Gentleman's Guide 02 - His Contrary Bride) (25 page)

Shortly before midnight Marius pulled
Sabrina from the gathering. She was pleasantly exhausted and
allowed him to lead her to the carriage for the ride to her new
home.

Reece, Marius’s butler, was waiting to open
the door when they arrived. After welcoming the new lady to the
home he disappeared. Marius led Sabrina up the stairs to the room
she would use as her own. Molly was waiting for Sabrina and took
over readying her for the night after Marius closed the door.
Relief flowed through her to know she would have a chamber to
herself. She may have shared a bed with Marius once before, but
they weren’t married. In fact, they barely knew each other. Much
had changed since then.

Sabrina stood in the center of her new
chamber and turned a slow circle in awe. It was larger than any
room she had ever slept in before. A fire burned bright, taking
away any chill the night would have brought on, and a large bed,
made of cherry wood sat on the opposite wall, a dark rose coverlet
falling to the floor on both sides. An evergreen chair sat beside
the fireplace along with a small table. Beneath the window, a
settee, upholstered in a lighter green sat with throw pillows
covered in dark rose rested against the back. Sabrina sighed. It
was a perfect room for Cinderella.

Given the circumstances Sabrina didn’t
expect to see Marius until tomorrow morning so she washed, brushed
her hair, donned her nightgown and was soon tucked into the bed.
Excitement of the day still flowed through her but she was also
exhausted all the same. One thing was certain, this would be her
most memorable birthday.

*

As this night was not going to turn out how
he planned, Marius opted for a night shirt he hadn’t worn in years
to preserve Sabrina’s modesty. Less than a week, he reminded
himself, and then he could return to how he preferred to sleep – in
nothing at all. He poured a glass of wine and waited for his bride
but when half an hour passed he tapped on the door connecting their
rooms and stepped through when she answered. Though he wasn’t sure
what to expect, he was surprised to find her in bed. Her white
night gown was buttoned to the throat and her hair spilled down
around her shoulders. This was going to be the most difficult night
of his life. He’d thought the revealing items he had purchased
would be provocative. Nothing could compare to the virginal night
gown she now wore.

She looked up at him shyly. “Did you come to
say goodnight?”

He stepped through the door and walked until
he stood next to the bed. “Not exactly. It was my intention that
you would be more comfortable readying yourself for bed in
here.”

“Thank you.”

“It is not my intention for you to sleep in
here however.”

“But Marius, you know…”

“That has nothing to do with the situation,”
he interrupted her. “I have no intention of sleeping away from my
wife tonight or any night.”

“I thought it was customary that husbands
and wives sleep apart, except for more intimate moments.”

“Not as far as I am concerned.” He pulled
the covers away and scooped her out of the bed. “Besides, one never
knows when intimacy is desired and it is damn inconvenient when
your spouse is in another bed.” He carried her through the
adjourning door and deposited her in his bed. Standing back he
looked down at her. “This is much more to my liking.”

As she had the first night they shared a bed
all those months ago, Sabrina stayed to one side of the bed until
she fell asleep. Though he wanted to hold her, Marius felt it best
for his own sanity to remain away. It had taken him well over an
hour to fall asleep. He knew he hadn’t slept for long before
awakening again. Sabrina, in her sleep, had curled around him. His
arm rested around her waist. Her hand rested on his abdomen.
Completely awake, he stared into the darkness. Enjoying the feel of
her and aching with need. It wasn’t until she rolled on her other
side and snuggled her backside against him that he was able to
relax again after willing the desirous tension to leave his body.
He slept fitfully afterward, always waking to find himself wrapped
around her from behind. By the time the sky began to lighten he had
finally given up sleeping altogether. Quietly he dressed and left
the room.

The house was completely deserted, which is
how he had planned it for this week and had given each of the
servants a holiday. Making his way to the kitchen he looked for
something to occupy him and was soon kneading bread for that
day.

