“You must go out with a number of American financiers, playboys, and cowboys.” His voice washed over her and it took several heartbeats for Audrey to fully understand what his words meant.
“Oh yes,” she said with a slight laugh—slightly breathless, slightly nervous. “We have a terrible problem with cowboys in Central Park. They hitch their horses just everywhere.”
“Yes.” He nodded in mock seriousness. “I can see how that can be a problem. They must be fighting the taxis for parking spaces.”
Audrey snorted a laugh at his words, but couldn’t look away from him. Her body refused to move, and she had difficulty catching her breath. She pulled back just a little. “Yes, and now every New York restaurant has spittoons.”
His hand dropped away. “Tell me,” he said, all joking erased from his voice. “What’s it really like for you in New York?”
Audrey cleared her throat and removed her leg from his thighs. She sat up and pulled his jacket from where it’d fallen, forgotten, and covered herself with it. Duncan leaned up on his elbows and watched her.
“It’s great,” she said with genuine enthusiasm. “My two roommates are also my best friends.”
“Tell me about them,” he insisted. He didn’t remove his jacket but ran his hands over her knees so they rested on her thighs.
Blinking, she tried to ignore his touch. “Sabrina is a VP at Gideon Hotels, and Eliza is a TV and film producer.”
“Sounds exciting,” Duncan said, his thumbs brushing along her inner thigh. “You three sound like a force of nature.”
Audrey laughed. “Yes,” she agreed and turned. “At least we like to think so.”
There. She finally spotted her sweater and leaned away from Duncan’s touch, his too-intense gaze, his complete focus, and tugged the sweater, the barrier, over her head. His hands didn’t move; his thumbs still brushed her skin, but at least she felt somewhat covered.
“What about you and your friends?” she asked. But Duncan frowned at her, his blue eyes flickering over her sweater then back to her gaze.
“I only have a couple really good friends,” he said, one hand moving from her thigh to brush her hair off her face. “Most everyone else I know is a business associate, friendly social acquaintances.” He stopped, and a dark look flashed across his face. “Or family members who want something.”
She nodded and twined one of his hands with hers in a flash of sympathy. “I can understand that,” she whispered with more understanding than she meant to show. “I bet you’ve had people wanting something from you all your life.”
Duncan shrugged, but she didn’t see the brush-off she knew he’d meant. No, she saw the annoyance, the hurt, the wall he’d built around himself. She understood all about walls.
“It’s only been a problem the last ten years or so, once I built up the name again. Before that I was what you might call penniless.”
Surprised, Audrey’s fingers tightened on his. She didn’t know anything about his past, his family, other than the philanthropic gestures associated with the name. Really, Audrey should know better than to assume anything, even about rich, titled Englishmen; assumptions had been made about her all her life and she’d fought hard against them.
“Yup,” Duncan said to her reaction. “The earls before me were very poor managers.”
“You’re even more impressive,” she said then grinned. “And I was already completely floored.”
He laughed as she’d meant him to and glanced at the floor they had so recently used. But his focus never left her, and his thumb stroked the back of her hand. That touch, the simple stroke of his thumb, she found more intimate than when he’d touched her thighs.
“Perhaps I can floor you again, Audrey,” he said through a very wolfish grin.
Flushed with arousal, Audrey didn’t have time to nod, not that she’d planned on disagreeing. His mouth met hers with a slow, thorough kiss that sent shocks of need sparking over her skin wherever Duncan touched. His hands slipped beneath the sweater, slowly pushing it over her head to once more bare her to his gaze.
She swallowed, but the heat in his sharp blue gaze stifled all protests, and when he kissed her again, his mouth still a gently caressing taste, his fingers teasing her nipples, Audrey surrendered.
Chapter Six
Once again that day, Audrey rushed through the hotel lobby and up to her room, still floating on the high that spending time with Duncan seemed to induce. Earlier today, Duncan had dropped her off after a leisurely breakfast and slow kisses she was certain were meant to keep her in his townhouse. Ohh, a prisoner in the earl’s townhouse. Yes, she could most definitely deal with that.
