Debbie Raleigh - Some Like It Brazen.doc

by Some Like It Brazen (lit)

  His fingers tightened. “Enough to last a lifetime?”

  “An eternity.”

  His gaze searched her countenance. Searching perhaps for some reassurance.

  “Bianca, did you love him?”

  She grimaced as a pang of guilt shot through her heart. As furious as she might be with Stephen, she could not deny that she had treated him ill.

  “I loved the thought of being rid of my father’s constraints and being my own mistress. But as far as Stephen…I am shamed to admit that I was merely using him.”

  “How can you be so certain?”

  She lifted her hands to lay them against his chest. Beneath her fingers, she could feel the rapid beat of his heart.

  “Because when I realized that my father would never allow our marriage, I felt nothing but anger at having my will thwarted. But when you left London…” She gave a slow shake of her head. “There was nothing that could have kept me from following you. Not Stephen. Not my father. Not even the entire English army.”

  Something flashed deep in the hazel eyes, but his expression remained stoic.

  “The life I offer is bound to be as confining as that with your father.”

  Bianca gave a lift of her brows. “You think to rule me?”

  His lips twitched. “I am not that foolish, but I will never be capable of devoting myself to society and frivolous pleasure. My responsibilities are too great. How can you know that you will not become bored at my side?”

  Her brows lifted even higher. “Because I have no intention of only being at your side.”

  He blinked at her brisk retort. “I beg your pardon?”

  “You have taught me that I have much to offer, Edward. I intend to use my position and power to assist others in my own way. I wish a life with you, but I must also have the opportunity to discover what I can accomplish.”

  A slow, heart-fluttering smile curved his lips. “You have no need to convince me, Lady Bianca. I am quite eager to witness all you can accomplish.” With a touch as light as a breeze, his fingers skimmed down her back, coming to rest upon the slight swell of her hips. “And speaking of accomplishments…” He leaned forward to press his lips against the tender curve of her throat. “I might have one or two that might be of interest to you.”

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  Edward watched the soft color steal beneath Bianca’s cheeks. Dear God, she was so beautiful she made his heart ache. But it was not just a physical beauty.

  She was much more than raven curls and ivory skin and soft curves.

  She possessed courage and intelligence and a passionate spirit that was nearly a tangible force.

  And he wanted her as his wife with a desperation that could no longer be denied.

  Slipping his hands about her hips, he tugged her firmly against his body. He was done with his uncertainty. Who could ever know what the future might hold? Or if the happiness of today would be guaranteed for tomorrow?

  Bianca claimed that she desired to be his wife. She offered him her love.

  He would be a fool to allow her to slip away.

  Tasting of her satin skin, he allowed his hands to sweep up the back of her gown to dispense with the aggravating ribbons and hooks. He needed to feel her warmth. To have her held so close that she could not possibly escape.

  Allowing his tongue to trail up her neck, he gently nipped at her ear. She shivered in response, her fingers clutching at his lapels.

  “Is this a part of your accomplishments, Lord Harrington?” she breathed.

  He chuckled as he tugged open the back of her gown and savored the silken skin that was exposed. There was surely nothing more delectable.

  “Actually, that is for you to decide, muirnin.” He nuzzled her cheek as his body clenched with a burning need. “But I would request one thing of you.”

  “And what is that?”

  “That you not rush to judgment.” Pulling back he studied her flushed features, his fingers lowering to wrestle with the knots of her corset. Damnable thing. “There are a few skills where being a gentleman of slow and methodical habits tends to be an advantage.”

  A smile of pure feminine temptation curved her lips. With a boldness that made his heart leap, she tugged at his cravat and tossed it aside. Then without hesitation she set about ridding him of his jacket and waistcoat.

  Edward felt his body swiftly harden at her brazen response. Hell’s teeth, was there anything more erotic than a woman who knew exactly what she desired?

  “Precisely how slow and methodical do you intend to be?” she demanded as she lifted his shirt over his head and allowed her hands to run a searing path over his chest.

  Edward clenched his teeth as he resisted the urge to lower her to the floor and plunge into her damp heat. Like any man he enjoyed a swift, searing coupling upon occasion. Hot, sweaty sex had its place.

  But not tonight. Not when he had dreamed of all the delicious things he intended to do with this woman.

  Finishing his battle with the evil corset, he gave a sigh of relief as he tugged at her sleeves to pull aside the layers of clothing.

  “Exquisitely slow and very, very methodical,” he growled as his hands were allowed to skim over her warm, bare skin.

  Her breath caught as he gently cupped her breasts, his thumb brushing over the hardened peaks.

  “There is something to be said for haste,” she husked.

  “Upon occasion,” he agreed, his head lowering. “This, however, is not one of them.”

  She moaned in approval at his lips covered her nipple, her fingers thrusting into his hair.

  “What of the servants?”

  Edward could barely think as he teased the puckered nub, lightly nipping it before laving it with his tongue. Bianca groaned her approval as her body molded to his own. The soft swell of her stomach pressed against his throbbing erection. Her bare skin sent a thousand prickles of delight racing through his heated blood.

  Oh…God. He needed her.

