if hes wicked (30 page)

“Wel then, I am ready.”

“Good, for I believe I just saw him walk toward the chapel,” Lady Mildred said from her place by the window before turning and looking Chloe over.

“And you do look beautiful, child.”

“Lady Evelyn has worked hard.”

“You have a natural beauty. Subtle. It wil last and, even more important, if it fades a little as the years pass, you have the deeper beauty that is

needed to hold a man to your side. Wel , a man like Julian at least. Some men never learn the importance of it and always want more or something new.”

“Sometimes, m’lady, people are just bad and no one and nothing can change it.”

Lady Mildred gave her a kiss on the cheek. “I think I am beginning to understand that sad fact. I but pray that badness does not infect any of my

girls.”

“I doubt it. They were raised by you, were they not.”

She smiled. “Oh, child, how can you think you wil be a poor countess.” She hooked her arm through Chloe’s and waved to Lady Evelyn to open

the door. “Let us go show Julian what a prize he is getting.”

Chloe fought back the nervousness and fear that tried to swamp her as she made her way to the little stone chapel at the end of the garden. Lady

Evelyn had given her some very wise advice and she intended to heed it. One thing she was sure of, and that was that Julian would honor the vows he

took today. Al she had to do was make sure that he never regretted it.

When she reached the inside of the chapel, she had to smile. Anthony stood near the altar careful y holding a little pil ow with matching rings on it.

The pews were nearly fil ed between the Kenwoods and the men who worked for Leo, most of who were her kinsmen. Leo looked very handsome as he

stood beside Julian, ready to be both Julian’s man and the man who gave her into Julian’s keeping. As she reached the altar, she smiled at Julian’s

sisters and cousins, who had al insisted upon being her handmaidens.

Then she looked at Julian and felt the bite of panic. There was a darkness in his eyes, something that looked very much like grief. Did he now

realize that he stil loved Beatrice?

“Julian?” she whispered as she leaned toward him, unable to stop looking into his eyes as if she could read the answer to her fears there.

Julian knew she had seen the grief and shame he could not bury as deeply as he would like to. It astonished him that she could know him so wel .

When he saw the fear that darkened her eyes to almost black, he bent down and kissed her on the cheek.

“Hush, my little seer. What you see has naught to do with you or this marriage. It has to do with al that happened at Colinsmoor while Beatrice and

Arthur ruled here.”

“What—”

“No. It is dark and unpleasant and I refuse to al ow it to intrude on our wedding day.”

Chloe nodded and soon found herself kneeling beside Julian as they exchanged their vows. He spoke in a clear, firm voice, revealing no

hesitation about binding himself to her for life. She did her best to sound as confident as he did. When he kissed her, she felt a tenderness in the caress that she had never felt before, and her lingering fear faded away.

The food and drink were joyful y consumed by the guests and Chloe felt her spirits lighten as she wove through the crowd, speaking with each one

and accepting their congratulations. She thought it a little amusing that her relatives were al male and, except for Anthony, Julian’s were al females.

Knowing what incorrigible flirts her kinsmen could be, she was pleased to see that both Lady Mildred and Lady Evelyn were keeping a very close eye on

their daughters. She was just walking up to Leo when Anthony ran up to her and hugged her legs.

“You are looking very handsome today, young man,” she said as she stroked his curly hair. “Very manly.”

“That is what Papa and Leo said. You are my mama now.”

Chloe could not repress the wide smile that spread over her face. “Aye, I am.”

Anthony nodded. “That is what Papa told me, so I comed over to hug my new mama.”

Julian appeared and picked Anthony up. “Where are my thanks for getting you such a beautiful mama?”

“Thank you, Papa.”

“My pleasure.” Julian grinned and winked at Chloe. “Ah, I see that Greta has brought out some very fine cakes.”

“Cakes?” Anthony squirmed to get free even as his father set him down. “I needs to get some or the girls wil eatem al .”

