His Mistress (10 page)

The soft bite made her heart pound erratically in her chest. From the first moment Tobias had entered Culverstone House several years ago, he’d always sent her pulse racing out of control. When they’d shaken hands to confirm the unwritten conditions of their marriage, her reaction to him had been even more disturbing. But now, this close to him, the effect he had on her was devastating. Not even the few times they’d spent together in the past week had prepared her for the way this intimate setting overwhelmed her senses with the raw essence of him.

Jane pulled her hand away from Tobias’ lips and trembled at the barely audible growl she heard rumbling in his chest. The raw hunger darkening his features sent exhilaration sweeping through her. Tobias wanted her. He desired her—plain, unassuming Jane. The heady rush of emotion evaporated quickly and disappointment stabbed at her as she turned away and stared down at the stage.

Tobias couldn’t possibly desire Jane. He hadn’t even recognized
her
. It emphasized how little an impression she’d made on him—on anyone. The knowledge stung, but she quickly discarded the emotion. She didn’t have the right to feel disappointment. For years, she’d done everything she could to make herself nondescript. Tobias’ inability to recognize her for the second time here in the club only emphasized her achievement to be obscure.

Self-doubt assailed her as she considered Tobias’ offer to serve her. More than a dozen times this past week, she’d questioned the rationality of testing her skills on Tobias. What would he do if he learned who she really was? It could make things quite difficult between them once they were married, especially if she lost her heart to him.

Jane brutally dismissed the idea. She would never allow such a thing to happen. Still, her freedom to choose might be in jeopardy if Tobias were to discover who she really was. As her husband, he had the legal right to control her movements. The men she knew preferred their wives to be circumspect in all things. Simply because they had an agreement didn’t mean he would be willing to let his wife visit the club.

And her presence here in
La Maison des Plaisirs Sombres
was anything
but
prudent. Simply because he found pleasure here in Angélique’s establishment didn’t mean he would approve of her participation in his lifestyle. Inwardly, she scoffed at the idea. To avoid discovery, all she need do was not remove her mask.

Not revealing who she was resolved everything. It was not as though she were actually betraying the vows they would exchange. She winced inwardly at the justification for her deceit. Despite her guilt, she wasn’t willing to risk telling him the truth.

Jane nibbled at her lip as she studied him, and another low growl filled the air between them. The sound crushed her guilt and self-doubt. Anticipation raced down her spine like a jolt of electricity and skimmed across her skin until her hair was on end. With a slight touch, a softly spoken word, and a confidence that was more of a façade than he’d guessed, she knew she had Tobias’ full attention.

He’d paid her the highest compliment she could ever hope to receive. He’d compared her to Angélique. Tobias believed her capable of using nothing more than her strength of will to make him submit to her demands. The idea was as freeing as it was exciting.

“Your compliment pleases me.” Jane was grateful her voice was steady even though her breathing was not.

“I’m glad,” he rasped.

“And shall I bend you to my will,
mon cher
?”

Jane traced a small circle on the top of his thigh, her gaze holding his for a long moment. In the soft glow of gaslight, Jane saw a flash of something dark and primitive in his eyes before he bowed his head in a gesture of deference. Triumph heated her blood as she waited for his reply. Less than a second later, her exuberance crumbled into defeat.

“You chose an intriguing name to use here at
La Maison des Plaisirs Sombres
, my Lady.”

He didn’t retreat from her touch, but almost as if he’d shut off a gaslight, the flow of sexual tension between them was snuffed out. It was deliberate on his part, and it put a distance between them that left her frustrated. She bit back a noise of exasperation. Angélique had told Jane that her expectations might be too high. The Frenchwoman had warned her Tobias would not submit easily.

Perhaps her friend was right. Jane’s heart sank. What if she’d failed in her quest to obtain Tobias’ surrender before she’d even begun? He was nothing like the malleable men who gathered around her night after night offering to submit to her. Even Edward, despite his childish behavior this evening, would be an easier postulant to tame than Tobias. Jane dismissed her misgivings.

Tobias was a challenge. He would test her fledgling skills and ability to secure his submission. She needed to remember that
she
was the one in control. He had only shied away from her, much like a wild stallion unwilling to be tamed. The thought evoked imagery in her head that made her heart slam into her chest. Not even Barnaby had ever engendered such hedonistic images in her head. Her mouth suddenly dry, Jane turned her attention back to the scene in the Obedience Chamber.

“I didn’t realize my name was anything more than the need to hide my true identity.” Jane deliberately infused her voice with enigmatic amusement.

“Usually it is, but the name you’ve chosen describes you as elusive, provocative, and fascinating. Qualities few men can ignore.” Buried beneath his teasing words, she heard the faintest echo of desire entwined with a determination to resist her.

“And do you count yourself among the men
capable
of resisting my allure…completely?”

With a flick of her wrist, she opened her fan. With as much lethargy as possible, she fanned the air in front of her. Deliberately she allowed the black lace of the fan to provocatively brush across the tops of her breasts. A chuckle escaped him, and she cast a glance in his direction to see him watching her with obvious amusement. Once more, he reminded her of an untamed steed daring her to try and conquer him. Jane quickly suppressed her frustration and snapped the fan closed then gently slapped the wood slats against the top of his hand.

“I told you earlier to watch the performance below,” she instructed in a tone that said she would brook no argument from him.

“As you wish,” he said with a mischievous grin. With a slight nod to acknowledge her dominate status he turned his head to watch the play in the chamber below.

