They wandered arm in arm to a tasteful nude painting, her heels a dull echo against the parquet flooring. Gabby found the painting rather tedious given every home she visited had the requisite piece—either in oils or marble—depicting a male or female in a state of undress. She gestured to the painting. “I declare, once you’ve seen one nude, you’ve seen them all.”
He grinned. “How worldly you are, my dear.”
“You know my meaning,” she said, wrinkling her nose. She wasn’t nearly as worldly as Anthony and her brother, although she was adept at eavesdropping. Drew’s warning to keep her from the south end of the gallery piqued her curiosity. What could Lord Corby possibly have secreted away? Something very scandalous, no doubt.
She held her tongue as Lady Corby meandered past with Lady Eldridge and Gabby’s mother. The three ladies were preoccupied with some incident from the last Mayfair Ladies Charitable Society gathering, but she didn’t want to chance them overhearing her.
Once they had moved far enough away, she whispered, “Do you think Lord Corby’s mother knows about his secret collection?”
Anthony smirked. “And you accused your brother of spying.”
“I wasn’t spying. I just have excellent hearing.” She tried to draw him toward the south end. “Let’s take a peek.”
He dug in his heels. “Absolutely not. Your brothers would have me drawn and quartered. Besides, I’m sure it is unfit for ladies’ eyes.”
The stubborn set to his jaw told her it was pointless to argue. Therefore she must be clever instead. “Oh, I hadn’t thought of that. I assumed he had rare pieces he wanted to protect.”
His eyes narrowed as if he didn’t trust her. She smiled sweetly. “Thank you for arranging this today. I still cannot believe I’m here. Should we look for the Rembrandt?”
The stiffness in his shoulders melted and his easy smile made her melt, leaving her warm and tingly.
“I mean that sincerely, my lord.”
“Anything to please you, Lady Gabrielle.”
Anything except allow her to view their host’s private collection of scandalous art. Of course, she couldn’t hold it against him, since he meant well.
Gabby spotted the Rembrandt first and drew him toward it.
“What do you think?” Anthony asked after several moments of her staring at the painting.
She nodded, too overcome with emotion. The work was dark and weighed on her. How amazing that any form of art could alter the feelings of those who stood before it.
She blinked back tears. It was silly to cry over something like this, but the painting reminded her of her father. Anthony’s fingers gently curled around her arm where they were still linked. Somehow he understood.
He discreetly passed his handkerchief to her. “Would you like a glass of lemonade?”
She touched the pristine white square to the corners of her eyes. “That would be lovely.”
As Anthony walked away, she couldn’t help following his retreat with her eyes. He was more to her than a set of well-formed calves and strong back, but she wasn’t blind. The sight of his body clad in tight breeches created an odd sensation in her lower belly. It was both delicious and frightening.
Just as he passed the stairs on the way to the refreshments, Sebastian Thorne appeared at the landing.
Drat! Anthony had been in a good mood all afternoon, and the baron was going to ruin everything if he started up with his flirting again. Perhaps if she could avoid Thorne for a bit, he would turn his attentions on one of the other young ladies Lady Corby had invited.
Gabby hurried away from the men, hoping she wouldn’t be spotted before she could find a hiding place. When she reached the south end of the gallery, it came to her. Lord Corby’s secret room would be the perfect location to dodge Lord Thorne. Now, she just had to find it.
She almost barreled past the massive tapestry claiming a prominent space on the wall, but it moved. Just a little. Like a breeze had disturbed it, and last time she’d checked, solid walls were not breezy.
She looked over her shoulder and with everyone at the far end paying her no attention, she lifted an edge of the tapestry and slipped inside the hidden room. A small window cast dim light over the space, and she stopped a few steps from the threshold to allow her eyes to adjust. There was a relief hanging on the wall in front of her, but she couldn’t make out the figures at once. She walked toward it. When the relief came into focus, she gasped.
Thirteen
Anthony sighed as Sebastian Thorne snagged a glass of champagne from a passing footman and approached. “What are you doing here?”
