Devils Bride

Chapter 17

Success bred success. Late the next night, as he let himself into his hall, Devil reflected on that maxim. He'd successes on more than one front to celebrate; only one major item on his personal agenda remained unfulfilled-and he was making slow progress even there.

Picking up the waiting candlestick, he headed for the library, crossing directly to his desk. A folded letter sat prominently displayed. He broke the plain seal. In the flickering candlelight, he scanned the single sheet, and the enclosures, then smiled. Heathcote Montague, his man of business, had, as usual, delivered the goods.

Devil drew the two notes of hand he'd extracted from Viscount Bromley that evening from his waistcoat pocket and dropped them on the blotter; selecting a key from his watch chain, he opened the middle drawer of the desk, revealing a stack of twelve other notes of hand bearing Bromley's signature. They joined the others-and the six notes discreetly bought by Montague from other gentlemen who, having observed Bromley taking a tilt at him, had been only too glad to convert the viscount's promises to hard cash.

Flicking through the stack, Devil calculated the total, then compared it with Montague's assessment of Bromley's true worth. It wasn't difficult to gauge where the viscount now stood-in the mire, well on the way to being helplessly adrift on the River Tick. Precisely where he wanted him.

With a satisfied smile, Devil placed both letter and notes back in the desk drawer, locked it, and stood. Picking up the candlestick, he left the library and headed upstairs. To celebrate one victory he'd already won.

The house lay silent about him as he strode swiftly to his room. By the time he reached his door, anticipation had dug in its spurs; he was thoroughly aroused. Opening the door, he stepped through, shutting it behind him, his eyes immediately searching the shadows of his bed.

An instant later, his fist connected with the oak panels; he swore-violently. She wasn't there.

Breathing deeply, he stood stock-still, his gaze on the undisturbed covers, struggling to free his mind of the fog of disappointment, frustration-and a nagging discomfort centered in his chest. He needed to think. Again.

Crossing to the tallboy, he plunked the candlestick atop it; and scowled at the bed. A familiar tension took hold.

Devil swore. Closing his eyes, he uttered one, comprehensive, utterly applicable oath, then, features hardening, shrugged out of his coat. It took less than a minute to strip. Donning a robe, he glanced down at his bare feet. He hesitated, then cinched the belt of the long robe tight. Cooling his overheated blood might help. Leaving the candle wavering on his tallboy, he closed his door and strode, purposefully, down the dark corridors.

He was finished with thinking. Whatever Honoria's reasons for not being in his bed, waiting, as he'd spent the whole evening fantasizing she would be, he did not wish to know. He wasn't going to argue or even discuss it. But surely not even a well-bred, gently reared twenty-four-year-old barely ex-virgin could imagine that once was enough? That he could survive until their wedding night going on as before-not after he'd sampled her body, her passion, the challenge of her untutored wantonness?

As he marched past his ancestors, Devil cast them a narrowed-eyed look. He left the gallery, then swung left, into the corridor leading to Honoria's rooms.

And collided with a wraith in ivory satin.

She would have bounced off him but he caught her, trapping her against him. His body knew her instantly. Desire lanced painfully through him, her satin-clad curves stroking him to throbbing life as he juggled her. Her instinctive shriek never made it past a first gasp-he stopped it, sealing her lips with his.

Instantly, she relaxed, wriggling her arms free, then twining them about his neck. She pressed closer, kissing him back, flagrantly inciting. She offered her mouth-he took it rapaciously. Swaying seductively, she caressed his chest with her breasts; one arm tightening about her, Devil closed his hand about one firm mound, finding it already swollen, the peak a hard pebble against his palm.

With a gasp, she sank against him, a melting surrender so delicious it left him reeling. Her hands slid beneath his robe, searching out the muscles of his chest, fingers tangling in the crisp hair. Each touch was driven, invested with urgency, the same urgency coursing his veins.

Swallowing a guttural groan, Devil cupped her bottom and drew her hard against him. He lifted her, tilting her hips so his aching erection rode heavily against her. Suggestively, he rocked her, his tongue mimicking the rhythm; she closed her lips and held him, warm and wet, soft and slick.

The deliberate temptation, the flagrant promise in the intimate caress, set his demons raging; the gentle tug as her fingers found the tie of his robe sounded a belated alarm.

Stunned, staggered, his control in shreds, Devil couldn't summon enough strength for even an inward groan. She was going to kill him. The door to his mother's bedroom lay across the corridor.

