Of course, he had aged. It was only in her mind that he remained a young man. A young man who had begged her not to marry Peter Jones, to stay in her family and keep in their father’s good graces.
“Frederick. You look well,” she said.
He stepped forward, using the walking stick for support. What had happened to her brother?
He glanced down at the stick. “It is not as bad as it looks. I tumbled off my horse a week ago. It will teach me to check that my feet are actually in the stirrups before I go digging my heels in.”
“I am surprised to see you here. You were never one for the theatre,” she said.
He shook his head. “No. But when I heard that your new husband was performing on the stage tonight, I thought I should come. Papa is at home in the country, so I knew I could risk it without him knowing.”
All this time and nothing had changed. The Earl of Bray still ruled the family with an iron fist. Frederick had apparently still not grown a spine.
“Well, then you had better not linger any longer, just in case someone else sees and tells him.” Her words were reflected back at her in the line which appeared on her brother’s brow.
“I know you think me a coward, and you are right. I live my life exactly as he dictates. But I have no choice; he holds the purse strings.”
He who pays the piper calls the tune. How many times had Lavinia heard that as she was growing up?
“I came to wish you congratulations on your marriage. I saw the notice in The Times and realized that you and Viscount Follett had wed. I dare say Papa will discover it soon enough, though I doubt he will take kindly to you leaving his name off the marriage notice. He did always want you to marry a lord.”
Her father had wanted many things for his daughter. But nothing he ever wanted was simply a wish. He was determined to dictate his children’s lives, and exactly how they lived them. Frederick had chosen to buckle under and accept this regime. Lavinia had chosen her own path in life and paid the price of being an outcast.
“And you have never married? I must say, I was surprised to discover that,” she replied.
“I have managed to hold out on that part of my life. To be honest, I wouldn’t wish being married to me on any poor girl. You can just imagine how our father would make my wife’s life a complete misery. By refusing to marry, I still have one piece of leverage against him.”
Lavinia took hold of Frederick’s hand. “I wish you luck. Now you must excuse me. I have to find my husband.” She left her brother standing in the foyer.
If there was ever a time for a rapprochement, now was not it. Her life with Reid and Jonathan was her priority. They were her family. Reid would not turn his back on her if he didn’t agree with her life choices. Her husband deserved her loyalty and love; the Earl of Bray had long ago given up that right.
She doubted she could ever find true forgiveness when her father had knowingly left her and Jonathan in reduced circumstances after Peter’s death. As for Frederick, her brother had never once tried to find her or offer assistance.
Her sympathy for him started and ended with knowing he was living the life that a coward deserved.
Chapter Forty-Seven
Reid had thought that the audience with the Prince Regent would be a short one, but it was soon apparent that the prince had other ideas and plans. The concert had struck a chord with him. Reid and the rest of the Noble Lords were ushered into a formal room opposite the royal box.
“Your sister, Lady Eliza, tells me you plan to disband the Noble Lords at the end of the summer. But I have one royal favor to ask in the meantime. I saw how well the crowd reacted to your performance tonight. They loved you,” said the prince.
Reid nodded. The Prince Regent did not need to make mention of the rapturous applause which had greeted his own arrival. Reid knew the prince well enough to know that his sharp mind would already be working to figure out how he could capitalize on his popularity with the London crowd.
“I wish you to perform at a series of royal variety concerts. The sort of money you have raised tonight for war widows and orphans is exactly what we need to help with injured war veterans. The shows will be at my royal command, but I want you and the rest of the Noble Lords to put the whole thing together,” said the prince.
It would take a lot of work to organize the concerts, but since the request had come from the man who would one day be king, they were not in a position to refuse. Reid looked to his fellow Noble Lords, all of whom nodded their agreement. “Your Royal Highness, it would be our honor to serve both you and our country in such a way.”
The prince clapped his hands together. “Excellent. I am thinking of six concerts—four here in London, one in Manchester, and one in Liverpool. Pick the very best talent that can sing, dance, and entertain the masses so that the people know their prince loves them. I shall have a word with some of the other fat-pursed members of the nobility and get them to underwrite the whole thing.” Prinny was not known for spending his own coin when he could press others into doing it for him.
“Oh, and feel free to include some acts from other countries. It would look good now that Europe is at peace,” he added.
The prince had a short conversation with the other members of the Noble Lords before taking his leave.
“Well, that was an interesting twist on the evening. I never thought to have the Noble Lords go on tour,” said Owen.
Lavinia appeared and made her way over to Reid. The happy smile she had worn at the end of the concert had disappeared; in its place was a look which had Reid immediately coming to her side and wrapping his arm around her. He leaned in close. “Sweetheart, you look rattled. What on earth has happened?”
“I saw my brother just now. I had hoped that perhaps he had changed, but he was the same little boy he ever was. He only came here tonight because my father is in the country. The tyrant still rules over my family. But enough of that. What did the Prince of Wales have to say?”
