What a Wicked Earl Wants

by Vicky Dreiling

  “You are right as always,” Laura said. “I have nothing to lose but my heart, and I already lost it to him.”

  “My dear, I am positive he lost his heart to you many weeks ago.”

  The next day

  Bell stepped out of the carriage, wishing he hadn’t been so blind. If he’d only listened to her, really listened in the first place, he would have seen how simple the answer was. But he’d been stubborn and thought she knew how he felt about her. He’d told her he cared about her, but he’d been an idiot. He’d fallen short of the mark.

  But he’d done something that he hoped would help make up for all of it. God, he was weary, but he was glad to be home. And he hadn’t felt that way in a very long time. He started up the steps when the door opened.

  Laura ran right into his arms. “I missed you.”

  Something in his chest unfurled, and he hugged her hard. “I missed you, too.”

  “Come with me,” she said. “I want you all to myself.”

  He laughed a little. “That’s an invitation I cannot resist.”

  She gave him a sly smile. “Justin and your friends are fishing. Lady Atherton is taking her beauty nap.”

  “Is there a reason you are telling me this?” he said as they walked up the stairs.

  “Be patient.”

  She led him inside her room, shut the door, and threw her arms around him. Then she kissed him deeply. His heart expanded, and all he knew was that he had to kiss her back. She opened for his tongue, and he was lost in the wondrous sensations that only she could excite in him.

  Then she looked at him. “I want you—now.”

  “Laura, darling, there’s something I want to tell you first.”

  She caressed his cock through his trousers.

  He inhaled and exhaled slowly. Then he caught her hand. “There’s something I forgot to do before I left.”

  She looked at him quizzically.

  He knelt on one knee. “I love you desperately. Will you marry me?”

  Her eyes teared up a little. “I love you with all my heart, and I will marry you.”

  “Thank goodness,” he said. “I invited your entire family to attend the wedding.”

  She gasped. “Oh, you are so wonderful.”

  “Your father will marry us.”

  “Oh. Don’t tell him that we anticipated the wedding.”

  He picked her up and set her on the edge of the mattress. “I amended one of the rules.”

  “Oh?” she said.

  “Rule number one,” he said. “Tell her you love her, because that’s the only rule that matters.”

  Epilogue

  Eight months later

  Bell’s stomach clenched. Laura had been in labor for six hours. He was scared witless that something would go wrong. He couldn’t bear it if he lost her and the babe.

  Lady Atherton took him by the arm and led him to the sideboard. She poured a small amount of brandy into a glass. “Drink this to calm your nerves.”

  Justin jiggled his leg. “How much longer?”

  “Babies take their time,” Lady Atherton said. “Your grandmother and Aunt Rachel are with your mother. She will be fine.”

  A horrible guttural cry sounded. It wasn’t the first time, either. Bell was so worried his mouth dried and his heart raced.

  She cried out again for so long he thought she would burst something.

  Then silence. All was silent. “Oh my God. She’s hurt.”

  Then an infant squalled. Bell paced faster. The babe kept crying.

  “Don’t worry,” Lady Atherton said. “They are making Laura presentable.”

  “I don’t care. I just want to see my wife.”

  Laura’s sister Rachel appeared at the landing. “You may come in now.”

  He bounded up the stairs, and then he treaded into the room where his beautiful wife lay with a bundled up infant in her arms.

  “We have a son,” she said.

  His eyes misted as he watched Laura put the infant to her breast. He kissed her cheek. “Thank you.”

  “He is perfect,” she said.

  “I wish to name him after my brother Steven.”

  “I think that is a wonderful idea,” she said.

  “If not for you, I would never have experienced such joy,” he said. “One day, I will tell him that it all started with his elder brother’s brandy flask.”

  “You will do no such thing,” she said a bit faintly. “Do you want to hold him?”

  “Yes.”

  Laura showed him how to support their son’s head.

