The Earl's Outrageous Lover (16 page)

Her chance came when the hostess announced that dinner was to be served in the dining room.  Jessica pulled him back a moment so that they were in the back of the crowd.  There, she turned to face him so that no one else could see what she was doing.  She took the piece of lace out of her clutch and slipped it into the pocket of his dinner jacket, then patted the place outside to make sure it was flat.  “There,” she said and turned around.

He grabbed her elbow and spun her around again.  “What did you just put in my pocket?”  he asked, opening the jacket while his free hand started to pull it out.

She shook her head and tucked the lace back down.  “Don’t do that.  It’s my underwear.”  She stood up on her toes and kissed him quickly.  “I don’t want everyone else to know that I’m not wearing them and I definitely don’t want anyone to know that my underwear is in your pocket.”

She patted his chest once again, then moved into the dining room to find her place.  Thankfully, she was right across the table from Edward and so she could see the stunned expression on his face.  He looked like he’d just been hit with horrible news and he was struggling to decide what to do about it.  As she pulled her chair back, he looked down at the hem of her cocktail dress, making sure that it was long enough and wouldn’t reveal anything while she sat down.

Jessica watched him, a secret smile on her face.  She even put her hands on her thighs, letting him know that she was wiggling around on her chair.  Edward glared at her, his face no longer an indifferent mask or even a socially amused expression.  He was furious and wasn’t afraid to show it.

She smiled at her dinner companions, both men who were relatively handsome but nothing even close to how glamorous Edward was.  He was like a movie star with his tuxedo and his dark skin, those intelligent eyes that saw and understood everything.

As the dinner progressed, Jessica became more distracted by Edward’s heated glances.  She wasn’t exactly sure about his reaction, but she was pretty sure she would experience a bit of Edward’s passions, although she wasn’t completely sure in which emotion that passion would manifest itself.  She was eager for both, hoping she could turn the negative one into the one she actually wanted to see.

The dinner seemed endless, especially since Edward continued looking her way.  Each time he did, she moved slightly, her body responding to the touch from his eyes almost as if it were his hands.  Unfortunately, by the time the second course was served, Edward was back to his normal rigid control.  He spoke to the people on both sides of him, even the woman who had a bit too much of her ample bosom showing over the top of her low cut dress.

There were so many courses that Jessica wanted to throw her dessert across the room at Edward.  She wanted a reaction, she wanted him to be looking at her like he had at the beginning of the meal.  She wanted his anger or his passion or anything other than this complete indifference.  He was paying more attention to the women on both sides of him than he did to her.

Jessica moved over to Edward, her mind working on Plan C as everyone walked slowly out of the dining room for coffee in the living room.  Unfortunately, she hadn’t really formulated a Plan C since she’d been so excited about Plan B.  So when she felt his hand on her bottom, his fingers obviously trying to determine if she had really taken off her underwear, she gasped and looked up at him, seeing the heat in his eyes.  His touch had the normal affect on her and she almost jumped with his touch, her pulse increasing exponentially and she glanced up at him.  “What are you doing?”  she asked, her mouth slightly open when he pulled her closer.  She suddenly felt that he wasn’t as immune to her pre-dinner action as she’d thought.  He hid the impact well, but he growled into her ear, “You’re going to pay for this.”  His voice was rough and gravelly, sending both excitement and fear down her spine.

As she stared up at him, she whispered, “I certainly hope so.”

He grabbed her hand and dragged her over to their hostess.  “I’m sorry, Lana, but we have to leave early.”  He reached down and air kissed her cheeks, then turned around and dragged Jessica behind him, not even allowing her to say goodbye to their hostess.  Jessica waved goodbye as she tried to keep up with Edward’s long strides while he pulled her out the door and into the night.

Since Edward had just sent the message to Tim letting him know that it was time to pick them up, he wasn’t outside like he normally was when they left some place.  So Edward took the opportunity to press her back against one of the long columns on the front steps of the house.  The night air was cool, but with Edward’s lips on hers, kissing her as if he wanted to punish her in some way, she didn’t feel anything other than the heat of his hands and his body as it pressed against her, his hands almost lifting her off her feet.

She wasn’t even aware of Tim’s arrival, and she was thrilled when Tim had to clear his throat, apparently several times, because not even Edward heard him the first time.

