Mistress By Marriage Part 11

For that was all he felt, wasn't it? Pure l.u.s.t-with a dash of territorial protectiveness to keep what was his safe. For she was still his, at least in the eyes of the law.

"Suit yourself," he said gruffly. "I can't stop you."

"No, you can't." She bounced out of bed, the candleholder wavering in her hand and casting gobliny shadows in the room. "It is still my home, for as long as I live, at least according to those papers Will Maclean drew up for you. Tenancy for life. Very generous terms for a fallen woman like me, according to him. He was quite put out about it as I recall. But," she said, a mischievous smile on her face, "perhaps you want this mysterious duo to kill me off. I imagine you'd get a pretty penny for the house if you sold it."

"Don't be absurd. I'd not give up the comfort of Christie House and find myself on your dusty floor if I wanted you dead."

She reached up and stroked his cheek. Her fingertips were warm and gentle. Edward felt as if five b.u.t.terflies had landed, causing his skin to tingle. "Poor thing. I'm sure the floor is not dusty. Mrs. Hazlett would permit no such thing."

"Hmpf." He wished she'd drop her hand. He wished she'd drop it lower. He stepped backward. "What do you suppose she has in the larder?"

"I'm sure I don't know. She's quite immune to my suggestions."

"A wise woman."

Caroline swatted at him. "How can you say that? I'm quite a good cook, you know. I taught myself after a bit of trial and error. Just because you never eat anything but dull and bland and boring fare-"

"Are you calling me dull and bland and boring?"

She shrugged. "Dull and boring-I'm repeating myself, aren't I? Not very accomplished for a wordsmith, but it is very late and I'm very tired. You must admit you are not one bit adventurous when it comes to your palate."

For an instant, Edward remembered how she tasted when he kissed her smooth pink inner folds. Sweet. Tangy. Undeniably Caroline. He wondered if she had allowed her nether hair to grow back in the time they had parted, and wondered too if she would ever permit him to taste her there again. His mind in a fog, he b.u.mped into a table in the hallway.

"Watch your step. If you fall, you'll wake the whole household."

Edward concentrated on navigating down the stairs. He'd concentrate on another deadly sin, gluttony. He'd torture himself watching Caroline eat, licking her lips and fingers, biting into some juicy morsel with relish. He shivered as they reached the landing.

"You aren't cold, are you? I vow, I've never experienced a hotter summer." Tempting tendrils had escaped from her strict braid, and she pushed them behind her ears. She had not donned a robe for their late night snack, so her ripe body was on display under the sheer nightdress. Edward was certain she must be aware of the image she presented, saucy and sweetly disheveled. Caroline was deliberately setting out to make him the sorriest man in England.

She flitted around the kitchen, lighting lamps which only illuminated her near-nakedness. He'd had the sense to put on his dressing gown, which at least disguised his rampant manhood from her too-knowing silver eyes. It was hotter than h.e.l.l, but he belted the robe tighter.

"Now, let's see. You said you were thirsty. Ale or wine? Or perhaps tea? I could put the kettle on."

The thought of hot liquid vying with his hot blood was too much for the summer night. "Just water, if you please."

She set a tumbler and a jug before him. "See? Just as I said. Dull. I keep a very good cellar. Some wine might help you sleep."

Some wine would loosen his tongue. Loosen his resolve. There was something to be said for the watchful tension he felt in Caroline's presence. He shook his head and poured a splash of water into the gla.s.s. As he drank, he examined her pert backside as she a.s.sembled a plate at the sideboard. It resembled the peach she balanced on the scalloped edge. "You will join me, I hope. I've fixed enough for two." She placed the little feast beside him and dragged a chair closer.

It was simple fare-two thick slices of bread, a wedge of cheese, a cl.u.s.ter of grapes, two figs, and the golden peach. Caroline popped a deep purple grape in her mouth and sighed. "Almost as good as wine. I forgot it. There's a half bottle left from our dinner in the pantry. Would you get it please? And a gla.s.s, too." She ripped a corner off her bread with determination and held it under her nose. "There's nothing I love so much as the smell of fresh bread." She smiled up at him and extended the chunk to his mouth, brushing it against his lips. "Isn't it divine?"

