Love Redeemed (7 page)

She dug in, her body stiffening, and Brennan had no clue how to prevent it. “Serena. Now come, sweetheart. I want to buy you a bunch of beautiful things. Why won’t you let me?”

Her chin tilted up in defiance. “It is not necessary. That is not why I am here, and it’s ridiculous to spend so much money on clothing. Obscene really.”

Recognizing defeat, Brennan let the issue of the two frocks go. However, the modiste had her measurements, he could order additional items without her agreement. “Very well. I will deal with Madame Le Fleur. Do you like what you selected?”

“I do. They are quite lovely.” Her smile eased his irritation.

“Excellent, we should take you out and let all of London see you.”

“Oh.” She appeared daunted by the notion of venturing into society on his arm.

He hauled her against his chest and ravished her mouth. Driving his tongue into the wet cavity, he stroked her teeth and over the hard palette.

Separating to catch their breath, he looked deep into her eyes and experienced a wave of pure emotion unlike anything previous. Sweeping her into his arms, he walked to the settee and lowered her legs. Her breath hitched, causing her chest to rise and fall in a sensual heave designed to torment him. His gaze wandered over her collarbone, and the urge to nibble and taste her there made his knees weak.

Lowering his head, he sprinkled light kisses from her jaw down to that oh so tempting ridge. He sucked on the prominent edge as though he could draw the marrow through her skin. Her moan cut through the haze of lust and helped him resume his oral exploration. Deft fingers unlaced her bodice letting it droop to expose her linen-clad breasts. Such lush curves on his woman. He molded one with his hand, while the other one gripped her bottom and pinned her to his hips.

With a slow, taunting grind of her pelvis, his control snapped. He loosened her petticoats and shoved them down her hips. “You women wear too many bloody clothes,” he mumbled in frustration as he ripped at the laces of her corset. If he had a knife, he’d cut the damned thing off.

“One could say much the same of men.” Her breathy rejoinder slithered over his ragged patience. At last, the corset came loose leaving nothing but the fine linen chemise as a barrier. In a single swift motion he ripped the fabric right down the center leaving the frayed edges at her sides and her breasts exposed. “Brennan!” She pushed at his shoulders. “That was my good chemise.”

“I’ll buy you another one.” He growled and trapped her arms at her sides ceasing her feeble display of resistance.
Mine
. He latched on to one breast and sucked the hardening peak into his mouth. Still, she writhed in his arms as though struggling until a sexy little whimper escaped. He released her arms to better hold her while she gripped his head and urged him closer.

Yes, she belonged to him. She responded like no other. He switched to her other side to lap and nibbled the twin tip. She had such fantastic nipples, long and made for a man’s mouth. His cock throbbed as it chafed against his trousers. After retreating a step, he peeled off his clothes in the span of a few heartbeats.

She shed her ruined chemise and sat with her legs splayed on the settee in an obvious erotic pose. He lunged toward her, crazed with lust. Dropping to his knees, he spread her glistening folds and slipped his tongue over the engorged flesh. Her tangy sweetness burst over his taste buds zinging straight to his groin. The tightening of his balls was painfully exquisite. “Play with your nipples while I sip from your body…your deliciously sinful body.”

She groaned, but followed his directions. A heady rush of pleasure at her small submission flowed through him as he returned to licking her pussy. Surrounded by her sweet smell and decadent flavor, he knelt and immersed himself in the woman he loved with no place else he’d rather be. Sliding two fingers into her soaked core, he fingered her in time with the pulsing sucks of his mouth on her clit. Her hips thrust into his hand and face as she sought to quicken the pace. No. It was his orgasm to gift her, and he would not let her take control. He used his free hand to press her hips into the cushion and still her movements. Her panting evened out as he waited for her to settle.

“Slide to the edge of the couch.”

She complied again. Moving her bottom to balance at the edge of the cushion, she leaned her head against the back of the furniture. Satisfied, he resumed his ministrations. Collecting as much of her cream as he could, he removed his fingers and dragged them down to the tight sphincter of muscle. He swirled the tips of his fingers over it, causing it to ripple in awareness. Desire snaked through him as he slid the first finger in causing him to groan at the tight grasp on the digit. He could imagine how snug she would feel when wrapped around his cock.

She moaned and urged him on, so he added the second finger. With a gasp, she tensed then relaxed at the intrusion. Working the two fingers in and out of her forbidden entrance, he resumed tormenting her swollen nub. Her cries escalated and she exploded on his tongue with very little encouragement. Her backside clamped down on his fingers, grinding them together as he worked to pump them in and out to prolong her orgasm.

She floated in the aftermath of release, very relaxed. Limp on the couch. He spread the fingers still lodged in her rear to open her wider for his cock. He wanted to bury himself in her and claim her in a way no other had before him. He burned with the selfish need to imprint himself on her so thoroughly she could no longer deny their connection. When he added a third finger, a moan ripped from her. His desire surged from the ashes of her climax.

Realizing he had no salve available to ease his entry, he slipped his fingers from her bottom, rose, and slung her nakedness over his shoulder. Peeking into the hall, he spied no servants and made a quick dash to his chamber. There, he dropped her facedown on the bed and dug into the drawer in his nightstand. A jar of salve awaited this moment. He pulled it out and slathered it on his cock. Using the remains on his fingers, he pushed past the rosebud and worked to stretch her a bit more. Satisfied he’d made her as ready as possible, he raised her up on hands and knees and nudged her opening with the tip of his rigid cock. He shoved forward slowly, working the crown of his erection past the tight grip of muscles. With the head in, a burst of lightheadedness whipped through him at the intense heat of her body. Shaking it off, he drove deeper until she gasped.

