The Wicked Wallflowers

by Tammy Andresen

  A reprieve? She nibbled at her lip, her hands covering her stomach. Penny wasn’t certain if she should she be relieved or anxious that he was willing to put off a physical relationship. Chloe had once told her that Dryden could hardly keep his hands off her. When she considered Wes’s hands on her, every part of her heated.

  Did he not feel the same? Was this a bad sign? Then she sat up straighter. Their marriage was a business arrangement. She had to stop allowing these emotions to creep in. “My mother died in that house. Just a few days later, my father and I left. I’m not sure how I feel about returning.”

  He held her shoulder, his warm firm grip comforting. Exciting too. “I understand.” His cheek brushed her forehead. “We all have past demons that haunt us still, don’t we?”

  “I suppose we do.” She settled her head into the crook of his neck. “It’s not just that I miss my mother, it’s that going back there, I have to face all of her mistakes.”

  “Isn’t she the one who left you the house?” He threaded his fingers through hers. Penny had to confess, it was much easier to discuss with him holding her hand.

  “She did. But she allowed my father to charm her out of every other possession we owned.”

  His throat rumbled in dissatisfaction, the noise vibrating through her. “The cad.”

  She nodded against the heat of his skin. “The truth is, I’ve reconciled my anger with my father. He took his own life and—”

  “He did what?” There was a warning note that echoed through the carriage.

  She looked up at her new husband. “He faced debtor’s prison.”

  “He intentionally left you alone,” Wes slid his hand down her back, but his words were still sharp.

  Penny reached up to touch his cheek. “He was going to abandon me either way.” She sat up straighter. “I’m not defending him. Just explaining that I had to face my anger shortly after his death.”

  His eyes softened and his lips brushed her forehead. It wasn’t the conversation for desire, but his touch was making her skin heat. “But your mother?”

  “As a child, she was always with me. I blamed everything on my father. It wasn’t until later that I realized her part and then she was gone.” His fingers were skimming up and down her spine in a comforting yet decidedly delicious touch. She shouldn’t like the feel of his fingers so much. Who knew what sort of husband he’d be? She had to keep her heart out of this.

  Chapter Eight

  Wes’s heart threatened to leap out of his chest. No wonder she was so strong. In Penny’s own way, she’d been to hell and back. Not that admiration was the cause of his rapid pulse. Touching her lit a fire in his veins. And he’d promised not to bed her tonight. How would he accomplish that?

  They’d have to share a room as he didn’t have the funds for two. Which meant they’d be sharing a bed. He swallowed the lump clogging his throat. “What was her part?”

  She curled her fingers in his shirt. “She fell in love with a rake.” Her breath whispered across his cheek. “And she continued to fall victim to that love even when it undid us both.”

  His gut clenched as he looked down into her hazel eyes. They wavered, drawing together, her lips parted as though she wanted to ask him a question. What did she want to know? “No wonder you accepted my proposal. No emotion for us.” He was aware of how ridiculous that sounded. She was pressed to him, her body warming his. He’d never been more aware of a woman’s touch.

  She cleared her throat. “Good. No emotion.” She pulled her hand away and scooted to the other side of the bench. “Excellent.”

  His brow furrowed. Was it? He clenched his hand, resisting the urge to pull her against him again. “A business arrangement to further both our financial positions.”

  She nodded, turning to the window again. “Perfect.”

  Wes slid back over to his own bench, staring at her as she looked out the window, seemingly intent not to look at him. His arms crossed. It was going to be a long ride to Kent.

  They rumbled down the road for most of the afternoon until the sky grew thick with clouds. As they reached a small village, the driver stopped the carriage and jumped down. “Begging pardon, my lord, but we’re only halfway and a storm is coming. Do you want to continue on or stop for the night?”

  He glanced over to Penny, who’d been silent since their earlier discussion. She placed a hand in the small of her back, attempting to stretch.

  Wes turned to the driver. “We’ll stop for the night.”