This is not how he had planned on spending
the first morning after being married. Of course he knew he would
be seeing to their meals, and he didn’t mind, but not this early.
He had envisioned that he and Sabrina would do everything together
in the solitude of the house. Of course that everything had only
included cooking, eating, sleeping, and making love. He should be
happy to have three of those, Marius admonished himself. Besides, a
week wasn’t forever; it would just feel like it. He punched his
fist into the rising dough but it did little to alleviate his
frustration.

*

Sabrina woke to an empty room and bed. After
washing and brushing her hair , she went in search of her clothing.
There were half a dozen dresses in the closet but she did not
recognize them, other than the wedding dress from yesterday. The
drawers in the armoire were partially full, but none of these items
were familiar either and she was especially embarrassed over some
of the more delicate, sheer material. Quickly shutting the drawers
and looked for another similar cabinet, but none were to be found.
Returning to Marius’ chamber, she stood in the middle of the room
wondering where her clothes were. Worse, though she tried not to
dwell on it, who did those other items belonged to? Marius must
have forgotten that his mistress had left her clothing behind or
surely he would have gotten rid of them before he married.

She turned and looked at the bed. How many
women had shared it with her husband? Sabrina abruptly turned, not
liking where her thoughts were going. Marius promised to faithful
to her and Sabrina trusted him in that. This was the first day of
the rest of their life together and she must ignore what probably
occurred in the past. But first, she had to find her clothes and
second, find a way to get rid of the others. Returning to bed, she
decided to wait until Molly made an appearance so she could find
out where her clothes had been stored.

*

Marius was smiling as he mounted the stairs.
It hadn’t been his original intention when he had gone to the
kitchen but as he cooked the thought came to him. What better way
for a bride to wake than with breakfast served to her in bed by her
new husband? Well, there was one better way, but it was best not to
dwell on what he could not have.

He also envisioned waking her with kisses
before placing the tray on her lap. He had not expected her to be
sitting up in bed with a pondering look on her face. She must have
been up at least once because her hair was brushed and pulled back
with one of the ribbons he had seen with her toiletries. Lord, she
was beautiful and enticing.

Sabrina appeared as shocked to see Marius
standing in the door as he appeared at finding her.

“What are you doing up?” He asked.

“I thought I would dress and join you for
breakfast.”

Smiling, he stepped further into the room.
“Oh, you’ll be joining me for breakfast, but I had something a
little different in mind.”

“What would that be?”

“Breakfast in bed of course.” He placed the
large tray in the middle of the bed.

The aroma of fresh, hot bread and coffee was
strong. Sabrina’s stomach grumbled while Marius sat carefully on
the other side of the bed. He bit back a smile at the sound. It
reminded him of the first meal they shared together after he picked
her up on the side of the road. He proceeded to prepare a plate of
ham, eggs, and fresh bread with raspberry preserves. Coffee and
chocolate accompanied the meal.

“This is delicious.” Sabrina finished off a
slice of bread.

“Thank you. I hoped you would be
pleased.”

Eyeing him curiously. “You prepared this
yourself?”

“Of course. Besides, there is no one else. I
gave all the servants a holiday for a week.”

Sabrina’s eyes widened. “All of the
servants? Why?”

“Because, my dear, I wanted to be completely
alone with you.”

She frowned. “I am just surprised.”

Marius hastily continued. “I wasn’t able to
plan a wedding trip. I hope you are not disappointed.”

“Of course I’m not disappointed. I am happy
to be here with you.” Pausing as she sipped her chocolate. “Are we
going to be reclusive as well?”

“That had been my plan. However,
circumstances have caused me to alter those plans.”

Sabrina blushed. So he had thought to spend
a week like
That
.

“Instead, I’ll take you to the museums and
all those other mentally stimulating places you wanted to
visit.

Sabrina smiled at this. “That will be
wonderful and I only see one problem.”

He quirked his eyebrow in question.

“Do you know where my clothing is?”

“They are in the other chamber.” He gestured
toward the door.

