Lady Alexandra's Lover (8 page)

T
hough it pained me
, I stopped the kiss for a moment. “Do you like my diddeys?” I asked.

“I… They’re lovely, my lady.”

They swelled even as she said it, Amelia, I swear to you.

I smiled into her cerulean eyes. “Pinch my nipples, Hattie. Please.”

“But the kissing, my lady? I…” Her blush heightened again, and a tiny smile curved her lips upward.

My cunny throbbed! She was enjoying the kissing as much as I.

“Never fear,” said I. “We shall continue the kissing. But my nipples long for your fingertips, my dear. It will feel good to me, I promise you. My titties are aching for your touch.”

With a tentative hand, she touched my turgid nipple.

“Oh, yes, sweet Hattie.” I closed my eyes. “Twist that firm little bud. Harder. Harder!”

She closed her fingertips around my aching nipple. A jolt thundered through me.

Dearest Amelia, I nearly climaxed then and there! Oh, her fingertips were heaven.

“The other, Hattie. The other,” I begged.

And her free hand cupped my second breast, her thumb easing over the tight nipple.

“Do you like it, my lady?”

“Yes, yes, I love it. Twist them, Hattie. Pinch them.” I held my breasts out to her in offering as her fingers continued to work their magic.

I slid my own fingers into my drawers and glided them over my wet cunt. My clitoris—such a funny new word that you taught me, Amelia dear—was rock hard and swollen, and with only a slight brushing of my hand, I launched into climax.

My whole body trembled, Amelia, much like it did when you sent me to climax oh so many times. I grabbed Hattie and pushed my tongue back between those luscious lips. I drank from her essence as I came down from the highest peak. And Amelia, she kissed me back with such a frenzy! Her vanilla tongue twirled with mine for endless moments, until she gasped and broke away.

“My lady! We should be ashamed.”

“Of what, my dear? Of enjoying ourselves? ’Tis folly to be ashamed of such a thing.” I hesitated a bit. “You did enjoy yourself, didn’t you?”

Again that lovely blush veiled her face and neck as she fidgeted. “Y-Yes, my lady.”

I walked forward, pushing her backward until her legs hit my bed. “I should like to see you unclothed, Hattie. Here”—I turned her around—“let me undress you.”

“I-I can’t.”

I turned her back around and looked straight into those blue orbs. “You can’t? Why on earth not? I am your mistress. You can and should do whatever I ask of you.”

“But my lady, it’s not… I just can’t.”

I smiled and took her lovely face in my hands. “You can’t because you shouldn’t? Or you can’t because you don’t want to?”

“I-I shouldn’t, of course.”

“So you do want to, then?”

“My lady—”

“You may think of this kind of play as forbidden fruit, yet that makes it so much sweeter, doesn’t it?” I turned her back around and fiddled with the knot on the back of her head until her blond locks tumbled free. “Such lovely hair you have, sweet Hattie.”

E
van couldn’t help smiling
. Alexandra, though a mess, still looked gorgeous to him. But to her paramour, Mr. Landon? What would he think?

Her cheeks turned crimson, and he imagined the rest of her luscious body bore the same blushing color. How would she react to this?

Sophie clasped both hands to her mouth. And Alexandra just stood, immobile, as if petrified.

“My lady,” Mr. Landon said, “your sister was just telling me that you’d been lost on your way to London. Thank goodness you are all right.” He turned to Evan. “And you as well, my lord.”

“Yes, Landon, thank you,” Evan said. “We’re fine, but in need of some sustenance at the moment.”

Ally stood, still paralyzed. She said nothing.

“Mr. Landon,” Sophie said, “I’m sure you understand that my sister and stepbrother need to see to a few things.”

“Yes, yes, of course.” He took Alexandra’s hand and kissed it.

A jolt of possessive jealousy surged through Evan.

“I shall call on you again soon,” he said as Graves showed him the door.

“Oh, of all the…” Ally shook her head.

“I’m so sorry, Ally,” Sophie said. “He just arrived a few moments ago, and I was explaining that you were being looked for. I’m thrilled you’re here and all right, of course. I never dreamed he’d come out of the parlor.”

“He’ll probably want nothing more to do with me,” Alexandra said. “I look an absolute fright.”

“If he doesn’t want you because of how you look, he’s not worth your time anyway,” Sophie said.

“Rubbish, Sophie.” Alexandra shook her head. “Please excuse me. I must see to a bath and then have a nap.

