He was looking at her so intently, his expression confounded, as if he were trying to unlock a great mystery. “What do you mean?” she asked hesitantly, fearing she knew exactly what he meant.
He studied her for another long moment, his gaze traveling slowly across the delicate plains of her face. “You were a virgin. Why did you surrender your innocence to a man who can’t give you what you want, what you deserve?”
Because you are not in the market for a wife, and because I love you, she answered in her head, the reply she knew she dared not say aloud. Instead, she countered with a question of her own. “What makes you think you know what I want?”
He hesitated for a moment, uncertain. When he spoke, his tone was dubious. “You don’t want to marry, to start a family of your own?”
“Perhaps,” she admitted, struggling to keep her tone cavalier, her manner nonchalant, “someday.”
“You’re about to make your debut. Every eligible man in London will be begging for your hand.” And expecting to take a virgin bride to bed, he thought with no small degree of guilt.
“Every man but you, that is.” She gave him a sardonic smile, forcing a teasing lightness to her voice that she didn’t feel.
“Scarlett…”
“I did it because I wanted to Alec,” she told him, cutting off whatever it was he had been about to say. “I did it because you are devilishly handsome, not to mention incredibly charming and witty, and absolutely too tempting to resist. I did it because I wanted to be with you. Isn’t that enough?”
“Is it?” he asked, his expression suddenly thoughtful and tender. Dozens of women had wanted him, but most of them had been older, experienced women, women who knew the rules of the game. For himself and the women he bedded, sex was about pleasure, not emotion. Despite the bravado of her words, he feared Scarlett was in over her head.
Stepping toward him, Scarlett pressed her fingers against the side of his face, looked boldly into his eyes and answered him with as much honesty as she could. “You have given me more pleasure than I could have ever dreamed possible. You’ve taught me what it means to be a woman.” Slowly, she trailed her gloved fingers along his jaw line. “I have no regrets Alec.”
“Then I am indeed a very fortunate man,” he replied.
“Indeed you are, Your Grace.” Scarlett curved her lips into a sexy, siren’s smile, a smile that now came as naturally to her as breathing. “In fact, I intend to show you exactly how fortunate you are later this evening.”
Despite his apprehension, Alec could only hope that Scarlett knew what she was doing, for he seemed surprisingly incapable of denying his own, overpowering hunger for her. “I can hardly wait,” he said huskily, before capturing her lips in a soul-shattering kiss.
Scarlett wasn’t sure how long she had been asleep with her back pressed firmly against the solid warmth of Alec’s torso, his arm wrapped snuggly around her midsection. She felt his thumb slowly stroking the soft curve of her breast and hoped it hadn’t been long. It was their last night together and she wanted to savor every single moment.
She smiled, a sleepy, lazy little smile, as she felt his lips brush against the sensitive spot at the base of her neck. He gently caressed the fullness of her breasts, brushing his fingers over her taut nipples, and then gradually moved downward, his fingers sliding over her soft curls and delving into the moist recess of her body. She couldn’t contain her small moan of pleasure as his fingers began to move in the slow, gentle rhythm that her body now recognized and craved.
Alec knew it wouldn’t take long to send Scarlett over the edge, but his throbbing erection, pressed tightly against her softly rounded derriere, could no longer be ignored. As he slipped his fingers from her body, he heard Scarlett’s low whimper of protest and couldn’t contain the small chuckle that escaped his lips at the sound. His innocent young virgin had quickly become a greedy, unabashed wanton. He murmured softly in her ear to calm her, and then grasping her thigh, he shifted her leg and slid into her moist cleft. Scarlett’s muted gasp of pleasure was nearly his undoing. He forced himself to slow down, wanting to savor each and every moment of the nearly overwhelming anticipation of his release.
Scarlett’s breathing became erratic as Alec’s fingers once again found their way to her auburn curls, stroking and rubbing as his rigid shaft glided back and forth within her slick passage. She clutched at the bed sheets as wave after wave of pleasure coursed through her body. The feeling was so intense she wanted to scream in satisfaction, but dared not, for fear that someone would hear her cry.
