The Duke Who Lied

by Michaels, Jess

  Amelia thought of how he’d bought her father’s debts, how he’d used that to blackmail her into this wedding. It was hard to see him as all those wonderful things when that truth hung over her. And yet…

  “Tonight he was kind,” she whispered, almost more to herself than to Diana. “And yet he makes me…he makes me nervous. He is so dark, he is so unreadable, he is so…so…”

  “Dangerous?” Diana offered.

  Yes, that was the word for it. Hugh was dangerous.

  Diana chuckled. “I have a feeling dangerous doesn’t trouble you quite as much as you think it does. And that will ensure that you and I are fast friends. Dangerous can be very…stimulating.”

  Amelia felt the heat in her cheeks once more. “He—he kissed me.”

  Diana jerked her face toward Amelia. “Tonight?”

  “Here in the garden before he was drawn away by some matter in the house.”

  “And how did you like it?”

  Amelia covered her cheeks with her hands. There was something about Diana that made her feel she could be honest. And she needed to say what she felt out loud, to have someone scold her and tell her that it wasn’t right. That would bring her back in line to propriety, certainly.

  “It was wonderful,” Amelia whispered. “I have never been kissed, you know. But he was gentle at first and then it just…spiraled out of control, and suddenly I was being dragged out to sea. I knew I would drown and I didn’t care at all.”

  “You wanted to drown,” Diana whispered.

  “I know it’s wrong.”

  “Wrong?” Diana shook her head. “That is called passion, my dear, and it is not wrong. You should feel passion for the man you will marry. You should feel that delicious warmth low in your belly when he watches you from across a room. You should feel the tingle when his hand brushes your skin.”

  Amelia blinked. “But—”

  “But nothing!” Diana interrupted. “I know your mother is no longer with you. Has anyone talked to you about such things?”

  Heat burned Amelia’s cheeks “Not really. My maid mentioned just a few bare-bones details about what a man might want. It sounded somewhat terrifying.”

  Diana laughed softly. “Oh, that will not do! You are to be married tomorrow, and so I must share with you a few things about passion. If you would like to hear them.”

  Amelia thought of the feel of Hugh’s hands skimming her body. Of his mouth on hers and the way her body had felt boneless and hot. About how she wanted so much more even if she couldn’t define what more was.

  “Yes,” she said, perhaps a bit more strenuously than was required. “I will take any advice on that count that I can get.”

  “Excellent,” Diana said. “Firstly, on the subject of kissing…”

  Chapter Ten

  Hugh had always known he would marry. It was his duty, after all, to do so and produce heirs and spares to carry on his family name and legacy. He’d been studious as a boy, thinking on every problem, planning it out. He’d believed he would marry before thirty-five and produce a child every two years after until he had enough sons to guarantee his line would carry on.

  It had been a plan of necessity. No heart required.

  As the years went by, though, as he watched James, Simon, Graham, Ewan, Baldwin, Lucas and Matthew each find true love…his view on marriage had shifted. Love seemed to make them all so very happy. He’d been jealous of that happiness from time to time. And so he had begun to wonder if he could experience the same emotion.

  But now, as he stared across the room filled with his friends toward the woman he had pledged his life to not an hour ago, he was torn.

  Amelia was his wife. And it was not the cold, emotionless bond that he had accepted would be right as a young man. Nor was it the glorious, loving relationship he had come to covet in the past few years.

  He wanted her. God, how he wanted her. But he also knew she despised him and the lie that had been told to force her to the altar. He knew she loved someone else, his greatest enemy.

  Their future was set, but it was not clear. She was accepted by his friends, of course. Not one of the dukes or duchesses had been anything but kind to her. Even now Robert danced with her, and there was no hint of the hesitations he had expressed previously as he smiled down at her.

  But what did that mean for them? That she would be comfortable in his group of friends, but never in his arms? Would she always hesitate, as she had when the minister had asked her to pledge her life to him? She had looked up into his eyes in that moment and he’d seen all she felt she was losing by agreeing to the terms forced upon her.

