The Hellion and The Heartbreaker

by McNare, Jennifer

  “Of all the wretched luck,” Gavin groaned, clearly disheartened by the turn of events.

  Colin smiled wryly. “It looks as though we are in for the night gentlemen.”

  Scarlett cast a quick glance in Alec’s direction, but his expression was impossible to decipher.

  “As it seems we are going to have to entertain ourselves this evening, would anyone be interested in a game of Brag?” Conner asked.

  At Conner’s suggestion, Rory and Gavin’s spirits noticeably lifted. Her brothers were a competitive lot and their card games were no exception. Apparently, the opportunity to lighten each other’s pockets was an acceptable alternative to their previous plans.

  “What do you say, Scarlett? Are you up for a game?”

  Rory immediately shot Conner a baleful look.

  “Don’t look so discouraged, Rory,” Conner teased. “Perhaps Scarlett’s luck will take a turn for the worse this go around and you will finally win some of your money back.”

  “Not bloody likely,” Rory shot back. “She always wins.”

  “She cheats,” Gavin said to Alec in a mock whisper.

  “I most certainly do not cheat, you wretch,” Scarlett refuted, rolling her eyes at Gavin’s playful ribbing. Her brothers had taught her to play Brag, as well as a number of other games as soon as she had learned her numbers and was old enough to hold the cards. Though they had often let her win when she was younger, they no longer showed her any mercy, for she had quickly mastered the games and came out the victor more often than naught. They usually played for money, and much to their vexation she had acquired a substantial sum of her brothers’ pocket money over the past years.

  With the mood once again lighthearted and jovial, they leisurely exited the dining room and moved to the parlor. Colin immediately sent one of the footmen to fetch the cards and gaming chips, and within minutes of his return the men had relocated a large round table and several chairs to the center of the room. Colin then procured a bottle of whiskey from the liquor cabinet and passed out fully-laden crystal tumblers to each of the men, and then poured a glass of sherry for Scarlett. Drinks in hand, they all took their seats, and as soon as Colin had distributed the small clay chips that represented their monetary wagers Conner reached for the cards and dealt the first hand.

  Scarlett managed to maintain her focus during the first few rounds, but gradually her concentration on the game began to wane. Being seated across from Alec was the obvious cause. Whenever she looked up from her cards her eyes inevitably landed on his devilishly handsome face and all intelligent thought seemed to fly right out of her head. Before long she made one too many bad calls, and as a result found herself out of chips and out of the game. Her brothers, delighted by what they assumed to be a rare turn of bad luck, boisterously thanked whatever good fortune had kept her from fleecing them once again.

  “Don’t get used to it,” she warned, watching as Gavin gleefully raked in the last pot, placing the last of her chips onto his growing stack. She scanned the table, noting that Conner’s stack was the still the highest, with Colin and Rory’s only slightly shorter. With that last win, Gavin was close behind, while Alec clearly had the shortest stack.

  Sliding her chair back from the table, she motioned for the men to remain seated. “I believe I’ll pour myself another glass of sherry before retiring,” she told them.

  “Here, let me get it for you.”

  “No, no,” she insisted as Colin made to rise from his chair. “I’m perfectly capable of pouring my own drink. You all keep playing.”

  Moving toward the sideboard, Scarlett unhurriedly poured herself another sherry as the men returned their attention to the game. A moment later, with her fingers firmly clasped around the stem of a fragile crystal goblet, she moved to a more comfortable position on the nearby settee, strategically placing herself so that she had an unimpeded view of Alec and he of her.

  Taking a small sip of the sherry, Scarlett eyed Alec over the rim of the glass, willing him to look up. Almost as though he could feel the heat of her gaze upon him, he complied, lifting his eyes from his cards. Deliberately, she lowered her glass and then slowly licked the moisture from her lips, boldly meeting his gaze.

