Married By Midnight (Pembroke Palace Book 4)

by Julianne MacLean

  He was proven wrong, however, when he walked into the drawing room and saw her in that form-fitting blue gown, which took on an ethereal glow in the evening light. He got a whiff of lilac perfume as he approached, and had to work hard to remind himself theirs was not a love affair. Not an affair of the heart. There was a binding contract between them. Tonight was a performance for his father’s benefit, nothing more.

  “Good evening.” Her smile was luminous. “I heard you were engaged in a billiards game today, and that it lasted many hours.”

  “That’s right,” he replied. “And I heard you attended a children’s concert in the village that melted everyone’s hearts.”

  Her full lips curled into a mischievous grin and her eyes twinkled. “The children were quite adorable.”

  She was adorable. Impossibly beautiful. Utterly irresistible. And no child.

  A footman came by with two crystal glasses of sherry on a silver tray. Garrett picked them up and handed Anne one.

  “I wasn’t sure if you would be angry with me today,” he softly said, glancing over his shoulder to ensure no one was listening.

  “Why would I be angry?” she asked.

  He paused. “Sometimes a woman is displeased when a gentleman leaves her bed in the night without saying good-bye.”

  Anne slowly sipped on her drink. “A woman would only be displeased if the gentleman had taken improper liberties with her, but you were a perfect gentleman last night, Garrett. So no, I am not angry. But I am curious. How long did you stay?”

  He glanced over his shoulder again. “Most of the night. I left just before dawn.”

  “Did you sleep at all?”

  “Very well, in fact.”

  “No unpleasant dreams?”

  “Not a single one. I should thank you for that.”

  His shoulders relaxed, but the agitation did not leave him, for he still wanted to bed her in the worst, most ungentlemanly way.

  “If you like, you could come again tonight,” she quietly suggested, running the tip of her finger around the rim of her glass.

  Was it possible her resolve was weakening? Garrett wondered as he tried to decipher her motives and her intent.

  “Are you sure that would be wise?” he asked.

  “Why wouldn’t it be?”

  He glanced around. “What would the others say if they knew?”

  Her eyes glimmered like gemstones, and the ring on her finger flashed brilliantly in the firelight. “I don’t think that is your chief concern,” she said.

  “No?” he asked.

  One dark, arched eyebrow rose a fraction. “No. I think you are terrified you might fall in love with me, Garrett, then all your ambitious plans for a life of loneliness and despair would be undone. That would be terribly disappointing, would it not?”

  The butler entered just then to announce that dinner was served.

  Surprised and more than a little disconcerted by Anne’s daring inference, he offered his arm and escorted her into the dining room.

  Later, when dessert was served, he leaned close to her ear and told her in no uncertain terms that he was afraid of nothing.

  Then he told her exactly what time he would arrive at her bedchamber door that evening, and suggested she be ready for him.

  With a mischievous note of challenge, Anne rolled to face Garrett on the bed and propped her cheek on a hand. “I suppose you’ve been with a lot of women?”

  “A few,” he casually replied, sweeping her hair away from her face so he would not lose sight of her bewitching beauty. “Is there something you wish to know?”

  She began to run her fingers lightly over his chest‌—‌a rather flirtatious manoeuvre which again surprised him. He let his eyes fall closed and settled in to enjoy the heavenly splendor of her touch.

  “I am curious about something, actually,” she said.

  “What is it?”

  She continued to tease him with light, featherlike strokes. “Is there someone else waiting for you? Someone you could not marry for some reason? Is that why you wanted a binding contract to ensure your freedom? So that you could leave here immediately after the wedding?”

  He found himself wondering how much it mattered to her. If he said yes, would she stop running her fingers across his chest and freeze over with jealousy? Or would she tell him it did not matter, for this was merely a business arrangement?

  He opened his eyes and watched her expression carefully. “There is no one else.”

  “But there must have been...once.”