Reid drew her aside, grateful when the others moved away to give them some privacy. He met her gaze. “Lavinia, you are my wife. My priorities lay with you, not the prince. Tell me what transpired between you and your brother to get you so upset.”
“Nothing happened. It’s just that . . . well, it breaks my heart to think that even if I hadn’t met you, Jonathan and I would still be better off without my family,” she replied.
“Oh, Lavinia, I am so sorry.”
“There is nothing to be done about it. Now, tell me some good news. What did the prince say?”
Reid took his cue from Lavinia and let the matter of the Earl of Bray rest. There would come a time in the future when they would have to address that thorny issue. Today was not that day.
“He wants us to put together a series of royal variety performances in London, Manchester, and Liverpool. The Noble Lords are to play at each show. I think he was rather taken with the way the crowd received him tonight,” said Reid.
Tomorrow morning, the Noble Lords would have to gather and start to plan the concerts. It was both an exciting and terrifying prospect. Reid’s head was already filling with a thousand ideas and details. He would need all his friends to assist in the planning and logistics.
Lavinia turned to the others. “Well, my lords, it looks like I won’t be rid of any of you from my house for the foreseeable future. I promise to break the news gently to Eliza.”
Reid brushed a second kiss on Lavinia’s cheek. He was grateful to have a wife who understood the world of musicians and their needs.
“But don’t think to try and renegotiate any of the rules that Eliza has already set in place. She and I have discussed each of you at great length. So, rest assured, nothing will be changing,” she added.
While the rest of the Noble Lords looked just a tad stunned at her words, Reid turned away and tried to stifle a laugh. Lavinia knew how to handle small boys.
“Are we ready to go home and have a celebratory dinner?” said Reid.
Callum shook his head. “I have somewhere else to be this evening.” He spun on his heel and headed for the door.
Reid hurried after him, taking hold of his coat sleeve just as he reached the street. “The carriage will be here shortly; just wait inside with us. Then we can all go on to dinner together.”
Callum brushed Reid’s hand from his coat. “I don’t want to wait with anyone. And I don’t want to sit and talk nicely to each other over dinner. You did well tonight, Reid. Congratulations. Now I just want to leave. I shall see you tomorrow.”
A disappointed Reid turned and went back inside the theatre. When he got to where Lavinia and the remaining members of the Noble Lords were waiting, he saw that Kendal’s father, the Duke of Banfield, had made an appearance. Heated words were being exchanged between father and son.
“I said no, and I mean it,” said Kendal.
“This is ridiculous,” ground out the duke.
Kendal threw up his hands. “What is ridiculous is you expecting me to drop everything, yet again, and rush to my brother’s bedside. How many more times do we have to go through this domestic drama?”
Reid met the duke’s gaze and frowned. Kendal’s brother was well-known for his ongoing hypochondriacal tendencies.
The look on Kendal’s father’s face, however, was grave. “Come with me now. That is an order.”
“He is doing this deliberately. My one night of being allowed to shine, and he has to throw one of his self-indulgent tantrums. Bloody hell,” cried Kendal. He shook his head sadly at Reid.
They both knew what the eventual outcome of him arguing with his father would be. Kendal would leave with the Duke of Banfield and miss the dinner.
“Go. We shall have another supper to celebrate later in the week. Hopefully both you and Callum can make it then,” said Reid.
A clearly angry Kendal made his hasty farewells and followed his father out the door. With only Lavinia and Owen now left, Reid pondered whether they should go home and tell Eliza to cancel the dinner. She would not be happy; nor would the Follett House chef.
Owen made the decision for him. “Let us postpone the celebrations to later in the week. Callum and Kendal both deserve to be in attendance. And, to be honest, I was not going to stay long tonight. I have a prior engagement.”
The rest of the Noble Lords had their own lives to lead, and Reid was left to reluctantly accept that while all of them had played on the stage tonight, the show had mainly been for his benefit. Kendal and Owen had their own issues with their families, while Callum continued to wrestle with his demons.
“I agree. Let us wait until everyone can make time to spend an evening together. Now that we have the variety concerts to plan and perform in, all the Noble Lords will be in the house for a while longer,” replied Reid.
With Owen’s departure, it was down to Lavinia and himself.
He turned to her. “What can I do about your family? Would you like for me to speak to your father?”
“No. I don’t want to think about them tonight. This is your time. How about we go home. We shall just have to hope that when Eliza hears the news about the Noble Lords’ royal tour, she forgets her disappointment over tonight’s celebrations not taking place,” she replied.
He took her hand in his and raised it to his lips. At least his new bride was not trying to cry off spending the evening with him. A bottle of champagne and some of the food from the cancelled dinner party would go nicely, along with a naked Lavinia.
She smiled. “I know that look, Reid Follett, you wicked man. You are thinking very naughty thoughts about me. I demand that you tell me what they are.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Oh, I have a much better idea. How about I show you?”
Chapter Forty-Eight
Reid locked the door behind him as he and Lavinia tiptoed into the ballroom late that night. He stole a kiss on her lips, which earned him a heated one in return.
