Wicked Nights With a Proper Lady (24 page)

“Thank you,” Genny said. “Now, we had better find our way down to breakfast before everyone wonders where we are this morning.”

“If the sun comes out, do you think we’ll play a game out of doors?”

“It would be a great deal more fun than watching the gentlemen fishing in the stream. You would think after three hours that someone would catch at least one fish.”

They went arm in arm out the door and down to the breakfast parlor. “Yes, but I do believe Mr. Torrance was appalled at the very thought of baiting his line when he was handed the jar of worms. He said if the hook couldn’t snag something, then he was fine with not having a successful outcome.”

They were both laughing as they entered the parlor.

The morning sun peeked through the clouds outside and filled the whole room with its cheery appearance. The gentlemen, including Leo, stood on their entry. Genny gave him a brief smile before greeting the rest of the company at the table. She didn’t want to be too obvious in her attention to Leo. What if someone should notice that they were on much friendlier terms than when the house party had started?

Not that anyone would think to watch for changes in their relationship—which had been at the very least friendly, but then so had everyone else’s. Such things tended to happen when so many people were tossed together for an extended period.

A grand buffet was set up on the far right of the room, against the west-facing wall. Tiered silver platters, dishes, and large porcelain bowls were filled with kedgeree, poached eggs, and sausage. There was also a wide selection of fried tomatoes and mushrooms, scones and jellies, creams and syrups, fresh picked strawberries, and raspberries all enticing her closer. Not surprisingly she was famished this morning. But with a full room, it would be unseemly to fill her plate. Perhaps she could sneak away some scones in the deep pockets at the sides of her skirts. She couldn’t believe she even contemplated such a thing.

She took three eggs, knowing they would best fill her up and then a selection of everything else. There were three spaces left at the table once Charlotte took her usual spot next to Ariel. Genny definitely didn’t want to sit at the head of the table where Lord Carleton sat when he came down to breakfast, and she didn’t want banal morning conversation with Mr. Torrance. So she took the seat at the end of the long table next to Leo.

He was better at being unobtrusive than she was, for he continued his conversation with Lady Hargrove about their day ahead. He even allowed Genny to pull out her own chair, only offering her a droll, “How remiss of me not to assist,” as she tucked herself neatly under the table.

“We don’t follow all the formalities whilst here, and I must say, it’s a nice break from dinning around Town when you are expected to do everything by the book,” Genny said.

“I couldn’t agree more,” Lady Hargrove said, taking an indelicate bite of her eggs.

Everyone at the table laughed and tucked into their own meal. Genny focused on eating and tried to ignore the nearness of Leo, who didn’t seem to care for rules as long as no one could see that his leg kept bumping hers under the table.

When he pushed his plate away and set a cup of tea in front of him, a lemon floating on top, one of his hands disappeared under the table and found its way to her lap.

Genny froze, fork halfway to her mouth. He couldn’t be serious.

She moved her leg, attempting to shake him off, and make him understand that she did not want to do
this
here. Instead of her plan working, he hiked up her skirt, and settled his hand over her kneecap. He simply let it rest there, without attempting any more liberties.

She turned to him, raised one brow, gave an indiscernible shake of her head and turned back to focus on her food. Thankfully, he made no further attempt to put her out of sorts, nor did he lower her skirts again to let her resume the meal in false innocence. She’d have to find a way to get back at him for this. And she would. He had another think coming if he thought he could unsettle her and tease her at any given opportunity. Even if she did enjoy the clandestine attentions he heaped upon her.

Lady Carleton entered the parlor. “My steward has consulted his ever trustworthy farmer’s almanac and suggests it will rain later this afternoon. I think we should have our game of blind man’s buff sooner rather than later.”

Everyone put their utensils down with the announcement of a morning excursion. Breakfast would be rushed, since everyone was anxious to head out of doors into the beautiful, much cooler weather this morning.

“We could always play blind man’s buff indoors and use the whole lower level to hide from the one blinded,” Lady Hargrove suggested.

“I love the mazes here. I think we should have a go out of doors before we are trapped inside for the remainder of the day,” Charlotte responded.