  “My friend, congratulations.”

  He turned at the sound of Kit’s voice and found both him and Lucas approaching. Hugh slung an arm around Kit, and together the three watched Robert and Amelia dance.

  “She is beautiful,” Kit said softly. “Is that why the rush after our last discussion about the lady?”

  Lucas exchanged a brief look with Hugh, but remained silent.

  “It’s complicated,” Hugh muttered. “I don’t want to get into it. At least not right now.”

  Kit didn’t press. Instead he said, “Will you stay in London?”

  “I think not. If it is agreeable to her, I would like to depart for Brighthollow tomorrow. I know Lizzie will want to meet her. And it will help us escape the whispers about our rushed union and—”

  He broke off. He wasn’t about to add the other thing he felt they needed to escape from: Aaron Walters. He didn’t like the idea of the man being so close to Amelia. Of her being tempted by him. Every day that concept grew less and less acceptable.

  “It looks as though Robert has finished his turn,” Kit said. “If you don’t mind, I will ask the lady for the next.”

  “By all means,” Hugh said with a smile.

  Kit nodded to his friends and then slipped off to charm Amelia just as all his friends were working to charm her.

  “You’re worried about Walters?” Lucas asked softly.

  Hugh watched his wife smile up at Kit. She was so at ease with his friends. She was never so at ease with him. “Yes,” he choked out. “I will have to determine what to do with him when I return to London. He clearly has every intention of pursuing a dowry by any means necessary, and since I cannot be marrying every woman he threatens, there must be a more permanent way to keep him from damaging those around him.”

  Lucas scowled. “The bastard has to be involved in more than just seducing unsuspecting young women. Let me use my resources to investigate while you’re gone. We’ll figure this out.”

  “Thank you.” Hugh let out a breath and turned toward his friend. “For everything. You and Diana have been very kind, and I appreciate you not spreading Lizzie’s secret across the group.”

  “I understand,” Lucas said. “But may I give you one piece of advice?”

  Hugh nodded. “Of course.”

  “She is a lovely young woman,” Lucas said softly. “But more—and better—than that, she seems intelligent and kind. Don’t let yourself destroy what could be…good just because of this bad beginning. I nearly did that with Diana and if I had lost her—”

  He cut himself off, but Hugh heard the desperation in his voice. The very idea of losing Diana was almost physically painful to his friend.

  “I will try,” Hugh promised. “But it won’t be easy. Diana didn’t hate you as Amelia hates me. And she didn’t love someone else.”

  “She won’t always love him, nor hate you,” Lucas reassured him. “If you allow her to see your true self. No matter how painful that is. Let her in, mate.”

  Lucas clapped a hand against his arm, not waiting for an answer before he strode away toward his own wife and swung her up for a kiss. Hugh watched them with that burning jealousy still deep in his heart.

  Then he shifted his gaze to Amelia. He wasn’t as certain as Lucas seemed to be that showing her his heart would change anything abou
t how she felt. But he was still drawn to her, despite everything that kept them apart. Despite everything that could bring their new marriage to a sudden and painful halt.

  Amelia stood, hands shaking as Theresa unbuttoned her gown. Her wedding gown, which had been hastily prepared in the past few days. It wasn’t the beautiful silver dress she had pictured when Aaron had proposed, nor had the brief, proper ceremony in Hugh’s garden been the one of her dreams.

  Of course, it had been lovely. And when Hugh took her hand, she had felt that shiver of awareness and thought quite hard about the things Diana had told her about passion and wedding nights and all the things that happened between a man and a woman.

  But now the party was over, the night was long and she was the Duchess of Brighthollow. Through that door and an antechamber, the Duke of Brighthollow waited for her. And her heart would not stop throbbing until the rush of blood blocked out almost every other sound.

  “Your Grace?”

