“Ned! You can’t… this isn’t…” She protested even as she knew she didn’t want him to stop. Ever.
And he clearly had no intention of ending his ministrations, as he placed her legs over his shoulders to better position himself at her core. With long, slow licks, he brushed through her folds. First one side, then the other. Then he slowly licked his way down and inserted his tongue inside her. He moved it in and out several times, then replaced his tongue with one finger, then added another. He licked his way back up to her button of flesh and begun to suck on it as he moved his fingers in and out.
Jane was writhing. Lost in sensation. He finally released her hands, enabling her to run her fingers through his hair as she climbed higher and higher. Finally, just as she thought she was unable to take any more, he flicked his tongue and she was swept over the top in a wave of intense pleasure. She turned her head to cry out into the pillow.
When she finally regained her senses some time later, she looked down to see Ned with his head still between her legs. He kissed the inside of her thighs, then she reached down to pull him on top of her.
But instead of simply lying there passively, she pushed him onto his back. He was surprised, but more than willing to let her lead.
Before her courage could fail her, she said “I’d like to do to you what you just did to me.”
Ned froze. He went completely still. Except for his heart that was pounding so hard he thought it might fly out of his chest. She couldn’t mean what he thought she did. Could she?
“You don’t have to do anything, love,” he said, not wanting her to feel uncomfortable or somehow obligated, even though he was hoping against hope she would follow through. “I’ll feel the same way you did when I’m inside you.”
“But it’s not the same.”
Ned couldn’t believe what the goddess above him was saying. Then he couldn’t believe what she was doing as she leaned down to kiss his lips, then his neck, then down to his chest. She was repeating the journey he’d made on her. But he was sure he’d explode before she even got close to the end.
Her tongue flicked over his nipple, then she nipped lightly and blew. At his sharp intake of breath she looked at him and smiled.
She continued downward, first to his ribs, then around his belly button. Getting closer and closer to where he wanted her lips the most. Nothing in his storied career in the bedroom had ever felt like this. Had ever excited him like this. Other women had been more experienced. But none had had this effect on him.
She was now kneeling between his legs, looking at his cock.
She leaned down, closer and closer, then placed one hand around his shaft and swiped her tongue slowly over the tip. His hands buried themselves in the silk of her hair and it was all he could do not to press himself into her mouth.
She brought her lips to the rounded head and rubbed them up and down, then slowly took him all the way into her mouth. It was too much. Ned’s hips reflexively gave the gentlest of thrusts, but it was enough to show her what to do. While her hand continued to squeeze and stroke, she took him in and out of her mouth.
He had no idea how much of a natural she’d be at this, but she very quickly caught the rhythm. And it was the sight of her, coupled with the feel and sound of what she was doing, that drove Ned closer and closer to the edge. Then she groaned in pleasure and it was his undoing. He lost all control and had barely enough time to withdraw from her mouth before spilling his seed all over the sheets.
For a long moment, he lay there, eyes closed, recovering from the most intense climax he’d ever experienced. Then he kept his eyes closed a bit longer because he couldn’t remember ever being this embarrassed. He’d not only spilled like a green lad, but he’d probably horrified her. He’d be lucky if she didn’t order him out of her house immediately, then sic Titania the champion mouser on him. He’d deserve it, too.
“Ned?”
He kept his eyes closed. Maybe she’d think he’d fallen asleep. Or, with any luck, died.
“Ned?”
This time she gently shook his arm. He had to stop being a coward and let her react as she wanted. He just dreaded seeing the look of disgust in her eyes that he knew would be there.
He finally opened his eyes. She was smiling. An almost angelic smile, if angels did what they’d just done. He reached for her, still not believing she’d let him touch her again.
“That was the most intense experience of my life,” he said as he pulled her down to lie next to him.
Then she frowned, which sent a chill through him.
“Please don’t say things you don’t mean,” she said. “I know you’ve been with many women. Ones who knew what they were doing. There’s no need to flatter me.”
“But I’m telling the truth. I’ve never experienced anything like that – the intensity, the explosion that went through me.” What he didn’t add was that the entire experience had left him feeling exposed, which was an unfamiliar and unwanted emotion for him.
He kissed her gently. She lay in his arms for a moment, then just as he was about to continue, she pulled away and got out of bed.
“Where are you going?”
“Back to my room. That was enough for tonight, don’t you think?”
“No. There are plenty of other things we can do.”
She leaned down and kissed him lightly on the lips.
“But I still have a great deal of thinking to do. And that’s something I can’t do in your bed. Thank you for a wonderful night,” she said as she donned her night rail and dressing gown. “I’ll see you in the morning.”
As she left, Ned fought the urge to run after her. And as he settled into the sleep of the sated, he realized that even though he hadn’t planned on getting married at this age, there could be some distinct advantages to it.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
When Wheeler picked Jane up shortly after breakfast to check on the much-improved Penny, Ned declined the invitation to join them. There’d been a letter with the Barrington seal waiting for him yesterday when they’d returned from his ill-fated tree-climbing expedition. He’d ignored it at the time, but today he reluctantly read it. It was a summons from Madeleine telling him to call on her today.
