He turned to Adelaide and bowed. “Would it be acceptable for Eve and myself to take a short stroll in the grounds? I have told her much about the abbey and I am most keen to show her the gardens.”
Eve’s heart began to race. He wanted to be alone with her. She turned to her mother. “A walk would be just the thing after such a long journey, Mama. A short stroll around the gardens before coming back to freshen up.”
Adelaide nodded. “Of course,” she replied.
Freddie offered Eve his arm and they made for the front door.
“Don’t look back. They will be watching and talking about us,” he said, as they stepped outside.
Eve kept her head still. Her every move would be under close scrutiny at this point.
As they reached the end of the house, Freddie made a great show of pointing out the ornate gardens. But once they were out of sight of the main house, Freddie steered her toward a nearby stone building.
“The flowers can wait. I can’t,” he said.
As soon as they reached the building, he checked no one was in sight. Quickly opening the door, he ushered Eve inside and locked it behind them. Her heart raced as her blood heated with anticipation. She ached for his hands to be on her naked body.
He wasted little time with pleasantries. A hasty kiss and then Eve’s skirts were lifted. His thumb parted her swollen, wet folds and he began to stroke.
“No men and their dogs to disturb us this time,” he said.
With her back against the cold, stone wall, Eve relaxed and let Freddie minister to her sexual needs. Her hands began to work at the opening of her gown, but he stopped her.
“Not enough time for that. I can guarantee you my parents and your mother will be following us out into the garden within a few minutes. I think I have just enough time to make you come before we have to leave,” he said.
Eve looked at him through a haze of arousal. His thumb was creating tension throughout her body.
“Close your eyes. Lie back and feel,” he ordered.
She did as he said. With her eyes closed, she experienced the full pleasure of his thumb as it rubbed over her sensitive nib. When he pushed two fingers into her heat, his thumb tortured her clitoris, and she whimpered. On and on the torture continued as a slow heated tension built higher and higher within her. A sob escaped her lips.
He threw back the folds of her cloak and took hold of one of her nipples through her gown. As the bud hardened, he twisted it hard.
She cried out as her orgasm hit with blinding intensity. His lips closed over her mouth to soften her cry. His fingers continued to stroke, gradually slowing as she came down from her climax.
“There. That is what you needed after that long journey. I knew you had it in you to come at my command. Good girl,” he whispered.
Her clothes were quickly fixed back in place, and they had just made it out into the formal garden when the sound of approaching footsteps on the loose stones of the garden path heralded the arrival of Adelaide Saunders and Freddie’s parents.
“The house was designed by Robert Smythson. The roses were planted by my grandmother. The walls and folly were designed by Capability Brown. We employ twenty gardeners,” Freddie hastily murmured.
Eve turned and smiled as her mother and Lord and Lady Rosemount approached. With a nod toward Freddie, she spoke. “Mama, Frederick was just telling me about the gardens, and that Capability Brown designed much of them. How very interesting.”
Lady Rosemount’s eyes lit up, and a delighted smiled appeared on her lips. “Frederick is such a well-studied young man. Though I must warn you not to let him ramble too much about architecture and ancient philosophers. I am sure there are other things young ladies are far more interested in,” she said.
Eve swallowed. She could still feel the sensation of Freddie’s fingers on her body, and she was certain anyone who looked closely enough would be able to see the afterglow of climax on her face.
I can assure you that Freddie knows exactly what this young lady is interested in.
Chapter Twenty
The following morning Freddie and Thomas went out for an early morning ride. Settling into the saddle, Freddie grinned at his brother. It felt like forever since they had shared time together away from friends and family.
They rode their mounts hard into the nearby village of Thorney. Freddie dug his heels in as they reached a bend in the narrow road. It was just like rounding the corner from Oxford Street into Tyburn Lane. He showed Thomas a clean set of heels, the same as he had done with Lord Godwin.
Coming out of the bend he came upon a shepherd and his flock. Sheep scattered in all directions, and Freddie hooted with laughter as he heard the bellow of the angry shepherd. He kept on the road until the shepherd and his sheep were out of sight.
When Thomas did not appear out of the bend, Freddie slowed his horse, and waited. After a few minutes, he tired of waiting and turned back.
When Freddie finally came upon his brother, Thomas had dismounted and was helping the shepherd to gather his flock. Upon seeing Freddie, Thomas gave him a look that didn’t need explanation. They were the local nobility, and it did not behoove them to go tearing about the countryside causing mayhem.
Freddie dismounted and spent the next half an hour helping to set right his misdemeanor. He slipped a coin into the palm of the shepherd to ensure his father did not get wind of his early morning antics.
He was about to mount his horse and make ready to head back to Rosemount Abbey when he had a second thought. He dipped his head toward the nearby village tavern.
“Fancy an early ale and some cheese bread?” he asked his brother.
Thomas accepted the peace offering. “You, genius, read my mind.”
The tavern owner was just beginning to set up for the day and was happy to assist with pouring the sons of the local nobleman a fresh pint of ale. The brothers took a seat outside the tavern and watched the early morning to and fro of the villagers.
