A Duke in Shining Armor

by Macy Barnes

  “No, please do not worry yourself about the Mrs. Ellenburg or her daughter Elisabeth. Much to my mother’s dismay I will not wed her. My mother can sometimes be a little overbearing, I will handle everything.”

  Emily looked around in wonder at the home that the Duke and his family only spent half the year in. It was richly furnished and reminded her of her family’s home. He continued to lead her down the hallway and tapped lightly upon a door they stopped in front of. “Mother, I am only dropping in to tell you our plans have changed and we are home for the moment.” Clint said as he stuck his head through the door.

  “Clint, darling you must have received my letter, please join us and reacquaint yourself with Mrs. Ellenburg and her daughter Elisabeth, surely you remember them.” Emily heard soft footsteps on the carpet as his mother approached the door and opened it to prevent Clint from only peeking in. Emily’s heart sank as she saw a young woman with pale yellow hair and perfect skin sitting next to an older woman. Mrs. Ellenburg and Elisabeth she presumed. This girl was breathtakingly beautiful. Her skin was like porcelain, she could not compete with such a beauty for Clint’s affection.

  “Oh!” his mother gasped when she caught sight of Emily. “Clint, you should have informed me you had brought a guest to our home so I could be better prepared.” She chided. She reached for Emily’s hand. “And who might you be child?”

  Clint walked Emily into the parlor away from his mother and bid her to sit upon a sofa. “Mother, this is Lady Emily Moncrief, I am sure you remember her father the Earl of Blue Anchor, who is now deceased.”

  The Duchess of Norchess put her hand over her mouth in horror. “Yes, dear I do remember her father and her lovely mother, such tragedy bestowed upon two good people.” Emily swallowed over the lump that had formed in her throat. After years of hearing only negative things about her parents to hear something good about them was almost too much to bear.

  His mother quickly made introductions to Mrs. Ellenburg and her lovely daughter Elisabeth and confirmed Emily’s fear that this was the woman that Clint’s mother wanted him to marry. Elisabeth smiled brightly at Emily. Emily found herself smiling back in spite of herself. Clint led her over to a chair and bid her to sit and sat down in the chair beside her. She gave him a small smile of thanks for not leaving her to deal with the ladies alone.

  She listened politely as his mother made arrangements with the upstairs maid for a room to be readied for her stay. As Clint’s mother made her way back to her seat across from where Emily and Clint sat, Emily could feel her eyes upon her person taking in her attire and manners. Her hands started to shake in nervousness so she clenched them tightly together in her lap to conceal them.

  “Clint darling, please do not keep us in suspense, tell us how you have come to meet Lady Moncrief.” Clint explained to his mother that he had stayed at her families club whom of which had taken her in after her parent’s demise and how Emily’s aunt had approached him and asked him to allow Emily and her maid to accompany him and his party to London. He also added that her aunt had graciously made him the guardian over her and her funds.

  “Well, this is just splendid!” his mother said in delight. Mrs. Ellenburg looked less than pleased. The Duchess of Norchess prattled on about the upcoming season and how she was more than happy to sponsor Emily along with Juliette and Elisabeth. Emily’s nerves were wound tight and about to snap when Clint interrupted his mother.

  “Mother, Emily does not want to be presented formally.” Clint almost smiled at the horrific look upon his mother’s face. “I have asked that I may court her and she has graciously accepted.” Mrs. Ellenburg gasped and almost dropped her tea cup.

  Elisabeth squealed in delight and clapped her hands. “This is wonderful, is it not Mother?” Elisabeth stood and crossed over to Emily and leaned down to give her a hug. Not the reaction that Emily had expected out of the beautiful girl but she would take it.

  “Yes, how lovely.” His mother said in a less than happy tone.

  Clint gave Emily a reassuring look, but it did not make her feel any better. “Mother, if you don’t mind may I walk Emily up to her room so that we may get better acquainted?” Elisabeth asked. At her mother’s slight nod she grabbed Emily’s hand and they all but fled the room.

