Louisa glanced down at the note she held again. In a strong masculine hand, she read
“My darling Louisa, I am obliged to travel to Gravesmere tomorrow and will not return to Town for a few days. Please realize that nothing save my mother’s entreaties, nay her command, could take me from your delightful side at this time. I will think every moment of your beauty and kindness, as I languish in the countryside without the charm of your company.”
She did not need to fear his feelings had changed in any way she thought, and since it went on “I will not allow her to keep me at Gravesmere for more than a week,” it was hard to imagine that any serious alterations could occur in such a short time. And yet, she was concerned. His marriage to Allegra was not a success, but he spoke no word of separation. Indeed, at times Louisa feared he admired his troublesome wife in some way. This would have to be stopped. If Fate required a helping hand, then Lady Manning would be glad to be of assistance.
Louisa made a moue of distaste, but shrugged her shoulders. While she had access to Adam's bank account, his actual presence was of little importance, although she would miss his capabilities in her bed at night. Still there would be other men about, and no chance of Adam discovering any indiscretions.
She folded Adam's letter impatiently and picked up the bracelet, holding it up to the light. It was a pity, she reflected, that the stones were not a bit larger and thus more valuable if resold, but they sparkled with a deep inner glow, and she gave a tiny laugh of delight. Her jewelry collection had certainly expanded since she had met Adam. She laid the stones against the top of her nearly-exposed breast, enjoying their coolness against her heated skin, and the security that they represented.
There was a quiet knock at the door, and she looked up, annoyed. "What is it?" she snapped.
The door opened and Thomas, her footman appeared. Louisa looked at him hungrily, her senses inflamed by the jewels and the footman's wide shoulders. She had hired him for his looks and athleticism, and he hadn't disappointed her.
"There's a gentleman to see you, ma'am," he said as his eyes raked over her.
Louisa smiled lasciviously. "Tell him to go away. I'm not in the mood for visitors."
"I don't think that's a very good idea, Louisa. I suggest you see me." Tristan appeared behind Thomas, his face reflecting amusement as he regarded the two of them.
"Damn you, Tristan!" Louisa sat up, attempting to draw her flimsy robe around her. "Who said you could come upstairs?"
"I gave myself permission. I didn't think that such old friends as ourselves should stand on ceremony." He cocked an eyebrow at the footman. "Do you require an audience?"
Louisa glared at him. "You may go, Thomas," she snarled. The footman bowed and disappeared down the hallway, leaving Louisa to glower at Tristan. He walked into the room and looked around appreciatively.
"What a handsome house. It's amazing what you've done with Gravesmere's money." He picked up a jeweled comb from the dressing table and inspected it closely. "Lovely. And very valuable."
"At least I have something worth owning," sneered Louisa. "I suppose you're still barely scraping by."
"Oddly enough, I'm doing quite well. I won a fortune a young man in Munich, and I haven't managed to lose it yet. I have all the money I can use." Tristan leaned against the dressing table, his arms folded, and watched her intently.
"I'm amazed. But I don't suppose you came here to tell me about your good fortune. Would you mind telling me why I'm blessed with this visit?"
Tristan shrugged. "Why would I possibly be here except to worship at your feet? And very pretty ones they are, too."
Louisa frowned. "Stop being ridiculous. Tell me what you want and then get out of here."
"How rude you are." Tristan shook his head. "Very well, I've heard rumors that Gravesmere and his pretty little wife are off to the country for a stay. I thought you could perhaps enlighten me further.”
"Why would I want to do that?"
"Because of your affection for me, of course." Tristan stood up and stepped closer. "And because you think that my plans might help your own."
"I have no idea what you're talking about." Louisa felt a tiny thrill of fear. Tristan was clearly furious about Allegra slipping from his grasp. She remembered his moods well, and she could sense the frustration and anger simmering under his calm surface.
"Don't try to play me for a fool, Louisa. I always win eventually." Tristan sat down on the chaise next to her, and she flushed slightly, his nearness reminding her of their shared past. He laughed.