  Alec clenched his jaw in sheer frustration. If he wasn’t mistaken, the little minx was doing her best to seduce him, and had been all evening. He knew the signs all too well. With every look, and each subtle movement of her body, Scarlett was offering herself to him, and as much as he tried, the telltale signals were getting harder and harder to ignore. Thankfully, her bothers were well into their cups and too fixated on the game to notice their sister’s telling behavior, for which he was immensely grateful. Nevertheless, he knew that he had to put a stop to the situation before it went any further.

  “Are you in or out Alec?” Colin queried, breaking Alec from his silent musing. Colin had raised the pot and he hadn’t even noticed. He looked toward Colin, studying his longtime friend’s imperturbable expression. He had been playing cards with Colin long enough to get a good read on him, and he suspected that he had a strong hand. He seriously doubted he could beat Colin’s cards, but he pushed all of his chips forward anyway. He did his best to appear disappointed when Colin laid down the winning hand.

  “I think it’s time for me to stretch my legs,” he told the group, after receiving a hearty dose of good-natured ribbing about the loss of his money. The brothers, being more competitive with each other than they were with anyone else, seemed content to continue the game without him. “Do you still have that book you were telling me about?” he asked Colin, rising from the table.

  “It’s on the desk in my study,” Colin replied. “Help yourself.”

  Scarlett waited several minutes after Alec’s departure, before she started to yawn. Fortunately, it wasn’t long before Conner noticed. “You look tired, Scarlett.”

  Colin turned at Conner’s comment and regarded Scarlett with a look of brotherly affection. “As much as we enjoy your company, you need not stay up on our account, Minx.”

  “It is getting rather late,” she said, with a glance toward the mantle clock. “Perhaps I should turn in.”

  As her brothers wished her a good night, Scarlett crossed the room to the large double doors, nonchalantly pulling them shut behind her.

  She stood in the hall for several moments, suddenly beset with nervousness. She took several deep steadying breaths, and then forced her feet to move in the direction of Colin’s study.

  The doors were closed, and for a moment she hesitated. She shut her eyes tightly and summoned her courage. Her hand trembled as she slowly reached out to turn the handle. When she opened the door she found Alec leaning casually against Colin’s large desk, a fresh tumbler of whiskey in his hand, his knowing gaze directed toward the door. He had obviously been waiting for her, knowing that she would follow him. The drapes weren’t drawn, but the room was dark, cast only in the pale glow of the moon’s reflection upon the fallen snow. Without taking her eyes from Alec, she moved her arm backward and gently pushed the door shut behind her. “Am I so predictable?” she asked with a hesitant smile.

  For a man constantly pursued by countless women, her behavior was quite predictable, but he refrained from saying as much. Instead, he set down his glass and casually crossed his arms over his chest, watching her, his expression guarded. For a moment the silence between them grew uncomfortable, and then he spoke, his voice low and controlled. “What are you doing, Scarlett?”

  She returned his stare, her back still pressed against the closed door. “I’m not sure,” she admitted truthfully, for the art of seduction was indeed something new to her.

  Women and their games, he thought cynically. She knew damn well what she was doing and so did he. “Did you expect me to toss up your skirts and take you right here, across your brother’s desk?” The words came out more harshly than he had intended. A result perhaps of the near constant state of arousal she had kept him in over the past several hours.

&nb
sp; “No, of course not,” she gasped, startled by the bluntness of the question, as well as the angry tone of his voice.

  Scarlett’s face registered both shock and hurt and Alec silently cursed himself for losing his composure. Christ, the fact that she was attracted to him didn’t mean he needed to act like a complete ass. He took a deep breath, his anger dissipating as quickly as it had emerged. “I’m sorry, Scarlett, you didn’t deserve that,” he told her with complete sincerity.

  Slowly, she stepped away from the door. “I didn’t mean to make you angry,” she said, her expression uncertain.

  The seductive vixen of the previous hours now looked more like a wounded pup, thanks to his callus words. If he could have kicked himself, he would have. Damn it to hell! Scarlett McPhearson was by far the most incredibly desirable woman he had ever known, and if she were anyone other than Colin’s sister he would have gladly carried her up to the nearest bedchamber hours ago and given them what they both wanted. He wasn’t angry with her. He was angry that his principles, his sense of honor, refused to allow him to assuage the rock hard throbbing in his loins and the all-consuming desire that engulfed him whenever he looked at her. But, she was Colin’s sister, and that was something he simply couldn’t ignore.