“Who will be the blind man, Lady Carleton?” Mr. Torrance asked.

“An excellent question,” she said, sitting down at the head of the table in the chair her husband usually occupied. She poured herself a cup of black tea and took a small sip to test the temperature. “We can pick our names from a hat or pick straws. Shortest straw will have to be blindfolded. Now eat up everyone, we must get started.”

Since most had finished their meal already, they filed out of the room to retrieve their hats and shawls. Seeing that Charlotte was finished and ready to leave, Genny carefully dabbed her mouth with her napkin. Placing the cloth on the table, she reached for Leo’s hand clasped around her knee and tried to dislodge it as she commended Lady Carleton on the fine selection of breakfast food.

Genny had to fix her skirts before pushing her chair out. Now that most everyone had left, Leo took it upon himself to assist her. “Shall I escort you and your lovely cousin to the mazes?”

“It would be an honor,” Charlotte chimed in but stalled before exiting the breakfast parlor. “Oh, dear. I promised to meet Ariel. Genny, take my shawl since I am feeling a little warm. You can head to the mazes straightaway. I will follow you out shortly.”

No, she could absolutely not go alone with Leo, even if she wanted to. What would everyone think of such a bold action that was very much like courting? Worse, everyone might think his intentions impure, which, yes, they were, but she didn’t want anyone to so much as guess what they did when they were alone.

“I’m more than happy to escort Miss Camden to the mazes.”

“That is perfect. I will be out in a moment, too,” Lady Carleton said. “I need to consult with Cook on luncheon arrangements.”

Leo steered Genny in the direction of the door before she could provide a reason not to leave with him alone.

When they were well out of range of the house, she said, “Have you gone completely mad?”

“Have I not been on your heels every moment of every day for the past week?”

“Well, yes. But—” She paused on seeing his teasing grin.

“There can be no buts. If I don’t continue to act as I have done, and you don’t continue to resist me—and you have done a lovely job so far this morning—then we’ll be caught out.”

She realized he was right. “You’ve thought this through.”

“Yes, I’ve been thinking about this since you left this morning. About how we should carry on without drawing attention our way.”

“You didn’t go to bed after I left?”

“How could I?”

“You’ll be exhausted today.”

“It was well worth it.” He waggled his brows at her. “Besides, I can always disappear for a few hours after lunch. I will need to freshen up for this evening.”

“We have to be careful, Leo.” Her tone turned serious.

“I’m well aware of that.” His forefinger and thumb rubbed at his chin in thought. “I still think we should meet in the maze tonight.”

“It’s supposed to rain.”

“Then I will take you back to the greenhouse where we can be
completely
alone.”

She bumped into his shoulder, wanting so much to have his arm wrapped around her but knowing they couldn’t show such intimacy publicly. “I don’t even remember how we accomplished our affair all those years ago. I am beginning to wonder how we weren’t caught.”

“I was careful for both of us. You have nothing to fear, we seem to be able to keep a little more distance between us during the day now that we’ve matured.”

Leo threaded her arm through his. It seemed he wanted to touch her as much as she did him.

“That reminds me,” he said. “Who was that friend of yours? The one that beat out all the men in the archery competition four years ago?”

What an odd question. “You mean Helena?” She sighed. “How I miss Helena. We still write back and forth. She married well.”

“I recall. Wasn’t it to the…” He snapped his fingers as he tried to place the name. “Ah, yes, now I recall. It was to the Duke of Beaumont.”

“Yes, your memory serves you well. She has just had her first child. A little girl they named Maisie.”

“Of course I remember her. She was your friend. And I did spend a great deal of time with the two of you. So in a sense, I had a vested interest in her as well. Didn’t she meet Beaumont at this very house?”

What was he getting at? “How observant of you.”

“No, no. Hear me out in this. I think there were three marriages after that particular party. Your friend’s being the first to come to mind. I think there was also an older gent and lady.”

“I haven’t a clue who you might be referring to. There was Lord Grovestead’s eldest son who ran off to Gretna Green with one of the young ladies’ chaperones.” Reminiscing was actually quite fun to do with Leo.

