by Jenn LeBlanc
He shook his head and shut the door behind him, then walked to his chest of drawers. He pulled the amethyst pin from his cravat and placed it in the tray as he unwound the long grey fabric.
He was shrugging out of his jacket when he heard a bloodcurdling scream. He bolted without thinking, tearing his jacket clean in two. He slid through the bathing room, the floor still wet from Lilly’s bath, and landed with a loud thud in the doorway, looking around the room.
Lilly was stretched out on the long chaise by the fire, her hands held out in front of her, her face twisted in terror. He stood, daring to breathe again when he realized that Lilly’s attacker was only in her dream. He strode swiftly to the chaise and rested on the edge next to her, taking her hands gently in his and pulling her forward.
She fought against him as he pulled her up. He wrapped her hands around him, holding her as close as he could.
“Wake up, I beg you. Shh, sweetheart. It’s a dream, Lilly, naught but a dream.” He felt her tension fade, then shift, and her hands clutched at the back of his shirt.
“My lord, I—” She sobbed. “‘Twas him, I thought he were here, I thought as how he’d followed me. I—” She shook in his arms.
“Shh, sweet, shh. I’m here, he is not. And he never will be. I’ll protect you,” he said quietly, brushing her hair from her face.
“No, you can’t. You can’t possibly always be there. I don’t want you to always be there. I don’t want to feel trapped by your presence. I want to enjoy you, I want to be near you, I don’t want to feel as though you must be there to protect me. You must understand the difference.” She twisted her fingers together.
He nodded. “I do understand the difference, which means we’ll have to see to Hepplewort in a more permanent manner.” His hands fisted. “And we will—we have plans for him. For now, however, I will protect you. If I am not close by, then my men will be there in my stead, as will Her Grace.”
She looked up at him and nodded, then reached for her book, which had slipped to the floor while she slept. “Will you read to me?”
“Of course, what would you like to hear?”
“The inscription.”
“No, sweet, I’ll not read that for you. You have to learn those words for yourself. It is...important.”
She frowned, then turned the pages to find a poem that had some of the words she needed to learn and handed it to him.
“Clever girl.” He stretched out along the chaise and pulled her atop him. Her head and hands rested on his broad chest as he started to read, pointing to each word as he spoke. When he came to the word she wished to learn he slowed, teasing her.
“Beautiful,” he said, stroking her jaw softly.
She smiled and reached for the book, turning to the inscription. “I hope you have a beautiful something.” She sighed and looked up. “Just one?” she pleaded.
He laughed and it shook her head to toe. “All right, one. But remember, sweet, I wrote this inscription days ago. Things have changed.”
She looked happily into his eyes and nodded.
“I hope you have a beautiful future.” He set the book on the side table.
She stretched toward him, their lips meeting halfway. His hands wrapped around her, finding her soft round bottom. He lifted her, sliding her along his rigid form until her mouth melded solidly with his. Her legs fell to both sides of his thighs, drawing her body down. He groaned, pushing against her, and she felt the evident ridge of his arousal pressing between her legs.
She arched away from his chest, bringing herself down hard upon his erection. She could feel it close to where she wanted it, and she shifted forward, crying out as his hands kneaded her backside and pulled her tightly to him.
“Ah, Perry!”
“Lilly, sweet, wait. I beg you.”
“No, Perry, I need you, I need you now.” And she did. Beyond anything else she could feel, beyond anything else she knew, she needed him inside her. Her body ached for the missing thread of him between her thighs. She reached down and pulled at the hem of her chemise, hitching it to her waist. “Now, Perry, now.” She took his shirt and sent buttons flying, then helped to remove it.
“Lilly!”
“Shh.” Her hands went between them, feeling along the front of his trousers, unbuttoning them.
“Lilly, I need to—”
“Please. Now.”
