To Charm a Bluestocking

by Renée Dahlia

  ‘I’m going to kill him.’ His eyes flashed with anger and his grip on her tightened.

  ‘Let me go,’ she whispered. Her voice wobbled as her body began to tremble. Nicholas released his grip on her, dropping his hands into his lap. His chest rose and fell against her side as he panted.

  ‘Oh, Josephine,’ he whispered. ‘I’m not going to hurt you. I would never hurt you. I love you. When your friends said you were missing, I knew that I couldn’t survive this lifetime without you.’

  Tears streamed down her face. Warm and wet against the blood-sodden towel that she still held against her face. The scent of old blood filled the air. That coppery taste still dominated her senses and now mixed with her own salty tears. She reached out with one hand and placed it on Nicholas’s knee. He let out a huge breath and picked up her hand gently and held it between his. His warm palms surrounded her frozen hand and slowly her body ceased trembling. She lowered the towel from her nose and broke the silence.

  ‘It looks worse than it is. I had to set my nose. That’s why it is bleeding again. When the swelling goes down, it should be fine.’

  ‘My practical doctor.’ Nicholas smiled at her and leant in to give her a gentle kiss on the forehead. ‘Let’s get out of this place and take you home.’

  ‘Home sounds wonderful,’ she said. He stood and reached down to help her up. She swayed on her feet, still light-headed from the afternoon’s drama. It was slow, difficult progress as they left the room together. Nicholas kept one arm around her back and used one of his crutches to support his recovering foot.

  ‘What a pair we make,’ he quipped as they eventually made it to the entrance of the building. ‘Both our faces injured by that mad man.’

  ‘Your burn is healing very well. There will always be a scar, but that doesn’t matter to me,’ Josephine said in a practical tone. He halted and pulled her into a gentle embrace.

  ‘Truly? The scar will be a reminder forever of this awful day.’

  ‘No. The scar was from the pub explosion. You were brave that day. If anything, it will remind us both that we are survivors,’ Josephine said.

  ‘But it is so ugly,’ he said looking deep into her eyes. She saw the worry in them.

  ‘I wouldn’t be much of a person if a scar sent me running away from you,’ she said calmly. She shrugged her shoulders and continued, ‘I love the person you are. You are more than the packaging that you come in. Although the package is excellent too.’ She cheekily let her gaze roam over his body, enjoying the sight of his broad shoulders as he pressed himself against her. He leant in to their embrace, his arms completely encircling her. She felt his body relax against her. They stood there in the hall, just holding each other, for a good amount of time.

  ‘Should we continue on? I’d quite like to get home and tidy up,’ Josephine whispered into Nicholas’ ear. He pressed a kiss to her shoulder, then lifted his head and smiled. That charming grin that had so unnerved her when they first met.

  ‘I will bath you myself,’ he said. She laughed nervously at that image. The laugh grew into pure pleasure as she was glad to see him back to his usual flippant charm. The drama of his injury hadn’t changed the person he was inside.

  ‘I left the hackney waiting outside. I hope he has stayed, otherwise it might be a long wait for another one,’ he continued.

  They opened the door and a cold blast of wintery air hit them. Josephine started to shake as the wind blasted against her damp dress. She sighed as she saw the hackney patiently waiting in the dusky cold weather. The driver stood next to his horse, who stood sleepily in the shafts of the carriage, one hind leg at rest. His rug-covered haunches kept him warm and his nose was buried in a feed bag. The driver gave his horse a rub between the ears and raced up the steps to assist them down to the carriage. If he was shocked by the state of Josephine’s face, he didn’t show it. He simply offered his arm as support to help her down the stairs and into the carriage. Nicholas followed using the railing to support his foot on the snow-covered slippery stairs.

  ‘Sir. You wouldn’t happen to have a handkerchief, would you?’ Josephine asked the driver.

  ‘Of course,’ he responded and pulled a scrap of material from his jacket pocket. She leant down and used the handkerchief to scoop up a handful of snow. The driver looked at her questioningly.

  ‘It will reduce the swelling,’ she said matter-of-factly.

