The Duke and the Dressmaker (The St. James Series) (26 page)

He straightened up on his knees and tossed his robe aside. Sara stared at his naked beauty. His arousal
caused her mouth go dry instantly, but he wasn’t finished yet.

Suckling her other breast,
he said, “When you are in extreme pain after being kidnapped, contorted in a trunk, and almost turned into a dollymop, the foremost thing in your mind is a slight girl who helped you from the brothel.”

He leaned down and started on the inside of her leg and kissed his way up to her
damp curls. “But what I love most about you is how you react to my touches, and how I can make you writhe beneath me.” His tongue found her nub and he tasted her heat. Her moans of ecstasy brought him back up to her lips to capture her sounds of joy. He pulled himself up to balance his weight on his elbows, then settled between her thighs and teased her with his tip at her slick entrance.

“Now do you believe that I love you, Sara?”

“Yes, Philip. Please, I need you inside me. I want you now.” She begged for him, wanted him so much. Why did this man drive her over the edge? Spreading her thighs for him, she arched toward him, needing his fullness inside her. She blushed at her wantonness but didn’t stop. Reaching for him, she teased herself with his member until she could no longer hang onto him.

“Oh, Philip!” she
cried as he entered her.

“And I so love how you
call out my name.” He smiled at her.

Philip lost complete control. He took one look at the passion in her eyes and grabbed her hips so he could bury himself deeper inside her.

“Am I hurting you, love?” he ground out between thrusts.

“No,” she whispered
. “I love how you feel inside me.”

“Good, because no way in hell could I stop. You have no idea how
good you feel.”

He
could tell he was about to explode, so he reached down between them and caressed her nub until he could feel her contractions possess him. He swallowed her scream with a kiss and did his best to dull his own roar as they climaxed together.

He held himself on his elbows
, cradling Sara’s face in his hands. “I love you, Sara Downey, for who you are, and don’t ever doubt it. I don’t care about land or money. I want my wife to be intelligent, caring, compassionate and passionate. You are all of those things, and I wish I could erase all your uncertainties you have about yourself caused by your first husband. But never doubt my love. I won’t speak it often to you as I just did, but please don’t forget what is in my heart. I love you, I respect you, and I need you. Please be my wife.”

“Oh Philip!
You make me so happy. I cannot think of anywhere I would rather be than in your arms.”

He kissed her and rolled to his side
. “Can you put your head on my chest or how can I help you get comfortable? I am not going back to my bed.”

Sara squeezed in
close to him and put her head on his shoulder. “I want to sleep here…every night.”

She was asleep in seconds.

Chapter Thirty-
Five

Three weeks later

Sara strolled into Phoebe’s morning room for breakfast. Life had been wonderful ever since Stinky had died. She was almost back to a peaceful existence. The wedding was to be in another two weeks. True, she would rather be sleeping in Philip’s arms every night, but his mother had forced propriety on them, and she had agreed. She was nervous enough of what the
ton
would be saying about her at her own wedding. She did not want to give them anything more to gossip about.

Philip had settled many of her
fears. She knew he treasured her and the way he looked at her made her feel beautiful. He could curl her toes just by that special expression he had, the one that made him look like he wanted her nude instantly. She blushed just thinking about him.

Her only disappointment had been that she had been unable to find the beads to match her mother’s bag. She would carry it
on her wedding day anyway since it was so special to her, but the pattern was incomplete. The duchess and Phoebe had finally convinced her no one would notice.

“Good morning, Phoebe.” Sara smiled as she filled her plate. She
woke up to find out she had her monthly courses and it was as good a reason as any to eat hearty. Thankfully, she would not have them on her wedding night.

“Good morning, Sara. You look stunning today, as always.” Phoebe glanced at
her as she sat down. “What are your plans for today?”

“I
need to go to my shop and see how things are progressing. Alyssa is magical with her needle and thread. I cannot believe how fast she is. With her friend helping as well, I think we will be caught up in no time. Having a man in the shop to take care of the counter makes me feel better about being safe.”

“It was very kind of you to hire
Alyssa, you did not have to, but I am sure you are aware of that.” Phoebe tossed a bit of sugar into her tea.