Edward had no choice but to eat it. It was d.a.m.n good bread. Caroline nibbled on another piece topped with a sliver of cheese and offered him the same, the ribbon tie of her nightdress slipping down her shoulder. She leaned forward seemingly oblivious to the fact that she was losing what little clothing she had on. From his height advantage, her b.r.e.a.s.t.s were impossible to conceal from his starved gaze. No amount of food would quell that particular desire. Once he finished chewing, he reared up quickly from his chair to fetch the wine. He was glad to escape, glad to get away from the sinful bread and cheese and his entirely enticing wife. If bread and cheese had that effect on him, what would happen if she served him oysters? He knocked his forehead into the cabinet in an attempt to draw his blood upward.

"Edward? What was that noise?"

"Nothing, nothing. I'm just clumsy tonight." Grasping the bottle of wine and a goblet, he returned to the kitchen and poured them a healthy tot. Caroline was in the midst of a fig, its jewel-like center glistening in the lamplight. Her tongue darted across her lower lip to catch a sticky wayward seed. He downed his wine in one swallow.

"Here. Let me cut up the peach. They seem to be especially delicious this year. I meant to make some peach chutney, but they are too good to spoil with vinegar and onion." She picked up the silver fruit knife and sliced through to the stone, carefully pulling the peach in half. Edward stared at the golden circle in her palm, its juicy center tinged deep pink. Dear G.o.d.

"I'm not hungry," he rasped.

"You don't know what you are missing." Her teeth sank into the flesh of the fruit and her eyes closed in bliss. "So very sweet, Edward. You must taste it." She held out the peach half. He would choke on it, but she was not to be resisted. He took a bite and the consummate flavor of summer burst in his mouth. He'd never tasted anything so incredible in all his forty years.

Except for Caroline. She would taste of peaches and herself tonight, a combination he could no longer fight. She was busy with her own half of heaven, clear nectar edging from the corner of her mouth. Edward longed to lick her clean and make her dirty again on the spotless kitchen table. He imagined her arching up against him, her flimsy nightrail tattered-no, torn off and thrown in the banked fire. She would be as golden as the peach, beneath him in the amber lamp-light, as pink within and hot as the summer night. He could feel her hands sweep his back, hear her fevered cries, bury himself so deep- Her cool hand on his cheek broke the spell. There was nothing but concern in her huge gray eyes. "Edward, are you ill? You look very odd."

He mopped his brow with a linen napkin. "You're right. It's excessively warm this evening. I think I'll just step out into the garden. Try to catch a breeze."

"Mind Harold. He's out there somewhere. I don't know why he dislikes you so."

Edward knew why. Anyone who usurped his pillow in his mistress's bed was the enemy. Well, Harold had nothing to worry about. Edward was relegated to the floor forever.

Caroline stifled her giggle just long enough to hear the tradesmen's door close. Oh, but she was wicked. When she had woken up to find Edward on the balcony, his body lit by moonlight, she had seen how very, very uncomfortable he was, and not from lying on her carpet. The man was stiff as a poker and nearly as long. She had done nothing that past half hour but prolong his agony.

She straightened the strap of her nightrail. Usually she wore something prim and practical to bed, but tonight she had sent Lizzie to Victorina's to borrow the indecent bit of tissued silk. Even if Edward was moving in because of some sudden urge to become her knight in shining armor, she did not want him to get complacent-to take her for granted as he had. Oh, she knew it would not be long before he was elevated from the floor to the mattress, but he would have to suffer a bit first.

She sipped her wine and plucked a few more grapes from the stem. She really was famished. Food had become much too comforting to her since Edward disappeared again. It was a good thing Mrs. Hazlett didn't permit her in the kitchen, else she'd be up to her eyelashes sampling new recipes that she surely didn't need. All her new crimson clothes would soon be useless to her.

