"Perhaps footraces?" Arabella suggested mischievously. "I'm also quite good at apple bobbing."
"I pity your poor husband," the duke muttered, shaking his head. He gave his sister a dark stare. "I hesitate to break up your tete a tete, but we have the luncheon at Lady Braden's to attend today. You agreed to be my shield against those young ladies you so disapprove of."
"Because you can do better," Arabella said with a sniff. She gave Gabrielle a regretful look. "Sorry dearest, but I did promise."
"That's fine, I should probably go home anyway and begin... my task."
As Gabrielle stood, she saw the duke cast her a somewhat suspicious glance, probably because she hadn't said exactly what her task was. Gabrielle gave him a curtsy as she passed, reminded again just how tall and imposing the man was. Even though he was young, he wore his air of authority with great poise. There was no doubting that he was a powerful man, just from looking at him.
Arabella saw her to the door and gave her a heartfelt hug. "Everything will be alright, dearest. And if it isn't, you're always welcome here."
She hugged her friend back, thankful for the unwavering love and support that Arabella had offered from the moment they'd met. Still, she hoped she would never need to take her up on that offer.
When Gabrielle returned home, she was shocked when Taylor met her at the door with the news that the Marchesse of Dunbury was in the parlor and had been waiting for her for over an hour. Taking off her gloves, she sent Molly to give the dolls to her daughters with the promise that she would visit them later to see how the presents had been received.
With some trepidation, she went to the parlor where Cordelia was waiting for her.
She felt some guilt over how she'd behaved yesterday. Cordelia's presence had struck her temper, but at the same time, she realized it wasn't Cordelia's fault. That didn't make her any more eager to see her stepmother. In fact, if she could have hidden away in her room, she would have.
But that wasn't what Cordelia would do. Cordelia would face a social situation like this as a lady. She would be cool and calm and collected. So this was the perfect time to practice being more like Cordelia. Even if it did make her heart hurt to think about why she wanted to be more like her stepmother.
"Good afternoon, Cordelia," she said, coming into the room.
Her stepmother was sitting on the chaise lounge, a pretty picture in a sapphire joplin walking dress with her hair gathered at the nape of her neck, reading a book. Quickly setting down her reading material, Cordelia stood and came towards Gabrielle, both of them clasping hands to exchange their greeting. Cordelia’s hands were cool in Gabrielle’s, her eyes searching Gabrielle’s with concern.
"Gabrielle, are you well? I was so worried last night after... well, after."
Stiffening, Gabrielle forced a smile onto her face. That was certainly none of Cordelia’s business. "I am fine, thank you for asking. I apologize for my abrupt departure from dinner. I hope you and the Marquess enjoyed the rest of your evening?"
To her surprise, instead of going along with the social pleasantries, Cordelia actually scowled! "Gabrielle, don't put me off. I was worried when you didn't come back to dinner. Did Felix... did he..."
The use of her husband's Christian name on her stepmother's lips made it even harder to keep her smile, which was starting to feel more like a snarl.
"Whatever transpired between my husband and myself is our business, although I thank you for your concern-"
"Gabrielle!" Cordelia's eyes actually flashed with temper, grinding Gabrielle's pretty speech to a halt, as the older woman's fingers tightened around her hands. It was the strangest reversal of positions - Cordelia red faced and practically stamping her foot because she wasn't getting what she wanted, while Gabrielle remained aloof and closed off. She could sympathize with Cordelia's frustration, even though part of her was enjoying it. Just a little.
As if realizing the same thing, Cordelia closed her eyes and took a deep breath, loosening her grip slightly on Gabrielle's hands. It was interesting - apparently during Gabrielle's time away, Cordelia had become more used to being a Marchesse and had finally grown a backbone. Gabrielle didn't doubt that it was the Marquess' influence. She rather wished for the old Cordelia back, however, the one who would have left Gabrielle alone the moment she met any resistance.
