The St Nicholas' Day Wager (9 page)

“Nick, you do not have to say such things. I know the truth.”

He gritted his teeth and smoothed the back of his fingers down the cheek with her birthmark.

“Oh no, Gabby, you do not know the truth. You don’t know that when I am not with you I have conversations in my head with you where I try to make you laugh just so I can see you smile. Your eyes shine and you light up the room when you laugh. You make my heart leap out my chest when I see you. When we are in a room, I want to be near enough to smell the lavender soap that you use or to feel the warmth of your body or the brush of the hem of your skirts against my ankle. But no other woman would do, Gabriella. Only you. And I wish I could take back what I said all those years ago. I’m sorry for hurting you and for the pain I caused our families. I do hope that one day you can forgive me.”

Gabriella smiled.

“I already forgave you, Nick, but you need to forgive yourself. What you did today has more than made up for the strawberry jam remark. It is time to move on.”

Nick felt as if a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders. He gathered her in his arms and sank back against the armrest of the chaise, enjoying the feel of her head against his chest. They remained there for a long time, just listening to the other breathe, happy to be in one another’s company.

Yes, he wanted to drag her up his body and impale her on his hard flesh but he was just as content to lie here and enjoy her silent company.

Besides. There was only twenty-four hours left.

Chapter Eleven

Nick looked over the drawing room and caught the brown gaze of his wife, who bit her lip shyly and sent a spear of need straight to his groin. She looked stunning in a white satin gown with a silver overdress embroidered with glistening rosebuds. Her hair had been curled up off her face in an elaborate coif and hot house flowers had been laced strategically between the locks. He noticed someone had powdered her cheek to mask the birthmark that still seemed to cause her so much distress. He grimaced internally. She had no need to hide it, but he understood why she did it nonetheless.

She was talking to her sister-in-law and pointing out the window where another heavy fall of snow was currently in progress. Joseph and Edna had arrived the night before along with the rest of their guests, fearing that the inclement weather would prevent them from attending the nuptials. The woman had seemed to have a personality change in the length of time it had taken Thornwich to go home, pack and come back. She had been most pleasant at dinner. Perhaps Thornwich’s new leaf extended to his marriage. Nick hoped so because he saw potential in Edna and the women seemed to be getting on well. Also Edna now had her rival for the staff’s affections out of her house. That had to be a relief. He understood there was often jealousy when a new mistress arrived.

“Thank you, Eastden, for everything.” Nick turned to find his brother by marriage watching Edna and Gabriella chuckling at something Nick’s young cousin Jack was doing. The three-year-old was rolling around on the floor and singing. Nick did not want to know what the child was up to.

Nick raised his brandy glass. “To new beginnings.”

“Aye, to new beginnings.”

****

Gabriella curtseyed to her partner, an elderly uncle of her new husband, and drew in a deep breath. The impromptu dancing in the large drawing room had delighted her. A number of servants with varying degrees of musicality were coerced into playing, the rugs were rolled back and furniture pushed against the wall.

This set of country dances had been particularly lively and Gabriella was completely out of breath. She walked over to the chaise where Nick sat alone, nursing a brandy. He could not have been there for long because he had been talking to the vicar when this set had begun.

“Oh Nick, be a dear and fetch me a drink, please.”

“No.”

She turned to him, aghast. Had he just refused to get a lady a drink? And his own wife at that?

“Nick? What…” He leaned close and his breath tickled the hairs falling out of her coif near her ear.

“Time to get that beautiful fur-lined cloak you wore to the church and your boots, my dear. The only person you shall be getting hot and bothered with for the rest of the evening is me.”

“But it is only six o’clock.”

“It is nearly seven o’clock. It will take at least half an hour for us to extract ourselves from all these relatives and we have half a mile in the snow to walk. And then I am going to wish you a very special and very early Merry Christmas.” He ran a finger down her bare arm and she shivered, turning to gaze into his hazel eyes. They burned with desire, and anticipation coiled through her. “Come, my love,” he coaxed gently. “It is time and there is nothing of which to be afraid.”