Her frenzy startled him, and he moved his hands between them. “Lilly, just wait— just...” He slid his trousers down far enough and she grasped his shaft, guiding him to her entrance. She sank down, crying out, and he clutched her hips to slow her descent.
“Oh God, Lilly, you are so…perfect,” he groaned as she rested fully on him.
Her legs straddled his and the chaise, stretched wide, and she bent her knees and hooked her feet on his legs behind her, then she shifted forward with a shriek.
“God, Lilly, please. You—” He grunted.
She shifted again, rounding her back and pressing her hands into his chest. As she moved forward she arched and felt his hands reach up to her breasts. She shifted and pushed down as hard as she could, taking all of him.
“Slow— Slow down.”
“I can’t,” she cried. “I need, ah! I feel... No, I can’t.” She needed him, she needed to feel him, all of him in a physical, tangible way. She pulled at her gown. “Take this, get this off, I need to feel your skin against mine.”
He grabbed the gown, tearing it asunder. Her rhythm increased, and he reached back up to grasp her breasts.
“Stay with me, Lilly.”
“Perry, Perry, Perry!”
“Come off for me, Lilly, come off for me.” He lifted and closed his mouth around one nipple, then the other. She arched away from him, her screams deepening as her body clenched tightly around his. “Oh God, yes, Lilly. There, sweet—there.”
He leaned back on one elbow, his other hand holding her hip, his thumb resting by her belly button. He held her down and thrust up into her one last time before she collapsed on his chest and his release spilled, flooding her womb. He groaned and fell back, wrapping his arms around her sated body, his hands running up and down her back, his eyes wide. He was quite sure she wasn’t aware of what she’d done, while he was all too aware of the cad he’d been for allowing it.
“Lilly, that wasn’t exactly a good idea.”
She lifted up suddenly, a blush painting her cheeks. “Why?”
“Well— Before, I took measures to help prevent you becoming with child.” He moved slowly, still buried within her. “But you didn’t give me a chance to do so here,” he said quietly.
“Oh,” she said, the realization sinking in. “Oh!” She pushed against his chest.
He groaned. “Oh, Lilly, you… You probably shouldn’t move like that.” He wrapped his arms tightly about her to hold her still.
Her eyes grew wide and her mouth opened in another O.
He cleared his throat and grasped her hips, lifting her up from him.
A small cry of disappointment escaped her as he turned to his side and set her on the chaise facing him, his erection cradled by her soft belly. He breathed slowly, willing his passion to subside until a more convenient moment.
“You would be disappointed if I were to become with child.”
“Not for the reasons I assume you are thinking. And don’t think for one moment that this is a disappointing turn for me.”
“For what reason, then?” she implored, shifting her hips to become more comfortable.
His hand grasped her hip again, this time more firmly. “You must stop wiggling, or we will not be leaving this chaise anytime soon.” He grunted. “The reason being that I would prefer you were not with child until after I take you to wife. I would think that to be obvious. I don’t want Society to think for one moment that I wed you only because I bedded you.” He rubbed his temple. “Is that understood?”
She nodded, trying to keep her body as still as possible, a hopeful smile on her face.
>
Perry laughed and rolled away from her, holding on to his trousers as he stood. “You, come with me, just as you are,” he commanded.
She stood carefully, unfolding her legs and stretching her muscles.
As he watched her, his mouth went dry and his need pulsed heavily in his blood. He marched for his room, stripping off the rest of his clothes as he went.
He spent the remainder of the day making proper love to the woman he knew he would take to wife—if he had any say—very soon.
Perry bathed while Lilly slept. Telling her that his entire family was on the verge of descending on them wasn’t something he looked forward to. She still seemed wary of her new position in his life, and becoming immersed in the entirety of the Trumbull clan would be a daunting task for any person, much less this precious soul. He was honestly worried for her and how she would react during the next few hours.
He heard a sweet sigh behind him and turned, leaning his arms on the side of the tub and resting his chin on them. Lilly stood in the doorway, wrapped in one of his bed linens. “Hello, my sweet.”