“You don’t wish to take a meal?” Evan said.

“Not at the moment. I’ve suddenly lost my appetite.” Alexandra ambled up the stairway.

“Sophie,” Evan said, “would you care to join me in a meal?”

Sophie nodded. “I haven’t been able to eat due to worry. Suddenly, I have quite a hunger. Plus, I’m anxious to hear all about your ordeal.”

Sophie joined him in the informal dining room while he ate and told her of the carriage accident and how they’d found shelter. Of course he left out the part where he’d slept with her sister.

“How very terrible for the coachman,” Sophie said. “But how very fortunate for the two of you. I don’t know what I would do if anything happened to Ally.”

“She is fine, though a bit frazzled,” Evan said. “She’ll be all right. Have you heard any word from my father?”

Sophie shook her head. “I doubt we will. Why would they send word while on a wedding trip?”

“Just some business dealings I was hoping to get his input on,” Evan said. “Jacob and his solicitor are due here within a few weeks, and I need to have up-to-date information. I guess it will fall to me to get things in order.”

“Yes, please don’t bother your father,” Sophie said. “He and my mother have waited so long for happiness. They do so deserve it.”

Evan swallowed the bite of chicken sandwich he’d been chewing. Sophie was right. He’d learned a lot about what her mother had endured during her first marriage, and he did want her to have happiness now. He was still a bit irked that his father hadn’t found that kind of happiness with his own mother, but at least his mother had been taken care of and had lived a good life. If only she could have had love…

But what of love? Evan himself had been ready to marry Lady Rose Jameson, and though he cared for her, he hadn’t been in love with her nor she with him. Was love simply an illusion? Love was not the act itself. He’d engaged in the act many times, but had never loved the one he was with.

Though with Alexandra… He’d felt something different—something almost primal and protective. But no, it wasn’t love.

Not that he’d know the difference.

Evan finished his meal. “If you’ll excuse me, Sophie, I must get cleaned up after our…difficulty.”

“Yes, of course.” Sophie rose as well. “I’ll see to my sister. In fact, I’ll have Chef prepare her a tray. She must eat something.”

Evan nodded and climbed the two flights of stairs to his suite on the third floor. He bid Redmond to prepare him a bath. When the tub was ready, he peeled off his soiled clothing and lowered himself into the steaming water.

Ah, heaven.

“Do you require anything else, my lord?” his valet asked.

“No, Redmond. You may go. I may just sit here until the water becomes tepid.”

“I couldn’t help but notice your bruising. Do you wish me to call your physician?”

“No, there’s no need. We were thrown a bit in the carriage. I assure you a hot bath is the best medicine for me right now.” That, and perhaps another tumble with Alexandra. But that wouldn’t happen.

“Very well, then.” Redmond bowed and left the room, only to come back a moment later. “I beg pardon, sir, but Mr. Graves requests an audience with you.”

“Can’t it wait? I’m exhausted.”

“I’m sorry, sir, but he says it’s of the utmost importance.”

Evan sighed. “Fine, send him in.”

Graves entered, the expression on his face unreadable. “Forgive the intrusion, my lord, but I received an urgent message from your printing office in Bath.”

“Well, what is it?”

“I’m sorry, my lord, but I was told that only you could read the missive.”

Evan let out a breath. Why now? All he wanted was a warm bath and his own bed. And then, of course, perhaps another meal later.

“Redmond,” he said, “fetch my robe please.”

Evan dried quickly and stepped into the robe that Redmond held for him. He turned back to Graves and took the letter the butler was still holding. Sighing, he broke the seal and took out the folded piece of parchment.

He widened his eyes. “Thank you, Graves. You may go. Redmond, please ready my grey suit. I’m going to have to go into Bath.”

H
aving finished her bath
, Ally sat in front of the looking glass, combing out the snarls from her finally clean hair.

A knock at the door startled her.

“Yes, who is it?”

“It’s just me,” came Sophie’s voice from the other side of the door.

“Of course, do come in,” Ally said.

The door opened, and Sophie ambled in, carrying a tray. “I figured you would be hungry,” she said. “I know you must have been fraught with embarrassment when Mr. Landon saw you so disheveled, but still, Ally, you must eat. You haven’t eaten in nearly two days.”