Audrey grabbed the door handle to her hotel room harder than necessary and flung it open, her body warm with arousal and a very strong desire to drag him up to this room and explore his body once again.
The door slammed closed behind her.
Racing to the couch, she pushed memories of their relaxing day at the theater to the back of her mind and looked for something appropriate to wear tonight. When he’d dropped her off earlier, she hadn’t planned for dinner; she had only showered and changed in record time before he’d returned from the office to pick her up.
Duncan hadn’t told her where he’d made reservations, so she quickly dressed in the red dress she’d bought yesterday, one that clung to her curves and skimmed her knees. Had it really been only yesterday? Audrey stopped and blinked as she stared down at her dress. Yesterday.
It felt as if she’d known him a hell of a lot longer than that. As if she’d spent so much more time with him. The way he’d explored her body last night hadn’t been the awkward fumbling of a one-night stand. He’d kissed her, touched her, as if…as if what?
Audrey shook her head and smoothed the dress over her hips. This was a holiday romance, and she knew that. Just because Duncan’s kisses turned her knees to jelly and made her forget even her own name, what day of the week it was, and that this was only a fantasy didn’t make them more than that.
She retreated to the bathroom and checked her hair and makeup, reapplied her lipstick, and shook off thoughts about this ending. This time next week she’d be back in New York, and this would be only a pleasant memory of a wonderful few days spent with Duncan. Well, maybe more than pleasant, and even now her body responded to the thought of feeling him against her. So she’d have more than a pleasant memory and a fantastic story to tell about touring London with an earl.
And there was nothing bad about that.
Washing her hands, Audrey frowned at her reflection. She didn’t care that Duncan was an earl. Hell, she didn’t even care about his money. He made her laugh. She almost wished he was a penniless actor. They never had money. But if Duncan had been, maybe there’d be a chance at something more between them.
What did it matter? If he’d been anything other than a billionaire earl, would it have mattered? Would she have dragged him back to New York with her to try for more than this holiday romance? No, not any more than she’d stay here.
And why was she thinking in that direction? Even if he’d been a penniless actor this was a fantasy, and the sooner she remembered that herself, the better. It was how he viewed it; Audrey was certain of that. How else should she look at their affair? He lived in London, and she lived in New York.
Plain and simple.
Back in the bedroom of the Gideon Hotel, Audrey looked at the neatly made bed. Her clothes were still strewn over the couch but the bed sat there, untouched. She sank onto it and realized she hadn’t enjoyed herself this much in ages. Not really, not so…unguardedly.
Last night they’d eventually made it upstairs and to his bedroom. This morning, he’d made her scream his name more than once, and she hadn’t wanted to leave his arms afterward. She’d dozed, wrapped around him, and had woken to the feel of his mouth on her breast. The absolute most pleasant way she’d ever woken, hands down.
Once again, Duncan had made her forget her inhibitions, everything th
at made her self-conscious. It’d been only the two of them in that bed and not the phantom ménage partner—that insidious little voice that constantly reminded her of every single flaw and each extra pound. No. It was just she and Duncan in that bed, which surprised her, but it also made her feel like she was enough.
He’d made her breakfast and they’d made plans for the day—a day at the theater with a full dress rehearsal for a play one of his friends had produced, and then a bit more wandering about London. And Audrey had enjoyed herself more than she’d imagined. It wasn’t the behind-the-scenes look; it wasn’t meeting one of his friends. It was spending time with Duncan and how wickedly seductive he was at every turn.
A look sent her heart racing; a brush of his hand against hers made her look for the nearest private alcove.
She blinked and pushed all that to the back of her mind. He’d promised her a sensual dinner tonight, one she’d never forget, and Audrey was determined to have fun. And him afterward, she vowed, slipping on a pair of black heels. Definitely him. For as long as this holiday romance lasted.
