My Lady Series Bundle (21 page)

“That’s it, baby girl, I want you to move on me,” he groaned.

“Raven.
Raven!” Rosebud cried as he plucked her clitoris and she began to hump his cock. In and out of her ass without coherent thought, he suspected. The ache to be the one riding instead of ridden finally overwhelmed him and he grasped her shoulders bending her over more at the hips as he swung his hips with a rapid and driving rhythm. Yet that was exquisite because his baby girl was climaxing with passionate cries beneath him.

C
hloe did not know how she could sit serenely across from Raven eating dinner when only a short time before they had been . . .
Oh
, every time she looked at him she felt his proprietorship, she felt her sensitive bottom, and she could not help but squirm in her seat with confusing, yet delicious feelings centering in her chest.

She had liked it! And Raven knew. Telling her with each glance of his dark seductive eyes and the way he circled the edge of his crystal wine glass with the blunt end of his finger. Around and around like . . .
Oh
, she looked quickly down at her plate. She could not possibly eat.

“Rosebud, come here.”

Chloe looked at Raven as she crumpled the linen napkin between her hands resting in her lap. “I want to go to my room,” she murmured.

“No.”

“But . . .” Chloe huffed indignantly, “You told me I had free rein of your home.”

“Free movement, baby girl, not rein,” he murmured. “Now come here.”

Oh she did not like it when he called her baby girl in that seductive whiskey-burned rasping voice of his. It reminded her of a warm intimate endearment. And it reminded her about what he had done to her. Well actually, she thought, standing with a pout on her lips, it was what she had fully participated in too. If she were completely honest with herself, she would have to admit that somewhere along the way she had come to crave Raven’s domination of her. Did she really want to be Raven’s complete sexual slave or was this some type of kidnapping madness come over her? The answer was lost because she had reached Raven’s side and he startled her thoughts away by pulling her onto his lap.

“Now, my love, you need to eat.”

My love? Chloe looked deep into Raven’s ebony eyes, wanting desperately to ask him what he meant by the endearment and if he could possibly . . . yet, just then he slid a strawberry between her lips. “Bite,” he murmured with a steamy sensual look in his eyes. When she had delicately bitten the tip off he'd turned the berry to his own mouth and finished it with a slow bite. His other hand was intimately cupping one cheek of her bottom through the silk of her dress as he reached forward to pick up his crystal glass of champagne. “Now a sip of this,” he murmured, pressing the cool edge of the crystal glass to her slightly swollen lips. She complied, watching him over the edge of the glass feeling the light bubbles tingle her nose as she took a sip. He was so handsome . . . no, perhaps virile was a better word or compelling and thoroughly masculine.

He reached for another strawberry, and then he asked her completely out of the blue. “Why was the package empty, Rosebud? Where were you taking an empty package?”

Chloe blinked slowly and instinctively bit into the strawberry Raven pressed to her lips. She did not know what to say! Raven did not look angry, he looked sensual and relaxed. She hated to lie and she did not want to pretend to be Lia. But she was as surprised as he would have been that the package was empty. She had been used again! But to what purpose? She was so terrible at spying games of intrigue.

“You would not believe me,” she whispered as she clutched her hands in her lap looking down at them. “It would make you angry, and I am here with you . . . Yours. What difference could it m-m . . .” The champagne glass was pressed to her lips, halting her words.

“Sip it, Rosebud,” Raven murmured. And she did. “And,” he said softly. “I want you to tell me a fable and I promise that I will try not to become angry.” He paused setting the champagne glass aside and plucked another strawberry from the china bowl in front of him. “And I will tell you, Rosebud, that before I met you I always had great control.”

Fable? Did Raven wish to believe her? Was this his way of saying it? No, Chloe thought, Raven was not sure himself, but perhaps he was torn. That lifted her heart like nothing since getting Sebastian back. Plus it appeared that she made him lose his tightly held control and he had not meant his anger or brute force . . . he meant his passion. His passion for her.

Impulsively she brought her arms around his neck and laid her cheek on his shoulder. He was so warm and he was a bit startled that she would cuddle with him so. He liked to be the aggressor, yet he relaxed and stroked her nape with gentle fingers.

