The rest of her tirade was cut off as he pulled her into his arms and smothered her mouth with his.
She told herself to fight him off, that nothing would come of this detainment but more pain and frustration, but she couldn’t yet find the will to push aside the one thing she’d yearned for over the past five years. Each time she switched the calendar, of watching the case clock in the foyer chime the hour, she’d dreamed that he might walk through the front door, and yet, Hunter did not appear, no matter how much she might have wished for him to do so.
When, at last, he wrote and said he was coming home, she had paced the floorboards in anticipation until she was surprised they weren’t worn through. Time had crawled by even more slowly, but finally he was there, and now it was as if every minute spent with him was cut too short. He claimed that their association was at an end, so yes, she would relish this stolen embrace for however long it lasted.
She wanted to wind her arms around his neck and deepen the kiss, but she kept her hands at her sides, afraid that if she moved at all, he would draw away from her. But she couldn’t stop a gasp from escaping when he clenched the fabric of her dressing gown in the back and bunched it in his fists. She wasn’t certain whether he was trying to tether himself to reality, or if he meant to rend it in two, but she rather hoped it was the latter.
He pulled away, but only long enough to rest his forehead against hers, keeping his eyes closed. He was breathing heavily. “Tell me to stop,” he whispered huskily. “Tell me to go away.”
“Why would I do that?” she returned softly. “I want this.” She paused. “I’ve always wanted this.”
He clenched his jaw. “But I… don’t want to be a slave to my lust, to be a man like Lord Gregory. I’ve…withheld myself for years because I—”
She gently placed her fingers over his lips. “You are nothing like him. Do you hear me? Just because you have… urges, that doesn’t mean you’re some sort of rabid animal, but merely a man who craves human interaction. It isn’t a bad thing, Hunter. It’s perfectly normal, and it’s time you allowed yourself to see that.”
He slowly opened his eyes and looked at her evenly. “I’m afraid I’ll… hurt you.”
She shook her head. “My mother told me what it’s like to lose one’s virginity. I’ve been prepared for it all my life. It’s either you or—”
He made a noise in the back of his throat that sounded suspiciously like a growl. “No one else can have you.” He reached out and lifted her into his arms. “You’re mine.”
As he strode across the chamber to her bed, she wound her arms around him with a smile. “I always have been, from the moment you won that bid.”
Chapter Five
Hunter knew that he was condemning everything that he’d promised himself from more than five years of dedicated celibacy, but there was a part of him that knew this was… right. Not because he was about to break his vow to abstain from sex, but because Persephone was absolutely correct. He couldn’t, in all good conscience, send her back to her mother’s house intact.
The very image of some other man touching her didn’t set well, but other than retaining her as his mistress forever, the moment he relinquished his tie to her, there was nothing he could say if someone else wished to stake a claim. Even if that man was someone like Darwood, whom he trusted implicitly, his teeth ground at the idea of anyone being her next protector.
But what else could Hunter do to keep her at his side, other than—
Marriage.
He shoved such permanent thoughts aside and focused on the woman in his arms. No doubt his performance wouldn’t last long, since it had been years since he’d allowed himself this sort of pleasure, so he had to make sure her needs came first.
He picked her up and carried her over to the bed. He laid her down gently and tossed the counterpane toward the foot. They would be making enough heat that they wouldn’t need the extra warmth.
Hunter kicked off the shoes he still wore and straddled her upper thighs on the bed. She was looking at him expectantly, curious as to what he might do next, although her blue eyes were filled with sensual promises of her own.
Slowly, he reached down and untied her dressing gown. As it gaped open, he pushed the edges aside, brushing his thumbs across her erect nipples as he did so. She sucked in a breath and bit her bottom lip. His throat instantly went dry.
With his focus on her lovely face, he slowly went to work removing his jacket, cravat and waistcoat. Had it really only been a few hours ago that he’d been walking among the jaded members of society at Vauxhall, watching as they drank their fill and allowing themselves to be consumed by the lust around them?
And now, he was doing the same.
As he pulled his shirt free from the waistband of his trousers, he hesitated.
“Do it,” she commanded.
He yanked the material over his head and bared the top half of his body to her.
Her gaze roamed over his naked chest, the admiration he saw there causing his cock to harden to the point of near pain. It pulsed with unspent desire, but he tamped down his need and waited patiently for her to look her fill.
But when she reached out and ran her fingernails lightly through the dusting of dark curly hair, steadily heading toward the bulge in his trousers, that’s where he had to stop her. “Not that far, love. Or I fear you’ll be terribly disappointed.”
With that, he brushed her hands aside and decided it was his turn to play the seducer. She might have been raised in the ways of a harlot, but he had enjoyed the lifestyle far longer.
His mouth clamped over the tip of her breast through the thin cotton of her night rail. She sighed and lifted her chest to give him better access. “More.”
He complied by lifting his hands and molding the full mounds of flesh in his hands. Laving one nipple, and then the other, he gently kneaded the one he wasn’t feasting on at the time.
