THE DUKE’S MATCH GIRL: A Christmas Fiery Tale Novella (Fiery Tales Series) (6 page)

She turned around and looked him square in the eye. “Gaspard,” she said firmly, without a moment’s hesitation.

Rosalie let out a squeak. Lucille slapped her hand over her sister’s mouth.

The cat near the hearth gave a meow.

What the hell was he to make of
that
?

Suzanne had never been a good liar. Yet, she didn’t fidget as usual. There were no actual signs of deception in her statement. Nor in how she delivered it. She continued to hold his gaze, ignoring the antics of the other two in the room.

Before he could delve further, someone entered the shop.

“Good day, Mademoiselle Matchet. I’m terribly sorry. I hope I am not interrupting. I saw the carriage outside and wasn’t certain it was permissible to come in…” The woman who spoke was only slightly older than Suzanne. Beside her, a girl of about six held her hand. Their clothing, though not overly costly, did indicate they had some means. Perhaps the wife of one of the wealthier merchants in the town. “My lord.” She gave him a deep curtsy. She, like Lucille and Rosalie, had had her eyes fastened to him from the moment she saw him.

“Good day, Madame Sebron,” Suzanne responded with a welcoming smile. “It’s quite all right. You are always welcome.” She was nervous. More so, all of a sudden. He could tell, even if the others in the room seemed quite oblivious to it.

“We have a duc in our midst, madame!” Rosalie blurted out with great exuberance.

“Yes, thank you, Rosalie.” Leo caught the slight tightness in Suzanne’s tone. Why on earth was she so on edge at the arrival of this woman and child? “Your Grace, may I introduce you to Madame Sebron, and her daughter, Colette. Madame, the Duc de Mont-Marly.”

“Oh, this is so very exciting! Your Grace, I am deeply honored to make your acquaintance.” Madame Sebron gave him another curtsy. The child mimicked her mother.

Leo responded with a nod, then clasped his hands, mentally cursing his ever-growing audience. Before he could utter any words, Suzanne interjected. “The duc is a very busy man, as you may well understand, madame.”

“Oh yes. Of course…”

“He was just leaving to attend to his duchy and its official business.”

“No, I was not,” he countered, smiling. “I have yet to conclude my business here.”

The child broke away from her mother and rushed to Suzanne, throwing her arms around her waist affectionately. “Hello, mademoiselle!”

“And a good day to you, Colette.” Warmly, Suzanne brushed an errant blonde curl from the girl’s face, revealing a pink, winter-chilled cheek.

“I asked Maman to bring me along to pick up Papa’s stomach elixir,” the child announced happily. “I like coming here. It smells good.”

Suzanne laughed. “I’m glad you think so, my sweet. Lucille, would you please fetch Monsieur Sebron’s stomach remedy from the back room.”

Lucille left to do her bidding.

Suzanne waited for Lucille to return, her heart thundering so loud, she worried Leo would hear it.

She couldn’t believe her bad luck! The arrival of Madame Sebron and Colette couldn’t have been more ill timed. She’d told Leo an idiotic lie about Gaspard. Well, more a half-truth; sadly, her gray cat was indeed the only meaningful male in her life at the moment. But Leo didn’t need to know that. The last thing she wanted was for Leo to discover her ruse. Especially when she saw how the news had unbalanced him—and hopefully dissuaded him.

The problem at hand was little Colette.

She liked Gaspard. Very much.

At any moment she could begin rooting around the room, looking for him, and give away Suzanne’s deception.

Leo was no fool. He would immediately discern the mortifying truth—that she’d meant the cat all along. Suzanne couldn’t even move Gaspard to her private apartments upstairs—or do anything to bring attention to him—for that would surely prompt an immediate reaction from Colette.

Suzanne was now faced with the dilemma of rushing Madame Sebron and her daughter from her shop quickly, before either noticed her pet near the fire, all while not offending her faithful patients. Their patronage was something she just could not lose.

She prayed she could distract them until they left on their own accord. Once again she had that same strong urge overcome her. The one that made her want to punch Leo. She wouldn’t be in this ridiculous predicament if it wasn’t for him.

“Rosalie, why don’t you show Colette our newest soaps? They smell so pretty, I just know she’d like to see them.”

Rosalie wasted no time in complying and drew Colette to the corner of the room, far away from Gaspard.

