His Wicked Wish (15 page)

“That's the plan.” He reached out to catch a lock of her unbound hair, letting the golden strands sift through his fingers. “May I say, your beauty is an unexpected bonus. It will make this marriage so much more enjoyable.”

The cool calculation in his tone crept down her spine. It was a reminder that first and foremost, she was his tool of retaliation. Any desire he felt for her was merely sweet icing on the bitter cake of his hatred for his father.

She took a step back, out of his reach. “Nathan, I must ask you. Why does your father despise you so much? He can't be entirely coldhearted. He appears to love your sister. And at dinner, he had no end of praise for your late brother.”

Nathan's face hardened. “Never mind why. Our agreement is for you to play your prescribed role without question.”

“But shouldn't I at least have an inkling as to what caused the strife between you and your father? You both looked fit to kill when you came into the drawing room after dinner. You must have quarreled about
something
.”

He paced to the table to refill his glass. “You really wish to know? Then I'll tell you. Gilmore wants me to meet with his lawyers in the morning. He's pressuring me to annul my marriage to you.”

“Annul!” Maddy gripped her wineglass. If the marriage was invalidated, would Nathan still pay her the stipend? Would she lose the funds to open her shop? Would Lord Dunham once again prey upon her? “Well, what did you say to him? Surely you refused.”

“Good God, of course I refused. I won't play into that devil's hands.”

A measure of tension seeped out of Maddy, and she sank down into one of the plush chairs by the fire. Sipping her champagne, she watched Nathan prowl the bedchamber like a caged lion. Perhaps this was her chance. She might never have a better opportunity to improve her distasteful role in the household.

“I imagine the earl was only considering your sister's situation,” she said. “Lady Emily is making her debut, and even
I
know that our marriage is bound to harm her reputation.”

Nathan sent her a fierce glare. “Emily will be fine. I'll make certain of it.”

“How? By turning that scowl on some hapless young stripling until he agrees to court her? Honestly, Nathan, that's hardly a sensible plan.”

“So what do you suggest? That I should reconsider the annulment?” He stepped aggressively to her. “No, you wouldn't want that. You're a fortune hunter, Madelyn. You need this marriage as much as I do.”

Unnerved by his attack, she stared up at him towering over her. His temper was a powder keg set off by the smallest spark. She wanted to defend herself, but that would mean exposing her private plans, plans he must not know. “All I meant was that perhaps there's a way to improve the present state of affairs—at least somewhat. So that I'm not such a ruinous liability.”

He paced away a few steps and turned to glower at her. “How? You're a common actress, a woman of ill repute. I purchased you at an auction where other men were bidding to win you as their mistress. By tomorrow morning, all of society will be buzzing with the scandal.”

“Yes, I'm well aware of that.” Maddy cringed to think of being branded the villainess who'd enticed the Earl of Gilmore's heir. She would be the target of every vicious gossip in London. Draining the last of her champagne, she held out her empty glass. While Nathan refilled it, she went on, “However, I've been thinking. Perhaps it isn't necessary for me to behave in quite such a vulgar manner. Perhaps I could tone down my act. I'm sure your father would still detest me even if I were to pretend to be a refined, dignified lady.”

Nathan frowned. “You speak like one already. Where the devil did you learn the diction of the upper class?”

At the quizzical look on his face, she strove for a wide-eyed, innocent expression. He mustn't guess that her mother had been born and bred a lady. Or that Maddy hoped to confront her grandfather, the Duke of Houghton, sometime in the near future.

If Nathan kept secrets, then she could do likewise.

“I'm an actress, aren't I? My talent is mimicking speech and mannerisms. With your permission, I'll convince the dowager to give me lessons in deportment. Over the course of a week or two, I'll transform myself into the epitome of propriety.”

She braced herself for his attack. After all, her idiotic behavior today had been Nathan's idea, a key component of his plot against his father, though for what reason Maddy still didn't know.

But Nathan only gave her a keen stare. “And you truly think this will improve matters for Emily?”