It didn’t take long before her legs were moving restlessly beneath him. “Hunter…” She moaned his name when he started to move away from her, but as he lifted the hem of her garment, her eyes brightened with renewed interest. Obviously, her mother had instructed her in more than just the joining of bodies, for when he bent her knees and bent down to lap at the juncture between her legs, she clutched the sheets on either side of her and threw her head back in ecstasy. The sight was so erotic that Hunter nearly spilled his seed right then.
He continued his careful ministrations until the moment of climax struck her and she shuddered beneath him. He knew the first taste of her on his tongue was something he would savor for the rest of his days.
As her tremors subsided, he lifted his head to see her smiling.
“That was… meravigliosa.”
He lifted a brow as he moved to stand beside the bed. “You know Italian?”
She rose onto her elbow, allowing that magnificent hair to fall over her shoulder. It caught the light from the lamp by the bed and shone with the brilliance of golden fire. “I know many things.” Her grin widened. “Although most of them are probably too delicate for your ears.”
He laughed at that. “We will see about that.” He unbuttoned the flap of his trousers and allowed them to fall to the floor.
Her eyes widened slightly when his pulsing manhood was on full display. “Impressive,” she murmured.
He hated to admit it, but he stood a little taller after that single word. “And how many male members have you seen?”
She shrugged one shoulder. “Enough to know when one will satisfy a woman. Although—” She moved to the edge of the bed and stood, allowing her night rail to fall to her feet in the same manner his trousers had been discarded, leaving her blessedly nude. “It’s not always the size, but how you use it.”
With that, she dropped to her knees and took him fully into her mouth.
He abruptly forgot how to breathe. And when she began to suck him as eagerly as any practiced courtesan, he thought for sure he was going to lose his mind entire
ly.
“Persephone…” Her name was uttered on a plea, a benediction as his eyes began to drift shut. He was quickly falling over the edge of oblivion. He reluctantly put a hand on her head to cease her movements. “You have to stop if you want me to perform properly in bed.”
She ran her tongue around the edge of her lips and murmured, “You forget that we have all night.”
As she took him in her mouth again, he gave himself over to the pleasure tightening his midsection. He watched her until the intensity became too much and then closed his eyes as he spilled himself between her lips with a low groan.
Afterward, she rose to her feet and gave a light purr. “Mmm. That was nice.”
He chuckled, albeit a bit shakily. “I’m not sure I’d use such a tame adjective.” He sighed, for some of the tension that had been his constant companion over the years had already begun to ease.
She moved back to the bed and laid down, a tempting goddess that had his cock twitching back to life. “Join me?”
Hunter wasn’t sure if this woman would be his angel back to life, or the demon sent on his destruction, but he would no longer deny her whatever she wanted.
***
Sephy wanted to rejoice in her triumph. It appeared her tutelage over the years was just as she recalled, for the intensity in Hunter’s eyes as he lay down beside her was thrilling. It was obvious by his release that she had pleased him. If she could only keep her lover satisfied in the bedchamber, her mother said she would be set for the rest of her life. ‘A good mistress will generally be left with a generous allowance so that she may live the rest of her days in peace at the end of the association.’
She was quite sure that Hunter intended to change his mind and keep her after tonight, and while Sephy didn’t want to think about the eventual termination of her union with the duke, she wasn’t about to squander their time together on maudlin thoughts. A harlot’s purpose was all about pleasure, and she intended to give him everything that she had. She had to ensure that he never wanted to leave the bedchamber.
She reached between them and began to stroke his cock back to full vigor. He made some sort of husky growl of approval in the back of his throat. “Why do I feel as if you’ll be the death of me?”
She leaned forward to whisper in his ear. “I’m not your death, but your salvation.” She pulled back to look into his eyes. “I’m whatever you want of me.”
“Good.” He rolled her onto her back and mounted her. “Because I want all of you.”
He kissed her even more passionately than before and Sephy knew that she was starting to break through that tough exterior that he’d built around himself. But she must tread carefully and be patient, or it wouldn’t take much for him to retreat into that shell. If that occurred, it would be devastating.
For both of them.
The flames of her desire quickly flared back to life as he teased and tormented her, nibbling a path along her neck and throat. When he nudged her legs apart and settled himself between her thighs, she wasn’t nervous about what was to come, she was just glad that he was finally here with her.
When he paused, she lifted her hips and the tip of his cock slipped inside. Their eyes locked and she reached up to touch his strong jawline. “I want you, Hunter. Make me yours.”
As if he was waiting for that last bit of consent, he pushed forward and broke through the final barrier of her innocence. She gasped at the foreign sensation, the invasion of her body, and found that nothing she’d ever been taught could have truly prepared her for such a joining. She certainly couldn’t imagine doing this with anyone other than Hunter. It was too intimate, too personal.
When he began to move, she moaned at the friction he was causing, the wondrous sensations that were building inside of her. More. She hooked her heels behind the back of his legs and clutched his shoulders as his speed began to increase. More. Suddenly, the passion that had been building burst free in a thousand brilliant sparks of light, the display at Vauxhall a pale comparison.
