She shivered, from the evening chill as much as from the almost unbearable joy of being with him. “You may do more than that.”
“Any more than that means we should probably go somewhere else. And since we have almost three hours until midnight…” He tugged on her hand. “Come, I know of a secret side entrance that leads from the garden directly to the master bedchamber.”
“Won’t anyone miss you?” she asked anxiously as he guided her down a flagstone path, away from the brilliant lights of the ballroom.
“They’re too busy dancing and gossiping and draining my wine cellar to wonder or even care about what I’m doing,” he assured her. “They never bothered with me before I became the duke, and if they want to bother with me now—well, it can only be because I am the duke.”
He led her to a door hidden behind some shrubbery and up the secret back stairs to his bedchamber, where they swiftly undressed each other and fell back on his wide, long bed, kissing and caressing each other all over until he brought her to the peak of ecstasy and then he entered her, thrusting in and out of her as she undulated beneath him, clinging to his shoulders and whispering his name over and over until—just as she had the first time they made love—she became too much for him, only this time he climaxed inside of her.
Kate thought she saw heaven shining between them, and her heart thrilled with love for him.
For a long while he knelt over her, panting for breath as she continued to wrap her limbs around him, combing her fingers through his thick hair as he nuzzled her own tresses.
“I’m afraid we’ll have to marry rather quickly now,” he said as he finally withdrew and flopped over next to her. “We can go to Scotland and—”
“Oh, no!” she exclaimed. “I did not come this far, all the way to London, risking all that I have, losing my portmanteau, my virtue, my wits, and even my heart, only to turn around and go back the way I came—especially if—”
He swiftly rolled over to silence her with another passionate kiss. “Ah, that works just as well as it did the first time.”
“But we don’t need to go all the way to Scotland. You need only obtain a special license.”
“I was teasing, my love. Though I should warn you that if you do marry me, you can expect to spend a great deal of time in Scotland. But we wouldn’t be there all year round. We’d spend part of the year in London, because of my new responsibilities—which is why I’m here in London in the first place. Well, that and because you’re here.”
She slid her arms over his shoulders and pulled him down for another kiss. “Married to you, Nathan, I do believe I could even endure living at Bellingham Hall all year round.”
“But we won’t,” he hastily assured her. “However, we will have to spend time at the other estates I’ve inherited. I’ve discovered that I really don’t mind traveling as long as you’re with me. We may be traveling constantly, Kate—but that only means our life together will be a journey that lasts till death do us part.”
She laughed softly. “That’s just the sort of adventure I’ve always wanted. I must apologize for behaving like a fool up in Derbyshire, but then that would require me to apologize simply for being myself.”
He kissed her again. “Don’t apologize for being yourself, Kate. Never apologize for being the reason I fell in love with you. I love you so much, I would have given all I have if that’s what it took to get you back.”
“I’m glad it didn’t come to that, for I’m not sure I’m—”
“Oh, yes you are worth it,” he said firmly.
“How did you know I was going to say that?”
“Doesn’t that prove how well I know you, silly lass?”
She cupped his face between her hands and gifted him with a tender kiss. “I trust you’ll continue to know me well.”
“As for the heart you risked and lost, just who do you think holds it now? I do! Do you think I’d let you lose that, after you lost your portmanteau and your wits and everything else?”
“It might interest you to know I eventually found all those other things I lost,” she said. “Well, maybe not my virtue, but I did recover my portmanteau. The most important thing is, I found you, Nathan…when I wasn’t even looking. I love you.” Happiness welled inside of her at the realization that she’d found true love at last.
“I love you, too. And you have my word, Kate, that your heart will always be safe with me. Now we’d better get up and get dressed again before the stroke of midnight.”
Rather than summon the servants, they helped each other dress, and Kate managed to fix her hair. They were about to leave the bedchamber when Nathan made an abrupt detour to his dressing table, where he opened a small box and drew something out.
“Before we go back downstairs,” he said, “I want to give you this. Or more specifically, I want to put it on your finger myself.”
She drew her breath in at the sight of a sparkle in his hand as he approached her with a broad smile. “That reminds me—I still have your mother’s wedding band.”
“I know.” He took her left hand into his and slid a diamond ring onto her third finger. “But as long as you still have my heart…”
“It will always be safe with me,” she declared as their lips came together for another kiss.
THE END
WWW.KARENLINGEFELT.COM
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Born in Forks, Washington, Karen Lingefelt probably dreamed of being a writer while still in the womb. As a preschooler, she scribbled with crayons in picture books to put her own spin on the text. In school she sat at her desk defiantly writing stories when she should have been working on her remedial math assignments. Later she joined the Air Force, and when she wasn’t traveling overseas, she spent her off-duty hours banging out epic sagas on a portable typewriter. Even after leaving the service to become the stay-at-home mom of three special needs children, she eked out a few minutes to continue pursuing her lifelong dream.
Now the author of lighthearted, romantic romps set in Regency England, she lives in Florida with her family.
Readers can visit her at http://www.karenlingefelt.com or at her blog, http://www.karenlingefelt.blogspot.com
For all titles by Karen Lingefelt, please visit
www.bookstrand.com/karen-lingefelt
www.BookStrand.com
Wagered to the Duke (BookStrand Publishing Romance) Page 27
