The Duke's Indiscretion (24 page)

After taking a few long moments to collect herself and organize her thoughts and feelings, she mumbled, “I'm—speechless.”

“That's so unlike you, my darling Lottie,” he teased.

She brushed off the comment. “How many people know?”

He cocked his head to the side. “Well, let's see. A select few at the Home Office, mostly those who work in the field of counterfeiting and forgery. Will and Sam know, because they're my closest friends and supported me unconditionally after my arrest. Their wives know as well, though I've never discussed it with the ladies, and of course they've never been in this room. And all of my staff know.”

She blinked. “Your staff? You trust this information with your staff and you didn't tell me until now?”

He laughed. “Are you jealous, Charlotte?”

Eyes sparkling, she replied deviously, “I'm sure there's nothing you've done that would make me jealous, my darling Colin.”

His gaze narrowed considerably and he leaned over to rest his palm on the tabletop. “I adore it when you call me darling,” he murmured huskily.

“I don't think I've ever called you darling,” she replied at once, adjusting her body in the rocker.

“Then you should more often, my darling Lottie.”

She closed her eyes briefly in annoyance. “Colin—”

“My staff know because they're employed by the government as well,” he carried on, his voice light with lingering amusement. “I need them to be completely trustworthy so I can come and go as I please, free of worry that someone from outside the government will find this room and expose me or my work, or some of these priceless items.”

“You're joking,” she argued through a laugh.

His lips turned down as he shook his head. “No, I'm not joking. You've noticed I have new servants from time to time?” He scratched his temple. “Frequently, actually. That's because they rotate to other places of employment for the Crown. With every second or third project assigned to me, I also receive an entirely new staff in my home. That way those working here won't know what secretive items I've worked on before, or after, in case any of them hear it discussed or see it. It's safer for them, I suppose.”

Brows furrowed, she remarked, “You're a spy?”

He grinned. “Not at all. And I'm not a detective, either. I'm a forger. That's it.”

It all sounded so wild, so exotic to her as she gazed
around the room again, taking note of everything anew in light of his confession.

“Where does that ladder lead?” she asked, pointing with her forehead.

He glanced over his shoulder. “That leads to my bed chamber on the second floor, though I don't think I've ever used it. I suppose I consider it as a method of escape should I need it.”

“Oh.” She felt totally dumbfounded—and thoroughly riveted.

“Now,” he continued, dropping his leg to the floor as he raised himself up to stand beside the table, his hip resting on the edge, “Since we're discussing secrets, do you have one or two you'd like to share with me?”

Charlotte looked at him again, this time absorbing all of him in a brand new light, taking note of the rolled-up sleeves that revealed his muscular arms, his taut chest, and the hard planes of his face that would make any woman swoon. A truly spectacular man, she mused. And after his revelation today, in his incredible, hidden workroom, she realized for the first time how very much she admired him, and didn't want to leave him. Or lose him.

Drawing a deep breath for confidence, she said softly, “I'm not sure I have any. At least nothing that can match…this secret confession of yours.”

“Oh?” His brows rose minutely as he began to walk slowly toward her. “Sadie mentioned that you'd been offered a marvelous opportunity to sing in Milan.”

Her mouth opened a little in surprise. “That's impossible.”

“Impossible? Are you telling me she was mistaken?”

He paused in his stride when he reached the end of the table, about two feet in front of her. Looking up at the doubt on his face made her uneasy.

“No—I mean, yes, I spoke with Mr. Barrington-Graham about it a few days ago, but I'm surprised she knew.”

“Surprised she knew?”

“Yes, surprised she knew,” she repeated. “Porano knows about it as well; he was in the office when Walter informed me, but I was told to keep it to myself for now, until he's ready to inform the cast. Why Sadie is aware of the offer is anybody's guess, although I suppose it's possible Porano told her, or she heard it as rumor and assumed. She shouldn't know a thing about it, though.”

“But she does,” he countered. “And what's more, she made it sound as if it's common knowledge at the theater. She was certainly happy to inform me.”

Suddenly irritated, she asked, “Did she tell you before or after your kiss?”

Colin blinked, startled, and she smiled smugly to herself.

Then he gave her a slow grin and said slyly, “Before she kissed me, I think.”

She could feel her face getting hot. “And how, pray tell, did she kiss, your grace?”

