as Gabriel kissed the palm of her hand. Her chest was practically heaving as Gabriel kissed each of her fingertips, sucking her thumb into his mouth. He never took his eyes off her, and the sight of her arousal clearly building had Gabriel groaning.

  “Jealous, are you?” he whispered.

  “Me, jealous?” Cassandra’s voice was trembling. “Not a chance.”

  “You don’t sound convincing.” Gabriel leaned in, linking his fingers with hers and pressing her hand against the door. “Are you sure you’re not jealous?”

  “I’m sure.”

  She still didn’t sound convincing. Her breath tickled his mouth, and Gabriel brushed his lips over hers.

  “No?”

  Cassandra didn’t respond. Her eyes were so dark they could have turned black. Gabriel had seen the fire in this woman, and he had seen the passion. This time he saw the arousal. And it was beautiful.

  He kissed her, pressing her hard against the door. Cassandra whimpered, but she didn’t push him away. If she had, Gabriel would have gone with her wishes. Instead, she moaned and kissed him back, her free hand grabbing onto his coat and holding on.

  God, all bets were off now.

  Gabriel shifted his leg and pressed between her legs, nudging her up onto her toes. He then shifted himself so he could feel her core against his thigh. Cassandra gasped into his mouth and broke away with a whimper.

  “Gabriel…”

  Gabriel knew he was in serious trouble. If anyone came by to find Cassandra, they were going to be caught. But that seemed to set him on fire even more. He ran his hands through Cassandra’s hair, not caring when the pins stabbed his fingers a
s he tilted her head back.

  “You’re such a temptress.”

  “That’s…not my intention.”

  Cassandra’s breath hitched as Gabriel started to kiss down her neck. She whimpered and tugged him closer. Her other hand, now freed from his grasp, slid through his hair and tightened hard enough for Gabriel to feel momentarily pain. That just made his arousal even higher.

  “You don’t need to try.” He licked along her collarbone. “You tempt me far too much just by being in the same room.”

  Cassandra sighed, and she shuddered against him as he nipped at her shoulder with his teeth. She rolled her hips, rubbing along his thigh, and she clutched even tighter onto his head. Gabriel felt as though his heart was about to explode.

  If Cassandra had been on fire before, she was a blazing inferno now. His hand dropped to her leg and gathered up her skirts, groaning as he touched her bare thigh for the first time. Her skin was so soft, so warm. Shoving his hand under, Gabriel cupped her hip, pushing her drawers aside to slide his hand over her backside.

  Cassandra froze, her breath catching. For a moment, Gabriel thought she was going to push him away. But then she was lifting her leg to curl it around his, tugging him closer.

  “Kiss me, Gabriel,” she whispered as she tugged his head up. “Please.”

  Please. He had a beautiful woman in his arms and she was begging for him. Gabriel didn’t think Cassandra had begged for anything in her life. How could he turn down that type of request?

  Pressing Cassandra against the door, Gabriel took her mouth again as he slid his hand over her hip and between her legs. He groaned when he felt how wet her core was, how responsive Cassandra was when he brushed his fingers through her soft curls. She seemed to be trying to climb up him, her hips tilting towards his hand.

  You shouldn’t be doing this. She’s meant to be your brother’s woman.

  That did sober Gabriel for a brief moment. Cassandra was meant to be courting Percy. He wasn’t supposed to be pawing her like a starving man. Gabriel knew he shouldn’t have gone into the office alone; being alone with this woman was not a good idea. His self-control rapidly went out the window.

  He should pull back and stop. But he couldn’t. Not just yet.

  Not until he made her say his name while she came apart in his arms.

  Growling, Gabriel thrust a finger into her. Cassandra gasped into his mouth, her muscles clamping down on his finger. God, she felt so good. So warm. Gabriel pumped his finger inside her, feeling Cassandra’s whole body tighten up as she wrapped her leg around his waist, swallowing her cries with his mouth. He couldn’t get enough of the sounds coming from her. If he ever got her where they would not be disturbed, Gabriel would happily make her scream.

