“Why?” she asked.
His breathing was heavy, unsteady. “Let’s just say if you had continued to touch me like that, I would have made a fool of myself.”
She shook her head, confused.
He kissed her again and again until she felt like her lips would never be the same.
After what seemed like only moments but was probably the better part of an hour, Jordan pulled his mouth away. “We must stop.”
Annie nodded.
He refastened his breeches before buttoning the back of her gown. He escorted her through the house, up the stairs, and to her room without saying a word. She opened the door and turned back to face him, tentative, shy.
“Good night, Annie,” he said, bowing. His rumpled clothing and disheveled hair were the most attractive things she’d ever seen.
“What happened?” she managed to ask in a shaky voice.
His voice was firm, confident. He had a determined gleam in his eye. “Something that can never happen between us again.”
CHAPTER 33
The next morning, Jordan watched the coach that would take Annie back to London from an upstairs window. He didn’t dare say good-bye in person, didn’t dare get too close. He didn’t trust himself not to turn into a complete madman again and ravish her in the blasted foyer.
Instead, he put his coach and four at her disposal and sent Aunt Clarissa, Mary, and a gaggle of footmen, all of whom already adored Annie, off to London. She was going back. Back to the safety of Devon’s house. Back to her sister’s care.
Jordan squeezed his eyes shut. He hoped she didn’t see fit to mention their little interlude last night to her new brother-in-law. The thought made him smile a wry smile. Devon coming at him and beating him senseless might be just what Jordan needed, however, to jostle some sense back into him.
He scrubbed a hand through his hair, leaned his arm against the windowpane, and rested his forehead against it, watching his coach recede into the distance. What the hell had happened to him over the last four weeks? A month ago, he’d been enjoying an entirely pleasant existence of debauchery in London, and now he was doing his damnedest to get an innocent out of his head.
They’d nearly gone too far last night, and it shook him. But Annie had looked up at him with those beautiful brown eyes and asked, What’s wrong with me? It had been his undoing. There was absolutely nothing wrong with her. Nothing. And it made his stomach churn to know she might think so.
If he ever saw that fool Arthur Eggleston again, he’d do the lad a favor and snap his idiot neck. And Annie’s father had best be glad he was dead because he was on the list too. Anyone who’d ever been mean to her was.
But where had this protective streak come from? It made no sense. He’d never made it his business to protect anyone. Why was he starting now? He could tell himself repeatedly it was because he’d promised his friends he’d take care of Annie while they were gone, but there was more to it than that and he knew it. Blast it. He knew it. He’d protected her from her own fool notions, it was true, but he could have carted her out here and left her alone, gone back to London himself. He didn’t have to watch over her the entire time.
So why did he?
And when did the chaperone become the worst possible person to be in her presence? God, he couldn’t keep his hands off her last night. He’d tried. Screamed at himself in his head to stop. But touching her soft skin, moving his hands along her taut thighs, he just couldn’t help himself. Some madness had overtaken him and he just had to touch her.
Jordan expelled his breath and turned from the window. Yes, they’d nearly gone too far last night. Had gone too far. It scared the hell out of him to know it. He’d apologize to her the next time he saw her. In private, of course. But he couldn’t see her again for a long, long while. Perhaps not until she was engaged, or even married. Lily would take her into hand now and ensure her sister made a fine match. Thank God for that. But Jordan, no, he had no business being anywhere near Annie Andrews for the next several months if he could help it.
And that was an end to it.
* * *
Annie traced the pattern of the coach’s curtains with a fingertip. She glanced up at the manor house, wondering where Jordan was inside the cavernous home. Was he even aware that she was leaving now?
“I’ve never been woken up so early and sent packing so suddenly.” Mary mumbled the words from across the seat.
Annie bit her lip. “I’m sorry, Mary. I thought you knew Devon and Lily were expected back today. I do hope they make it.”
“I, for one, am quite happy to be going back. The country is lovely but a dreadful bore,” Aunt Clarissa added from her spot in the corner.