As much as he dreaded going back to Barrington Manor, the sooner he put an end to the informal agreement with Madeleine, the quicker he could formalize plans with Jane. He hoped last night had been enough to persuade her that they belonged together. He wasn’t used to having to persuade women to do anything for him. In the past, they’d all been so….willing. Maybe that was one of the reasons he liked Jane so much. He could never take her for granted.
So, after Rigg dressed him and offered words of support that included the advice to not drink anything he was given just in case they planned on drugging him then dragging him to the altar, Ned set off for Barrington Manor.
When he arrived, he was treated like a long-lost loved one, finally returning home. The butler was surprised Ned had come on Knightley and not in his carriage fully loaded with the luggage he’d be moving back into the manor. But Ned assured him this was just a brief visit, then asked to see Miss Merriman.
Madeleine greeted him as a vision in pink, after appearing with the stealth of a hunter. She ushered him into her father’s study and shut the door.
“La, Lord Edward, but you do look fine this morning,” she said, eyeing both the tailoring of his clothes and the body beneath.
“Thank you Miss Merriman. But I believe it is time to talk.”
“I believe it is time we did more than that, sir.”
Madeleine closed the distance between them as if propelled by catapult. Then she put both hands on his lapels, pulled him toward her with almost frightening strength and kissed him.
Ned wasn’t all that surprised to learn the chit could kiss. Her tongue slid along his lips, surprising him into opening his mouth, which proved to be a mistake as her tongue barged in as she rubbed herself up against him. They were moves very few men c
ould resist, and had they been done by the right woman, he was sure what they would lead to. But since they were being done by quite the wrong woman, Ned pulled back. Madeline moved in for another frontal assault, but he firmly, yet gently held her away from him. Her look of surprise would’ve been comical had Ned not had the feeling something very bad was about to happen.
“While I am enormously flattered my dear, I’m afraid I’m not interested. And now I must be going.”
There was a flash of anger in her eyes, the split second before she said quite loudly, “Lord Edward, what can you mean by kissing me so?”
The words had no sooner left her mouth, than the door opened and Lord and Lady Barrington fell into the room.
“A kiss! How wonderful, my lord,” exclaimed Lady Barrington. “When can I announce the happy news?”
“I would have preferred you to speak to me first, my boy,” said Lord Barrington, “but I understand the course of true love.”
But it was true commerce the man had on his mind, as he told Ned he’d be available to draw up the marriage contract any time starting now – he just happened to have a draft ready – and extending for however long Ned intended to stay at Barrington Manor. Outmaneuvered and seething with anger, Ned excused himself and stormed out of the house.
* * *
For a cat who loved mousing, Titiania spent a lot of time in trees. Vi looked up at her beloved cat, who was once again on a branch much too far from the ground.
“Please come down, Titania. Mrs. Heldt will be so upset when she realizes I left the garden to find you.”
“Wot we got here, Johnny? A li’l girl wot done lost her cat.”
Vi spun around to see two filthy men walking toward her. They were dressed in torn clothing with hair matted to their heads. One carried a club and they stood between her and the path home.
“Pity that, ain’t it, Marty? Especially since she’s such a pretty young ‘un.”
“Wot’s your name, sweetheart?” asked Marty.
“Vi.” She tried hard not to appear as scared as she felt.
“Would that be Violet Wetherby? The bastard of Jane Wetherby?”
Vi stared at the men with wide eyes. If she ran in the opposite direction she’d be trapped by the river. If she ran into the woods, she’d be going even further away from home.
“Oi! Are ye Violet Wetherby or ain’t ye?”
Slowly, she nodded her head.
“Then it’s time ye was off to the orphanage.” With that, Johnny sprang at her, grabbing hold of Violet’s arm. She screamed and kicked the man between the legs, something Mama had taught her, just as Titania pounced and scratched him. The man let go of her. She began running to the woods, but then the other one, who was laughing at his friend, grabbed Vi by the hair, but kept her an arm’s length away, so she couldn’t kick him.
“The sprite’s feisty, ain’t she?”
Johnny slowly got to his feet, then moved toward her.
“I’ll show the little brat wot happens when ye messes wit’ me.”
Vi struggled with the man who was holding her, because the other one looked so very angry. But all of the sudden, the man released her and she went tumbling to the ground.
“Run Vi! Run!”
Suddenly Ned was there and he was hitting the man who’d grabbed her. But the other man looked like he wanted to hurt Ned. Vi ran as fast as she could into the woods.
* * *
Ned had never been so angry in his life as when he’d walked into the clearing and seen Vi struggling with the two men. He’d killed men in battle before, even dispassionately, because it was what he’d been trained to do. But nothing had driven him to rage like those two brutes attacking his child.
He looked up to see Vi run into the woods. Thank God. The man he was attacking was down on the ground, but the one Vi had so capably incapacitated made a move to run after her. Ned left the man on the ground and grabbed the other. He hit him in the jaw, with a resounding and quite satisfying crack of bone. But by then the first man had recovered enough to pull Ned down, enabling the other to retaliate for the broken jaw with a brutal kick to the stomach. Momentarily winded, Ned knew a second more dangerous blow was coming, when suddenly the man on top of him was hit on the side of the head.
