Charming a Spy (15 page)

She let go of the blankets she was clutching to her chest. The fabric pooled around her waist, casting her once again into curvaceous silhouette stoking his imagination to places it shouldn’t be going. He couldn’t trust himself to be near her and not ravish her. As he stood to leave the room, she reached down and pulled her nightgown over her head. God help him, he could not be a gentleman tonight.

‡

K
at wondered if
she had made a mistake. She thought taking off her nightgown might overcome Geoff’s objections to ravishing her. Instead, he sat there staring at her bare breasts with mouth gaping open. Silently. For what seemed like centuries.

She watched his eyes drink in every inch of her naked body, but still he made no move to touch her. He didn’t kiss her. Instead, he stared. Almost as if he were admiring ancient artifacts… with awe and reverence. In a strange way, it felt good to be gaped at. She felt womanly. Powerful. But she wanted much, much more.

“Your Grace,” Kat said after eons more passed. Could a person grow old in one night?

“Katherine, I have never seen a more beautiful sight,” he said. Thank God. He could speak.

“Now what happens?” she forced herself to ask. Surely he must know what came next. If not, they were out of luck as she had no clue.

“I would be more than pleased to show you,” he said.

He leaned towards her and gently kissed her mouth. Just once. A feather light kiss. Then he moved to her cheek and continued, making a line of tiny pecks all the way to her ear. He touched the side of her neck to pull her in closer, taking her earlobe in his mouth and sucked it like hard candy, sending shivers up and down her body. Nibbling at her lobe hurt a bit but in a surprisingly delicious way.

Geoff released her ear and eased kisses down the slope of her neck. He placed one kiss at the center of her throat, branding her with his mouth. Breathless with anticipation, her nipples tingled, exposed to the cold air, desperate for his touch. But she wanted more.

His body was so close but not touching, and the only contact was his lips, which continued to explore down her bodice, placing gentle raindrop kisses all over her chest.

When he began kissing one breast, licking around the rosy bud, she felt satisfied and bereft all at once. His other hand came up and held her whole breast, squeezing firmly over and over in time with the beat of her heart. Geoff’s tongue drew tight circles around the bullseye of her bosom, and then he pulled her nipple into his mouth again and sucked in hard.

Fireworks. Kat’s back arched in response, thrusting more of herself into his mouth. Her hands grabbed for his muscled back, holding on for dear life. She was scared if she let go, he might stop his ministrations.

Luckily, his mouth stayed where it was, but his hands eased down her body, following the curve of her hip. They dipped below the blanket still covering her waist. “Your Grace.”

“Shhhh… Katherine,” he said. He had experience calming spooked horses and knew just what to do. “Trust me. You’re going to like this.” She wanted to trust him. So she did. She let go.

His hand traveled past her hip and came to rest in the curls where her legs met. He teased her thighs apart and found her warm and wet. When he tickled her there repeatedly, Kat thought she would fly apart. He was right. She did like this. He was very, very right.

He urged her, moving his hands in tiny circles over the bud. A heat built inside her. Her mind went completely blank, as wave after wave of sensation rose within, carrying her along to some unknown place. Definitely out of control.

“Geoff, I can’t. I can’t…”

“Yes, Katherine. Yes, you can. Do it. Let go. Let your body take over,” he coaxed. She listened and her body obeyed. Everything tensed into the most wonderful release she’d ever experienced. Ecstasy. Emotion. Amazement. Everything she craved but didn’t know how to ask… Geoff had given it to her.

She lay on the bed, paralyzed as the waves kept slowly receding. Unsure of how much time had passed, she couldn’t bring herself to care. Eventually, her body still warm and sated, Kat opened her eyes and looked at Geoff, who had laid his head on the pillow next to her, smiling.

“Was that how it was supposed to happen?” she asked.

“Yes, Katherine. You did it exactly right. I loved watching you take pleasure.”

“How can I…?” She wanted to give him the same feeling he’d given her. Make him fly apart with passion as she had. Luckily he understood what she wanted without her having to say the words.

“Another time, love,” he said, pulling a loose strand of hair away from her face. “I will show you another time. For now, relax.”

Kat laid her head back down on the pillow to rest, but instead all of the thoughts that disappeared from her mind moments before came rushing back, all clamoring to get out. “Have you been with many other women?” Kat asked, not sure if she actually wanted to hear the answer.

“Do you honestly want to know? Does it matter?”

“It can’t matter. It’s not as if I am a young debutante and you are courting me. This is a business arrangement after all. I’m just curious.”

“In that case, I will tell you honestly, I have been with more than a few women.”

“Did you love them?”

“This, what you and I did, this thing does not always have to be about love. Sometimes it’s for pleasure. And sometimes only business. Like tonight.”

He was very matter of fact. This man was such an enigma. One moment he was the jolly party host, next the sensitive paramour, and then a cold, unemotional person. So much conflict. A chameleon to any situation. And she knew he was right. There was no love between them. She’d even told him it was straightforward business. So it shouldn’t hurt when he admitted it… but it did.

“I can’t believe that’s true,” Kat insisted. “How could you never have fallen in love before? I’m sure you’ve had your pick. In fact, I’ve seen with my own eyes how women throw themselves at you.”

“Yes, and do you know why they throw themselves at me?”

“I think I do,” Kat said, putting her hand on his chest, twirling her fingers in circles. He looked straight into her eyes as her smile faded, and she saw nothing but pain staring back.