  He walked about the room, grinning at Steven. “Once upon a time, there was a very wicked earl who fell in love with a very pretty lady. She lied through her teeth and said the wicked earl was her fiancé. He demanded a kiss, but the pretty lady put a magical spell on him. The wicked earl was no longer wicked, because he fell in love with the pretty lady.”

  Bell returned to his wife’s side. “I love you, Laura. If not for you, I would be a very lonely man.”

  She smiled. “My love, we were meant to be together.”

  Colin Brockhurst, Earl of Ravenshire, and Lady Angeline Brenham will do anything to escape the betrothal their parents arranged for them—even devise a faux courtship and breakup to win their freedom. But one searing little kiss will change everything…

  Please turn the page for a preview of

  What a Reckless Rogue Needs.

  Chapter 1

  Colin Brockhurst, Earl of Ravenshire, did not give a rat’s arse about the promise that his mother, the Duchess of Chadwick, had made twenty-eight years ago.

  The clatter of the horses’ hooves on the curving graveled drive signaled his imminent arrival for the annual house party given by the Duke and Duchess of Wycoff, his parents’ dearest friends. Colin caught glimpses of Padua House, a sprawling mansion that owed its bizarre façade to too many centuries of architectural renovations. His mother said the house had character. That was the kind explanation.

  When the carriage rolled to a halt before the grand mansion, there was no one to greet him. Colin shrugged as he walked up the horseshoe-shaped steps. He’d arrived a week later than his family, having made an excuse about illness—anything to delay the misery. After the butler took his greatcoat, hat, and gloves, he directed Colin to the drawing room.

  Colin trudged up the stairs, preparing himself for one of Angeline’s cutting remarks and vowing he would not respond. He’d literally spent a lifetime dealing with her rude behavior, but no more. When she attempted to goad him, and he knew she would, he would simply give her a blank stare.

  The Duchess of Wycoff welcomed him. “Colin, dear boy, we have waited an age for you. I know Angeline has been on pins and needles.” The duchess turned to her daughter, who was engaged in a tête-à-tête with a gentleman. “Angie, darling, do say hello to Colin.”

  “Tardy as usual, Colin,” Angeline said in a bored tone.

  He bowed and muttered, “My lady.”

  “What, no enthusiasm?” The gentleman sitting with her laughed and turned to Colin. “Sorry, Ravenshire. I cannot resist Lady Angeline’s wit.”

  Colin narrowed his eyes at Gordon Crompton, Viscount Sturridge. He was perpetually in debt, due to his well-known gambling habit. How the devil had he gotten an invitation to the house party?

  Angeline’s twenty-one-year-old brother, Simon, the Earl of Wescott, tried to affect a bored expression. “I brought Sturridge along for entertainment in your absence, Colin.”

  Colin wondered exactly what sort of entertainment Sturridge had introduced to Simon. He intended to speak to Angie’s brother and find out how he’d gotten involved with that ne’er-do-well.

  “Ah, here it is,” the Duchess of Wycoff cried as a footman brought in an ancient cradle and set it before the fireplace.

  Bloody hell, he hated this ridiculous ritual. Colin’s mother, the Duchess of Chadwick, whipped out a handkerchief to blot her tears. His twin sisters, Bianca and Bernadette, giggled behind th
eir hands. His father leveled a stern gaze at him as if to say, Do not dare ruin this for your mother.

  Two bright red splotches marred Angeline’s cheeks. “Mama, please, not the cradle.”

  Well, at least on that count, he and Angeline were in accord.

  The Duchess of Wycoff hushed her daughter and invited the Duchess of Chadwick to join her. Colin folded his arms over his chest and scowled at Bianca, who was whispering to Bernadette. Both of their eyes were dancing with amusement.

  The Duchess of Wycoff drew in a breath. “Twenty-eight years ago, I laid my daughter Angeline in the cradle next to Colin. On that day, the Duchess of Chadwick and I vowed that our beautiful babes would marry.” The duchess smiled at Colin. “Of course, we had hoped that day would arrive a bit sooner, but we have not given up hope.” She regarded Colin with a meaningful expression, one he had no trouble interpreting.

