When Tillie entered her bedroom, she so wished she had Tabitha to talk to. Tabitha would know what to do. She was level headed and a wonderful judge of character. If only she wasn’t across the channel in Paris .
Gemma came in and helped her begin to undress, removing her skirts, her stomacher, her pockets, and finally her stays .
“I seem to be forever asking ye this, Miss, but is something the matter?” she asked .
“No, Gemma, all is fine,” she replied .
“If ye say so,” she said. “Ye’ve got that look in your eye again .”
“Whatever do you mean ?”
“You’re typically the friendly sort, but when you’re down, it shows. Ye don’t speak and a worried look comes over your face,” Gemma said, then paused abruptly. “My apologies, Miss, I should not have said such to you .”
Tillie began to tell her there was no issue when she felt moisture on her face. She was not one to cry often, but as one tear fell and then another, she realized she needed to release all of the emotions she had been riding for days now .
Gemma tugged the nightgown over Tillie’s head, then sat her down on the bed and asked politely if she felt like speaking about it .
Tillie began to pour the story out to Gemma, including the fact that she thought she had fallen for the duke. Gemma cocked her head to the side, fairly incredulous, but captivated by the story .
“But Gemma, you must promise not to breathe a word to any of the staff or the villagers,” she said .
“Of course not, Miss,” Gemma replied. “I donna like to see you so glum. If it helps any, I must say, I believe the Duke to be in love with you as well. A man in love goes to desperate measures to get what he wants, especially a man like the Duke .”
“But he lied to me, fabricated this entire story .”
“It’s not all a lie,” said Gemma. “All that’s changed is he’s a smarter man that he initially let on, not falling for the games of that woman a second time. I’ll tell ye, Miss, if I had a duke that looked like him scheming for me, I wouldn’t be in my bedroom crying alone .”
Tillie laughed at that, wiping her tears and feeling silly now when Gemma put it so practically. She surprised the girl with a hug and then and thanked her, resolved in her decision .
* * *
T illie was happy to find Alexander alone at the breakfast table the next morning .
“Good morning,” she said with a smile as she sat down across from him .
“Good morning yourself,” he said as he put down his tea and looked at her expectantly. “Did you sleep well ?”
“I did,” she said, then looked up at him and sighed, with a mischievous glint in her eye .
“You know Alexander, I suppose it should be a comfort to realize that no one is perfect,” she said. “Not even the Duke of Barre .”
He laughed then, the laugh she loved so much, and took her hand and kissed it, relief washing over his face .
“You forgive me then, Tillie?” he asked. At her nod he told her, “Truly, I did not intend for us to be entangled in such a scheme. I only wanted to spend time with you, for us to truly get to know one another .”
“I cannot say that I am entirely pleased to have been living in your lie,” she said. “But I do understand what your intentions were. You must promise me though, please, Alexander, do not scheme or keep such things from me again. Going forward, we must be founded in truth .”
“Agreed,” he said with a smile at her as he squeezed her fingertips. “Truth it is .”
She smiled at him over their toast, content in the newfound peace they had found in one another .
* * *
A nother week passed as they attended village Christmas parties and dances and Tillie learned to navigate the minefield that was Eliza Masters. Some days she found Eliza to be more aggressive in her game playing and tactics, while other days the woman used her feminine wiles to try to find reasons to elicit sympathy from Alexander. Whether it was a ruined hat or a lost glove, there always seemed to be an emergency that only Alexander could help with .
But, to Tillie’s secret surprise and pleasure, Alexander kept her closer. And he visited her at night and tutored her in the art of kissing, though he never went any further, as he had the night he’d shown her the possibilities that awaited her. He told her that he could not so tempt himself a second time .
She did the best she could to keep her mind in the right space, to remember that they were still partners in a business relationship, but the more she spent time with Alexander, the harder that reality became .
She had well and truly fallen for the man, and that could quite possibly spell disaster .
Tillie was in over her head by Christmas Eve. She had been invited (more like implored by the Dowager Duchess) to stay with them for a small gathering in the sitting room to celebrate. By small gathering, she meant the three of them, alone .
An hour after the delicious feast they ate together, the Dowager Duchess made for her bedroom upstairs, leaving Alexander and Tillie alone with their drinks and a roaring fire .
“Does your family usually have a large Christmas?” He asked the question as they both watched the logs crackle in the fireplace .
Tillie nodded .
“It’s my parents’ favorite time of year. They never miss a chance to make a fuss for the holidays,” she said. “And you ?”
He waved his hand around the room they were in .
“My father was never one for celebrating anything, really, and my mother did the best she could to make just the two of us seem like a raucous crowd,” he laughed. “But this is mostly what we would do each Christmas. The two of us would sit by the fire and exchange small gifts. We’d attend church on Christmas morning and have a pleasant enough feast with my father. It was quiet. Now, we invite more guests Christmas morning but still keep this night for ourselves .”
Tillie marveled at what that must be like .
“I do not think I have ever really known what a quiet house feels like until I came here,” she said .