Too bad Victorina was not in possession of a red nightgown, but the whispery cream silk was temptingly transparent. It had served its purpose, but something new would be necessary for tomorrow. Caroline would send Lizzie forth to borrow more courtesa.n.a.l nightwear for the duration of Edward's stay. It would be frivolous to order such things to hang permanently in her dressing room cupboard, and she knew the Jane Street girls would not mind contributing to the downfall of Baron Edward Christie. When Caroline was through with him, he would be contrition itself.

If she was still alive, of course.

Chapter 13.

There was nothing like a little good company to light her lonely life. A pity there were nothing but bats and spiders skittering about in the dark.

-Saving Cecilia.

Caroline waited in the kitchen for Edward until every last crumb was gone from the plate. He must have found the garden absolutely fascinating, for she grew weary waiting for him. Maybe he was making friends with the cat. More likely, he was using his hand to relieve his masculine need that she had set out to inflame. If so, she would be safe from him in the bedroom, if not from herself. Putting their dishes in the scullery first, she climbed the stairs with her candle stub and crawled back into bed. She was nearly asleep when the door opened and Edward quietly returned to his spot on the carpet.

After a decent interval, she rolled to the edge of the bed and peered down. Edward had removed his nightshirt but was half covered with a sheet, his broad shoulders gleaming in the slanting shaft of moonlight. His lips were parted, warm breaths rising to Caroline's face, his lashes dark crescents above his chiseled cheekbones. She could throw one leg over the bed and step on him if she chose. But his breathing was even, and it would be a shame to rob him of sleep, no matter how irritating he was. She didn't believe she was truly in danger, but it was gratifying to know Edward's concern.

The air was still. The room felt close, cloistered, especially with Edward's long form radiating scorching heat. He must be quite naked beneath the sheet. Caroline settled back in the middle of her lonely bed and gazed up at the mirrored ceiling. Although the room was bathed in moonlight, there was nothing to be seen in the silvered gla.s.s save shifting shadows.

When Caroline and Nicky were children, they'd done much of their exploring by moonlight, wandering far afield to catch glimpses of nature by night. In the winter when the blanket of snow reflected the January moon so brilliantly, they had even deigned to take their schoolbooks outside to see if they could read them. When Caroline recounted that tale to Andrew, he had been disbelieving. So they'd stepped out into the snow to test its dazzlement and read love poems to each other, then he had taken her atop and beneath fur blankets in the frost-covered garden. She had thought then it was the most remarkable, romantic night of her life. She'd felt nothing but his heat as she opened to him, tasting brandy on his tongue, shivering not from cold but desire.

It was so long ago. She never let herself think of Andrew. That chapter of her life was not to be reread.

She had forgiven herself for her stupidity, and nearly forgiven Andrew for his duplicity. Nicky's journal had been most explicit. Andrew had suffered unimaginable torment from the time he was a child. It was no wonder he couldn't comprehend right from wrong, why he used whatever was convenient to advance himself.

When he came to her with the letters, he'd been almost apologetic as he attempted extortion. She had the feeling he would have preferred her body over the pounds he had requested, and she had been so miserable she would have given it. Almost had-until Edward walked in and saved her even as he condemned her.

Caroline pushed the covers off. It was far too hot, and her brain was broiling with unpleasant thoughts. In a fit of pique she pulled Victorina's nightgown off and tossed it to the floor. Not on Edward's side, of course. She wouldn't want him to smother in silk, although his light snoring was annoying. It had awakened her earlier and abandoned her to night devils.

She was perfectly naked. No, not perfect. Her poitrine was opulente if she remembered her French correctly, but the rest of her was growing as well. With a rueful sigh, she stroked her belly, then allowed her fingers to dip lower. She was still as smooth as Edward required. For some odd reason she had remained so throughout their five-year separation. It would be so easy to wake Edward, but she was not ready to cede control to him just yet. Slipping her fingers within to stroke the plump fleshy bud, she held back her groan of satisfaction, pressing and circling above it as she had so very many nights alone. She knew what she needed, and knew who held the favored spot in her fantasy.