  She jumped as she realized Theresa was speaking to her. She was Her Grace. “Y-yes, I’m sorry, Theresa. What did you say?”

  Her maid’s face gentled. “You needn’t apologize, Your Grace. I’m certain your nerves must be frayed to their ends! I only asked if you’d like to put on your regular nightdress or the new one.”

  Amelia glanced over at the two gowns laid across her bed. One was her serviceable cotton gown, comfortable and plain. The other had been gifted to her that very morning by the duchesses. It was a beautiful nude silk with a lacy bodice that left very little beneath to the imagination. It was scandalous beyond measure and yet, based on what Diana had told her the night before, it was perhaps the perfect outfit for what was about to happen.

  “The new,” she said, the words sounding slow and far away to her ears.

  Theresa blushed as she picked it up, then helped Amelia out of the rest of her clothes and into the nightdress. She brushed out Amelia’s hair and arranged it prettily, then sighed. “Well, you are ready. I should leave you to your husband.”

  Her husband. Amelia jolted at the thought. Hugh Margolis, Duke of Brighthollow, was her husband. Forever. She didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

  “Thank you,” she whispered.

  Theresa cast her one last look as she stepped to the door. Then she said, “Just think of England, my dear. Good night.”

  Then she was gone, and Amelia stood alone in the great, beautiful chamber that would be hers for the rest of her days. Her head spun. Diana had described powerful pleasure and deep connection when she talked about what would happen in the next bedroom.

  Theresa spoke of thinking of England and looked horrified on Amelia’s behalf. And right now Amelia had no idea what to think of any of it.

  She did not get a chance to think on it further, though, for there was a light knock at the door that led to the adjoining chamber. She jumped and pivoted to the entryway, trying to gather her nerves as she said, “C-come in.”

  The door opened and she caught her breath. It was Hugh, of course, but not the same formal, stern Hugh who had taken her hand and changed her name and future a few hours ago. No, this man was different. He no longer wore a jacket or a waistcoat. His cravat had long been discarded and a few buttons on his shirt were undone. He wore no boots.

  This was…her husband, without formality to stand as a wall between them. And she could hardly breathe as she pondered how handsome he was.

  “My God,” he whispered as he took a step into the room. “You are…you are magnificent.”

  She glanced down at herself and blushed. “I feel exposed, I admit.”

  His expression gentled and he stopped walking toward her. “Amelia, I…I wanted to talk to you about tonight.”

  Here it was. The moment when her innocence would belong to him, her body, perhaps her pleasure, if Diana was right.

  She nodded. “Yes?”

  He shifted, and discomfort filled his face. “I realize this was never your choice. I understand if there are regrets in your heart right now. You have had your future determined for you in the last few days, and I am a fiend in your eyes because of it. So I would not…force you to consummate the marriage tonight. We can take our time, get to know each other better, before you give me such intimacy.”

  She stared in disbelief. Here was a man she could never decipher, one who always seemed in command. And yet he actually looked nervous in that moment where he told her that her body was hers to control.

  What was more surprising was her own reaction to that declaration. After everything that had happened in the past ten days, she should have felt relieved that he would not expect her to give herself to him.

  And yet she didn’t. Not even in the slightest.

  She moved forward one hesitant step. “Do you know what I’ve been thinking about since last night?”

  He shook his head slowly.

  “That kiss,” she admitted, heat filling her cheeks as she ducked her gaze from his. It was too hard to say these things when she had to see his expression. “All I keep thinking about is that kiss.”

  “But what will happen once I touch you is so much more than a kiss,” he said.

  She nodded, still staring at the floor. “I know. Diana…explained things to me. But she didn’t make what would happen sound unpleasant.”

  “If I do my job right, it won’t be,” he said, his voice very rough now. And closer. She glanced up to see he had moved toward her. Not quite near enough to touch, but edging there.

  “She said it could be…wonderful,” she whispered.