  Stepping away from the desk, he moved to stand before her. He couldn’t bear to see the hurt in her eyes, knowing that he was the cause of it. Innocent or not, he knew that she was nothing like the immoral, self-indulgent women of his usual acquaintance. Scarlett was unique, special. He lightly grasped her chin, tilting her face upward, and told her exactly what he had just been thinking. “I am not angry with you, Scarlett,” he told her softly. Unable to help himself, he slowly rubbed his thumb across the delicate line of her jaw. “If you weren’t Colin’s sister I would have taken you to bed hours ago and made love to you until dawn.”

  In that instant, Scarlett grasped the true depth of Alec’s integrity. He wanted her just as much as she wanted him, but his loyalty to Colin would never allow him to act on his desire. She understood and her admiration of him soared, but she couldn’t allow his sense of morality to get in the way of what they both so obviously craved. Whatever happened between them here and now would determine their future. She believed that with all of her heart. Drowning in the pools of his luminous emerald eyes, she slowly raised her hand and placed it upon his chest. Despite her youth and inexperience, she recognized the battle that raged within him and knew she had to overcome it. Her voice was quiet but resolute, her gaze unwavering. “This has nothing to do with my brother. It isn’t Colin’s decision, it’s mine.”

  Scarlett watched the play of emotions that crossed his features, glimpsing the internal struggle that waged within his soul. Her breath caught in her chest as she felt the movement of his fingers against her skin, slowly drifting along her jaw line to the slender column of her neck. In the next instant, the sound of the parlor door opening and the echo of her brothers’ laughter drifted down the hall. They both froze. In dismay, Scarlett watched as Alec sighed and closed his eyes. When he opened them she detected an ominous combination of regret and relief.

  As approaching footsteps sounded on the marble floor outside the door to Colin’s study, Alec immediately dropped his hand to Scarlett’s elbow and quickly guided her to the shadowy space to the right of the door. After one last lingering glance at Scarlett’s disconcerted countenance, he swung open the door, effectively concealing her behind the large wooden panel and then strode out into the hallway.

  “Alec, I was just coming to find you.”

  At the sound of Conner’s voice, Scarlett stepped back, flattening herself against the wall.

  “Were you?” Alec inquired, thankful that his voice sounded normal and composed.

  “Colin’s on a hot streak all of the sudden,” Conner told him, with a sardonic chuckle. “Took all of my chips and added them to yours.”

  “Lucky for us your brother saves the high stakes gaming for the clubs,” Alec replied affably.

  “Indeed it is,” Conner chuckled. “Aside from Scarlett, Colin’s by far the most skilled at cards. In any event, now that my pockets are empty I thought I would step outside and enjoy a cigar. Would you care to join me?”

  “Lead the way my friend,” Alec said affably, placing his hand on Conner’s shoulder and steering him away from the study.

  Moments later, after the sound of their footsteps had long since faded away, Scarlett slipped silently from the study and made her way to the back stairs. When she reached her room, she sank down on the side of her bed, mentally cursing the misfortune of Conner’s untimely interruption. Alec had been about to kiss her, she was sure of it. Sadly, she was also certain that he had been relieved that Conner had inadvertently put a stop to whatever might have happened between them. Sighing in frustration, she realized that an opportunity had been lost, one that she might never get back. Lying back against the pillows, she considered her options.

  With only a limited amount of time before Alec returned to London, she was going to have to throw caution to the wind to get what she wanted. If she didn’t, Alec’s sense of morality and his unerring loyalty to Colin would keep them apart. Steeling her resolve, she knew what she had to do. She was going to take an extraordinary risk, one that could further her efforts to win Alec’s heart, or bring utter humiliation upon her. She could only hope and pray that it wasn’t the latter.

