“Yes, I know. What I’m also discovering is I know less about my husband than I thought.”
“It happens,” Gabriel replied. “Men get caught up in business and take their wives for granted.”
“True,” she replied. “Do you have any suggestions on how I should handle Lady Dorset?” She wasn’t upset he hadn’t told her about any of this. He might not have known just how far the dowager had gone with what information she shared with her.
They began walking again. “There is a perfectly good dower house both here and in London. Have her move into what is her house.”
“Do I even have the authority to do that?”
“As Vincent’s mother, you can do far more than you think. Obviously, Lady Dorset hasn’t bothered informing you.”
“You mean I can act on Vincent’s behalf?”
He nodded and slowed his gait. She figured he must have noticed she was having trouble keeping up with his longer strides. “Yes, to a point. That was part of the reason she came to me. He needs a male influence, one who understands the ways of the aristocracy.”
“I have no problem with that, you know that.”
“Such as the countess?”
She arched a brow. “She’s an exception. I’m still afraid she’s going to attempt to walk all over me and ignore my request that she move into the dower house.”
“Give it a try. You’re stronger than you think.”
She smiled and locked eyes with him. “Very well. I’ll sit her down and inform her of my decision. What if she claims I have no authority? As I’ve said, I’m only Vincent’s mother.”
“You’re the mother of the Earl of Dorset, and you’re acting on his behalf. If she gives you any problems after telling her that, let me know. I’ll right the matter.”
“Thank you again. I hate that we can’t get along, or that she doesn’t want to.”
“Lady Dorset has always been somewhat difficult. She’s just become worse since Timothy died.”
“I’m sure it has to do with change. Both her sons died, and the earldom went to a grandson she’d never met. It has to be difficult”
He stopped next to a rowan tree that grew at the edge of the path. “I’m sure it is, but you must also never doubt yourself.”
“I won’t. I promise to suggest she move into the dower house. I’m sure the situation will present itself in no time.”
Her intention had been to confront him about what exactly the countess had given him or had promised him. She would ask and see what his answer was, see if he would indeed tell her. She was so caught up in her own thoughts, she startled at Gabriel’s presence as he tied their horses to a tree, then drew near and kissed her.
The kiss started out slow and sensual, two people discovering each other. As the kiss continued, the more passionate they both became. Savannah learned that Gabriel was a bossy kisser. She felt as though he consumed her very being.
He pulled her closer to him, and she could feel the heat of his body as he backed her against the tree. She wound her arms around his neck, running her fingers through his golden hair as he pushed her legs apart with his.
She caught herself moaning as his hands pulled her against his hardened cock. She was losing control, her need of this man far greater than any vow she made to herself to dislike him. His hand slipped under her skirts and easily found her thigh. His touch was gentle as he explored what he hadn’t before. Finally, he found what he was after and touched the cloth that separated her from his long fingers.
“You’re wet,” he growled. “What do you want?”
“You,” she gasped, saying words she thought she’d never share with another man. “I want you to touch me, make love to me.”
His tongue touched her skin, and she felt fire.
A kiss to the base of her neck sent a shiver of desire through her.
One hand came around her body and settled on the underside of her breast, aching and full. He lifted her breast in his hand and slowly and languidly rubbed his thumb over her nipple. His other hand came to join the first and lifted the opposite breast.
“Gabriel,” she whispered, writhing against him. He pinched on nipple, and she gasped. “Please.”
He nipped at her earlobe, sending pleasure soaring through her. “Come, let’s go inside,” he said.
Inside the tower, he pulled her to him, lifting her in his arms as he took her to the bed. He laid her down, letting her pull him to join her on the cotton coverlet. She kissed him, a long and lush kiss with a slow sweep of her tongue until they were both aching with need.
His fingertips lightly traced over her arm to her hip. She shivered with anticipation.
She began to strip him out of his coat and untied his cravat. Tossing the cravat away, her hands explored the fine linen of his shirt, until she pulled it away from his trousers.
He caught her chin in his fingers, tilting her face to his for another kiss.
He paused for a moment, one finger tracing the line of her jaw. “What do you need?”
“I need you. Now.”
He began to unfasten her clothing, until piece by piece, she lay naked to him. Aching for him. He kissed her jaw, her neck, the slope of one shoulder, as her fingers slid into his hair, her back arching toward him, pressing her body closer to him.
His lips closed tightly around her nipple, and he sucked gently, working at her until she was fisting his hair and whispering his name. His hand slid over her hip, down the delicate skin of her thigh as he teased her legs apart until she was open to him. She lifted her hips to meet his touch, rocking against him. She ached with need for him.
She lifted her hips against him, pushing the hard length of him against her softness until they both groaned. “Make me yours,” she breathlessly whispered.
He growled deep in this throat, then moved down her body, kissing her as he went until he was exactly where they both wanted him to be. She panted as he settled his lips to her, holding her wide, licking her in long, thick strokes.
“Yes,” she sighed.
