A Gentleman's Wager (18 page)

His shoulders came up at the question. ‘I remembered I had it, I suppose.’ Unaware that Bella was staring at his mouth, he twitched his lips into a brief ironic smile. ‘London has a strange effect on people. It makes sensible young men do irrational things. Too many of my associates ruined themselves by mistaking an obviously ridiculous idea for adventure. I nearly lost Lauwine without ever having seen it, and several other things besides.’

Bella focused on the imperfect Cupid’s bow of his lips as she considered his impact on her little world, and that of the trials and tragedies of Wakefield and Louisa and even the alluring malice of Vaughan, against her dull and tedious alternate future rutting with stable-hands. Did you break any hearts when you left London? she wanted to ask him. Did you frustrate them with your poise as much as you frustrate me? Did they also wait too long for a kiss?

He turned away from her and stared unseeing into the fire. Hellfire, she thought, realising that she’d unintentionally dredged up melancholy thoughts for him. Afraid of seeing their conversation end in miserable silence, she placed her glass upon the floor and touched his arm. ‘Lucerne.’ He looked so sad, so fragile when he turned back to her, with his bright ocean-blue eyes filled with unshared memories. She leaned into him and pressed her lips to his, mindful only of taking away whatever unhappiness she had reminded him of.

For a long, awful moment Lucerne’s mouth remained
closed
. Panic washed over Bella like icy waves. She had meant to comfort, but her own arousal was not forgotten, and his cold response came as a shock. She pulled back, but as she did Lucerne’s arms came around her, and his tongue flicked against her lips.

‘I don’t like taking advantage,’ he whispered into her mouth.

‘Don’t you? Then it looks like it’s up to me.’

‘But I made your brother a promise.’

‘So did I,’ she said dismissively, as she drew him down onto the thick Persian rug. Still gazing into his dilated eyes, she was aware of the irresistible magnetism between their bodies and knew without a doubt that he wanted her. She didn’t need to confirm it by brushing her palm across the hummock in the front of his breeches, though she did it all the same.

‘Not too forward, am I?’ she asked.

‘Do you fear for your reputation?’

‘No, but Joshua does. Black sheep run in the family.’

Lucerne held himself poised above her. His fingertips traced her collar-bone, and then the lace neckline of her gown down to her breast. He hesitantly plucked at the knotted ribbon fastening, unaware that Vaughan had broken it earlier. Then, giving in to his desire, he trailed his lips into the hollow of her neck as he pushed one sleeve from her shoulder. Bella struggled to free her other arm in the same way, eager to feel his skin against her own. She’d waited for this long enough; now she wanted him as fast as possible. There’d be time to savour his every delight later. Now she just wanted his cock in her cunt.

Lucerne casually threw her stays aside. ‘Mmmm!’ he remarked, pausing to admire her liberated bosom and to cup her into fullness. On his knees between her thighs he tugged loose his cravat and waistband, and pulled
his
buttoned shirt and waistcoat off in one energetic movement.

‘Stop a moment,’ she said. ‘You’re beautiful. Let me look at you.’

Lucerne waited with obvious pleasure and embarrassment while Bella gazed at the flawless skin of his chest. She traced the golden line of hairs across his abdomen. ‘I’ve always liked watching you, ever since …’

‘Ever since you caught me tossing by the river,’ he finished for her. They laughed at each other.

As she gazed up at him, the pressure of arousal in Bella’s stomach grew, rearing and flicking over her skin like the firelight that lit the smooth musculature of his chest. ‘Let’s get you out of this,’ said Lucerne.

Bella glimpsed his erection, long and thick, before he lifted the muddy hem of her chemise and swept it over her head. She freed her wrists from the tangled linen and pushed it away from her.

‘Much better,’ he coaxed. Lucerne knelt between her parted thighs, his hand curved over her pubis as his tongue lapped into the wetness between her legs. Hot needles of tingling, fluttering arousal crept out over her limbs, spreading upwards into her breasts. Heat stronger than that of the fierce blaze coloured her skin and had her reaching for him. ‘Lucerne,’ she gasped. She opened her legs wide as his pelvis descended and the crown of his prick dipped firmly into her.

He paused.

Their eyes locked as if to underline the moment. A part of Bella wanted to savour that instant but, with startling suddenness, the initial thrill of penetration was over and their bodies were linked.

Being with Lucerne was very different from sex with Vaughan. It wasn’t a constant battle of wills, and he gave as well as took.