  When they reached the stairwell, Elisabeth turned and said “I hope we become good friends, because you just saved me from being forced into a marriage that I did not want and I am sure Clint did not want as well.” Emily breathed a small sigh of relief she was not going to have to compete with the beauty and was thankful to have made a friend so quickly.

  As she followed Elisabeth upstairs she told her of Clint’s sister Juliet who had locked herself in her room claiming illness for the last three days because the Duchess kept trying to force her into dress fittings and tea parties. Emily was confused. “She does not want to have a debut either?” Elisabeth scoffed. “The only thing Juliet wants arrived with your Duke tonight and does not give her the time of day and hasn’t since we were children.”

  Before she could inquire as to whom that may be Elisabeth stopped in front of a door and gave it three short knocks and when the knocks were answered back she pushed open the door and dragged Emily in behind her. She did not know what to say as she looked upon a girl about her own age that favored Clint.

  The girl was obviously not sick however. She had on a riding skirt and her hair was windblown in long pigtails as if she only moments ago came in from riding.

  “Jules, you are going to fall and break your neck one day climbing in and out of the window at night.” Elisabeth chastised. An unladylike snort came back as a reply.

  “Who are you?” she asked Emily bluntly.

  “Why Jules, your brother and his friends arrived back about an hour ago, and may I present to you the Lady Moncrief of whom your brother is now courting.”

  Juliet’s face turned red. Emily thought she was unhappy with the news concerning herself and the Duke. Juliet clarified her anger in a hurry. “They have been here for an hour and that cad Jon has not even tried to look for me?” she seethed. “I haven’t seen him in weeks!”

  Emily understood now, Jon was the object of Juliet’s affections. “Jules how many times have I told you until you quit acting like a tomboy and nipping after his heels Jon will not pay you any mind?” Elisabeth said. She walked over to Juliet and tugged on a pigtail braid. “These have got to go; you are not ten years old anymore.”

  An unladylike snort came from Juliet as she crossed her arms in front of her chest. She turned to face Emily, “Well apparently you know how it’s done if you have already stolen my brother’s heart, tell me how on earth do you get a man to notice you?”

  Emily was dumbfounded. “I do not know why your brother has taken such an interest in me.”

  She turned a little red before adding “He cannot seem to keep his hands off my person either.”

  Elisabeth burst into laughter. “What did I tell you Jules? That is going to be your key to getting Jon to notice you as woman and not a child, make him desire you.”

  The young ladies continued to argue playfully about the conquest of Jon and Emily felt herself relax more around them. She took in the lovely furnished room and the beauty of Clint’s sister as she laughed with Elisabeth who soon grabbed Emily by the hand to sit upon the bed with them.

  She laughed gleefully as she chased Olivia along with Juliet and Elisabeth after they caught her eavesdropping at the door. She took a liking to the freckled face minx almost immediately and knew she would grow to love the child. She began to have the hope that maybe she would be accepted into Clint’s family after all.

  Chapter 6

  Emily felt as if she was living in a dream over the next couple of weeks. Before she knew it they had been invited to numerous functions and balls. Clint escorted her to every function and danced with her as many times as propriety would allow.

  His mother seemed to accept the fact she and Clint was an item. She spent her free time w
ith Elisabeth and Juliet giggling about their love interests. Elisabeth had taken one look at Tom and had been smitten. She felt as if she was living the life of the girl she should have been before her parent’s death. Clint and Emily shared stolen kisses in the hallway, which seemed to get more and more passionate every time.

  Her maid had just brought her a letter from Clint that said “Meet me in thirty minutes behind the woodshed.” She giggled nervously as she pinched her cheeks for color and sprayed on some lilac perfume. Clint was leaned up against the wall looking so handsome he took her breath away. She ran to him and he scooped her into a hug and kissed her.

