The Earl Claims a Bride

by Amelia Grey

  She stopped struggling.

  He looked down and saw both his hands gripping her arms. He jerked his hand back up to cover the scarred side of his face. “What have you done?” he whispered in an agonized voice that saddened her to her core.

  “I’ve proven to you that you are the one who has a problem with your appearance. It is not me. I have no problem looking at your face.” She held his patch out to him.

  He took it and slipped it on his head, settling it over his eye. “There is no eye there,” he mumbled.

  “No, but you are not a monster, either. I am not screaming or running away. I’m not horrified. I’m in awe of your courage and your determination to keep living your life as the strong confident gentleman you are.”

  “That does little to soothe me, Miss Rule.”

  He turned and stomped out.

  Chapter 29

  Courage mounteth with occasion.

  King John 2.1.82

  Slashing rain beat against the window of the carriage. It had started storming just as Harrison’s coach had stopped in front of Angelina’s house. There had been a steady drizzle all day, but suddenly the bottom seemed to fall out of the dark-gray sky. It looked as if no end was in sight. But Harrison wasn’t going to let a little rain stop him.

  Captain Maxwell needed Miss Rule. She would care for him. In time she would heal him. But Harrison needed her, too. He’d never told her. Never even hinted at it and never would let her know he was lost, he had been wounded, too. And he wasn’t ready to stop fighting for her.

  Telling her he loved her last night was a risk. Now that she’d had time to think about what he’d said, he needed to see her.

  The umbrella would be of little use in the wind so he settled his hat low on his head, picked up the small basket of apricot tarts and hid them under his cloak, and stepped out of the carriage. Stinging rain pelted the side of his face, and he splashed in puddles as he hurried toward the stoop. He knocked once on the door and the dogs took over and did their part to let everyone in the house know someone had arrived.

  A few moments later Mrs. Bickmore arrived. “My lord,” she said, eyeing the basket in his hand. “Come in. Come in.”

  Harrison stepped inside, took off his dripping hat, and handed it to the housekeeper. “Thank you, Mrs. Bickmore.”

  “It’s a shame you came out on such a bad day. There’s no one here to see you. It wasn’t storming when Lady Railbridge left so she decided to go ahead to her weekly outing. Mr. Rule is out, too. I don’t expect either of them back before the storm lets up.”

  “Did Miss Rule go with one of them?”

  “No, but she’s resting and asked not to be disturbed.”

  Resting?

  “Is Miss Rule ill?” he asked.

  “I don’t think so, my lord,” Mrs. Bickmore said, looking at the basket again. “Lady Railbridge said something about her being very tired because she didn’t sleep well. She wanted to lie down.”

  “And you say Mr. Rule is out as well?”

  “Quiet, you beasts!” she turned and yelled to the dogs, who hadn’t managed to settle down, before giving her attention back to Harrison. “I don’t know when to expect him. Truth be told he’d been gone a couple of days now, and Lady Railbridge doesn’t usually return until late.”

  Harrison looked at the tarts. He heard wind whipping around the house, and rain beating against the door and the windowpanes. Angelina was in her bed and unchaperoned. Harrison wasn’t leaving without seeing her.

  Could he do it?

  Harrison knew when he’d decided to come to Angelina’s house that he was going to fight for her with all he had. At the time, he didn’t know what that was going to be, but now he did. It was a hell of a thing for him to do, and maybe it wasn’t fair to the captain, but Harrison was going to do it anyway.

  “In that case, Mrs. Bickmore, why don’t you make yourself a cup of tea, sit down, and enjoy these apricot tarts?” He extended the basket to her.

  “Oh.” Her eyes rounded in delighted surprise at the thought of savoring one of the sweet cakes as she took the basket and caught the scent of the fruit. “Oh, but no, I couldn’t do that, my lord.” She shook her head. “I’ll save them for Miss Rule.” She reached for the basket. “She’ll have them when she gets up.”