“So, are we expecting an announcement sometime this week, brother dear?” asked Thomas.
Freddie sipped at his beer. He had been waiting for the moment when Thomas would raise the question of his and Eve’s relationship. “I expect so. She seems eager to get things on a more formal footing. Mama is also keen to get me thrust into the arms of wedded bliss.”
Thomas set his tankard down and sat up straight. Sensing a serious conversation was about to take place, Freddie gave his older brother his full attention.
“And what about you? What do you want, Freddie? Don’t be sitting on the sidelines while the battle for your future is being fought. If you are not completely sure of how you feel about Eve Saunders, you need to do something about it before it is too late.”
Freddie raised an eyebrow. He hadn’t expected Thomas to say anything against him marrying a girl from such a fine family. Indeed, he had expected Thomas to press for him to hurry up and propose to Eve. “I think we will do fine together. She is a bright girl and has spirit. I don’t see why we wouldn’t be happy,” he replied.
“You don’t sound convinced.”
Freddie shook his head. Of course, he was convinced. Eve and he had had a brilliant partnership during the Bachelor Board challenges. In fact, she was one of the main reasons he was about to claim the prize. He couldn’t imagine life without her.
There was also the small matter that she and he had indulged in several sexual activities that demanded he make her his wife. Eve wasn’t technically ruined, but she was no longer an innocent by any social standards.
“Expect to hear an announcement by the end of the week. Our wedding will be a little grander than yours and Cecily’s, but that’s what comes of the bride having uncles who are bishops and dukes. Her brother was recently married at St Paul’s Cathedral, so I expect that is where we too will be wed. Anywhere else would not be right,” he replied.
Thomas said nothing and went back to drinking his beer and eating his cheese bread.
Eve was up e
arly that morning as well. She was walking the grounds of Rosemount Abbey, her mind full, imagining what it would be like to live there. The lush green of the English countryside was a soul-enriching contrast to the grey and filth of London.
Life at the abbey and its relative close proximity to London meant she could easily move between both worlds. With Freddie about to secure his position on the Bachelor Board they would need to spend a great deal of their time in London, but they would be able to spend time at the abbey.
Long summer nights spent lounging on the stone terrace with her siblings, their respective spouses, and children, beckoned.
She passed by the stables and was heading toward the ornamental lake when Cecily Rosemount hailed her.
“Good morning, Eve. Lovely day,” she said.
Eve smiled. She had immediately taken to the future Viscountess Rosemount. She was a fresh-faced young woman who clearly had the eye of her husband’s love.
“It’s beautiful out here at this hour of the day. I was watching the sun burn through the early morning mist over the lake,” replied Eve.
Cecily came to stand beside her. She was dressed in a simple olive-green gown with a large woolen shawl wrapped around her shoulders. Her manner of dress was that of someone who did not care for the fancy gowns of London.
Eve turned to her. “Have you lived around the district all your life?”
She assumed Cecily was the daughter of some local landed gentry or minor noble, and Thomas had chosen someone who would fit in well with the rural life at Rosemount Abbey.
Cecily shook her head. “Lord, no. Before I met Thomas, you would have had to hold a pistol to my head to get me into the countryside. I was very much a daughter of the ton. I grew up at the home of the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire, amongst a veritable menagerie of children from various noble families. I ran absolutely wild until I came out, after which my parents began to pressure me to marry.”
“And so, you made them proud by marrying Thomas Rosemount, a future viscount,” replied Eve.
Cecily burst into a long and hearty laugh. “Oh, you have no idea. The first time I set eyes on him, I thought he was the most handsome devil I had ever seen. My mother and father were horrified when I told them I was considering marrying him. They thought he was this dull, country mouse who would bore me into an early grave.”
Thomas Rosemount wasn’t the most sparkling man Eve had ever met, but he appeared to be genuine. Nice would be the word to describe him if she was pressed for an answer. He most certainly was not Freddie with his penchant for hijinks.
“But you married him anyway. Why?”
Cecily turned to face the green lawn that ran down to the edge of the lake. “Because of this place. Well, at first anyway. Rosemount Abbey offered me the chance of the first real home I could call my own. A place where I could be settled in life. Thomas brought me here before he offered for my hand; he wanted me to understand what being his wife would entail. The life I was living in London would be a thing of the past.”
Eve followed Cecily’s gaze. At the bottom of the long stretch of lawn a flock of ducks were waddling their way toward the lake. The mother duck was in the lead, followed by five little ducklings.
“So, do you return to London very often?” asked Eve. She understood the appeal of living part of the year in the countryside but couldn’t imagine giving up the English capital.
“I can’t remember the last time I went to London—it holds little appeal for me now. The first time I saw this place, my heart told me my children would be born and raised here. I would gladly turn my back on all that London had to offer for the chance of being with the man I loved.”
The abbey was truly a beautiful place. Eve had seen enough stately homes during her life to know it would hold its own against all of them. But to completely sacrifice life among the ton, and live in the country, was something she could never do.