"I know little more than you do. Adam claims that business calls and his mother wants to get away from the city. They'll be back in a week." Louisa waved her hand dismissively.
"And you believe him? Business? In the middle of the Season?" Tristan shook his head. "No doubt his mother is hatching a plot to bring them together. I wish I had known. I would have found a way to stop it."
"As though you could have prevented them from going. I tried my best, you fool, and nothing would keep him here,” Louisa taunted him.
Tristan smirked. "And I know how good your best is, my dear. Still, there are other ways of convincing people. You lack my subtlety, I fear."
"Your plotting will get you nowhere, Tristan. Why don't you go back to the Continent and leave me in peace?"
"But then who will seduce the little Duchess for you?" Tristan chuckled at the look on her face. "You need me, Louisa. I know you think you can out maneuver me, but I wouldn't recommend trying it. I'll beat you in the end as well."
Louisa grimaced. "You make me ill."
"Do I? I seem to remember a time when you couldn't get enough of me. Don't you remember sneaking around behind de Valene's back when he was keeping you? We were wild for each other. I recall vividly a cloakroom at a ball, and having to be very quiet so that no one could hear us." Tristan leaned forward and Louisa sidled away, her back coming up against the pillows heaped on the chaise.
"Leave me alone," she ground out. "I gave you the information you wanted. Isn't that enough for you?"
"I thought that was all I wanted. But now I see you like this and I find my mind turning to other matters. Don't tell me you haven't guessed them; I can see it in your eyes. And I would be so much more entertaining than a footman, Louisa." Tristan wrapped one large hand around her naked calf.
"Damn it, let go of me!" Louisa struggled to free her leg. "I'm not your mistress anymore, Tristan."
"No, you're not. And that makes it all the more exciting, doesn't it? You're cheating on the man you're supposed to be true to, the man who pays for all this, the man who owns you. Don't you feel that little tingle of danger? I know you, Louisa. Don't try to lie to me." Tristan's hand slid further up her leg, disappearing under the gossamer hem of her negligee.
"Go to hell," answered Louisa, but the anger had faded from her voice, and she stopped fighting him.
"Oh, I will, my dear. And so shall you, I'm sure. Why don't we go together, just this once?" Tristan hand stroked her thigh gently, persuasively. "Don't tell me you've forgotten how good it was."
Louisa gave a tiny moan in response, and Tristan shook his head. "You're so easy, darling."
"I don't recall you exercising your powers of restraint very often," muttered Louisa peevishly.
"No, neither of us is very good at denying our needs," agreed Tristan. He reached up and undid the tiny ribbons that held the front of her gown together. It fell open, and Louisa's extravagant breasts tumbled into view. "Has Gravesmere been taking good care of you?"
"Very good," answered Louisa, her breath catching in her throat.
"I'm sure he has," agreed Tristan, taking a dark nipple between his fingers and squeezing until Louisa gasped, while with his other hand, he slid a finger into her moistness, touching her with practiced ease. "He's young and strong. But he's probably far too considerate, too much of a gentleman. I doubt he knows you as well as I do, Louisa. You want him to think that you're a gently-bred lady, but I know the t
ruth. I know a bit of rough trade is what you really like, and what Gravesmere is too much the gentleman to give you."
Louisa swore, and Tristan laughed. "Do you talk to Gravesmere that way?" He stripped her gown from her with accomplished hands. "You look almost feverish, my dear. We'll make this quick."
He stood and unfastened his trousers while Louisa watched, her eyes half-closed, her lips parted. Her eyes widened as his erection sprang free.
"You see, there's nothing of Gravesmere's I can't have," said Tristan. He grabbed Louisa by the waist and turned her so that she knelt with her back to him. He stroked her bare buttocks gently for moment, and then pushed her forward, seized her hips in both hands and rammed home in one swift movement. Louisa gave a shout of pleasure.