Mary settled into her own seat and shook her head at Annie. “I knew Miss Lily and Lord Colton are expected back. I just didn’t realize Lord Ashbourne was in such a ’urry ta be rid o’ ye.”
Unexpected tears stung the back of Annie’s eyes. It hadn’t been Jordan who’d ordered her to leave so quickly. She’d been unable to sleep last night after their encounter. She’d been up with the sun and asked the servants to help her prepare to leave. They’d been such dears and assisted her. Apparently Jordan had offered her the use of his coach, but he hadn’t come to say good-bye and she couldn’t blame him. After all that had happened between them over the last two weeks, and then last night, what would they say to each other? She’d been blissfully relieved to know he intended to let her go without having to face him. Hadn’t she?
Annie shook her head. She did her best to affect a convincing laugh. “Where have you been, Mary? Lord Ashbourne’s been in a hurry to get rid of me since Lily and Devon left town.”
Mary rolled her eyes. “That man certainly thinks ’e’s the king the way ’e ordered ye about and dragged ye out ’ere to begin wit. And why we need ta travel all the way back ta London to meet Miss Lily and Lord Colton just to come right back down ’ere to Surrey this week, I’ll never understand.”
Annie’s voice was quiet. “I’m anxious to see my sister. I cannot wait to get to London.”
Aunt Clarissa cleared her throat. “Yes, and please don’t take this the wrong way, dear, as it’s been an absolute pleasure serving as your chaperone for the last month, but I cannot wait to get back to my own town house. I miss my own bed dreadfully.”
Annie reached over and patted the older woman’s hand. “You’ve been such a dear to stay with me, Aunt Clarissa.”
Annie glanced back at Mary. “Besides, Lord Ashbourne was only doing what he was asked.”
Mary quirked a brow. “Only doing wot ’e was asked? My, isn’t that a change o’ tune from a few days ago? Weren’t ye the one wot nearly ’ad a conniption when the man tracked ye down? Abduction, ye called it, if I remember.”
Annie pulled at the strings to her reticule. She glanced out the window and stared across the foggy landscape, the demesne of Jordan’s vast property. Mary was obviously miffed if she wasn’t making any attempt to pronounce her words more formally.
But Mary was right. Annie had been completely changed over the last two weeks. Not only had she finally come to realize that Arthur wasn’t the man she thought he was, but she’d also seen Lord Ashbourne … Jordan … in a completely different way.
The truth was, she’d spent the last month acting like a spoiled child while Jordan had done everything in his power to save her from herself and her own idiotic notions of love. Arthur didn’t love her. Perhaps he thought he did and he certainly said he did, but true love didn’t run from adversity. His promise had been worth nothing. Arthur clearly wasn’t committed to her. Not the way he truly should be. And the truth was, she wasn’t as committed to him as she should be either. If she truly loved Arthur, after all, how could she have done the wanton things she’d done with Jordan last night? How could she have enjoyed them so much? Her cheeks flamed.
Oh God, what had she done? Jordan was Devon’s best friend. He was a rakehell and better looking than he had any right to be. He couldn’
t seriously be interested in her. Could he? On the other hand, the man consorted with beauties like Nicoletta. He wouldn’t waste his time with Annie if he didn’t find her somewhat pretty … would he?
Her mind raced back to the day they went for a ride on his property when he’d allowed her to drive the coach tandem. Arthur had refused to allow her to do such a thing, but Jordan had seemed nothing but confident in her skills. He’d saved her reputation on two occasions now and had put himself to considerable trouble on her account. He’d even attempted to introduce her to his handsome brothers. Surely that act alone proved he was doing more than just fulfilling a simple promise to Devon.
Annie shook her head. She needed to be alone for a few days, away from men. All of them. All they’d done in the past month was serve to confuse her. “Let’s get some sleep, Mary,” she whispered to the maid.
Yes. She needed to rest, rest and see Lily. She longed to be in her sister’s comforting arms.
Mary nodded and Annie leaned her head against the coach’s wall. She squeezed her eyes shut, but she couldn’t sleep.