It didn't take her long. It never did. She waited for G.o.d to smite her or Edward to wake-either one would be disastrous, but the waves of blessed relief juddering through her body were almost worth it. Still greedy, she continued to touch herself until she was exhausted from her pleasure. Surely now she could fall asleep, boneless and sated. With a sigh, she pulled the sheet up and curved into the mattress.

On the floor, Edward lay rigid. It seemed Caroline had just done the very thing he did for himself in the garden, in much less than half the time. Of course he'd had the blasted cat to contend with. He'd practically seen Harold sneering in the flower bed.

Lord, but they were a pair of fools. Edward hoped Caroline would not ignore the crackling heat between them forever. He'd have to pressure Mulgrew for fast results. Sleeping on Caroline's floor was torture of every kind-like the state of their marriage. Punching his pillow, Edward cursed and willed himself back to sleep. He had a busy day ahead and couldn't afford to be a lovesick lad at his age.

Things had improved for Edward, at least in terms of his physical comfort. The ubiquitous Cameron had found a camp bed for him, and it was set up near the threshold of Caroline's bedroom door. No longer could she feel his warm breath or feel the waves of desire emanating from him throughout the night. He was at a safe, if dissatisfying, distance. They were scrupulously polite to each other as their days intersected and circled. Caroline had even stopped flirting, as it didn't seem to be effective. Edward was determined to be valiant and chivalrous and too d.a.m.ned good.

After several days stuck indoors, Caroline was going mad. Cameron was hovering as usual. He took his duties far too seriously, steadfast in Edward's absence. She had tried without success to sic Lizzie on him as a distraction, but her maid was far too besotted with Garrett Marburn to bother flirting with Edward's valet, no matter how handsome he was.

Even Caroline, who was resistant to the allure of most men thanks to her unfortunate past, thought Cameron was a prime specimen, if a bit humorless. Nearly as tall as Edward, she could imagine him in a scarlet coat tramping through Europe with his musket shooting at the French without a blink. At present, he had a wicked little pistol strapped to his chest and a frown on his face. She had been arguing with him the past quarter hour trying to leave the house. There was a game of loo that afternoon at Victorina's. There was always delicious Spanish wine, Caroline nearly always won, plus she needed to return her borrowed nightgowns and obtain more. Despite the fact that Edward didn't seem to notice her dishabille, she had her Parker pride to contend with. Each night she looked ready to be ravished, not that Edward had laid a finger on her. Yet.

"You can stand guard right outside the house," Caroline suggested for the fourth time. "Or wait inside. I'm sure the girls won't mind a bit."

Cameron colored. "'Tain't proper. Baron Christie would have my hide if he thought I was hanging about with a house full of loose ladies. Beggin' your pardon, Lady Christie. I know they're your friends and all-the baron did explain-but he wants you to stay inside for now. His instructions were very clear."

"So I'm to be kept a prisoner in my own home?" Caroline flared. Really, this was going too far. Whatever amorphous threat had been uttered at a drunken party, surely she was safe on her own street. It wasn't as if she could be s.n.a.t.c.hed away without incident. After Pope's a.s.sault on Lizzie, she had helped train the girls in rudimentary self-defense skills, and each of them would be armed with hatpins, fingernails, and a judiciously placed knee at the very least.

Cameron folded his arms, looking stalwart. "Sorry. My mind's made up. You're to stay put, my lady."

Caroline subdued her desire to fly into a frenzy and attack the man. He was a war hero, after all, and her hands would only wind up bruising against his broad chest. Edward and Cameron were well matched-both calm, controlled, and utterly pigheaded.

"I need fresh air. I a.s.sume you'll let me go into the garden?"

"Only if I accompany you. I know about the doors in the garden walls, you see. You'll lift the latch and be down the street in no time."

h.e.l.l and d.a.m.nation. Cameron was no fool. He'd made a thorough reconnaissance of the situation. Each back garden was walled, but there were indeed doors on either side so the Janes could visit each other without stepping out their front doors. Caroline had first made the acquaintance of her old neighbor Charlotte Fallon after hearing her sobbing next door and had hurried through the wall to soothe her. Blast.

