Duchess by Day, Mistress by Night (Rebellious Desires)

by Reid, Stacy

  Amusement glinted in his eyes, and it was evident her counterthreat had no impact on him. Although if she were being honest, she was unconcerned because she knew Rhys would allow no one to harm her. The awareness felt right…and frightening.

  “Rhys has been restless for days on end, tonight even more so, then he went outside and reentered with you, and all that dangerous tension disappeared. I am curious as to why the only woman in disguise in my establishment is the one to produce this miracle in a man who is for all intents and purposes my brother.”

  Delight rushed through her, and she did not mask her reaction by the man’s intense frown.

  “It’s mutually assured madness, I see,” Mr. O’Malley drawled and then melted away into the crowd.

  A hand gripped her waist and spun her about. Rhys.

  “Dance with me, my lady.”

  “I…don’t know the steps,” she said with a light laugh. “What is it?”

  “It’s an Irish reel. I’ll lead, and you follow my command.”

  The flowing strains of the music drifting made her want to move to its rhythm. She sank into a deep curtsy, feeling positively wicked. She stepped into his arms. He spun around her, left, then right, their movements evocative and thrilling. She was a quick learner, and in short time, she was mimicking his steps and swaying her hips with vigor to the music. The crowd started clapping, and then men broke from their partners…and started to dance. Their feet flew over the floor in quick, powerful, yet so-graceful staccato beats. She laughed, delighted with their display. They broke formation to claim back their partners, and a few seconds later, Georgiana was tapping ungracefully beside Rhys and laughing so much her side hurt.

  With a shout of laughter, their reel ended. She even felt a bout of dizziness and held out her hand to steady herself. He caught her, a powerful but warm masculine wall of support. Tipping her head to meet his eyes, she encountered a gaze warm with something more than passion. Admiration, perhaps.

  She’d never had an evening quite like this. “Thank you, Rhys…that…that was marvelous. It has been ages since I’ve enjoyed myself so thoroughly.”

  His laughing breath touched her brow. “We’re not done yet.”

  The pulse of the music beat in her blood, and she found herself once again swaying to the rhythm of the fiddle. Suddenly he was there, holding her scandalously close in a bastardized version of the elegant waltz. She gasped when his hips rolled suggestively onto hers, and the crowd hooted and cheered. Breathing hard, she turned her head and a moan spilled from her when his teeth nipped along her throat over her fluttering pulse.

  They twirled and dipped, swayed and swirled in a dance that was the waltz, yet far more sensual. Georgiana felt wild with abandon, wanton, cherished as Rhys moved with her. He was all male yet so incredibly beautiful.

  “I wish this night would not end.”

  He laughed low and deep, the sound rippling through her. “We will have dozens more.”

  Only dozens? She was helpless against the sweeping sensations working through her body. Georgiana swallowed, hating the lump in her throat. Pressing even closer to Rhys, she freed her mind and swayed with him. The night flew away at a very unusual rate as she danced with her lover, swept into a world of pure feeling.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Rhys whisked Georgiana through the still-dancing and rowdy crowd. He led her down a long hallway. Here and there couples murmured and laughed in the shadows, some even moaned, indicating the type of play in which they indulged. She laughed breathlessly beside him, hurrying to keep apace, her turquoise eyes sparkling with excitement. She was quite remarkable.

  He glanced down, a smile pulling at his lips at her evident enjoyment. Many tonight had watched her covetously and others with avid curiosity, for she was the only patron to be so disguised. She glowed with gentility amongst the coarseness, and many perhaps suspected she was a lady but knew better than to let their curiosity leave the gambling hell.

  At the end of the hallway, a man stood guard at a large oak door. Members of The Asylum were not allowed in the maze gardens Riordan tended to with such care. The guard, however, understood that Riordan had only a few friends he trusted to have access to most rooms and an outdoor section of the club, and Rhys was such a friend. The door was pulled open, and he deftly maneuvered her through, pushing it closed behind him.