With a hoarse shout, Hunter’s neck muscles strained as he emptied himself into her for the second time that night. He collapsed on top of her, his breathing labored and his body weight pressing her into the mattress beneath, their skin still damp from their exertions.
She loved every bit of it.
Finally, Hunter rolled onto his back, but he made sure to draw her within the circle of his arms. She laid her head on his chest and lifted a finger to trace an invisible pattern through the hair.
They were both quiet for a time, and then he finally exhaled heavily. “After all these years, I broke the one vow I told myself I never would.”
Sephy swallowed down the anxiety that wanted to suffocate her, but she couldn’t help asking, “Do you regret it?”
Following a brief pause, he said softly, “No. I don’t. It just felt… right with you. But yet, a part of me feels as though I’ve dishonored Louisa somehow.”
She frowned. “Why? You’re a man with needs the same as anyone else. Even your sister has likely felt the stirrings of lust.”
He didn’t reply immediately, so she thought he was considering what she’d said. Instead, when he spoke, his voice was hard and unforgiving. “Louisa doesn’t feel anything anymore. Not after what Lord Gregory did to her.”
Sephy said nothing as he drew away from her and got to his feet. He pulled on his trousers and gathered the rest of his things in his arms. He didn’t even fully turn to face her as he murmured, “I’ll see you in the morning.”
She sat up and held the covers over her breasts. “You’re not staying?”
His footsteps slowed as he neared the door, as if he would respond, but he must have changed his mind, for he didn’t stop, but opened the oak door and softly shut it behind him.
Left alone in the silence, Sephy flopped back on the bed. Tears stung her eyes, but she angrily brushed them away.
Did she really think it would be that easy to just seduce Hunter and then imagine that everything would be all right? There were years of pent up frustrations and sorrow that sheltered his heart from her. It wouldn’t be something that was shattered in one night of pleasure. Worse yet, what if she’d just made everything worse? He might have taken her virginity at long last, but what if that only succeeded in making him more distant and closed off from her?
Her heart abruptly seized in her chest as she thought of something far more important. What if tonight had merely been a way to send her away without further weight on his conscience? When he departed he said he would see her in the morning. He didn’t tell her that she would be staying.
Sephy forced her hands to unclench. She would have to pay another call on Charlotte for some more advice, for going to her mother’s house wasn’t an option. Besides, the countess was the only one who knew that Sephy had still been a virgin when the duke had departed for India. No doubt her mother would have been appalled at the idea her daughter had just recently become Falcourt’s mistress in more than name. If word got out, it would surely damage the reputation of her house.
Thus decided, Sephy rolled onto her side and, like so many times before, she focused on the jade elephant on her bedside table before she fell into a restless slumber.
***
Hunter left at dawn. After a rather fitful night of tossing and turning, he was grateful for the light of day. He wanted to ensure that he left before Persephone arose, for he wasn’t quite sure how to face her. Of course, it seemed rather ridiculous that a man of two and thirty should be afraid to speak to a woman ten years his junior after they’d shared such an intimate night of bliss, but he also couldn’t deny the truth.
He had been wrong last night when he’d told her to pack her things, but at the same time, he also didn’t know how to proceed from here.
Thus, he set out for White’s in St. James hoping for some sort of clarity, but instead of bothering Henry to saddle his horse, he hailed down a passing hackney. Once he was deposited at the steps of the familiar structure, h
e paused. He remembered the first time his uncle had brought him here and requested membership for his nephew. At the time, Hunter was still in Eton, but by the time he attended Oxford, he’d received news that his application had been accepted.
The first time he’d walked through those coveted gentlemen-only doors that were opened for but a select few, he had felt a sense of pride. For the illegitimate son of the king, whose mother had been smeared with the scandal of her impending divorce and adultery, it was as if he’d finally been accepted by a society that wanted to condemn him just by being born.
Years later, Hunter had no such compunctions. He could care less if he was brought into the fold of his London peers. He just wanted somewhere he could think.
While he hadn’t darkened the doorway of the infamous club for years, the moment he showed his card, he was granted access. The infamous betting book was still where he remembered and the interior was still masculine in nature, although lush and grand with velvet chairs and the lingering scent of smoke in the air. It was meant to be a haven for men who wanted to escape their duties in Parliament for a time, or perhaps even their own familial duties.
For Hunter, it was merely a place he could have a drink without worry of seeing Miss Welton around every corner.
At such an early hour there were no more than two or three other men in attendance, the gaming tables silent for the time being. However, as he wearily sank down near the fireplace, it didn’t take long for a waiter to approach him. “Welcome, Your Grace. Can I get you something?”
Hunter placed an order for a sherry and then leaned back and prepared to shut his eyes until the man returned.
“It’s a bit early in the day for spirits isn’t it, Falcourt?”
Hunter cracked open an eye to see one of the men who had been sitting diagonally from him lower the paper and fold it neatly before he set it aside. He snorted. “Darwood. And here I thought you might be sleeping off the effects from Vauxhall last evening.”
The Harlot's Hero Page 5