"Oh, very well." Insufferable man. Caroline tramped back upstairs and sat at her desk. She heard shuffling in the hallway and knew Cameron was right outside her bedroom door pacing the carpet. If she were clever, she could knot bedsheets and climb down the balcony, but that seemed like a great deal of trouble to go to in order to win a few pence and drink some red wine. She opened a blank notebook and stared at the blank page. Her muse had definitely deserted her. What with the alleged threat on her life, the constant monitoring, and Edward's inconvenient, insidiously tempting presence, she could barely think straight. What she needed was a diversion or she thought she might start to throw things again.

Just in the knick of time, Cameron tapped on the door and entered. "Lady Christie, Hazlett says you have a guest below. A Mrs. Bannister."

Caroline frowned. "I know no one with that name."

Instantly, Cameron produced the gun from its holster.

"Oh, good grief! Put that away at once. It's probably some poor soul collecting for charity."

Cameron shook his head. "Unlikely. A high flyer if I'm any judge. I caught a look at her from above before she went into the parlor. Hair black as night, big blue eyes, and a body that-well, never mind," Cameron mumbled. "Hazlett says she's come to ask you about her sister Charlie. What kind of a name is that for a woman?"

Caroline grinned in understanding. "Ah. It must be the Divine Deborah. It's all right, Cameron. I don't know why I didn't recognize the name. Mrs. Bannister is my friend Charlotte's sister. She lived next-door, although I never met her."

He snapped his fingers. "I knew it!"

Caroline couldn't help herself. Cameron might tower over her, but she shook a fist in the direction of his somewhat crooked nose, his only apparent flaw. "Yes, she may have lived here once, but she's a respectable married woman now. Don't be such a prig. You've no idea the suffering some of the residents of Jane Street have gone through. Young women have very little opportunity for employment and are always at the mercy of predatory men. Sometimes selling their bodies is the only available choice open to them. It would behoove you to leave your judgment to G.o.d."

Chastened by her tart lecture, Cameron stepped back into the hallway, his shoulders drooping in a satisfactory manner. Caroline appraised her own shoulders in the mirror. She was wearing one of her new dresses, perfectly proper, more wine-colored than scarlet-quite plain really. She fastened an amethyst brooch on the bodice and added amethyst earbobs. She had been too dispirited the past few days to affix her usual sparkle to her person, but the prospect of an interview with the notorious Divine Deborah was reason enough to shine. Deborah's sister Charlotte had disappeared from Jane Street, not entirely without warning. Charlotte had told Caroline she planned to leave, but had gone without saying good-bye. The whole house was shuttered and silent, a mystery Caroline itched to solve.

"I'll accompany you downstairs," Cameron said, blocking her at the door. He had recovered his superior height and att.i.tude.

"You may wait in the hallway. I have nothing to fear from Mrs. Bannister."

"You don't know that," Cameron said stubbornly. "She could be in league with the men who have plotted against you."

Caroline sighed. Her good gossip opportunity was not to be ruined by Cameron.

"Look," she said, trying to make her tone as reasonable as possible, "Mrs. Bannister is the new daughter-in-law of an earl. I doubt she would be foolish enough to risk her rise in society for some petty revenge upon me. I've never even met her before."

"Then maybe she's not who she says she is."

"You worry too much, but I suppose I should thank you. Please, Cameron. I'll leave the doors open and you may station yourself right outside. I will not let Mrs. Bannister get the better of me, but if she attempts anything untoward, I'll yell my b.l.o.o.d.y head off. Or maybe stab her with a letter opener. All right?"

Cameron blushed again at her curse, but nodded in agreement. What kind of soldier had he made if a little vulgar language was a problem?

She found the new Mrs. Bannister in the green downstairs parlor, her gloved hands holding a Sevres plate which she put down at once. Clearly the woman was examining its provenance. Just as clearly, she did not seem ashamed of her snooping. Instead she curtsied gracefully, raised her eyes, and put a lovely practiced smile on her face. Wearing a stunning gown of peac.o.c.k blue, she was the sleekly polished image of her sister Charlotte-there was no doubt she was who she said she was.