“My darling, Lottie,” he drawled, “she kisses nothing like you do. But that isn't the point.”

“Then what
is
the point?” she asked sarcastically.

He studied her, his eyes narrowing once again in
grave speculation. “The point is that other people knew of your plans for days and I, as your husband, did not. Why is that?”

Exasperated, she flopped her hands in the air. “Because I've been trying to think of a way to tell you about it without you flatly denying me before the words were even out of my mouth.”

He pulled back a little, brows furrowed. “Why would you think I'd deny you this grand opportunity without…consideration? Discussion?”

She looked at him as if he were daft. “Because you haven't tired of me in bed, apparently. Nor have I given you an heir, per our agreement.”

For a long time, it seemed, he didn't say a word, though his jaw had hardened and his shoulders appeared to bunch beneath the fine linen of his shirt. But his sharp gaze never strayed from hers.

Finally, he murmured, “Do you honestly believe there's nothing between us beyond what we had when we married?”

Agitated, she fairly jumped out of the rocker, skirting by him to stand on the other side of the workroom, staring down at the rows of paints and chemicals.

“Why do you insist on making this difficult?” she asked.

He was silent for a moment, then replied, “What am I making difficult, exactly?”

God, did he really not understand, or was he just trying to make her say it?

Whirling around, she placed her hands on her hips and glared at him. “Do you intend to take her as your mistress?”

Head tipped to the side a little, he looked at her strangely, and slightly amused. “Sadie?”

“Yes. Or…someone else.”

He shrugged. “I hadn't planned to, no.”

That's it? She wanted to scream in frustration. She closed her eyes momentarily and inhaled deeply. It was time for total honesty.

“Colin, are you in love with anyone?” she asked, eyeing him candidly once more.

Very, very slowly, the gentle smile on his face faded as his features grew serious once more. “What are you asking me, Charlotte?”

She swallowed with the immediate coiling in her belly, but she couldn't drop her gaze from the starkness of his. “Do you intend to have a love affair with anyone else while we're married?”

Seconds ticked by in deadly silence. Then he raised his chin a little and exhaled a full breath. “Not if you give me everything I want,” he revealed softly.

She shifted from one foot to the other. “What, exactly, do you want from me, Colin?”

The heat from his eyes seared through her, making her suddenly weak at the knees, and horribly afraid of his answer.

“I want you to stay here, in England, with me,” he murmured gravely. “I don't want you leaving me to go to Italy. Not now. Not until we have a chance to be together for a while.” He clenched his jaw, then added huskily, “I need you, Charlotte.”

“To satisfy you in bed,” she replied.

He shook his head. “For everything.”

She'd never expected such a blunt admission from him, and something inside of her melted, wanted, hoped for all he could give in return. She assumed they were discussing sex, but their discussion had suddenly become more than that, much more. And he felt it, too.

A sharp tension sparked between them, instantly charging the air. Then he straightened and started moving toward her, staring at her intently.

“And now that I've told you,” he articulated, his tone dark and quiet, “it's your turn. What exactly do you want from me?”

She started trembling and reached behind her with both hands, grasping the shelf with tight fingers. “Honestly, I don't know.”

He shook his head very slowly. “I don't believe you.”

He towered over her now, effectively securing her from all movement, peering into her eyes as if waiting for her to voice some incredible truth, even vital information. But Charlotte refused to be intimidated.

“I
don't
know, sir,” she said thickly. “I—the logical and headstrong part of me wants you to just take a mistress, find love and passion elsewhere, and leave me alone to travel, to sing, to be content, and fulfill my dreams—”

“And the other part?” he cut in sharply.

She bit down hard, her eyes no doubt expressing the twisted confusion and longing she felt inside. At last, she inhaled a shaky breath and replied, “The emotional and
irrational
part of me wants you to call
me Lottie every day, to…stay by my side and never leave me, wherever I am, so that I'm not only content, but also happy. I want you to tell me I'm more exciting, more beautiful, and…that I kiss better than Sadie.”

His expression went blank with absolute incredulity.

She closed her eyes and wiped a palm across her forehead. “I know that's stupid.”

He lifted her chin with a finger and she couldn't help but raise her lashes, unable to avoid his intense scrutiny.

