To Tempt An Angel (Book 1 Douglas series) (25 page)

By eight o’clock, Angelica had already washed and dressed and sat alone in the dining room. On the table in front of her were buttered scones and a pot of tea. She ate her breakfast and perused
The Times
, looking for some mention of her abduction of the Marquess of Argyll’s daughter by his former mistress.

The newspaper contained no hint of her felony. She supposed Lucille was waiting for her fortune to arrive.

The bargain Robert had made with Lucille confirmed Angelica’s suspicions about the woman. Thankfully, Daisy need never pass another moment in that woman’s company.

A footman appeared in the doorway and handed something to Tinker. The majordomo delivered the missive to her at the table.

Breaking its seal, Angelica read,
Noon?
There was no signature, but she knew the note’s sender. She pocketed the missive but felt herself heating with embarrassment, as if the majordomo knew what the note contained.

“Lady Angelica, pardon my boldness, but are you feeling well?” Tinker asked. “You seem a bit flushed.”

“I am quite well,” Angelica managed to choke out. “Thank you for your concern.”

Halfheartedly cursing the marquess for putting her into this untenable position, Angelica left Jasper breakfasting in his dining room cage and returned to her chamber. She sat on the chaise in front of the hearth and considered what she was about to do.

If the Marquess of Argyll thought she would sneak into his house and submit to his every whim like a whore, he was destined for disappointment. She would lay in his bed like a dead woman, or fight him every step—

Sacred sevens
, she would
not
fight him, Angelica decided, a soft smile touching her lips. She would teach the arrogant bastard a lesson he’d never forget.

Since he was intent on making her play the whore in order to keep Daisy safe, she would give him a day to remember for the rest of his life. And after that, she would never share anything with him again until the hereafter, when they would burn together in the flames of Hell.

What did she have to lose? Angelica thought. He’d already taken her virginity.

If only she could recall what those streetwalkers at the fair had told her . . .

With her cloak wrapped around her and its hood pulled up to cover her blond hair, Angelica left the duke’s residence at five minutes before noon. She dodged raindrops and puddles as she hurried down Park Lane to the marquess’s residence.

Angelica stood at the top of the stairs, mentally bracing herself, and reached for the doorknocker. She pasted a bright smile on her face when it opened a moment later.

“Welcome, Lady Angelica,” Webster said, stepping back to allow her entrance. “His Lordship is expecting you.”

“Good afternoon, Webster,” Angelica said, walking into the foyer.

“May I take your cloak?” he asked.

“No, thank you,” she answered, and then gestured to the front door. “Where are the bodyguards?”

“They’re sitting in the carriages parked across the street,” the majordomo told her. “Mrs. Sweeting sent me a note. How kind of you to take her and her charge into your home.”

“It’s the Duke of Inverary’s home and kindness,” Angelica replied.

“Quite right,” the majordomo agreed. “Please follow me.”

Webster led Angelica up the stairs to the third floor and then walked down the carpeted corridor. He stopped in front of a closed door and knocked, calling, “Your lordship?”

“Send her in,” she heard Robert say.

Angelica hoped the marquess wasn’t waiting in bed. How would she ever face the majordomo again?

“Thank you, Webster,” Angelica said, pretending that visiting the marquess in his bedchamber was perfectly agreeable. “That will be all.”

“Very good, my lady.”

Angelica stepped into the room and let the door click shut behind her. Dressed in black trousers and shirt, Robert stood with his back to her and gazed out the window. He didn’t turn around right away, and she admired his broad shoulders and tapered waist.

Crossing the chamber, Angelica thought about this perfect specimen of manhood, pressing her down with his body, imbedding himself deep within her. She felt her knees go weak, the butterflies in her stomach take flight, and a tautness between her thighs. She wanted him.

“Your prayers have been answered,” Angelica said, standing behind him.

Robert turned around. His black shirt was partially unbuttoned, and the jeweled Cross of Wotan gleamed at her.

“You’re wearing the cross,” Angelica said.

“I haven’t removed it since you put it there,” Robert told her. “May I take your cloak?”