  “I insist these are yours to eat, Mrs. Bickmore. They’re best when eaten warm, and my cook just took them out of the oven and wrapped them. I’ll bring Miss Rule some more at another time. These are yours.”

  A smile spread across her face. “Well, if you insist,” she said, peeking inside the cloth. “You’re right, they are still warm. And they smell delicious, too.”

  “They are. Make yourself a cup of tea to go with them.” He took his hat from her. “Go on now. I’ll see myself out.”

  “If you’re sure.”

  Very sure.

  He smiled. “I am.”

  Harrison held tightly to his hat and watched Mrs. Bickmore walk down the corridor and disappear into the kitchen. As quietly as possible, he turned and took the stairs two at a time. None of the lamps had been lit at the top, and the thunderous skies had that part of the house almost dark. Two doors were on one side of the corridor and three on the other. He had no idea which room was Angelina’s, but with no one else in the house but her, he didn’t have to worry about knocking on the wrong door.

  The dogs had finally settled down. He didn’t want to make any noise that might disturb them again. He walked quietly up to the first door and knocked softly. He heard nothing. No sound came from the second, either. He then moved to the center door on the other side of the corridor and knocked.

  “Come in,” he heard Angelina say.

  A surge of anticipation thudded in his chest. She could scream. She could throw him out, or she could welcome him. His hand closed around the cold knob. He turned it and pushed slowly on the door. It creaked slightly. He opened it only far enough to quickly slip inside, and then he softly closed it behind him.

  Their eyes met across the room and held.

  “Harrison,” Angelina whispered, and she rose up in the bed. The covers fell away and she quickly grabbed her pillow and clutched it up to chest. “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing,” he answered.

  The sight of her in her bed aroused him instantly. She was bathed in a soft yellow light from a low-burning lamp on the bedside table and the crackling flames in the fireplace. She was invitingly beautiful in a white long-sleeved night rail. Her glorious golden-brown hair tumbled across her shoulders. He remembered the rainwater smell of it, the silky feel of it.

  “I’m not dressed. How did you get up here?”

  “I walked.”

  She looked exasperated by his answer, but he expected that, and shock, too. He had invaded her private chamber without an invitation. It was downright brazen of him, and proved him to be the scoundrel he’d been accused of being. But, looking at her, he was glad he had come up to her bedchamber. Passion had always flared hot and quick between them whenever they were alone together. Looking at her now, he knew today would be no different.

  “What are you doing here if nothing is wrong?”

  From behind him, he felt underneath the knob until he found the key and turned it, locking out anyone who might try to enter. Expectation of what might happen filled him. He knew he was where he was supposed to be, but did she?

  “I wanted to see you,” he said, but it was so much more than that. He’d been consumed with yearning for Angelina almost since the first time he’d seen her. He took off his hat and laid it on the stool in front of her dressing table.

  “You’re not supposed to be in my bedchamber.”

  Her voice was raspy, giving him hope she’d let him stay.

  “I know. When I heard that you were resting and your grandmother and father were out of the house, I couldn’t resist the temptation to come up and see you.”

  He swung his damp cloak off his shoulders and laid it on the stool beside his hat. />
  “Mrs. Bickmore is here.”

  “She let me in,” he said, giving her reassurance he didn’t break into the house.

  “I can’t believe she allowed you to come up here.”

  He smiled. “She doesn’t know I’m up here with you. She thinks I left.” He shrugged out of his coat. “She’s in the kitchen having a cup of tea and eating the tarts I brought you. If my luck holds, and the dogs stay quiet, she’ll put her feet up and take a nap when she’s finished.”

  She kept her gaze locked on his. “What are you doing?”

  Taking a chance. A big chance that she wanted him as much as he wanted her.

  “Removing my neckcloth,” he replied, unwinding it and dropping it on top of his coat. “And my collar, too.” He unfastened it and added it to the pile.

  “You’re, you’re undressing?”

  He nodded while her beautiful blue eyes questioned him intently.

