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Chapter 18
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2024-10-29 19:42:56Silently, deftly he peeled away the ruby silken robe leaving her standing in her white nightdress. Her hands replaced against the windows she let out a fresh pant of pleasure as his hands felt the outline of her body.
The bumps in the fabric where her buttons rose caused his fingers to judder as they caressed up and down. Pushing herself more firmly against his rigid body she felt the teasing stubble on his chin and the increasing firmness in his trousers.
Still kissing her neck, teasing her with rough and smooth embraces, his strong hands roamed her stomach, waist and rib cage until he reached her breasts. Lightning continued to crack across the sky and the pelting raindrops down the windows drowned out her heavy breathing.
As he gently embraced their roundness,
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The Baron's Cold Proposal Chapter 19
The Gilded Falcons' reputation was increasingly notorious across the gossip pages of London. It required a landed title for entry, one had to be sponsored by an existing member and there were absolutely no limits to what could be gambled.Oliver had found himself here over the previous summer multiple times with Henry Lupton. It appeared to be a regular gentlemen’s club from the street and indeed the front half was purely a cigar lounge.Beyond the leather-seated main bar was a guarded second entrance. To pass through to the gambling hall there was a severely polite bald gentleman. He would check your name, and credit against the approved members list and only upon his silent nod if approval would you gain access.The d
The Baron's Cold Proposal Chapter 20
The morning after the thunderstorm saw a hive of activity in the gardens of Fairfax Manor. An immaculately clear blue sky had emerged from the storm, the spring flowers were in full bloom as they hugged the wide gravel driveway. Muttering servants milled around the edges of the lightning strikes impact mark which had burnt dozens of deep vein-like marks into the grass for several metres. "It looks like a bloodshot eyeball," the grizzled Jackson offered to a nodding group. "It's beautiful," murmured Lily to Sophie, "I wonder if it's still hot in the middle?" Craig appeared behind the girls and spoke up, "the centre should be like glass now if it is similar to what I have seen before. It's the heat of the lightning. Like turning sand into glass, same thing." Jackson wandered towards and announced to the group, "Mr Thornfiel
The Baron's Cold Proposal Chapter 21
Athena looked at the gathered crowd from her room, wrapping her arms around her waist. Practically she wondered whether the extracted lightning impact should somehow be displayed in the pagoda at the centre of the lake. Emotionally her mind was completely stuck in the depths of last night. She could not believe how brazen she had been. Of course, if he was as familiar with the whorehouses of Europe as rumours suggested, her actions were probably routine, perhaps even boring. To her, every interaction with him was an awakening of another locked piece of her soul. Looking out onto the gardens she felt like one of her bulbs bursting into bloom. Her skin was brighter, smile wider and eyes sparkling and he was the source. She had matched his supposed indifference by i
The Baron's Cold Proposal Chapter 22
Realising he had been quietly lost in his own thoughts for several minutes, Felix coughed, causing her to turn around. He softened his face to give her a gentle grin, allowing the pleasure of her company to show on her face. “Anything you wish to learn about me Athena, it seems only fair…I hear I come with quite the reputation these days?” Her solemn face yielded into a soft smile “I do not know whether I wish those rumours to be true or not Sir, some are so deviant as to be impossible.” “Well this is an opportunity, I shall tell the truth. You may decide if I am truly deviant” “Hmmm, I think I might already know you are less than virtuous Sir” she muttered as he pulled Achilles up alongside her. Their
The Baron's Cold Proposal Chapter 23
Down in London, the past twenty-four hours for Oliver had been a roller coaster. He had spiralled between despair and elation multiple times as Fate had toyed with him. Now as he sat eating a quiet lunch in his hotel room he tried to go over the turn of events and rationalise his situation. Upon arriving at the Gilded Falcon from Lady Daphne's gathering, he was surprised to be denied entrance for the first time. Despite his title and connections it appeared his name had a red creditor mark against it. The odious bald gatekeeper had politely and in a quiet voice reminded him that his previous visit was still unpaid. Sulking angrily at the bar he watched the other gentlemen gamblers come and go. Sipping a claret, his mind was a torrent of self-pity and unfairness.
