London Lace, Series Complete Set

by Catou Martine

  A knock at the door made her jump.

  “Who’s there?” No answer.

  She heard the knock again, only it was further away. Not her door at all. Her hearing must have been extra sensitive while she focused on her pleasure. Curious, she padded over and opened her door a crack to peek out. Todd was in the hall. He was dressed for dinner in charcoal pants and a navy blue blazer. He was standing across from Christine’s door. The door opened. Todd went in.

  Eliza clicked her door shut and sagged against it. No doubt there would be more giggling. And at dinner Todd would stall some more, lead her on again, until she couldn’t take it anymore. Well, she couldn’t take it anymore now. She ripped off the robe and let it pool onto the floor.

  She would get through dinner and then make Albert drive her back to London. If he refused, she would walk to the train station on her own. And she wasn’t going to go down to dinner in pajamas. She was going to rock that green velvet dress. She was going to make Todd regret blowing it with her.

  She stomped back to the bathroom to comb out her hair. On the way, she caught her reflection in the full-length mirror.

  What was she doing? She was twenty-nine years old. She was successful and respected in her field. She had good friends, an independent lifestyle that she had little desire to change. Why was she making herself so crazy over some man?

  Like Todd, she had no problem pleasuring herself, and clearly he could have many lovers if he wanted, as could she. So why was she losing her mind over this? Her body snickered in its own rebellious way. It tingled, it warmed with instinct, it knew that this was different. This wasn’t just some man. It was the man who reached deep into her and pulled everything out – the good, the bad, the ugly. The desirable, the passionate, the insatiable. The curious, the envious, the devoted. This wasn’t just about her and what she wanted. It was bigger than that somehow. He was right. It was about him, too. About both of them getting hurt. Or both of them getting healed.

  Eliza turned on the cold water tap, splashed her face, let the cold drops run down her neck, between her breasts. She shivered. Her mind, in its own way, smiled in satisfaction. No matter what this was, her body was not going to be a doormat. On this at least her mind and body agreed.

  It took her half an hour to get ready. The green sleeveless dress, while fitted, had elegant draping, which showed off the velvet’s subtle hues. The bathroom contained everything she needed, including a hair dryer and straightener. The small toiletry pouch tucked into the overnight bag held a cosmetic set of high-end moisturizer, toner, light foundation and powder. Eliza dug around in her purse and found a French Red lipstick in addition to her other make up items. She didn’t have any jewelry except for the small gold hoops she had been wearing before she left London, but her skin glowed from the bath (and probably from the double orgasm earlier). Even without a hat, she looked ravishing.

  She left her room and strode confidently down the hall. She hesitated in front of Christine’s door, which had been left slightly ajar. Eliza was tempted to peek in, but what if someone was still there? She didn’t hear anyone or anything. She peered through the crack.

  Inside, in a floral-themed room that faced the back gardens and meadow, sat a painted-white wrought iron bed. Very feminine. The sheets and duvet were all tousled as if… Eliza forced herself to face it… as if two people had just had wild rambunctious—giggly— sex. She felt sick to her stomach. And she might have tossed her cookies right then and there if she’d actually managed to eat a proper meal that day.

  She left Christine’s room and walked more slowly, and less confidently, toward the big staircase.

  The foyer was empty, the dining room doors closed. She thought she heard voices coming from a front room opposite the dining room but that door was closed too. Closer to the back, just to the right of the bottom of the stairs, was another door. This one was half open and emitting a light scent of wood smoke, leather, and masculine scented soap…

  Pushing the door open she saw floor to ceiling bookshelves full of leather bound titles. She had found the library. The heavy curtains were half drawn, blocking out the last of the evening light. Pools of lamplight glowed in the room’s corners as well as atop a heavy oak desk complete with blotting paper and quill pens. Stepping all the way into the room, she saw a fire burning in the fireplace. And standing in front of the fire, his forearm leaning on the mantel, was some man holding a crystal glass half full of amber liquid.