"I wonder how he'll feel when I tell him I've had you," said Tristan, gripping her long dark hair and pulling Louisa’s head back as he pulled out of her and plunged in again. “Watch me,” he said as he forced her to look over her shoulder at him. She surged backwards in response, meeting him eagerly, her lust overriding every other emotion. He continued to pound into her rhythmically, listening with pleasure to her panting cries as the sound of his flesh slapping against hers filled the room. "And of course, I'll take that lovely wife of his as well. It would be marvelous if she was still a virgin, as I suspect she is. She's quite amazing, you know. Not as ripe as you, Louisa, but so exquisite, so delicate, and I suspect a fire under that porcelain surface. I could teach her so much. Don't you agree?"
He smiled at the stream of invective that fell from her lips. "What, you don't like discussing other women? But there's no pretense between us, is there? You were never faithful to me, were you Louisa? Of course not. And so now there's no reason we can't enjoy ourselves, though you know this is just a brief interlude." He let go of her hair, and reached around her to grab her swaying breasts, tugging on her nipples fiercely. A smile of satisfaction spread across his lips as she screamed and climaxed, her tremors tearing through her until she shook all over. Only when she was done did he allow himself release, pumping into her fiercely, a detached look on his face. He relaxed his grip on her and withdrew, watching as she fell forward onto the chaise.
"Really, Louisa, you have so little self-control." Tristan drew a handkerchief out of his pocket, wiped off his penis, and rearranged his clothing. He dropped the soiled piece of cloth on her dressing table.
"I despise you," said Louisa faintly, her face buried in the embroidered pillows.
"I despise you, too, darling." Tristan smacked her bare bottom hard, the sound sharp in the frilly boudoir. "If you hear something else from Gravesmere, please let me know. And remember, I'm watching you. Don't think you can double cross me." He turned and left the room, shutting the door quietly behind him.
Chapter 9
Unexpected Depth and Talents
The luxurious traveling carriage rocked along the rutted road, and Allegra took a moment to be thankful that it was well sprung. However, her gratitude for the deep blue velvet upholstery and the gentle ride was insufficient to make up for her annoyance. Her mood was composed of equal parts anger at Adam's behavior the previous night, frustration at driving rather than riding, and unacknowledged jealousy of the mistress to whose arms Adam had returned to after his mother's dictum had been issued. Her stormy humor lurked in her eyes, and in the strained lines of her face, but for Emily's sake she did her best to conceal it under a complacent smile. Outside the coach, Adam was nowhere to be seen. He had ridden on ahead of their party, and this irked Allegra still more, for although she had no reason to wish for his company, she felt that he should have ridden alongside them. Finally Allegra napped, soothed by the swaying of the chaise and encouraged by her own lack of sleep the previous night.
She awoke with a start when the carriage slowed sharply before a turn. She looked out the window just in time to see a half-timbered gatehouse and long, well-tended drive bordered by a manicured lawn. Flowers bloomed along the way, nodding sleepily in the breeze. Emily was smiling softly and Allegra needed only to inquire, "Gravesmere?" Her companion nodded. A few moments later the grand old house loomed into view. It drowsed in the late afternoon sun, at that peculiar time of day when the low angle of the light lends a preternatural sharpness to outdoor scenes. The golden sandstone of its walls seemed to be warm with an inner life, and the central hall, embraced by the lower wings of the building, beckoned.
"I had no idea that Gravesmere was so beautiful, Mama," exclaimed Allegra.
Emily seemed almost on the verge of tears. "It looked just like this the afternoon that Adam's father first brought me here. It was our wedding day though, and all the staff was here to greet us. He carried me across the threshold, and they all cheered, and drank a toast to our long life and happiness. I still believe that the good wishes of all of those good people were a part of the joy that we knew together."
Allegra took her mother-in law's hand and held it tightly in silence, not knowing how to respond, when her own relationship with the current Duke was in such disarray.