Her sister was right, of course. Ally
was
hungry. But so many images were swirling in her mind. The intimate moments she had shared with Evan, and then the man she intended to marry, Mr. Landon, seeing her looking no better than a common peasant. She sighed. How would he ever feel the same way about her? He thought of her as glamorous and socially intelligent. Not that she felt that way herself. Her past wouldn’t allow that. But damn it, no one would know of her past if she could help it. No one but Sophie and her mother knew now. Well, except for Evan, and he had assured her his confidence. Up until now, she had put on a good show for Mr. Landon. Perhaps he would understand that she had been in a carriage accident and had been without amenities for two days. If only he hadn’t been there to see her when she returned.

“Thank you, Sophie.”

Sophie set the tray on the table and uncovered it. “Chef outdid himself today. Roast chicken sandwiches with tomato and fresh mozzarella salad and creamed vegetable marrow. Lemon spice cake for dessert.”

Ally feared it would all taste like sawdust to her right now. But her stomach wasn’t going to allow her to wait any longer for sustenance. “Do join me, won’t you, Sophie?”

“Of course. Evan told me about your ordeal over lunch, but I need to hear your version. It must have been horrid, Ally. I don’t know how you got through it.”

Ally shook her head. “Really, Sophie, we’ve been through so much worse. This was merely an inconvenience.”

“I’m so very glad Evan was with you. I know you are angry that he wouldn’t let you travel alone, but thank goodness he was there. What would you have done if he hadn’t been?”

Probably not made a huge mistake. But of course she couldn’t bring voice to those words. Even though her intimate moments with Evan were the most precious moments she’d ever experienced, they had been a mistake. Still, Sophie was right. If Evan hadn’t been there, Ally might not have survived. But she was not going to appear weak. “I would have been just fine, Sophie. Goodness, if there was one thing life with Mother and Father taught us, it was how to take care of ourselves.”

“During life with Mother and Father, we were never without shelter.”

“Yes, that is true. However, there were certainly times when I went to bed hungry.”

“Well perhaps our bellies weren’t always filled to the brim as they are now,” Sophie said, “but you went nearly two days with no food at all.”

“We had water. Fresh water at that, from the rain.”

“I’m just so thankful that neither of you were seriously injured. And also that you were able to find the small shack for shelter. What did you do while you were there?”

Ally couldn’t help a small smile. If her sister only knew! She’d lost her virginity to the man least likely to have taken it. But Sophie could never know that. Mother and the earl could never know that. She needn’t fear anything from Evan. He would want to keep this as quiet as she did.

“We talked a bit. He wanted to know about our childhood, but I was quite vague.” Ally hated lying to her sister, but she didn’t want Sophie to be embarrassed around Evan. “He told me a little bit about his mother, and about how he wished she had been loved by his father, the way he loves Mama.”

“I’m glad you kept it vague about our childhood,” Sophie said. “It’s not that I’m ashamed of it, but it was just so horrible I would rather pretend it never happened. The more people who know, the more I can’t erase it.”

“It’s a part of who we are, Sophie. Believe me, I wish it had never happened either. But it did, and like it or not, it has shaped who we are. We just can’t let it color our futures.”

Sophie sighed. “You are correct, of course. What else did you do in the shack? If you were vague about our childhood, I can’t imagine that you spent forty-eight hours talking about Evan’s mother.”

No, they certainly hadn’t. Her cheeks warmed as visions of making love with Evan twirled in her mind. “We were lucky enough to find a deck of cards in one of the cupboards. We played a little whist.”

“With only two of you?”

Oh, she had put her foot in it now. Why hadn’t she said some other game? Of course, she was ignorant as to card games. “We had to change the rules a bit. But at least it was something to do.”
Now please, Sophie, don’t ask me any more questions.

“I’m just happy you’re all right.” Sophie smiled. “Do you feel you should see a physician?”

“Oh, heavens, no. I’m absolutely fine. A little banged and bruised is all. Millicent brought me a headache powder, and it’s already starting to help. The warm bath did wonders also.”

Ally filled her plate from the tray. The food did look good. She took a bite of chicken sandwich. Her mouth was dry, but she chewed and swallowed with a loud gulp. It didn’t taste like sawdust after all.

“
M
y lord
, we were just getting ready to close.” Mr. Jenkins, the clerk at the printing office walked toward Evan.

“I’m afraid I’m going to need some information.”

“Of course, my lord. What may I help you with?”

“You can tell me, Jenkins, why I was summoned near the end of the workday, when I have just returned from being stranded from a carriage accident, to be informed that my company has been printing obscene material.”