Alec groaned as Scarlett moved against him, undulating her hips so that his shaft was pressed deeper and deeper into her feminine core. It felt so damn good, too good. Their bodies fit together so perfectly, as if they were made for each other. Though he longed to deny it, no woman had ever affected him quite so profoundly, not even the most skilled courtesans in England, of whom he had sampled more than a few. The young woman in his arms had taken his desire, his passion, to an entirely new level, and it amazed him even now. Her little moans and whimpers were driving him mad as she rocked against him, her movements growing increasingly more fervent as she neared her climax. He didn’t know how much longer he could hold on.
Moments later, Scarlett pressed the back of her hand against her lips to keep from crying out as her body convulsed in spasm after delicious spasm. The shattering ecstasy was so powerful, so intense, that it was almost too much to bear. In that instant, she was incapable of stopping the tears that suddenly slid from her eyes and scarcely noticed when Alec slid from her body as he found his own release.
Alec closed his eyes tightly; resting his forehead against Scarlett’s naked back as he struggled to regain his senses after having just experienced one of the most amazing orgasms of his life. Once he was able to think clearly, he reached for Scarlett, turning her toward him, only then noticing the tears that streaked in tiny rivulets across her cheeks. He became fully alert at once. Had he been too rough, had he hurt her? “Scarlett,” he whispered, tilting her chin upward so he could look into her eyes, “What’s wrong? Did I hurt you?” She regarded him through her wide, luminous blue eyes and silently shook her head.
Scarlett was incapable of speech. How could she ever manage to express in words how he made her feel? That his lovemaking had moved her to tears. That she loved him more than she had ever thought possible. Even if there were words to adequately describe what she was feeling, she knew she couldn’t utter them aloud. Not yet anyhow. Instead, she wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her face in his shoulder, holding on to him as if she would never let go.
Suddenly Alec understood, and the knowledge both pleased and frightened him. It pleased him to know that he had been the one to give her such intense pleasure, yet he couldn’t help worrying that her feelings for him were becoming more than physical. She was young and still naive to the ways of the world outside the sheltered haven of Grey Oaks, and he was her first lover. She was bound to confuse passion with love. Though she claimed she wasn’t eager to wed, he couldn’t help wondering if she was secretly hoping for something more than a casual affair.
While Scarlett had been far removed from the jaded realm of society, he had spent years amongst the fickle, bed-hopping members of his social set. He fully understood that the vast majority of marriages were based on lineage, social status, power and wealth, and very seldom on love; and that relationships outside of the marriage bed were based on mutual pleasure. Affairs were commonplace and those that engaged in them were mindful of the rules at play, fully aware that love was little more than a silly romantic notion and only served to complicate matters.
His parents had been a prime example of the folly of love, as his mother often reminded him. His father, she’d told him, a well-known rake and libertine, had become enamored of her, the reigning beauty of her time, and after a brief courtship had professed his undying love, swearing to give up his philandering ways. Of course she had fallen completely under his father’s spell, certain tha
t she would be the woman to tame his wild ways. However, not long after their marriage, her illusions were shattered as the husband she adored gradually resumed his old habits. She had learned the hard way that true love only happened in fairytales. Determined that Alec never suffer the heartache she had experienced, she had vigilantly prepared him for the reality of life within the ton. “Don’t marry for love my darling,” she had told him on more than one occasion. “It doesn’t last. Marry a woman for companionship, even friendship, someone who will be a good mother to your children. Don’t be foolish and impulsive as I was. Follow your head and guard your heart my dear.”
As he’d grown older, he had seen for himself the truth of his mother’s words. How many marriages had he attended with a starry-eyed bride and besotted groom professing their love for each other, only to eventually become bored and disenchanted with their union once the novelty wore off? Men took mistresses whom they lavished with gifts and attention, while their wives, after dutifully providing the requisite heir and spare, found their own pleasure with lovers who pandered to them and made them feel special. It was a common occurrence, and for the most part an accepted, though politely unacknowledged part of the lifestyle of the upper crust.
