His Temporary Mistress

by Bethany Sefchick

  However, he must have been more of a gentleman than he thought, because, in reality, he had only taken a scant handful of the beautiful women who had attended his scandalous masquerades into his bed. Four to be precise.

  But never here. Always in the rooms below that had been designated for fucking, be it between guests or the women (and the occasional man) he employed to be hired out by those with enough coin for an evening of pleasure.

  Before Dory, Jeremy had never wanted to share this part of himself, his private retreat, with any woman.

  He shouldn’t be doing so now, either. It was wrong.

  Still, at the moment, there was enough of a rake in him to lead Dory back to his rooms and forget why this was a bad idea.

  Because he wanted her. And she wanted him. Physically, at least. If she met him out there, in the world beyond these walls? She might well hate him and he wouldn’t blame her. He wasn’t a very popular person. Not even with his family.

  Within Dionysus, however? Dory was his fantasy and unless he missed his guess, he was hers as well.

  Therefore, if she was here and she was willing? Then they would indulge as they pleased.

  Well, that sounded rational when he laid it all out in his head earlier, though he had a feeling if that logic was spoken aloud right now? It might not seem quite so perfect.

  Tonight, though, it didn’t matter. Logic and everything else could be damned. All that mattered was her.

  “My lady.” When they reached the door to his chambers, this time, Jeremy didn’t hesitate. Instead, he opened the door and swept into a low bow, directing her inside.

  She entered without hesitation and he followed, wondering how terrified she was and what her next step might be.

  Because despite everything, Dory was an innocent. Jeremy knew that. And his proposal to be his mistress hadn’t explicitly included sexual relations, though it didn’t discount them either. After a day of thinking about the matter, had she changed her mind? Was she satisfied with the agreement they had made last night, vague as it was? Or did she wish to play by new rules?

  The fact that she was here indicated that she wanted to be with him. But in what capacity? He couldn’t say.

  When he turned back from locking the door, however, he noticed that she had been drawn to the wall of windows once again. She wasn’t cowering or demanding. Nor was she stripping naked as another young lady hoping to gain access to the Dunn family fortune might. She was simply appreciating the view spread out before her, much as he did each time he entered this room. Again, they were perhaps more alike beneath the masks than either of them realized.

  “This scene never fails to soothe me,” he said, coming up beside her, though he was careful not to touch her. Too much too soon could be a bad thing.

  Just because she wore the same costume as the night before, including that indecently low corset, that didn’t mean she wished for him to undress her. At least not yet.

  “Soothing.” She turned to face him. “Yes, that is exactly how I would describe it.”

  For a long moment, neither of them said anything. Then Dory turned to him, drawing in a deep breath. “Jer…”

  At that, she bit her lip and fell silent again. She had almost said his name. Would it have been so bad if she had? Not from his perspective. It had taken him becoming the raven to meet her but here in his chambers? He wanted to be just Jeremy to her. He was tired of playing the raven, at least for now.

  What if he removed the mask and she hated him on sight? Well, that couldn’t be helped and really, if she was ever to become his true mistress, the masks had to go. Why not now? Why not start tonight with no secrets between them? They only had three weeks together and really, everyone already knew the truth about him. What could it hurt?

  Nothing. But secrets could harm. That was a lesson he knew well.

  Slowly, he reached up and undid the ties on his mask before pulling it away from his face. “My name is Jeremy, but I think you know that, don’t you, Lady Peacock?”

  She nodded, her eyes bright. “Everyone knows. It is an open secret. I knew before I first entered the masquerade several weeks ago.”

  Jeremy nodded, trying to remember to keep breathing. “Then you likely also know that my full name is Lord Jeremy Taggart Dunn, aged thirty. I am the middle son of the Duke of Wyncliffe and thought by many to be either a monster or a lecher or the devil incarnate, depending on the night and the person you ask. If you ask my mother, I am a combination of all three and a miser to boot.”