  She swallowed hard. “You can’t do that.”

  “Then tell me to stop, Angelina,” he said, tugging his shirt from the waistband of his trousers and pulling it over his head. He sent it the way of his other things.

  She remained silent staring at his bare chest. He was having the effect on her that he’d hoped for. But she was having the desired effect on him as well. Just looking at her sitting on the bed caused the hardness between his legs to throb. He didn’t mind that she was taking her time. He had no doubts this was right for both of them, but she needed to be sure, too. In the meantime, his desire for her, his eagerness to make her his, grew stronger with each passing second.

  “It’s time for you to make a decision.”

  Harrison sat down on his clothing and tugged and yanked one calf-high, damp boot off while keeping his gaze locked on her face. If she bolted or asked him to leave, he’d have to dig deep to find the strength to do it now that he’d gotten this far.

  “There’s still time to tell me to stop, Angelina.” He pulled off the other boot, set it down beside its mate, and rose to stand before her dressed only in his trousers.

  The burning heat of long-denied craving for her tingled in every nerve of his body. He had imagined himself lying with Angelina in her bed many times during the past few weeks. Now that he was so close to that happening, he was desperate for her answer. He was impatient and determined to know right now if she would choose him or the captain.

  “So tell me, Miss Rule, are you going to break the rules and let me stay or should I re-dress and leave?”

  Chapter 30

  I crave no other, nor no better man.

  Measure for Measure 5.1.423

  Angelina’s breath stalled in her throat. She was captivated by Harrison’s wide bare chest and lean, narrow hips gleaming in the glow of the lamplight. Beautifully defined muscles along his rib cage rippled and flexed with movement while he took off his boots. She’d had no idea he would be so stunning beneath his clothing.

  He didn’t know, but she’d already made her choice. Harrison was the man she loved. The man she wanted to spend the rest of her life with. It hadn’t been easy to give up on her dream of marrying the handsome soldier dressed in his pristine uniform, but what she’d felt for him was only a young girl’s fancy of what true love was. There was no reality to what she’d felt for the captain. Because they had never touched, or kissed, everything she’d felt for him was only in her imagination. Harrison showed her the difference between what was real and what was imaginary. She had no doubt that what she felt for him was true, lasting love.

  The storm continued to rage outside. The wind howled, rain beat against her windows, and thunder rumbled ominously in the distance. Inside her heart, Angelina was at peace. And she knew exactly what she wanted.

  Staring at Harrison’s questioning expression, her breaths grew choppy with anticipation for what was to come. The few lingering doubts she’d had earlier vanished the moment he started undressing. Her body and her mind relaxed. She was ready, eager, and happy. She was going to keep her eyes open and witness her coming of age with Harrison. The pillow fell from her hands and dropped to the floor. She scooted away from the edge of the bed and without a word held up the covers and invited him to join her.

  Harrison’s gaze swept hungrily over hers and he walked toward her. When he made it to the bed he didn’t hesitate. He simply crawled in, stretched his legs down beside hers, and gathered her in his strong embrace. Warmth curled enticingly around her. She gloried in the feel of his firm, bare back as her arms circled him. With his hand he brushed her hair away from her face, and smiled at her.

  Angelina beckoned without saying a word.

  Their lips met; their tongues touched with a sweet, satisfying mingling of their breaths. He kissed her longingly, and lovingly. Their lips moved together sensuously, languorously as they kissed and kissed. Angelina didn’t think they had ever kissed in such an unhurried manner or for so long.

  His hand slid slowly down her unbound breast. Through the thin cotton of her garment he fondled her with tenderness that sent heat flaring between her legs. Her nipple stiffened beneath his gentle touch and her abdomen tightened in response. Letting his hand drift down to her waist, he gently squeezed the indention before moving over the flare of her hip and back up to her breast again. With an open palm, he followed the same leisurely pattern down past the slope of her waist, to the rise of her hip, and back up to tease her erect nipple again and again.

