James Fordyce was under a spell. It was as though some enchantress had stepped into Madame Ella's dress shop and cast a glittering web of light over him. The moment he accidentally pulled back the dressing room curtain and saw her, it was as though no other woman had ever existed before or after in his mind. He was an admitted rogue who'd done things that would make his father blush were the man still alive, yet this woman had made him feel like a lad of seventeen, giddy and gawkish as he gazed at her like a moon-eyed calf.He'd lost all rational thought when he glimpsed her bare shoulders and back. Pale creamy skin was exposed by the open gown from her neck down to just above a delightfully rounded derrière. He'd had to restrain his baser instincts to grip her hips and pull her back against him.Once he'd caught sight of those soft gray eyes, he was lost. They were as pale as morning mist covering a field of bluebells. When he gazed deep into her eyes, he had the strangest feeling h
Gillian couldn't breathe. James was reading a torrid part of a novel in public, and she was mortifiedand she didn't want him to stop. It had nothing to do with the story and everything to do with his hypnotic voice. Her heart was racing, and she could only stare at James's lips in utter fascination. So this was what it felt like to long for a manand it was indeed a longinga wicked one."Shall I continue?" he asked again, moving closer. Gillian glanced around the little bookshop. They had wandered into a dim corner as they talked where no one could see them. Her heart gave another wild set of beats as she licked her lips nervously."You shouldn't do that," he cautioned her gently as he closed the book and set it on the shelf ledge by his hip."Do what?" She tried to back up, but her bottom hit a shelf behind her."Lick your lips. It makes a man wonder how you taste, how you feel" He reached up, cupped her cheek, and stroked the pad of his thumb over her bottom lip. The touch burned
James stood beside his carriage, watching Miss Beaumont walk away. As the distance between them lengthened, his heart grew heavier, he realized something had been taken from him. She had seemed so lost as she'd pulled away from him. There had been a glimmer of tears in her eyes that he didn't understand. He wanted to go after her. There was something wronghe sensed it. He would escort her home, even if she protested. Whatever was in that letter had upset her greatly, and she shouldn't have to return home alone. James told his driver to wait for Letty and take her home. He would hire a hackney once he'd seen Miss Beaumont safely to her residence.When he turned back to the street, he saw the distant figure of Gillian as she reached the end of the street. Suddenly, a man came toward her and grabbed her arm. Panic flared inside him. No gentleman would grab a lady's arm like that, and out of nowhere, no less. James frowned. Did she know the man? The intimate stance indicated that she di
London in the day was a bustling city with carriages speeding along the cobblestoned streets and women selling flowers in heavily perfumed baskets while the crowds perused the shops and paid calls on friends. But as darkness fell, shadows could play tricks on the eyes of those foolish enough to walk the streets after the sun dropped beneath the horizon.And I am one of those fools.Gillian Beaumont squinted at the nearest alley, swallowing hard and holding back a scream of fear every time she thought she saw something fluttering in the mews like a bat's wings. The coach she had taken to the Temple Bar district was already rattling away, leaving her alone. The leaves of the early fall scuttled along the ground, tangling in her skirts like brown spiders, making her jump. She gripped her gown below her knees and gave the fabric a shake, trying to loosen the dried leaves from her dark purple satin gown. Then she faced her surroundings. She stood on the street close to the Royal Courts of
As James reached the Strand, he scanned the darkened streets and buildings. Fear for Gillian built inside him like a storm catching on the winds. She was a gently bred lady who shouldn't have to face the horrors of a hellfire club, especially if they learned she was Lady Society. While he trusted she was quite capable of taking care of herself, he was afraid that she was walking into a trap and didn't know it. He had to find her before something happened to her. With luck, she wouldn't be here, and he would spend the rest of the night watching some fools pretend to throw a black mass and worship the devil. He prayed fervently it was the latter.He caught a glimpse of a man in a black cloak and a mask walking down the street. He was undoubtedly a hellfire member. The man paused, glancing about before he headed up the steps to one of the rather unremarkable buildings on the street.James flung a few coins at his driver and bolted after the figure. He caught up with him just as he was
Everything seemed to be a bit hazy. Gillian watched James explode into the dining room. He moved with a surprising swiftness and ease, as if he was quite accustomed to battling the minions of a hellfire club. Earlier that day he had shown her his sweet, irresistible, and all too seductive side, but now she saw a warrior before her.She tried to walk toward him but tripped. Her feet felt clumsy, and she looked down. She blinked past the pain in her head, and with an odd distant feeling she noticed that the beautiful purple gown she wore was torn, andwas that blood smeared on her bodice? Heavenswhose blood is that? The sound of fighting drew her attention back to the dining room, and she looked up.Her mouth fell open as she saw James grab a man and throw him over the table as he fought his way to Jonathan. Audrey stood in the corner of the dining room, a black cat in her arms and a fireplace poker in one hand. She faced a drunken lout who was stumbling toward her. Audrey wielded the p
Gillian jerked awake as something moved beside her. She froze when she realized there was a man in her bed. Not just any man. The Earl of Pembroke's large naked body lay beside her, his arm stretched around her waist, his fingers curled against her skin. His long legs were tangled with hers. A faint chill trickled over her bare upper body where the blankets had fallen down to her hips. She blinked drowsily and realized with some confusion that she wasn't even in her own bed.What in the blazes?She touched her head to brush her hair back and winced as a sharp pain blossomed around her right temple. A wild blur of memories from the previous night came back to her. The perils of the hellfire club, the fight, then the insanity of their escape, andthe intimacy she'd shared with James right here in this bed. She'd opened herself up to him, shared her body with him and he with her.She had slept with James. No, Lord Pembroke. He could never be James. She was a servant, and he was a lord.
She was gone. When James woke a few hours after dawn, the realization had been like a knife to his chest. The woman he'd shared the most intimate night with had abandoned him. Rather than James running out like a heartless rogue, she was the one who had fled. It was as though the world had turned upside down on him.James hunched over on the edge of the bed, staring at the floor where his clothes lay in a crumpled heap. He was completely naked, which wasn't unusual, but for once he felt exposed. He'd never taken mistresses, had only bedded one other woman in his life before last night, but damned if he didn't feel as though he had lost his virginity rather than Gillian losing hers."My lord?" Dr. Wilkes's voice came through the closed door."Yes, Dr. Wilkes. Give me a moment." He scrambled out of bed and hastily threw on his clothes. When he opened the door, Dr. Wilkes was standing there, frowning."I wished to check on you. It's not like you to" Dr. Wilkes's eyes strayed to the be