  That will be Percy’s job in future. Not yours.

  That had Gabriel freezing. Common sense was finally working. And it washed over him like someone had thrown a bucket of water over him. He pulled back, reluctantly pulling his hand away from her heat and easing Cassandra back onto her feet before stepping back.

  The blood was pounding around his head, and Gabriel knew he was shaking. He should not be doing this. No matter how much he wanted her, he shouldn’t be touching her like this. She was Percy’s girl.

  Percy. His brother didn’t deserve this.

  You don’t deserve her.

  “Gabriel?”

  Cassandra was staring at him with a frown. The fog of sexual arousal was fading away and now she was looking confused. With her hair in a rumpled mess and the shoulder of her dress having slipped off, she looked like a wanton angel. Gabriel wanted to take her back into his arms and explore that body. Taste every part.

  But he couldn’t. He shouldn’t. If Percy found out…

  He had to remember what he was doing. Now was not the time to think about his own urges. Percy would never forgive him if he knew what had just gone on.

  Swallowing hard, Gabriel stepped around her, and managed to open the door. Cassandra stepped aside as the door nearly knocked her over, and Gabriel darted out into the hallway. He could hear Cassandra calling after him, but he didn’t turn around. If he did, he would be going back into that office and locking the door. That was not going to happen.

  Even if it killed him to walk away from the woman who had taken his heart.

  Chapter 17

  “You mean he took advantage of you when you were alone?” Emily gasped.

  “Keep your voice down!” Cassandra hissed. “I don’t want everyone to know!”

  “I...what…” Emily stared at her friend. “He...he took advantage and then he just walked out?”

  Cassandra winced. They were alone, down the far end of the garden, but Cassandra still felt like there were people listening in. And she certainly did not want anyone to know what had happened the day before with her and Gabriel in her father’s office.

  It had been on her mind ever since Gabriel had practically run out of the room like he was afraid of being set on fire. Only a moment before, he had been looking at her like she was a goddess, calling her a temptress. Then he went cold on her and ran. Cassandra didn’t know what to think anymore, other than she felt sick for having been taken advantage like that. She should have pushed him away to start with. Being so close to him was asking for trouble.

  And trouble she was in. If the kiss before had been incredible, the kiss after was something else. It made Cassandra want more. She was desperate to have more, even if it went against how she had been raised. No sort of fumbling of any kind before marriage. It was very much frowned upon, and Cassandra knew there would be a lot of talk if it got out what had happened.

  They hadn’t had sex, but they didn’t need to. It was more than enough to get people talking.

  But with Gabriel Tattershall, Cassandra found herself wanting to break all the rules. And she shouldn’t. Not with him.

  Why did I have to start having feelings for the worst possible choice for me?

  “I wouldn’t say he took advantage, Emily.” Cassandra knew her face was bright red. She stared at the ground, shifting on the stone bench. The throbbing between her legs hadn’t stopped from yesterday, and it was getting irritating. “It was more of a mutual thing, actually.”

  Emily’s mouth opened and closed. She looked like one of the fish in the pond next to them. Her friend took a deep breath and shook her head.

  “I...I don’t know what to say. I knew Gabriel Tattershall could set his sights on absolutely anyone, but I never thought you two would be compatible in that way.”

  “You what? You’ve insinuated it before!”

  “That was when I was teasing you. I knew you were sensible enough not to get involved with him.”

  “I’m not involved with him!” Cassandra protested.

  It was just a kiss. Or two. Or several with a few hands going where they weren’t supposed to go. Oh, God. What does that make me now?

  “I don’t know what to do now, Emily.” Cassandra jumped to her feet and started pacing. She couldn’t bring herself to sit down for too long. “I’m supposed to be courting his brother, and now it feels like I’m betraying him with his own brother.”

  “If it makes you feel any better, from what you said, Gabriel was just as shocked at what happened.”