"Lady Christie, so kind of you to see me. I am Mrs. Arthur Bannister."

The words sounded like magic coming from her lips. Caroline knew a little about Arthur, and he was not magical at all. She extended two fingers. "Do make yourself comfortable, Mrs. Bannister. May I ring for tea?"

"Thank you for the offer, but I won't inconvenience you. Or my husband, Arthur. He is waiting outside in our carriage. We've just come back from our honeymoon, you see."

Deborah was the picture of delight over her new station. Caroline could not remember ever being so pleased to be married, although she must have been at one time. Edward had saved her from her cousins, and for that alone, he should be enshrined in some heroic pantheon. "My felicitations on your marriage. I understand from your sister that it was rather sudden."

"Yes, a whirlwind courtship. But I couldn't say no to my Arthur. Charlotte was minding the house for me, but there is no one next door now, not even any staff. Would you happen to know what's become of her?"

"I do not. I was hoping you might be able to tell me."

"Oh, dear." Deborah fiddled with a loose coal-black curl. "I imagine she's gone back to her silly little cottage in the country then."

Caroline thought Charlotte was far more suited to a silly country cottage than a Jane Street residence. Charlotte Fallon was definitely not mistress material. Deborah, on the other hand, despite her recent marriage was still in full courtesan mode-every gesture, every smile set on a well-worn course to charm. It was no wonder men fell at her feet, but Caroline was impervious. She could see the vulnerable woman beneath the glittering surface and felt a bit sorry for her. It must be so very tiring always being pretty and pleasant.

"If you see Charlotte," Caroline said, "tell her I have taken inspiration from her. My closet is positively exploding with red dresses and my husband is apoplectic." Actually, that was not true. Edward seemed rather sanguine every time she entered the room in one of her red dresses. They were not having the desired effect at all.

For the first time Deborah Bannister expressed a natural look-one of confusion-but nodded in agreement, her careful curls bouncing. "Of course. I shall write to her." There was the slightest pause. "You have not, perhaps, heard any news of Sir Michael Bayard?"

Caroline knew this was not an idle question. Deborah had left her sister in her place as Sir Michael's mistress when she ran off with Arthur Bannister. Poor Charlotte had not been able to hold out against Bayard's masculine conceit and had been hopelessly in love the last time Caroline had spoken to her.

"I'm afraid not. He's not been seen on the street in some time. As you said, the house is closed and the servants gone."

"Well, I'm sure they both landed on their feet," Deborah said, rising. "Thank you so much for your time, Lady Christie. I'm most sorry I didn't make your acquaintance earlier."

Caroline thought if anyone had landed on their feet, it was Deborah Bannister, nee Fallon. Once one of London's most sought-after mistresses, she had managed to hook a husband after a string of high-born lovers. Most Jane Street girls would never be so lucky, living out their old age rationing out the gifts of their youth. No wonder they were anxious to acquire one bauble after another to keep themselves warm in a future winter. Once their beauty faded, as it inevitably would, there was nothing left to fall back on but cold, hard cash.

Caroline shook off her dismal thoughts as she saw Deborah Bannister to the door. She knew she couldn't save every girl in the neighborhood-she could barely save herself. Although her writing had proved more lucrative than she had ever dreamed, she gave much of the compensation away. There was always some poor soul who needed it more than she did. After all, how many red dresses and Sevres dishes did she need? She had redecorated her house recently out of necessity. When Edward had placed her there, it looked very much like the wicked love nest it was supposed to be. The paintings alone were enough to make a wh.o.r.e blush. If Cameron had seen them, he'd probably have swooned. It had taken Caroline a few years, but room by room she had upgraded her surroundings. The only holdover from the previous tenant was the carved bed and the ceiling mirror, and it remained solely because the workmen feared the plaster would fall down upon their heads if they removed it.

Her interview over, Caroline climbed the stairs back to her neat desk. She hadn't written anything in days, since even before Edward had turned up on her doorstep. Garrett was not going to be pleased with her lack of progress. She dipped her pen in the silver inkpot and held it over the page. A splash of ink fell and spread merrily over the white surface.