  Oh, Lord. Colin slid his gaze at Angeline, whose complexion had grown ashen. There had been many blatant hints over the years, but he actually felt badly for Angeline, too. It couldn’t be any easier for her than it was for him.

  He’d sworn he wouldn’t cave in to their ludicrous marriage arrangement, no matter how much pressure his family exerted upon him. Of course, his mother had lectured him for allowing Angeline to remain on the shelf, which was absolutely foolish. If Angie wanted to marry, she’d find some poor sod who had no idea of her real nature.

  “Well, then,” the Duchess of Wycoff said. “Let us all rest for a bit. Dinner will be served at seven as we keep country hours.”

  Colin couldn’t wait to escape.

  Angeline hated being an old maid. The only thing that stood between her and ridicule was her father’s title. No one dared jeer at a duke’s daughter. But unless she did something soon, she’d find herself hopelessly on the shelf.

  She had a plan, but she needed Colin’s help. Of course, she might wait until after dark to sneak into Colin’s room, but then she would be far too likely to encounter his valet. The last thing she needed was for the servants to gossip. Mama’s maid Marie knew everything that went on below-stairs and above as well. Angeline meant to conceal the details from everyone except Colin. Hopefully he would cooperate for a change. The sight of that cradle today ought to put the fear of the devil in him, but then he was a man and could wait a decade or more before he chose to marry. She, on the other hand, would become an embarrassment to her own family if she didn’t find a husband soon.

  Angeline gritted her teeth. She despised having to ask Colin’s assistance, but she’d run out of options. After she padded down the corridor, she turned right. She knew which room Colin occupied since it had long ago been officially designated for his use during the summer house parties. When she stopped before his door, she almost knocked, but she didn’t want to risk alerting Simon, whose room was at the end of the corridor. So she eased the door open and slowly closed it with a slight click.

  When she turned around, she gasped.

  Colin stood there sans shirt with a towel in his hand. There was a dusting of black hair on his chest, and oh, heaven, an arrow of black hair below his navel. For a moment, her mouth went dry. When she raised her gaze to him, he shook his head. “Have you lost your wits?” he said under his breath.

  “I need your help,” she whispered. “It’s in your best interest.”

  “Nothing about you is in my best interest. You had better go now. If we’re discovered, they’ll have all the ammunition they need to march us to the altar. Now go.”

  She wouldn’t tell him that she feared she’d already become the object of derision among the ton. Drat it all. She ought to have found a husband two years ago, but the reason she hadn’t done so stood before her. “If we go on as before, they will find some way to make us marry,” she said.

  “Short of shackling our legs together, they can’t force us to walk down the aisle.” He cupped her elbow. “Now leave here before someone finds you.”

  She dug in her heels. “I need a husband.”

  “What? You loathe me.”

  “I need you to find me a husband,” she said.

  He snorted. “You want me to make a match for you?”

  Her face grew hot. “I should have known you would poke fun at me.”

  He took her by the shoulders. Even though she’d known him all of her life, she felt more than a little disarmed by the intense expression in his dark eyes.

  “Why are you asking me to find you a husband?” he said.

  She tried to push him away, but he held her fast. “The truth, Angie. Has this got something to do with Sturridge?”

  “Do you think I’m stupid? I know he’s a fortune hunter,” she said. “But consider this. If you find me a husband, we’ll both be off the hook forever. Imagine a life with no more cradle rituals.”

  “We’re out in the middle of the country. Where the devil do you think I’m going to find you a suitor, even if I wanted to help you?”

  “Invite some of your friends,” she said.

  “No. None of my friends are suited for marriage anyway. Why are you so desperate?”