  Before the driver could respond, Nicholas spoke with pride. ‘Josephine is a doctor. Fully qualified to heal herself.’ Nicholas helped Josephine step up into the carriage and he turned to the driver. ‘A scoundrel kidnapped her and broke her nose. We need to get her home so she can rest,’ he said.

  ‘How dreadful! What on earth is the world coming to?’ the driver exclaimed.

  ‘Indeed,’ said Josephine. Nicholas climbed in and closed the door. The carriage began to roll home.

  ‘My brave, beautiful Josephine,’ he said as he sat next to her on the seat. He reached up to her face and gently held her cheek, stroking his thumb along the edge of her ear. She stayed still, waiting with one hand holding the makeshift ice pack against her nose and eyes. ‘I am so proud of you, my love.’

  ‘There is one complication. He forced me to sign a marriage certificate.’ Her voice sounded muffled thanks to the makeshift cold compress she had fashioned. She watched his face flash with anger and he spat out a curse.

  ‘It is just a piece of paper. We will find a solution,’ he said. That answer wasn’t an answer. But did it really matter? They were here together. The paperwork could be sorted out later.

  She dropped the icy handkerchief to the floor of the carriage and reached out for him. Grasping his head in her hands, she bent forward and kissed him.

  ‘Together we can fix this,’ she murmured against his lips. One tension dissipated, only to be replaced by a now familiar one that hummed in her veins. Urgent desire took over, and grew into a fierce love. Her hands slid through his hair and his roamed up her arms. He broke from the kiss, mindful of her sore face, and nibbled down her neck towards her breasts. She leant back against the seat and he took full advantage of her position. His hands found the back of her dress and tugged until the bodice was loose enough to give him access to her breasts. Together they moved on the carriage seat, so she lay under him. He pulled her dress down and nuzzled.

  Her head swarmed with sensation as he nipped and licked at her nipples. She sighed, almost a moan, and he smiled against her skin. He buried his head between her breasts and she moaned as his stubble grazed across her skin. With one arm to support their position, the other was free to explore and his nimble fingers gently teased their way along her arm and across to her breast. He worshipped one breast with his mouth and the other with his hand, skilfully flicking his thumb across the perky nipple to entice moan after moan from her.

  ‘Oh, Josephine, you are so soft. Just perfect. I want all of you right now,’ he breathed.

  ‘I want that too.’ She sighed, desperate for all of him.

  ‘I can’t go slowly, you’ll be sore tomorrow,’ he said.

  ‘I’m already going to be sore tomorrow. Make me sore with love,’ said Josephine breathlessly. The tip of his good ear burnt pink and she smiled.

  ‘I want you,’ she said. He dragged his lips down her stomach. She threaded her fingers in his hair and he groaned against her skin. He slid his hands off her breasts and she shuddered as her body responded with a warm dampness. He moved down her body. Cool air met her legs as Nicholas flung her skirts out of his way. The fabric bunched around her midriff and still he moved lower until his head sunk between her legs. Oh my, was he going to kiss her there? She gasped as his tongue flicked against her curls.

  She knew, in that second, that Van Percy hadn’t violated her. She had treated several rape victims at the hospital, and knew that she would be too sore to be touched if Van Percy had done that. She sighed. A big heaving sigh that turned into a moan as Nicholas licked at her slit. All thoughts of the day
were banished. Replaced with pure pleasure. Her hips pushed towards him automatically. Wanting more. He sipped and tasted and she writhed in ecstasy as his magical tongue filled her. Her hands grabbed his hair and held fast as she bucked in delight. The tension built and built until she panted with need. He moved his mouth up her slit and dragged his teeth lightly against her most sensitive point. With his fingers he filled and stretched her and her moment of glory hit. Her climax hit hard and she shattered with a deep moan. Pleasure rolled through her.

  Totally sated, her head fell back against the seat and her arms slid out of his hair.

  ‘Are you sure?’ he asked in a deep, throaty croak.

  ‘Yes,’ she managed to breathe out. ‘Yes.’

  ‘Thank God,’ he said. He tugged at his breeches and lifted his body over hers. In a smooth movement he entered her. Her body stretched around him as he thrust in. He slid out. She reached around him and grabbed him on the arse and pulled him into her. He groaned against her shoulder and thrust deeper again.