“I didn’t find them.”

Marius looked up from his breakfast. “Molly
assured me that your clothes had been placed in the closet and the
undergarments in the armoire. There is not much there but surely
enough to last a week, until we retrieve the rest of your
belongings.”

Sabrina’s cheeks grew pink. “Those are not
my clothes. I’ve never seen the dresses before and the, um,
undergarments are, ah, delicate.”

Marius bit the inside of his cheek to keep
from smiling. “Who do you think the clothing belongs to?”

She looked away, her blush deepened. “I
assumed they belonged to one of your mistresses.”

Marius raised his eyebrows. “Why would you
think that?” His wife was now turning a lovely shade of red.

“Mostly because of the, um, intimate
apparel. I can’t imagine what other type of woman would wear
something so, um, revealing.”

Marius couldn’t keep the grin off his face.
“Perhaps a wife?”

Sabrina looked up and eyed him
suspiciously.

“We couldn’t pack your own things or it
would have ruined the surprise so I consigned a small wardrobe when
I ordered your wedding dress.”

Sabrina’s eyes grew wider and she began to
pale. “You picked out those sheer, lacy items for me to wear?”

At her shock and dismay, Marius began to
wonder if she had ever been told the more personal aspects of
marriage. She was too appalled for him to ask her now. “Don’t
worry, Sabrina. Those are for in the future, when we are more
comfortable with one another.”

Sabrina rose from the bed. “Since those are
mine, after all, then I suppose I should dress for the day.”
Quickly she left the room and closed the door behind her. The doors
connecting Marius’s room to the dressing room and bathing chamber
were also closed.

Marius chuckled as he finished his
breakfast. Only one week and he could start working on relieving
Sabrina of her shyness.

*

Sabrina felt completely composed when she
entered the kitchen a short time later. She only assumed this is
where Marius had gone since his chamber was vacant of him and the
remains of their breakfast. She found him stacking the dishes,
preparing to clean them.

“Excuse me, but I believe that is my chore,”
she announced coming into the kitchen.

“I don’t expect or want you to do anything,
Sabrina, except perhaps keep me company.”

Locating an apron, she tied it around her
neck and back. “Nonsense. I can’t let you do it all and since I
can’t cook, I will clean.” Smiling brightly at him.

Marius stood before her, ready to argue.

“Please, I would like to do this. You can
keep me company,” she urged him.

Reluctantly, Marius handed over the towel
and took a seat at the large work table, not far from the sink.
Sabrina retrieved his cup from the tray and poured him some more
coffee before she began cleaning the dishes.

“That is the part I hate, you know.”

“What is?” Sabrina looked over her shoulder
to where he was sitting.

“Cleaning up after I have cooked.”

Sabrina laughed. “Then it is a good thing
you married me.” She turned back to the dishes.

*

For the first part of the week Marius and
Sabrina didn’t venture from the house. They still wanted to visit
the attractions but neither wanted to encounter other people and
preferred to stay in their own private world. Marius tried to teach
Sabrina to cook but after three meals they determined that for
their own health she should stick to cleaning. He taught her
billiards and was immediately sorry. Not only did she have an
incredible knack for the game, but her position over the table did
nothing for his frustrated state. If he wasn’t watching her rounded
behind, he was glimpsing down the front of her gown as she bent
over the table to take her shots. When he could take no more, he
taught her chess. At least this ate away a number of the hours.

The nights were the most difficult for
Marius, who slept less and less as his wife developed the habit of
curling around him. Mentally he crossed off each day that passed
and counted the days until they could consummate the marriage.

They had been married four days and Marius
lay awake in bed listening to Sabrina’s even breathing. She had
been asleep only a short time and the hour was just approaching
midnight. He was wondering if he would even be able to sleep that
night when he heard the scuff of a boot across the foyer and the
creek of a door. He wasn’t expecting any of the servants this soon
but perhaps one returned early. Yet, he was also on the alert in
the event Chesterfield decided to harm Sabrina.