  He hesitated to speak of it, or even think about it, but did not wish to keep anything from her, for she had been very open with him thus far.

  “Yes, there was someone.”

  Her expression remained unchanged. “I see.”

  Clearly, she was working hard to keep her feelings hidden from him.

  And what were her feelings, exactly? Was she dreaming of something more between them? Was this a sign of her growing affection? Or was it possessiveness?

  Jealousy and emotional turmoil were not things he’d wanted from this charade, for he had been trapped once before.

  But no...not Anne...please. He did not want her to have such a plan in her mind.

  “You wish to know more,” he cautiously said. “You want to know why I left it to my brothers to find me a bride.”

  Strangely, despite everything, he wanted to tell her.

  “I admit I am curious.”

  He wrapped an arm about her shoulders and pulled her close, wondering if it would be a mistake to continue this conversation. Surely it was too intimate. It would reveal too much.

  At the same time it seemed rather selfish of him to tell her the truth, as if it would somehow ease his guilt, release his shame into the world and lighten his own heart‌—‌when he, and he alone, deserved to live with it for the rest of his days.

  “Remember when I told you I lost my boat?” he said, because it was too late to turn back now. “I lied when I said I was alone. There were others with me. A woman I intended to marry and her nephew‌—‌the son of her brother and his wife, who were also on board.”

  Anne sat up. “You were engaged?”

  He nodded.

  “What happened to her? Was she lost with the boat?”

  He nodded again, and she stared back at him in shock.

  “Good heavens.” Anne stared at him speechless, as if she had no notion what to say. “What caused the boat to sink?” she asked. “You never really told me about it.”

  He exhaled heavily. “A sudden squall came out of nowhere and turned the boat over. I tried to save everyone, but somehow, for some reason I will never understand, I was the only survivor.”

  “Oh, Garrett,” she replied. “I had no idea. You haven’t told anyone in your family?”

  “No.”

  All at once, he wanted to rise from the bed and walk out. Leave the house and go straight back to Greece to be alone, where no one asked any questions, but he forced himself to remain beside her.

  “When did this happen?”

  “In the spring.”

  Anne cleared her throat. “Why did you only come home now, and why do you want the money? Do you wish to buy a new boat?”

  “No. I mean to give the money to Georgina’s parents. They lost a great deal that day.”

  Anne sat in silence, digesting all of this, then turned her face away. “I cannot believe you were engaged, and that she died. I’m so sorry.”

  She’d turned away, as he thought she might. He really didn’t want to go on talking about this. It was exhausting.

  Anne faced him again and laid a hand on his cheek. “If it was an unexpected squall, it couldn’t have been your fault. I’m sure you did everything you could to prevent the worst from happening.”

  He removed her hand from his face and set it away from him. “I’ve gone over every detail and there were a dozen things I could have done differently that might have changed the outcome. I could have stayed in bed th
at day, for one. I could have turned the boat around after dinner instead of staying out to watch the sunset. Or I could have drowned with the others instead of saving myself by grabbing hold of the life ring.”

  He saw the frown in her eyes and wondered if she would change her mind about marrying him. He wouldn’t blame her if she did.

  “Everyone else was down below,” he explained, “trying to stay dry. “I was the only one up on deck. When the boat flipped over, they were trapped inside. I tried to help them when we were going down, but I couldn’t get to them.”

  Except for the boy. Johnny. He had held onto his hand for as long as he could...

  Garrett suddenly wished he hadn’t come here tonight. He’d wanted to escape the accident, not revisit it. Was it too much to ask to spend a few blissful hours in the arms of an angel?

  “I think you should tell your family,” Anne said. “They should know.”

  He shook his head. “I just want to leave it be. I shouldn’t have told you. I don’t know why I did.”

  He slid across the bed and reached for his robe, pulled it on and stood up.

  “Wait, don’t go.” Anne climbed out the other side and rushed around the foot of the bed to meet him. She took hold of his hands. “We don’t have to talk about that, and I promise I won’t say anything to anyone. Please, just stay.”