Lucille was back in an instant, panting slightly from the exertion, and handed the vials to Madame Sebron. Suzanne knew Lucille had rushed out of fear—not just because she didn’t want to miss a thing, though there was definitely that. But, judging from the agitated look in her eyes, she fully understood the urgency of the Sebrons’ departure, and she was doing her best not to expose Suzanne’s fabrication to Leo.

For that act of loyalty alone, Suzanne wanted to throw her arms around her.

Madame Sebron leisurely opened her coin purse, burrowed her gloved fingers inside, and began to root about for her money. The sheer slowness of her actions was maddening. Suzanne desperately hoped Gaspard was fast asleep behind her and wouldn’t pick this moment to stretch his legs and parade about the room.

“Here you are.” Madame Sebron held out her payment.

Finally…!

Lucille took the coins from her hand swiftly yet thankfully.

“Thank you, madame,” Suzanne added. “Please let me know if you need anything else. I’d be more than pleased to visit tomorrow to see how your husband is getting on, if you wish.”

“Thank you. That would be very much appreciated.” She returned Suzanne’s smile. “Come, darling.” Madame Sebron held out a hand to her daughter. “Let’s return home to see how your father is feeling.”

The child raced to her mother’s side, clasped her hand, and bid everyone a cheerful
adieu
.

The door closed behind them.

Elation and relief rushed through Suzanne.
Thank God…
She gave Rosalie and Lucille a grateful smile.

The door crashed open.

Colette shot past, a gust of cold wind and her flouncing blonde curls trailing her. “I forgot to say good-bye to Gaspard!”

She dropped to her knees before him and gave him a loving stroke. “Good-bye, Gaspard. You’re the most handsome cat I know. Stay warm.” She petted his head, eliciting an appreciative purr, then shot back out the door, slamming it behind her.

The room froze.

As did Suzanne’s breathing.

Her gaze darted to Lucille and Rosalie. While Rosalie was engrossed in the cracks on the ceiling, Lucille was looking down at the floor, utterly avoiding eye contact with Leo.

He’s caught you in your lie. You’re going to have to look at him sooner or later, Suzanne.
What were the chances that the floor would open and swallow her up? Or him?

Reluctantly, she dragged her gaze over to Leo.

His arms were crossed, and he was grinning from ear to ear. He lowered himself down onto his haunches, and beckoned Gaspard to him. A normally willful cat, Gaspard didn’t hesitate to stroll across the floor and obey.

Leo scooped him up, then rose, lightly scratching Gaspard under his chin, a litany of contented purrs emanating from her pet.

Traitor.

“I must agree,” Leo said, still grinning. “Gaspard is definitely handsome with attractive blue eyes.”

Mentally she cringed and was back to blushing, beyond embarrassed. Her lie was so pathetic. Could she make it any more plain how bare her life had become?

Leo sauntered over to her and placed the cat in her arms. “But I can do much more for you than Gaspard ever could.”

“There we agree, Your Grace. He’s never wreaked the havoc in my life that you have,” she pointed out.

His smile faded. “You never deserved the pain I inflicted on you. Allow me the chance to make amends.”

“There is no need. I no longer think of you as my closest friend. Or the love of my heart.”

His voice dropped to the softest, most knee-weakening pitch as he said, “I still do.”

That knocked her off guard.

She quickly shook off the effect of that measured sentence, reminding herself that he knew just what to say, how to say it, and what to do to impact a woman’s senses. He was a master of seduction.

“Your Grace, you are quite adept at applying your charm. But I’ve heard soft words from you before. And I am no longer gullible. I have no faith in your romantic utterances.”

There was a ghost of a smile on his mouth. “That’s understandable. I’ll have to prove to you the depths of my sincerity. I’m going to show you just how contrite I am. I won’t leave Maillard without you. Make no mistake. I’ll be waiting for you outside until you decide to return to Montbrison with me.”

She laughed. “Surely you aren’t serious, Your Grace. You risk freezing off a part of your male anatomy you’re rather fond of.” She immediately regretted her word choices the instant she saw him cock a brow in amusement.

He leaned in, his dark hair lightly brushing her cheek. The tiny sensation rippled through her body. “I can’t tell you how delighted I am by your interest in my cock,” he said in her ear. She could hear the smile in his voice. “Since you brought up the subject, the part you refer to is at the moment eager and hard, just being near you again.”

