His Jilted Bride (Historical Regency Romance) (11 page)

His hands slid up and captured the top
of her drawers with his thumbs just as his lips captured hers in
another kiss. He moved his lips on top of hers, exerting just a
hint of pressure while his fingers worked to loosen the knot in the
front of her drawers.

A second later, he pulled the final
string and her drawers fell to her ankles, making her suddenly
aware of what his intentions were. She couldn't let him do this.
Not now. His fingers brushed the curls that hid her most intimate
areas, and her heart nearly beat out of her chest. No. This wasn't
right, she reminded herself, opening her mouth to
protest.

Her protest died on her lips when his
lips left hers and he lowered his face to the crook of her neck,
his wandering fingers moving closer to her— Rational thought fled
as her face began to heat and an ache she couldn't find the words
to describe formed not far from where he was touching her. He slid
his fingertips along her sensitive flesh, and she gasped. Never
before had she felt such an intense pleasure as she was right
now.

He touched her again and sparks of
pleasure took flight inside of her body. Her breath hitched. What
was he doing to her? Why was it that the more he touched her, the
harder it was for her to breathe, let alone think?

Elijah shifted his hand to where his
fingers had greater access to her most intimate area. Her heart
slammed in her chest. And not in a good way. If he touched her much
more, he might discover her secret.

She sobered instantly. She had to tell
him. He deserved to know. “Stop! Stop!”

Elijah froze. “Stop?” he repeated
tonelessly.

“
Stop,” she confirmed. How could his speech and breathing be
so normal when she was practically gasping for her next breath?
Bringing both of her hands up to his chest, she gave him a hard
shove.

Elijah stumbled backwards a few steps,
never taking his eyes from hers. Despite the pain that was rapidly
forming in her chest, she held his gaze. Just as they'd been all
the other times he'd come to her room, his eyes had an intensity
that she'd never seen before. But it wasn't the warm intensity
she'd noticed in Lord Templemore's eyes when Lady Templemore had
joined them. This was a different sort. Almost like he was
distracted, perhaps?

“
Are intimacies all you think about?” she demanded, trying to
distract herself from the harsh realization that she'd practically
fallen into his snare. A snare he'd laid for what reason? His
expression and actions wouldn't suggest his interest in her had
been sincere.

“
No,” he said easily. “I think about plenty of things other
than intimacies.”

“
Are you sure? It seems you keep suggesting it and won't even
let me speak more than a sentence before you're ready to make
another attempt.”

Something foreign and
fierce flashed in his eyes. “That's not true.” He took a step
toward her. “Perhaps I wouldn't have to keep
attempting
if you'd stop putting me
off.” He took another step closer to her, bringing his large,
imposing body within mere inches of hers. “Someone around here has
to be concerned about our marital duties and since it doesn't seem
to be you...” He shrugged.

“
That's not fair,” she choked out.
Marital duties, is that how he thought of bedding her?
Bile rose in her throat. “I—I—I—I—”

“
You what? You need more time to prepare yourself?” he
snapped. “Is that it? Well, Lady Amelia, how is this for
preparation, before the sun rises tomorrow morning you won't be in
the same state of chastity you are in currently.”

Angry heat surfaced in her face as a
storm raged in her heart. This cocksure man thought he knew
everything, didn't he? “Would you care to place a wager on
that?”

A smug smile took his lips. “As a
matter of fact, I would.”

Amelia met his unblinking gaze with
her own. “All right, and if you're wrong and I wake up tomorrow in
the same state I'm in now—” she coughed— “I want you to leave me
alone about marital intimacies for the rest of our
lives.”

“
You don't mean that.”

She lifted her chin a notch. “Yes, I
do mean that. You might think you're irresistible, but believe me,
you are not. Irresistible, that is.”

“
Is that so?” He rocked back on his heels. “And what is it
that I'm to get when I prove
you
wrong. Besides, your innocence, that is,” he
added with a wicked grin.

She stared at the insufferable man.
What had come over him to make him speak to her this way? No
matter. He wouldn't get his way and bed her, and in the unlikely
event that he did, she'd still win the wager. So truly, it didn't
matter, she had nothing to lose—except perhaps her heart, but it
would seem that had been lost long ago. “You may have whatever you
want.”

“
A biddable wife who does exactly what I say without
questioning me?”

She nearly laughed at his request. “If
that's what you want, then yes, those can be our terms.”

“
Excellent.” He frowned at her. “Just so we're in agreement,
you're not going to do something foolish to become dreadfully ill
between now and nightfall, are you?”

“
No.” She shook her head for emphasis. Did he think she was a
complete imbecile? “I have every intention of being in perfect
health.”

“
Very well, madam,” Elijah said with a wide grin. “Challenge
accepted.”

Chapter Eleven

Amelia didn't know if she should be
relieved, worried, or remorseful about the challenge she'd issued
and its potential consequences.

She supposed she'd have
regretted it if she thought her marriage would ever have any
semblance to a love match. But it didn't now, nor would it ever;
and for as much as she'd like to have children, Elijah didn't need
an heir to pass a title or fortune to, rendering the
need
for children
unnecessary.

As it was, not only were
children not a necessity where Elijah was concerned, neither was
her love—only her body it would seem. Why he'd suddenly taken such
a keen and determined interest in bedding her, she'd never know. At
least he'd shown he
could
be gentle. Until he suddenly became savage,
followed immediately by cold disinterest, she thought
grimly.

