A Taste of Temptation (28 page)

When he passed the balcony doors he looked out and saw Olivia standing outside with Lady Lynette and the Marquis of Musgrove Glenn.

He stiffened.

Was Olivia still trying to match Lynette and the Marquis? The two ladies were listening intently to something the Marquis was saying. Suddenly both ladies laughed and Andrew realized there was nothing sinister about the two ladies. They were simply conversing as friends with the Marquis.

His gaze strayed to Lynette. Something was different about her. She had never looked more beautiful. No, maybe it was that she’d never looked happier. The Marquis was smiling, too, and at Lynette.

He thought back to what Olivia had told him that morning at breakfast. Watching them now, he realized that if Olivia was trying to play matchmaker between Lynette and the Marquis it
was
because she’d seen something between the two of them that no one else had seen.

The Marquis and the duke’s daughter certainly looked enchanted with each other. He believed Olivia was truthful when she’d said she wasn’t trying to trap the Marquis for Lynette. And the man actually looked interested in Lynette.

Andrew’s attention drifted back to his wife, who was still conversing with the two. A warm feeling settled over him and he felt a desperate need to touch her. He didn’t want to resist the way she made him feel any longer. He wanted her.

He walked over to the three of them and slipped his arm around Olivia’s slender waist and pulled her up firmly to his side.

“I’ve been looking for you,” he whispered close to her ear before greeting Lynette and the Marquis.

When Lynette faced him Andrew saw immediately that the birthmark he’d always seen on her face had disappeared. He blinked rapidly, trying to hide his surprise.

“Lynette, you look lovely tonight,” he managed to say.

Her smile to him was like a ray of sunshine. “Thank you, my lord.”

“I was just telling the ladies about the gardens at Musgrove Glenn. You’ve been there, haven’t you, Dugdale?” the Marquis asked.

“Yes. For a fox hunt a couple of years ago, I believe,” Andrew said, still trying to take in the new Lynette with her birthmark covered. “The grounds and gardens are tremendous.”

“Well, perhaps I’ll host another hunt this October or,” the Marquis turned toward Lynette, “if my marriage status changes by then maybe a house party would be the better event.”

“If you are married by then, my lord, I’m sure your wife will help you make the right decision,” Olivia said.

“Excuse me, my lords, ladies,” said a gentleman Andrew didn’t recognize. “Lady Lynette, I believe you promised the next dance to me.”

“Oh, Mr. Peabody, you’re right, I did. I’m sorry, I didn’t realize it was about to start.”

Lynette excused herself and Andrew watched a scowl form on the Marquis’s brow as she walked away. Was the Marquis the reason for the sudden change in Lynette’s appearance? Lynette had never married, but as kind as she was to everyone, she’d probably be a wonderful mother to his children.

Olivia had been trying to help these two people see that they would be good for each other. And since he was a betting man, he’d be willing to wager the family home that Olivia had something to do with Lynette’s new look.

His admiration for Olivia grew.

Andrew looked down at his wife and he liked what he saw. He liked the fact that Olivia cared enough about Lynette to want to help her. He liked the fact that she brought a book to the breakfast table so she wouldn’t be tempted to interrupt him when he was reading the paper. But he was going to tell her he was wrong to be ill-tempered about that. It didn’t take him long to realize he’d rather talk to her than read the paper.

He could do that later in the day.

But more than anything, he liked the fact that she belonged to him.

Andrew gently squeezed Olivia’s waist to get her attention.

When she looked up at him, he said, “It’s late. Let’s go home.”

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Eighteen

8

A
ndrew helped Olivia
into the carriage and instead of sitting opposite her, he sat down beside her. He could tell it surprised her, and she scooted on the cushion to give him room.

That wasn’t his intention.

He wanted to be close to her. He wanted to feel her body next to his and he deliberately let his thigh touch her leg so he could feel her warmth. There was something indefin-ably satisfying about just being in contact with her.

