* * *
“Have a little more, darling,” Ambrose said, holding the glass of whiskey to Mel’s lips as she lay cushioned against Barnabas’s chest. Barnabas had never held another woman like this, tenderly and without passion. He found that he liked it very much. “You scared the very devil out of me.”
“No, she scared the very devil out of me,” Barnabas said with a laugh. “You should have seen us, darling, scrambling around on the bed to make sure you were all right when we were both still weak and mindless from our orgasms.” He shook his head. “In future, we will not come at the same time.”
“Well, old man, I don’t know about you, but I couldn’t have stopped that if I’d tried.”
“True,” Barnabas said, taking the whiskey from him and setting it on the table. “It would be like trying to hold back the wind.” Mel snuggled against him as Ambrose slid under the covers behind her and rubbed her back.
“Mmm,” she said. “You both feel so nice.” She kissed Barnabas’s chest. “Are you sure that was normal?”
“I have heard that women can sometimes faint from intense pleasure during coitus,” he assured her. “Although I have never seen it. But then, I have never had a woman come from just my cock in her arse before, either.” He hugged her. “You are a priceless jewel.”
“I’ve wanted all those things for so long,” she said. “I was very young, you know, when I started to notice men and they started to notice me. I would find myself aroused but unable to satisfy myself.”
“You are so sensitive and responsive,” Barnabas mused. “I find it hard to believe that you never experienced a woman’s pleasure before the other night.”
“Nothing like what I feel with you two,” she said. “I’ve had moments were it felt similar, but like a watercolor to a rich oil painting.” She sighed. “I will miss this when I go.”
Ambrose sat up so quickly Mel squeaked in alarm. Barnabas, however, wasn’t surprised by her remark. “Don’t be ridiculous,” he said. “You’re not going anywhere.”
She rubbed his stomach and pushed the blanket down so she could fondle his cock. He let her play. She’d never had the opportunity before, and he liked it. He liked being the object of someone’s lust for the simple reason that they wanted him and not something from him.
“You know I can’t stay, darling,” she said, cupping his stones. He spread his legs and let her have her way. Her finger danced along the sensitive skin behind his testicles and he squirmed as his cock began to harden.
“Why not?” Ambrose demanded. “I agree with Barnabas. You are not going anywhere.”
Barnabas looked over her head on his chest and smiled at Ambrose.
“All right,” Ambrose said, clearly exasperated. “What is going on? Barnabas, I have never seen you like this before.”
“Like what?” he asked in surprise.
“So…so open,” Ambrose said.
“Affectionate,” Mel said, nodding.
“I go so far as to call you emotional,” Ambrose said.
“I am emotional,” Barnabas admitted calmly. “So you have both decided to talk now, have you?”
“Talk,” Ambrose said. He pointed at Mel. “And then we’ll deal with this leaving business.”
Mel sighed and slid her finger down to trace a delicate circle around Barnabas’s back entrance.
“Behave,” he told her, pulling her hand out. “That is for later.” She smiled at him, and the sensuality of it made his heart beat faster. “De Vere is dead.” He’d decided that telling her bluntly was the best option.
“What?” she said in a shocked voice. She sat up, using her hands on his chest as leverage. “How?”
“I shot him,” Ambrose said with satisfaction. “He was about to shoot Barnabas; I rushed into Barnabas’s office and I shot him first.”
“Ambrose!” she exclaimed. She turned back to Barnabas. “He almost shot you?”
“Indeed, that was his plan,” Barnabas said. “And since he’d just told me that his men had most likely killed Ambrose and possibly you, I was too emotional to stop him.” He shook his head. “I have never let emotion rule me. To do so could be fatal. Tonight proved me right.”
Mel covered her mouth with her hand and tears sprang to her eyes. “This is why I must go,” she finally said in a watery voice.
“Nonsense,” he said again. “This is exactly why you must stay. It certainly takes fewer men to guard you here, and my mind will be at ease knowing you are protected. I should have had more faith in Ambrose and my men. Were you to go gallivanting off to who knows where, I’d not have a moment’s peace and I’d be dead in a fortnight.”
“Barnabas,” Ambrose said with irritation. “Do not try to use guilt to get your way.”