‘Slow down,’ he hissed against her cheek, and took charge of their frenzied motion, moderating it. ‘It’s not a race, Bella.’ At the same time, his middle finger found her clit, then rubbed and teased it from its hood. Intense pleasure coiled tight around her navel and shuddered through her legs, sapping her strength. She fell limp except for the rocking of her pelvis. Lucerne sucked at her nipples, making the sensitive peaks stand tall. He covered her in sensation, shivers racing between her clitoris and breasts. Before she realised it, her orgasm was almost upon her.

‘Please, Lucerne,’ she begged, tugging on his upper arms to bring his lips to her waiting mouth. ‘Hard.’ Her voice was pleading, urgent. He drove his penis deep. Their pace quickened, becoming almost frantic. Lucerne bucked out of time as he came, roaring out his orgasm. Somehow, he managed to keep his erection, pulsing within her until her own climax shook her and her muscles clenched around him. As the intense shock waves faded into a warm glow, they collapsed breathless and exultant upon one another.

Presently, his penis slipped from her. He kissed her tenderly before rolling onto his back. Bella snuggled up to his warmth and lay her head on his torso with a self-satisfied grin on her face. She listened blissfully to the muffled rhythm of his heart, and allowed herself to mewl softly as he brushed his fingers through her hair. ‘Joshua did tell you to look after me,’ she said, her head tilted so her chin pressed against his warm stomach as she peered up at his face.

Lucerne’s relaxed expression immediately contorted into a grimace. ‘I don’t think this is what he meant.’

‘Did you intend for me to wait forever, then?’

‘Perhaps. I hope your brother isn’t as proficient with his fists as he is at billiards.’

Bella straddled his stomach and looked down into Lucerne’s unguarded face. He was frowning, and there was a shadow of doubt in his blue eyes. ‘My brother never thumped anyone in his life. Besides, there’s no reason for you to fight.’

‘Honour’s a strange thing.’

‘Lucerne! How can you say that?’ She kissed him where the yellow bruises were fading from his ribs. ‘You worry too much.’

‘I don’t like abusing my authority.’

‘Don’t be so bloody arrogant. I started it.’ She shimmied down his chest, and began to fish around for her clothes. ‘You can’t be responsible for everyone. I knew exactly what I was doing.’

Lucerne propped himself up on his elbows, watching her sort through the jumble of linen. ‘I suppose so. In London, I couldn’t even be responsible for myself.’

‘Is that why you came here, to run away from yourself?’

‘No, not exactly.’ He helped her into her chemise dress. ‘Urgh!’ he said as he released the wet muddy hem. He rubbed his thumb across his palm to remove the wet mark.

‘Urgh!’ Bella agreed as the damp cloth stuck to her skin. ‘I didn’t realise it was this bad.’

‘Never mind, it’s time you changed for dinner anyway.’ Lucerne rose to his feet. Still naked, he made a game of relacing her stays. When she was clothed, he walked her to the door. ‘We’ll have to do this again sometime,’ he said facetiously. Bella gave him a coquettish pout. Obviously he wasn’t feeling too guilty or threatened over breaking his promise to Joshua. Lucerne bowed gracefully and gave her a final dizzying kiss before he shooed her out into the dark corridor so that he could re-dress in privacy.

Bella made her way back along the dark gallery to her own room. She had only fifteen minutes to tidy herself and get dressed for dinner. As soon as she’d moved away from the fire, her damp clothes had made her limbs feel heavy and tired. After more sex than most men claimed to have in a week, she had only one final craving – sleep. To her utter dismay, Vaughan came through the door to the wing as she neared it. He was already dressed for dinner, and his excessive finery made him look like he was expected at Court. She wondered whom he was trying to impress. Not her, she was sure. Lucerne, perhaps.

Deciding that the best way to deal with him was to ignore him, she attempted to walk straight past, but he stepped in front of her and blocked the way.

‘Excuse me.’ Bella tried to make her voice sound commanding. Vaughan merely smirked at her discomfort.

‘Why, what have you done wrong?’ he asked.

Bella snorted to hide her nervousness. She tried to slip under his arm, but he closed his fingers around her upper arm in a vicelike grip. Her struggles only prompted him to pin her against the wall. ‘Don’t you think you could spare me a moment?’ His dark eyes flashed demonically in the dim light. ‘After all, we are on intimate terms.’

His lips brushed against the sensitive pulse point on her neck. The kiss was sharp and sweet, tinged with dark threat and erotic promise, but the memory of being held safe and loved in Lucerne’s arms was too fresh. ‘Intimacy implies trust,’ she snapped, and thrust her hands against his chest.

Vaughan responded by playfully nipping her ear. Bella kicked him on the shin.

