Five Wicked Kisses - A Tasty Regency Tidbit (6 page)
Read Five Wicked Kisses - A Tasty Regency Tidbit Online
Authors: Anthea Lawson
Tags: #regency romance, #regency short story, #enemies to lovers, #sexy regency
“Then why didn’t you tell me, once your mother was dead?”
“You hated me.” She turned her face away. “And I could not blame you for it. Besides, you wouldn’t have believed me.”
“I believe you now.”
He did. The past had righted itself, and now shone with a bright clarity. What was done could not be undone, and he would always be sorry for it - but the future lay, full of sudden promise, before them.
“Juliana - forgive me. I…” He cleared his throat. “I needed a reason to see you, to kiss you - and told myself it was all for revenge.”
“I had hoped it was more, though I knew I was yearning for the moon. But I still could not refuse you.” She took a deep breath and looked into his eyes, her expression clear and open. “Robert - I love you. I have always loved you.”
Damn, she was so courageous it put him to shame.
“I love you, Juliana.”
His voice was low, rough against the word he had sworn did not exist. The word his heart had newly discovered, buried as it had been under years of lies.
Love.
What an idiot he had been, twisting his own feelings into a mockery of the truth. A buried fragment of the Shakespeare they had used to quote floated up in his mind.
“
Eternity was in our lips and eyes
,” he said, touching her cheek.
“Antony and Cleopatra.” She smiled up at him. “Oh, but we will not come to such a bitter end after all, will we?”
“It’s been bitter enough - for both of us. I’m so terribly sorry, my love.” He wanted to sweep her into his arms and kiss her senseless. “The day you turned me away, I was coming to ask you…”
For a moment that young man lay just beneath his skin, striding up the blossom-filled lane, a simple gold ring in his pocket and a heart full of nothing but light.
“I know.” She sounded breathless.
He slipped the heavy signet ring of the Earls of Eastbrook from his finger.
“Bedamned if I’m going to waste another moment - or risk losing you again.” He went down on one knee on the threadbare carpet and took her hand. “Juliana Charlotte Tate, will you do me the very great honor of becoming my wife?”
“I…” Her eyes were bright, and a smile trembled on her lips. “Oh Robert - I will!”
He slid the ring onto her finger and closed her hand over it, then rose and gathered her tightly to him. The scent of orange-flower water was suddenly the happiest smell in the entire world. He dipped his head and inhaled deeply, letting the golden crown of her hair tickle his face.
“There is one thing,” she said, her voice muffled against his coat.
“Yes?” He loosened his embrace so that he could look directly at her.
“The matter of a final kiss.” Her cheeks flushed a becoming pink. “That is, I believe there is one more payment owed. In a certain… place.”
He nearly laughed out loud. So she
had
been thinking of his mouth there, between her legs. Ah, but he was going to seduce her, again and again, for years to come.
“I see you are going to be a delightfully wanton wife.”
“Since I have no dowry, I’m afraid I must owe you kisses for that as well.” She gave him a look edged with mischief. “How many, do you think? Five hundred?”
“Five thousand, at least. And I owe you that many in turn, in penance.”
“I would think you do.” She was laughing at him, now. “Be careful, my lord. I may lead you into conservatories and kiss you most wickedly.”
“Good - I expect nothing less.”
“Ten thousand kisses…” She laced her fingers behind his neck and pulled his head down toward hers. “I think we’d best begin right away.”
Their lips touched, and for a moment he smelled apple blossoms. Something in his soul stilled, the bitterness of four years dissolving in a rain of white petals.
He would never grow weary of the taste of her. His Juliana - at last.
~THE END~
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Five Wicked Kisses
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~NEWEST RELEASE -
SONATA for a SCOUNDREL
~
http://amzn.com/B00FJNPJMW
The Muse...
Clara Becker is a supremely gifted composer--a talent of little to use to a woman in 1830s Europe. Her compositions only have worth when they are published under her brother's name, yet this deception barely enables them to scrape out a living in the poorest quarter of London.
Meets the Master...
Darien Reynard, the most celebrated musician in Europe, pursues success with a single-minded intensity. When he comes across Becker's compositions, he knows that this music will secure his place in history. Darien tracks the composer down and, with some difficulty, convinces the man to tour with him. Mr. Becker agrees, but with the most unusual condition that he bring along his sister...
Set against the glittering backdrop of 19th century celebrity, Sonata for a Scoundrel is the newest full-length historical romance novel from RITA-nominated author Anthea Lawson.
“Mesmerizing and addictive...”
-Library Journal, Starred Review
Want more Regency stories from Anthea Lawson?
Maid for Scandal
–
A light Regency short story that skirts the edge of impropriety... Miss Anna Harcourt foolishly disguises herself as a maid to be near the man she thinks she loves, but little does she know how far this charade will lead her - or how close to scandal!
~Two months on Amazon’s Top 100 Regency Romance Bestseller list~
http://amzn.com/B00CEOVRJ8
The Piano Tutor
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Encouraged by her scandalous friend to take a lover, Lady Diana Waverly finds that the new piano tutor is more than he seems -- especially when it comes to passion!
"LOVED IT. A delightful and satisfying quickie read!"
-Historical Romance Book Reviews
http://amzn.com/B0050JKLW8
To Wed The Earl
– Miss Miranda Price detests her neighbor Edward Havens, the rakish Earl of Edgerton, but when he catches her breaking into his library at midnight,
secrets are revealed that will change the course of their lives… forever.
http://amzn.com/B008RHJGTE
The Worth of Rubies
– A Victorian Short Mystery -- Noble ladies are falling victim to a string of brazen public jewelry robberies, but the inquisitive Miss Isabelle Strathmore suspects more is afoot than mere theft…
http://amzn.com/B00B3OWCOE
A Countess for Christmas
- Miss Cecilia Fairfax dreads the upcoming holidays. Between caring for her elderly father and managing a household barely out of mourning, she has no time for the softer things in life.
Of all the blessings of the season, sometimes the most unexpected is love...
http://amzn.com/B00H3ATVV4
COLLECTIONS:
Kisses and Rogues
– Anthea’s first four short stories and novellas above, together in one sweet-to-spicy collection.
In the mood for a novel? Victorian-set romantic adventure awaits!
PASSIONATE
A finalist for the prestigious RWA RITA award, this Victorian-set novel takes the reader on a romantic adventure from the ballrooms and parlors of London through the Mediterranean to the exotic valleys of Tunisia. Fans of Julia Quinn and Connie Broc
kway will enjoy this witty foray into the outer edges of civilization — and propriety
"A lush, exotic tale of romance and adventure."
- Sally MacKenzie, USA Today bestselling author
ALL HE DESIRES
Self-exiled on the Isle of Crete, an English doctor with a troubled past meets the one woman who can bring him out of the shadows and into the light.
“…
deftly combines danger, desire, and a deliciously different Victorian setting into a sexy version of Victoria Holt’s classic gothic romances.”
- Booklist Reviews
Visit Anthea’s website at
www.anthealawson.com
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Anthea also writes Young Adult fantasy as Anthea Sharp -
http://www.antheasharp.com