“Why not?” he asked. “It’s true. The same could be said if something happened to you.” Now it was Ambrose’s turn to look shocked. Barnabas sighed. “I have come to realize that I like this arrangement. I have always liked bedding women and men, although I more often bedded men because there are fewer potential complications.” He picked up the whiskey from the table and took a sip, then handed it to Mel, who had one as well. “But I have never been with a man who felt the same. Odd, isn’t it, when there seem to be so many about?” He shrugged. “That is, until Ambrose. I knew he wanted you, Mel, even as I blackmailed him into my bed.”
“You did what?” Mel asked in horror. “You forced him?”
“No,” Ambrose said firmly. “I found that once he planted the seed of the idea in my head, it took root and I wanted it. I wanted him. I think I always have. Perhaps that’s why I took such pleasure in thwarting him.” He gave Barnabas a stern look. “The fact that I love you will not change my politics.”
Barnabas took a moment to steady his nerves at Ambrose’s declaration of love. “Nor will the fact that I love you change mine,” he said smoothly. “So don’t expect it.”
“Never,” Ambrose said with a grin. “As you say, a little adversity adds spice to the bedroom.”
“You are both fine without me,” Mel said with a sad little smile. “Really, who am I to the two of you? Some foolish woman you had to rescue. And I do thank you for it, really I do. But I know I am not the kind of woman either of you dreamed of.”
“You are exactly the kind of woman I dreamed of,” Ambrose declared. “Even as I tumbled into Barnabas’s bed, I still wanted you. I want a strong, intelligent, sensual woman who is not afraid to be naughty in the bedroom. I think I’ve always been a hedonist—I just buried that part of myself because I thought it was wrong of me. But it always led me to women who were…” He paused and looked at Mel with an apology on his face. “…not appropriate. I’m sorry, darling. I didn’t want the women that society dictated I take to wife. It’s why I have not married yet.”
“I won’t marry you,” Mel said. Ambrose looked taken aback.
“Why not?” he asked in confusion. “De Vere is dead. Barnabas gave up his title, there is an heir. But if you’d rather marry Barnabas, I’m sure I won’t mind.”
“I won’t marry Barnabas either,” she said stubbornly.
“Fine,” Barnabas said before Ambrose could argue further and upset Mel. “I understand that the institution of marriage is abhorrent to you after your miserable experience with de Vere. If you do not desire marriage, then we will live in sin.”
“Barnabas,” she said, shocked. “You cannot. Both of you are public figures, government men. What will people say?”
“Nothing.” Barnabas smiled at the skepticism on both their faces. “I am Sir Barnabas James. No one says anything to me. What I want, I get.”
He pulled Mel back into his arms and then reached for Ambrose. Ambrose leaned over Mel and Barnabas kissed him. He made the kiss as carnal as he could, larger than life for Mel’s benefit. He wanted to make sure they both understood what they were getting in to. He broke the kiss with a lick of Ambrose lower lip.
“I had fallen into a routine,” he said, as a dazed Ambrose settled
back beside Mel. “A very boring routine that put a lot of people in jeopardy, because I wasn’t paying attention to my job anymore.” He shook his head at Ambrose’s protest. “No, it’s true. I should have stopped de Vere long before it reached this point. It was the advent of you two into my once orderly life that woke me up and made me realize what a rut I was in.”
“But I’m just…Mel,” she said, dumbfounded. “I’m not very smart or witty or anything else. I’m a terrible housekeeper, too. Don’t try to deny it.”
“I wasn’t going to. Go ahead.”
Ambrose made a face at him.
“Why on earth would a man like you want someone like me?” she asked, and he could see the sincerity in the question.
“Because you are all the things Ambrose said and more,” Barnabas told her, looking her in the eye so she saw the truth of it. “I can’t even imagine the kind of fortitude and strong will it took to survive what you did, and to come out stronger on the other side. And you are stronger, Mel. You are one of the strongest people I’ve ever met. And I don’t care who that other girl was—the person you are now is kind and giving, loving and generous. And I need that in my life to balance me out.”
“Please say you’ll stay, Mel,” Ambrose begged. “I love Barnabas and I love you, but he’s right, I love the three of us together. This is like having your cake and eating it, too.” He grinned. “I find that I really, really like cake.”