She began to talk slowly. “The person who took my baby told me that I must take the package to Roe Street at midnight. I was told there would be a man there to claim it. I did not know what was in the package and it was wrapped when I received it. Just as you saw it. I-I did not want to know what was in it. I only wanted Sebastian back and the person who took him from me is vicious and evil. I know this . . . I have always known this.”

Chloe paused, rubbing her cheek against Raven’s lapel, gathering her courage. She could not read his reaction this way, he only felt safe and warm. If he was angry with disbelief yet, he was hiding it. His hand at her nape was still gently circling. “I am not witless,” she whispered. “I know that I was being used. I thought it must be because I . . . I, l-look so much like the evil person that took my son . . .” She clutched Raven’s neck. “I thought whoever came to claim the package might think that I was she, and that was why I was sent. Yet now that I know the package was empty . . . It could be so many things. I could never fathom the reasons this person would do the things that they do. There is so much subterfuge and lies . . . But I-I had to get Sebastian back even if it was dangerous. I had no choice. This was my only hope and-and this person knows that.”

“Rosebud, were there any other instructions?” Raven asked quietly with his lips close to her ear.

“Yes, I was to take a room at the Carlton Hotel.” Raven stiffened at this, but she continued wanting to say it all quickly. “I was to leave from there and I was ordered to hire a public hackney in front of the hotel. Then my instructions were to stop at Brighton road and walk from there to Roe Street.”

“And were they there with you at the Carlton?” Raven asked in an intense whisper.

“No, I was alone there overnight,” Chloe answered. “Pigot brought me the package and instructions that morning . . . Oh, Buddha!” she finished on an exclamation, having realized the mistake of using any names.

“Pigot,
” Raven hissed.

Chloe looked up at him and he regarded her intently with his heated black eyes. His hands were tight on her. She wanted to run yet instead she said as calmly as she could. “Monseigneur Pigot always works with this person. He is devoted to . . .”

“How long?” Raven asked interrupting her with a harsh voice.

“I do not know exactly. Years certainly. At least ten years that I know of.”

Raven stood abruptly, handling her waist to set her before him, prior to turning and walking to the sideboard. Once there he pulled the crystal stopper out of the whiskey. “Do you know . . .” he asked in a low rasp that was filled with suppressed anger. “The note that came with Sebastian said. The baby is hers. Keep them, Scar.” Chloe pressed backward against the edge of the table as Raven poured his whiskey. “Rosebud, there are only two people who have ever called me Scar and Pigot is one of them.”

“He
knew
?” Chloe exclaimed. “Pigot knew that I was here? He knew to send Sebastian here?”

“Damnation,” Raven cursed as he tossed back the whiskey in a single swallow, turning to gaze at her with his black eyes smoldering. “Go to bed, Rosebud,” he said heavily. “
Go
to bed now.”

As much as Chloe wanted to speak and ask Raven more questions she knew by looking at him that he held his promise to her by only a thread. And she also knew as she fled the room that everything that happened this night made her look more like Lia, and a horrible liar!

T
he next morning after feeding and dressing Sebastian, Chloe brought him downstairs to the dining room to have tea and scones. When she asked, she was informed by the downstairs butler that Raven had left early that morning with no return time mentioned. She had only seen him one more time last evening and that was when she woke to feed Sebastian and Raven had told her to bring Sebastian into the bed to feed. She sleepily remembered that Raven had watched her feed Sebastian very intently. But she must have fallen asleep while feeding Sebastian because when she woke this morning, Sebastian was in his crib. That meant Raven had carried him. Raven had held her baby, and as much as he wanted to be angry at her last night he had kept his promise.

“My lady, you have a visitor,” the butler announced, just as Chloe was finishing her tea.

Chloe turned her head to look up at him. Her heart fluttered with a shot of fear and she clutched Sebastian closer on her lap where he was playing with a silver spoon. “A-Are you sure?”

“Oh yes, he is quite sure,” a lady replied gaily as she stepped into the room to pass the butler at the door. Chloe had never seen the woman before, yet she was quite beautiful with auburn hair and she was wearing a stylish lavender walking dress that complimented her violet eyes. “I am Lady Kittridge, and I am certain your butler will bring us some more tea.”

