Page 54 of Marriage Most Scandalous
“Very well, as long as we both know you meant yes.”
She did, she just couldn’t bring herself to say it. And the pressure was increasing. So was the tension. If something didn’t happen soon, she felt she would explode.
“But I’ll get that yes out of you later.”
The promise made her shiver, it was said so deeply. He wouldn’t. She just couldn’t see herself being that complacent about lovemaking. But it didn’t matter. As he’d guessed, he had her full agreement already.
And then it happened, what she assumed she’d been waiting for, a tearing that surprised her into opening her eyes briefly. It hadn’t hurt, but it hadn’t been all that pleasant, either. Yet no sooner did that thought flit across her mind than he sank deeply into her, and she knew that was what she’d been waiting for. Heat rushed through her, recharged, coalesced, then erupted.
“Good God, yes!” she gasped without thought as wave after wave of the most exquisite pleasure pulsed in her loins.
She heard his chuckle, entirely too triumphant, but she supposed that was all right, because he kissed her again as well, quite possessively. And thrust against her a few more times, prolonging her pleasure and gaining his own.
He said no more, but his lips rained tender kisses across her face before he moved to her side again. And he still wasn’t done with her. He pulled her half onto his chest, his arm around her, his hand caressing her ever so gently. It was a divine place to be just then. Sated, lusciously content, she fell asleep almost instantly.
Chapter 31
IF NIGHT AND DAYweren’t already clearly defined as being opposites, Margaret was shown a new difference that morning. Whereas during the night she had been in complete accord with what was happening between her and Sebastian, the morning roused in her self-reproach and some flaming blushes. She sat on the edge of her bed, refusing to look behind her where Sebastian lay sleeping. She stared instead at the clothes scattered on the floor by her feet, his clothes. Tidy he wasn’t. And a button that had rolled and come to rest in the middle of the room gleamed brightly in the morning light. The image returned of him ripping it off ...
She quickly found her nightgown where he’d tossed it aside and covered herself while she swept up his clothes and dumped them on the chair, then gathered her own clothing for the day. She hoped it was early enough for her to dress and leave the room before Edna arrived to help, but she had no idea what time it was. And no such luck. The soft knock came, and as usual, Edna poked her head around the door to see if Margaret was awake yet. She couldn’t miss the lump in the bed, or that Margaret wasn’t in it.
She quickly summoned her maid into the bathroom with her. Edna might assume that Margaret had slept in the bathroom instead. No, Edna’s frown said she didn’t think that a’tall, especially when she glanced at the pile of bedding, which was exactly as she’d left it.
With a pointed glare, Edna demanded, “Have you lost all your good sense?”
Margaret sighed. “No, just a bit of it. I won’t lie. My curiosity got the better of me. But we’re supposed to be married, and we will be getting a divorce, so no real harm was done.”
Edna humphed, “Unless you get yourself with child.”
“A child! Don’t even . . .”
Margaret didn’t finish. The thought of a child, Sebastian’s child, gave her such pause, she realized it quite thrilled her for a moment. How she’d love to be a mother and hold her own baby in her arms. Her only regret about not having married yet was that she had no little ones of her own.
“I think we should go home so this sharing of rooms doesn’t need to be part of the pretense,” Edna suggested reasonably. “We don’t live so far away that you can’t come here each day to check on the earl.”
Margaret bit her lip in indecision. “You’re right, of course, except Sebastian has his foot in the door. This is where he needs to be to accomplish what I hired him for, and until Douglas kicks him out again . . . no, we’ll stay here as long as we’re welcome. But what happened last night isn’t going to happen again. I’ve already rethought the matter.”
“Some sense at last,” Edna said, her tone still disapproving. “And you might want to hurry dressing. The doctor is downstairs and wants to speak to you. And Abigail is waiting to go on that trip to Edgeford you promised her.”
“Goodness, why didn’t you say so?” Margaret said, and hurried downstairs as soon as she was presentable.
Sebastian had set a new plan in motion. It would probably be his only chance to get Juliette alone. He didn’t expect to be welcome in Edgewood beyond tomorrow, since he was going to speak to his father in the morning. His gut instinct guessed a quick eviction thereafter. His gravestone, which Douglas had erected in his mind, would be the deciding factor. So he had concluded it would be today or never if he was going to get any answers, and never didn’t suit him.
He had been the one to suggest that Margaret and his grandmother enjoy a shopping expedition to Edgeford today, to take their minds off of Douglas for a little while. As soon as they left, Denton was going to be summoned to the stable at John’s insistence. Sleeping powder mixed with sugar would at least make it appear that something was wrong with Denton’s horse to keep him there for a short while. And that would leave his prey temporarily alone. He was counting on her returning to her room as soon as Denton left the house, rather than risk running into Sebastian before Denton got back from the stables.
Juliette didn’t disappoint him. She opened the door to her room without thinking to check inside it first. Sebastian closed the door for her.
“Dieu!”she gasped, swung around, then gasped again. “Get out! Get out now or I scream!”
She was already doing that, at least her voice was above shouting level. Ironically, her many loud fights with Denton meant that no one would pay any attention to it.
But in case she didn’t realize that, he said, “Do so and I might have to put my hands around your neck for a little silence.”
She glanced about frantically, probably for a weapon to use in holding him at bay. She should have moved out of his reach instead, but she didn’t, which made it a simple matter to grasp her and shove her up against the wall, one hand about her throat to hold her there.
“Denton swore you would not kill me!” she said with some defiance, glaring up at him.
“After eleven years’ absence, Denton doesn’t know me very well.”