  He reached out and his fingers skimmed her cheek. It was like fire to her sensitive skin, and she sucked in her breath in surprise. His pupils dilated, and in that moment she would have given him anything, everything, just so he would keep touching her.

  “I would very much like to make it wonderful.” His hand dropped away. “But I don’t want to force more from you than has already been taken.”

  “What if I offer it?” she asked. “Unless you don’t want me.”

  He laughed under his breath. “That is patently ridiculous. In truth, I have not stopped wanting you likely from the first moment I saw you.”

  Her mouth dropped open in shock. “You did? But you were so stoic.”

  “Stoic,” he repeated. “That is one way to describe it. But beneath that is a great deal more, Amelia. And I would very much like to touch you.”

  She didn’t respond in words. She couldn’t, for there were none left. All she could do was step forward on shaking legs. She lifted her hands to his chest, jolting as her palms met hard muscle beneath his fine linen shirt. She looked up at him, knowing all her wanton need was plain on her face, not caring in that moment. She lifted up on her tiptoes and he dropped his head, meeting her halfway.

  And instantly, they were right back where they’d stopped the night before. His mouth devoured, tasting her, exploring her, and the world spun down to this one place and time. She gripped her hands into fists against his chest, as if she could anchor herself by clinging to him.

  She couldn’t. Her legs had begun to shake and her body pulse with an insistent need she had no idea how to slake. Touching him didn’t help—it only built this fire inside of her even higher. Until it felt like she would explode.

  Her knees gave out, but he didn’t let her fall. He caught her, sweeping her into his arms as he continued to kiss her. She felt him set her on the bed, the pillows soft beneath her head, him hard as he pressed himself down over her, letting his full length cover her.

  She arched beneath him, wanting more. Wanting all the things Diana had so scandalously described. Amelia had no idea what this would feel like, but she wanted it regardless. Wanted him regardless.

  Regardless of it all.

  Later she would have to analyze that. Try to determine what it said about her that she could be so ready to marry one man and just days later be willing to give herself completely to another.

  But for now,
there was only this. Only him. Only the way his mouth dragged away from hers and down to her throat where he sucked gently and made starbursts explode in front of her eyes. She dragged her fingers into his hair and shivered. It was long and fell from the queue when she tugged at the coarse, curly locks. He grunted as if satisfied by that response, and his mouth moved lower, tracing a shocking line along the bodice of her new night-rail.

  How could every single touch feel so damned good? How could none of them be enough?

  She had no idea, but Hugh seemed to be in no mood to stop touching her. His hand drifted along the neckline, then lower over the lacy fabric that just barely covered her breasts. His thumb skimmed one of her hard nipples, and any pleasure that had come before seemed like nothing in comparison. She cried out without meaning to and blushed at how foolish it was.

  He glanced up and smiled. “You needn’t blush, Amelia. When you feel pleasure, I want to know. When I learn your body, I can much easier give you more…” He leaned down and kissed her shoulder next to the strap of her nightgown. “…and more…” he whispered, tugging the strap down and exposing one breast. “…and more…”

  His voice was muffled as he dropped his lips to her naked breast. He traced the shape and his mouth closed around the nipple that felt so sensitive she might burst. He sucked and her hips lifted hard against him. She shouted out again, but this time she was far too lost in sensation to feel embarrassed by the noise. He was made of magic and she was lost to it all.

  He sucked hard, harder, swirling his tongue around her, and she found her sex pulsing in time, slick with wanting and hot with need. And just when she felt she might actually die from waiting, he switched his attention to the opposite breast and repeated his licks and sucks and tugs there.

  “Please,” she murmured, uncertain what she was begging for, but praying he knew.

  He glanced up, all the teasing gone from his expression. All the sternness and coolness gone too. This was a new man, one driven by desire that glittered in his stare, driven by a need to pleasure her and take her and claim her. She let out a little gasp of displeasure as he pushed from the bed and got to his feet.