  “You are also extremely handsome,” Dory added with a slight, shy smile. “But I think you know that too.”

  With a shrug, Jeremy placed his mask aside. “Perhaps, though I would counter that beauty is always in the eye of the beholder. So now that you know, Peacock, do you still wish to be here? With me? Now that the fantasy just became a bit more real?”

  For a moment he thought she might leave. She bit her lip and licked her lips, as if trying to make a decision. Finally, when he could have sworn she was about to tell him that she was sorry, but that she could not become involved with a man like him, she instead reached up and slowly removed her mask as well.

  In an instant, the bejeweled peacock fell away and revealed one of the loveliest faces Jeremy had ever seen. With her mask, Dory was beautiful. Without it? She was exquisite.

  “And I am Lady Dorothea Maria Tillsbury. My friends call me Dory. I am the second daughter of the previous Viscount Chilton, a man who was, in fact, the devil incarnate. Which means that I can say with certainty that you are not.” She grinned at him and he could see a streak of wickedly dark humor lurking within her twinkling eyes.

  Then she shrugged and cast her eyes to the floor, her confidence obviously failing her for a moment. “According to just about anyone you ask, including my family, I have reached four and twenty years of age without being remarkable in the least. I have been called a headstrong hellion that no sane man would want. I am also, to put it bluntly, little better than furniture in the lives of the people I care about. I am also a bit on the plain side and, unlike my sisters, do not have the sort of curves that men seem to find attractive. So, if you are disappointed that I am me and not some other, more delightful debutante that is more worthy of you, please tell me now before we take this too far.” She swallowed hard. “I did not come here tonight to be unmasked, but now that we are? Perhaps it is better this way, before we become too entangled and you are disappointed later. I can see myself out if you like. It might be easier that way.”

  Something inside of Jeremy broke at Dory’s long and rambling confession. Was that how she saw herself? Was that why she had come to Dionysus in the first place, to seek out something she had not found elsewhere? Even now, after all they had shared, did she think herself not good enough for him? So very many questions and so very little time. And he would answer them all – with her help – eventually.

  But first, he had to dispel the notion that he did not want her here. He did. Very much. Actually, if he had his way, she would never leave.

  Reaching down, Jeremy placed his finger beneath her chin so that she would put her head back up and look at him. “Dory? Sweet?” he asked once her gaze met his. “Did you honestly believe that I didn’t know who you were that first night that I approached you?”

  “I…actually, I’m not certain.” She licked her lips again. “I had thought that perhaps you knew and yet you didn’t say anything. Nor did you force me to leave. I decided that if you had known my identity, my real identity, you would have told me to leave and not return.”

  “I knew.” He reached for her, drawing her close and to his relief, she came to him willingly. “Nothing happens inside of this club that I do not know about. Including the names of those who pass through its doors.”

  She bit her lip. “But how?”

  He shrugged. “That is unimportant and a story for another time. Now? What is important is that you understand that I have always known who you are.”

  “A
nd you approached me anyway.” She seemed surprised at his confession.

  “I did.” He pulled her closer, so close that he could feel the heat from her body.

  “Because?” She was still suspicious of him. That would never do.

  Her wrapped one of her arms around his waist. “Because I wanted you.” It was the truth. He could see she didn’t fully believe him, but he was telling her the truth. “Because you intrigued me.”

  “I am not the intriguing type.”

  Dory was breathing heavily now, her enticing breasts rising and falling as her arousal grew. This was how he wanted her. This was why he wanted her. She was headstrong and unafraid to let her passions show. She might not realize how arousing that was to a man like him, but it was. She was. She was more than arousing. She inflamed him.

  “Then you do not see yourself as you truly are. The way that I see you.” Jeremy pulled her closer now. So close that he could feel her body against his. He could sense her desire.

  “No one does.” Her voice was soft and breathy and he knew that he could ask anything of her just then and she would do as he requested. But he wouldn’t take advantage of her that way.