  Allowing his lips to smooth over the curve of her breast, he breathed deeply of her honeysuckle scent.

  “I have few demands of my staff, but one I insist upon is that I am never interrupted when I am in my library,” he managed to mutter. “I would never get my paperwork dealt with if I were being forever intruded upon.”

  She rubbed against his hardness, her hands moving in a restless path down his shoulders and over his chest.

  “They will not believe you are doing paperwork at this hour.”

  He hissed sharply as her fingers brushed over the rigid muscles of his stomach and tantalizingly close to his straining manhood.

  “Actually, this is the hour I usually deal with the more tedious details of the estate,” he gritted.

  A knowing expression touched her beautiful features. The vixen knew precisely how she was torturing him.

  “Then I shall be banned from the library as well?” she murmured as she lightly outlined the bulge in his pants. “A pity. I am rather fond of this room.”

  Edward was becoming increasingly more fond of the room. It had never occurred to him it was a perfect spot for seduction.

  Not until this moment.

  Determined to offer a bit of his own brand of torture, Edward traced the silhouette of her hips and down to her thighs. He waited for her legs to instinctively part before stroking slowly upward to discover she was already moist and ready for him.

  “Actually I have been considering hiring a secretary,” he assured her.

  She bit off a moan as his finger slipped into her heat. “Have you?”

  “It only makes sense.” Pressing his finger deeper, he used his thumb to rub against her point of pleasure. “With my newfound responsibilities, I shall have great need of assistance.”

  Her head fell back as she panted with a building need. “An earl’s work is never done.”

  He leaned forward to press his lips to her neck. “I was referring to my responsibilities as husband and father.”

  He felt her
momentarily stiffen in shock. “Oh.”

  “There will be no more nights bothered with reports and petitions and endless correspondence from relatives whom I have never clapped eyes upon.”

  Lifting her heavy lashes, she regarded him with a glittering midnight gaze. “Whatever will you do with your time?”

  “I—” His words were brought to a sharp halt as she fumbled with the buttons of his breeches and astonishingly curled her fingers about his erection. “Hell’s teeth, muirnin,” he choked in near-painful pleasure.

  “I can think of one or two possibilities to keep you occupied,” she promised, her fingers working magic as they explored his shaft.

  Edward sank his teeth into his bottom lip. He wanted to make her halt the exquisite torment before he embarrassed himself. He wanted to plead for her to never stop.

  He wanted…

  He wanted her.

  Every silken, satin inch of her.

  “That feels so good,” he groaned, incapable of halting his slow thrusts into her hand.

  “This?” she murmured as she leaned forward to press her lips to his chest, biting and trailing her lips ever lower. “And this?”

  Edward leaned heavily against the desk as she tugged his breeches downward, her lips traveling down his stomach and then at last covering the tip of his manhood.

  Never had he been assaulted by such intense sensations. The blood thundered in his ears, and his entire body clenched with sharp, aching delight. If he died this moment he would not care. Nothing could ever compare to the feel of her tongue stroking him to madness.

  “Bianca…,” he breathed.

  She paid him no heed as she continued to taste of him, seemingly fascinated by his hard length. A cry was wrenched from his throat as she took him fully into her mouth. His fingers briefly clenched in her hair as he urged her to continue her ministrations. Then, as the pleasure threatened to overwhelm him, Edward gave a sharp shake of his head.

  No. He would not seek his fulfillment until she had reached her own.

  Shifting his hands to her shoulders, he firmly tugged her upward, and before she could protest he had swung her onto the desk and stepped between her legs.

  “You, Lady Bianca, are going to be the death of me,” he muttered.

  She smiled with a hint of smugness. “You seemed to be enjoying yourself well enough.”

  “Shall I demonstrate how well?” he murmured before he lowered himself to his knees and pressed his lips to the inside of her thigh.

  Her sigh whispered through the air as he kissed a path toward paradise.

  Bianca should have been abed.

  Heaven knew she had spent precious little time sleeping the night before. In fact, the dawn had been breaking when she had silently crawled from Edward’s bed and returned to her chambers.

  But oddly she discovered that a night spent in the arms of the man she loved had invigorated her in a manner she had never before experienced. Who needed sleep when her body was tingling with energy? And her feet so light she felt as if she might very well float away?

  Taking a swift bath, she attired herself in a plain muslin gown and firmly tugged her wayward curls into a tidy knot. Once prepared for the day ahead, she went in search of the household maids.

  Although Edward’s estate was a tidy, well-run establishment, she had been raised by a mother who demanded nothing short of perfection within her home. Her discerning eye had caught a few flaws she intended to correct.

  Beginning with the silver, which did not appear to have had a good polishing for several years.

  Assuming an air of brisk efficiency, Bianca soon had the maids busy with their various tasks and the cook preparing a meal fit for a titled nobleman.

  She had just set about inspecting the linen when a familiar flutter in the pit of her stomach warned her that Edward had entered the cramped closet. Spinning about, she discovered him leaning against the door, a rather bemused smile upon his lips.

  “Good morning, muirnin.”

  Bianca took a moment to appreciate the sheer beauty he offered. Even casually attired he managed to make her heart leap with excitement. He was so fiercely handsome. So deliciously male.