Almost smiling, his gaze skimmed her face, her lips. Then he murmured, “I've never known anyone who kisses as perfectly as you do, Charlotte, and I've never known anyone more beautiful. You're an amazing woman, deserving of everything you've ever dreamed about. All you need to do is ask.”

Tears filled her eyes, though she never looked away from his mesmerizing face. With mounting determination, she whispered fiercely, “I want what's
missing
.”

In that flash of an instant, everything changed between them. He stilled for a timeless moment, his breathing nearly stopped, his gaze melding with hers. Then, very slowly, he lowered it to her mouth and placed his thumb on her lips, swallowing hard as he made contact.

Charlotte couldn't move, couldn't take her eyes off his face even as she blinked away tears. Her body still trembled, and he certainly felt it, for as he raised his gaze back to capture hers once more, he cupped
her chin in his palm, and leaned over to kiss the wetness from her lashes.

She sighed and wrapped her arms around his neck. With her surrender, he lowered his lips to hers, and in one fast action, lifted her up into his arms and carried her from the workroom.

H
e carried her through the scullery and out into the kitchen, breaking from their kiss only long enough to tell Betsy to lock the workroom door.

He didn't care what his servants thought; he didn't care about anything but her—her lush lips teasing his, her soft breasts crushed against his chest, her arms around his neck, clinging to him as if she were afraid he'd let her go.

I want what's missing
…

Her desperate and softly spoken wish had been the key that unlocked the deepest chambers of his heart, exposing his fear of all the uncertainties they shared. He'd wanted Lottie English for so long that having her in his bed had been enough. But now his desire went beyond that. He wanted to be his wife's greatest passion, and to give her everything in return.

Swiftly, and with little effort, he carried her up
the stairs and into his bed chamber, pausing only long enough to close the door with a firm push of his foot.

“Colin—”

“Shhh…” he whispered against her cheek. “I'm going to make love to you, Lottie.”

“It's still daytime,” she said hesitantly.

He brushed his lips against hers as he gently lowered her to the floor at the edge of the bed. “It's the perfect time. Now turn around.”

She did as he bid without question. Quickly, with nimble fingers, he unbuttoned her gown, then slipped his hands inside the soft fabric and pushed it over her shoulders. She slipped her arms out of the sleeves and pulled the bodice over her breasts as he went to work untying her corset. In less than a minute he had undressed her, and as she stood in a puddle of silk and petticoats, he grazed her bare back with his palms, her neck with his lips, eliciting a shiver.

“Take your hair down,” he murmured as he began to unfasten the buttons on his shirt.

Raising her arms, she silently unpinned her braids from atop her head, then ran her fingers through them, pulling her hair loose, then shaking her curls free. She kept her back to him, facing the bed, as he finally pulled off the remainder of his clothes and tossed them aside.

Standing hard and erect, he stepped forward and pressed his body into hers. She gasped when she felt his chest against her shoulder blades, his rigid erection pressed into the curve of her lower back. He brushed her hair aside and kissed her neck again, ran his lips along the edge of her ear, then wrapped
his arms around her to cup her breasts and lightly knead them.

“I want to give you what's missing,” he whispered.

A tiny whimper escaped her throat. She leaned her head back to rest on his chest as she covered his hands with her own, lightly stroking his knuckles with her fingertips.

Her nipples stood out tautly against his palms as he caressed them, and a tremor of excitement surged through his groin. Grasping her thumb with his own, he slowly began to draw their right hands together down her belly, caressing her warm, silky skin with every inch, pressing lower until he reached her intimate mound of hair, then threading their fingers through the softness until she instinctively spread her legs apart ever so slightly, giving him greater access.

He left gentle kisses across her shoulder, brushed his lips back and forth along warm skin as he kneaded her breast with his left hand and held steady with the other between her thighs. Then he released his hold of her thumb and closed his right palm over hers, pressing her fingers into the folds of her cleft.

“Let me feel you touch yourself,” he whispered, his warm breath making gooseflesh rise as his lips traced a line down her neck.

He sensed her hesitation, but with a gentle pinching of her nipple and the movement of his own fingers over hers, she released her final inhibitions and began to stroke herself, using him for guidance.