“And I do not know what a house brimming with energy and love would feel like,” he replied .
Tillie smiled wistfully .
“It’s actually wonderful,” she admitted. “Two of my brothers are married, and they come with their wives and children. My family is not exactly orthodox, and the meals are quite the affair. My mother has to join three tables together in order to fit us all, but she is quite determined to ensure we all eat at once, even the little ones. My mother is quite talented on the piano, and after dinner we gather round her and sing. It’s uproariously delightful .”
“I believe it,” Alexander said before trailing off, his attention suddenly on the necklace that hung over her collarbone. He reached a tentative finger out toward it and ran the pad of his thumb over the skin just below it. Tillie sucked in a breath and held it at the contact .
“I find you enchanting, Miss Andrews,” Alexander whispered, placing his lips over hers. The kiss began slowly but progressed rather quickly, until it was fast and all consuming, but he stopped suddenly before they could really start .
“Follow me,” he said with a mischievous grin as he pulled her to her feet. Tillie put her hand in his and let Alexander lead her to a door toward the far corner of the room. It didn’t have a traditional doorknob, and instead, he pushed on the top left corner, causing it to pop open easily. He led her inside a small dark passageway and just before closing the door, he grabbed a candle holder from one of the tables and lit their path .
She realized she was in the secret passageways he used to get through the house and into her rooms undetected .
“Sneaky man,” she whispered as they moved up the hidden staircase to the second floor. Occasionally, she could hear voices from adjoining rooms and she would still, but Alexander didn’t seem to notice at all and soon they were at the very door he had used to sneak into her room since the first day she arrived .
As though thinking the sam
e thing, when he pushed open the doorway he cast a wistful glance at the now-empty tub in the center of the bathing room .
“I nearly could not walk for a day after seeing you in that tub,” he admitted as he closed the door behind her. “Took every bit of self control I had to walk away from you .”
He was teasing her, but the look he turned and gave her was no laughing matter .
“I would very much like to kiss you now, Tillie,” he whispered. “But I would also like to be a gentleman, and I’m unsure of where this may lead if we start tonight. It’s likely best I take my leave .”
The thought of him walking out the door at that moment nearly stopped her breath .
“Don’t you dare,” she whispered as her hands grasped his shirt and she yanked him forward, initiating a toe-curling kiss of her own .
14
“M atilda,” Alexander growled against her mouth. “If you do not stop now, you may regret what might result. I could never live with myself if that happened .”
Tillie pulled back a bit and glanced up at him, searching his blue eyes for a reason to hang onto any doubts and fears she held. She didn’t see a single one .
“Would you regret anything that happened between us, Alexander ?”
He groaned and grabbed onto her, as though the sound of his name on her lips had a magical effect .
“Never,” he said. “But I am a man and you are a woman and the standards for each of us seem to be slightly stacked in my favor .”
She considered a moment and then gave a shrug. She could truly never see herself with anyone but him. If she ended up alone without him, then she still wanted this experience in her life, to have this night with him .
“I have never been surer of anything,” she said and pulled hard against him. It was as if the moors that had held him in check during those long nights of passionate kissing and touching were suddenly loosened and released .
He was no longer tentative and reserved as he reached for her. He moved his hands to her neck and angled her head to the side so that he could place scorching hot kisses down the sensitive side of her throat, causing involuntary shudders and gasps .
“You taste amazing, Tillie,” he said, placing punishing little bites along her neck. “And this is only the beginning .”
She was in a daze, but a perfectly clear-headed daze at that, so when he stopped once more and took her face in his hands to speak, his eyes boring into hers, she blinked at his words .
“If we do this — if I make love to you, Matilda Andrews — this is it,” he said, kissing her lips between words. “The betrothal is not fake. The feelings we are presenting are not fabricated. You are mine. You must be sure that you are ready for that. Because once I make you mine, I am never letting go .”
The words stunned her a moment, nearly causing her heart to drop into her feet. Where had this come from? She knew he’d been feeling something for her these past weeks, but she had put it down to lust and attraction. From the sounds of his promise, however, the depth of his feelings rivaled her own .
“If we do this, and I decide to keep you, Alexander, you will have a hard time escaping me ,” she said. “And I will have just cause to have that twit Eliza Masters tossed in the river if she makes any more overtures toward you .”
He laughed and pulled her close .
“Every word out of that saucy mouth makes me want you even more, Matilda,” he laughed, pulling her head towards his. “If it would help you understand how ardently I feel about you, I shall toss her and her pompous family out on their ears the moment they return for the New Year festivities. I will not even grant them access to Warfield Manor to appease my power-hungry fiancée .”
The words were enough and she found herself tearing at his clothing, despite knowing very little about undressing a grown man. Sure, she knew the pieces of clothing from her siblings and father, but she had little knowledge of the dressing part. This was a whole new world for her .