As soon as the door was shut behind them the phaeton took off with a bounce and a jerk. There was little light inside the carriage, but enough for him to see how delicately beautiful her profile was. He liked the way her long, dark lashes curled slightly on the ends. Her small nose had a soft and feminine slope to it. But her lips were most tempting of all, full and beautifully shaped. Even the proud tilt to her chin was lovely.

He said, “I knew there was something different about Lynette tonight, but it took me a few moments to figure out what it was.”

Olivia faced him and he felt a rush of passionate heat sear through him, giving him an instant arousal. He had a sudden urge to lay her back in the seat, lift her skirts, and take her quickly and ease the pain of wanting in his loins, but Andrew forced that image from his mind.

Olivia was his wife. Not a doxy who was willing to let a man satisfy himself in a carriage for a few coins.

He could wait until they arrived home. But in order to wait he had to put his mind on other things.

“What did you think about her covering her birthmark?” In the dim light he watched Olivia’s lips move as she spoke and tried to concentrate on her words, not on how much he wanted to bend his head down and kiss her lips, kiss the hollow at the base of her throat, and then take her breast into his mouth.

He blinked away the image of her eagerly responding to his touch.

“I thought it made it easier to see how pretty her face is and how lovely her green eyes are.”

“I’m glad you saw her that way. That’s what she wanted, for people to look at her face for once and not see the birthmark. She’s tried various creams and potions in the past but finally something was developed that covered the red and looked natural.”

“I have enjoyed Lynette’s companionship at parties for years. I like her for who she is. Not for what she may or may not look like.”

“I’m sure a lot of people feel that way, yet she has always felt she was at a disadvantage where making a match was concerned.”

“I can understand her thinking that.”

“Were you ever attracted to her?” Olivia asked.

The only attraction Andrew could think about right now was the one he had for his wife. It was difficult for him to carry on a conversation about Lady Lynette when all he could think about was the anticipation of getting Olivia home, undressed, and beneath him.

Andrew cleared his throat, but he was really trying to clear his mind of pictures of Olivia stretched nude on her bed beckoning him to come sate her and himself.

“If you mean attracted as if I were going to be her beau?

No. I’ve always thought that if I’d had a sister I would have wanted her to be like Lady Lynette. She’s friendly, confident, steady, and dependable.”

“That’s a very nice compliment. I see her that way, too.” It was usually a short ride from the Great Hall to his house, but tonight it seemed to be taking hours.

“I don’t exactly know why, but something tells me you might have had a hand in the change in Lynette’s appearance,” he said.

Olivia looked away for a moment, and when she turned toward him again in the shadowed moonlight that drifted inside the carriage through the small windows he saw that her eyes implored him to understand her.

She said, “If that were true, would it make you angry with me?”

Her words struck him hard. Is that the way she saw him, as always angry? Was he?

Yes, at times. He had felt trapped into a life he didn’t intend by two cunning women. But he didn’t feel that way anymore. He was beginning to believe that Olivia hadn’t set out to trick him into marriage as he first thought. He had been angry, but wasn’t now.

Andrew looked down into her eyes, wishing she could see him more clearly so she would know how he was feeling. “I’m not angry with you about anything, Olivia.”

“I’m glad. I wanted Lynette to see and believe that she is a beautiful person on the outside as well as inside. I don’t want you or anyone thinking I am trying to help Lynette trick any man into marriage. I wouldn’t do that.”

“At one time I thought exactly that, but I’ve changed my mind.”

Her lovely eyes widened. “Does that mean you believe I wasn’t trying to be a matchmaker?”

He could no longer bear not touching her. He reached over and caressed her cheek with his fingertips, letting them slowly trace the outline of her lips. Just touching her face caused his lower stomach to tighten and a surge of hardness between his legs.

Andrew smiled mischievously and said, “Yes. I’ve been thinking and I’ve decided that there are some people who need a little nudge from friends, enemies, fate, or maybe even a ghost to help them see that they are meant for each other.”