He pulled back, still smiling.

Thanks to his cheeky comment, the urge to peek at the bulge in his breeches was suddenly overwhelming.

Good God, don’t look…

“It’s a relief to know you haven’t become burdened with any sort of modesty,” she said, trying to eradicate thoughts of his generous sex from her mind.

He chuckled and shrugged. “You were the one who mentioned it. I was only trying to alleviate your concern.”

Suzanne managed to keep her gaze fixed to his face, even while the unwanted memory of how incredible it felt to have his large, solid length inside her flooded her head. That delicious stretching sensation of her private muscles as he fed her every delectable inch of his cock was a memory she had long suppressed. Until now. He’d driven her wild. Not just because of his sexual expertise—though he was undoubtedly gifted in the carnal arts. But because she’d shared the experience with
him
.

It was
his
mouth on hers.

His
hands on her body.

Her
Leo—or at least that was what she’d believed then.

She reasserted herself. “I do believe you’ve taken this attempt at a tumble far enough. The past is best left in the past. We have both moved on, in opposite directions—in keeping with our different social standing. There are other women in your class you can chase. Please seek your amorous encounters there.”

He glanced past her shoulder. “I think you’ve seen and heard enough,” he said to Lucille and Rosalie. “Please give us a private moment.”

Before Suzanne could say a word, Lucille snatched Gaspard from her arms and rushed out the door with her sister, retreating to the back room. Leaving Suzanne stunned.

And alone with Leo.

Clearly, loyalty was short-lived around here.

She turned to face him. Leo caught her cheeks between his palms and swooped in for a kiss, possessing her mouth on a gasp. Her sex clenched fiercely at the first stroke of his tongue. A jolt of heat rocked her so hard, she felt it reverberate all the way down to her toes.

She jumped back, alarmed, breaking contact. Her breathing shallow and sharp. Her insides quivered in the aftermath. Worst of all, there was the lightest, most persistent ache pulsing in that bud between her legs.

“
Dieu
. I knew it was still there,” he murmured with a smile. He slipped his fingers under her chin and tilted her head back, his mouth so close to her sensitized lips. Her breath froze in her throat. She was unsure if he was going to kiss her again. Unsure how she felt about another kiss while her long-dormant nerve endings hummed with life. “We had something very rare once. It would be a horrible shame not to see if we can recapture it. It isn’t the sort of connection that happens every day.” He brushed his lips against hers, a tantalizing feather-like stroke. “I’ll be waiting for you outside.”

He released her and walked to the door.

She immediately dismissed the flicker of disappointment that whispered through her. Placing his hand on the door handle, he turned to face her. “Oh, and you’re not getting another kiss until we get to Montbrison.”

He gave her a wink and left.

“
HE IS STILL
out there. It’s been
two days
!” Rosalie craned her neck as she and her sister peered out the window for what was likely the thousandth time since Leo had set up camp outside. A warm fire blazed right in the middle of the road, forcing everyone to reroute around him, as His Highness casually reclined in a settee—a mere portion of the furniture that had been brought out for his comfort from the inn across the street.

“The weather could easily turn. He’s going to catch his death,” Lucille added, fretful.

Not if Suzanne killed him first.

As luck would have it, the weather was working against her. What little dusting of snow they’d had this unseasonably warm winter was completely gone. The last two days and nights had been the mildest she’d seen in weeks. Leo was bearing the warmer temperatures easily—without any distress at all. She, on the other hand, hadn’t slept since his arrival. If she wasn’t thinking about Leo’s inflaming kiss, she was plagued with concerns over this ludicrous situation he’d created.

And the stir he’d made in the town.

Was he ever going to leave? Surely, he was getting tired of being out there.

No?

As Leo’s men and the innkeeper catered to him throughout the day, making certain that he had a constant supply of food and drink, people from all over Maillard were descending on her shop just to catch a glimpse of one of the most powerful ducs in the realm. Most had never been in the proximity of a man from such elevated bloodlines. Yet, Leo seemed totally oblivious to the crowds as he sat comfortably reclined—hands laced behind his head and legs crossed at the ankles—with his attention fixed on her shop. And a contented smile on his face. It appeared he had no idea that he was causing townspeople to flock to her shop, interrupt her work, just to inquire why the duc was stationed outside her door.