Colin closed his eyes to relish the feel of her arousing herself as he held her against him, urging her ever deeper into the moist recesses of her femininity.
Her wetness coated them both as she began to make small circles over the tiny nub of her pleasure. He followed her lead, then backed up enough to allow his engorged erection to fall into the crease of her bottom before pressing into her again and resting his lips on her neck.

Her breathing grew rapid, as did his, and when she finally began to moan and gently move her hips in rhythm, when she stopped caressing his knuckles at her breast to concentrate on the feel of their fingers intermingled between her legs, he sensed her impending release. Taking her hand again, he slowly pulled her away, easing the pleasure building at the center of her, making her whimper in blissful agony.

He felt her tremble as he lifted her hand, turned it over her shoulder, and brought two of her wet fingers to his mouth, drawing them in, sucking as his own moan escaped him.

Her breath caught in her chest; she tightened her grip on the hand he still held at her breast, and an urgency he hadn't felt before ripped through him as he suddenly neared his own climax from only her scent, her taste, her arousal, and endless desire to please him.

That thought in mind, he could no longer stand the wait to take her. In one swift action, he let her go, moved around her and yanked the coverlet and sheets down to the foot of the bed. Then, placing his hands on her hips, he silently urged her face down onto the mattress. She complied, spreading her legs a little, resting her cheek against the sheet, her eyes closed, face flushed as her beautiful hair splayed out behind her over the pillow.

He marveled at the graceful splendor of her backside, her delicate, perfect curves and smooth, glowing skin, the slightly defined muscles of her legs and arms. Then he briefly knelt at the edge of the bed and placed his face between her thighs, inhaling her scent, then drawing his tongue once, very slowly, up her cleft.

She gasped and he felt her tense. Quickly, he climbed onto the bed and gingerly turned her over to face him at last.

She kept her eyes closed, licking her lips as she stretched out beneath him across the sheet.

“Look at me,” he murmured, his voice low and tight.

Her lashes flickered up and she gazed at him with longing, with need and acceptance and tenderness. Then she reached up and covered his jaw with her palm. “Colin…”

He inhaled a shaky breath, mesmerized by her willingness to give him everything he wanted, his eyes roving over her face to take in every feature before capturing her gaze with his once more.

“Lottie, my beautiful duchess,” he whispered, placing a hand on her breast and stroking her nipple.

She blinked quickly, the depth of her unspoken feelings for him radiating from her to envelop them both, and at that split second in time, he knew that everything between them hadn't only changed, it had changed forever. He knew exactly what was missing, and that instantaneous burst of realization struck him profoundly.

Swallowing harshly, he clenched his jaw, holding her vivid gaze, caressing her marvelous body. Then
he took her hand from his face and placed it at the center of his chest.

“Give your soul to me, Lottie,” he breathed, “and I will give you the world.”

For seconds she just stared at him. Then her eyes filled with tears and before he could begin to unravel his own confounding emotions, he leaned over to take her mouth with his.

He kissed her with a passion spent in years of pent-up longing, caressing her lips with his own, then plunging deep to invade her with his tongue.

She wrapped her arms around his neck, pushing her fingers lightly through his hair, holding him close. He draped one leg over hers, pressing his erection into her hip, feeling a sudden urgency to enter her and stay there always.

She moaned softly against his mouth when his hand found her breast, kneading it, stroking her nipple with his fingers. Desire raged anew, for both of them, and the time had come to end the stay of exquisite release.

Pulling his lips from hers, he reached down and hooked his hand under her knee, raising it a little, then finding her hot, wet center with his fingers as he began to stroke her, moving deeper, closer to heaven with each tingling caress.

She moaned again and closed her eyes to the rising need, biting her bottom lip as she instinctively lifted her hips to meet his rhythmic touch.

Colin sensed the nearness of her climax and quickly moved his fingers from the hidden treasure that awaited him and centered himself between her parted legs. He lowered his head and kissed a nipple,
then glided his tongue across the waiting peak before pulling it into his mouth to gently suck.

She squirmed beneath him, her breathing erratic and fast. Lifting her leg by the crook in her knee once more, he raised himself up on his free hand, and placed his erection at the center of her.

She felt it, and opened her eyes to gaze into his.

Colin clenched his jaw tightly, and with one smooth action, pushed himself deeply into her tight, hot sheath. She tensed from the pressure, then gradually relaxed as he held himself very still, watching her.