  Because this was her fantasy just as much as it was his and in this world? There was only pleasure. If it didn’t feel good? It didn’t happen.

  “I do.” He stroked her hair back from her face where a few tendrils had escaped the elaborate up-do that had allowed her to keep her mask in place. “I have from the first. I knew you, Dory Tillsbury, from the moment you walked through my door.”

  “And you still wanted me?” This time, there was wonder in her voice.

  “And I still wanted you,” he confirmed quietly.

  Then, before Dory could ask him anything else, Jeremy drew her to him and he kissed her – this time without the mask. And without any secrets between them.

  Chapter Seven

  Sparks exploded behind Dory’s eyes as Jeremy’s lips crashed down on hers for a hard, unrelenting kiss. Last night’s kiss had been slow and sensual. Full of promise and teasing hints about what was to come. This kiss was different. This kiss was full of passion and desire, unrelenting want, and burning need. It hinted at all of the things he wanted to do to her and with her, and it awakened an answering desire within her.

  This was only her second kiss, but Dory had always believed herself to be a quick learner – especially after all of those years of perusing her brother’s naughty book collection – so when Jeremy traced the seam of her lips with the tip of his tongue, she opened beneath him, inviting his tongue into her mouth.

  When his tongue sought out hers, she responded in kind, wrapping her arms around his neck so that she could steady herself. Her knees had suddenly gone weak, and her heart was racing so fast that she was afraid she might swoon.

  And still, she would not have traded these feelings for anything.

  Dory was living her fantasy. A man, not just any man but the handsome, charming, swoon-inducing Jeremy Dunn was kissing her. And kissing her as if he never wished to stop. As if he found her desirable.

  When they finally broke apart after what seemed like an eternity in his arms, Dory looked up at Jeremy, expecting to see…well, she wasn’t quite certain what. Though she did not expect to see the look of dazed confusion on his face.

  “That was…delightful.” He swallowed hard and Dory smiled just a little.

  She had done that to him. She – Dory Tillsbury. The most unremarkable woman in the ton had made the owner of Dionysus become dizzy for a moment. Well, she thought he was dizzy. She certainly was.

  “It was that,” she agreed before once more, her insecurities came rushing back. “So.” She licked her lips and noticed that his eyes followed her actions with a renewed hunger. “Now what?”

  A teasing grin on his face, Jeremy led her over to a divan tucked in the far corner that she had not noticed before. “What would you like to do, sweet? Or should I call you Dory? It feels so very good to finally say your name, you know.”

  “I like saying yours too. Jeremy.” For a brief moment, Dory felt as green and giddy as a schoolroom miss. Probably because in some ways, she still was that innocent, despite her brash behavior. “And I don’t know what comes next.” She fiddled with the lace on her corset. “I, ah, am not ignorant, but…”

  “But you are inexperienced,” he finished for her with a wicked smile. “I would not expect otherwise.” Once more, he tilted her chin up with his finger. “But it doesn’t matter, Dory. Not to me.”

  “It should.” Dory tried to look away but he wouldn’t allow it. “I don’t really think I am mistress material. At least not your mistress. It is not as if I have experience in such things.” She paused and bit her lip. “I am afraid you will be disappointed in me.”

  When she had been Lady Peacock? Dory had at least retained some air of mystery and had been able to convince herself that Jeremy would never know her true identity. That had been her first mistake. The second mistake had been allowing him to remove his mask. After that? There was no place for either of them – but especially her – to hide.

  To Dory’s surprise, Jeremy shifted her so that she was now stretched out across the divan, her back against the armrest. He loomed over her, reminding her so very much of the jungle cats she had seen at the zoological gardens the other week. This man could be dangerous when he chose to be. She would do well to remember that.

  “Don’t you think that’s for me to decide, sweet?” He looked at her, those all-seeing emerald eyes of his gazing into hers. “Unless you’ve changed your mind and don’t want this? Don’t want me?”