“For a man who deliberately sought me out several nights ago, you display an obvious reluctance to give yourself over to my care,” she challenged.

“On the contrary, I obeyed the command you issued at our last meeting. I saved my seed for you and you alone. It is more than I have
ever
done for any other Lady.” His jaw tightened and a small tic appeared in his cheek. Instinctively, she knew he’d revealed more than he’d intended.

“Why do I think you found it difficult to obey that simple command?”

Jane made sure not to sound amused. She wanted Tobias to surrender to her, but she had no desire to emasculate him. She wanted to harness his strength and power, not suppress it as they experienced an exquisite pleasure and satisfaction together.

“It was…a challenge simply because all I could think of this week was you.” His words emphasized his reluctance to give way completely to her. She bit back a smile.

“And when you thought of me, you experienced no temptation to disobey my orders at all?”

“
No
,” he rasped with an abruptness that was like metal scraping across an iron grate. A second later, he nodded his head. “
Yes
, damn you.”

“Well then, I’m glad you were at least
tempted
by thoughts of me.”

“There were times when I almost gave way and used my hand to spill the seed I’d promised only to you.” His voice was a harsh growl, but he didn’t turn his head to meet her gaze.

Instead, he kept his attention fixed on the stage, the line of his jaw hard and unyielding. When he didn’t say anything further, Jane leaned into him and placed her hand on his thigh. He became even more rigid, and she glanced down to see the growing bulge in his trousers.

“You intrigue me,
mon cher
,” she whispered as she slid her hand up along the inside of his thigh.

“Do I?”

There was something dark and rebellious in his voice. Tobias would fight her every step of the way. The thought sent excitement streaking through her. She’d wanted to find a man capable of testing her strength unlike any other, and Tobias would give her that challenge. She wanted to reach into his depths until the darkness she sensed in him spilled out of him in a wild cry of irrepressible submission to her will.

With deliberate slowness, Jane scraped her fingernail from the base of his erection up to the tip of him. Tobias jerked beneath her touch, and his body hardened into an immobile statue. Jane knew it was a bold, confident caress, and the ease with which she performed the action startled her. She’d never caressed any man so intimately before, not even Barnaby.

Awareness slowly filtered its way into Jane’s head as she swallowed her shock at the manner in which she was touching Tobias. During her training at
La Maison des Plaisirs Sombres,
she’d used crops and the handle of a whip to touch the men she’d controlled, but she’d always avoided intimate caresses such as this. She’d simply considered her unwillingness to do so as part of her inexperience.

It wasn’t until now that she understood why she’d not sought reciprocal pleasure from the men offering to serve her. Deep inside she’d longed for a man of Tobias’ strength to test her. She’d never dreamed Tobias would be that man, and she couldn’t deny the pleasure the thought gave her. He ignited desire in her, and she reveled in the exquisite sensations spiraling its way through her body.

“Shall I tell you why you intrigue me?” she whispered into his ear.

“You honor me with the offer to do so, my Lady.”

Although his voice was steady, Jane heard the note of need layered beneath his words. The heady scent of him filled her nostrils as her lips brushed his cheek. His sharp inhalation at her touch heated the blood in her veins.

“You fascinate me because you kept your seed for me, and yet I know you will fight the need to release it in my presence.”

“Perhaps my need for release is not as strong as you believe.” The manner in which he choked out his words said he was teetering on the edge of a cliff. A precipice of surrender she’d led him to, and she was certain he would jump.

“Your body betrays you…” She paused and realized she wanted his first act of submission to be the sharing of his real name. “What name shall I address you with?”

“Tobias,” he said through gritted teeth.

Jane’s heart skipped a beat at the small concession. Angélique had told her there were few people in the club who used their real names, including Tobias. That he’d shared his real name with her indicated a trust she knew would be necessary between them.

“Tobias,” she murmured, testing the sound of it on her lips. It wasn’t the first time she’d spoken his name, but she’d never done it in his presence. Lazily, she traced a line across the material stretched taut over his hard length. “You are a conundrum, Tobias. Your arousal is as obvious as your reluctance to submit to my will and accept the pleasure you will experience in doing so.”

He remained silent, and Jane reached out to turn his head so she could look in his eyes. There wasn’t a hint of submission in the gaze that met hers. Instead, banked fires glowed in his eyes, and a shiver raced down Jane’s back. A sharply pitched desire clutched at her body with a strength she knew would test her abilities with Tobias.

“Yield to me, Tobias.”

Without waiting for his reply, Jane rose to her feet and walked away without looking over her shoulder. A small part of her feared he wouldn’t follow her, but she dismissed the fear. He’d held his seed for her. Something he’d admitted he’d never done for any other woman. It declared how much he desired her, but would that be enough to make him submit to her fully? Angélique’s cautionary words flitted through Jane’s head. She pushed them aside. She intended to do everything in her power to seduce and bind Tobias to her.

The words
heart and soul
echoed softly in the back of her mind, but she crushed them. Allowing such a dangerous thought to fill her head was tantamount to confessing she wanted more from Tobias than the simple pleasure of exerting her will over him. She would not surrender her heart to a man again. Giving up her heart was nothing more than submission, and she had no intention of submitting to any man.

H
eart pounding, Jane opened the door to the room Angélique had made available solely for her use. The room was arranged exactly as she’d instructed her friend’s manservant. Her gaze drifted from the prayer bench to the St. Andrews cross screwed into the wall to the padded table she’d selected at the last moment. A brief second later, the sight of the large bed in the room made her heart skip a beat.