Thorne raised his glass in salute. “I was invited. Generally, this isn’t my idea of an entertaining way to spend an afternoon, but when I heard Lady Gabrielle was attending…” The baron flaunted a cocky grin. “Does she like this sort of thing?”
Anthony swallowed his sarcastic reply, which involved a word or two not appropriate for mixed company. If Thorne knew anything about Gabby, he would know of her likes and dislikes. “When are you going to abandon this quest?”
Thorne shrugged. “Not until she signs her name on the church registry, I suspect. The question is which of us will she marry?” He sipped his champagne and gazed around the room. “Where is Lady Gabrielle? I would like to offer my regards.”
Anthony looked over his shoulder where Gabby was supposed to be waiting for him, but she was gone. He slowly spun on his heel, searching the massive room, but there was no sign of lavender skirts among the groups of ladies chatting together.
Bollocks. He had a good guess where she’d gone. “She’s visiting the retiring room,” he said with authority.
His sight landed on Lords Corby and Ledbery standing with their backs to a towering marble statue in the center of the room. They wore expectant grins, their eyes alight with a feverish quality.
Anthony nodded toward them. “They have taken bets on which of us will win Lady Gabrielle’s hand.”
“I’ve heard.” Thorne didn’t sound troubled in the least.
“It’s unseemly to drag a lady into their wagers.”
“It’s what they do. I have found it best to ignore the addlepates. I would wager they have a bet now on whether we will come to fisticuffs today.”
“I hate to disappoint them,” Anthony said dryly.
Thorne chuckled and sketched a bow to the men. “Perhaps another time, Ellis. I want to look nice for my lady, and your blood on my coat wouldn’t do.”
“She’s my lady, remember?” he said under his breath. “Do yourself a favor and find your own.”
He headed toward the south section of the gallery, not finding Gabby with any of the other ladies. He should have known not to leave her alone. When he caught Gabby in Corby’s secret room, she was in for a good scolding. The trouble was he didn’t know exactly where it was located.
As he passed a tapestry of a maid collecting water from a well, he heard a sound and skidded to a stop. He listened closely and after a while, thought he might have imagined the noise. He started to resume his search.
“Oh, my!” a soft voice squeaked.
With a shake of his head, he yanked the tapestry back and stormed into the hidden room.
Gabby cried out and wheeled around to face him, her hand clutched to her chest.
“Gabrielle Forest, your brothers would line up for a turn to tan your hide. What are you doing in here?”
Her face seemed paler in the dusky light, and she wagged a finger toward a sculpture of a man and woman copulating in a most unusual position. “Is—is that what men and women do?”
He bit back a laugh. “That is but one way.”
Her gaze strayed back to the sculpture. She took a deep breath and blew it out slowly. “Will we do that?”
The little minx deserved a lesson in listening to her husband-to-be. He rubbed his jaw and studied her. Her wide eyes seemed to be pleading with him to dispel the notion. “Do you know how to stand on your head?”
“No,�
�� she said on an exhale.
“Hmm…neither do I. Perhaps we should leave this one to the acrobats.”
Understanding flitted across her expression. “Oh, you beast!” She whacked him on the arm, laughing. “You’re teasing me.”
He captured her around the waist and nuzzled her neck. “Serves you right for disregarding my warnings. I told you this wouldn’t be fit for ladies’ eyes.”
She snaked her arms around his neck and tipped her face up. “It was educational, however.”
“Can we agree that any further lessons will come from me?”
“Agreed.”
He closed the distance between them, his lips lightly pressing to hers. God, he wanted more.
He pulled her to him, her lush breasts crushed against his chest, and delved his tongue into her sweet mouth. A soft sound in her throat made him hard in seconds.
Denying himself had been taking its toll. He woke every morning with a painful cockstand that left him in such a foul mood that his servants kept a wide berth. And his growly demeanor had done nothing to ease his daughter’s fear of him. Gabby was the answer to every ill he had, but she was also the problem. He didn’t know whether to further their encounter or send her away as quickly as possible.