  “Oh! It’s beautiful.” Dozens of lanterns were attached along the trellis. Honeysuckle and jasmine graced the gardens. The air was redolent with the scent of fruit and flowers.

  He pulled her farther into the labyrinth, following the lantern-lit pathway to an inner alcove. He faced her, tugging her close to him, so they were flush.

  “I have a gift for you.”

  Surprise flared in her eyes. “What is it?”

  He reached into his pocket and retrieved a slim leather case. “This is for you.”

  Her face glowed as she took it from him and gently opened the case. They were bloodred rubies formed in an intricate necklace. The stones seemed alive, sparkling with vivid beauty. “They are the most exquisite rubies I have ever seen. I’ve never seen such stones on our shores.”

  The hard edges of his mouth softened into a pleased smile. “They once belonged to an Ottoman pasha.”

  Her eyes lit with mischief. “And you did him an unmatched favor?”

  “Something of the sort. They are now yours.”

  She lifted stunned eyes to him. “Oh, Rhys, I cannot accept such a gift. They are far too expensive, and something you should give…”

  “Give my mistress? My lover?”

  Her tongue darted and wetted her lips. “I was going to say your wife.”

  A role, he realized, he wanted to see her in, despite its impossibility. He was allowing himself to cross barriers because of the way she made him yearn for more. He frowned, suddenly restless. How had he not known there was a missing piece in his life? She had captured his attention and his thoughts with so little effort, it gave him pause. Here he was, wrapping himself into a web of his own making over a woman who likely saw him as nothing more than a temporary plaything. “I’ve been holding on to them for years. Now I know why. They were made for you, and I would be honored if you would accept them.”

  “Thank you, Rhys.” She tipped on her toes and pressed a kiss to his cheek. “I will cherish them forever.”

  “You will wear them for me alone…soon.”

  An unladylike snort was her only response.

  “Perhaps tomorrow I can see you splayed atop silken sheets, waiting for me, only wearing rubies.”

  “Is that so?”

  “Hmm, how do you feel about going away with me, for a week?” He watched every nuance of her expressive face. Excitement had flared in the depths of her turquoise eyes before caution had her hooding her gaze. “Discreetly, of course,” he added.

  “I have duties to attend. I…I simply cannot go away for a few days, not so suddenly.”

  “Tell me, what responsibilities does a duchess have?”

  “I suppose you believe I sit around aimlessly with servants attending to my every whim.”

  His hands smoothed over her back, relishing the feel of her delicate curves. “I wasn’t being facetious, I am curious about you.”

  She smiled in apparent delight. She tugged him toward a wrought-iron bench, and he lowered himself onto it. Pleasure burst into his veins when instead of beside him she sat on his thighs and wrapped her hands around his neck.

  “My son is the seventh Duke of Hardcastle. I manage my son’s estates until he comes of age, and I have been slowly teaching him how to be a gentleman.”

  “Your son is six?”

  Georgiana chuckled. “Yes, his birthday was only a few weeks ago. He is very smart, and a bit stubborn. Once a week we visit his tenants so they may know him. He is kind and loves to play with their children with no ideas that he should preserve a distinction of rank. My mother and even my brother berate me for allowing it, but I desire my son to see the
honor and goodness in people before he considers their position within society. We are building a school and a hospital in a nearby village, and as a part of understanding the responsibility that will sit on his shoulders a few years from now, we visit the work sites once every other week.”

  She tilted her head as she watched him closely. “I also manage my own wealth. My grandmother bequeathed me an inheritance of fifty thousand pounds that I have since tripled. And my widow’s portion was very generous. I find some days I spend hours reading investment reports and poring through ledgers, and then there are other days I am consumed with balls, the theater, and the opera.”

  “And are there days when you are just free?”

  A radiant smile split her face. “There are, Rhys, and today…tonight is such a day.”

  “I’ve been trying to unearth your secrets,” he said softly.

  Her fingers tightened around his nape. “Have you?”

  “Yes. I woke up a couple of weeks past with this hunger to know you. And I sent my sparrows deep, seeking information about you.”