  He turned to her. He stared at her from top to toe. He smiled.

  “Eliza,” he whispered. “You look enchanting.”

  He looked dashing in his charcoal slacks, navy blazer, and white Oxford. He did not look mussed or tousled. His hair was combed smooth along the sides. A few locks had fallen over his forehead, perhaps while he had leaned against the mantel staring down at the fire.

  He looked at her now as if she were the only woman in the world. Alone in the library with him, she felt like the only woman in the house at least, and she knew that wasn’t even true.

  She took a step forward. “You don’t look as if you’ve just come from some other woman’s bedroom.”

  He looked confused for a moment and then he glanced away, understanding. “Let me explain.”

  She held up her hand. “You’ve proven that you’re not very good at explaining, Sir Montgomery. So why don’t you just let me ask the questions and you can answer."

  He downed the rest of his drink.

  “Fire away.”

  She took slow steps across the room. A plush couch was set between them, directly across from the fireplace. He was on one side, she was on the other. She walked toward the desk, placed near the window, so that she made only very slow, and not very deliberate, progress toward him. He seemed to have the sense to stay put where he was.

  “Are you engaged?” said Eliza.

  “No.”

  “Are you sure? Not to anyone?”

  He laughed and shook his head. “Yes, I’m sure. No, not to anyone.”

  Eliza narrowed her eyes. “Have you ever been?”

  Todd sighed. “Yes.”

  “To that Jocelyn woman.”

  He nodded. “Before she married Peter. And before my father died.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me that before?” She had reached the edge of the desk. She ran her fingers along the blotting paper. It was soft and dry.

  “It didn’t seem relevant.”

  “But that’s why she made those comments at the track, and why she seemed so familiar?”

  “I guess so.” She perched on the edge of the desk and crossed her arms, which crushed the green velvet against her breasts and made her cleavage more… abundant. Todd seemed to notice. Eliza was very cool.

  “Did you love her?”

  He was quiet for a few moments. “I’m afraid if I tell you ‘no’ you’ll think me a heel for getting engaged to her, but if I say ‘yes’ then I’d be lying.”

  “Then why did you get engaged?”

  “Honestly?”

  She nodded.

  He set his empty glass on the mantel and reached for the fire poker. He readjusted the logs causing embers to shift and flames to erupt with the extra oxygen. Then he spoke.

  “My father was never quite the same after my mother died. That’s when we came here, to Evergreen, to live full time. He loved horses, poured all his love and attention into them, and so I followed in his footsteps, got good at raising them, invested in stallions for siring, grew a business. I guess I learned to get my solace from the animals too. People just seemed so… disappointing.

  “After university, I came home, jumped headlong into growing the business. The Calvin family had long been in Devon. My father was friends with Jocelyn’s father, whose family was connected to my mother’s through marriage somehow. Jocelyn was vivacious, if anything. And my father seemed happier when she was around. I was at that age, you know, trying to make it in the world, do the right things, make those around me happy, or at least I
tried to. Both extended families like the match, so…” He shrugged as if to say he made the obvious decision.

  “When my father got sick, my priorities changed. Before he died he told me how much he had loved my mother, still loved her. He said, ‘Life is so good when you really love the woman you choose to be with, but it’s hell when she’s gone.’ That’s when I realized that nothing I could have done would have made him happy. I broke it off with Jocelyn, which was embarrassing for her even though everyone blamed me. I didn’t care. Losing my mother and my father was hard enough. I wasn’t prepared to lose myself as well. And Jocelyn made out all right. Peter loves her. We’re still friends, I suppose.”

  Eliza had uncrossed her arms while Todd talked. She walked over to the edge of the couch now and perched there.

  “I’m glad you didn’t marry her,” she said. “I don’t think she could have made you happy.”

  “No one can,” said Todd.

  “That’s a depressing thought.”