When Tim’s noises finally broke through, Edward scowled down at Jessica, his mouth a grim line and he shook his head as he grabbed her hand and pulled her down the stairs.  Tim slammed the door behind them and before the car was even moving, Edward pulled her onto his lap and slid his hands up her thighs, discovering her thigh high stockings with the lace at the top, and nothing else stopping his hands.

Jessica gasped as his fingers moved along her skin, her body on fire.  “Yes!”  she gasped when his finger slid inside her.  She let her fingers tear at the buttons on his shirt, discarding his tie and moving everything out of the way so she could feel his skin and the light hair that was scattered over his chest.

“I love you,” she gasped victoriously as her hands worked at the zipper on his slacks.  Her hands found him, released him and reveled in how strong he was.  Unfortunately, she didn’t have much time to think about that since he sheathed himself with a condom only moments before he grabbed her hips and pushed inside of her, her legs on either side of his hips and she grabbed his shoulders as she adjusted to his invasion.  Her head fell backwards as she moved up, then slid down his length once again, setting the pace.  When his hands gripped her hips in an effort to increase the pace, she shook her head and called out, “No!”  and he instantly released her, his eyes looking up at her with a worried expression for a moment before she smiled at him, her intent apparent in her eyes.

Slowly she moved along his length, setting a slow pace, letting her body control how and when she moved.  Edward allowed it, sweat breaking out on his forehead and he was gasping for breath as she rode him.  As she neared a climax, she sped up, moving her hips until he grabbed them once again and took control.  At this point, she didn’t mind, even enjoyed it when he gripped her in an almost painful hold and moved her more quickly, his thrusts bringing her to an almost instant climax that rode on and on until he too found his release.

Afterwards she collapsed against his chest, feeling his arms move around her back, his hands shifting up and down, along her legs and back up her sides.  “I can’t believe you did this to me,” he groaned.

She laughed and kissed his chest, still mostly covered by the tuxedo shirt because she hadn’t had the time to work the buttons off.

“I can’t believe we just did that,” he commented, still sounding dazed as he tried to catch his breath.

Jessica snuggled closer.  “I love it when you’re like that.”

He grunted and shook his head.  “Out of control and ridiculously fast?”

She stopped and looked up.  “Passionate and human,” she countered.  Jessica kissed him gently.  “I love it,” she finally said.

“No you don’t.”  Edward leaned his head back and sighed.

She pulled herself up and slid off his lap, adjusting her dress while he adjusted his own clothing.  “Don’t tell me what I like and don’t like, Edward,” she snapped at him.  “I might love you to distraction, but it really makes me furious when you try and tell me what I may or may not like.”

She was busy looking around for her shoe and didn’t realize that he’d gone completely still.  When she found her shoe, she grabbed it and sat back up on the leather seat next to him, slipping it onto her foot.  “Why did you say that?”  he asked softly, the limousine still moving smoothly through the nighttime streets towards his home.

Jessica felt the stiffening of his body and looked up, trying to understand what she’d done wrong.

They arrived back at his house and Edward finished dressing quickly, then surveyed her appearance to make sure she was presentable as well.  From the color in her cheeks, he knew that she looked more…satisfied, but there was nothing to do but get her into the house where he could talk to her.

Once inside, he pulled her into the living room and closed the doors.  “Sit down, Jessica,” he said softly.  When they were both seated, her on the sofa and him on the seat in front of her, he took her hand and held it between both of his.  “I wanted you to know that you don’t need to say things like that.”

She looked confused.  “Like what?”  she asked, her stomach clenching in fear of what he was trying to tell her.

“That you love me.”

She looked down at their hands.  “Edward, I do love you.  I don’t like the controlled way you hold me though.”

He smiled grimly and shook his head.  “Don’t mistake gratitude and good sex for love, Jessica.  They aren’t the same thing.”

“I know that,” she snapped and pulled her hand out of his.  “Do you honestly think that I don’t love you?  You drive me absolutely crazy sometimes, but I’m definitely in love with you.  How else am I going to put up with all of your schedules for the next fifty years?”  she demanded and pushed him back so that she was sitting in his lap.  “Don’t be such a jerk that you don’t know love when you see it.”