Blessedly, Alexander had mercy on her and was standing naked before her in mere seconds. She tried not to gape at the sight of him with not a stitch of clothing covering him, but she was doing a poor job. He was simply magnificent — as she knew he would be from her cursory explorations of his form during their tutoring sessions .
The hard planes of his chest led down to a chiseled stomach and a patch of dark hair that led her eyes even further down. She couldn’t help herself and she gaped at the sight .
“I am not even certain what I’m supposed to do with that ,” Tillie whispered, suddenly unsure of the entire thing. Alexander laughed and dipped forward for another kiss .
“Do not fret, dear Tillie,” he whispered. “I will show you everything. Trust me .”
And so she did. To her relief, it turned out Alexander wasn’t exactly adept at disrobing her either, and she giggled as she heard him curse under his breath each time a button popped .
“Damn it all, Tillie,” he finally said moments before ripping the gown open from the back. “I would curse the designer of this dress if I did not think you created it yourself. I will provide you all the fabric in the world to make ten more of these blasted things if you will just let me at you !”
He had her stripped down to nothing in no time once the gown was off and swooped down and lifted her up, carrying her to her large bed and depositing her in the center of it .
Tillie suddenly felt shy of her nakedness as she lay on her back in the center of the bed, but when she tried to squirm to cover up, Alexander stilled her with his warm hands on her legs .
“You are beautiful, love,” he whispered as he placed a burning kiss on the inside of her knee. “Let me look at you. Let me savor this .”
And Alexander savored. His mouth kissed up and down her legs, across her stomach, and all over her collarbone. His lips made special stops at her rosy nipples where he sucked and nibbled the sensitive buds and nearly had her going out of her mind with lust, grinding her hips against his as the pressure began to build in her body .
He smiled wickedly at her and resumed his ministrations, slowly circling her. He plunged a finger into her damp folds, and she moaned loudly. He covered her mouth with his, drinking in the sounds she made .
She felt heat building throughout her body, and suddenly the explosion began in her middle and seemed to travel out to every part of her, from her fingers to her toes .
Quivering from the aftershocks, she nearly giggled in excitement as Alexander moved up her body to press his mouth to hers, plundering her with a kiss that brought her back to her senses, ready for another go. With his mouth and his hands, he had her slick in no time and he braced his elbow next to her head while his hand guided the tip of himself to her entrance .
“It will hurt, but only for a moment,” he said. “I’ll go slowly for you, love .”
Tillie nodded at him .
“You are mine now,” he said as he inched forward, breaching her barrier. She gasped at the sting as it gave way. “You are mine forever now, Matilda Andrews .”
In no time, he’d slid his impressive length all the way to the hilt until he was seated fully inside her. The feeling of being so full of Alexander, of being stretched in such an intimate way, was mind blowing and Tillie couldn’t help but wrap her legs around his waist and try to take in more of him — to take every last piece of what he had to offer .
Sure, she belonged to him now, but Alexander equally belonged to her .
“So tight, love,” Alexander rasped, as though he was fighting the urge to move. “You feel like heaven .”
They remained still while she adjusted to the sensation, but it wasn’t long before she was arching her hips up toward him and trying to use her legs to coerce him to move. Thankfully, Alexander took the hint and slowly pulled himself out before smoothly pushing back in .
She moaned loudly .
The pain was completely gone and replaced with pure pleasure. It was as if Alexander’s perfect body had been made for hers, they fit togethe
r so well .
He was obviously holding back and she wanted all of him, wanted everything he had to give her, so Tillie used her legs to pull him harder into her, the intent clear .
Like a man possessed, Alexander powered into her with deep, glorious strokes. She moved against his power and loved the feeling of her breasts bouncing against his thrusts, which were hard and fast .
His breathing was ragged now and she wondered if he was getting close to his own orgasm when he reached between their bodies and found the magical spot on her own sex that he’d toyed with earlier. With a few deft flicks of his thumb, Tillie was catapulted into a second, more powerful orgasm that had her shouting Alexander’s name into his shoulder to muffle the sound .
Two, three, four more powerful strokes after that and he roared his own orgasm into the pillow beside her. His body twitched as he poured his seed into her and she found the idea of him claiming her so thoroughly to be incredibly arousing .
He groaned into her pillow and pushed himself on his elbows before raining kisses down on her face .
“I love you, Matilda Andrews,” he said, his voice heavy and thick with emotion. “I didn’t plan to, but I do .”
She couldn’t speak the words yet, but the tear rolling down her cheek spoke for her .
15
W hen she woke the morning after their love making, Tillie panicked. They had fallen asleep together in her bed and she heard the sounds of servants moving through the house. She shot up in bed, remembering the night they’d had that had gone on into the wee hours. It was dark in her room; had he left her ?
A hand shot out from beneath the covers and Alexander pulled her back down into his arms .
“It’s almost as if I can hear all those worries in your head,” he grumbled, his voice gravelly with sleep. “Calm down, love. I shall be back in my own room before your maid gets here, though I daresay I am not really worried about her opinions of what we do .”
Someday Her Duke Will Come Page 9