  “And did you find any?” she asked, amusement dancing in her gaze. “Because you are my only secret. Do not keep me in suspense, what did your…sparrows uncover?”

  “Politically speaking, you are a member of the Tory party, shocking and quite scandalous, since your late husband and your family are members of the Whig party. Your last birthday, which was only three months ago, you held a house party that lasted a weekend, where you used your influence to convince some of the most notable members of the House of Lords to support a few pieces of legislation you had taken an interest in. There was even some speculation that you were the lover of Lord Melbourne, but those rumors were quickly laid to rest. You are an exemplary hostess, and the Marquess of Locksley desires your hand in marriage. There are bets laid down at White’s as to how successful he will be. Some believe he is crazy to want a woman as fiercely independent as you are, despite your beauty.”

  “Those reprobates!”

  “Hmm, tell me of the marquess.”

  Her eyes widened. “Lord Locksley?”

  Rhys’s mouth hovered inches from hers so that she could feel the warmth of his breath on her skin. “Yes.”

  “What do you wish to know?” she murmured.

  “Do you plan to marry him?”

  “I do not plan to remain alone for the rest of my life. I am only six-and-twenty.”

  “That is not an answer.”

  She stiffened, her spine elegantly straight. “I will eventually remarry. Perhaps several years from now.”

  “To the marquess.”

  “If he is unencumbered when I am ready, he is a suitable candidate.”

  “Then why isn’t he your lover now?”

  She flushed and shifted her eyes away from his. Placing a finger under her chin with firm pressure, he directed her attention back to him.

  “He doesn’t rouse me.”

  “Your body? Your intellect? Your heart?”

  “All of them,” she said hoarsely. “You’re the only man to ever arouse me so completely.”

  “I assure you, the feeling is mutual.”

  He eased her from his lap and guided her deeper into the gardens. When he reached the section he always came to, he released her hands and sank onto the thick carpeted grass, with his hand behind his head. She lowered herself, too, and curled her legs beneath her, regarding him steadily. Then she removed the delicate facemask, revealing her features.

  “It is lovely here.”

  “Sometimes I lie here and stare at the sky, my mind unburdened, and I just watch the stars. There is no beauty like the night.”

  Georgiana leaned back until she, too, was lying, staring up at the vastness of the sky.

  “I’m scared,” she whispered.

  He slid his hand along the prickly surface of the grass and laced their fingers together. “Why?”

  “Because this feels perfect. Our affair will be etched forever in my heart.”

  His fingers tightened on hers. “Perhaps it does not have to end.”

  The garden was silent, the darkness comforting, the starlit night tranquil. She remained silent, and he did not push her.

  “How long do you imagine we could have an affair?” she asked softly. “Weeks, months?”

  “Years.”

  She laughed shakily. “Even after I’m married?”

  She drove every sane thought from his head with that pronouncement. How naive she was to think he would allow another man in her body once they were lovers. “You would dishonor your vows?”

  “Never.” She squeezed one of his fingers. “The duke had a mistress, and I hated the very notion. I would never hurt my husband by being unfaithful.”

  The man had been a fool. Georgiana was all that was wonderful, kind, intelligent, and as sensual as sin.

  “I realized his needs were being satisfied elsewhere about three months after he stopped visiting my chamber.”

  Rhys tugged her closer, and she came willingly, shifting her body slightly, so her head rested on his chest.

  “I was warned all gentlemen secured their heir and a spare, and then they would have mistresses. Though I expected it, it hurt deep down inside. I felt…inadequate. After a time, we only saw each other for dinner parties, balls, and when I hosted his political dinners. I felt so alone and then ashamed for even having such a thought. I had so much when others had so little, so I tried to be content, but there was always that feeling of something more that I needed. It was quite frustrating never having that desire assuaged.”

  Rhys frowned as he recalled the loneliness that would sometimes strike at his gut even when he was with his family. It was as if something was missing, a disconnection in his life he’d hardly understood. It was those nights he would take to The Asylum and find a woman to ride for a couple hours, hoping to slake the burning need for that elusive something. It didn’t escape his notice that that yawning chasm hadn’t been there since before he’d found her son. He stroked his thumb over her fingers in a soothing motion.