That was untrue. He knew what he needed to do, but he was short on willpower. Footsteps outside the tapestry made his decision for him.
“You’ll want to see this,” Corby said, his voice muffled.
Damn. He directed Gabby toward a tall cabinet that might fit both of them if they crammed together. If not, at least he could hide her.
When he jerked the cabinet doors open, she recoiled. “Ew!”
Primitive phalluses tied with leather strips hung from pegs inside. “Get in,” he whispered harshly. “Your reputation is at stake.”
She allowed him to deposit her in the cabinet. He barely fit with her, but he was able to pull the doors closed behind him in time.
There was a loud sigh from the room. “This is what was so important for me to see?”
It sounded like Thorne.
“Oh!” Corby’s surprise was evident in his tone. He tried to cover it with a chortle. “You seem unimpressed. I have the largest collection of erotic art in London.”
“Yes,” a third voice piped up, likely Ledbery’s, “the largest in all of England, I’d wager.”
“Once you’ve seen one fornicating couple, you’ve seen them all,” Thorne said in a bored tone.
Gabby began to shake, her bottom jostling against Anthony’s erection. He wrapped his arm around her waist, thinking she was afraid, only to realize she was trying not to laugh.
“Don’t you dare make a sound,” he whispered in her ear, her suppressed laughter contagious. “You naughty girl.”
The shaking increased until he knew she was going to get them discovered. He would take some lumps from her brothers for ruining her, but there would be no more questioning his claim to her.
“Shh, sweetheart.” As much as he looked forward to marrying her, he didn’t want her reputation ruined for his gain.
“I have no time for this nonsense,” Thorne said. “I’m here to find a wife, not loiter in a dark room with you and Ledbery. I’ll leave you two lovebirds to it, though.”
“Lovebirds!”
“We aren’t like that,” Ledbery protested.
“I couldn’t care less,” Thorne said, his voice fading as he left the room.
Anthony wasn’t certain if the other men had followed or stayed behind, so he tightened his grip when Gabby tried to move. Her sweet scent filled his nose, blocking out the mustiness of the cabinet. “Listen.”
She held still as he strained to detect any noise outside the cabinet.
They stood that way for a long time, Gabby’s derriere snugly nestled against his crotch. Her breathing sounded uneven, or maybe that was his breath.
“Anthony,” she murmured, “I think one of those things is touching me.”
“It’s close quarters. Wiggle a bit and maybe that will help.”
She shimmied, managing to arouse him even more. This must be what hell was like.
“I can still feel it,” she hissed. “On my back.”
Heat rushed into his face. “Yes. Sorry, love. I think it’s all clear now.”
“Is that you?”
He pushed against the doors and light burst into the cabinet. They were alone, but he didn’t know how long they had before Corby tried to show off his collection to another gentleman.
Grabbing her hand, he helped her climb from their hiding spot and dragged her toward the tapestry. She jerked his wrist to get his attention.
“What is it?” he asked.
She looked up at him with smoky gray eyes. “I don’t mind that it was you.”
He really couldn’t resist. Clutching her chin, he tipped her face up for one more hard kiss. “I don’t know how much longer I can court you, Gabby. I want to marry you badly.”
She raised a slender brow. “So we can do that?” She pointed to an etching of another couple in a creative, yet reasonable, embrace.
“And several other thats,” he said, grinning.
He checked the area outside of the tapestry and, finding it vacant, snuck from the room with Gabby in tow.
***
Sebastian made several rounds of the gallery and drawing room where Lady Corby was serving refreshment before checking the terrace a second time. There was still no sign of Lady Gabrielle. And Ellis was missing too.
As he reentered the house, he spotted Lady Gabrielle on Ellis’s arm headed toward the refreshment room. Her cheeks boasted a rosy glow and her normally perfect coiffure was mussed slightly. Flames licked at Sebastian’s belly. The damned rogue had been playing a game of slap and tickle with her. She turned an adoring gaze on Ellis, and Sebastian knew he’d been beat.