  She scowled at him. “Because if I don’t find one soon, I will be on the shelf—or married to you. And you know very well our parents can exert more than a little pressure on both of us. Your father can cut your allowance, and my parents can pile on the guilt about how I’m embarrassing them. Before you know it, we’ll be wed in woe.”

  “Angeline, I’m not finding you a husband, and regardless of how much our parents try to pressure us, they cannot force us to marry.”

  A knock sounded on the door, startling Angeline. Colin put his finger over her mouth. “Who is it?”

  “Your father.”

  “A moment, please.” Then he grabbed Angeline’s hand and strode over to the bed. Using hand motions, he indicated she should crawl underneath the mattress.

  She shook her head.

  He pointed at the door and gave her a furious look.

  She lowered to the carpet and scooted beneath the bed. Immediately, she held her hand over her face because she feared she’d sneeze from the dust. She looked at Colin’s boots and saw his father’s shoes as well. This was the most ridiculous thing she’d ever done in her life. She might have laughed if the consequences weren’t so dire.

  “Colin, you’ve allowed this to go on too long. Angeline is in danger of becoming a laughingstock. It is past time you proposed.”

  Her eyes smarted. She’d been right after all. Everyone thought her an old maid, a woman no one wanted. The only man she’d ever wanted had treated her like a pariah from as far back as she could remember. She ought to hate him for it, and she’d done everything in her power to show that she didn’t like him one bit. But something had happened between them a year ago, and everything had changed for her. Apparently, nothing had changed for him.

  “Papa, believe me,” Colin said. “Angeline doesn’t want to marry me any more than I wish to marry her. I know this is Mama’s particular wish, but it is medieval.”

  “Colin, hear me well. I know you do not want to give up sowing your wild oats, but I won’t stand for it any longer. Either you do your duty by her or I will cut off your allowance. I’ve said my piece. You will come to terms with your duty before this house party ends.”

  Angeline waited for the door to shut. Then she managed to scoot out from under the bed. Colin took her hand and helped her to her feet. “I suppose you couldn’t help overhearing my father.”

  “Just as I predicted,” she said.

  “I have an idea,” he said. “It won’t be pretty, but our parents will cover it up to ensure there’s not scandal.”

  She regarded him through narrowed eyes. “What is your idea?”

  “We’ll pretend to be engaged. Then you will break it,” he said. “After that, they’ll give up this foolish marriage plan once and for all.”

  “Wait a minute, you’re making me call it off?” she said.

  “Keep your voice down,” he said under hi
s breath. “Only the woman can call it off, as you well know.”

  “Very well, but we must pretend to be…in love,” she said.

  “Oh, Lord.”

  “If we don’t, our parents will know we’ve invented a scheme.”

  He considered her with a grin. “Well, perhaps we should practice.”

  “All you have to do is look at me as if you cannot live without me,” she said.

  He snorted. “I’m no actor.”

  “You’d better learn fast,” she said.

  “Me? It wasn’t so long ago that you tried to stab my leg with a fork beneath the table,” he said.

  She took a step closer. “You deserved it.”

  “You deserve to pay for that,” he said.

  “Oh, please, I’m shaking in my slippers,” she said.

  He pulled her up to his chest. “You don’t believe me, do you?”

  She caught her breath. When she started to speak, he lowered his head and captured her lips.

  THE DISH

  Where Authors Give You the Inside Scoop

  From the desk of Vicky Dreiling

  Dear Reader,

  Some characters demand center stage. Like Andrew Carrington, the Earl of Bellingham, known as Bell to his friends. Bellingham first walked on stage as a minor character in my third historical romance How to Ravish a Rake. I had not planned him, but from the moment he spoke, I knew he would have his own book because of his incredible charisma. He also had the starring role in the e-novella A Season for Sin. As I began to write the e-novella, I realized that it was almost effortless. Frankly, I was and still am infatuated with him. That makes me laugh, because he is a figment of my imagination, but from the beginning, I could not ignore his strong presence.