  “Very good, my lord.” The driver gave a quick bow. “There’s a decent inn here as well. Simple but clean, and the food is good.”

  “Thank you.” Wes gave his chin a jerk in response.

  The driver hopped back up on his seat and snapped the reins. They arrived at the inn just as the rain started to fall.

  After a simple but lovely dinner of lamb stew and freshly baked bread, they returned to the room and readied for bed. “We’ll get an early start in the morning,” Wes said more to fill the silence than anything else.

  “Of course,” Penny answered.

  He cleared his throat. “I’ll allow you some privacy?” He ran his hand through his hair. “Unless you need help with undressing. Not that I am offering anything more than a lady’s maid’s services. I remember what I promised. But we didn’t travel with servants and I—”

  “Wes,” she interrupted, stepping closer. “I’ll be fine attending myself. I’ve done so for ages.”

  Her fresh Christmas scent wrapped about him as she looked up into his face. Why had he made that promise? And why was he so bloody nervous? “Excellent.”

  “I shan’t be long.” She gave him smile. Not knowing what else to do, he headed for the door.

  The problem was that he didn’t know where to go once he reached the hall. The common room was not a wise idea. Thanks to Dryden’s loan, coin jingled in his pocket and all the men down there were well into their cups.

  He’d seen them already. The rain now beat at the roof, so he couldn’t very well go for a walk. Not knowing what else to do, he leaned against the wall, sure he looked like a fool or a thief. He reached down to pull at one of his cuffs and realized that he wasn’t wearing his worn clothing but far nicer attire. Perhaps he’d be all right after all.

  Pulling out a pipe from his jacket, he lit the bowl, preparing to wait.

  But the door swung back open after only a quarter hour. Penny peeked her head out, her eyebrows raised. “There you are.”

  His loins tightened as he assessed her. A loose braid hung over one shoulder and her dressing gown was tied tight at the waist. She looked lovely, soft and so inviting as she smiled at him. “Here I am,” he answered.

  “I’m afraid I can’t step into the hall to give you privacy.” But she did step back as a clear invitation for him to enter.

  “I don’t need privacy,” he rumbled as he came in and closed the door behind him, turning the lock.

  She nodded and crossed to the bed, sitting on the edge. “Have you been with many women?”

  He’d been drawing in a puff of smoke, her words catching him off guard so that he nearly choked. Coughing on the smoke, he squeezed his eyes shut, water leaking from them. “A few,” he finally answered, gasping for breath.

  She turned her head, assessing him from an angle. “A few?”

  “Enough that I know what I am doing.” He wheezed as he thumped his chest. How had she managed to put him at such a disadvantage? The truth was, he’d had a rather lot of experience, his looks and station had meant a great many women had fallen into his bed.

  “Chloe said that you were a rake? Is that because of your drinking and carousing or your relations with women?” Penny crossed her arms over her chest.

  He set down the pipe and crossed the room. “You’re asking me these questions now?”

  She shrugged a grin playing about her lips. “You’re my husband now.”

  That answer in its simple truth caught him by surprise. He slipped next to her
. “I am.” His hand came about her waist. “I was a rake because I did not set myself to any meaningful pursuits, just pleasurable ones, which included women.”

  “Then why are you nervous now?” she asked, her teeth capturing her bottom lip.

  He’d like to nibble that flesh. “Do I seem nervous? I suppose I am.” He gently pulled her closer. “Partially because, despite our marriage being an arrangement, it’s a promise that we’ve made for the rest or our lives.” But mostly because you’re stunningly beautiful.

  “Oh,” she breathed. “I see.”

  He took her hand. “I want to make you happy, Penny. This isn’t just about me anymore.”

  * * *

  Penny’s heart hammered in her chest. Wes had offered to delay their wedding night, had grown nervous because he wished for her to be happy.

  This affirmed her earlier hopes that he was a different man from her father. Squeezing his fingers, she leaned closer. “Thank you.”