“Ah, obviously there are a few gentlemanly manners we need to teach the boy,” he drawled as Anthony reached the table the cakes were on and

nudged his way to it through the girls. “Although I can hardly blame him. Greta makes some very good cakes.”

“I wil wander over and make the
oink
noise and that might slow him down,” said Leo. He paused by her side and kissed her cheek. “You make a

very lovely bride, cousin. I was almost sorry to hand my burden over to this rogue.”

Chloe gasped in outrage when she felt a distinct pinch on her bottom and she glared at her cousin’s back. Then she had to smile because she

knew he had just made the
oink
noise. Anthony looked at the cake he held in each hand and slowly put one back on the table. The girls were nearly

helpless with laughter.

“Did he just pinch your bottom?” Julian asked, leaning close to her ear to speak so that no one could overhear him.

“Aye, he did, and I wil make him pay for that sometime soon. That and cal ing me a burden.”

“Ah, wel , now you are my burden.” He laughed when she made a noise that sounded very much like a growl. “Exactly what is the
oink
noise?”

“Just what you think it is. It is a piglet sound. If you make it when Anthony is being particularly greedy, it slows him down. He put one cake back, did

he not?”

“And you do not believe he wil go back for it later?”

“Of course he wil , but later is better. If he stuffed al he wanted in his little face at one time, he would make himself sick.”

She leaned against him when she realized she could do so now. They were married. Even better, this was their wedding day, and even the most

pious could not object to a little show of affection on such a day.

Julian breathed deeply of her scent, a faint touch of lavender and beautiful, clean skin. His whole body tightened with need for her. He had missed

her in his bed, had even had some trouble getting to sleep because she was not curled up in his arms. It was probably a weakness but he could not make

himself care.

“We can slip away soon,” he said and brushed a kiss over the hol ow by her ear.

Chloe felt herself blush, which she thought was foolish. They had been lovers for weeks before this and had only spent a few nights apart.

However, this would be their first time as husband and wife. There would be no concern about being caught together or remembering to get back to the

right bed before any of the servants saw them. The only concern she had was that the moment she and Julian left the room, everyone would know what

they were going to do.

“And just where are we to slip away to?”

“Wel , there is a suite of rooms in the back that has been cleaned. It is to be our bower. A very nice bower it is, too. Food wil be brought to the little sitting room while we are al cozy in our bed and a bath wil be waiting for you if you want one.”

“I do not think we can slip away quietly or unnoticed.”

“It is al family here, Chloe. And with my mother and Lady Mildred here, there wil be none of those risqué remarks people like to hurl at a newly

wedded couple.”

“I hope you are right.”

He was not right, and Chloe had to laugh, for two of the worst offenders were his mother and his aunt. They were careful in what they said because

their daughters were in the room but the men, Chloe, and Julian knew just what they were saying. Stil laughing about it and Julian’s discomfort, which stil tinted his cheeks a very nice rose, Chloe broke free of his hold and skipped into their suite.

“It is lovely, Julian,” she said as she peered into the bedchambers on either side of the large sitting room. Huge windows looked out onto the

garden. She caught a quick glimpse of it before Julian closed the curtains.

“And very private, away from the rest of the family and the kitchens.” He grinned as he slid his arms around her waist. “Not so far that the food wil

be cold by the time it reaches us, however. We wil go on a proper wedding journey when Arthur is caught. But for now, we can pretend this is our little

cottage by the sea.”

“Not by the sea,” she said and kissed him under the chin. “The lakes.”

“Even better. I admit that I prefer the lakes, and I have a smal property there that I believe you wil love.”

She almost told him that she would love any place as long as he was with her, but she hastily bit the words back. Chloe did not want to make him

feel uncomfortable or pushed into a corner. It was going to be difficult because her love for him seemed to fil every corner of her heart, but she had to go slowly.

“Now let me see if I can get you out of al this finery.”