"Gabrielle," Cordelia said, her voice calmer. "I understand that we have not always had the best relationship, but I do care for you, and if Felix did -"
"Did what?" Gabrielle asked, now struggling to keep her own temper at Cordelia's insistence on interfering. It was as though she was accusing Felix of abusing Gabrielle while simultaneously using his given name - which made the intimacy grate all the more. Gabrielle immediately felt defensive, of both herself and Felix. Cordelia had witnessed the Marquess spanking Gabrielle, did she really think that Felix would do something worse? Or was she just trying to come between the two of them? Setting herself up as each of their allies so that she could be the one in the breach? Gabrielle snatched her hands away. "Spanked me? Like your own husband did? What would you do? Because I seem to recall you doing absolutely nothing, and you have less authority here than you did in that household.” She took a deep breath, closing her eyes for a quick moment to regain her composure. Just like Cordelia had done a moment ago. She would be polite. Calm. A lady. “I appreciate your concern, but I will not discuss this with you and I think you should go."
Those big, dark brown eyes filled up with tears, and Gabrielle felt as though she'd just kicked a puppy, which made her even angrier. She turned and stalked to the parlor door, yanking it open. Ladylike… ladylike…
With the look of a martyr, Cordelia sniffed, her shoulders slumped, and she quietly proceeded into the hall and to the front door. A feeling of relief suffused Gabrielle. She just couldn't deal with Cordelia right now, and she certainly couldn't deal with Cordelia accusing Felix of... whatever. He hadn't been wrong in spanking Gabrielle for her behavior, she knew and accepted that as fact. The only thing he'd been wrong in was where his heart lay.
Taking a deep, calming breath as the front door shut, Gabrielle leaned against the parlor doorway. Cool. Calm. Collected. A real lady. Perhaps Felix would come to care for her, perhaps he would not, but either way, she would be a lady of the ton and she would find a way to be - if not happy - at least outwardly content.
******
Turning the corner on his street, Felix nearly bowled over a young woman who was walking and sniffling with her head bent down.
"Oh! So sorry- Cordelia?"
Sniffling again, Cordelia looked up at him, her dark eyes brimming with unshed tears. "Felix... I'm sorry, I wasn't looking where I was going."
"Neither was I... are you alright?"
Cordelia nodded her head, and then shook it and then nodded again. "It's nothing I'm not used to. I went to visit Gabrielle, I just wanted to ensure she was well. I know Philip spanked her a few times, but I was always there, you see, and it's so hard to let go of the feeling of responsibility... but I don't think she appreciated my being there. I thought that maybe she and I could talk about it, maybe find it a point to bond over, but she wouldn't let me get a word in edgewise. I was just so hoping that our relationship would improve once we had some distance, but it's just as bad as ever."
Sighing, Felix pulled Cordelia into a hug, letting her sniffle against his shoulder for a few moments. He loved Cordelia like a sister, but he was starting to see what his mother meant about her not knowing how to handle Gabrielle. Despite the fact that she wasn't actually Gabrielle's mother, in a way she was a mother figure, and he doubted that Gabrielle would want to share anything about spankings - especially the kind he and she had indulged in - with her stepmother. Especially since the two were not actually very close.
"She might still be embarrassed, dear, don't feel too badly. And perhaps there are other points of married life that you two could bond over?" Felix suggested, his mouth quirking with amusement.
&nb
sp; "I suppose," Cordelia said, stepping back and mopping up her watery eyes. Even crying she was quite a beautiful woman, although not nearly as attractive as his Gabrielle. Her tears certainly didn't affect him the same way as when his wife cried. "It was just such a revelation to me when Marjorie revealed that Christopher spanks her, and so lovely to be able to talk to someone about it, I wanted to ensure that Gabrielle had that too."
Coughing to cover his laugh, Felix just nodded his head. He hadn't realized that the Count and Countess of Irving had such a relationship, and he wasn't quite sure how to reassure Cordelia that Gabrielle had plenty of fellow-feeling from the Countess of Spencer.
"Maybe she's too embarrassed about it right now, and you can try again later. After you've bonded over other things."
"I hope so," Cordelia said. "She did seem well, and I'm sorry that last night I accused you of..." She blushed, her voice trailing off.