****

“You were rather optimistic in your theory that it would only take half an hour to extract ourselves from your relatives,” Gabriella said as they rounded the side of the stables and headed down the path to the dower house. The snow was eight inches thick and still falling.

Nick flung his arm around her and pulled her into his body to help keep her warm, but she struggled free. “I think they were deliberately trying to stop us getting away. Trying to frustrate me, I’d say.”

“I do believe they were,” she giggled and he chuckled in reply.

The path dipped down a slight incline and she clutched the arm of his coat. Nick held the lantern he carried higher just as his foot gave way on some unseen ice. His sore knee protested the extra pull on it. It seemed that the world overturned slowly as he landed with a thud in the soft snow. A little squeal of terror came from his wife’s lips as he sucked in the air which had been brutally expelled from his lungs. A quick mental assessment of his body told him nothing had been damaged including his previous injuries.

“Oh Nick, are you all right? My darling.”

“I’m fine,” he assured her. “Just help me up.” He raised his hand and she took it. In one swift movement he pulled her down on top of him. She squealed and kicked unconvincingly.

“Oh you vexing man,” she cried as she wriggled in his grasp.

He rolled her into the snow, covering her body with his and kissed her hard and thoroughly. He would not chance her catching a chill keeping her in the snow for any length of time but he needed to claim her as his, even if only briefly.

He lifted his head and tried to look at her but their lantern had gone out. It was almost pitch black, he was hard as a brick and she was reaching up for another kiss.

“We need to hurry. I don’t want you catching a chill,” he said gruffly, scrambling to his knees.

“A little snow never hurt anyone,” she protested.

“Come on.” He got to his feet and held his hand out to her. She accepted and he pulled her to a standing position. He grabbed the now useless lantern and turned in the direction of the lights from the dower house.

“Nick?”

“Yes.”

“Have I done something wrong?”

“No. Why would you think that?” He pulled her against him again and this time she did not pull away.

“You were playful, then you kissed me and then you were all business-like and gruff all within about a minute. I would have kissed you back but I was taken unawares.”

“I know.”

“Then why did you pull away?”

“Because, my darling, if I hadn’t, I was in very near danger of lifting that lovely wedding gown, unfastening my knee breeches and consummating our marriage in the snow.”

“Really?” Her voice was full of wonder.

“Really. And much though it may have been pleasurable while it was happening, I doubt you taking a fever tomorrow would enhance our Christmas any.”

“I suppose not. Nick?”

“Yes.”

“When we consummate the marriage, will we be…naked?” This last word came out in a stage whisper and he suppressed a chuckle.

“I would like that very much.” He did not think he had ever had sex without any clothes on before. It had only ever been a quick tumble and the very idea of being skin-to-skin made him grow even harder, if that was possible.

“Nick?”

“Yes.”

“Your mother said a maid would prepare me for you, but I don’t need a maid.”

“All right. What about your gown and its fastenings and your stays?” There was a moment’s silence and he could tell she was embarrassed.

“If we are going to be naked, surely you can undo a few buttons and a few laces, can you not?”

Devil take it. The woman was trying to make his nether-regions explode with want.

“I can, if that is what you would prefer.”

“It is.”

“Will you be willing to help remove my boots?” he asked, hoping he could dismiss his valet too.

“Of course.”

“Then I shall send the servants to bed as soon as we get in the house.”

They had arrived and they stepped up onto the sweeping porch, stamping the snow off their boots. He turned and brushed the snow off Gabriella’s back and she returned the favour just as the butler opened the door.

“Ah Speirs. Thank you,” said Nick, handing his hat and gloves to the older man. He turned to Gabby, who was shivering and having trouble with the ribbon on her fur-trimmed bonnet. He helped her out of them and her soaking kid gloves. “Right, I think we need some hot chocolate brought to her ladyship’s bedchamber, then bank the fires everywhere but that room and send all the servants to bed, including her maid and my valet.” The butler gave him a quizzical look but said nothing.

Nick helped Gabriella out of her thick fur cloak and handed it to the butler before shrugging out of his own cloak. Her gown was dry save for the hem that had been dragged through the snow.