Lord Kittridge’s wife.
Chloe stood belatedly holding Sebastian in her arms not quite sure what to do as Lady Kittridge exclaimed, “Oh a baby! Drummond did not tell me you had a baby. Is he a boy? Oh yes he is, look he is wearing these darling knickers. What is his name?”

“Sebastian,” Chloe answered as she watched Lady Kittridge hold out her white gloved hands.

“May I hold him? Please say that I can,” she asked with such sweet excitement lighting up her pretty face. “And you must call me, Gabriella, and I will call you?”

Chloe let Lady Gabriella take Sebastian. She seemed so happy about it and it gave her such obvious pleasure that Chloe did not have the heart to deny her. “Lady Sang,” Chloe mumbled, watching Lady Gabriella sit while holding Sebastian up on his chubby little legs in her lap. She had an expectant look on her face as she looked up at her. “Rosebud,” Chloe finally said. “It is a nickname, but . . .”

“Rosebud,” Lady Gabriella exclaimed. “How beautiful. And do you think, Sebastian, that your mama is very beautiful.” Lady Gabriella held Sebastian’s hands as he tiptoed on her lap and gurgled. “Oh yes, you sweet baby, look how handsome you are.”

Chloe sat again, but nearly jumped to her feet once more when she heard a voice to her left rasp. “What the hell is this?”

“Oh, Harrison,” Gabriella exclaimed, turning in her chair to look at him. “How could you keep this beautiful baby a secret from me? And when Drummond told me about, Lady Rosebud, I simply had to visit. Besides, Drummond and I are having a party this evening to celebrate my own pregnancy, and when Drummond told me that you, his closest friend in the entire world might not be there! I just had to come and make certain. All of the Archangels will be there, Harrison, and I just know, Lady Rosebud, will not deny me if I invite her face to face. Which I am.”

“Lady Rosebud,” Harrison muttered, then he turned more fully to Gabriella. “Congratulations, Gabriella,” he said warmly as he stepped forward to take Gabriella’s hand which he bowed over and kissed. Then he said, “You are much too shrewd for that husband of yours, Madame.”

Gabriella laughed gaily. “And you will come to my party and bring, Lady Rosebud, with you?”

“Of course, Gabriella, I could never deny you,” Harrison responded.

Chloe was awed by all the information she was learning, yet more so by watching Raven play the accomplished gentlemen. She now knew Raven’s first name and she wondered who the Archangels were, except, however nice this all was she just could not leave Sebastian.

“I, um,” she began to say as they both turned to her. “I could not leave Sebastian,” she managed to say.

“Oh dear,” Gabriella said. “You do not have a nanny?”

“No, my lady,” Chloe replied.

“Well then certainly I must send you Matilda and everything will be finely tended to,” Gabriella said happily.

Chloe looked at Raven and he nodded his head. She would not defy him in front of Lady Gabriella so she kept her reservations until later, and she murmured, “It would be an honor, your grace.”

“Oh my, your grace, she says,” Gabriella muttered. “I will never get used to that you know. It makes me sound too old, I am certain of it. Lady Gabriella will do, Lady Rosebud, if you must. But I certainly will campaign for just Gabriella. You will see. We are all such good friends, and now that I have met you, Rosebud, I am certain you will be one with all of us.” Gabriella turned to Harrison. “Do you not agree, Harrison?”

“I never argue with a duchess, Madame,” he muttered.

Several hours later after Lady Gabriella left, having stayed and played with Sebastian for over an hour, Chloe sought Raven in his study. He had been brooding, she could see that by the way he reclined in his chair before the fire with a glass of whiskey dangling from his scarred fingertips. She nearly backed out of the room but her mission was too important. “Raven, I cannot leave Sebastian. It is too dangerous,” she began without a preamble.

Raven barely turned his head at her voice beside him, yet his dark eyes glanced at her. “Because of the fable?” he rasped with a muttering sound.

Chloe wanted to stamp her foot. Raven was acting as if he were the petulant child, not hearing what he had wished to hear from her, so that now he was going to pout about it. Pout and drink heavily it appeared. “Of course because of the fable,” she answered in exasperation.

“I have taken care of it,” he said with a weak rise of his wrist and the whiskey glass.