"I know you were just being protective of her," Felix said magnanimously. Truthfully, he was still a little hurt, but Cordelia's apology was sincere and he would be no gentleman if he didn't accept the apology. Especially since she was already in tears.
"I should be going," she said with a sniff. "Perhaps we'll see you at the Waverlys' ball?"
The ball was in two nights and was touted to be one of the highlights of the Season, in no small part because it was Lady Waverly's first as Lady Waverly. Prior to her marriage, she'd been the Dowager Duchess of Kent. Like Cordelia, her first husband had been much older.
"We'll be there," Felix said, knowing that Gabrielle had already sent their acceptance to the invitation. They already had a schedule of events set for the next three weeks. Tonight was a family dinner at his parents and tomorrow evening he was taking her to the theater, so the ball would be the first opportunity to see Philip and Cordelia again.
Hopefully by then things would be back to normal.
Saying goodbye to Cordelia, Felix continued on down the street, moving a little faster now that he knew Gabrielle was definitely in the residence - and had just had a confrontation with her stepmother. He barely gave Taylor enough time to open the door before he was sliding through it.
"Mrs. Hood is in the garden," Taylor said, not even waiting for Felix to ask the question. He nodded his thanks and headed straight there.
Sitting on a bench in the sunlight, Gabrielle was bent forward talking to Molly's girls, who were showing her their dolls. Very new looking dolls. Seeing him coming, the two little girls immediately bobbed curtsies and scampered off as Gabrielle straightened. Her expression was blank, making his insides curdle for some reason.
"Good afternoon," she said, perfectly civil and yet, the greeting was somehow empty.
"Hello, sweetheart," he said coming to a stop in front of her and holding out one hand. He expected her to refuse, or at least to hesitate, but instead she placed her hand in his immediately and came to her feet. "Having a pleasant day?"
"Very," she said, a small smile forming on her lips. It didn't quite reach her eyes. Although he would have known she was lying even if he hadn’t run into Cordelia. "Would you like to walk?"
Felix accepted with alacrity. He couldn't apologize for spanking her last night, it had been deserved, but he could try to mend whatever breath had opened between them. He needed to.
Unfortunately, the walk obviously wasn't going to do it. He asked what she'd done that morning, and she'd told him about her visit to the doll shop and then Arabella's. When she told him about the dolls, she eyed him cautiously, as if expecting disapproval, but of course he didn't and she seemed to relax. It was harder than normal to read her emotions however, as if she'd somehow muted them. Muted herself.
He felt like a wall had been put up between them, one that he couldn’t quantify. She didn't protest when he touched her hand, but she didn't feel right either. Frustrated, Felix tugged her between two tall hedges and pulled her into his arms.
She didn't try to pull away when he kissed her. But she didn't open to him eagerly... she was submissive and compliant, but without the joy, without the spark of passion. Holding her in his arms was like holding a shadow of herself.
Her hands rested against his chest, but didn't caress. Didn't explore.
Her lips parted for his tongue when he sought entrance, but she didn't reciprocate.
It only made Felix more wild, more determined to prove her passion. His hand went to her breast, teasing her nipple, and triumph rippled through him when he felt her finally - finally - respond. But when he started to pull up her skirts, she actually reacted, and not the way he wanted.
"Felix! The children might still be around!" Pulling away, she still didn't act quite like herself. Instead of giving him a dirty look or a saucy scolding, she just smoothed down her skirts, that same blank expression still on her face. "If you'll excuse me, I have some correspondence I'd like to attend to before I dress for supper."
"Of course," he said, feeling completely at a loss. He was looking at his wife, but somehow she seemed a complete stranger. This was not a side of Gabrielle that he'd seen as yet, and it was certainly not a side he favored.
******
Gabrielle moaned, her hips lifting as she gasped, her hands clinging to the headboard of the bed. Apparently her attempts to be more of a lady were already working in drawing her husband in - he hadn't been able to take his eyes off of her the entire evening. The more ladylike and genteel her manners, the more attentive he became.