  Her arms slid around his waist. She stepped into his embrace and rested her cheek on his chest.

  Not a good idea, yet he found himself cupping the back of her head and holding her tight against him. He could feel the lush pressure of her breasts; her hair was like silk.

  Desire burned through him and then the last thing he wanted to do, was talk. Or leave. He wanted only to hold her, taste her, satisfy this raging sexual arousal that had been plaguing him since the first moment he saw her.

  Before he could think to resist, he pressed his mouth to hers and kissed her deeply as he lifted her onto the bed.

  His angel lay back before him. She blinked up at him with desire while he ripped off his robe and tossed it to the floor.

  “If you don’t want me to make love to you,” he said, “you must tell me now.”

  She inched across the mattress to make room for him. “We’ll be married anyway. I’m tired of fighting this.”

  “Is that a yes?”

  She hesitated. “I think so.”

  Garrett’s eyes narrowed while he paused at the edge of the bed. “I need a firmer answer than that, Anne. Otherwise, I should leave.”

  Seconds of painful, agonizing anticipation ticked by while she considered it. “I’m...nervous.”

  Garrett quickly reined in his passions. He took a few deep, calming breaths. “We won’t do anything you don’t want to do. I’ll stop if you ask me to. At any time, I promise. I just want to be with you.”

  Anne gazed up at him with uncertainty.

  There it was... His need for her was more than sexual.

  Anne swallowed uneasily while her mind whirled in confusion. She wanted him with mad fury, wanted to feel his hands on her body, wanted to give herself over to him completely.

  But why? Was it purely wanton lust, or was it something more? He was obviously tormented by guilt and needed an escape. She understood that.

  He needed pleasure to help him forget, and she wanted to be there for him.

  But no, no, she was not that altruistic. As she watched his chest heave with barely controlled desire, she knew that, above all, this was lust. Dirty, greedy, hungry lust.

  Responding to a wild flash of yearning, she rose up on her knees and began to tug at his nightshirt, lifted it over his head, tossed it onto the floor.

  He now stood naked before her in the warm, golden glow of the firelight, and she stared at him with longing.

  “You have your answer,” she said, admiring his smooth muscled chest, running her hands over his arms and shoulders, down to his slender torso and hips. “I want you to stay.”

  His mouth covered hers in a violent kiss of unrestrained passion. Then he came down upon her‌—‌his hand cradling her head, his nude body gloriously hot and heavy, pulsing against her, pressing her into the mattress.

  She let out a tiny, breathless moan as he unbuttoned the collar of her nightdress and kissed the tops of her breasts. Their mouths collided in another violent surge of hunger and desire as he tugged roughly at her hem to gain better access to her thighs and hips and all the magic in between.

  “Take this off.” His voice was low and fierce.

  Anne sat up and removed her nightgown. As she sat naked before him, the peaks of her breasts firm and alert, she was aroused beyond any dream or fantasy, and wanted‌—‌no, she needed‌—‌to feel him inside her now... Now. She couldn’t wait any longer.

  His lips found hers again and he kissed her, more gently this time, slowing the frantic, ragged pace upon which they had begun.

  “Lie back,” he commanded, and she readily obeyed.

  He leaned up on elbow beside her and ran the pad of his thumb across her nipples, then slid his palm smoothly down the center of her flat, quivering belly to the juncture between her thighs.

  She was aching with need by this time and the wet fire between her thighs was tingling, begging to be explored. His hand slid into the damp folds, stroked her for a moment or two before he slipped his middle finger inside.

  Anne arched her back and groaned as orgasmic sensation flooded her body. It was too soon. They’d only just begun, but her mind had been filled with sexual visions for days now, and she simply couldn’t hold back. He thrust his finger in and out of her a few times until she cried out, stiffened and convulsed with searing, trembling pleasure.