“Hello, my love,” she returned with a smile.
He smiled at the moniker, hiding his face momentarily behind his arm. The endearment touched him in a way he’d never expected. “I’ve just finished. I’ll drain the tub and leave you to it.”
She smiled again and nodded.
He turned and stood, the water coursing off his figure before her eager eyes. He stepped from the bath and wrapped himself in a fresh, warmed towel. “You might want to step back a touch,” he said as he tucked the corner of the towel at his waist and grasped the tub, lifting it to let the water rush to the drain.
The water flooded to the floor as the drain backed up from the volume.
“Don’t worry, sweet. The pipes simply aren’t big enough to handle the rush of water, and I’ve not the patience to pour slowly.”
She laughed and watched the muscles working in his arms and abdomen as he sat the tub back on its feet.
“Call your maid and have her fill it for you.” He paused. “One more thing,” he said, approaching her slowly. “The duchess has agreed to come to supper, and she is bringing the family with her.”
“Family? You mean your cousins?”
“I imagine my cousins, both the gentlemen and the ladies, as well as my other aunts and my uncles. Everyone has gathered in London to travel to Eildon Hill together by train.”
“That’s a rather large number of people, then,” she said with wide eyes.
“Yes, I must apologize. I hadn’t thought before sending the request to Her Grace. I should have known better.” He waited patiently, studying her face. “Are you well?” he finally asked.
She nodded, but she appeared concerned.
“I will endeavor to be at your side the entire evening.”
She nodded again. He ran his thumb over her mouth, then entered his room, gently pulling his sheet and a squeal from her as he went.
Lilly obsessed about what to wear to meet the clan. She couldn’t even keep track of the four—no, five—she had met, so she wasn’t sure about all of them. Some seemed nice, some seemed not so sure of her. She shouldn’t expect any less from them. She rubbed her forehead. If she were to take on this life with him, she would be forever wary, and what kind of life would that be?
She pulled out the nicest dress in her closet—a color similar to the bonnet that had garnered so many compliments earlier in the day.
She fastened the dress as much as she was able then laced up the simple black ankle boots and wrapped a shawl around her shoulders. Her hair was drawn back in a chignon with a few loose curls framing her face, casting shadows over her scars. She sat at the small vanity and stared at her image, studying the way the light reflected off her skin. She practiced the perfect angles to hold her chin, to tilt her cheek. If she was very careful, she didn’t think anyone would notice. Surely nobody in this company would deign to be so rude as to stare or examine her too closely.
“Nobody will be able to get past your beautiful eyes to see any of the little details you’re obsessing over,” Perry said from the adjoining doorway.
“You realize it’s these little details that caused us to be together to begin with,” she said quietly. “You always say such wonderful things.”
“They are only wonderful because they are true. No lie would have that effect on a person because they would know the truth of the matter.” He walked up behind her and rested his hands on her bare shoulders, lightly stroking.
She looked forward, catching his reflected gaze in the mirror. “My lord, you do have me at a disadvantage,” she said breathlessly.
“And what disadvantage, pray tell, would that be?”
“You, my lord, hold every possible advantage there is,” she said, enunciating carefully. “You are tall, strong, brave, titled, connected, well-spoken, feared, revered—” She ticked off each word with her fingers as she spoke.
His hand moved up her neck to her mouth, his thumb stopping the words that poured forth. “I wish you to see what I see,” he murmured. “Watch your eyes.” He held her face as he kissed his way down her ear, nibbling at her earlobe, then continued kissing a path down the side of her throat, suckling gently at the hollow of her shoulder where he could see her pulse. He glanced up and smiled; she followed directions well.
She swallowed and he moved to her shoulder, slipping her dress down her arm just a bit, his hand warming the skin at the edge of the dress. He stood and met her smoldering gaze. “What do you see?”
“You,” she whispered.