She wanted marriage and children and love more than anything in this world. Those had been her dreams for as long as she could remember. She’d thought Arthur was the man for her, but now, when she closed her eyes, Arthur’s image was not the one that filled her vision. It was Jordan Holloway’s image that danced across her mind.
And there was only one problem with Jordan Holloway.
The man had sworn an oath never to marry.
CHAPTER 34
Annie ran straight into her sister’s outstretched arms. “Lily,” she breathed, inhaling the familiar scent of her sister’s jasmine perfume. “Lily, I missed you so.”
Lily hugged Annie tightly. “And I missed you.” The two pulled apart and stared at each other, bright smiles upon each of their faces.
Lily looked perfect as always. Her black hair piled high atop her head, her violet eyes sparkling. Her sister had never appeared better. She had a rosy glow in her cheeks, a jaunty step, and a true smile that Annie hadn’t seen in years. Not since before Lily’s marriage to the old Earl of Merrill. The man had subsequently died, and, despite their marriage contract, had left Lily nearly penniless.
And Lily had gained a bit of weight now that she didn’t have the worries of supporting a household including Annie, Mary, Evans, and the two dogs on practically no income. Her sister glowed with another radiance too, that of being completely in love with her new husband, Lord Colton.
The footmen were hurriedly unloading the trunks from Devon’s coach. The conveyance had pulled to a stop in front of the grand town house. Lily and Devon had just swept through the front doors.
Annie stayed in Lily’s arms and nodded to Devon. “Very good to see you, my lord.” She smiled through her tears of joy.
“Good to see you, Anne,” Devon replied with a wink and a nod.
Aunt Clarissa, bags packed, kissed her nephew and his new wife. “I do hope you’ll forgive my rudeness, dears, but I’m in an awfully large hurry to be home.”
“Not to worry, Aunt Clarissa,” Devon replied. “I’ve already given the coachman orders.”
Lily nodded to the older lady. “Thank you so much for serving as chaperone while I was away, Aunt Clarissa.”
Annie prayed the woman didn’t mention anything about a stay at a certain country house or anything else to do with Jordan Holloway for that matter. “Good-bye, Aunt Clarissa. And thank you,” she said, waving.
“Remember my recommendation, dear,” Aunt Clarissa said, winking at Annie. Annie hid her smile, and thankfully, the older woman was gone without another word. The next thing Annie knew, the dogs, Leopold and Bandit, were rushing around Lily’s feet, distracting her sister from asking what in the world Aunt Clarissa had meant by that last remark.
“I see these two missed you, my dear,” Devon said, gesturing to the dogs and squeezing his wife’s hand. He so obviously adored Lily.
Lily bent down and scooped up both squirming pups into her arms. “My Bandit and my Leo,” she said, burying her face in their fur and letting Bandit, who was known to be a shameless licker, scour her face with little dog kisses.
Annie cleared her throat. She’d decided to wait a bit before introducing her sister to the newest member of their household, Dash.
Evans and Nicholls were beside themselves with glee, obviously pleased to have their master and mistress back in town and enjoying every moment of seeing that their trunks were put to rights by ordering the footmen about.
“Oh, how I’ve missed a good English tea,” Lily breathed.
Devon kissed her on the head. “I must attend to some business right away, but I’ll see you both tonight for dinner,” he said. “Besides, I’m sure you two have quite a lot to talk about.”
Devon winked at Lily and excused himself. He strode off toward his study and Lily watched him go with a wistful smile on her face.
“Tea shall be served momentarily, my lady,” Evans intoned in his most formal butlerlike voice.
Lily nodded. “Thank you, Evans. Very good to see you again. I trust you have been well.”
“Very well, thank you, my lady.” Evans couldn’t suppress the smug smile he tossed at Nicholls.
“Come, come,” Annie said, pulling her sister into the salon. “You must tell me absolutely everything about your holiday.”
While Evans served tea, the sisters settled onto the settee in the salon. Leo and Bandit curled into balls at their feet. Lily pushed her hands down her skirts and smiled. “What would you like to hear about first?”