The Baron's Cold Proposal Chapter 24
The room erupted into a braying circus, all decorum and breeding seemed to have vanished along with the evening. It was approaching morning and the amounts of claret and brandy consumed had reduced the audience to that of a prize fight mob. I would like to wager ten thousand on this hand – he says so casually! “Have you ever seen the like?” “Looks like the Fairfax family have another clever rogue amongst them!” “I never…Cedric are you taking bets on top for this one?” Cedric, the slim man with slightly bulging eyes who had patiently dealt throughout the night looked over to his concerned bosses, they gave him a subtle sign. &n
The Baron's Cold Proposal Chapter 25
The arrival of Oliver's letters announcing his plans the following day caused enormous upheaval and welcome distraction to both Athena and Felix. Both buried themselves away in their respective studies focusing on arrangements, business and contractors. Oliver returned to Fairfax Manor without any sense of the raging tension between the two people. He was entirely focused on his mission to dazzle his party guests with the completed project. He had even begun to expedite Craig directly, no longer using the lake as an excuse to flirt with Athena. Oliver had to admit that they had performed an amazing transformation. Within two weeks the lake was completely dug, lined and slowly being pumped full of water. The ironwork pagoda had been delivered and was assembl
The Baron's Cold Proposal Chapter 26
After the horse ride to Remmington, Athena had thoroughly stamped down her feelings towards Felix. Oliver's letter and party planning had given her more than enough distraction. She had also ridden Tempest over to Lord McDonald's estate regularly to take tea with Lady Louisa. She had become something of a mother figure, always interested in the projects progress and her opinions on the latest news. These pleasant afternoons with Lady Louisa had yielded a prospect for more work. Lord and Lady Trimble had a country estate that they used as a summer residence when not in London and they wanted to get her perspective. Her latest letter from Lord Trimbles estate manager suggested it best she visit in person to compose her proposal. Lady McDonald assured her they were a respectable family, the Lord and Lady around fifty yea
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The Baron's Cold Proposal Chapter 68
“You don’t think there is enough there to make with work with Octavia then?” “There isn’t, but to turn back now would condemn us both.” “What changed?” “You did. I saw how happy you were in the hotel the other week and I realised I am never going to experience love like that. My life is a sham. Octavia is a sham.” “Is there a chance that in time love will grow or are you fundamentally different people? For my part I thought you two would prove a good match in time,” Felix offered in consolation, trying not to provoke Oliver into anger but eager to learn the truth.” Oliver sighed and continued to stare at the ceiling, his dark eyes glittering with the threat of tears. “I treat her poorly on our engagement meeting. Bit too rough with her if I am to confess and it has ruined any…possibility of future relations.” “Have you apologised?” “No.” “That might be all it takes. When there is no apology, the heart hardens. But it ca
The Baron's Cold Proposal Chapter 67
The wedding day finally arrived. A riot of colouring flowers greeted guests as they arrived at Hadden Hall, once again admiring Athena and Craig’s garden redesign. Re-treading the same driveway she had left less than a year earlier Athena was stunned at the transformation of her life. Prickly, quiet, and somewhat lonely, now metamorphized into a kaleidoscope of joy from which she saw no end in sight. With her husband, still a foreign word upon her tongue to describe the man she gazed at so adoringly across the room, she had found herself. His touch, gentle and rough caresses had unlocked parts of her soul that she hadn’t even realised were hidden. Every night they came together in an exploration of varying power, teases, and softness. She was surprised to find how much she enjoyed overseeing Felix’s pleasure, how readily he submitted to being tantalised by her. Her body, no longer a practical skeleton design to move earth and plant flowers could be a device for both
The Baron's Cold Proposal Chapter 66
The evenings darkness had enclosed London's streets as Oliver travelled towards his destiny with ever increasing anger. Bouncing along the cobbles his mind tortured him with all his errors. The loss of Lady Daphne as a potential love, his upcoming marriage to a woman be did not love. Overarching all of these was a wild jealousy of Felix and Athena. Their easy way with each other and the transformation in Felix was unbelievable. Finally carriage pulled up around the corner. Oliver threw some gold coins at the carriageman, requesting he wait outside. As he walked towards the casino his resolve melted away. Stood outside the nondescript building he was baffled as to why the place had held such a hold over him. Why had this standard columned building haunted his dreams and pulled at his sanity. He knew inside was a bar, a ledger with his fat credit line ready to play and a bar stocked with enough alcohol to drown out the misery. This time winning money wouldn't s