He held her close, enjoying the way her softness felt against him but he shook his head.  “Jessica, you married me because you needed my help with your father’s will.”

She smiled and kissed his jaw.  “No.  I married you because you overwhelm me whenever you are close to me.  I fell in love with you because you are an incredibly handsome, caring and wonderful man who deserves someone special in his life.  Someone like me who can help you feel things.  And when you won’t allow yourself to feel things, I’m going to be right there, feeling them for you and helping you stay strong like you think you should.  And no matter what, I’m going to love you through your whole life.”

Edward couldn’t say anything to that statement.  Not because he didn’t have the words, but because his throat was constricting around the things he wanted to say.  So instead of speaking, he pulled her close and buried his face in her neck, breathing in her soft, sweet scent and telling her with actions that he would love her back just as fiercely.

But those actions weren’t adequate.  He pulled back and kissed her gently.  “I love you to.  I think I’ve loved you ever since you danced into my life with those red cowboy boots.”

She laughed and rolled her eyes.  “Edward, admit it.  You hate those boots.”  But she didn’t care because he loved her too!  She’d destroy those boots if it made him happy.

“I love those boots,” he growled and bit her earlobe.  “In fact, how about if you wear those boots tonight and I’ll show you just how much I love them.”

She giggled and hugged him closer.  “I truly do love you, you know.”

“I think I’m starting to understand.  And I love you too.  I’m very glad you burst into my life, Jessica.  I’m sorry my uncle had to break his leg to get you into my life, but I’m glad about the results.”

“Me too,” she whispered and kissed him again, showing him how much she really did love him.

Julianna Holbrook sipped the cold white wine and shifted her back so it was more towards the crackling fire.  She was suddenly cold and she shivered as she rubbed her hands over her wool covered arms to warm them.  Or was it that ominous feeling she couldn’t shake?  That foreboding sense of impending doom that had nothing to do with the air temperature?

She’d never considered herself a superstitious person before.  She believed there was a scientific explanation for everything, even when humans couldn’t explain something yet.  But this was a feeling that wasn’t really tangible.  It was…just…a feeling.  A sense that something was going to happen.  When had this feeling started?  Why was she being so silly and even thinking about it?  Normally, she would simply shrug off something so….metaphysical for lack of a better term.  So why was she even paying attention to this odd sensation?

She had no idea, but she wiggled again, trying to get comfortable.  This was ridiculous, she told herself and smoothed the blue wool skirt back over her knees, crossed her legs at the ankles….tucked the pillow more firmly behind her.  She still couldn’t get relaxed!  There was just something…..wrong.

She looked at the other two occupants of the room, wondering if they were feeling this odd, tingling sensation as well.  Edward Livingston, her significant other, for lack of a better word, appeared to be engrossed in a conversation with the vivacious hostess, a beautiful woman named Jessica Mallory who wore a fabulous pink dress that hugged her incredible figure, adorned with gold chains around her neck and wrists along with gold hoop earrings.  Her curly hair swished and danced about her face as if nothing could be still around her.  In fact, the air around the mysterious and beautiful Jessica Mallory seemed to be vibrating with energy as her chocolate brown eyes smiled at both her and Edward while the three of them conversed.

Julianna smoothed her blond hair self-consciously.  The glossy, elegant twist she’d pulled it into for the dinner party was still in place but she wished she’d worn a color other than the light blue dress.  The material was excellent and the cut made the dress a perfect fit for her figure, but she felt washed out, bland, especially compared to the fabulously adorned Ms. Mallory.  Unfortunately, Julianna melted into the décor.  The walls were cream, about the same color as her hair and the sofa was blue, nearly the same color as her dress.  She sighed as she thought about how often she looked like the decorations.  It seemed to be an issue that plagued her consistently

Jessica Mallory probably never had that problem, she thought.  The bright pink looked extraordinary on her.  It took a great deal of confidence to pull off that color and Jessica added just the right touch with the gold chains.  Julianna fingered her demure pearl necklace, wishing she had the kind of confidence to wear something with more flair and flamboyance.

When the doorbell rang, Julianna jumped, strangely feeling as if the tension in the atmosphere had suddenly increased.  Which it probably had because their hostess didn’t look like she was expecting anyone else for dinner.  Jessica’s eyes were wide with concern as she glanced between her guests and the doorway to the living room where she heard her housekeeper start to answer the door.