Wordlessly, she stood at the end of
the four poster bed and watched as Elijah dragged on a pair of dove
breeches and a clean shirt, then hastily tied on snowy white
cravat. He sat down on the edge of the bed and pulled on his
leather boots, then shrugged into a yellow waistcoat followed by a
blue coat. Then without so much as a backward glance at her, he was
out the door of their bedroom.

The door handle to the front door
turned, followed by the door creaking open. Elijah's heavy boot
falls quieted and the door shut again.

Closing her eyes to hold back the
tears welling in her eyes, Amelia sank to the bed.

Marrying Elijah was once all she'd
ever dreamed about. It was the reason she'd refused her mother's
encouragement to allow other gentlemen to court her or call on her.
But now that it'd happened... The hot tears she'd tried to keep in
her eyes spilled out onto her cheeks.

She lifted her hand and used the back
to dash away her hot tears. It was ridiculous to cry over their
quarrel. Elijah had told her many times when they were younger that
his interest in her was only that of a friend. She'd have done well
to have heeded his advice and conducted herself
accordingly.

She took a deep sniff and used the
tips of her fingers to dry the bottom rims of her eyes. As composed
as she could be with tearstained cheeks and a crushed gown, Amelia
lifted her eyes and stood.

“
Elijah,” she gasped, startled.

He stood right in front of her like a
stone wall with that same infuriating expressionless face he'd
taken to wearing more often than not recently.

“
If you're done now, I'll see if Caroline can find you
something to wear until your wardrobe can be fetched.”

For the second time since he'd
suggested they marry, she had the strangest urge to grab the
heaviest object nearest her and brain him with it. She settled for
clenching her fists and letting a string of unladylike remarks fly
through her head. “Don't bother,” she said, taking to her feet. “I
should hate to have my absence remarked upon. I'll go ask Lady
Watson myself.”

“
You don't need to do that. I'll speak to Alex in the library
and have him speak to Caroline.” He raked his gaze down the front
of her in a way that made her feel naked. “Wouldn't you rather have
your absence remarked upon rather than the crumpled state of the
very dress they saw you in yesterday?”

***

If beautiful young ladies were
considered diamonds of the first water, then Elijah was most
definitely a cad of the first water. Never had he seen Amelia cry
before and to know he'd been the one that caused her tears made it
even worse. He was a cad, indeed.

Tamping down the sudden urge he had to
turn around and go comfort and apologize to her, he focused his
eyes on the little window just above the front door of his
brother's estate and kept walking forward.

Henry's impromptu visit this morning
had ignited his fury, not Amelia. She hadn't deserved for him to
treat her that way. Their sudden marriage and his persistence
couldn't possibly be any easier for her than it was for him. But
dash it all, it was for her own good, and if she'd stop being so
stubborn she'd realize he was trying to help her.

“
What has put such a serious expression on your face,
son?”

Elijah snapped his head to the side to
look at his mother. “I don't have a serious expression.”

A smile spread his mother's lips. “If
you say so.”

Were she anyone else, he'd try to deny
her charge. Unfortunately, he'd never been very good at convincing
his mother she was mistaken.

“
Does this have anything to do with your new bride?” The
concern in her voice was unmistakeable.

Elijah studied his mother carefully.
She and his father had had an arranged marriage and had somehow
managed to find a semblance of love, even if his siblings failed to
see it, Elijah had noticed their exchanged glances and hidden
remarks. That's what he was trained to do. But their circumstances
were different. They had to be.

Even though his parents had never been
overly affectionate in public nor felt the need to discuss details
of their marriage with their children, he knew enough to know the
two had only met once before they married, which meant love for
them had to have come later. He and Amelia, however, had known each
other for most of their lives, plenty of time for love to have
formed. His mother might think she could help, but he highly
doubted she'd understand unrequited love within a marriage. Or how
to fix his other problem.

“
It does,” she mused, breaking Elijah of his
thoughts.

“
No.” He narrowed his eyes on his mother. Why was she even out
here? “Say, what has you escaping Caroline's party?”

She idly shook out her dark blue
skirt. “I'm not escaping. I just came out for some air.”

A bark of his laughter passed his
lips. “Is that your story?”

“
As much as it is yours that the look on your face has nothing
to do with Lady Amelia,” she said, lifting her eyebrows at
him.

He lifted a finger. “I never said
that.”

“
Mmmhmmm.” She pursed her lips and cast him a doubtful
look.

“
As a matter of fact, I was thinking about Amelia. In an
indirect way.”

Mother crossed her arms, her brown
eyes twinkling with all sorts of mischief. “And?”

“
I was thinking of how I'll word my request to Alex to have
him speak to Caroline about borrowing some gowns for Amelia until
her wardrobe arrives later this week.” He'd sent a message to her
father, requesting her things be sent to Watson Estate, post haste.
But that would still take some time for them to arrive, just as it
would take some time to get a seamstress out to make her a new
wardrobe.

Mother reached up and tucked a tendril
of her auburn hair behind her ear. “I see. Well, I suppose I could
help you with that.”

Chuckling, Elijah shook his head.
“You'll do anything to escape Caroline's party, won't
you?”

“
And you'll do anything to avoid telling me what put that
expression on your face,” she retorted.

“
Indeed,” he acknowledged. It might be rude to admit to one's
mother that he wasn’t going to tell her the information she'd
requested, but it'd be an outright disrespect to lie to
her.

“
I'll go see about Amelia now,” Mother murmured. She twisted
her lips as if she were debating whether she should say anything
more. Finally, she said, “I know no grown man wishes to use his
mother as a confidant, but I want you to know that I might be able
to help you more than you might think.”