“I want you to touch yourself while I come,” he said. She watched as he took himself in hand and stroked himself in time to her movements, the pleasure of her moving against him. Her thighs trembled and her fingers tightened in his hair as she found her climax, shouting his name as he worked her with his tongue until all she knew was her pleasure.
As the last ripple of pleasure coursed through her, he moved to lie beside her. Savannah, however, had other plans. She pushed him onto his back and climbed atop him. “You didn’t come,” she whispered.
“It was all for you,” he said.
She ground her hips against him until he groaned. She sat back on his thighs and took him in hand. She grinned as she felt him suck in a breath when she touched him. She moved, rubbing against him until she felt his hand between them. She lifted herself, his tip settling at the opening of her hot, wet core She lowered herself onto him until she was impaled by his cock.
She kissed him, rocking into him until she found her rhythm. He thrust into her, moving deeper, faster, until she matched him thrust for thrust.
She slid a finger between them to find her pleasure again, her fingers working the heat of her need as he continued to thrust into her.
“Does that feel good?” he asked.
“Yes,” she sighed. Suddenly, her eyes flew open and she cried out his name.
“Look at me as you take your pleasure.”
She did until he followed her over the edge, shouting her name, drawing her orgasm out, refusing to stop until she was spent.
He turned onto his side, pulling her with him, her silken hair falling around her, their breaths still fast. They lay there in silence for a few moments, their bodies sated. In this one singular moment, this was perfection.
He stroked his hand down her bare skin, and she sighed. “I don’t want this to end,” she said.
“Neither do I.”
“Do we dare?
“Dare what? Be happy? Yes
, of course,” he whispered in her ear.
“How?”
“It’ll all work out my, love. You’ll see.”
* * *
He ran his hand over her skin once again, pulling her tight against him. This was what it was to be happy, to be loved. He knew what the future held. The two of them would marry, but not right away. They must have a respectable period of courtship. For Vincent to warm to the idea of his mother remarrying and a new man coming into his life permanently.
First, he needed to try to find this man who looked so much like Roland and put everyone’s minds at ease. Finding him wouldn’t be easy, but that was why his friend Parr thought they should hire a runner or two. He and Parr would discuss the matter, and he hoped the runners would have more luck than they had in finding this mysterious man.
If it was Roland, why come to England? Why risk being discovered by someone who knew him? He’d heard of men who abandoned their wives and families, leaving no trace of where they’d gone. Still, he couldn’t imagine his friend doing something like that. Even if he were in some sort of trouble, he would have made contact with someone he knew. Found someone to help him.
Which was exactly why Gabriel didn’t believe the man in question was, in fact, Roland Dawson. Roland was too much of a man to ever consider abandoning his wife and young son or his businesses. No, if this man were Roland, he would have connected with his family. He would also be the next earl.
“What are you thinking?” Savannah huskily asked him as she propped herself up on an elbow.
“Just how incredibly happy you’ve made me.”
“Liar. Your mind was whirling around in thought.”
He pulled her to him and kissed her. “True, but all good things.”
“Such as?”
“How much I’m going to enjoy spoiling you, loving you.”
She ran her delicate fingers through his chest hair. “Don’t get ahead of yourself, Gabriel. There are others we must consider, such as Vincent.”
“I know, and we will.”
“As long as you understand that,” she said, sitting up. “Now I must be getting back. I’ve been away far too long.”
“I thought you weren’t going to be ruled by the dowager countess.”
“I’m not. It’s simply that I don’t wish to be late taking tea with Vincent. It’s something I try to do every day.”
“Very well. I can hardly compete with an up-and-coming young earl.”
“Why don’t you come to dinner? I believe Lady Dorset had plans for dinner with her friend Lady Eugenia. Her husband has gone to Yorkshire in the north to check on one of his lesser estates.”
“I would love to.”
She got off the bed and began gathering her clothes, handing him his as she came across them. The idea of spending the rest of his life with this magnificent creature made his cock harden. He pulled on his trousers and grinned.
“What’s so funny?” she inquired.
“Nothing. Just that you’ve made me so incredibly happy.”
“So you’ve said,” she replied with a smirk.
* * *
Gabriel was surprised when he arrived at Sky View for dinner and found Lady Dorset still at home. It immediately made him wonder if one of the countess’s faithful servants might have been spying on them earlier in the day. He hadn’t found signs of anyone following them, but simply the idea that Savannah went out alone and without a stable boy might have been enough for the dowager countess to cancel her plans for the evening.
“Lady Dorset, you look lovely as always,” he murmured over her gloved hand.
“Your Grace.” Her reply was short and to the point. By the way she stared at him and then at Savannah, he wondered if indeed they’d been caught.
It didn’t matter one way or another if they had. He refused to hide his feelings. He’d done that for far too long. He wanted to shout his love for this woman from the rooftops. His feelings were so different from the way he’d been raised, where personal feelings were not to be displayed in public.
The dowager countess had been brought up in the same manner and had raised her own children to keep their feelings tucked away. She would probably have an apoplexy when she realized he wasn’t going to follow those who went ahead of him. He was a duke, after all, and expected to maintain a certain decorum. Society looked up to him.