If she'd been more experienced, he'd have been tempted to do it anyway-to set her bottom on the top of the side table by his mother's door and bury himself between her thighs. The illicit pleasure, knowing they dared not make a sound, would have wound them both tight.

But they were already tight enough-and even if she could handle the position, she would never be able to keep quiet. She'd screamed last night, more than once, an achingly sweet sound of feminine release. He wanted to hear it again-and again. Tonight. Now. But not here.

Breaking their kiss, Devil scooped her up in his arms.

"What-?"

"Sssh," he hissed. His robe had parted; if he'd waited a second longer, she'd have touched him-and God only knew what might have happened then. Striding rapidly down the corridor, he made for her rooms.

Juggling her, he threw open the door to her sitting room and strode through. He turned to shut the door; Honoria wriggled in his hold until she was stretched against him, her arms about his neck. The door locked, Devil turned back-directly into her kiss.

He set her on her feet; relinquishing all restraint, he let his hands have their way. They already knew her-knew her intimately-and wanted to know her again. The caresses he pressed on her were blatant, expressly gauged to set her need soaring. His followed; in self-preservation he fended off her hands. Their caresses-his successful, hers less so-quickly degenerated into a panting, heated game, rapidly fueling the conflagration that already had them in its grip.

With a sound of keen frustration, Honoria drew back from their kiss. "I want-"

"Not here," Devil ground out. "The bedroom." He took her mouth again; the game resumed, neither willing to break free.

In desperation, with a sound close to a scream, Honoria wrenched away from his roving hands. Her skin was alight, on fire, her body no less so. If he didn't fill her soon, she'd swoon. Grabbing one of his hands, she hauled him to her bedchamber door. Ringing it open, she dropped his hand and entered.

Halting in the pool of moonlight streaming through the window, she faced him; tugging the bow of her translucent overrobe undone, she shrugged the sheer garment from her shoulders. As it pooled at her feet, she held out her hands-Devil had closed the door, then paused. She felt his gaze, hot as the sun, slide over her body, still shielded by soft satin.

Devil kept his hand on the cool metal of the doorknob and clung to the moment like a drowning man. He tried to remind himself about control, and that he'd taken her only once, that she might still be sore, that she would certainly still need time to adjust to his invasion. The facts registered with his conscious mind, the small remnant that still functioned. The rest was centered on her, on the throbbing ache in his loins-on his desperate need to claim her.

Her nightgown was a fascinating creation-solid satin with slits to her hips. The long line of her legs had showed briefly, tantalizingly, then she'd halted, and the skirts had fallen primly straight-an illusion of virtuous womanhood.

Her fingers flickered in entreaty-slowly, he strolled forward, letting his robe fall to the ground behind him. Naked, he ignored her hands, letting her touch him as she would. With his own, he cupped her face, then, slowly, stretching each moment until they both quivered, he bent his head and set his lips to hers.

He kissed her deeply, ravenously-forcefully-he needed to stay in control. He locked his muscles as her hands slid about his waist. They halted, gripping him as she accepted his kiss, opening herself to it without restraint. Then she slid her hands over his back; she pressed herself briefly against him, then, to his surprise, pulled away. Puzzled, Devil let her go.

Her gaze shadowed, mysterious, she took his hand and led him to the canopied bed. Halting beside it, she faced him; her eyes on his, she raised her hands and opened the shoulder clasps that anchored her gown. It slithered down, revealing the full globes of her breasts, pale ivory in the moon's faint light. The gown gathered at her waist; with a wriggle, she freed it, letting it whisper to the floor.

With no hint of reticence, of coyness or shyness-with a directness that stole his breath and much more-she stepped close. She placed her hands on his ribs, then sent them gliding upward; she stretched sensuously against him, wrapping her arms about his neck, lifting her lips for his kiss, pressing her breasts to his chest, sinking her hips against his thighs. Offering herself to him.

Something inside him shattered.

He reached for her and she was there-he wasn't certain if he'd hauled her hard against him or if she'd pressed closer. Her lips were under his, open and eager; their tongues twined, invoking all the devils of passion that ever were. Nothing else mattered.

Completion, fulfillment, was their only aim-the only thought in their fevered brains. Devil knew his horses had bolted but could summon no will to haul on their reins. She commanded his senses, his strength, every particle of his awareness; her needs, heightening to near frenzy, were the perfect counterpart of his own.

