Seduce Me If You Can (The Ashbrook Legacy Book 1)

by Tonya Brooks

  Aside from their bad habits, Scarlett had learned quite a bit from him and her brother, including how to defend herself. They were avid pugilists and she could throw a pretty mean punch as well. “Indeed it would,” Nicholas agreed and then asked curiously. “What does she consider to be improper advances?”

  “The usual bother. If a gentleman tries to hold my hand, and that sort of thing.”

  Having met the formidable old crone, he seriously doubted that Mrs. Dasher had ever been the recipient of an improper advance. Her knowledge on the subject was sorely lacking if she considered something as innocuous as hand holding to be a major concern. “There are many ways a man can make improper advances,” he pointed out seriously.

  ~~~~~

  Scarlett smiled knowingly, her entire body limp with relaxation. Lord, the man did know how to use his hands. “I'll bet a scandalous rake like you knows them all,” she accused lightly.

  “That is how one becomes a scandalous rake, kitten,” he grinned, unabashed at her calling a spade a spade. Or a rake a rake as the case may be.

  “Then you must teach me,” she decided and moaned in utter bliss as his hands began working their way down her shoulders, inside the neck of the shirt this time. The feel of his hands caressing her bare flesh sent little tingles of awareness reverberating through her entire being, and she shivered in response. Scarlett had no idea what the sensations meant, but she definitely liked them.

  “Beg pardon?”

  “Teach me what's improper, Nicky.”

  ~~~~~

  Teach her what was improper?

  Nicholas's overheated imagination ran amok at the implication. Just thinking about it sent the blood pulsing through his veins and his fully erect cock pulsated with barely contained excitement. His palms tingled with the feel of her silky smooth skin as the neck of the oversized shirt slid down to reveal one gently rounded shoulder. It would be so easy to shift the brazen tresses aside for better access and begin her tutelage with nibbling kisses against the tender flesh of her neck.

  “How better to learn what to avoid than from a rake?” She sighed blissfully.

  What to avoid?

  Dragging his brain out of his groin with an effort, and pulling her shirt back into place, Nicholas took a deep, calming breath and released her. Dammit to hell. She wanted him to teach her what to avoid, which is exactly what he should be doing.

  A woman as beautiful as Scarlett was going to attract the attention of every man she came across. It would be better for her to know what to avoid than to be taken unaware. Every protective instinct he possessed rose to the fore at the thought of some bastard taking advantage of her.

  “All right,” he agreed while wondering where would be the best place to begin. Deciding to keep it simple for his own sanity, he took her hand and said, “Come with me.”

  “Where are we going?” She asked in amusement as her long legs kept pace with his easily.

  “The ballroom.”

  ~~~~~

  “You want to dance?” Scarlett asked in surprise. Not that she would mind. When she was a child, Nicholas would scoop her up in his arms and dance around with her while she laughed in delight. As she grew older, he had taught her how to dance, and she loved being held in his strong arms while he expertly whirled her around.

  “No, but you will be spending a great deal of time at balls, so it’s best to set the scene, as it were,” he explained.

  “You're the expert,” she agreed and decided to indulge him. Besides, watching the Rake of Ryder in action should prove to be fascinating. The only side of him that she ever saw was the teasing, indulgent, somewhat overprotective big brother. “Are you going to unleash the big, bad rake, Nicky?”

  ~~~~~

  Wanting nothing more than to do just that, he flashed a wicked grin and warned, “Be careful what you ask for, kitten. You have no idea how to deal with a big, bad rake.”

  “Nonsense. I'm not one of those brainless twits you seduce with such ease,” she scoffed playfully. “An intelligent woman would never allow a man to take advantage of her. Unless she wanted him to.”

  He could not restrain his laughter at her naïve boast. “I am a master of seduction,” he assured her arrogantly, a devilish twinkle in his eyes. “If I decided to seduce you, you'd be helpless to resist.”

  “Ballocks,” she snorted in disbelief.