Not that he'd been inattentive out in the country, but this was more focused attention. It had a kind of determination behind it that she'd never sensed before. Not only that, but to her delight, he hadn't spoken a word about Cordelia all day. It was as though she'd dropped from his mind. Even when his family brought up her and the Marquess for a brief moment in conversation over dinner, Felix hadn't paid any attention to it, much less contributed. He'd been too busy staring at Gabrielle.
When they'd returned home, he'd practically rushed her up to the bedroom. She'd tried to act the lady in bed at first as well, but it soon became impossible as he used his lips and hands to torment and tease her body mercilessly. There was no staying remote when he was determined to break through to her.
"Please! Felix... no more teasing!" she begged. Her pussy felt hot and swollen, the ache between them so great that it almost felt like her stomach was cramping as he licked and nibbled on her puffy lower lips. One finger pumped back and forth almost idly in her tight back hole, not enough to make her feel full, but just enough to incite her sensitive nerves and make her even hungrier for pleasure.
"Don't move your hands, sweetheart," he murmured as her arms twitched, before giving her pussy a long, lazy swipe of his tongue. Gabrielle whimpered as he circled her sensitive clitoris. The tiny button felt like it was three times its normal size and ready to explode if he would just...
She felt like howling when he pulled away, his tongue moving back to the outer lips of her womanhood, his finger receding from her tight anus.
Finally, he propped himself up between her legs, looking down at her with an expression of supreme satisfaction on his face. Gabrielle's gaze slid down the hard planes of his body to his cock, which he held fisted, pumping it back and forth. She was riveted by the view.
"Is this what you want, sweetheart?"
"Yes, please, Felix," she whispered, her throat feeling almost hoarse. She let go of the headboard to reach for him, but he barked out a reprimand immediately.
"I did not tell you that you could let go, Gabrielle."
The dark, dominant tone of voice had her body thrumming, and she quickly reached back up to hold onto the headboard, her stiff nipples bobbing with her movements. Felix reached down to pluck at them, making her writhe as the sensations increased the exquisite ache in her core.
"Please, Felix," she whispered. "Please, I need you inside me... I think I might die soon if you don't..."
A shudder went through his body and he squeezed her nipples tightly enough to make her gasp as t
he pain shot through her. The tiny buds throbbed even after he released them, but she'd gotten what she wanted. His hard cock pressed against her slick folds, easily pushing inside of her, filling her emptiness with pure pleasure.
"Oh yes!" She cried out, lifting her hips to take him in, already hovering on the brink of orgasm after he'd been toying with her for so long.
Gripping her hips, Felix began to thrust, hard and rough, slamming his body into hers so that she screamed with the sudden onslaught of erotic rapture. His hands were tight on her hips, holding her in place as he used her body, his cock spearing her, rubbing against her sensitive tissues with every thrust, sending her soaring higher and higher in passion. Gabrielle gripped the rungs on the headboard so tightly that it creaked as Felix wrung every last ripple of pleasure from her body, before finally being overcome with his own.
Falling asleep in his arms, she felt content... and yet slightly troubled. She would have been surprised to know that her husband was experiencing the same mix of emotions.
******
Watching his wife dancing with another man was not a pleasant experience. Although at least she seemed to have the same kind of reserve with Lord Braden as she did with Felix himself.
Reserve. How he hated that word. It was the perfect word to describe the way Gabrielle had been behaving for the past two days, and therefore he hated it.
She was perfectly polite, completely civil, and nothing he did had any effect. If he teased her, she just blinked and stared silently at him. If he prodded her temper, she would respond with cool complaisance. The only time he was ever able to breach the wall was in passion. Which probably explained why he'd been on her nearly nonstop, whenever they weren't in company, for the past two days.
Whenever they weren't coming together in physical pleasure, he studied her, trying to decipher a way past her reserve. There had to be one. This wasn't her, this wasn't Gabrielle. Gabrielle was fun and teasing, submissive but spicy, witty even when she was quiet... this new Gabrielle was every inch the staid and proper lady that he'd never been interested in. Except that because it was Gabrielle, he was interested. At least, he was interested in getting his Gabrielle back. Having her in the bedroom wasn't enough, he wanted her all the time.
Gabrielle's Discipline (Bridal Discipline Book 3) Page 24