  He continued to slide his hand around, pleasuring her until the climax eased off and her body relaxed to the smooth thrusting sensations. She opened her eyes and looked at him, worried that she had behaved too wantonly, but he was gazing at her with fascination.

  “Anne...” He rolled on top of her.

  She spread her legs wide, wrapped them around his hips and lifted her head off the pillow to meet his kiss. She felt him down below‌—‌the firm but velvety tip of his erection pushing against the entrance to her womanhood. His skin was warm against her breasts. She couldn’t seem to get close enough. She wanted more, to hold him tighter. Oh, how she reveled in the pleasure of his mouth kissing the side of her neck. His tongue darted out to probe into the hollow beneath her collarbone. It was all so dreamlike.

  He slid into her then, and she cried out at the overwhelming invasion of his body into hers. He filled her completely. She could barely breathe.

  “Are you all right?” he asked, moving slowly within.

  She answered him with a nod and a kiss as she pushed her hips upward to meet each of his deep rhythmic thrusts. He moved carefully at first, as if he were fighting against some primitive need to push into her like a beast, then gave in to his impulses and made love to her with deep penetrations that took her breath away.

  He braced both hands on the bed on either side of her, arched his back and shut his eyes as if in tortuous pain. Then he shot his seed into her with a spectacular throbbing, drenching rush of heat and wetness.

  Anne wrapped her arms around him as he collapsed on top of her. She couldn’t seem to hold him close enough or tight enough. Her heart was racing. She hadn’t known it could feel like this. She felt both astounded and awakened. How was this possible? And what was she going to do?

  She had only one more week with him. Then what? Would she be able to accept the loss of him?

  She could not bear to imagine her world without him.

  Without this.

  Chapter Ten

  A LIGHT SNOW fell during the night, but by morning the family woke to milder temperatures, a clear blue sky, and the sound of water dripping from the eaves. By late afternoon, however, the temperature dropped as quickly as it had risen, and all the puddles turned to ice.

  Garrett lay alone in his bed, staring up at the canopy, recall
ing all the sensual pleasures he’d enjoyed in Anne’s bed the night before, and wondering if she would be agreeable to more of the same this evening.

  Again, he had slept all night with her. There were no dreams of stormy seas and drowning faces. Only peace and...well, exhaustion.

  He was about to get up and visit Anne in her bedchamber for a brief time before tea when a knock sounded at his door.

  “Come in,” he said as he swung his booted feet to the floor.

  A footman burst in to the room. “My lord. Her Grace is asking for you. She is in the duke’s chamber. She said to hurry.”

  Garrett flew off the bed and followed the footman.

  A moment later he was striding into his father’s chamber where his mother was pacing back and forth in front of the window.

  “Garrett, I’m so glad you are here. We cannot locate your father. Dr. Thomas is scheduled to arrive at any moment for their regular appointment, but now your father is missing.”

  “Did he not want to be examined today?” Garrett asked.

  “He never wants to be examined. I told him to stay in bed, but when I returned he was gone. The servants have searched all the rooms, but we haven’t been able to find him.”

  Garrett strode to the window, pulled the curtain aside with one finger and scanned the courtyard and snow-covered lawns in the distance. “What was he wearing? Did he take a topcoat?”

  “No, he was dressed only in his nightshirt. He is not wearing shoes.”

  Garrett faced his mother. “Where are Devon and Blake? Have you told them?”

  “They have already left for London with Chelsea and Rebecca to see the solicitor and banker about the will. They won’t be back until late tomorrow. I don’t know what to do. Where could he be?”

  “Don’t worry, we’ll find him.” Garrett glanced around the room for signs of something‌—‌anything‌—‌out of order. “Was he distraught when you left him?”

  “No more than usual.”

  “And you’ve searched all the rooms?”

  She nodded. “The servants are still looking everywhere. Perhaps we should send a search party outside. What if he went to the lake house? It’s been sunny and mild the past few days. The ice isn’t safe.”