  Nicholas understood all too well why she doubted his claim and the knowledge frustrated him to no end. Scarlett saw him as a protective older brother; therefore she could not imagine him in the role of a rake. After all, by its very definition, a rake was known for his licentious behavior and that was not how a lady thought of her brother.

  He also realized that this was the perfect opportunity to change her perception of him. It was time for her to understand how he had earned his very improper title, the Rake of Ryder. “Are you challenging me, Scarlett?”

  “Absolutely.” Scarlett did love a challenge, and she knew he did as well, so he wasn't surprised when she taunted boldly, “Seduce me if you can.”

  Chapter Five

  Branvill Manor, England, 1812

  Nicholas grinned at her audacity. The little minx had no idea how easily he could seduce her. Not that he would, he reminded himself sternly, but it wouldn't do to let Scarlett think she was impervious to the possible dangers a man like him presented. He fully intended to shake that arrogance of hers a bit, teach her what to avoid, and force her to see him as a man in the process. When this lesson was over, Scarlett would never think of him as her brother again, for damn sure.

  Once they entered the ballroom, he stood her on one side of the room and crossed to the other side. “Now, you're standing there watching the dancers mill about and you notice a man on the opposite side of the room staring at you,” he explained. “What do you do?”

  ~~~~~

  “Ignore him,” she said dryly as that should have been obvious.

  Nicholas just continued to stand there and stare at her with those fathomless eyes. The intensity of his gaze as it slowly swept down the length of her body was unnerving to say the least. It caused the strangest warmth to unfurl deep in her abdomen and her nipples hardened in response. Scarlett felt strangely vulnerable and exposed at the visual caress and had to fight the urge to cover her breasts with her hands.

  “Nicky, what are you doing?” She asked in a slightly breathless voice.

  ~~~~~

  His ravenous gaze never ceasing the enjoyable task, he replied in a silken tone that carried perfectly in the cavernous room, “Undressing you.” And relishing every moment of the bittersweet torture he was inflicting on himself. Oh, yes. With those luscious curves outlined by the sunlight streaming in behind her, Scarlett definitely had ample reason to be wary of predators such as him.

  She snorted indignantly, “You are not.”

  “With my eyes, kitten,” he explained as his midnight gaze traveled leisurely down her curvaceous body. Inch. By. Slow. Tantalizing. Inch. “I'm mentally undressing you with my eyes.”

  ~~~~~

  “You can do that?” She queried in amazement that such a thing was possible and recalled that he was reputed to be able to seduce a woman with a look. This had to be that look because it was turning her knees to the consistency of pudding and making her tingle in the most unusual places.

  ~~~~~

  “Oh, yes,” he assured her silkily.

  Nicholas was thoroughly enjoying the deliciously slow perusal a hell of a lot more than he should have allowed himself to. But, this was the perfect opportunity for her to realize that he saw her as a desirable woman. There was no way in hell he wasn't going to take full advantage of the chance while he had it.

  If Scarlett saw the way his cock was reacting to the visual stimulation, she wasn't going to be left in any doubt as to how he perceived her. No doubt a'tall. When she shifted uncomfortably from one booted foot to the other, he asked again, “What do you do?”

  ~~~~~

  Scarlett
resisted the impulse to open the French doors behind her and let in a breeze. Having him look at her like that had caused her body temperature to elevate several degrees. Now she understood why ladies carried those blasted fans. “Hide behind Duchy so you can't see me,” she suggested, and then that imp of mischief prompted her to add, “Or tell Dev and let you wind up in a dirt bath.”

  ~~~~~

  At the reminder of what her brother’s reaction would be, Nicholas looked up at her face and grinned wickedly. “Either one would be effective, but informing your brother would be the best decision. Dev would make sure he's not allowed near you,” Nicholas said confidently as he began walking toward her. “Now that he's made that improper advance, and you've wisely removed yourself from his sight, he asks you to dance.”

  “I will decline.”

  “Ah, but he's already on your dance card,” he countered.

  “Then I will plead exhaustion and retreat to the retiring room,” she shot back.

