His Wicked Lady (21 page)

Malcolm bolted straight up in the chair. “You
knew about that book?” he asked Melissa.

“Well, yes,” Melissa replied. When his face
fell, she added, “I’m a married lady, Malcolm. Surely, you didn’t
expect me to live like I was in a nunnery.”

“Yes, as a matter of fact, I did.” Malcolm
stood up and gestured to Logan. “You’re married to that thing over
there.”

“I have a son. Just how do you think he got
here?”

“I imagined it was only once and you were
relieved when it was over.”

“Well, you imagined wrong.”

Logan snickered. “Not everyone lives the
celibate life you do, Malcolm.”

“I’ve heard enough,” Malcolm muttered. “I’m
not staying.” He turned to Regan. “Will you be coming with me, or
should I send the carriage to come back for you?”

“She’ll be staying, of course,” Logan said
for her. “Just because you have trouble accepting what’s going on
around you, it doesn’t mean Regan does. We’ll have a good time
without you, and you don’t need to send for a carriage. We’ll send
her in ours.”

“No,” Regan replied. “I think I should go.”
She wasn’t sure if she should thank them for a lovely evening,
especially since they hadn’t even stayed for dinner, but it seemed
she should say something. So, she opted for, “Thank you for
inviting us to dinner.”

Logan looked as if he’d been deprived of his
favorite treat. “But I was looking forward to talking to you this
evening.”

“She doesn’t want the kind of talk you want
to do,” Malcolm snapped. “Melissa, when you can get your husband to
behave, we’ll be happy to return.”

Since there was nothing else to say, Regan
offered a smile and left with Malcolm. The evening hadn’t turned
out the way she’d expected. Yes, she thought there might be some
awkward moments where Malcolm and Logan argued, but never once did
she think they would end up leaving before she and Malcolm even
ate.

After she got into the carriage with Malcolm,
he took her hand in his and offered her the biggest smile she’d
ever seen. It was even bigger than the ones he’d given Warren, and
that was saying something.

He waited until the footman closed the
carriage door before speaking. “Thank you, Regan. You have no idea
what it’s been like since my sister married that cad. My entire
family has taken his side, no matter what the situation is. But you
took mine tonight. All the doubts I ever had about you are
gone.”

This shocked her even more than their sudden
departure from his sister’s. The carriage moved forward, and the
sudden jolt broke her out of her speechlessness.

“I didn’t want to be there without you,” she
finally said. “Really, it was nothing.”

“It was much more than you realize. I get so
tired of hearing how wonderful Logan is. Whenever I make a
complaint, my parents and Melissa argue with me. They keep saying I
need to give him a chance, despite the fact that all he does is
look for ways to irritate me. Like with that book.” He shook his
head. “I can’t believe he had the audacity to try to give it to
you.”

Oh my. That book was more of a problem than
he realized since she was the one who’d written it. She shifted in
the seat and cleared her throat. Though it would undoubtedly upset
him, she had to tell him, and the sooner she told him, the
better.

“Yes, Malcolm. About the book,” she began,
gathering up her courage. “There’s something I have to tell
you.”

“Whatever it is, it can wait.”

Then, without any prompting on her part, he
kissed her. For the first time since they’d married, he initiated
an actual kiss. And right on the lips, of all places! She was so
stunned she couldn’t even respond.

He lifted his head and looked at her. “Did I
do something wrong?”

“Uh, no,” she said. “I just didn’t expect it,
that’s all.”

“Understandably,” he replied. “But it’s long
overdue, I think. You have been patient with me. More patient than
I deserve, now that I remember all the grief I put you
through.”

“Well, I didn’t realize how I seemed to you
when we first met. I assumed you were like my first husband. He
liked it when I was,” for lack of a better word, she chose,
“mischievous.”

“Most gentlemen don’t mind that kind of
behavior, so I can’t say I blame you for assuming I wouldn’t
either. Maybe it’s best to say we just needed time to get to know
each other in order for me to understand the Duchess of Ashbourne
did, in fact, pick the right lady to be my wife.”

Regan nearly fell over dead at his
proclamation. First, the failed dinner, then the kiss, and now
this. The entire evening was turning into one big surprise.

And then he was kissing her again. She was
able to respond to him this time. How she’d anticipated the moment
where she wouldn’t have to fight him, and now that the moment was
finally here, all she wanted to do was melt in his arms and let the
rest of the world fade away.

Except, she couldn’t. Not when that book was
taunting her. If he knew she’d authored the book, he wouldn’t be
kissing her. He most likely wouldn’t even want to talk to her. And
that being the case, she didn’t give in when he tried to deepen the
kiss.

“Malcolm,” she said, pulling away from him,
“I really need to tell you something. It’s important.”

The carriage came to a stop, preventing her
from saying more. If Malcolm was going to faint or yell at her,
she’d rather he do it where no one was there to watch them. The
footman opened the door, and she joined him in going to the
townhouse. Once they were alone, she would tell him.

Chapter Eighteen

T
he butler came over to them as soon as they entered the
townhouse, a shocked expression on his face. “Mr. Jasper and Lady
Cantrell,” he said, glancing from one to the other, “are you in
need of something?”

“No, not at the moment, thank you,” Malcolm
replied.

All right, this was getting even more
peculiar. Didn’t he want to eat?

Malcolm took her hand and led her up the
stairs. She almost stumbled after him. He couldn’t mean to… No, it
was impossible. There was no way he intended to do what she thought
he intended to do. But she was too baffled to ask him what he was
doing.