Like the more sensible members of the aristocracy, he regarded marriage as more of a business arrangement than an emotional commitment. He would marry eventually of course, and when he did he would do it for the right reasons, thinking with his head and not with his heart. If Scarlett believed in ever-lasting love and fairytale happy endings, she would be disillusioned soon enough. For her sake, he hoped she wasn’t that foolish.
“Do you really have to go?” Scarlett murmured seductively, her warm breath tickling Alec’s ear as her lips moved from where they’d been a moment before, planting feather light kisses along the line of his jaw.
“Unfortunately I do, my insatiable vixen,” he replied with a low chuckle, distracted from his musings. It was near dawn and they both should have been utterly sated and completely exhausted.
“Will you miss me?” she asked, her smile deliberately playful as she propped herself up on Alec’s chest and met his gaze. She was determined to keep things light, unwilling to allow Alec to see how truly devastated she was by his upcoming departure.
“Immeasurably,” he avowed, his own smile equally playful, yet at the same time utterly sincere.
When Alec walked Scarlett to the door of his room a short time later, they didn’t speak of the future. Scarlett made no reference to forthcoming expectations, and Alec, as always, made no false promises. They both knew they would see each other in a few short weeks, however what, if anything, were to happen between them in London was deliberately left unsaid. Neither of them wanted to tarnish the extraordinary bliss of the past few nights with speculation about the future.
After one last lingering kiss, Scarlett smiled to hide the ache in her heart and slipped silently from Alec’s room.
The following morning, after bidding his farewells to each of the McPhearson siblings, Alec descended the front steps with Colin at his side and made his way to his waiting coach, where Brutus was tied restlessly behind. He had planned to ride, at least part of the way, but upon rising from his warm bed he had quickly changed his mind. Brutus required an attentive rider with a firm hand, and quite frankly he could scarcely keep his eyes open.
“Don’t forget, we’ll be kicking off Scarlett’s debut with a small dinner party at our house two weeks from Saturday, and I will expect you to be there.”
“I wouldn’t miss it,” Alec assured him, for Colin was well aware that he tended to avoid as many of the Season’s parties and routes as he possibly could, much to the dismay of many a Society matron and eligible debutante.
“Good, I want Scarlett’s launch to be a brilliant success.”
“I’m sure it will be,” Alec assured him as he stepped up into the coach.
“I want Scarlett’s seventeenth birthday to be one she’ll never forget.” Waving aside the footman, Colin grasped the door of the coach and swung it shut himself and then flipped up the steps. “Safe journey my friend,” he called as the driver flicked the horses’ reins.
As the faint, distinctive crunch of gravel sounded beneath the carriage wheels, Colin’s parting words ricocheted like buckshot in Alec’s head. He dropped his head back against the padded velvet seat, his eyes closed, his expression tormented. Scarlett’s seventeenth birthday, her seventeenth birthday. Scarlett was only sixteen! Jesus, he’d thought her eighteen at the least. Although it wasn’t unheard of for a woman to become engaged or even to be married at sixteen, especially amongst the lower classes, Alec felt like a boulder had just been dropped onto his chest. He’d bedded his best friend’s sister, a sixteen-year-old virgin no less. Guilt washed over him in waves. Christ, there was no way around it; he was going straight to hell.
Chapter 6
As Scarlett surveyed the busy streets of London from the windows of their coach, the noise, the size, the unfamiliar smells and the sheer number of people that inhabited the city overwhelmed her. It was a far cry from the peaceful serenity of Grey Oaks, and she found herself experiencing a strange combination of exhilaration and trepidation as her brothers pointed out various sights and landmarks. Seated securely between Rory and Gavin, she glanced at her two eldest brothers seated directly across from her. Though Conner would be returning to Grey Oaks at the end of the week, she was grateful that all four of her brothers would be on hand for her first few days in the city, knowing their presence would help give her the added confidence she so desperately needed.
Now, as their coach turned on to the fashionable street that housed many of the country’s most prominent families, Scarlett caught her first true glimpse of the tremendous wealth and privilege of the social elite. Grandiose brick buildings, visible through elaborate, intricately detailed wrought iron fences, and fronted by equally elaborate and immaculately maintained courtyards, sat on one side of the street, while a large, beautifully landscaped park, encompassed the other.