The desire to join flowed strongly through them, a powerful, fiery force. It beat in their veins, found expression in their gasping breaths; it invested each touch, each bold caress, with pleasure so intense it was close to pain.

Pulling back on a gasp, Honoria lifted one knee to the bed; Devil lifted her and placed her upon it, letting her draw him down. He let her feel his weight, reveling in the supple softness of the arms that slid around him, of her body undulating beneath him. She parted her thighs; he drew away only enough to reach down and stroke her, feeling the slickness of her need, the heat of her arousal.

An incoherent plea left her lips; she tilted her hips in unmistakable invitation. Her hands wandered down; they reached his ribs before Devil, settling fully upon her, his hips cradled between her thighs, caught them, one in each of his.

Her eyes, glinting from beneath weighted lids, met his. Deliberately, Devil anchored first one hand, then the other, on either side of her head. He was beyond thought, far beyond any concept of control-the force that drove him, consumed him, compelled him to possess her. Completely. Utterly.

The slick heat between her thighs bathed his throbbing staff; he nudged her thighs wider-she complied, but even in that, she managed to shake him, settling her hips deeper, perfectly positioned for his penetration, letting her thighs relax, leaving herself open. Vulnerable. Inviting him to take her.

The emotion that rolled through him was so powerful, so deep, Devil had to close his eyes briefly, holding back the storm. Opening them, he drew a deep breath, his chest pressing against her breasts, and bent his head to hers.

Their lips met, then melded; their fires ignited. With one powerful thrust, he joined with her-and the conflagration began.

He moved on her, within her; she moved beneath him, about him. Her body caressed him in so many ways, he lost the distinction between him and her. He stroked deeply within her and felt her rise, felt the fiery flight start.

Honoria surrendered to it, to the elemental heat that burned between them. It consumed them, a pure fire that burned away all pretense, leaving only truth and emotion forged in its searing flames. She felt him within her and accepted him eagerly, taking him in, both possessed and possessing. The sunburst rose and drew rapidly nearer; their bodies strove, racing to their fate.

Then it was upon them. It caught them in its heat, in its unquenchable delight, in sensation so exquisite she screamed. She clutched him tightly and he was with her. Locked together, they soared, gasped, then fractured-into a selfless void of aching peace beyond the reach of human senses.

Devil returned to the mortal plane first. Slowly, every muscle heavy with sated lust, he lifted away, then settled the pillows about them. His gaze roamed Honoria's face, serene, softly glowing. Gently, he smoothed her hair, drawing his fingers through the silken mass, letting it slip free to lie across the crisp linen. For long moments, silent and still, he studied her face. Then his gaze drifted down, skimming her body, fair skin glowing in the silvery light.

Seconds later, he reached for the covers, drawing them up to her chin. He settled on his back beside her, one arm behind his head, a frown tangling his black brows.

He was in that pose when Honoria stirred; from under heavy lids, she studied his face, dark features etched by the moonlight. He seemed pensive. Pensive herself, she let her gaze roam the broad expanse of his chest, dark hairs shading its width, each muscle band sharply defined. The covers reached to his waist; beneath them, she could feel the hair-dusted hardness of his leg beside hers.

She smiled, a cat savoring cream. Her skin was warmly flushed, her limbs deliciously weighted. She felt at peace, fulfilled-possessed. Deeply, thoroughly, possessed. Just the thought sent a frisson of pleasure through her.

The day was behind her. The unsettling uncertainty which had seized her the minute she'd regained her room after scurrying like a wanton maid through the corridors in the half light of dawn, had disappeared, eradicated by the night's fire. Her lips curved; she could still feel the inner glow. On the thought, she glanced up-Devil was watching her.

His hesitation was palpable, then he shifted, raising a hand to lift a lock of hair from her forehead. "Why weren't you in my bed?"

Honoria held his gaze, even though his eyes were too shadowed for her to see. "I didn't know whether you wanted me there."

Fleetingly, his frown deepened, then eased. But his lips did not curve as, with one finger, he lightly brushed her cheek. "I want you-and I want you there."

The deep words all but shimmered in the moonlight; Honoria smiled. "Tomorrow." She heard him sigh and saw his quick grimace.

"Unfortunately not." He lay back, his eyes still on hers. "While I'd much rather have you in my bed, until we marry, I'll have to suffer the restrictions of yours." He lifted one foot, demonstrating that even high on the pillows as he was, his feet reached the footboard.