  He bent his head so that his cheek rested on her forehead. Emotion welled inside her. For a man who was supposed to be a rake in a match that was intended for financial gain, he was achingly tender. Her heart swelled in her chest even as her face titled toward his.

  He brought his other hand up to brush her cheek. “We should go to bed. It will be an early start tomorrow.”

  Their eyes met as she parted her lips, although she wasn’t quite sure what to say. I don’t want to go to bed? I don’t want to wait? Instead, she stretched up, lightly pressing her lips to his. The touch was a small one. Just a gentle brush, but it was as though a single lit straw had been tossed into a pile of dry hay. That one tiny touch set her body to blaze.

  He slid his fingers from her cheek, into her hair, pulling her closer and kissing her over and over until they were both breathless. Finally, he raised his head. “But I promised.”

  In response, she brushed her hands up his chest and looped them about his neck. “I appreciate that you did, more than I can say.” She licked her lips, searching for the words. He followed the path of her tongue with his eyes. “But I’m ready to be your wife. Now. Not tomorrow.”

  “Penny,” he said, his voice ruff and craggy. Then he dipped his head again and captured her mouth with his. This time, however, he slanted her lips open and slid his tongue along her top lip, exactly as she had done moments before.

  Pleasure rippled down her body, settling between her legs. As he kissed her again, his tongue touched hers and she moaned into his mouth.

  It was an inconvenient time to think of the book but suddenly, she realized why women allowed rakes to ruin them. He made it so easy to give him what he wanted. This was bliss.

  But all thoughts of the chronicle left her mind as he unlaced his fingers from hers and reached for the tie of her dressing gown. Anticipation and a little trepidation made her chest tighten as he tugged the tie loose with a single pull.

  As the thick fabric fell open, he brought his hand back up and slid it along her shoulder, which was clad only in the soft cotton of her night rail.

  “Penny,” he whispered against her lips before he pulled away and stood.

  A protest rose to her lips until he shrugged off his jacket and then reached for the laces of his shirt.

  “Sit,” she commanded as she stood.

  One of his eyebrows rose but he did as she commanded. She dropped to her knees in front of him and reached for the buckle of his Hessians. He stared down at her, his blue eyes dark and stormy as she worked his boots off of his feet. The moment she’d completed the task, he grabbed her waist and pulled her up and on top of him as they fell back onto the bed.

  The press of her thinly clothed torso to his made her gasp in a breath as his muscles rippled along her skin. Wrapping her arms about his neck, he brought his lips to hers again. “I haven’t done a thing to deserve this. To deserve you,” he groaned as he held her tighter against his chest.

  Penny didn’t know quite how to respond. So she let the words fall between them and answered with another breathy kiss.

  One melted into another, only broken when he rose to remove his shirt and untie her night rail as he rolled them over so that he was on top of her. The press of his weight was both erotic and comforting and she held him tighter as they kissed again. When he started to softly explore her curves, the pressure building inside her, threatened to rupture. She twisted against him as he ran his hand over her breasts, her stomach, and then finally, he brushed his fingers between her legs, her night rail still between them.

  She let out a groan of pleasure, her head twisting as his other hand skimmed the hem of her garment up her legs to her thighs.

  Then he began kissing a trail down her body, even while his fingers started a rhythmic movement along her seam.

  She was barely aware of his movements when he slid the last of her clothing up over her head, but the world came into sharp focus when he sucked her nipple into his mouth. I might die from the pleasure, she thought, as she threaded her fingers into his thick dark hair.

  But he kept kissing lower. Over her belly and along the tickly juncture of her legs to her torso. One of his fingers pressed inside her, and she arched with pleasure before he licked her most intimate area, causing a riot of lights behind her eyelids.

  She couldn’t utter a word as he set a rhythm, kissing, sucking, and filling her until she cried out, the pleasure reaching a breaking point in her body and she spasmed as she cried his name, “Wes.”