“Yes, I know
, but I could not have lived with myself if I thought she was back in that horrid place. If not for her, I could be on a ship bound for some island with a very cruel man.” Sara shivered at the thought.

“You have many people to thank
, but the pain is all in the past. How does your arm fare?” Phoebe asked.

“Everything is working well. All the feeling has returned. It does tingle occasionally, but I still do not dare lift with it.
”

Phoebe’s butler walked in and bowed to the ladies
, handing her a card.

“Pardon me, Lady Downey, but
Her Grace is calling and has brought a friend to visit.”

“Of course, show them in, it is a perfect time for tea.” Phoebe waved
toward the doorway.

Mary St. James
entered with a beautiful, silver haired woman behind her. She was tall and majestic looking, very thin with green eyes. Her outfit was quite stylish. Each of the women carried a package. The dowager’s was small, but the other woman’s package was long and narrow.

Once
Phoebe and Sara moved to the settee along with their visitors, Mary St. James folded her hands in her lap and turned to Sara.

“I am sure you recall I found your
reticule in your shop when you were kidnapped. When I examined it, I noticed your mother’s initials were sewn inside the lining of the bag. I thought I knew someone with those initials, but I just could not place them at the time.”

Sara’s
heart fluttered as she listened to the dowager. Her palms grew moist and she risked a curious glance at the other woman. Did this woman know her mother? Would she find out more about her?

“After much time, I finally recalled
whose initials they were,” Mary continued. “It was a love story as I remember it. Your mother, Helen, fell in love with a businessman, your father, but your grandfather would not sanction the marriage as he was a viscount and the businessman had no noble blood in him. However, as love stories often go, your mother and father ran away and were married anyway. Sadly, your grandfather, the viscount, disowned her.”

The silver haired woman reached over to hold the dowager’s hand.
“But I never did. She was my only sister, and I loved her dearly. How I have missed her over the years. I was notified of her death, but I never knew she had a daughter.” Her eyes teared as she spoke.

The
duchess spoke up. “Sara, I would like you to meet your Aunt Elinor.”

Sara’s
vision blurred from her tears as she stood. “You are my aunt?”

“Yes, my dear
.” Aunt Elinor smiled. “I would be honored if you would allow me to be a part of your life. You look so much like your mother that I cannot believe it. A part of my beloved sister lives on.” She held both hands up to her cheeks and sighed. “You are so beautiful.”

Sara reached for her
aunt at the same time as the woman held her arms open to her. “I would like that very much, Aunt Elinor.” The tears mingled with laughter. She actually had a true aunt. How could she have not known? She could learn so much more about her mother.

“Oh, I have something for you. Your mother loved to sew, and she had created her own wedding dress, but sadly, never wore it. I wondered if you would like it.”

Elinor opened the long package and pulled out a pale blue gown decorated with the same beads as the reticule Sara had treasured for so many years.

“What do you think?” Aunt
Elinor’s eyebrows rose as she held the dress up for Sara’s inspection.

Sara willed her legs to move. The dress was everything she could have dreamed. She
stumbled over to it and brushed her hand across the satin skirt, running her fingers across the beaded bodice. “It is beautiful. I think it is the most beautiful dress I have ever seen. I would love to wear it on my wedding day, if you would allow me.” Sara held her breath awaiting the answer.

“I think that would make your mother very happy. Oh, I also brought these if you would like them.” She handed Sara the other small sack
the dowager held. It was full of a variety of beads, including just the ones she needed for her mother’s bag.

Sara choked back her tears enough to thank her
aunt and to hug the duchess.

Mary St. James
cradled her cheek and said, “It did not matter to me or my son; we love you for who you are. But I always believed you had noble blood in you somewhere.”

Sara was speechless.

Chapter Thirty-Six

Sara stood at the back of the church and smiled at Edward Davis, the Earl of Ardleigh, who had agreed to walk her down the aisle to her husband-to-be.

“You are absolutely lovely in that dress, Sara
.” He nodded as he perused her gown.

“I cannot believe my good fortune. To have an
aunt after all these years, and a man that loves me. Of course, I adore them both. This is definitely the happiest day of my life.”

“You have had enough
trauma in your short life. It is time for you to enjoy it. You are marrying a good man.”