When she returned to the lobby, she saw Duncan waiting for her. Her smile was instant, and she knew it brightened her entire face, hiding none of her emotion. Audrey didn’t care and immediately took the hand he held out for her.
“Where are we going?” she asked again.
“I thought I’d surprise you.” His smile curled her toes, and he led her outside into the cool spring evening. “Keep it a mystery.” And the words brushed seductively over her skin like the faintest of promises.
She looked at him curiously but nodded slowly. “Very well,” she said in her best British accent, which wasn’t very good. “But if we’re dining with the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, I’m very underdressed.”
He laughed with a rich, low sound that did nothing to make her want dinner instead of him. “I can arrange that.”
Startled, Audrey laughed and climbed into the London cab Duncan had hired to take them around the city.
“After I dropped you off earlier, I had an errand to run.” He turned, his hand still wrapped around hers. “It was a very difficult errand, but I managed. It’s my understanding,” he continued, and she wondered what the hell he was talking about, “that they use this symbol amongst each other.”
“Okay,” she said, drawing the word out. But Duncan’s smile danced around the edges of his mouth, and she couldn’t help returning it.
“Next time,” he said, pulling something out of his pocket, “I’d prefer you show them this as opposed to distracting them in other ways.”
Frowning, Audrey still returned his smile and held out her hand. Duncan opened his hand to reveal a traffic warden badge. Laughing, she took it from him and slipped the clip over her bodice, securing it directly between her cleavage. Duncan’s gaze rested on the badge, his hand brushing along the top of her bodice.
Audrey shuddered at his touch, the faint brush over her skin enough to harden her nipples and make her forget all about dinner. Swallowing, she met his gaze. Even in the dimness of the cab, she saw his blue eyes flare with want, and she swallowed again, struggling to catch her breath.
Before she had the chance to act on the urge to kiss him, shag him in the back of the cab, or talk herself out of both, the car pulled to a stop and the driver opened her door.
The wind blew cold around her, and Audrey tugged her thin coat closer around her body. Not to huddle from the cold, but to hide her body’s reaction to his teasing touch. No, the wind felt wonderful on her heated skin, but it did little to actually cool her.
Audrey waited for Duncan to round the car before looking up at the restaurant. Shadows Restaurant was a typical building, with wide stone steps and double doors. Duncan’s hand settled on the small of her back as they walked up the steps, and she leaned into his touch. Inside the small lobby, the hostess greeted them with a wide smile and rounded the podium she’d stood behind. A pair of what Audrey swore were night-vision goggles bumped against her leg.
Frowning at that, Audrey glanced around the entrance and noticed a wall of floor-to-ceiling numbered lockers. She turned back to Duncan as the hostess welcomed them to Shadows.
“It’s a very unique experience here in London and actually quite a feat to get this reservation,” Duncan said with that same mysterious smile he’d worn since picking her up. “Dining in complete darkness,” he whispered, his breath brushing her ear.
She shivered at the touch then forced herself to concentrate on his actual words. “Darkness?” she repeated.
Duncan pulled back and nodded. “We leave our mobiles, jackets, purses—anything that might be a source of illumination—in the lockers.” He nodded to the lockers behind her, but Audrey didn’t bother to look at them again.
Arousal pooled low in her belly, and she forced herself not to shudder in anticipation at the look in his eyes. His hand still held hers, his thumb brushing smoothly between thumb and forefinger, and her own fingers clenched around his. She swallowed and tried to find her voice.
“How…?” She stopped and cleared her throat before trying again. “How are we supposed to read the menu out here?”
She tried to ask sensible questions, but all she could think about was the upcoming erotic experience of eating in the dark with Duncan. Audrey blinked and tried to look away from his hot blue gaze, but couldn’t.