  Harrison took his time and so did she, allowing herself the freedom to explore without restraint the strong contours of his shoulders, back, and slim waist. They were eager but not hasty in their pursuit of touching and seducing each other. He had always been a commanding man; their kisses and embraces were usually so intense and fierce they took her breath away. It thrilled her now that he wasn’t in a desperate rush but was giving them time to enjoy lying together, side by side for the first time.

  When she felt his fingertips working the ribbon at the neckline of her shift, she helped him by parting the bodice and sliding the garment off one shoulder, revealing the swell of her breasts in the lamplight. Her shallow breaths and keen awareness of what was about to happen made her chest rise and fall rapidly.

  With tenderness that touched her deeply, his warm breath and lips skimmed across her skin as he kissed the crook of her neck and shoulder, leaving a faint trail of moisture on her skin and a tightening in her most womanly part.

  Harrison continued to kiss along her collarbone to the hollow of her throat, up the side of her neck, and under her chin. She kissed his cheeks, the side of his mouth, and under his eye all while a burning need for more of him was slowly building inside her. Their long-denied desire to possess each other couldn’t stay banked much longer.

  Harrison looked at her and whispered, “Angelina, I have yearned for the day you would be mine.”

  “So have I.”

  “No doubts or fears?”

  “Plenty of fears about what we are doing, but no doubts. Now, can we continue?”

  He chuckled softly and rolled her onto her back. He pushed her garment lower, exposing one breast, and greedily covered her nipple with his mouth as he settled the hard, heavy weight of his loins against hers. She sighed with heavenly pleasure and lifted her chest to him. He continued to cup, caress, and knead her breast with his strong yet gentle hand, sending wave after wave of pleasure to that intimate part between her legs.

  Angelina ran her hands up and down his back, over his strong neck and into his thick, lush hair. She nuzzled the warmth of his shoulder with her nose and lips, letting her tongue taste his heated skin time and time again.

  She went dizzy with pleasure as he pulled her nipple deeply into his mouth, sucking gently and forcing her to whisper what her body craved, “Give me more, Harrison. Give me more.”

  In answer to her plea, he shifted his lower body off her and let his hand slip down the plane of her leg as he gathered up her chemise to her waist. His hand rested on her bare hip for a moment before exploring her wais
t and then sliding over her abdomen to the warmth between her legs. Her thighs tightened instinctively, but he gently nudged them apart and found her soft, moist center with his thumb and forefinger. He rubbed, circled, and lightly pressed her center, teasing her, filling her with an exquisite joyous pain. She savored the spreading warmth of being awakened to hot, indescribable pleasure.

  Somewhere at the back of her thoughts, she wanted to do something for him, to make him feel what she was experiencing, but his fluid, gentle touch left her incapable of doing anything but writhing with smoldering rapture. Spiral after spiral of new and glorious sensations twirled, whirled, and built inside her with every second that passed. She could do nothing but what she’d said she wouldn’t do by closing her eyes, throwing her head back, and moaning softly.

  Harrison’s lips left her breast and found hers. “Not yet,” he whispered. “It’s best you feel this way when I enter you.”

  “No,” she answered breathlessly. “Don’t stop.”

  But he already had by the time her words were out of her mouth. She felt him push his trousers down his legs and kick them away. As his hand came up their bodies he grabbed the tail of her shift and pulled it over her head. Angelina helped him fling it away as they kissed madly.

  He rose up over her and settled his hard thickness between her legs. He slid one hand beneath her head and tangled his fingers in her hair. With his other hand he returned to her womanly center and continued his gentle assault on her senses.

  “Do you know what to expect?” he asked huskily, looking into her eyes.

  “Yes,” she answered and then shook her head. “No. I’m not sure.”

  “Just trust me.”

  “I do.”

  His lips met hers with intense urgency. He plundered her mouth, his tongue swirling and skimming into the depths and along the lining of her lips. Angelina matched his fierceness as their lips and tongues clung together in desperation to finish what they’d started.