It did not take him long and Chloe pushed aside the smal pinch of jealousy she felt as she considered where he had gained his experience in

removing a woman’s clothing. He was a man of thirty who had been married before, she sternly reminded herself. Men struggled to get as much

experience as they could from the moment their voice grew lower and a few spindly hairs appeared on their chests. Her randy brothers had proved that

often enough.

As he nudged her toward the bed, he stripped her down to her shift and undid her hair. Chloe was busy herself, stripping him of his coat,

waistcoat, and shirt. She was just about to undo his trousers when he gently pushed her down onto the bed. Throwing aside al modesty, she sprawled on

her back and watched him shed the last of his clothes.

Julian Kenwood was a wel -built man, she decided. He was gloriously male from his broad shoulders right down to his long, narrow feet and every

lovely taut, muscular inch in between. Her gaze settled on his manhood, erect and growing larger right before her eyes.

She suddenly thought of the way he had used his mouth and tongue so intimately on her, on how it made her crazed, and she sat up. Reaching out,

she wrapped her hand around his erection and stroked him very gently. He groaned softly and clutched at her shoulders. Taking that as a sign of approval,

she leaned forward and kissed the broad tip that glistened slightly.

“Chloe,” he said in a choked voice, “are you sure you want to do that?”

“You do not like it?” she asked and then slowly ran her tongue along his length, knowing by the way he shuddered that he liked it very much.

“Women do not like to do it.” Julian was astonished that he could stil talk, as his blood was running so hot it should have boiled his brain.

“Wel , let us just see if I am one of those women.”

She used his reactions to learn what he liked as she made love to him with her mouth. His obvious pleasure fed her own until she thought she

would have to drag him onto the bed and leap on him. She took him into her mouth and gently sucked and his whole body rocked toward her, so she did it

again. A moment later she found herself flat on her back and watched her shift go sailing out over the room.

“I cannot wait,” he growled and reached down to test her readiness with his fingers.

Finding her hot and wet nearly had him spil ing his seed on her bel y. He bent down to kiss her even as he thrust inside her. Chloe cried out his

name and wrapped her slender, strong legs around his waist. The last clear thought he had was that he had final y found the adventurous lover he had

always wanted.

Some wonderful person had put a bowl of water and several cloths right on a table next to the bed, Julian noticed, so that he did not even have to

try to walk after he final y rol ed his weak and sated body off his new wife. He had to smile when Chloe barely twitched as he cleaned her off and then

himself. He blindly tossed the used cloth in the direction of the table, reached for a flatteringly limp Chloe, and pul ed her into his arms. He decided he real y liked the way she curled up against him, kissed his chest, and then idly rubbed her cheek against it before settling down.

He was married again and he actual y felt happy. Then he recal ed what he had found that morning and he sighed. Chloe proved yet again how

wel she sensed his moods by lightly stroking his chest.

“We found the pit,” he said abruptly and was not surprised when she hugged him and kissed his chin. “Five men were in it. Wel , four men and one

who was barely a man. Al kil ed because they knew too much and were honorable men who would tel me, or because Beatrice wanted them and they did

not succumb to her charms.”

Chloe lifted herself just enough to brush her mouth over his. “It is not your fault,” she said.

“I am their lord. I should have been watching out for them. I left her here time and time again to manage things while I was off playing lord of the

manor at the House of Lords.”

“Where you are expected to go from time to time. And every man leaves his wife to manage his home when he has to go to work. Julian, no one,

no matter how suspicious their nature, would ever have thought such things were being done while he was away.”

“But I found out the truth about my uncle and my wife and I just left.”

“You found out they were betraying you. That does not suggest that they were murdering people and throwing them into an unmarked grave. It took

you a long time to accept that they were trying to kil you. Nay, Julian, this was not your fault. We have buried one of those beasts and soon we wil bury the other. That is what you must do now that you have learned the depths of their depravity. You find justice.”