Cecily turned to her and smiled. “Thomas gave me my own self. With him, I have been able to become the person I wanted to be, not the person London high society dictated. I see so many others of my acquaintance in miserable marriages and thank God every day that Thomas chose me.”
The look of happiness on Cecily’s face made Eve’s heart light. Her countenance was not full of the flush of new love, as Lucy’s had been; rather, it reflected a deep contentment. Eve wondered if she would ever feel that with Freddie. Theirs was a relationship based on something else. The heat which fueled the passion between them was more primal than simply love.
If she married Freddie, she knew it would not be a marriage based on contentment. She lusted for excitement, as did he. With the Bachelor Board games coming to an end, she would have to find other ways to keep the passion and interest alive in their union.
Walking back to the house, she pondered her situation. She had been invited here, the same as Cecily had been when Thomas had decided she was the one for him. If Freddie had also come to that same decision she had her part to play. They had been afforded few moments of privacy in the day or so since her arrival. It was up to her to find a way to be alone with him and help move things forward.
Reaching the house, she saw Freddie and Thomas coming down the long driveway of the estate. They were riding slowly, deep in conversation. When Thomas pointed her out to Freddie, she gave him a friendly wave.
Freddie bowed to her while still seated in the saddle. A flush of heat raced to her cheeks. He was perfect.
Tonight, she would ensure they were alone.
Their hunger for one another would finally be sated.
Chapter Twenty-One
Freddie brushed the dust from his boots and quickly headed into the house. He intended on catching up with Eve, to steal a moment of her time—and hopefully a kiss or two. Every time he had been close to Eve since her arrival, he had wanted to pull her hard against him, and take her mouth in a searing kiss.
Disappointment greeted him instead. Once inside, he discovered his mother and Adelaide had beaten him to Eve. They were making plans to take her into the village and show her the Norman era church.
As he made his polite greetings and farewells to them, he prayed they wouldn’t be encountering the local shepherd and his flock as they made their way. His mother would tear strips off him if she knew he had been racing about the countryside disturbing the local inhabitants.
In his bedroom, he sat at his writing desk and penned a note to Lord Godwin. He would soon be a member of the Bachelor Board but felt an obligation to share his financial good fortune with his friend. Being the fifth son of the Duke of Mewburton, little money would trickle down to Godwin during his lifetime.
As Godwin was not the sort of young man cut out for the army, nor did he show the slightest interest in taking up a position in the church, he would be among the first people Freddie would assist once he had his own fortune established.
He finished the letter to Godwin and then looked at the date he had written at the top. It was the third day since he had arrived home, time to see what Osmont had set for the final challenge.
He was going through the motions now. With no one else left in the game, the challenge could only be a formality.
He retrieved the letter from his travel trunk and stared at it.
“It had better not be a naked ride through the village,” he muttered.
He opened it. Read the instructions quickly. Frowned. Then read them a second time. Slowly. Word for word.
He sat back in the chair and stared at the page.
To the Honorable Frederick Rosemount,
The final challenge to secure your place on the Bachelor Board is to win the heart of a woman and then crush it without mercy. Only a man capable of such an act is truly deserving of the keys to the kingdom. Cowards choose love over power and wealth.
You have one week to complete this final challenge and report to me in London.
Your future awaits.
Osmond Firebrace
Freddie sank his head into his ha
nds. His world had been rocked to its foundations by this cruel blindside. “Fuck.”
The price of winning the challenge would be to break Eve’s heart.
His head felt light, and for a moment he was sure he was going to faint. His fingers fidgeted with the ties of his cravat that were suddenly too tight. He rose from the chair and began to pace the room. Scuff marks on the carpet soon appeared, showing the trace of his boots as he walked back and forth.
If the letter had been from anyone else, he would have challenged it. Offered them any other challenge for him to undertake. But he knew Osmont Firebrace was not the kind of man you negotiated with over such a prize. This was not Royal Ascot, and this was not an argument over the weight of a jockey. Horse racing and gambling were games for children; the Bachelor Board was for men who knew what they wanted in life.
Membership of the Bachelor Board would guarantee him and his heirs a life of wealth and power. Men were waiting to hand him the means to making his fortune. Doors would open that he did not know even existed. To throw away the chance of securing such a life would be madness.
He closed his eyes. Images of Eve filled his mind. Her smile. Those luscious lips were soft, yet when he kissed her they held a power over him stronger than anything he had ever known. He had told her he loved her. While she hadn’t said it in so many words, he thought she loved him.
He would be a fool, not a coward to give her up. To treat her so cruelly. Either way he chose, he would lose.
He picked up the letter and looked at it. Osmont had given him a week. He still had time.
He folded the letter back up and left it on his desk. He couldn’t stay in his room all day and ponder the choices set out before him—he would go mad. He pulled at the remainder of the knot of his cravat and released it from his neck. After throwing it on the back of the chair, he took off his jacket.
The one place he could be sure of having his mind occupied was the stables. Mucking out the stalls had been a childhood punishment, but today it was exactly what he needed. The smell of horses, hay, and manure would buy him at least a few hours of sanity.
Lord of Mischief Page 10