  “But a determined man won't give up,” he denied as he stopped in front of her. “Sooner or later, he'll find a way to dance with you.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I have to hold you in my arms,” Nicholas admitted in all honesty as he placed his hands on her and began to waltz her around the floor with effortless ease. “Now that he has you where he wants you, pay careful attention to his hands and his eyes, kitten.”

  ~~~~~

  His eyes had dropped to her chest, and he stared at her bosom instead of her face. That one was easy enough. Scarlett merely applied pressure to where her hand lay on his shoulder and squeezed a particularly sensitive nerve until he raised his glittering black gaze back to hers. The wicked smile curving his sensuous lips approved the maneuver even as the hand at her waist eased subtly downward until it rested just above the curve of her bottom.

  The movement had been so smooth and inconspicuous that she might not have noticed it had he not warned her. Good lord, he really was a master of seduction. That midnight gaze held her spellbound as she realized the enormity of her actions. Scarlett had challenged a rake to seduce her... and it looked as if he had every intention of doing just that. The knowledge caused her to miss a step which forced Nicholas's hand back to its proper position.

  “Excellent,” he grinned approvingly. “A very clever tactic, kitten.”

  It took a couple of seconds for her muddled brain to realize that he thought she had missed the step on purpose to get him to move his hand. Damnation, he was good at this. Even though Scarlett knew that she could trust him implicitly, for a minute there she had actually forgotten that this was just a lesson to teach her what to avoid. For all that he truly was a scandalous rake; Nicholas never stooped to seducing innocents. Nor would he ever consider anything even remotely improper with her since he treated her like his blasted little sister.

  Eager to find out what he planned to do next, she asked, “Now what?”

  In answer, his hold on her waist tightened, and he pulled her closer, far too close for propriety, and she felt his thigh brush her own. The breath caught in her throat, her heart skipped a beat or two, and that delicious warm sensation rushed through her entire body at the unexpected, yet intimate contact.

  “Nicky?” She asked uncertainly when he suddenly stopped; completely unaware that he had danced them into the privacy of an alcove. “What do I do now?”

  ~~~~~

  “Push me away,” he suggested, his voice sounding slightly strained to his own ears. Oh, hell. This was a bad idea. He should just let her go and get the hell out of there, but his body had a will of its own. Now that he had her where he wanted her, where he'd dreamed of having her, for so damn long, Nicholas wasn't sure he had the strength to let her go.

  ~~~~~

  Scarlett obediently pushed against his shoulder to put some distance between them, but his arm was like a band of steel around her waist. Instead of releasing her, he moved closer until there wasn't even a breath between their bodies. They were so close, she could feel the warmth of his flesh through the barrier of their clothing and a hard ridge of arousal pressed against her abdomen.

  She dragged in an unsteady breath in realization, her breasts pressed against his chest and her nipples tighten to aching buds in response. Scarlett stared up into the fathomless depths of his midnight eyes and saw molten desire. A wave of heat washed over her and pooled deep in her abdomen. A shiver zinged up her spine, the breath froze in her lungs, her hands tightened on him convulsively, her eyes darkened even more. On some level she realized that what she was feeling was desire, and she liked it.

  She liked it a lot.

  ~~~~~

  A very bad idea, Nicholas decided ruefully. Scarlett was the beautiful, sensual woman he wanted more than life itself, and he was first and foremost, a man. A man who was enjoying holding her in his arms far more than was permissible. The timbre of his voice, the nearness of his body, the mesmerizing look in his eyes, were all skillfully designed for one purpose, to seduce her.

  Damn his wretched soul to hell, it was working all too well.

  Unfortunately, her response was working on him. The raw, untutored desire shining in her eyes was enough to make any man forget that his honor would be destroyed if he gave in to his inclinations and took what he wanted more than his next breath of air. Nicholas didn't have to pretend to seduce her. He was having a hell of a time reminding himself that he couldn't.

  But he could give her a taste of desire. Just enough to let her know what it could be like. What he knew it would be like. He placed both hands on her waist and molded her soft, curvaceous body more firmly against his. God, it felt so good to finally hold her like this. Scarlett was a tall woman and her body was made for his. He longed to show her how perfectly they would fit together. In every way imaginable.