‘Bitch!’ He gripped her by the chin and squeezed her cheeks. Her temper rose dramatically at the indignity. ‘I warned you to stay away from Lucerne.’ His eyes flashed with hatred.

‘You don’t scare me,’ she blurted. Her heartbeat sounded loud in her ears. She hoped Vaughan couldn’t hear it, and wouldn’t realise how much he frightened her. ‘Let go or I’ll scream.’

‘Don’t think you can keep him.’

He released her ungraciously. Bella sealed her lips to stifle the angry retort that echoed in her skull. He was trying to trick her into revealing what had happened in Lucerne’s room and she wasn’t about to rise to the bait, as satisfying as it would be to hurt him with the truth. ‘Go hang yourself!’ she snarled.

His dark eyes narrowed with malice. Bella held her breath as she waited for him to retaliate, but instead he turned on his heels and strode off in the direction of Lucerne’s room. She watched him disappear while she rubbed her neck, as if she could wipe away both the intimacy and the aggression. ‘Evil bastard,’ she swore under her breath, before making a quick escape to her own room.

Bella retired immediately after the tense, uncomfortable dinner. Exhaustion had set in and she needed to sleep, to release her body of exertion and her mind of the horrid situation that was building around her. It seemed inevitable that she and Vaughan would eventually go to war; he’d scowled at her throughout dinner. She was still dwelling on his threats when there was a gentle knock at the door. At first she feared it was Lucerne, come to renew their earlier lovemaking. She longed for him but she was so tired she doubted she could move a muscle, and she didn’t want him to get the wrong impression. To her relief, it turned out to be Louisa.

‘I came to make sure you’re all right. You’re not ill after today, are you?’

‘I’m fine. Just very tired.’ Bella snuggled deeper into
the
eiderdown. ‘And before you ask, it has nothing to do with getting wet.’

‘Oh!’ Louisa stared at her with wide judgmental eyes.

‘Don’t look at me like that. I don’t pass judgement on you …’

‘Yes you do,’ Louisa cut her off. ‘You do it all the time. Just because I don’t throw up my skirts for every man that passes, doesn’t mean that I don’t … don’t desire Frederick as a man.’ She bit her lip. ‘And you snicker at my embroidery.’ She looked both accusatory and defensive.

Bella wriggled into a half-seated position, with her weight on one elbow. ‘I’ve never laughed at your accomplishments. They’re just not for me. What’s this about?’

Louisa shrugged her narrow shoulders.

‘Is it because I can climb another pole if I can’t have Lucerne?’ She was too tired for niceties.

‘No!’

‘Then what is it?’ Bella tempered her voice and started again in a softer tone. She didn’t really want to argue with Louisa. ‘Talk to me, Lou. It’s what you came here for.’

Louisa’s gaze dropped to the eiderdown. She shook her head as if oppressed by some evil thought. ‘I went to his room. That’s why he left.’

Bella sat up in shock. ‘You went to his room! Alone?’

‘I thought I’d try to be more like you, but then when I got to the door I lost my nerve, and Vaughan scared me off. After that Lucerne put me to bed, and he kissed me, Bella – quite passionately. I think he was drunk. Anyway, Vaughan must have told Frederick because he hit Lucerne and they had a fight, and it’s all my fault.’ She looked utterly miserable. A slow, fat tear rolled down her cheek.

‘Oh, Louisa,’ Bella soothed. She placed an arm around
her
friend. ‘Don’t fret. Wakefield will come back. He probably just needed to calm down. They’ve been friends for years.’

‘No he won’t.’

Bella forgave the obvious plea for sympathy. ‘He will. In the meantime, if you miss him so much, why don’t we pay him a visit? I’m sure Lucerne will allow us the use of the carriage to go into Richmond for a few things. We can see Frederick and my brother while we are there.’

‘I’d like that.’ She pressed a palm to her cheek.

Bella gave her a friendly pat. ‘I’ll ask him in the morning and sort it out, but now can I please get some sleep? I’m exhausted.’

BY MID-MORNING THE
next day the sky had cleared enough to risk the carriage journey into town. They had taken the opportunity of their prospective absence to send the servants back to the Grange for fresh clothes, and had decided also to look for new outfits in Richmond. It was a dreary cobbled street that they found themselves in when they stepped down from Lucerne’s carriage, but nothing could dent Louisa’s exuberant mood, not even the drab little hat-maker’s shop or the uninspiring array of bonnets and caps within. At the milliner’s they fared little better, except for a cream satin sash and five yards of sarcenet.