Ned looked up to see Vi hitting the man with a branch almost as big as she was. Good God, why hadn’t she stayed away?
Fearing what would happen to Vi if he passed out, Ned got a second wind, then head butted the man on top of him, pushing him over. The other man rose, then Ned kicked his kneecap, crumpling him to the ground. Both men lay moaning. Neither got up. Ned wanted desperately to finish them both off. He knew he could kill them with his bare hands. But he couldn’t do it in front of Vi.
She was beginning to tremble and her eyes shone with unshed tears. The sleeve of her dress was torn. He took a step toward her. She ran and threw herself into his arms.
“Did they hurt you?” he asked, dreading the answer.
She shook her head. “They just grabbed me and pulled my hair.”
Bad enough, thought Ned, but thankfully it hadn’t been worse.
“I told you to run!” he told her. Anger at the men was fast being replaced by fear of what might have happened.
“I couldn’t leave you to fight them yourself. You could’ve been killed.”
“And then what would’ve happened to you?”
The girl really began to shake then and Ned realized he wasn’t making things better. So he picked her up.
“Let’s go home, poppet.”
She nodded. “But we have to bring Titania.”
He whistled at the cat who was surveying the two downed men and whose opinion of them was in complete sympathy with Ned’s. Then he walked home carrying his precious bundle.
* * *
Jane had just returned from visiting the much improved Penny Wheeler and was trying to decide what she should say to Ned. Even now she couldn’t believe how wanton she’d been the night before. But instead of being horrified by her actions, he’d seemed to find them acceptable. He rather liked them, even. She still had a lot of unanswered questions, but she was finally getting the courage to at least ask them.
“Mama!”
Jane turned to see a grim Ned carrying Vi, who’d obviously been crying. He looked like he’d been in a fight. Jane ran toward them.
“Vi!”
The girl scrambled out of Ned’s arms and ran to her mother, who knelt down to receive her. “Mama! The men, they tried to hurt me. They called me a bastard and said they were going to take me to a- a- a orphanage.” Then she buried her head in her mother’s neck.
Jane tried to let the words sink in, but couldn’t believe it. Someone had tried to kidnap Vi. To take her to an orphanage. It was too terrible to imagine. Just as she needed it most, she felt a pair of strong arms draw her against a well-muscled body.
Ned didn’t say a thing. He just held her, while she held their daughter.
“Sweeting,” said Jane, a few minutes later after they’d told her the whole story, “you must stop running off from the house.”
Vi lifted her head, her tears finally ended, to nod solemnly. “I know. I was just worried about Titania.”
“Titania can take care of herself, poppet,” said Ned. He hadn’t been this close to tears in more years than he could remember. But one little girl was bringing him closer.
Much quicker to recover than either of her parents, Vi announced she was going to see Mrs. Heldt for a biscuit.
Jane pulled out of Ned’s arms as soon as Vi was out of sight.
“When can you be ready?” he asked, as he reluctantly let her go.
“For what?”
“Our trip to London.”
“We aren’t going to London.”
“Yes, we are.” His voice was solemn but firm, brooking no opposition.
“For what reason?”
“To straighten things out with your grandfather. I assume he’s the one behind today’s
attack.”
“I assume he is, as well. But it’s my problem and I’ll manage on my own.”
“While I have nothing but respect for your abilities, today’s actions go far beyond any obstacles you’ve faced in the past. And it’s our daughter who’s at risk. I must insist you accompany me to London tomorrow. We have to sort this out as soon as possible and I won’t allow you to remain here unprotected.” Ned strode toward the house.
“Won’t allow it?” she asked as she ran to catch up to him. “You may be her father, but you aren’t my husband to be ordering me about.”
He turned to her, barely civilized. The scare of that afternoon still in the forefront of his thoughts. “Don’t fight me on this Jane. You and my daughter are accompanying me to London tomorrow. You can either come willingly, or I can place you bodily into the carriage, bound and gagged. So what will it be?”
“It would be wholly inappropriate to travel alone with a man unrelated to us.”
“I’m related to one of you.”
“I haven’t forgotten that fact, sir. But it’s a relation that cannot be acknowledged.”
“Mrs. Heldt can accompany us.”
“Unfortunately, Mrs. Heldt doesn’t travel easily. The motion of the carriage makes her sick.”
“Hire someone from the village.”
“With what, sir? I barely earn enough to put food on the table and keep a roof over our heads. And before you offer to pay, I will not take more charity from you.”
“Then we shall travel alone, we three. But we are going to London. I only hope your grandfather is healthy enough for me to thrash.”
“My grandfather is a formidable enemy.”
“All the more reason for you to cooperate with me. I intend to have the full force of the Duke of Lynwood behind us. Trust me, your grandfather won’t stand a chance.”
Jane and Ned were about to enter the house when a footman in livery rode up the drive. The man dismounted, then bowed.
“Begging your pardon milord, but Lord Barrington has asked you to return to the manor as soon as possible so you can sign the marriage contract.”
Never a Mistress, No Longer a Maid (Kellington Book One) Page 13