Annie clapped her hands. “Oh, everything. Which was your favorite city? What food did you enjoy the most? How did you find Paris?”
Lily put up her hands as if to ward off her sister’s barrage of questions. “Just a moment.” She laughed. “One question at a time. Let’s see. I believe Venice was my very favorite.”
Annie snapped her mouth shut. Venice? The city where Jordan met his mistress. Oh, why did she have to remember such a detail at a time like this? She shook her head and focused her attention back on Lily. Her sister had been gone for weeks. She deserved Annie’s full devotion. This had nothing to do with Jordan Holloway.
“What was Venice like?” Annie closed her eyes trying to picture the grandeur of the famous floating Italian city.
One hour later, full of tea and biscuits, Annie had learned to her complete dismay that everything apparently had to do with Jordan. The stories of the food in Paris reminded her of the delectable meals at Jordan’s house in the country. They had been prepared by the French chef he employed. The story of a ride through the valleys of Tuscany reminded Annie of their romantic ride to the lake on Jordan’s property. The stories of the fashions in Paris reminded Annie of what a dashing figure Jordan always cut whether he was wearing riding attire or evening attire.
Blast it. The man was in her head. She’d so been hoping that a bit of time and distance, seeing Lily and returning to her old routine, would make everything all right again, but as Lily chattered on about her wedding expedition, all Annie could think about was Jordan Holloway.
“Aren’t you going to answer me?”
Annie turned to meet her sister’s gaze. “What was that?”
Apparently, her tales had come to an end and Lily had discovered Annie daydreaming. “I asked what happened here while I was away?”
Annie gulped. “Oh, not so very much,” she demurred, occupying herself with refilling her teacup. “More tea?”
Lily narrowed her eyes on her sister, but she nodded at the mention of the tea. “Come now, we’ve been gone for a month, surely something interesting happened here during that time.”
Annie tapped her finger against her cheek for a moment. “Yes, why yes, it did.”
Lily leaned in closer. “Tell me.”
“I rescued a fox.”
Lily scrunched up her nose and tilted her head to the side. “A fox?”
“Yes. His name is Dash and he had a wou
nded paw. I found him in Hyde Park of all places. Can you believe it?”
“And you brought him home?”
“He’s just a kit, Lily. I couldn’t leave him there to limp around the park. Now, I’ve every reason to suspect you shall allow me to keep him, but we must concoct a plan to convince Devon that he can stay.”
Lily smiled. “Hmm.” This time she tapped her finger against her cheek. “Let me think on it, but in the meantime, go get Dash. I must see him.”
Annie rang for Evans. “Evans, be a dear and ask Mary to come. She’ll want to see Lily. Ask her to bring Dash with her.”
Evans nodded and hurried off to do Annie’s bidding.
Lily turned her attention back to her sister. “Now, tell me, Anne. How did you get on while we were away?”
Uh-oh. She should have been the one to go get Dash. Annie put the back of her hand to her forehead in a feigned expression of long suffering. “Oh, it was difficult, to be sure, but somehow I managed.”
Lily pushed Annie’s shoulder lightly. “Did you allow Aunt Clarissa and Mary to escort you when you left the house?”
“Sometimes.”
Lily gave her a disapproving look. “And did Jordan pay you a visit every now and then to see how you were getting on? He promised me he would, you know,” she said with a sly smile.
Annie pulled at the throat of her day dress. Was it hot in the salon of a sudden? “I … why … yes … I … encountered Lord Ashbourne … from time to time.” She took a shaky sip of tea.
Lily nodded. “Glad to hear it.”
Annie breathed a sigh of relief. Thank God her sister appeared to be finished with the topic. But Lily’s next question nearly stopped Annie’s heart. “And no more mischief with Mr. Eggleston?”
Annie’s teacup clattered to the saucer. “Mischief? What are you implying?”
Lily folded her hands in her lap. Anyone other than Annie wouldn’t have noticed the small gesture. But their mother had always folded her hands in her lap when she was displeased yet wanted to remain in perfect control.
Secrets of a Runaway Bride Page 21