  “No, it’s realistic. One thing I learned from my father is that one person doesn’t make another person happy. We’re each in charge of our own happiness.”

  “If you believe that then it wouldn’t matter if you ended up with Jocelyn or anyone else.”

  “Ah, but it does matter. Certain people open doors to your own happiness and you can choose to walk through them or not. Some people, no matter how hard they try, don’t have the key to open those doors, but others do. Like you.” He looked long and hard at her, as if willing her to soften and open up to him, but Eliza still felt guarded. All the truth wasn’t out yet.

  “What about me?” she said.

  “You have a key to open my doors. I’m happy when I’m with you. In a way I’ve never felt before, in a way I didn’t even know was possible, in a way that scares me sometimes.”

  “You scare me, too,” she whispered. “How I feel with you scares me.”

  “But do you feel happy, too?” He took a step forward and reached for her hand. When she didn’t pull it away he pressed her palm to his soft lips.

  “Yes. Very.”

  He drew her up to her feet and held her in front of the fire.

  “And I have the key to your doors?” he whispered, his lips grazing hers.

  “I’m afraid you do…”

  He kissed her slowly and deeply, until she felt molten again. She forced herself to push him back.

  “I have more questions.”

  “I know you do.” He let her go and sat down on the couch. He stared at the fire.

  “Will we be late for dinner?” she asked.

  “Does it matter?” He looked up at her standing over him. The dim light of the room and the warm flickering of the firelight made him seem so much younger all of a sudden. She sat down beside him.

  “Tell me the rest. Why did The Sun report that you might be marrying Melissa Selfridge?”

  “I wouldn’t exactly call it 'reporting'.”

  She batted his knee. “Stop stalling.”

  “All right, all right. My father was also good friends with Harvey Selfridge. I’ve known him since I was little. He invested in our business from time to time and bought some of our prize runners.”

  “And he has a daughter?”

  “Quite a bit younger than I. She was still running around in tiaras while I was in my teens.”

  “That doesn’t stop most men. Especially when the girls under their tiaras are as pretty as she is.”

  Todd looked very serious all of a sudden. “Maybe that’s true but Lissy is like a sister to me.”

  “So then why does half of London think you’re going to marry her?”

  “Because for the time being I want them to.”

  “Todd!” She stood up suddenly, reached for his empty glass on the mantel, sniffed at the whiskey and looked around the room for the bottle.

  “Wait, let me explain.”

  “Oh yes, you’re so good at it.”

  “Don’t be mad. First I have to tell you about Christine.”

  Eliza pictured her dark curls and her unmade bed.

  “Let me guess, another one of your marriageable girlfriends?”

  “Actually, technically, Christine’s my half sister.”

  Oh my, was this getting complicated and kinky?

  “You’d better start connecting the dots soon or I will walk out that door.”

  He grabbed her wrist. It was like the first time they met in the coffee shop across from Candied Locks. A firm, demanding grip. He clearly didn’t want her to go anywhere.

  “Stop it, Eliza, and hear me out.”

  “Only if you let go, Sir.” She glared at him until he loosened his grip. “And speed up your explanation if you don’t mind.”

  “Stubborn and impatient?” He shook his head. “What am I going to do with you?” He gave her a crooked smile and looked up at her through his long thick lashes, but Eliza would have none of it. She put the empty glass on the mantel and crossed her arms again.

  “Pretty soon, nothing.”

  Todd sighed. “All right, fine. Let me hit the high points. My mother died when I was ten. My father loved her deeply and he never remarried. But he was a man with … needs. He took a few lovers over the years. Christine’s mother was one. When Christine’s mother died in car accident she became my father’s ward, when he died, she became mine.”

  “Okay. So you and Christine are related. Now what about Melissa?”

  “Our family was close to the Selfridges. Harvey Selfridge’s daughter, Melissa, by his second wife, became friends with Christine when they were teens.”

  Eliza nodded. That made sense. Sister’s friend in love with older brother. Happened all the time.