  Tension started to build again as he moved. He slid nearly all the way out and she dug her fingertips into his flesh, not wanting him to leave. He thrust sharply back in and she moaned in response. The next time she moved with him and they sped together. Another climax burst, her whole body driving with him. She screamed his name as she came. He drove deep, powerful and shouted with her as he spent his seed inside her. His head dropped onto her shoulder and his body lay heavy on top of her.

  She lay under him in amazement as her brain slowly came to life and she could sort through all her feelings. It had been a fast and furious joining. As if she couldn’t get enough of him fast enough to satisfy her need for him after the hardship of the day. They hadn’t used a rubber. It didn’t matter. She’d be happy to have his baby.

  ‘That was even better than yesterday,’ he said. She smiled. He pushed himself up to take his weight off her and eased himself out of her body. Together they set about fixing their clothing.

  ‘My dress!’ she exclaimed, only now noticing that it was completely torn down the front. She dragged it on as best she could but there was no fixing it. Nicholas used the ribbons to tie a temporary fix to the dress.

  ‘It’s no good. There’s no fixing this mess,’ she said.

  ‘It’s winter. Wear my coat. Once buttoned, you will be perfectly covered. And warm. No-one will notice,’ he said with a small shrug.

  ‘A little damage is easily explained away given the state of my face.’

  ‘I really will have to kill him for that,’ Nicholas said. His calm voice didn’t have the fury he’d had earlier. Perhaps he felt the same state of complete and utter satiation as she did. She couldn’t help a big smile from breaking out on her face.

  ‘I’d rather prefer that you didn’t. You would hang and I’d rather not have that outcome,’ Josephine stated. Nicholas burst out laughing, his blue eyes alive with charm.

  ‘We will let the court decide then,’ Nicholas declared, as the carriage rolled to a stop. ‘First we have to face your friends.’

  ‘They will be glad to see us, I’m sure.’

  Chapter 22

  An hour later, Josephine had been cleaned, pampered and fussed over more than she had her entire life. She sat in the drawing room quietly allowing everyone to their ministrations. Nicholas sat next to her, freshly bathed with new bandages. Everyone in the room leant forward in their seats, transfixed by his tale of rescue as he placed Josephine as the heroine of her own story.

  ‘Did you realise that she fixed her own broken nose?’ he enthused.

  ‘She’s a doctor, of course she would do that,’ Claire said pragmatically, as if she would’ve done the same thing in the same situation. Josephine winked at her friend who grinned and shrugged. Of course, she would.

  ‘What I want to know,’ asked Marie, ‘is how you knew where to find her?’

  ‘It was obvious. He put you in the only place that no-one checked, because everyone knew you had been there and had left safely.’

  ‘Why wasn’t he there with you, Josephine?’

  ‘I’m not sure I remember everything. He knocked me about quite badly,’ Josephine replied, frowning in an attempt to dredge her memory for a useful detail. Nicholas leapt to his feet, wobbling slightly as he kept the weight off his sore ankle. He punched the air.

  ‘If he left you there, he’ll be coming back to get you. I am going to wait for him.’ He raced out of the room and everyone leapt up to follow him.

  ‘I’m coming too. I want to see him pay for this,’ Josephine said. ‘Everyone else stay here. We will be back.’

  Nicholas and Josephine walked together down the hallway towards the women’s restroom. It was the third time that Josephine had walked down this hallway today. Once with joy, once despondent and injured, and now striding with purpose.

  ‘Are you sure about this?’ Nicholas asked.

  ‘Of course,’ she said resolutely. ‘I want to catch him too.’

  Josephine pushed open the door only to see Van Percy inside. She reeled backwards into Nicholas. He nodded, stepped around her and entered the room first. Josephine peered around Nicholas as he stood broad-footed just inside the doorway.

  Van Percy paced in the small room, muttering to himself. His typically contained, carefully maintained personage was outlandishly unkempt. His normally neat hair pulled in all directions. The pomade that Van Percy usually used to keep it in place ensured the hair stayed wherever Van Percy had tugged it. So his locks stuck out from his head at all angles. It made him appear rather like a deranged Christmas tree.

  ‘Are you looking for something?’ Nicholas asked in a deadpan voice with a slightly sarcastic tone. Van Percy spun towards him, anger emanating from his eyes.