Mel still looked skeptical. “I’ll stay for awhile,” she said warily. “But I’m making no promises. And I’ll do it on my terms,” she warned. “I’m still the housekeeper.”
“No,” Barnabas said. “First of all, Soames is spread too thin doing your work, and if I tell him you are now lady of the house he will insist on doing more. We need a real housekeeper.”
“Fine,” Mel snapped, her arms crossed. “But I really don’t think any of you gave me a chance. I could have done quite well if you’d only let me do my job.”
“Of course, darling,” Ambrose said, kissing her cheek. “But it upset the balance for the other servants, don’t you see? They didn’t know how to treat you. Very confusing.”
“And what about you?” Mel asked, cupping Ambrose’s cheek. “I don’t like the idea of living without you.”
“Without me?” he asked in surprise. “Where am I going?”
“Well, you can’t live here,” she began.
“Of course I can,” Ambrose said.
“Of course he can,” Barnabas said at the same time.
“People will talk,” she said in exasperation.
“Let them,” Barnabas said. “What is that to me?”
“Exactly,” Ambrose said. “I’ve lived my life by other people’s standards for too long. And I have observed Barnabas now for years. I shall simply do as he does, which is whatever he pleases. He does not ask permission and he does not ask for forgiveness. And so he is left alone.”
“Exactly. Well said,” Barnabas agreed. “So, we shall live here. Mel, darling, you will hire a new housekeeper. No one is getting married. Have I summarized correctly?”
“I can see that I shall never win an argument with you two,” Mel said with a sigh.
“You shall win every argument,” Barnabas said. “But protocols must be observed.”
“Naturally,” Ambrose said with a nod. “Token resistance is required.”
“We are the strangest bedfellows,” Mel said with a grin.
“Not strange at all,” Barnabas disagreed. “We are all unconventional, stubborn, and strong-willed. It makes perfect sense that we would channel such passions into fucking each other silly.”
Mel and Ambrose laughed. “That’s right,” Ambrose said, crawling over and straddle Barnabas’s lap as Mel made room. “It’s my turn to fuck you, isn’t it?”
Barnabas felt his cock harden and his muscles contract at the sight of Ambrose erection. “Are you sure you know what you’re doing with this thing?” he asked, wrapping his fist around Ambrose’s cock.
“He’s a very quick study,” Mel said, kissing Barnabas’s chest, right over his heart. “He can learn.”
“Yes, give me a day or two,” Ambrose said. “I’ll see what I can do.”
The End
Acknowledgments
Special thanks to my critique partner JD Allen and my PR assistant Kimberly Rocha, both of whom read an early version of this book. Thanks also go out to my editor Mackenzie Walton, my cover artist Covers by Lily, and Judi Fennel at Formatting4U.
About the Author
Reviewers have called Samantha Kane “an absolute marvel to read” and “one of historical romance’s most erotic and sensuous authors.” Her books have been called “sinful,” “sensuous,” and “sizzling.” She is published in several romance genres including historical, contemporary and science fiction. Her erotic Regency-set historical romances have won awards, including Best Historical from RWA’s erotic romance chapter Passionate Ink, and the Historical CAPA (best book) award from The Romance Studio. She has a master’s degree in American History, and taught high school social studies for ten years before becoming a full time writer. Samantha Kane lives in North Carolina with her husband and three children.
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Also by Samantha Kane
Brothers in Arms
Love Under Siege
Love’s Strategy
At Love’s Command
Retreat From Love
Love in Exile
Love’s Fortress
Prisoner of Love
Love’s Surrender
Love Betrayed
Defeated by Love
Fight for Love
Valor
Daniel and Harry
Triumph
* * *
Mercury Rising
Cherry Pie
Cherry Bomb
* * *
Birmingham Rebels
Broken Play
Calling the Play
Jacked Up
Misconduct
* * *
The Saint’s Devils
The Devil’s Thief
Tempting a Devil
Devil in My Arms
* * *
The 93rd Highlanders
Hamish
Conall
* * *
When Love Comes Calling (anthology)
Play It Again, Sam
Islands
For Love and Country (Brothers in Arms Book 13) Page 24