The Baron's Cold Proposal Chapter 65
Oliver had regained his old swagger as he zipped around London with Octavia in the final week before the wedding. There were balls to attend, gentlemens clubs to smoke cigars in, too many functions to name. He was surprised just how well Octavias scheme had worked. As soon as the announcement hit the formal papers, not just the gossip rags all the invitations came flooding in. Hidden Hall was going to be overrun with the nations best, brights and richest young lights with him at the centre. He had left Octavia back at the hotel with her sour faced mother after an early dinner. She had seen through the match but prudently kept her mouth shut. Annoyingly Octvaia remained reverted to some kind of virgin state since their encounter at the bridge. Late at night, after several claret glasses he did occasionally replay that moment
The Baron's Cold Proposal Chapter 64
At Fairfax Manor life had continued steadily, it had been almost three months since they got married, two months since Athena and Felix’s shock marriage and the summer was now at an end. Craig was busy ensuring the manor was fully prepared for winter winds and storms, checking supplies for the skeleton staff that manned the manor in Felix’s absence. He was also responsible for ensuring standards did not slip alongside Mrs Clarke. Thankfully the small teams of people on site were all dedicated to preserving the great hall and all rejoiced in seeing the owner happy again.Athena wrote frequent letters to both Lily and Craig separately, each one dealing with matters of business, finance and matters of the heart to the other. With Craig’s tuition Lily had become adept at reading and writing, improving from a basic knowledge to literate in just a few short months. Sophie was no
The Baron's Cold Proposal Chapter 63
He spent a few more minutes wandering back up to where the horses were, his mind racing with a strange mix of fear and excitement. Weaving his way back through the glade path he heard the noise of the waterfall once more.“Felix…” came a sultry, low call that made him almost trip over the overhanging tree roots. The temperature dropped noticeably once out of the midday sun, the cool shady air was delicious. He realised he was sweating and damp from his searching after her. Suddenly he stopped in his tracks. In the small lagoon, the water at waist height, wearing nothing but a small smile stood Athena, her curling, chocolate-brown hair completely free and hanging down past her rib cage. Her eyes sparkled with victorious happiness as she registered the surprise on his face.“Athena…what are you…&r
The Baron's Cold Proposal Chapter 62
The following weeks in Naples seemed to pass by in a dizzying blur of tours, palaces, churches, and sightseeing. Athena drew almost every day, delighting in the colours and shape of the architecture whilst Felix happily studied the engineering behind the buildings. They could spend entire afternoons quietly in each other’s presence, each happily absorbed in their own pursuits with the occasional glance and smile towards the other. Every so often whilst Athena was at her easel, he would softly approach, tuck away a stray hair and kiss her bare neck causing a shudder of pleasure to rush through her. She did not know that it was taking all his self-possession not to grab her and pull her to him greedily as he did as soon as they were alone. The way her green eyes sparkled and surveyed the world around her captivated him, she was a G
The Baron's Cold Proposal Chapter 61
Deep in one of the groves of the Haddon Hall estate, Oliver paced in an agitated state. The days since Octavia’s letter had dragged and he was eager to know her grand plan. He was also keen to be intimate with her, certain she would want to be, given that she had no qualms at his party. He had a weakness for pale blue eyes as Claudette and Sophie could attest but Octavia’s were unique. The iciness to them never seemed to fade, even in the throes of passion she appeared to be calculating her next move like a boa constrictor whereas he was a man of pure instinct. The fact those instincts had almost left him bankrupt and homeless he did not consider flaws in his character. Finally a gentle pattering of feet amongst the fall leaves alerted him to her presence. She was wearing a fine, lace covered day dress of cornflower blue, her cle
The Baron's Cold Proposal Chapter 60
The hotel was the grandest money could buy. A royal suite had been arranged and every other room on the floor too to ensure absolute privacy. Felix wanted to avoid snooping guests or waiting staff and paid handsomely to avoid being troubled. They arrived via a back entrance, the day had only just passed midday and Athena realised she was faint with hunger. Felix recognised her pale look and immediately requested one of the other suites he booked be prepared for dining. Feeling like a boat caught up the crest of a wave she watched all of these events as a bemused onlooker. In only five minutes she had been exposed to the true grandeur of Felixs wealth. Just in the suites he had spent more money than Athena had ever earned with her contract. The yacht he had charted was eye-wateringly expensive and now she was part of tha