He hated losing.
Worse, he hated losing to Ellis, but this wasn’t a carriage race. Nor was Gabrielle a wide-eyed wallflower shaking in her slippers when he or Ellis asked for their dance cards in a bid to see who could dance with the most neglected ladies.
That had been Sebastian’s idea. He had become depressed seeing the same ladies lined up along the ballroom walls, the hopeful sparkle in their eyes dimming with each unsuccessful ball. The poor girls had reminded him too much of his sister, Eve.
Every inch of him clenched in anger as it dawned on him what was really at stake. Lady Gabrielle had been the path to his sister’s salvation. Marriage to a duke’s daughter would have smoothed Eve’s way back into society, and Lady Gabrielle would have helped her. She was too tenderhearted to do otherwise.
His sister would have had a strong ally and Sebastian, a wife he couldn’t help but love eventually. He had been close to having everything he wanted, until Ellis came back to Town. Ellis probably hadn’t even wanted Lady Gabrielle until Corby told him that Sebastian was courting her.
Bloody thief.
He spun on his heel to leave Corby Place before he caused a scene he would later regret and jerked back in surprise. “What the hell do you want now?” he growled at Corby and Ledbery.
The two miscreants wore slimy grins that made Sebastian want to wash his hands. They were slipperier than a whore’s— Well, he didn’t trust them and he would leave it at that.
Ledbery clamped an arm around Sebastian’s shoulders. “Come have a drink, Thorne.”
Sebastian shook him off. “I only drink with my friends.”
Corby faked a sniffle. “Why, Lord Thorne. Now you’ve hurt our feelings.”
“A heart is required for feelings, and rumor has it you haven’t a whole one between the two of you.”
“Really?” Corby’s cheekbones jutted in his face when his smile widened. Everything about the viscount was too sharp, including his cunning gaze. “We heard a more interesting rumor circulating the Den of Iniquity this week.”
“I’m not interested.” Sebastian pushed Corby’s shadow aside, which was no real feat since Ledbery
weighed little more than a scrawny rooster. His long, skinny neck and scarlet waistcoat completed the image.
Sebastian stalked for the exit.
“A certain lady would be interested,” Corby called.
Sebastian stopped and cursed under his breath. If they were referring to another rumor about Eve, someone was going to pay with his blood. He turned toward them, his own smile dangerous. “Let’s have that drink, gentlemen.”
“Splendid,” Corby said.
He wouldn’t be so pleased once Sebastian called them both out for slander.
Fourteen
Gabby stood in the foyer of Lord and Lady Norwick’s second London house, Kennell Place, with close to two hundred other guests. Their excited voices swelled within the massive space and echoed off the marble columns.
Anthony edged closer to her. “This is madness. Are you certain you want to stay?”
A gentleman rammed into Anthony and knocked him flush against her. His arms steadied her when she wobbled. She leaned her body into his while she had the opportunity. Of course, she wanted to stay.
The past few days had gone smashingly well with Anthony, and the opportunity to explore the massive home and all its nooks and crannies with him was irresistible.
“Lana says the countess has the best parties,” she said.
According to Drew, some circles considered Lady Norwick’s parties to be scandalous. He’d scowled when his wife had reassured Gabby’s mother the rumors about the countess were exaggerated. He hadn’t contradicted Lana, however.
At the moment, Gabby’s brother was glowering at her and Anthony, so she eased from his embrace.
Lana looked up into her husband’s face and snorted with laughter. “Drew, you’re behaving just like Jake did when you were courting me.”
Drew’s jaw dropped. “I am not. Your brother was a raving madman.”
Lana’s brows shot up, and she laughed when her brother, Jake Hillary, who was standing close by with his wife, elbowed Drew.
“A madman, am I?” Mr. Hillary quipped. “At least Ellis is properly courting your sister, you scoundrel.”
One Rogue Too Many Page 10