He shifted his attention to Savannah, who stood next to the fire with an expression of unease as she undoubtedly knew that whatever plans she might have had for them this evening had been thwarted by the countess.
“Thank you for coming, Your Grace.”
“My pleasure,” he replied. He kissed the back of Savannah’s hand, not lingering too long as the countess was observant of their every move.
He followed the ladies’ lead and sat on a cream-colored damask chair. He decided to break the tension in the room to help ease Savannah’s discomfort.
“My sister Frannie and her family are coming for a visit.”
“She’s married to that Cambridge professor?” Lady Dorset asked. The countess knew that because she’d been invited to Frannie’s wedding at Brook Fall some seven years prior.
“Yes,” he tartly replied.
“I know you’ll be happy to see her. Do you get to see her often?” Savannah asked.
“Once or twice a year. I try to make a trip to Cambridge if I’m in London for any length of time. She makes a point of visiting in the summer as well.”
“His Grace has another sister, Henrietta, who’s married to a Frenchman and living in the south of France,” Lady Dorset said.
Gabriel nodded. “She lives in a town called Provence. Their home overlooks the Mediterranean Sea. It’s quite beautiful.”
“I’ve always wanted to see the Mediterranean. I understand it’s the most beautiful hue of blue. Maybe someday I’ll get to see France and Italy.”
“You’ve never traveled far?” the countess asked.
“No, the farthest I’d been prior to coming to England was my mother’s brother’s plantation in Georgia. It isn’t far from the coast, but the Atlantic hardly can compare with the Mediterranean for beauty.”
Lady Dorset couldn’t contain herself from pointing out how limited Americans were in their travel choices. “It must have been hard to grow up there with so few places to visit.”
“Not at all. While America may not have the older cities, we do have places like Newport.”
“My friend the Earl of Wexford says it’s one of his favorite places to go when he visits,” Gabriel added.
“It is beautiful in its own way.”
Clearly bored with the conversation and not being the center of everyone’s attention, Lady Dorset changed the subject. “Are you planning your annual summer house party this year?”
“I thought I’d wait until Frannie arrives and see if she’d like to help plan it. If she doesn’t, I’ll not have it this summer.”
The countess nodded politely. “It is a feat having a house full of guests. If your sister decides she wants to hold it, I’d be happy to assist her in any of the arrangements.”
“You’re too kind, Lady Dorset. I’m sure Frannie would appreciate any assistance you could give her.”
Not wanting the dowager duchess to reveal too much about his notorious house parties in front of Savannah, he instead inquired about young Vincent. That would be a discussion to have later with Savannah. “Has Vincent gotten to see the lake?”
“What lake?” Savannah asked. He hadn’t taken her to it yet, preferring the solitude his own estate offered.
“It’s a lake my late husband’s grandfather had built to fish from.”
“Vincent loves to fish!”
Gabriel already knew that because he and young Vincent had discussed it in great length during one of times Gabriel had called on the boy in an effort to get to know him.
“Then it’s settled. I’ll take him.”
Lady Dorset clucked her tongue in disapproval. “I’m sure Y
our Grace has more pressing matters. If the boy wishes to learn to fish, one of the servants can teach him.”
“Nonsense. I’ve been meaning to spend more time with him since you asked me to help ready the boy for his life’s work.”
He glanced at Savannah, who had a twinkle in her eye as she tried not to laugh. She held herself very much as an aristocratic lady would. The lavender gown she wore was accented with deep purple ribbon under her bust and on the sleeves. She was going to make a perfect duchess. His duchess.
“You might enjoy joining Vincent and me, Mrs. Dawson.”
He watched intently as she found a way to answer. He enjoyed keeping her off balance. At least some of the time.
Chapter Eighteen
Vincent’s enthusiasm was infectious as Savannah and her son waited for the duke to arrive. Savannah had joined Vincent for breakfast, something she missed terribly, and gave him the news the duke would be calling on them to take them for a picnic. She hadn’t mentioned the fishing part because she wanted to let Gabriel surprise him with that.
Savannah was grateful Lady Dorset rarely rose before noon. She didn’t approve of Vincent missing time away from his studies and certainly wouldn’t care for him running in and out of the drawing room as he found a window to look through as he watched for the duke. No, the dowager duchess believed children should be seen and not heard, and should only be seen once a day for no more than ten minutes. It spoiled them, she told Savannah on more than one occasion.
Though Roland adored his son, he too came from that school of thinking. He expected his son to take his studies seriously, and when he did spend time with Vincent in the evenings or at dinner, their conversations always revolved around what he’d learned that day or a topic of Roland’s choosing. For a man so desperate to break his bonds with his stuffy English upbringing, he certainly expected nothing but the best from his young son.
Vincent ran into the drawing room, the footman unable to keep up with the youngster’s constant comings and goings through the drawing room door.
“Mama, there’s a wagon coming down the drive. Do you think the duke will be far behind?”
“I have no doubt he’ll arrive any moment. He’s probably driving that wagon.”
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