  He broke off their kiss, “I have some exciting news for you.” He breathed in her essences and groaned as he felt his manhood swell. He was unsure how many more times he was going to be able to be around her without making love to her. He wanted her so badly.

  “I have found a living relative of your father.” He told her as he ran his hands down the small of her back to cup her buttocks and press her intimately against his throbbing member. “I have made arrangements for us to travel to her home tomorrow so you may talk to her about your parents.” Tears welled into her eyes as she realized she loved this man. He was her knight in shining armor.

  “I can’t believe you took the time to track down someone in my family for me.”

  Clint held her close. “Don’t get too excited yet, she is a cousin of your father’s and I am unsure as to what she knows about your parents, or if she knows if Matthew Moncrief was indeed your father.”

  Emily reached up and kissed him with all the feeling she felt in her heart. She opened her mouth to him and met him stroke for stroke with her tongue. He massaged her breast through her shirt and sent tremors throughout her body.

  He teased her nipples with his fingers and lavished kisses down her neck until he reached her breast and suckled one through the cloth of her dress. She sighed in bliss as his hand reached down to lift her skirt up to gain access to her heat and gasped against him as he inserted a finger deep into her. “I want you so badly.” He groaned. He teased and tormented her until she was riding his hand and moaning so loud he pressed his lips to hers to absorb the sounds.

  She felt a building in her stomach and her movements became more frenzied until at last she exploded and came crashing down. Clint held her up and planted small kisses across her face. “I love you.” He whispered in her ear.

  She leaned back and with eyes wide and gaped at him. “You do?” she asked.

  “Yes, I think I have loved you from the first moment I saw you. You are all I think about. I want to make you happy and give you the life you deserve.”

  He lifted her chin and stroked her face. “Do you think you could grow to love me also?”

  She threw her arms around his neck and held him as tightly as she could. “I already do. I love you so much.” Before she could stop it a sob escaped her throat.

  He held her back and looked at her in question. “I hope those are tears of joy.” He asked playfully.

  She laughed through her tears and nodded her head yes. “Can I come to your room tonight?” He asked as he took her hand and lowered it to his trousers and pressed her fingers to his erection. “I can understand if you would like to wait until we are married first.” He assured her. “I planned on us being married as quickly as possible.”

  She shook her head, still too afraid to speak. When she gathered her composure she kissed him again slowly and ran her hands down the front of his shirt before she told him, “Don’t be late.” He watched her walk back to the house enjoying the sway of her hips in her pretty pink dress. He knew this day would be the longest day he had ever encountered until he had her wrapped in his arms and was buried deep within her.

  He headed back to the house with the intent of talking to his mother today about making Emily his wife and future duchess, when he ran into a very defeated Juliet leaving. “What is wrong?” he asked his distressed sister.

  “Men are fools!” she exclaimed and stuck her hat over her hair forcefully. “Jon is the biggest fool of them all.”

  She pushed passed him and headed for the walking path beside their home. He rubbed his chin thoughtfully for a minute and wondered what on earth was going on between Jon and his sister. He made a mental note to catch up with Jon later to find out. He made his way through his family’s lavish townhouse and stopped to gaze at a portrait of his father on the wall. He felt a deep regret his father was no longer living and was not there to meet his lovely Emily.

  He got excited picturing little baby girls with brunette ringlets like their mother. He had found his love match, what more could his mother want? He finally found his mother in the sitting room with Mrs. Ellenburg and Elisabeth looking as if she was biting at the bit to escape. He asked the two ladies to excuse himself and his mother for which Elisabeth shot him a grateful look and hurried from the room.

  He sat down next to his mother and took her by the hand. “Mother, I have something to tell you.” His mother looked at him expectantly when he paused before saying “I love Emily Mother; I want to make her my duchess.” His mother set down her fabric she had been stitching and took him by both of his hands.