“This is not how I was expecting to spend the evening,” she murmured. The deep, sensual chuckle which greeted her remark held a promise she hoped Reid would make good on.
“You don’t know what I have planned.” He led her over to the sofa which had been placed in front of the fire and sat her down. Kneeling before her, her hands held gently in his, he looked deep into her eyes. She would never tire of seeing the love which shone on his face, or of knowing it was just for her.
“I wanted to make tonight special for us. To show you how much you mean to me, and to thank you for the gift of not only your love, but of music.”
He got to his feet.
“I know I sang for the crowd this evening, but now I want to sing just for you. For you to hear my voice not as my teacher, but as my wife and my lover.”
Lavinia sat back in the chair and counted Reid in. “One. Two. Three.”
With no piano to accompany him, Reid’s tenor voice soared clear in the still of the room. Lavinia closed her eyes and let the beauty of the song wash over her. She listened enthralled as he reached for each high note and caught them with ease. In that moment, she knew they had truly succeeded. She had shown him the way, but it was Reid’s dedication and love which had finally allowed him to see the heart of the music. The song was magical.
When he finished, she opened her eyes and held her hands to her lips. Mere applause would not come close to showing him how deeply he had touched her soul.
“Oh Reid,” she murmured.
He held a hand out to her, drawing her to her feet. His hand slipped about her waist in an easy, comfortable move. They had been lovers for only a short time, but he knew her so well that even the simple act of them embracing had become a dance in which they were both able to anticipate the other’s moves.
A short walk across the room had them standing before the three-legged pianoforte. Reid flipped over the support leg of the lid, then gently dropped it down, closing it. He ran his hand over the painted boxwood surface and muttered, “Perfect.”
Before Lavinia had a chance to enquire as to what Reid was doing with Kendal’s priceless piano, her husband had seized her by the waist and lifted her, seating her atop the lid. He stood between her legs, pushing her knees apart.
The satin ribbons of her nightgown were no match for his quick fingers. Once they were untied, he pulled the top of her gown open, exposing her naked breasts to his heated gaze. When he licked his lips, she shuddered. A soft throb began to pulse at her core.
He bent his head and flicked his tongue over her left nipple. With his other hand, he held her right nipple between his finger and thumb, then gently squeezed. He gave further attention to both buds before swapping over and repeating the same ministrations to the opposite breast.
He stood back, his gaze roaming over her partially naked body. The wicked grin on his lips let her know that they were far from done. When he stepped forward once more, he placed his hand softly on her chest before pushing her down. She lay on her back on the top of the piano.
The thought that Kendal would have a fit if he could see where she was quickly fled her mind as Reid lifted the hem of her nightgown. The scrape of the piano stool being dragged into place echoed in the room.
Lavinia’s gaze settled on the crystal chandelier which hung overhead, but her eyes soon closed as Reid set to her heated core with his tongue. Over and over he traced his lips across her slick mound.
He slipped two fingers deep into her and her hips bucked. When he softly blew cool air over her sensitive nib, she whimpered. This was torture of the most exquisite kind. He stroked her harder, pumping in and out of her body. Her fingers searched for anything to grab hold of in the swirling storm. She put a hand to her mouth when the smooth surface of the piano offered no purchase.
His lips firmed and sucked strongly on her clitoris. Lavinia opened her eyes and tried to focus on the candlelight above her, desperately fighting to control the moment. To keep her climax at bay. “Reid,” she pleaded.
He rose, pushing the piano stool away. Firm hands drew Lavinia cl
ose to the piano’s edge. “Thank God these things are built for shorter people,” he murmured.
She understood his meaning when the head of his cock nudged her swollen, slick entrance. As he guided himself into her, Lavinia rejoiced in the sensation of being filled. She would never get enough of this man.
They linked hands, and Reid began to glide in and out of her body. Slow at first, building the tempo. All those lessons about timing and pacing now came to the fore.
“I am going to fuck you in every room of this house once we have rid ourselves of our guests, but I had to start in this one. I’ve been eyeing off this piano all week, imagining what you would look like spread out for me on top of it,” he said.
“Is it what you imagined?” she said.
With a hard, deep thrust, he buried himself to the hilt. “It’s better.”
All conversation ended. The grunts and groans of their coupling were the only sounds to be heard in the room.
Reid ground himself hard against her sex, bringing Lavinia closer to climax with every stroke. He shifted the angle of his hips ever so slightly and her world exploded in a blinding light.
Lavinia lay on the piano, utterly spent. Reid collapsed on top of her soon after, his body shuddering as the throes of his climax rippled through him.
When he lifted his head and met her gaze, the heady look of sated lust sat on his face. She ran her fingers through his hair, playfully messing it.
“When Kendal leaves, the pianoforte stays,” she said.
Chapter Forty-Nine
Two days later, Reid was packing up the last of his estate paperwork when there was a knock at his study door.
Lavinia’s head appeared. “You have a visitor.”
Through the doorway stepped Marco Calvino. Reid immediately leaped to his feet.
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