When they reached the top of the stairs, he
said, “I hope you don’t mind. I know we could wait, but in all
honesty, I don’t think I can make it through dinner. We’ll get
something to eat afterwards.”

Afterwards? Then he did intend to…and right
now...

He opened the door to his bedchamber and
gestured for her to go in first. She stared at him. Did she really
dare do this? Especially when she had something to tell him that
would change the way he thought of her? She’d worked so hard to get
to this moment, but now that it was here, she couldn’t take it. As
much as she wanted to, she just couldn’t.

He lifted her up in his arms and carried her
into the room. When he set her down, he chuckled. “I know it wasn’t
what you expected, but the thought just occurred to me that it
wouldn’t hurt to be more spontaneous.”

“Well, you did surprise me.” She watched as
he shut the door, ensuring their privacy. She took a deep breath
and wiped her sweaty hands on her dress. “Malcolm, this is
something that can’t wait. The thing is—”

“Let’s not trouble ourselves with trivial
matters.” He strode over to her and cupped her face in his hands.
“You have no idea how long I’ve been waiting for this.”

Then he was kissing her again with those
incredibly warm lips, and more than that, he brought her into his
arms. This time, she did melt into them. It was, perhaps, the most
heavenly thing that’d happened to her in a very long time.

This wasn’t fair. How was she supposed to
tell him about the book when he was doing and saying everything
she’d wanted since she married him? Here he was, finally embracing
her and kissing her in the most glorious way a husband could
embrace and kiss his wife, and she had a terrible emotional
struggle to contend with.

Malcolm’s mouth left hers, and he kissed her
cheek and then her neck. His lips were so warm and soft against her
skin. He couldn’t possibly know her weakness was being kissed on
the neck, nor could he know how much it excited her when he pulled
her against him so she could feel his body, particularly the
strength of his arousal. Her own body responded to him, her core
aching for the feel of him inside her. How she’d missed this. Few
things were as wonderful as making love to one’s own husband.

As his hands ran ever so delightfully over
her rear end, she tried to remember what it was she wanted to tell
him. She knew there was something—something important—she needed to
say, but it was getting harder and harder to remember what it was.
And it certainly didn’t help as he brought his hands up to the back
of her gown and loosened the buttons.

He was going to make love to her. Really and
truly do it. This wasn’t one of the many fantasies she’d
entertained over the past week. This was real. Best of all, he was
the one initiating it. The thrill of it all was a heady experience
in itself. She couldn’t recall a time when she’d been so excited to
do anything in her entire life.

Pulse racing, she helped him take off her
clothes and wasted no time in helping him out of his. There were
times when she found clothes to be a great hindrance, and this was
one of them. The only thing she wanted at the moment was for him to
be naked so she could take in her fill of his naked body. She ran
her hands along his shoulders and then his chest, which were her
favorite parts for they spoke of masculine strength.

Her gaze lowered to his erection, and he
surprised her by saying, “You remember that thing you mentioned,
about putting your mouth there?”

Noting the shyness in his voice, she looked
up at him. There was something different in his expression,
something she hadn’t seen before, well, except for their wedding
night when she took him inside her. It was unabashed desire. It was
the point where he forgot all about propriety and money, and all he
could do was give himself over to his passions.

Feeling a bit coy, she offered a teasing
grin. “I seem to remember something about it. Are you
interested?”

“Very much so,” he whispered, his hands
running up her arms and then over her breasts.

She shivered in excitement. He might not be
experienced, but he had a way of touching her that drove her to
distraction. Part of the enjoyment in lovemaking, of course, were
the activities leading up to the final moment when their bodies
would be joined.

“Maybe you should lie down,” she replied.

Then, just to tease him further, she let her
fingers brush his penis, starting from the base of his shaft and
ending at his tip, which was already slick. As she’d hoped, he
shivered in pleasure from the simple action.

He cupped her face in his hands and kissed
her. This particular kiss was far more wonderful than all the
others because he didn’t hold back. His tongue brushed her lower
lip, and when she accepted him, he wasted no time in interlacing
his tongue with hers.

When the kiss ended, he picked her up and
carried her to the bed. He settled next to her and kissed her
again, this time wasting no time in letting his tongue sweep across
her mouth. Oh my. Who had any idea Malcolm was hiding such a
passionate side? Never in a million years would she have guessed he
could be so sensual when it came to making love.

While she’d heard it reported many gentlemen
discredited the activity leading up to intercourse, he seemed to
relish the build up to it. Usually, gentlemen needed the book to
teach them this, but Malcolm hadn’t needed to be taught how to get
her ready for him. Perhaps it was his patience and dedication to
making money that had taught him some things were best waiting for.
She certainly hadn’t done it on their wedding night. She’d come to
him already ready for him. And really, it hadn’t taken her much to
get ready this time, either. But it did heighten her desire to go
through this sensual play.

Recalling his request, she got on top of him,
intentionally letting her sensitive nub rub up against his shaft.
He let out a soft moan and put his hands on her hips then slid his
penis against her so he stroked her nub. With a sigh, she leaned
forward and traced one of his nipples with her tongue. She thought
he might enjoy that, and his gasp of pleasure let her know he
did.

She took her time in teasing him this way,
first paying attention to one nipple and then paying attention to
the next. All the while, she rocked her hips so she was moving the
sensitive part of her flesh along his shaft. He was wonderfully
hard. More than that, he was moving his hips in rhythm with hers
and being quite vocal in his enjoyment of what they were doing.