  “And now she thinks you’re going to marry her?”

  Todd smiled. “No. She doesn’t think that, but for the next few weeks, other people will.”

  Eliza blinked. “And what am I supposed to think?”

  “Well, I know you’re stubborn and impatient, and you’re sexy and creative. You’re also beautiful and independent, but are you open-minded?”

  “Right now I’m incredibly frustrated!”

  Todd smiled again. “You get this pretty flush in your cheeks when you’re incensed.” He chuckled as he reached for one of her hands crossed over her chest. She batted his hand away but he was faster and he grabbed her wrist again. He pulled her toward him on the couch. She resisted but he used his strength to outmaneuver her and she found herself splayed on top of him, her lips closed to his. He was still smiling, still chuckling. She was frowning and ready to bite his lip rather than kiss it.

  “It’s a secret,” he whispered.

  Eliza just growled and pushed herself up with her forearms. “I’m done with secrets.”

  “Lissy and Christine are girlfriends. Like more than friends. Like lovers.”

  Eliza stopped on her way to standing so she was semi-straddling Todd while he lay back on the sofa.

  “What did you say?”

  “Lord, I wish you were naked right now.”

  His hands crept up her thighs. He was stiffening beneath her.

  “Christine and Lissy are… together? Like same-sex couple togetherness?”

  Todd nodded and fondled her velvet-clad breasts. “But it’s a secret. Harvey and his wife know the truth but the rest of his family won’t approve.”

  “So you’re supposed to marry her to protect her reputation?”

  He laughed. “No. Just to quell some rumors until the end of spring. It’s all worked out. Christine is moving to Canada to attend university. Melissa will break it off with me and go to Italy or something to sort herself out and then she’ll join Christine later.”

  “Huh,” said Eliza as she sorted this all out in her mind. At the same time, Todd’s hands were roaming over her hips and buttocks and warming her up inside and out.

  “So that picture in the paper, the one with you and Melissa… I saw Jocelyn in the background. Is she in on the secret?”

&nb
sp; “No. She doesn’t know anything about them. Can we stop talking now?” His hands were moving up her skirt, his fingers slipping along the edge of the lace thong. She was going to make a wet spot on his nice trousers if she didn’t stand up soon.

  “We have to go to dinner don’t we?”

  “When the bell rings, not before…”

  “It’s a shame they can’t be more open about their relationship.”

  “’Tis. They deserve a good start. I know it’s an odd thing to do, but I’m just trying to help. Get them out of this stuffy society.”

  “Who am I then, Todd?”

  “You are the infuriatingly over-dressed Miss Eliza Keating!” He was pushing her dress over her hips now but she wasn’t making it easy for him by remaining snugly straddled over his bulging erection.

  “Am I your secret lover? Do I have to hide out these next few months? What if I don’t want to?”

  He stopped pawing at her and looked into her eyes. “Lissy and Christine are in the next room. I’ll introduce you, and after, you can decide what you want to do. We can decide. I don’t plan to give you up easily, Miss Keating. I don’t plan to give up at all.”

  She relaxed and leaned back a bit, letting her hand stroke the long stiff bulge between his legs.

  “I just have one more question,” she said.

  He undid the button and zipper of his trousers. “Anything, ask me anything.”

  “Where did you get the top hat you were wearing in that photo?”

  He stopped pulling himself out and stared up at her. He started laughing. “Are you serious?”

  “Of course! I expect sexual and accessory fidelity.” She smiled at him but she was serious.

  “Move those panties aside and I’ll tell you,” he whispered.

  “Tell me first.”

  “You drive a hard bargain, Miss Keating.”

  “Since I believe you’d like to drive something into me right now, Sir, I think you can acquiesce to my terms.”

  “It was my father’s. There, are you happy? I have not set foot in another hat shop since I met you.”

  She smiled. “Might I remind you that you haven’t even set foot in mine?”