Julianna’s eyes snapped to Edward’s.  “Did you invite anyone else, perhaps?”  she asked.  She immediately felt guilty when she caught the sharp glance he gave her.  Both of them were wondering why she sounded so snappish.

Before she could apologize to Edward, a deep voice was already booming from the foyer into the living room and Julianna glanced at their hostess.  Jessica’s face lit up as she recognized who might be visiting, her pace increasing as she moved towards the front door to greet the newcomer with visible excitement.

“I’m looking for Jessica Mallory.  Is she in tonight?”  the booming, male voice declared as if he had every right to crash the quiet evening.

Julianna heard the voice and her hand froze in mid air, her wine glass inches from her mouth while her eyes snapped towards the door.  That deep, resonant voice sent shivers through her body, making her uncomfortable.  Embarrassingly uncomfortable!  Who on earth could have that deep of a voice?  It was like Barry White with a bit of gravel as well as a touch of southern charm thrown in just for accent.

Edward’s voice was deep and made her think of intense, rich coffee, but this voice was more….disturbing in a way that made her knees wobble and her heart rate increase.  Just by the sound of a man’s voice?  Ridiculous, she told herself, but she put her wine glass on the coffee table because her hands were shaking ever so slightly.

“James?”  Jessica called out, her feet moving faster as she tried to peer around the door.  “Is that really you?”

Johanna felt an intense stab of jealousy shoot through her as the vibrant brunette hurried towards the voice in question.  Something inside of her wanted to shout out that the other woman needed to step back and slam the door shut, warn her not to let the strange man into her house.  She actually glanced around the room, wondering if there was a place to hide and then realized how silly she was being.

Hiding?  At a dinner party no less?  This had to be the most outrageous thought she’d ever had in her life!  Instead of following her ridiculous instincts, she pulled herself together, gave herself a stern lecture about greeting others properly and, with as much dignity as she could muster, rose from the sofa to stand and welcome the newcomer.

Before she was ready for the intrusion, a tall, muscular man with enormous shoulders filled the doorway to the living room and her knees instantly started shaking.  He was about the same height as Edward, but with a different look about him.  Where Edward was refined power wrapped in a mask of elegance and manners, this man was just raw, blatant strength.  There was no masking anything with the tall, blond man, just an almost painful shock to her senses that had her grabbing the arm of the sofa to steady herself from the man’s sensuous impact on her mind, not to mention the effect his presence had on her body.

His black turtleneck showed off his muscles to perfection and his long legs were encased in black slacks, but she instantly wished he were wearing jeans.  Jeans that would mold to his long, muscular legs and….what was she thinking?  She was practically an engaged woman and she was picturing another man in jeans?  She didn’t even wear jeans herself!  And this man was a stranger!  They hadn’t been introduced as of this moment and she was already reacting to him in such a physical….carnal way.

She worked hard to suppress her instant reaction, trying to hide her body’s response behind a polite mask of mild interest as the large man’s startling blue eyes swiftly took in the occupants of the room other than the woman in his arms.  When his eyes collided with hers, she felt as if an electric shock had just zoomed through her body.  He was still ten feet away and she inhaled sharply when his eyes stopped and looked back at her.

She suddenly felt hot and cold as his eyes slowly traveled up and down her body, acting as if he had the right to visually accost her in such a manner.  She glared back at him, telling him with her eyes that he was out of line and acting horribly rude.  But the man was audacious and instead of being contrite and looking away as any normal guest would do, his eyes held hers and his grin widened.  The man actually caressed her with his eyes in front of the other two people!

When he looked back down at Jessica, she let go of the breath she’d been holding, sliding her palms along the sides of her dress as she realized that her hands were sweating.  How juvenile, she thought with derision.  When had she reverted to being eighteen again?

Julianna sighed inwardly and shook herself to refocus her mind.  She should not be thinking about this stranger.  Not in jeans, slacks or in any other way.  And especially not naked!  She blinked and tried to pull her eyes away from his broad shoulders and gain control of herself.  She’d never reacted to another man like this!  How could her mind betray her so horribly.

The man was built with muscles everywhere, but that didn’t give her the right to….well, to do what he was doing to her!