Angelica pushed the hood off her head, revealing her mane of streaked gold hair. “After I’ve had a glass of—”

“Whiskey, I think,” Robert said, and crossed the chamber to the bedside table.

Angelica knew that he could see her nervousness. She glanced out the window to the garden below. Again, that blond woman sat in the gazebo and looked toward the house. Hadn’t Robert noticed her? Why wasn’t the woman wearing a cloak to protect herself from the rain?

“Why is that woman sitting in the rain?” Angelica asked, turning around.

Robert stood at the bedside table, where a decanter, two glasses, and a bowl of fruit had been placed. He gave her a curious look and poured a splash of whiskey into one of the crystal glasses.

“To what woman do you refer?” Robert asked, returning to her.

“The woman sitting in the gazebo.”

Robert glanced out the window and said, “I don’t see anyone.”

Angelica whirled around. The gazebo was empty.

“I guess she returned to her duties.”  Without taking her gaze from his, Angelica lifted the glass to her lips and took a sip. The whiskey burned a trail to the pit of her stomach.

“You don’t need to do this,” Robert told her, a tenseness in his voice. “I’ll let you keep the girl.”

The girl?
He never referred to Daisy as his daughter. Eventually, she would need to speak to him about that.

Angelica knew that Robert was giving her the opportunity to leave. Accepting his offer never entered her mind.

“A bargain is a bargain,” Angelica told him, her blue eyes gleaming with anticipation, the corners of her mouth turned up in a smile. She sensed him relax.

Taking the last sip of whiskey, Angelica passed him the empty glass. She waited for him to set it down and then unfastened her cloak, letting it drop to the floor at her feet.

Robert slid his dark gaze from her face to her body in the high-waisted morning gown. He stepped closer.

 “Not so fast,” Angelica said, holding out her hand in a gesture for him to stay where he was. “I’m providing the entertainment for today.”

Robert inclined his head.

Angelica showed him her back. Glancing over her shoulder, she said, “The buttons, my lord.”

Robert gave her a wicked smile and stepped closer. He unfastened the buttons with the practiced ease of a man who had undressed dozens of women.

Turning to face him, Angelica captured his black gaze with her own. Slowly and deliberately, she pushed the sleeves down her arms, and the gown’s bodice slid to her waist letting it drop to the floor at her feet, she stepped out of the gown. Angelica stood before him in a sleeveless, nearly transparent silk chemise. “Do you like what you see?”

“Very tempting, angel,” he answered, his gaze fixed on her breasts, covered only by a whisper of silk.

Angelica slipped the chemise’s straps down her arms, and it, too, fell to the floor. She wore nothing beneath the chemise except the diamond pendant, silk stockings held up by lace garters, and rouge used to accent her nipples.

She caught his heated gaze and asked, “Do you like my breasts?”

“You know I do,” Robert said in a husky voice, and stepped forward.

Angelica held up her hand. “You’ll need to wait.”

“What the bloody hell are you doing?” Robert growled. “If your intention is teasing, then you had better—”

“I simply want to undress you,” she interrupted, and smiled at his surprised expression.

Angelica stepped closer. She stared into his dark eyes, unbuttoned his shirt, and pushed it off his shoulders. Then she pressed herself against him and slid her breasts back and forth across his chest. When she heard his sharp intake of breath, she felt immensely pleased with herself.

Almost immediately, Angelica stepped back and whispered, “Stay where you are.” She began walking around him, as if assessing his worth. After rubbing her breasts against his back, she embraced him from behind and slipped her hands to his groin.

“So hard for me,” she said, and continued her stroll until she stood in front of him again.

Angelica caressed his cheek, her fingers tracing a line down his throat to his chest. She settled her hands on his flat nipples and caressed them with her fingertips.

And then her lips and tongue replaced her fingers. She flicked her tongue back and forth across his nipple, teasing it to aroused hardness, and then she suckled upon it.

Robert drew her up and kissed her with the fiery passion she had ignited in him. One of his hands held the back of her head, keeping her immobile, while the other cupped her buttocks and pulled her against his unyielding frame as he ground his lower regions against her.