The carriage drew up before the huge oaken door, and Allegra, leaning out the window in a distinctly unladylike fashion, could see that Adam had already dismounted and one of the grooms was at his horse's head. Adam lounged in the drive, conversing with the servant, an older man, who, to judge by the casual nature of their interaction, might well have been the man who put the Duke on his first pony as a child. Adam’s golden head glowed in the last rays of the dying sun, and the width of his shoulders and narrowness of his hips were set off by his riding coat and breeches. Allegra drew in her breath sharply as a strange sensation, now becoming almost familiar, shot through her. Why did she always feel so uncomfortable around her own husband, she wondered.
When the carriage door opened, Adam straightened and strode over to help Allegra and his mother disembark. As he did so the great doors of Gravesmere House opened, and a stately figure issued forth, followed by an army of servants, their livery starched and pressed. Emily smiled.
When the servants were lined up before the Duke and Duchess, the butler bowed and cleared his throat stentoriously.
"It is a great honor to see Your Grace and the Duchess here," he proclaimed. "There are a great many firsts for us to observe today. It is the first time that we have seen Your Grace here since you ascended to your father's (God rest his soul) honors. It is the first visit of Her Grace the new Duchess to Gravesmere, and it is the first time that we have seen Your Grace and the Duchess here at your ancestral home together since you were wed. I think that I am within my rights to state that the entire staff is delighted to be here to witness such a remarkable moment in the history of Gravesmere, a history that is long and honorable and brings credit to our great country. Your health, Your Grace, and the health of your lady, and your mother. May your marriage be long and happy and may you be blessed with many healthy children. Three cheers for the new Duke and Duchess."
To the intense embarrassment of both Allegra and Adam, the butler raised a glass high, and suddenly the entire staff was cheering, and a demand rose from several dozen throats that the Duke carry the Duchess across the threshold of her new home, as the footmen circulated among the staff, filling glasses so that they might drink a toast. Adam looked clearly harassed, Allegra felt nervous and distressed. However, it soon became clear to both of them that the only way through the situation was to make the best of it. Adam advanced on Allegra with a suddenly wicked grin and swept her up in his arms.
"Relax, my lady, I won't bite," he murmured.
"You had best not," she snapped. "I might bite back."
Her sober blue traveling dress tipped to reveal a foam of white petticoats and frivolous little satin shoes, covering white silk stockings with absurd pink clocks. Despite the awkwardness of the situation, Adam felt a bubble of laughter deep within at the sight. He ran lightly up the steps two at a time, and paused at the doorstep to toss Allegra up in the air.
"My lady and I thank you for your generous tho
ughts," he announced as he caught her again and held her firmly against his chest. "We are pleased to be here at Gravesmere, which is our home and our mainstay. I know that my lovely bride and I will spend many happy days here, and that we will provide you with many heirs to continue our tradition."
He gave Allegra a laughing look, and she colored. How dare he tease her so, when things were so uncomfortable between them?
Adam then swept across the threshold with a flurry of the full skirts of his riding coats and his ruffled cuffs, to set her down in the hall. He swept off his hat, made her a most elegant leg, and then kissed her heartily in full view of the staff. More cheering ensued. Allegra blushed desperately. There was an air of expectation around the great doors, and Allegra realized that she too was expected to say something to the assemblage. Feeling rather like a hunted doe, the cynosure of all eyes, she stepped forward to face the situation.
"Every woman dreams of being as lucky as I," she said in a soft voice. Silence fell over the servants as they listened to her. "To have a gallant husband, a beautiful home and a mama-in-law that I love. I hope that I will be a credit to the noble women who have preceded me and that I can be the wife to the current Duke which he deserves."
Prolonged cheering followed and Allegra felt that she had passed an important test. She shot Adam a glance to see if he had understood the gentle reprimand she had delivered to him in her speech, and was surprised to see him eyeing her appreciatively.
"You did very well, Allegra," he said. "This must have been quite an unexpected event. I thank you for rising to the occasion so nobly."
"I am not the paltry creature you apparently think me," answered Allegra. "My family, after all, is nearly as venerable as yours, and I have been well-trained in my duties as your wife."
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