He could see in her face that his words surprised her as their meaning sank in, but just as quickly a flash of doubt shone in her eyes.

Her breath quickened. “Don’t tease me, Andrew.”

“I’m not. I’m speaking the truth.”

His fingertips traveled over her chin and down the slender column of her throat to rest in the hollow at the base of her neck, where he felt the fast pump of her heart. He liked the feel of her excitement.

Anticipation ran wild inside him. He loved the feeling.

Olivia’s hand fell to his thigh and she leaned toward him. Andrew knew she didn’t realize she was touching him very close to the center of his desire, but oh, he did. The heat from her small gloved hand seared him with eagerness to possess her.

“Tell me what you mean,” she said.

“It was a ghost that brought us together, wasn’t it?

You did tell me you were looking for a ghost in my room.”

Olivia’s brows drew together in a frown. “Yes, but I—I suppose I never adequately explained that, did I? And I should.”

He shook his head. “You can explain it again to me sometime, but not now. The only thing I want to hear from your lips is, ‘Kiss me, Andrew, kiss me.’ ” She continued to look cautiously at him for a moment or two. She was wary of him and he didn’t blame her. He had accused her of trapping him into marriage. There wasn’t anything romantic about the way he’d behaved since their marriage.

“Must I ask again?” he questioned her with his eyes as much as his words.

Suddenly a smile broke across her face, a beautiful, glowing smile that showed just how gorgeous she was, and she whispered, “Kiss me, Andrew, kiss me.” He lifted her chin with his fingers, bent his head, and slanted his lips over hers in a slow, tender kiss. The longing and the passion inside him were too intense to go softly or slowly. When her lips parted and she leaned sensually into him, he deepened the kiss.

Her hand on his thigh slipped closer to the throbbing shaft between his legs. That sent a slow spreading of delicious, languorous warmth sizzling through him and he lifted his hips toward her.

His tongue swept inside her mouth, slowly, delicately, so he could enjoy the sweet taste of her. His uneven breaths quickened and so did hers. That was all the confirmation he needed. She wanted him as much as he wanted her, and that gave him immense satisfaction.

With quickness his arms slid around her back and he pulled her up to him as his mouth ravished hers. He felt her firm breasts against his chest and tightened his arms around her. His lips left hers and he brought his tongue down the long sweep of her neck, tasting her, devouring her.

Olivia arched her back, giving him greater access to her throat and chest, and he took full advantage of her offering.

His mouth found her breast and searched for her nipple hidden beneath the thin material of her gown. Through the silky fabric, he found the tight bud peeking above her undergarment and gently tugged on it, nipping it with his teeth. Her nipple grew harder under his playful touch.

He felt her tremble with desire. Immense pleasure surged inside him to know that he could make her feel so wonderful.

Amid the sexual fog that had enveloped him, some sixth sense kicked in and Andrew realized the carriage had stopped and so did he, groaning as he pulled away from her.

A small involuntary whimper of reluctance swept past her throat.

“We’re home,” he whispered.

Trying to gather his wits and slow his breathing, Andrew opened the door and jumped down and then took Olivia’s hand and helped her out of the phaeton. They remained quiet as they walked up the steps and into the house.

While Andrew was helping her with her wrap Whibbs came in and took their cloaks, along with their gloves and other things. Andrew said a few words to the butler but he really didn’t know what. All he could think about was getting Olivia upstairs.

When Whibbs turned away, Andrew took Olivia’s warm hand in his and led her up the stairs.

At the top step he turned to her and said, “My room or yours?”

She smiled and said, “Mine’s closer.” And with that Andrew pulled her into his arms as his lips came down on hers in a punishing kiss that she accepted with eagerness that pleased him and aroused him.

He kissed her harshly, madly, and Olivia matched his fierce hunger. Andrew was desperate to touch every inch of her beautiful body and sink his shaft deeply into her. His body commanded him to take her quickly and satisfy himself, but he knew he couldn’t give into that wanton urge.