“Yes, I am
, and I have you to thank for so much, Lord Ardleigh. You and your wife have been so wonderful to me.”

The earl gave her a kiss on her cheek and tucked her arm in his. They turned
toward the front of the church.

S
he beamed with joy. Her business was doing well. Philip had taken over the financial end of it and hired several seamstresses for her so she could focus on her designs. As she took her first steps down the aisle, she was able to calm her butterflies by focusing on the love of her life, Philip St. James. He was so handsome, as usual. She smiled at her Aunt Elinor and Phoebe as she passed them. She was so fortunate.

Her gaze locked on Philip’s blue eyes as he took her fingers in his.
His eyes were such a warm, beautiful blue. She loved it whenever they met hers.

Finally, t
he ice had truly melted, not just in his eyes. They had melted her heart as well.

Epilogue

The following spring in London

Philip laughed as he helped his very pregnant wife pull on the fishing pole
from the dock at his lake.

“Be careful, love. Don’t shake our baby up to
o much. I will get him for you.” He reached over Sara’s shoulders to grab the pole and tug.

“Philip, be careful! Don’t lose my fish! I can tell this is a special one. I have not caught anything in a long time.”
Sara bit her lower lip in anticipation.

“I beg to differ with you, wife. You caught something, or your belly wouldn’
t be sticking out so far,” he whispered in her ear.

Sara giggled as she gave up the pole to her husband. She pinched his arm as she spoke
. “I caught this from you and you know it. It was bound to happen, you cannot keep your hands to yourself.”

“
Hmph. And I still cannot keep my hands off you. You are absolutely beautiful carrying our child.” He gave her a quick kiss before gently moving her to the side. Philip was amazed at how much his love had grown for his wife. It was almost a year since Sara Downey had walked into his life and turned it upside down. Soon they would have their first child together. He actually hoped for a little girl that looked just liked Sara. They could have sons later. He wanted daddy’s girl first.

“Be careful, Philip! Don’t lose my fish!” Sara yelled
once more with a giggle.

“I am afraid you aren’t going to be happy when I reel it in.”
Philip sighed. He could tell by the tug that it wasn’t anything living.

“Yes, I will. I am sure it is bigger than yours. Look at how hard you are pulling. It must be a really big one.” Sara shouted her excitement as her muscular husband f
ought with the pole.

“It may be bigger than mine, but I don’t think it is a fish.” He gave one last tug and almost fell on his bottom when it came free.

“What are you talking about?” Sara gasped as she viewed the tangle of seaweed that was on the end of her hook. “Oh, Philip. I thought it was a fish. Oh, poo!”

He
gave her his best smile as he held it up for her to see. His laughter echoed across the small valley. He let the large clump of seaweed dangle for his wife’s view before he reached for it to throw it back into the lake.

Something caught
Sara’s eye. “Philip, wait! Don’t throw it back yet.” She reached for the cluster of weeds and dirt.

“Don’t touch it
, Sara! You don’t know what’s in the middle.”

“Hold it still, I can see something.” She reached into the
bundle of weeds and grabbed something hard. Pulling it out, she tugged away pieces of grass and held it up for him to see.

“Look, Philip! It’s a toy boat. Where did this come from?” She
peered up at her husband as she held out the boat for his inspection.

He dropped the pole and took the boat from his wife
, cradling it as if it would shatter. His voice broke as he spoke. “This was my boat.”

“Really
? Imagine that, finding it now.” Sara smiled up at him.

“My father made it for me
when I was a child.”

He pulled his wife into a warm embrace and whispered, “I knew you were meant for me.”

***

The dowager sat
outside in the gazebo behind Hearthstone Manor. This was her favorite place to be when her son was near the lake with his wife. Nothing pleased her more than to hear their laughter as they fished. Soon they would be swimming again, but it was still cool at night. Watching the love between her son and his second wife gave her more pleasure than she ever thought possible. Plus, she was about to hold her first grandchild. What more could she want from life? She smiled at how well she had matched these two together. They never gave her any credit, but she knew how she had influenced Philip.

She needed a new goal in her life.

“Well, let’s see. Who can I find for Graham? It is time that boy fell in love.”

She smiled.

The End