  It was well after midnight when Alec finally made his way upstairs. A few more stiff drinks with the boys had helped to numb his mind as he’d struggled to push the delectable Scarlett from his thoughts. Now however, upon entering his room, the silent darkness engulfed him and she was there once again, her image, her voice, her scent, all swirling through his thoughts like the snow that swirled outside his window. Absently he kicked off his shoes and socks as he made his way to the fireplace. Adding another log to the smoldering embers, he tried to convince himself that Conner’s interruption had been the best thing that could have happened. However, a part of him, the completely irrational part of him, wasn’t as convinced. Slowly, he removed his jacket and unbuttoned his shirt, his gaze fixed on the flames that licked at the wooden logs now piled high in the hearth. He stood there for several minutes, merely staring into the leaping flames.

  When he finally turned to the bed, he hesitated, knowing that sleep would elude him. Damn, he wanted another drink. Instead, he pulled a chair near to the fire and sat pensive and brooding, his thoughts in turmoil. He felt like a man obsessed. It was maddening. He’d slept with dozens of beautiful women. He was the Duke of Worthe for Christ’s sake. He could have any woman he wanted. So why in the hell couldn’t he get one luscious redhead out of his thoughts? His head fell back against the chair and he stared morose at the dancing shadows that played upon the ceiling.

  The sound was barely audible, but even so it caught his attention. As though he had magically summoned her with his thoughts, he watched in silent wonder as the door to his room slowly opened. Was he dreaming? He stared at the vision before him. No, he was wide-awake, and this was definitely not a dream. Transfixed, he watched as Scarlett slipped through the narrow opening, silently closing and locking the door behind her. He stared in disbelief, not because a woman was sneaking into his bedchamber, for that had happened a time or two before, but instead because of who the woman was. Danger, his inner voice roared the warning. He watched as she turned, her eyes going directly toward the large four-poster bed set against the far wall. With difficulty, he forced himself out of his momentary trance. “Are you lost?”

  Scarlett whirled at the sound of his voice. The words were spoken softly, but her heart nearly leapt from her chest nonetheless. She saw him then, seated in the depths of a large overstuffed chair pulled close to the fire. The faint light emitting from the glow of the fireplace cast him in shadow, but as her eyes adjusted to the darkness of the room she could clearly make him out. He sat with his long legs stretched out in front of him, his feet bare. His shirt was unbuttoned and left the
wide expanse of his chest uncovered. She drew in a shaky breath. Their eyes met and Scarlett shook her head slightly from side to side, in response to his question. No, she most definitely wasn’t lost.

  He didn’t speak again, nor did he move, instead, he simply stared at her in silence. Leave. Go back. He struggled to say the words aloud, but his lips refused to perform the necessary movements. He watched, frozen in place as she slowly started to come toward him. His emotions rioted in chaos. Although a part of him wanted to hustle her out of his room as fast as he could, another kept him firmly in his seat, his eyes riveted upon Scarlett. As she neared, he tried valiantly to summon his good sense. His hands tightly gripped the arms of the chair as he fought his rapidly escalating desire. She stopped directly in front of him then, so close he could reach out and touch her. Her expression told him all he needed to know. He struggled to find the willpower to send her away. “This is a bad idea, Scarlett,” he managed, the words little more than a rough whisper.

  Wordlessly, Scarlett reached for the sash at her waist and slowly untied the satin tie, allowing her long white dressing gown to fall open. She wore nothing underneath. Although she did her best to appear confident, inside she was terrified. Despite her show of false bravado, she knew she was in over her head, but even so there was no turning back. Please don’t let him send me away she pleaded silently, watching the changing expressions on his face in a state of nervous apprehension.

  As Alec watched the gown slowly part, revealing Scarlett’s nakedness underneath, he forgot to breathe. Whatever good sense and reason he might have possessed vanished in an instant. Suddenly he was on his feet, the last of his self-control dissipating like a puff of smoke. Without another thought, he swept Scarlett up and into his arms and reached the bed in a few short strides. Her arms, twined around his neck, relaxed and fell away as he laid her on the bed. He followed her down onto the soft mattress, his body covering hers as he sought the sweetness of her lips.