Leo clapped his hands together and let out a raucous laugh that had her joining in. “What a scandal that was. I hadn’t forgotten that. That put the house in such an uproar. I think it was written about in every rag by the time I returned to London. My acquaintances were shocked to find me so well behaved.”

“There doesn’t seem to be as much scandal afoot this time around.”

“Another reason for us to be ever so vigilant,” he said.

They were thick into the maze, and almost at the center. Feeling safe in the cover of hedges, Genny pressed closer to Leo, feeling his gait through the length of her body, and matching it. Or was he matching her smaller strides? Regardless, it was nice to relish the momentary closeness they had while alone.

“Which of my suitors did you think I would marry?”

“I had personally hoped that you would choose neither. Though the baron’s son … can’t recall his name—”

“Mr. Ewan,” she supplied.

“Ah, yes, how remiss of me. Did you have any tender feelings for the young, fresh-faced Mr. Ewan?”

Genny tsked. “I think that tone in your voice is very close to jealousy, my lord.”

“And if it is?” Leo’s hand clasped around her waist and rested firmly on her hip.

“Well, it ought not to be. It wasn’t as though you offered for my hand in marriage.”

“No, I didn’t.”

“The one thing I wanted in a husband was to share the type of connection that we had.” Genny wasn’t sure she should admit even that much, but what did she have to lose? “We got on well, but I could not marry a man I only saw as a friend. It was almost what I imagined having a brother to be like had I had one.”

“I daresay, the marriage bed would have been a trifle uncomfortable if the man felt like a brother to you.”

Genny clucked her tongue. “Don’t tease me so.”

“I enjoy it too much to quit now.” Leo tugged her closer. “Though now that I’ve had you in my bed, you don’t seem to blush nearly as much.”

Genny felt her cheeks heat under his regard, but she knew the face powder hid the telltale signs of any blush. Perhaps she should invest in her own powders? She never thought it could be so handy, and she liked the idea of covering the blushes she was prone to.

“You tease me so often that I’m growing immune to it.”

“You’ve just challenged me, my lady. I will prove you wrong before the day is through. And I’ll prove it to you before our game is complete this morning.”

She dropped his arm and let him chase her down the hedged path, giggling as she made her way to the center. He seemed to stay a few feet behind, never actually catching her. She could hear the heavy panting of his breath, and she thought she might have unintentionally aroused him. Good. He had a habit of putting her out of sorts whenever he could manage it, and she was glad to turn the tables on him for once.

She knew her way through the maze very well, having mastered the odd twists and turns her first summer here. Some of the hedges grew right over the path, making you feel locked out from the rest of the world. They occasionally broke open at the top to let the sunlight through, but before long, you’d find yourself covered by more greenery.

When she reached the center, she had every intention of pulling Leo into her arms and kissing him thoroughly before anyone else arrived. How would they explain their exertions? Perhaps no one would care.

Oh, she was acting careless.

Today was the first time she’d ventured into the maze since her arrival and everything was just as she remembered. Six double-flanked hedged paths led to the middle attraction. A large tiered fountain was the showcase here, with its naiad at the top with her breasts exposed. She held a tilted ewer that spouted water down into the basin of the fountain.

Turning in the wide round opening at the center of the maze, she stopped when she was facing Leo. He didn’t say a word. He only looked at her with dark, dilated eyes before pulling her into his arms and lowering his mouth to hers. She went to him willingly, anxious to have his taste upon her tongue again. Anxious to feel the hardness of his body against her softer one.

Why did they have to be in the presence of anyone at all? Had they been alone, she didn’t think she would ever stop kissing him. His mouth did very wicked things. So wicked and titillating that she felt the tips of her breasts peak beneath the light muslin of her dress. She wanted to appease the need to be touched by rubbing up against him, but settled for putting her arms around his shoulders and holding him tighter to her.

He lifted his mouth away from her but didn’t pull away completely. His cheek rested atop her head as he stroked her back. “I want you now.”