She knew that Edward was extremely muscular, had felt similar bulging muscles when he’d taken her into his arms and gently kissed her goodnight on previous dates.  But there was something about this man, the way he held himself or maybe the way he looked at the occupants of the room in one all-encompassing sweep before stopping on her and not moving that terrified her.  He made her want to run and disappear.  He was dangerous in ways she couldn’t even begin to understand, had never encountered before.

Suddenly those feelings she’d had earlier in the evening, the tension she couldn’t explain, came back to haunt her.  She had attributed that strange sense of anticipation to the fact that Edward hadn’t informed their hostess that another guest would be arriving but this was what she’d sensed was going to happen.  This man and his arrogance was the issue she should have shied away from.  She should have excused herself earlier in the evening, telling both Jessica and Edward that she didn’t feel well.

Julianna watched warily as the man approached, her stomach muscles tightening while it churned with some unknown emotion.  She didn’t understand her instant dislike of this man, except that she felt that strange sense of danger in him.  As his eyes sliced through the other occupants of the room once more, she almost choked on her wine when his eyes came to rest on her again.  They were ice blue and intelligent, with something strange in them that increased the shaking in her knees as she endured the introductions.

Jessica introduced him as James Cavanaugh, and for some reason, the name rang a bell but her mind wasn’t functioning fully while he looked down at her with that strange sort of omniscience.  As he smiled and extended his hand towards her, she wanted to shake her head and tell him ‘no’, that he couldn’t touch her and he should stay away from her.  Those eyes, she thought with trepidation, were telling her right back that he wasn’t going to do anything of the sort.  His wide mouth smiled slightly, as if he understood what she was feeling.  And was equally determined that he wasn’t going to stay away.

“Can you stay for dinner?”  Jessica asked, her chocolate eyes looking up at the man with pleading, but when he looked back down in her direction, Julianna realized that the two of them were just friends.  She was actually shocked that Jessica didn’t feel the same sort of trepidation when James stepped back and put his arm around her waist.

Julianna tensed with the dinner offer, praying silently that he would turn down Jessica’s invitation, say anything and make up an excuse that he had to be somewhere else.  When his blue eyes flickered her way, she quickly looked down at her glass of wine.  Manners would dictate that he decline the invitation after seeing that the dinner party was already in progress.  But she knew that he wouldn’t, being the crass, obnoxious man that she already sensed he was after only the ten seconds she’d been in his company.

“I thought you’d never asked,” she heard the big, blond man reply and every sense in her system came on fire.  She took a sip of her cold wine, wishing it would pass along some of that refreshing coolness to her overheated skin.  But nothing seemed to penetrate the heat.  She even glanced at the fireplace, wondering if it were one of those automatic, gas fireplaces that could be turned off with a flick of a switch.  Even the heat was conspiring against her and she felt like her cheeks were on fire as she looked up at the man who was now staring down at her as Jessica finished the introductions.

“James, this is Lady Julianna Holbrook.  Be good,” she warned with a stern glance up at the man’s smiling blue eyes.

There was nothing she could do.  As Jessica introduced the man, Julianna had to offer her hand although she wanted nothing to do with the man and his arrogance.

When his hand took hers, she inhaled sharply, her eyes glancing down at their hands clasped together and she tried to quickly pull her hand away.  He held on though, not letting her disconnect from him so easily.  As she looked back up into those crystal blue eyes, all her suspicions were confirmed.  This man was dangerous.  And all that danger was directed towards her and she didn’t like it.  Not one little bit.

James laughed softly as he took Julianna’s cold hand in his large one.  “Ah darlin’.  I’m always good,” he said and caused Julianna’s cheeks to turn an even darker shade of pink at his innuendo.

“Pleasure to meet you, Mr.  Cavanaugh,” she lied, wishing him to purgatory for his boldness.

“The pleasure is all mine,” he replied.

Jessica poured him a bourbon over ice and they all sat back down.  Unfortunately, the man took the seat next to Julianna despite there being ample room in other places around the coffee table.  He even sat too close, forcing her to shift her position closer to the arm of the sofa just so their legs weren’t touching.  And why in the world did he have to put his arm along the back of the sofa like that?  She could actually feel his body heat along her back where that arm was resting as well as all along the side of her where his massive body was too close to hers on the cushion.