“If I don't slurp my soup or blather like a silly chatterbox, then I won't be a constant embarrassment to the family. And it will perplex the gossips if the notorious Lady Rowley proves to be quiet and circumspect, the model of ladylike behavior.”

Unexpectedly, Nathan chuckled. “You, quiet and circumspect? I'll wager you could never manage that.”

She gazed up at him from her chair. His lips were tilted slightly, not quite a smile but enough to reveal a beguiling hint of dimples. The champagne must be having an effect, for she suddenly felt giddy and vibrant. “Then I accept your wager. And you will pay me a token if I succeed.”

“A token.”

“Yes. Something with diamonds, perhaps.” Had she really said that? Maddy wanted to call it back. Demanding jewels would fortify his view of her as a fortune hunter.

But it was too late. He set down his glass and extended his hand to her. “Agreed. We'll shake on it to seal the bargain.”

She stared at his outstretched hand. His fingers were long and masculine, the nails neatly trimmed, his skin bronzed by the sun. The prospect of touching him reawakened that earlier tug-of-war in her, the battle between the need to flee and the desire to stay. “That isn't necessary,” she demurred.

“I'll be the judge of that,” he said in a commanding tone. “Come, give me your hand now.”

By the shrewd gleam in his eyes, it was clear that he'd noticed her hesitancy about their night together. He was challenging her to reach out and touch him. And why shouldn't she do so? She'd made her choice upon agreeing to this marriage. In church, she had vowed to be his wife in every sense of the word. And if truth be told, she wanted to lie with Nathan, to learn everything he could teach her.

No matter how much the darkness in him might alarm her.

Leaning forward in the chair, she lifted her hand and his fingers firmly closed around hers. The contact sent a flash of warmth up her arm and over her skin, tightening her breasts and hitching her breath. He must have felt it, too, for the fire in his eyes scorched her.

Rather than shake her hand, he firmed his grip and tugged her up out of the chair, using momentum to propel her into his arms. He plucked the champagne glass from her fingers and set it down on the table before drawing her fully into his embrace.

Her heart hammered at his sudden closeness. With every inhalation, she drew in his scent of soap and sandalwood. As she clutched at his muscled shoulders to steady herself, the pattern on his dressing gown suddenly caught her attention.

Seizing the distraction, Maddy traced the embroidered design with her fingertips. No wonder she hadn't noticed it until now. It was very subtle since the mythical winged creatures were sewn of the same rich green threads as the garment itself. “Dragons?”

His eyes gleamed an identical green. “Indeed. The Chinese are quite fond of them.”

A hundred questions about his travels in China crowded her mind. But now was not the time to ask them.

“The workmanship is exquisite.” She slid her fingers across the broad expanse of his chest, appreciating both the fabric and the warmth imbued by his skin. “The silk is amazingly soft. It's finer than anything I've ever seen in a shop.”

“My warehouse is full of silk. I'll give you as many bolts as you like so long as you keep fondling me like that.”

He looked quite rakish with a smile playing on his lips, reminding her of the dashing gentleman he'd been at the auction. Maddy's insides tightened into an aching knot. The deep V of his collar revealed a swath of his chest. She had been trying not to dwell too much on the bare flesh beneath his dressing gown.

But now she could think of nothing else.

He seemed to be waiting for her to say something, so she murmured, “I do very much want to be here with you tonight.”

By way of response, his hands skimmed downward to cup her bottom and lock her against the solid column of his body. They stood with his chest to her breasts, his loins to hers. Her breathing grew shallow as the heat of him penetrated her flimsy nightdress.

He stared down at her, his gaze intensifying, desire evident on his face. A thrill unfurled inside her. He'd kept his hot-blooded passion hidden behind a mask of caustic wit and cool authority. But now he looked ready to take what he desired.

His eyes glittered in the candlelight. “We're in perfect accord, then,” he stated. “There will be no annulment. I intend to make certain of that. Tonight.
Now.
”

The wild hunger she sensed in him called to her deepest feminine urges. Warmth flowed through her in a knee-weakening rush. “Yes,” she whispered.