She clutched his shoulders with tight fingers, then whispered, “You feel wonderful…”

Colin groaned from her honesty, marveling in her beauty, her surrendered desire for him. It was a defining moment for them, he knew, connecting in the most intimate way possible, relishing a newfound sense of fulfillment.

He moved his hand from her knee and placed his fingers between their bodies, lifting himself just enough to allow him to stroke her, bringing her once more to the edge of bliss.

He watched her as the urgency built inside, holding himself steady, his thoughts centered on her alone with the concern that he might lose himself first.

She never moved her gaze. Eyes dark and glazed with passion, she began to whimper and push her hips against him as she neared her crest. He increased the pace of his fingers, his eagerness to feel her come almost overwhelming him.

Then her nails dug into his skin and her eyes widened. Colin held himself still, mesmerized by the sight
of her at the brink of climax. And then she jerked into him once, twice, her head falling back as she squeezed her lids shut, moaning over and over in sweet agony.

He didn't move. Just watching her come, feeling her shatter with pleasure beneath him as the muscles inside of her stroked him over and over, made him lose the battle, took him to the point of no return.

He grasped her chin and brought his mouth down hard on hers, stifling the low grown of satisfaction that poured forth from deep in his chest. She kissed him back wildly as he pulled himself out once, then plunged deeply inside again as his climax struck him hard, as wave after wave of an incredible, intense taste of heaven coursed through him and he spilled himself inside of her.

 

Charlotte stirred and stretched out beneath the sheets, her mind a blur for a minute or two until the events of the last few hours came rushing back when her leg brushed against his and she felt him beside her.

Smiling, she snuggled down deeper into the covers.

She would remember this night forever—the way he aroused her, the way he looked at her with utter longing, and especially the emotions he exuded from feelings for her that went far deeper than he'd ever before shown, and no doubt experienced. Of course his feelings were conjecture on her part; he hadn't actually expressed them verbally. But she wasn't stupid, either. It was fairly obvious that if he wasn't in love with her yet, his feelings strayed
very, very close to the emotion. At least she preferred to think so, even with his own doubts about their relationship. For now, at least, she remained content and remarkably happy.

She felt him stir beside her in the darkness and she turned on her side, draping one leg over his.

He reached out and pulled her close to him, tucking her into his chest.

“You snore,” he said sleepily.

She suppressed a giggle. “I know.”

He grunted. “And you didn't tell me?”

“Why would I tell you such a thing, your grace?” She nuzzled her nose into his neck. “You might not have married me.”

He adjusted his head on the pillow, gazing down at her, though in shadow, she felt more than saw him looking at her.

“Would you like to know a secret, my darling wife?” he asked, sounding amused.

“Hmmm…Of course. You keep the best secrets.”

He started drawing the fingers of his free hand up and down her thigh. “I'd decided to marry you as soon as you left my study the day you came to me with your incredible and rather uh…brazen offer.”

She grinned and left a light kiss on his jaw. “That's not much of a secret, Colin. I think you would have kicked puppies for the chance to marry Lottie English.”

He chuckled, and the low sound reverberated through his chest.

“Not true. Bedding Lottie would have been easy. Marriage, on the other hand, is a trickier prospect, but I knew the moment you so unconventionally
proposed, I would accept. I just needed a bit of convincing.” He nuzzled the top of her head. “And just so you're aware of the goodness of my character, I've never kicked a puppy.”

She grinned, teasing the smattering of hair on his chest with her fingers. “That's not how it seemed to me. You were quite irritated to be put in such a position. I realized that when you finally came to my brother's home to offer for me.”

He groaned. “That's because a gentleman prefers to do the proposing. You put me in a very unmanly position.”

She thought about that for a moment, then asked, “So why on earth did you accept such an…unrefined proposal if not for the chance to bed Lottie? I guarantee you, sir, I would not have been easy to seduce.”

He turned a little so that he could look into her eyes in the darkness. “Oh, no? I believe you would have been marvelously easy to seduce, sweetheart,” he teased. “But I chose marriage because, dear Charlotte, you are remarkable in every respect.”

He moved his arm out from under her so they could lie side by side, facing each other with their heads on the pillow.

“Why didn't you marry before?” she asked softly, a question that hadn't, until now, crossed her mind. “It's not as if you didn't have prospects, I'm sure.”