When they stopped in front of their own impressive four-story home, Scarlett felt the slight sensation of butterflies in her stomach. She had been surprised to learn during their journey to the city that the Earl of Northam’s eldest son and his family occupied the house to the right of their own, while the house on the left was owned by none other than Alec Weston. Apparently, their own house, as well as Alec’s, had once been owned by members of the same family. When they had gone up for sale several years past, Alec had purchased one and Colin had purchased the other.
As Gavin assisted Scarlett from the coach, she glanced toward the house on the left, wondering if Alec was inside. It had been nearly three weeks since he’d left Grey Oaks and the thought of seeing him again was what interested her more than anything. Her debut meant nothing next to that. She had no desire to collect suitors or to search for a husband. She had already found the man she wanted. Though most girls her age would likely be longing to attend parties and balls, to be presented at court, to visit the theater and attend the opera, and to mingle with the beau monde, Scarlett cared not a whit. She was single-minded in her purpose, to tame her licentious duke and capture his heart. Entering the house a moment later, she was delighted to see Georgie rushing toward her. Her long chestnut-colored hair was pinned atop her head into a neat chignon, her slim figure clad in a simple, yet lovely gown of pale-blue, and as always her soft brown eyes were full of warmth and kindness.
“Scarlett, I’ve missed you so,” she said, enveloping her in a warm hug.
“I’ve missed you too,” Scarlett replied, returning her hug with genuine fondness.
After politely greeting the four male McPhearsons, Georgie offered to show Scarlett to her room so that she might refresh herself from the trip, and then promised to fill all of them in later on the plans for Scarlett’s birthday dinner the following evening.
As Georgie chattered a mile a minute, there was little time for Scarlett to think about Alec. The olde
r woman commanded her full attention as she began regaling her with all of the particulars regarding the upcoming events they would be attending, ranging from small afternoon teas to large formal balls. She was talking so fast and was clearly so excited that she was practically dragging Scarlett along beside her as they made their way up the stairs to the second floor. “You are going to have such a marvelous time, dear,” Georgie assured her.
Scarlett didn’t have the heart to disappoint her with her own lack of enthusiasm, and forced a bright smile for Georgie’s benefit. Although, when Georgie mentioned a trip to the theater, her smile did become a bit less forced. She had heard about several of the fabulous productions from Alec, and attending the theater was something she was actually looking quite forward to.
However, for the time being, Georgie’s primary focus was on the upcoming dinner party she had organized. The two of them spent the next several hours selecting Scarlett’s clothing, going over the proper etiquette for the evening, highlighting polite and acceptable points of conversation and everything else Georgie felt Scarlett needed to focus on and prepare for. By the end of the night her head was spinning, and when Georgie finally wound down she wanted nothing more than to close her eyes and collapse onto her comfortable bed.
Scarlett spent the following morning in a combined state of anticipation and mild apprehension. She was exceedingly eager to see Alec again, but her excitement was tempered by the somewhat daunting notion of being introduced into Society. She wanted desperately to make her brothers proud of her and the fear of committing any sort of faux pas or social blunder was nerve-wracking. She was extremely thankful that Georgie would be by her side to help guide her through the evening.
Alone in her room, she walked over to the window that overlooked the back garden, and stood so that she could see a portion of Alec’s property. Colin had mentioned that Alec would be in attendance that evening and she could scarcely think about anything else. In fact, he had occupied her nearly every waking thought, as well as her dreams, since his departure from Grey Oaks. She couldn’t help wondering if he had been with any other women since then, and secretly prayed that he hadn’t. Though she had no rightful claim on him, she couldn’t help thinking of him as hers, for their nights at Grey Oaks had left her more in love with Alec than she could have ever dreamed possible. She knew that it would be much more difficult to continue their relationship here in London, but she was determined to find a way. She wanted Alec Weston now more than ever, and she intended to have him. There was nothing she had ever wanted more than to spend the rest of her life with the man she adored, to become his wife and the mother of his children, and of course his one and only love.
The Hellion and The Heartbreaker Page 11