Angelica felt her control slipping. She insinuated her hands between their bodies and unfastened his trousers, pushing them down his body until they dropped to his ankles. Hooking her arms around his neck, she returned his kiss with equal ardor. She slipped her tongue between his lips and explored his mouth while savoring the exquisite sensation of their nakedness pressed together.

Releasing him, Angelica stepped back a pace and said, “Touch me.”

Her invitation was irresistible.

With a hand on each side of her head, Robert kissed her gently and then, watching her reactions, slid his hands down her cheeks to the slender column of her throat. His touch was a summer’s breeze lightly caressing her skin, and Angelica realized, in some distant corner of her mind how difficult controlling himself must be.

Robert caressed the outside of her arms from her shoulders to her fingertips. Lifting her hands, he planted a kiss on each and turned them over to flick his tongue across their palms before letting them drop to her sides.

Slowly, enticingly, Robert slid his fingertips up the inside of her arms. He cupped and lifted her breasts. With his dark gaze fixed on hers, he brushed his thumbs across her rouged nipples and smiled when he heard her audible gasp of pleasure.

“I love your sensitive nipples,” Robert said huskily.

Leaning close, Robert placed a kiss on each and then glided his hands down the sides of her body to her gently rounded hips. He traced a teasing line across her legs and caressed her inner thighs, slowly running his fingers up and down them.

“I want to possess you,” Robert whispered, one long finger slashing up the soft folds of flesh between her thighs.

Angelica moaned softly, his words inflaming her senses. She grabbed his hands and dropped to her knees in front of him. Taking his long length into her mouth, she sucked it and, at the same time, swirled her tongue around the head of his engorged manhood. She heard his groan of pleasure and then—

Robert pulled back, disengaging himself from her mouth, and yanked her to her feet. “What the bloody hell are you doing?” he demanded.

Angelica stared at him blankly, confused by his reaction. He was angry?
Sacred sevens
, he wasn’t supposed to be—

“I asked you a question,” he said.

“What does it look like I’m doing?” she countered.

“Where did you learn that?”

“At the fair.”

“At the fair?” he echoed. “Who taught you?”

“The streetwalkers,” Angelica answered. “I heard the streetwalkers at the fair talking about—
you know
.” Her cheeks pinkened. “I asked them a few questions, and they told me everything about . . .
you know.
”

Robert threw back his head and shouted with laughter. He laughed so hard he had to turn his back and walk away from her.

“Are you laughing at me?” Angelica asked.

Robert nodded. His shoulders still shook with his mirth.

What had she done incorrectly? His response to her advances had been exactly what the streetwalkers had predicted.

Robert turned and walked back to her. “Come here, angel,” he said, opening his arms in invitation. “I want to explain why I laughed.”

Angelica gave him a wary look but stepped forward. Walking into his embrace, she decided she liked the feel of his naked skin touching hers.

With one finger, Robert lifted her chin and looked into her eyes. “I laughed because you are so refreshingly innocent.”

His remark didn’t sit well with Angelica, and there was no mistaking her displeased expression. She thought she’d been highly seductive.

“You do exhibit a natural talent, though,” he amended himself.

Without giving her time to decide if she’d been complimented or insulted, Robert scooped her into his arms and carried her across the chamber to place her on his bed. He lay down beside her and glanced at his groin, saying, “We’ll need to start over.” Then he pulled her into his arms and kissed her as if he would never let her go.

Angelica returned his kiss, her heart vanquishing her resolve to keep him at bay emotionally. She poured all her love into one stirring kiss that melted into another and then another.

“I love you,” Angelica murmured when his lips left hers.

“Lady, you excite me,” Robert said, caressing her back and buttocks, pulling her against the long length of him to feel his aroused manhood.

Angelica dropped her hand to his groin. She stroked his manhood with her silken fingers, and he responded by sliding his hand to the soft folds of flesh between her thighs.

Robert slashed a long finger up and down her female’s cleft until he found the moist, sensitive nub hidden there. “Do you like that?” he whispered.

“Yes,” she breathed, arching herself toward him.

Robert dropped his head to suckle her nipple while his finger continued stroking her in exquisite torment. “Open your eyes,” he whispered, gazing up at her, his lips still attached to her nipple and his fingers on her throbbing jewel.