  Nicholas lowered his face next to hers; the flame colored tresses brushed against his cheek as he greedily inhaled the intoxicating scent of honeysuckle and woman and heard the breath catch in her throat as she shivered in response.

  His voice lowered to a smoky purr, his lips lightly caressing her ear as he whispered, oh, so softly, “A man will take advantage of any opportunity you give him, kitten. He'll whisper sweet nothings in the moonlight, promise you the sun and the stars, just for the chance to taste your lips.”

  ~~~~~

  She began to tremble, her heart hammering in her chest like a wild bird trapped in a cage. Scarlett couldn't form a coherent thought to save her life, so caught up was she in the sensations coursing through her. Dark, dangerous and mysterious feelings consumed her. Her breathing became shallow as she waited in breathless anticipation for his next move. Nicholas brushed his lips against her neck, the lightest touch of flesh against flesh and her breathing stopped all together.

  ~~~~~

  “He'll do or say anything to kiss you Scarlett,” he breathed, a hairsbreadth away from her lips, tormenting them both mercilessly, his hands gliding ever so gently up her ribcage to just below the swell of those magnificent breasts, before they began the same deliciously slow descent back to her hips. “Anything.”

  Lost in the wonder of the moment and the depth of hunger revealed in his midnight eyes, she whispered breathlessly, “What... what do I do?”

  “Now would be a good time for that well placed knee to the ballocks,” Nicholas suggested huskily. At this point that was exactly what he deserved for letting the situation get this far. He hadn't seduced her, but as far as society was concerned, she was already as compromised as if he had ravished her.

  ~~~~~

  Scarlett didn't have a moment’s hesitation in allowing Nicholas any liberties he cared to take. She was thoroughly enjoying this lesson too much to end it. Not about to do anything to dissuade him, she slid her hands boldly up his muscular arms and over his shoulders, pressing their upper bodies even closer and asked in a low, sultry tone, “What if I don't want him to stop?”

  ~~~~~

  Barely managing to repress a shudder at her sensuou
s invitation, he knew this madness had to end while he still retained a measure of restraint. It took every ounce of self-discipline that he possessed, but the change that came over Nicholas was instantaneous. It was as if a shutter had been closed over the heat in his eyes, his expression became coolly remote as he released her and stepped back.

  “Then you will be as easy to seduce as any other woman, kitten,” he managed to say evenly.

  ~~~~~

  Scarlett had heard enough of their conversations over the years to know that Nicholas was indeed a hardened rake, but she'd had no idea the ease with which he could seduce a woman. Now she did. She also knew that he'd been right. She wouldn't have stood a chance of resisting him if he'd really tried to seduce her. The man had reduced her to a puddle at his feet and he hadn't even kissed her.

  A slow, naughty smile curved her lips. “It would seem your reputation is well deserved, Nicky,” she said a bit breathlessly, more than happy to concede defeat in this particular contest. She also found it fascinating that he seemed to be able to turn his powers of seduction on and off at will while she was still reeling. He looked so impassive; she wondered if he'd been affected at all or if his actions had just been a part of her lesson. “I'd be quite ruined now if I couldn't trust you.”

  “Never trust any man not to try to take advantage of you, Scarlett,” he warned in a tone void of all humor.

  Scarlett recognized the tone all too well and was disappointed that the big brother was back. After that magnificent display, she'd much rather have the rake. “Not even you?” She teased.

  ~~~~~

  “Not even me,” he readily confirmed. Nicholas was no saint. He knew his own limitations well, and he'd pushed them as far as he dared with her. A fact that his fully aroused cock was still protesting to a painful degree. “All men have their limits, Scarlett. A passionate woman can push a man past his with very little effort.”

  That answer seemed to surprise and please her. “You wouldn't really seduce me, would you, Nicky?” She queried curiously.

  “No,” he assured her with a self-mocking smile and lifted his hand to tenderly caress her cheek. “I'd never do anything to hurt you, kitten.” Nicholas would never take advantage of her innocence, and he would cheerfully kill any man who attempted to do so.