  She’d hardly processed what had happened, when he moved up her again, removing his pants as he went. For a moment, she just stared as his muscles flexed, their defined edges taking her breath away. “You’re so strong,” she said as she reached her heavy hand up to run along the deep ridges in his arm.

  He gave her a wicked smile. “I’m about to be stronger. Farming makes a man tough.”

  That thought filled her with a satisfaction she hadn’t known possible. A hard, strong man at her side. She touched the rippling muscles along his stomach. “We’re going to have to feed you plenty.”

  He leaned down to capture her lips. “I have every confidence you will.”

  Penny didn’t respond because the tip of his manhood pressed against her opening. She hadn’t even seen it, which was a bit disappointing. After Chloe’s description she’d been quite curious.

  As he pushed into her slick channel, she drew in a sharp breath. A stretching sensation made her tense, but he kissed her cheek and then whispered. “Take a deep breath my sweet Penny. Relax, don’t be tense.”

  She did as he bid and to her surprise, the pain subsided, lessened, and he began moving inside her again.

  Drawing in a deep breath, she looked up into his face. His jaw was clenched as though he was putting in a great deal of effort. “What’s wrong?” she asked.

  “I don’t want to hurt you,” he said through gritted teeth.

  Penny placed her hands on his cheeks. “I’m ready for you.”

  Chapter Nine

  Wes’s vision blurred. Was it because of the effort to hold himself back or the pleasure of those words?

  He’d sensed it before, but Penny was a generous woman. Even being her first time, she managed to give as well as take. To understand what he needed. She near took his breath away.

  With a jerk of his hips, he broke through her maidenhead and then held still as she cried out, allowing her body to adjust. “I’m sorry, my love,” he murmured, kissing the delicate skin of her neck.

  “Don’t be,” she replied pressing a kiss to his cheek. “I wanted you inside me.”

  She did it again. Giving to him the words he’d needed to hear. Slowly, he slid back out of her and then in. His finish wouldn’t take long, it was barreling toward him already. It had been ages since he’d been with a woman, not that any other experience compared with this. This wasn’t just physical. He didn’t know how to describe his feelings, other than a bond was forming between them. Was it simply because they had married? Made a commitment?

&nbs
p; He couldn’t think any more as her hips tilted to meet his. He groaned, his eyes rolling back as her body began to respond to his.

  She clutched about his neck as they moved together, faster until Penny cried out again. He exploded inside her, his body convulsing in pleasure as he collapsed on top of her.

  He lay there for some moments, attempting to catch his breath. She still had her arms about his neck, but they grew heavy and then slipped to either side of him. Lifting his head, he looked down into her face and realized that she’d fallen asleep.

  A slow grin pulled at his lips as he slid to the side and settled her against his front. She hardly stirred as he pulled her tighter to his chest. He’d married today. The decision was one he felt wonderful about.

  That feeling lasted through breakfast and the carriage ride to Kent. As the sun began to set, however, the carriage slowed and finally rolled to a stop in front of a large, two-story stone house.

  It might have been beautiful except for the peeling paint on the windows and the overgrown ivy all along the façade. The front was choked with weeds and the door hung slightly ajar on its hinges.

  “Oh dear,” Penny said as she peered out the window. “It’s worse than I thought.”

  His jaw tightened. Whatever trepidation he felt, must be so much worse for her. This was her family home, filled with questionable memories. But she let out a giggle and then a wild whoop of laughter. For a moment, he wondered if she’d gone mad. That laugh had sounded a bit hysterical.

  But as she turned to him, her smile widened. “I’ve got a house.” Then she shook her head, reaching for his hand. “We’ve got a home.” She looked back out the window. “I know it’s awful. But it’s ours. I’ve been living with others for so long.”

  That was an excellent point. He assessed the front again. The house could be stunning. “It needs work.”

  Two people, a man and a woman, stepped out onto the front porch dressed in uniform. “I hope that porch is stable.” Penny’s smile gave way to a frown.