He hurried her into the warm bedchamber. She shuddered at the change of temperature and he walked straight to her dressing room, found a thick woollen shawl and returned, draping it round her shoulders and pressing her into a seat by the fire.

“Sorry,” she whispered, wrapping the shawl tightly around herself.

“No need to apologise. I should not have pulled you into the snow.”

“I shall warm up quickly enough now I am by the fire.”

He turned when the maid brought in a tray laid with a large pot of hot chocolate, two cups and some sandwiches and cakes. She set it down on the small desk where Nick indicated, bobbed a curtsey and left.

Nick quickly fetched Gabriella a cup of hot chocolate before getting his own and sitting opposite her.

“Why did the butler give you a funny look when you said to bank all the fires but this one?”

“Did he?”

“You know he did.”

“Well, despite the fact everyone knows that I will come to your bed and consummate the marriage, it is still the tradition that I go to my room, undress and come to you, make love then return to my own room before the maid arrives in the morning.”

“So everyone pretends it’s not happening? For what purpose?”

He shrugged.

“I have no idea because if there is not a stain on the sheet in the morning, you can guarantee that it would be the talk of the servants’ quarters too.”

“A stain?”

“Yes.” He sighed. “My mother really did not tell you much, did she?”

“I did not ask much.”

“Yet you have no concerns about asking me.”

She smiled. “You are my husband.”

“I was not your husband until twelve hours ago.”

“No, but before that you were my betrothed.”

“True. I like that you trust me. Do you trust me enough to show you rather than explain in detail?” Her eyebrows raised and her shy smile was back. “First we need to get my boots off though.”

He raised one leg and she giggled. She placed her cup on the table at her side and moved to him, taking the boot in both hands and tugging. Not being quite as strong or as adept as a gentleman’s valet, it took her a few attempts to remove the footwear. By the time the second one lay on the floor beside its twin she was gasping and laughing, her bosom heaving and her face bright, her eyes glistening.

“Come here,” he said gruffly. Her grin waned and she approached him warily, but he knew she was not afraid.

He lifted her wedding gown at the skirt until he could see her knees. It was still damp and heavy.

“Put one knee on this side of my hip and one of the other and sit on my lap.” His voice was hoarse and he knew the hold he had on his self-control was tenuous at best. She did as he asked. “Now kiss me. You are in control, Gabrielle. As hard or as soft as you like.”

She placed a hand on either side of his face then lowered her mouth to his, moving her lips tentatively at first, waiting to see how he reacted. When he followed her lead, she became bolder, exploring his lips with her tongue then pushing it into his mouth.

Nick reached down and worked loose the laces of first one of her boots then the other as he surrendered to Gabriella’s increasingly bold explorations. He pushed the boots off then set about rubbing the ice blocks that were her feet. Her toes curled and she squirmed on his lap, pulling her lips away from his.

“Sorry, I have ticklish feet, “she murmured as she pressed her mouth back to his. He rubbed her feet with more vigour and she relaxed back into the kiss.

For a long time they sat in front of the fire, kissing, his hands rubbing her cold feet, her hands toying with his hair, little moans of pleasure escaping from one or the other sporadically.

For all his need to bed her and make her his own, he was happy to relax and allow this to take its own form and to allow her to lead. When she began to rock her hips against his ever-present erection, he knew it was time to move on.

He found the buttons at the back of her gown and started to undo them. When she realised what he was doing, she withdrew from the kiss and gazed into his eyes. She was hypnotising. As his fingers reached the small of her back and the last button he moved his hands back up the cotton of her chemise.

“Can I see you naked?” she asked suddenly.

He was taken aback but chuckled. “That is the general idea, my love.”

“I mean before I am naked.”

“If you want.”

“I do.”

He shrugged. “All right. You get that wet gown off, I’ll untie your stays then while you take your hair down and braid it, I shall undress.”

“Fine.” She climbed off his lap and presented her back and the laces of her stays to him.

By the time he had sat on the bed and released his garters and pulled off one stocking, she was sitting at the mirror in just her chemise, pulling pins from her hair and allowing those glorious blonde curls to fall over her shoulders.