“Most women want something from me. They want the Duke of Stamwell. They want the title, the riches, the power.”

“Bollocks,” she said, knowing even as she attempted to deny it, he was probably right. She was one of those women who wanted his power as duke. Her motive was honorable in that she wanted to save her brother, but in his mind she was another heartless woman taking what she needed from him.

She didn’t want to be one of those women, but she was.

‡

“I
t must be
hard for you to be here, Mr. Grier,” Geoff said over his hand of cards. He’d invited Rafe for a friendly game of Brag as a ruse for interrogation. He’d spent twenty minutes asking leading questions and still the man had no idea what he was up to.

“Not at all. This is the best house party I’ve been to in a while, chap. Wonderful host, really you are,” Rafe answered, barely making eye contact. He concentrated deeply on figuring out how to win the game. There was nothing at stake, but for a gambler like Rafe, once he picked up the cards, he was singularly focused. It served Geoff’s purposes perfectly. He’d been holding a running flush for the past quarter hour, pretending he was waiting for the right card.

“No, what I meant was, it must be hard for you to see Mrs. Seymour and Ms. Dubois here when you know what Luke did to our country. You must want to punish them for his sins,” Geoff said.

“I don’t want to punish them. My only wish is they knew about Luke.” He looked at Geoff as if to surmise if that had been the right response. “Wait just a minute, how do you know what Luke did?” Recognition suddenly dawned on Rafe’s face.

“I’m still involved in some governmental matters. I know you were the one who turned in him as the traitor after Corunna. Not to worry, friend, your secret is safe with me,” he said patting Rafe on the shoulder. Geoff noted Rafe didn’t try to deny it was
his secret
. Rafe took another gulp of his whiskey.

Geoff dug a little deeper, “Do you think it’s possible Ms. Dubois actually knows her brother is a traitor?”

“Um… probably not,” Rafe said tentatively. He was caught off guard and not prepared for this line of questioning. Perhaps he was even denser than Geoff thought.

“So what exactly did her brother do?”

“He sold secrets to the French,” he said as if Geoff was the daft one.

“I know that, of course,” Geoff said reassuringly. “But what did you see him do with your own eyes?”

“Oh, well, I saw him leave in the middle of the night before the battle and I didn’t see him again,” Rafe answered. “Do you want to raise the stakes in the game, Your Grace? Perhaps a few quid to make it interesting?”

Geoff ignored his poor attempt to change the subject. “What if he went to relieve himself?”

“Who?” Rafe said, looking around. “Oh, you mean Luke? Yes, I thought that might be the case at first, but then he never came back to the tent.”

“So you were up all night watching for him to come back?”

“It was the night before Corunna, Your Grace. No one was doing much sleeping.”

“Then you believe he snuck over to the French encampment and gave away our position. Do you think it’s possible he’s still alive then?”

“Ahh,” Rafe said, clutching his forehead. “Not again. I apologize Your Grace. Whenever I talk about the war I get the most awful headache. Perhaps I should go lay down.” He set his cards on the table.

Geoff saw him pull the same lame trick while speaking with Katherine the other night. He put his hand to his head and then went off to get a drink. So that’s why they were leaning in to talk so closely. Katherine must have been asking him questions about the war.

“Of course, you should go lay down,” Geoff said, excusing Rafe. But as he stood to leave, Geoff snuck in one more question, “Still, I’m curious. Why did you assume Luke was a turncoat? Weren’t you friends for many years?”

“He’s French,” Rafe said. It was practically a non-answer. Patriotic loyalties were an easy motive to pin on a traitor, but Geoff learned from Katherine if Luke had any love for a country it was England and not France. That didn’t mean Luke wasn’t the traitor, only that if he had a motive it was most likely a different one altogether.

“Do you know if Luke had a sweetheart? Someone he used to write letters home to?” Geoff asked.

“I don’t know,” Rafe said. “Don’t think so. How about you, Your Grace? Is there someone you particularly fancy? Do you have a future duchess in mind?” Geoff knew what Rafe wanted the answer to be. Both he and his sister had been quite obvious with their intentions.

“Yes, there is. I’m not ready to make the announcement, but I have a feeling it may come by the end of this weekend.” Rafe looked pleased. No harm letting him think it was Jessica.

In truth he fancied a different lady and suddenly wanted to see her very much.

When Rafe retired, Geoff went to find Katherine. After a lengthy search, he finally found her walking in the gardens bordering the forest, alone. She was far enough from the house no one would see them or even think to look for them. In fact, he’d almost missed her, she was so perfectly blended into the surroundings, wearing an emerald green day dress. He approached from behind and planted a small kiss on her exposed neck.

“What!” Kat jumped, terrified at the intrusion, and then giggled when she realized it was him. Her laugh was enchanting… copper wind chimes catching the wind. “Geoff, you caught me by surprise. I wasn’t expecting you. What brings you all the way out here?”

“You,” he said. She smiled coyly back at him. “I’ve decided it’s anywhere, anytime.”

“You mean?” Her eyes grew wide. She glanced around, checking to make sure no one was near. They were alone.

“Yes. I want you now, Katherine.”

“But here? What if someone sees us?”

“They won’t,” he said, putting one hand on either side of her waist and pushing her backward towards the copse of trees at the edge of the garden. He eased her back against a weeping willow, the branches enveloping them in a wispy cocoon. “See? We have privacy in these woods. It’s just you and me, Kat.”