  There was a hint of something in his voice that gave her pause. It almost sounded like uncertainty. But how? And why? He was Lord Jeremy Dunn! Every woman in London him. How could he even imagine for a moment that she did not want him as well?

  Dory shook her head, desperate to make him understand. “No. I want this. I want this more than anything. I want you.” Not that she could tell him the reasons why, of course. Instead, she reached up to cup his cheek. “I am simply afraid you’ll be disappointed. With me.”

  “Or you could trust me that I know what I want,” Jeremy countered as he slid his body down the length of hers so that his hips were now nestled between her legs and pressing into her feminine mound. “Trust me, Dory. I want you. For so very many reasons and in time? Perhaps you will learn half of them. But for now? Let us just see where this night goes. Trust that I am where I want to be, and I hope that you are as well.”

  “I am.” Oh, Lord, was she ever where she wished to be! “Jeremey, I want this. I shouldn’t, but I do. I don’t even know you!”

  His smile was wolfish now and she shivered when he nipped at her earlobe. “Then that makes two of us, my lovely peacock. I should stay away from you. You are a gamble I should not take.” He paused for a moment to study her. “But I can’t stay away. I want you too much. Even if this is all I can have of you. But if you want to leave now? If this has suddenly become too much? I won’t stop you. Just know that if you stay? You are mine and mine alone until circumstances force us apart. There will not be another for you, sweet. Just me.”

  A thrill shot through Dory at Jeremy’s words. His. Just his. No other man could have her. Oh, how she would adore that!

  To belong to this man and only him. Such a thing could not be forever but it could be for now. Though she knew nothing about this kind of seduction, she had a feeling that would not be enough time to learn all there was to know about this man. She was not certain eternity would be, really. But these few stolen weeks were all she could have, so she would take them.

  Over the last decade, Dory had done her best to curb her rebellious nature, but every so often, those old inclinations rose up and could not be easily pushed aside. This was one of those times.

  Threading her fingers around his neck, Dory pulled Jeremy’s lips down to hers, her heart beating faster once again. Even just touching him like this was enough to heat her blood. Was it li
ke this with every man? Somehow, she doubted it.

  “I don’t want to leave here. I want you. More than you know, and I’m afraid that if I don’t take this leap with you? I’ll never know what it feels like to share desire. I want to be more than just an accessory in someone’s life. I want this too, Jeremy. I’m just afraid.” She paused. “And more than a little confused about what to do next.”

  His smile lit up his entire face now. “Then allow me to teach you, my sweet, sweet peacock. We’ll go as slow as you like or as fast as you like. You may set the pace. All I ask is that if you ever don’t enjoy what we do together that you let me know. Because what we are about to share? Should only ever be about pleasure. Never about pain.”

  “I can do that.” She hoped.

  “Good.” He stroked her cheek gently with the pad of his thumb. “I would never hurt you, Dory. You are far too precious to me.”

  At Jeremy’s words, Dory was filled with a new confidence. Somewhere deep inside, she supposed that she had been afraid that he would send her away once he learned who she really was. He hadn’t. Instead, when she had given him a chance to end their agreement, he had refused. He wanted to stay and live out this fantasy. As did she.

  “I…that is…very well…” Suddenly, Dory found that her tongue was becoming tangled, especially when Jeremy was looking at her as if he wished to devour her.

  His eyes twinkled. “Then let’s begin, shall we?”

  She watched in breathless anticipation as he lifted himself away from her so that he could move the large jars filled with candles closer to the divan where they had been laying together.

  “I wish to see you, sweet, especially when I taste you for the first time.” Slowly, he began to strip off his jacket, followed by his waistcoat and then his shirt. Dory felt her breath catch in her throat and her pulse roared in her ears. “In time, I would take you in the full light of day if you’d allow it. Your beauty deserves to be appreciated and savored like the finest of delicacies. But for now? The shadows will suffice, so long as I have light enough to see by.”