  “Well, then make her your duchess son, I would be thrilled for you to have a love match such as that of mine and your father.” She chuckled, “I guess I just always imagined you marrying Elisabeth since you were always chasing each other around as children.”

  He smiled at his mother and gave her a quick kiss upon her cheek. “Thank you, Mother for giving me your blessing, it will make Emily feel wonderful and ease her mind about marrying me.” He left his mother’s sitting room with a smile across his face and headed down the hall to inform both of his friends about his engagement.

  Chapter 7

  At long last nighttime fell and everyone in the townhouse were settling down for the night except for Clint and his friends. Elisabeth had informed her all three had left together early in the afternoon and had not returned yet. After teasing her for keeping such a careful eye on Tom, she went to her own room and had Alice help her into her simple cotton nightgown.

  She told Alice she wanted to read for a while before retiring and bid her a good night. As soon as the door shut behind her maid she jumped up and ran over to her clothes stand and dug around until she found the revealing pink negligee Bethany had talked her into buying. She put it on and brushed her hair until it shone and waited for Clint’s arrival.

  She must have dosed off while waiting because the soft turn of the door knob jolted her awake when Clint crept into her room. “I am sorry I am late, I had something that would not wait.” He reached her in two long strides and helped her from the chair and she heard his quick intake of breath as he realized what she was wearing. “Bloody hell woman, I am trying to make this as easy and as pleasurable as possible for you and wearing things such as this will make me go mad before I have you.”

  She cut him off by kissing him and burying her fingers into his hair. He lifted her and wrapped both of her legs around his waist and placed her upon the bed. He painstakingly took every piece of clothing off slowly and rewarded each spot of exposed skin with a kiss until she was naked in all her glory spread before him. He took off his shirt and pants with lighting speed and rejoined her on the bed.

  He placed a hand upon her hip and turned her to the side so that she was facing him. “I want you so bad, sweetheart, but I have got to make sure you are ready before I take you, I don’t want to hurt you.” She looked down at his staff and gingerly took it into her hand. He jerked and groaned with his eyes closed. She immediately pulled her hand away, but he grabbed it and lowered it back down and moved her hands up and down in a rhythm that she soon took over.

  Clint stopped her when he was afraid he would spill himself in her hand like some school boy. He flipped her onto her back and suckled and caressed both of her breasts until she was moaning with want. He inserted a finger into her wet canal and rubbed another finger across h
er feminine nub. When he knew she was on the brink he positioned himself between her legs. He entered her swiftly and he felt the slight resistance of her maidenhead before it broke and he impaled her fully. He held his breath and looked into her eyes to see if he had caused her pain. She answered by rocking her hips into him. He set a fast pace and she met him thrust for thrust.

  He drove into her over and over before feeling her clench around him and a shudder went through her body. He followed her home and groaned as he released his seed deep into her womb. He rolled to his back and brought her to him and held her close to his chest. When he caught his breath he chuckled and said, “That did not go exactly as I had planned.”

  “What do you mean? Did I not do it right?”

  He burst into laughter. “It was more than right.” He released her from his hold and rose from the bed. He walked over to his discarded pants and retrieved something from his pocket. She gasped when he lay back down next to her and removed a solitaire diamond ring from a velvet box.

  “I meant to give you this before we made love, but I was not expecting such a temptress to be waiting for me.”

  He placed her ring upon her finger. “It is beautiful. I am still wondering when I am going to wake from this wonderful dream.” She breathed in wonder. His response was to kiss her again.

  They proceeded to make love again and he playfully teased her by changing positions to allow her to straddle him and ride him giving her full control. Emily rode him hard and wept as the pressure built up and would burst, and when she would slow down he would take her hips and thrust deep into her over and over until she was grinding him with a vengeance to reach blissful release.

  When he thought he had been satisfied and would go into a light sleep he would feel her body pressed against his and wake up rock hard. He took her two more times during the night. Clint knew he could take her again, but he was worried he may cause her some discomfort in the morning. His appetite for her was insatiable.