His head swooped down and he took her mouth with aggressive fire. One of his hands moved upward to hold the back of her head while his tongue delved between her lips to explore her thoroughly. Her blood quickened and surged. It felt as if he were branding her as his personal property. And in the doing, he awakened every forbidden part of her. Clinging to his shoulders, she felt the burn of his kiss spread throughout her body until her breasts ached and her privates throbbed.

In the midst of it all, Maddy knew his primary purpose tonight was to thwart his father. To make the marriage real so that no man, no matter how devious, could tear their vows asunder. But she no longer cared what drove Nathan. She only knew what drove herself, and that was a keen desire to experience physical union with this man.

Her husband.

A moan rose from deep inside her throat. Her fingers traced over his chest and up to his face to stroke the roughness of his shaven cheek. She found the slight indentions that she so loved on either side of his mouth. How divine it was to touch him at last, to feel his arms clasping her so close. She wanted to absorb his heat and strength into her very core.

He broke off the kiss and moved his lips down over her jaw, her throat, her collarbone, and she tilted her head back to accommodate him. He was right; they were in perfect accord. It seemed he couldn't get enough of her taste, and she couldn't get enough of his kisses. The damp hunger of his mouth made her quiver with yearning.

Dimly, she felt his hands at her waist. With one expert tug, he untied her robe. He pushed the garment from her shoulders, letting it slither to the floor. Then he drew back slightly to stare down at the jut of her breasts against the sheer fabric of her nightdress.

His fingers traced over the gauzy material, trekking over one lavish mound, traversing the valley in between, and arriving at the second peak. There, the play of his fingers unleashed a storm of sensations that made her gasp. Before she could even catch a shuddering breath, he deftly freed both breasts from the confinement of her bodice.

Just like that, the wisp of a nightdress slipped down to pool at her hips. Only the filmy skirt protected her from full nudity.

The rush of cool air on her bare skin penetrated the stupor of her passion. Maddy trembled, aware that candlelight bathed her naked bosom. All the flames that she'd meant to blow out before his arrival were still lit. Whenever she'd imagined her first time with a man, it had always been under the covers, in the darkness, with long ardent kisses preceding furtive caresses.

But they still stood by the fireplace, and Nathan had disrobed her with the practiced skill of a seducer. She had never expected him to proceed so swiftly. Or to stare so boldly at the decadent display of her breasts. His teeth were slightly bared, his face ravenous, a dragon intent on devouring her.

He lowered his head as if to consume her.

Her heart drumming, she reached out to stop him. One of her palms flattened over the exposed skin between the folds of his dressing gown. His chest felt like the furnace for a fire-breathing monster. “Nathan, wait!”

He glanced up at her, frowning, the dragon denied his feast. “What is it?”

Her gaze flicked to the four-poster with its turned-down coverlet and plump pillows. “Oughtn't we retire to the bed?”

He cocked his head in a faintly quizzical look. His eyes bored into her as if he were trying to comprehend her meaning. Had she said something wrong?

Then he moved his rough-textured fingers over her breast, leaving a trail of sparks over her sensitive skin. Under the insistent caress of his thumb, her nipple shrank into a taut, tender bead. “Am I not pleasing you here, darling? I could swear that I am.”

Maddy could scarcely think when he stroked her like that. If not for his arm wrapped around her waist, holding her upright, she might have melted into a puddle at his feet. The raspy pads of his fingers aroused a keen craving in her that only he could soothe. He seemed to know exactly how to touch her in order to wrest a response.

But he also seemed to expect
her
to know things.

She blinked in startled realization. Of course. Nathan believed her to be experienced in the bedchamber. He had not lived in London these past ten years, so he was unaware that she was famous for rebuffing many gentlemen. He would assume her to be a strumpet as other actresses often were. And because Lady Milford had interceded on his behalf, he had not received a written invitation to the auction.

His fingers feathered over her nipple, stirring a deep shiver that rippled through her body. As he watched her, his teeth gleamed in a provocative smile. “You
do
like this,” he said. “Don't deny it.”