  ‘You!’ he spat as he looked wildly around him. Van Percy launched himself at Nicholas.

  ‘Stop. Both of you.’ Josephine spoke just loud enough to stop them both in their tracks. Furious at Van Percy for his treatment of her, his sudden move towards Nicholas made her shudder with renewed fear. Nicholas might underestimate Van Percy, but she never would. Nicholas’s injuries put him at a significant disadvantage. The surgeon, Van Percy, understood bodies and injuries. Josephine knew that he was evil enough to hit Nicholas on his burn. Today’s efforts had tired Nicholas—although she knew he would never admit that.

  ‘There is no need to beat each other with fists, or bluster at each other. We can talk,’ she said. Van Percy sneered at her.

  ‘Talk is for the weak. You are my wife and I will beat this cripple for stealing you away from me.’ If this situation wasn’t so serious, Josephine would have rolled her eyes and laughed at his old-fashioned view of her. It seemed Nicholas agreed.

  ‘If you are looking to retain Josephine as your wife, that statement isn’t going to work.’

  ‘It doesn’t matter. I have the paperwork that proves she belongs to me,’ Van Percy spat back. Josephine saw Nicholas’s nostrils flare as he sucked in a deep breath. He waved his hands before him in a conciliatory gesture. The movement had a casualness that surprised Josephine. Only his eyes, hard and narrow, as he stared at Van Percy gave any indication that he cared.

  ‘You may have a piece of paper. Paperwork can be changed, and I have several things that are important to you.’ Even his voice sounded calm. Josephine blinked at the statement. This must be how he appeared in his days as a spy. So casual and almost charming under threat.

  ‘You have influence with Chief Superintendent Koekje,’ said Van Percy.

  ‘Some little influence, yes,’ said Nicholas. Van Percy stood in the middle of the room and calmly flattened his hair back to its controlled style. Just like the newly invented quick break light switch technology, Van Percy switched off his anger. He stood very still, staring directly at Nicholas with intent. Josephine stepped to the side so she could see both of them without having to pivot her head between them.

  ‘Very well,’ sneered Van Percy. ‘I will tear up this marriage certificate in retur
n for 10,000 guilders and my brother’s charges being dropped.’

  Nicholas blinked in surprise. His mouth dropped open and he quickly slammed it shut. Josephine saw this from the corner of her eye, but she couldn’t take her attention from Van Percy. It was not just the lightning quick change in his persona that shocked. It was the way he had outlined his request with the expectation that he held the higher ground. A staggering amount of money—10,000 guilders—enough to buy several prominent houses on the Five Canals and coincidentally, or perhaps not at all coincidentally, equivalent to Josephine’s dowry. Oh! All the pieces clicked in her head.

  ‘No,’ she said. Ally and adversary spun simultaneously towards her. Both their mouths parted in surprise. Nicholas raised one eyebrow.

  ‘If you want two things, I also want two things,’ she said. She pressed her hands tightly together so Van Percy wouldn’t see them shake. Nicholas reached out and laid one hand over her clamped hands.

  ‘You don’t have to do this,’ he whispered. ‘Just take his deal.’ She shook her head emphatically.

  ‘You can have the money, and we will negotiate with Koekje for your brother’s freedom. In return you will ensure that farce of a marriage never existed, and you will sign my surgical assessment as a pass.’

  Van Percy smiled with smug satisfaction rather than joy, and nodded his head.

  ‘I agree.’

  ‘We will commence with my assessment as a gesture of goodwill,’ Josephine said. She turned and walked out of the room, leaving the two men in her wake. She wanted to lean back on the wall and let out all that tension but she could hear them follow her. Instead, she marched towards Van Percy’s office with the sound of their footsteps echoing in the empty hall. She strode along the hallway and up the stairs to the academic offices.

  Josephine grabbed the doorknob to Van Percy’s office and gave it a good shake. Locked. She stood aside as he unlocked it. Van Percy pushed the door open and with all the dignity of someone anticipating a victory, he formally welcomed them into his office with a small bow. The room was neat, much like the man, with books shelved in a logical fashion and the vast amount of paper that forms an academic life all stacked neatly in piles. It was the domain of a very controlled and organised person.