“You can pick fish, meat, or vegetarian,” he said softly. The hostess waited as unobtrusively as possible. Audrey was dimly aware of the other woman and wondered if she’d seen this kind of reaction before. “Everything else,” Duncan continued, “we discover ourselves. In the dark.”
They both chose the fish, and the hostess assigned them a locker and gave them the key, which Duncan slipped into his pocket. The other woman stepped to the closed door by her station, adjusted the goggles over her head, and took both their hands. She walked with confidence as she led them to their table. Audrey could hear the low buzz of conversation as they walked, and she tried to keep up with the hostess’s confident step.
Suddenly they’d stopped, and she felt the woman’s hands guiding her into her seat. The room was pitch black, and when Audrey looked up to where she swore the woman stood, she saw nothing. Not even the woman’s form was outlined in shadow—it was that dark.
Hence, Audrey thought as she felt Duncan’s legs stretch across to where she sat perfectly still, the name of the restaurant. She scooted her chair closer to the table, bumped it slightly, and then felt Duncan’s hand reach across to clasp hers, and she relaxed.
“You’re right,” she whispered, the atmosphere automatically keeping her voice quiet. “This is a unique experience. I can’t see you at all,” she said with a slight laugh, “and I know you’re right in front of me.”
“The lack of sight heightens your other senses.” Duncan’s voice drifted over her, sensual and erotic in the dark. Audrey shivered at the sound, the promise in his tone. “What I’m enjoying right now is how delicious your scent is and how sweet you taste.”
He kissed her, his mouth hard and hungry on hers as he unerringly found her across the table. Audrey whimpered as she kissed him back, her free hand combing through his hair. Duncan pulled back and despite the face she knew he couldn’t see her, Audrey felt as if he studied her, seeking all her secrets.
She swallowed and tried to think of something to say that wasn’t Let’s go back to your place.
A subtlety cleared throat jerked her back to reality, and she suddenly remembered they were in a restaurant, darkened as it may have been, and climbing over the table to straddle Duncan probably wasn’t the best idea. It could wait until they got back to his place. Maybe, she thought, wryly.
The wait would only make her want him more.
The silent waiter set their first plates down, and so began the most erotic meal of her life. Erotic and fun. Oh, it was so fun to quietly giggle with Duncan over their meal, each trying to discern what they were eating. And to feel him. Audrey had never been so ut
terly aware of anyone in her entire life as she was of Duncan as they sat in that dark restaurant and ate.
That awareness wound through her, pricking at her skin like a brush of his teasing fingers. Her nipples ached for the feel of his teeth, her body for the touch of his skin.
Chapter Seven
This is such a girly thing, Audrey thought as she breathed deeply of the pillow that still carried Duncan’s scent.
But she’d stayed in bed most of the morning after he’d left to take care of a few things in the office, perfectly content to breathe in the scent of him—of them. Stretching, with a silly smile on her face she refused to wipe off, Audrey finally got out of bed and decided to start her day.
Duncan had to go into work to deal with several things, and she refused to pout like a teenager until he’d changed his mind, stayed in bed with her all day, and ignored the office. It wasn’t as if their time together had been planned; their affair was entirely spur of the moment, and she definitely understood the grind of work. So she showered and dressed and ordered a leisurely breakfast, though she supposed it was closer to brunch now.
There was nothing on TV except a 24-hour BBC news station, and she still hadn’t heard back from Duncan. Audrey shrugged and gathered her coat and purse. She needed another sexy dress for dinner tonight and decided to spend a little time wandering around London, just to see what wasn’t on the tourist maps.
Humming happily to herself, she took the elevator to the lobby and stepped into the slightly overcast, breezy day.
Aimlessly wandering the London streets, Audrey found herself in front of the hat shop the Duchess of Cambridge used. When she’d planned her extended stay in London, and Sabrina comped her hotel suite, this store had been one of the places she’d wanted to visit—as a stylist, of course. She laughed to herself and slowed in front of the windows.
Countess Curvy: A Curvy Girl's Earl Page 5