Honoria frowned. "Why can't we sleep in your bed?"

"Propriety."

She opened her eyes wide. "This is propriety?" Her sweeping gesture encompassed his naked presence, which took up quite half of her bed.

"You can't be seen wandering the corridors in your peignoir every morning-the servants wouldn't approve. If they see me wandering about in my robe, they'll accept the sight with unimpaired aplomb-this is, after all, my house."

Honoria humphed. Wriggling about, she settled on her side, facing away from him. "I suppose you know all the correct procedures."

She felt him shift; a second later, warm limbs surrounded her. The light stubble of his jaw grazed her bare shoulder; his lips touched her ear.

"Believe it." He settled behind her. "And speaking of correct procedures, I should send a notice to The Gazette, stating our wedding day."

Honoria studied the shadows. "When should it be?"

He kissed her nape. "That's for you to say-but I'd hoped for December first."

Four weeks away. Honoria frowned. "I'll need a gown."

"You can command any modiste-they'll scramble for the honor."

"Celestine will do." Honoria saw no reason not to avail herself of Celestine's flair just because he'd commanded the modiste's attention.

"All the other arrangements you can leave to Maman and my aunts."

"I know," Honoria replied with feeling. "I spent a wretchedly awkward morning-your mother decided to visit the old housekeeper who ran the Place when your parents married. The entire conversation concerned the hows and wheres of arranging a wedding at Somersham."

Devil chuckled. "How did she know?"

"I don't know," Honoria lied. It was, she was sure, her odd, utterly inexplicable blushes that had given her away. "I'll need to write to Michael."

"I'll be writing to him tomorrow-give me your letter and I'll enclose it with mine." Devil studied the back of her head. "Incidentally, I spoke to old Magnus this morning."

Honoria swung about. "Grandfather?" Incredulous, she stared. "Why?"

Devil raised his brows. "He is the head of your family."

"You don't need his permission to marry me."

"No." His lips quirked. "However, the Anstruther-Wetherbys and Cynsters go back a long way. We've been scoring points off each other since the Ark beached."

Honoria studied his face. "How did he take the news?"

Devil grinned. "Philosophically, in the end. He knew you were living within my household, so it wasn't a total shock."

Honoria narrowed her eyes, then humphed and turned her back on him.

Devil's grin dissolved into a smile. Leaning forward, he planted a kiss behind her ear. "Go to sleep-you'll need your strength."

His words held a definite promise. Smiling, Honoria settled her cheek into her pillow, snuggled her back against his chest-and did as she was bid.

The next day, their letters to Michael were duly dispatched. The day after, a notice announcing the marriage of Honoria Prudence Anstruther-Wetherby, eldest daughter of Geoffrey Anstruther-Wetherby and his wife Heather, of Nottings Grange, Hampshire, to Sylvester Sebastian Cynster, duke of St. Ives, appeared in The Gazette. The marriage would take place on December 1 at Somersham Place.

Despite the haut ton's preoccupation with departing London, the news spread like wildfire. Honoria gave thanks that the only social events remaining were small, select afternoon teas and "at-homes"-farewells to friends before society adjourned to the shires for the shooting and subsequently to their estates for Christmas. The dustcovers had been placed over the chandeliers-the ton was in retreat from London and would not return until February.

As she and Devil had foreseen, his mother and the other Cynster ladies threw themselves into organizing the wedding with undisguised relish. The Dowager warned Honoria that it was family tradition that the bride, while making all the final decisions, was not allowed to do anything-her sole role, according to all precepts, was to appear to advantage and keep her husband in line. Honoria quickly decided there was much to be said for tradition.

Devil watched from a distance, reassured by her readiness to take on the position of his wife. She'd already impressed his aunts; with their encouragement, she took up the matriarchal reins-his mother was ecstatic.

By the end of five whirlwind days, they were ready to leave London; Devil's final chore was to reel in Viscount Bromley.

When the enormity of his losses, the perilous nature of his finances, was fully explained, Bromley, a hardened case, philosophically shrugged and agreed to Devil's terms. He was in a position to ascertain the truth of "Lucifer's discreditable rumor," to identify the Cynster involved and learn all the facts. All this he agreed to do-by the first of February.

Satisfied, on every count, Devil laid aside his black armband and, with his wife-to-be on his arm, retired to Somersham Place.