  And worse, there was a devilish glint in his eyes that warned her he was recalling her heated responses during the long, sensuous night.

  A flush of heat raced through her as she slowly straightened and brushed her hands down her skirt. It was indecent, the way he had only to be near for her body to sizzle with longing.

  “Good morning, Edward.” She discovered to her relief that her voice at least sounded coherent. She had not babbled or drooled as she had feared. “Breakfast is awaiting you in the morning room.”

  Stepping further into the closet, he backed her against the wooden shelves. His hands landed on either side of her shoulders to effectively trap her. Then, with intimate care, he allowed his gaze to roam down the length of her body.

  “Actually, I hoped to have something else awaiting me this morning. Why did you slip away?”

  His husky voice shivered down her spine. He could not know just how difficult it had been to leave his side.

  Only the fear that one of the servants might stumble over them had kept her from waking him to continue their pleasurable interlude.

  “It would hardly do to have your housekeeper sleep late on her first day,” she murmured.

  His lips slowly curled as his gaze deliberately lingered on the bodice of her gown. “Who mentioned anything of sleep?”

  Hearing the distant sounds of Maggie beating the carpets, Bianca sent him a chiding frown.

  “Edward, behave yourself.”

  “Why?”

  “Because you will not convince me that you have your staff trained not to enter the linen closet.”

  “We could return to the library.” He lowered his head to brush his lips over her temple. “There is a very comfortable sofa we have yet to enjoy.”

  Her lower stomach clenched at the memory of the library and the delights they had discovered there. Who knew that a desk could prove such an interesting piece of furniture?

  Still, she was not yet so comfortable with her intimate relationship with Edward that she could ignore the staff that buzzed about them.

  “Surely you have duties awaiting your attention?” she demanded.

  His tongue lightly touched her skin, as if savoring her taste. “Countless duties.”

  Breathing was becoming an effort. “Well?”

  The distracting lips moved down her cheek to nibble at the corner of her mouth.

  “I have decided I prefer being a gentleman of leisure. You, my lady, are clearly a bad influence.”

  “Me?” Her hands lifted of their own accord to rest against his chest. He seemed to surround her with his heat and scent, and it was proving devilishly difficult to keep her thoughts in order. The sensations swirling within her did nothing to help. “I should rather think you are the bad influence. After all, I was quite occupied until you intruded.”

  He chuckled softly. “Ah, yes, I noticed the maids scurrying about in a most frantic fashion. Have you been terrorizing them?”

  She pulled back with a frown of annoyance. She might readily display her ill temper with her father and even Edward, but she would never bully a hapless servant.

  “Certainly not. I possess great respect for servants and the work they perform.”

  His features melted to a tender expression. “I know you do, muirnin. Which is only one of the many reasons I love you so desperately.”

  Desperately?

  Oh…she liked the sound of that.

  She liked it to the very depths of her soul.

  Slowly she twined her arms about his neck, arching against his stirring body.

  “What are the other reasons?”

  He shuddered as he cupped her hips and pressed her firmly to his erection.

  “I am attempting to reveal them to you if only you would cooperate.”

  She laughed as she regarded him
from beneath lowered lashes. “I really am very busy.”

  His eyes smoldered with a passion that nearly set the air on fire. “Then you may consider yourself relieved of your post.”

  She blinked in surprise. “I beg your pardon?”

  “I no longer desire you as my housekeeper.”

  Ridiculously, she found herself offended by his blunt dismissal. “That is not fair. I happen to be doing an excellent job.”

  He smiled at her sharp tone. “You are, but I have another post in mind for a lady of your undoubted talents.”

  “And what is that?”

  “My wife.”

  Her heart came to a perfect halt. Wife. Until this moment she was not certain she truly understood the simple beauty of being a wife.

  This man’s wife.

  It was enough to bring a flood of tears to her eyes.

  Embarrassed by the surge of unexpected emotion, Bianca hastily forced a lighthearted smile to her lips. Poor Edward would think her daft if she began weeping whenever he mentioned the word “wife.”

  “I fear I have no references for such a post.”

  “No?” His lips twitched. “A pity, but I am willing to trust in my instincts on this occasion.”

  “Very generous of you, my lord.” She toyed with the curls at his nape. “Are there many other applicants?”

  Without warning his smile faded and he regarded her with an intensity that seemed almost tangible.

  “Not one,” he swore in husky tones. “There is only you, Lady Bianca. Only you.”

  She felt as if she were melting. Oh heavens, she loved this man. More than she thought it possible to love anyone.

  Shifting onto the tips of her toes, Bianca allowed her lips to trail along the line of his jaw.

  “About the library…,” she whispered.

  “Oh yes,” he muttered.

  In a heartbeat, he had swept her off her feet and was hurrying toward the nearby stairs. Bianca laughed with heady delight as his head swooped down to crush her lips in a fierce, possessive kiss.

  Suddenly the curious glances of the servants did not bother her a whit.

  Bianca’s earlier bout of vigor was decidedly absent as she lay wrapped in Edward’s arms. In truth, she was quite certain she might never be capable of moving again.