  She turned his hand over, noting the fine scars on the insides of his fingers. “Your hands are rough.” Then she pressed a kiss on his knuckles. “I ache to know more about your life. Where is your childhood home? Why…why aren’t you married? How did you become The Broker?”

  He stilled, wondering how much to share. The dangerous thing was that he wanted her to know everything, even if it would repulse her more. “For a while, we lived in the stews.”

  She froze and tried to move, but he trailed his fingers over her flat stomach and pressed gently. His duchess’s breath hitched at the intimate caress, but she stayed still. “How is that possible?”

  “My father…he was cruel to my mother. He was in the shipping business and was very wealthy. Her father, the viscount, needed money for his flagging estates and sold her to the man who wanted the connection to a title. My father had no love in his heart for her or for me. He hurt her, beat her, and he was within his rights according to the law. He had several mistresses, and he shamed her with them.”

  “Oh, Rhys, I am so sorry.”

  “It had become unbearable living with him. He was beating her, and I intervened. He turned his dissatisfaction on me, but I did not mind for it spared my mother.”

  “How old were you?”

  “Twelve.”

  Her hands tightened on his.

  “The very next day, she packed what little we could take, and we ran. She went home, and her brother, who now has the title, turned her away.”

  His duchess gasped.

  “He told her of duty and that to leave her husband she would shame the family. We were both bruised horribly. Lydia was a baby, and Mother was with child, but it did not matter to the viscount. She reminded him it was her marriage, and that her sacrifice was why he was living with such wealth, but her pleas fell on deaf ears. We left, but we didn’t return to her hell. My mother sold what jewelry and silver she ran with and rented the cheapest
rooms she could find. She was heavy with child and could find no employment. The money from the jewelry didn’t last long, and I had to start taking care of my family.”

  “I cannot imagine it,” she whispered. “You were a child, and to shoulder such responsibilities.”

  “I found work at the docks, and somehow I made it work. I was quiet, I listened, and I learned, and I absorbed the world around me. I traded my first secret to the butcher. His brother was pilfering, and his wife had a lover. I learned the value of watching people, holding my tongue when needed, and knowing where to see the thread and follow on the connection. I quickly learned when I traded information for money, that the money ran out quickly. It was better to trade for another favor. My reputation soon grew, and after a time, I got requests from all sorts of people—lords, ladies, the criminal class, the government.”

  “And duchesses,” she murmured.

  “And duchesses.”

  “Tell me about your first kiss, the first time you kissed a girl.”

  Pleasure burned through him at her desire to know him deeper. “My first kiss was at fifteen with a gentleman of your society who thought I was too pretty to be left alone.”

  She gasped and twisted around so she was now atop his chest. “Truly?”

  “Hmm, he was the first lord I entangled in my web. He paid heavily for his secret to be buried. Several acres of land, if I recall correctly.”

  His duchess chuckled, her laugh soft, carefree, inviting. The outside world, their difference in station seemed far away as they talked and share bits about their lives they’d never shared with anyone before. If only he could damn society and everyone in it and keep her. God’s blood. It was such a pity he couldn’t find the right words to convince her this could be more than an affair.

  …

  Lady Sheffield’s midnight ball was a wonderful crush, and Georgiana had been about to escape to the gardens until she espied her lover. She had not expected Rhys to attend Lady Sheffield’s ball with Lydia. Georgiana had been wrapped in his arms last week, and he’d not mentioned he would attend with his sister. Why hadn’t he told her? Since their time at The Asylum over three weeks past, she had met him several times at an elegantly appointed townhouse in Piccadilly. It was operated by a skeleton staff who only came by during the day, and the night belonged to them. She learned so many delightfully intriguing things about Rhys. He was intelligent, shrewd, selfless, and perplexingly possessed a ruthless heart but one of the kindest she had ever known.