He smiled and replaced the shoulder of her dress, smoothing his hands down her arms and gently gripping her. “I have something for you to wear.”
She watched as he lowered a necklace over her head, letting a red stone dip below her neckline before pulling the chilly metal up to rest in the hollow at the base of her neck. She gasped as it dragged across her skin, then reached up to touch it. “I can’t wear this, someone will say something. It belongs to your family.”
“Actually, no, I had this piece made recently. The family jewels belong to my brother as the head of the family. This belongs to me.”
She ran her hand down the necklace. The stone at the base of her throat filled the indent perfectly, just as he’d planned.
He lifted her up and turned her toward him, running his finger along the chain. “These are white sapphires, and this—” He outlined the stone. “—is a ruby.”
She watched him examine the ruby against her skin, and a shiver ran the length of her spine. His gaze on her was so determined, intense, his eyes seeming to glow with an inner light. She took a deep breath, her chest filling, her breasts brushing against his arm, and his gaze jumped to hers.
“I knew this was your color when I saw the bonnet. I had no idea how truly perfect it would be.” He leaned toward her as she lifted up, and he placed a single gentle kiss on the corner of her mouth. “Now, let us see to your dress. I’m sorry my household is lacking in the lady’s maid department, though I have been told in the past that I’m rather adept at both the undressing and dressing of ladies.”
He fastened the dress and straightened her shawl, then turned suddenly, walking to the entry of her room. “I will go greet the guests. Please join us when you are ready.” He opened the door to the corridor. “And Lilly,” he said, smiling at her over his shoulder, “everything will be just fine.”
She wasn’t sure if he was speaking to her or to himself.
“Trumbull, old man, I’d no idea you were keen on settling in,” his Uncle Bridger Trumbull, Earl of Pemberley said, clapping him on the back.
Perry turned his gaze on the earl’s daughters, Maebh and Saoirse, who were suddenly ensconced in conversation with their mama, Fallon, the countess. Perry smiled, suffering the earl’s pontification.
Most of his guests had arrived, but a multitude of carriages were lined up out front, still waiting patiently for others to disembark. Perry greeted each
branch of the family with as much enthusiasm as he could muster. His main concern, truly his only concern, was their reception of Lilly.
The next carriage bore Auberry and Vincent Calder, the Duke and Duchess of St. Cyr, and their three children, two of which Lilly had already met: Calder and Isadore. The third, Jerrod, she had not. Their carriage continued down the street and another took its place. Georgia Grace Danforth, Dowager Duchess of Warrick, had arrived on the arm of her son, Grayson Locke Danforth, Duke of Warrick, and with her daughter, Lady Poppy. As Warrick would be staying behind with Perry to watch over Lilly, it was important that she know him.
The final carriage held Helena Wyntor, Marchioness of Cheshire, and her two sons, Lord Vaughn and Lord Quintin.
Perry let out a breath, sweeping his gaze over the heads of his family with a smile. As terrified as he was of this moment, he was equally happy to have everyone together under one roof. The family migrated naturally, his uncles in one group, aunts in another, while his cousins drifted off in the entryway, lords and ladies slowly shifting away from one another, just like the elders.
He was roused from his inspection of his family by a nudge at his elbow. Surprised, he turned to find Harper pointing surreptitiously up the stairs.
“Lilly.” It was more a breath of a vow than a word. He looked around the room. There was no way for him to move everyone into the parlor where they could receive Lilly quietly. He saw her begin to walk down the stairs. He pushed through the throng, vaulting up the steps and drawing every eye with him.
A collective hush fell over the entry as Perry stood one step below her, holding up his hand.
Lilly placed her hand in his, letting it disappear into his clasp as she looked up and saw nothing but his eyes on her.
Perry turned to descend the stairs, his gaze still holding hers, willing her strength, lending her his, and guiding her into the next chapter of her life.
A brilliant smile lit her face, and he knew she would win them, each and every one.