Bronwyn Scott's Sexy Regency Bundle (97 page)

Scott

control property, just as it was a husband's right to control his wife.

Running the pazo took considerable energy and while it might not be something she thoroughly enjoyed, she'd come to take pride in the fact that she
could
do it.

be told, she'd

come to enjoy being an independent woman. She liked the power that came with her freedom, answering to no man. If the hard work of the pazo was the price for that heady elixir, she would gladly pay. But when she stared at the handsome man across the table, that equation started to

No matter how hard she worked

now, he would have the power over the pazo-and over her.

Elena took a large swallow of wine. Would she really be willing to put the pazo and her own in this man's hands? In her gamble to win her freedom

Don Alicante, she'd hastily

chained herself to an unknown man and given him an identity that gave him

power

over her, if he chose to use it. Her only hope lay in convincing him not to.

The servants had

them alone for the meal,

but now they reappeared to clear the dishes. One of them brought in a decanter of clear liquid and a tiny glass along with two slices of

tart.

42

's

Alone again, Elena gestured to the decanter.

"Will you have some

It used to be your

favorite."

He smiled and gave a short laugh. "Thank you for the prompt. I regret that there is so much that I've forgotten. It strikes me as the height of irony that I can remember to pull a lady's chair out for her but I can't remember my favorite foods or my own name." He poured some of the liquid into the tiny glass, tossed it back and immediately sputtered, reaching for his napkin. "Good lord, I can't believe I like that

he ground out once

he recovered

the shock.

Elena stifled a laugh. "It's made

"It's horrible, is what it is." He laughed with Elena. "Perhaps it's an acquired taste and I shall have to reacquaint myself with it. But not tonight." He put his napkin aside and rose the table.

"Tonight, I only want to reacquaint myself with my wife." He held out a hand to her, "If you're willing, of course.

year apart is a long

time. Perhaps you need time to get used to me again.

This was the moment of truth. Elena did not hesitate. She put her hand in his and said, "I am willing."

Chapter 10

It was all the encouragement he needed.

led her upstairs to her chamber with a surety of direction that suggested he knew every inch of the pazo. One would not guess he hadn't even seen the building until that day. He lit two lamps in her room and pulled the draperies shut.

Everything he did had an air of mastery to it and Elena couldn't help but wonder if that extended to the art of lovemaking as well. He stopped by a chair and began to

out of his

jacket.

"No, allow me." She went to him swiftly.

wife would show no hesitation in helping her husband undress. She pushed the jacket back his shoulders, reveling in the flex of his muscles beneath the cloth of his shirt. Jacket discarded, her hands went to his neck cloth and she deftly undid the simple

She pulled his shirt tails from the

waistband of his trousers and lifted the up

over his head, baring his torso.

and

sculpted

a sailor's work, his chest was a

's Seduction

delight to look at. He was staring at her, watching for her next move, but self-consciousness to overcome her.

"Touch me," he encouraged Her

mouth went dry. He reached for her hand and gently guided it to the bulge in his trousers.

"Touch me here. Feel how much I want you."

He was huge and hot beneath his trousers.

She traced the length of his

through the

cloth, amazed that she could conjure such an intense reaction

a man she hardly knew

when she'd failed to do so with her husband.

His hands went to the low shoulders of her gown and he shoved them down. It was his
turn
to undress her and he made quick work of the fastenings in the back. The gown slid into a pile.

"I did not think you could look more beautiful than you did in that gown. But now I think you lovelier out of it," he whispered close to her, kissing a delicate spot on her neck. She shivered in response.

He swept her into his arms and laid her down on the bed, stepping back to remove his trousers and to study her with a long, searing look.

"You're the most beautiful woman I've ever seen, Elena. I want to bury myself inside you and stay there."