“Wait.” She panted and squirmed, forcing him a bit deeper. “More.” Her husky demand made his toes curl and his balls draw up. He took a deep breath and plunged the rest of the way in as she pushed back against him. Fully seated, he savored the moment, reveling in the tight clutch of her channel around his cock. The snugness was even better than he had imagined.

In a slow, delicious slide, he withdrew until just the glans remained within. Then, he pushed back inside. With each stroke, he increased the pace and power of the thrusts. Reaching down between her legs, he sought out her clit and stroked it. Once. Twice. Three times and she exploded. Her back passage clamped down around his cock, squeezing and releasing in a rhythm that gave no quarter. The first wave washed over him in a gentle caress, but as he continued pumping into her, it grew into a tidal wave sweeping the breath from his lungs and thought from his mind. He grunted and groaned, burying his cock in her ass to the hilt. The burst of semen into her body only added to the searing warmth surrounding him.

Withdrawing from her, he fell over and lay there panting. Stretched out on her stomach, she nestled up to him and sighed.

“I could never have imagined how wonderful that could feel.”

He slid his arms around her. “I didn’t hurt you?”

“No. It pinched at first, but the pleasure wiped out all sense of discomfort. I just felt so full, fantastically full.”

He kissed her. A long, lingering kiss that said everything he couldn’t express with words.

***

The following weeks were a blur of activity as Serena settled in to life with Brennan. He treated her to a new wardrobe, replete with shoes, gloves, hats, and all the sheer unmentionables a girl could desire. They spent every evening together, often times making love, and her days were her own to command except when he came home to lunch with her. Without question, life was good.

They had spent four blissful weeks together when reality set in. In the library retrieving another book, Serena heard a female voice in the foyer.

“Good day, Green. Is my brother at home?” Lady Thornton’s voice rang out.

“No, my lady. He is at his office, I believe,” Brennan’s butler said.

“Very good. Is the woman staying here with him available?”

“Oh—um. I…uh…” he stuttered and sputtered.

Taking a deep breath, Serena stepped out of the relative safety of the library and into the sun-drenched foyer. “Why hello, Lady Thornton. It is nice to see you again.”

“You? Why Serena, I had heard that some trollop resided with my brother. Whatever are you doing here?” Lady Thornton looked truly confused while the servant turned beet red.

Serena took control of the situation. “Green, will you bring tea into the parlor for Lady Thornton and me?”

“Yes, ma’am.” He nodded and left the two women.

“Lady Thornton, why don’t we sit in the parlor and I can explain.”

“I think that would be best.” The veritable dragon Brennan often described followed Serena into the parlor where they sat across from each other.

Serena set her book aside and faced the very proper woman. She hesitated, wishing Brennan was there and yet glad he would not witness what was to come. Taking a deep breath, she steeled herself for the inevitable storm. “I am in fact the trollop staying with your brother.”

Lady Thornton blinked once very slowly. “I fail to see how that could be true. Both you and Brennan know better than to do something like this. Clearly there is some explanation.”

“The night I met you, your brother, in all innocence, invited me to dinner after meeting me on Bond Street. I was…curious what it might be like to be treated as something other than what I am.”

Green entered the room bearing a teacart with minitarts and finger sandwiches. He bowed to both ladies and made a quick departure. Serena gathered her composure and continued.

“As I was saying, Brennan had no idea who or what I was. After that night, I disappeared, as you might know, because I avoided Bond Street. I doubt any of your family’s acquaintances would know me or acknowledge knowing me.” She poured two dishes of tea. “Cream or sugar?”

“Just one lump of sugar, please.” Lady Thornton reached out to take the beverage. “True, I doubt they would know you under those circumstances.”

“Just so.” Serena nodded and took a sip of her own tea. “It happened that a month later Brennan appeared at the establishment where I work.”

She drew a sharp breath, her eyebrows nearly meeting her hairline at the notion of her brother’s activities including a visit to a brothel. “Never say. I cannot imagine him doing such a thing.”

“Yes, well he did. It turned out he requested a redhead, which led him to me. He was, of course, stunned to find me there and quite confused until I explained the truth to him. I lied, deceiving him the night of the dinner party. I have apologized to him, and now owe you one for having knowingly exposed you to someone of my background. I am sure it is quite inappropriate for you to associate with someone such as myself.”

Lady Thornton’s eyes snapped with a steely glare. “So you deceived my brother and everyone he introduced you to.”

“Yes.” Serena stared at her hands clutched in her lap.

“This is disgraceful. Have you no shame, taking advantage of him like this?” Her tea abandoned, Lady Thornton rose to pace the floor.

Heat bloomed in Serena’s cheeks; her shame swallowed her whole, and yet she would not allow Lady Thornton to believe she took advantage of Brennan. “No! Never! After your brother found me, he arranged a contract for my services for six months and installed me here. I at least managed to keep him from his original notion.” Serena held her hands out, begging the angry woman to understand.

“His original notion?” Lady Thornton looked surprised. “Are you suggesting he might have married you? Absolutely unacceptable, that would destroy this family’s reputation. No upstanding merchant would do business with Brennan.” Horror etched on her face as she considered the idea. She continued to pace, muttering to herself all along.

Serena caught bits and pieces of her monologue, including one troubling bit about canning someone. Whether such punishment was meant for her or Brennan she was unsure.

Then the pinched quality relaxed from Lady Thornton’s face, replaced by a thoughtful look. “I am a member of the Women’s Improvement Society. We help prostitutes get off the streets and start a new life. I am sure I could assist you, but you will leave my brother alone.” Lady Thornton stopped and locked gazes with her.

Striving for a calm soothing tone so not to upset the woman any more, she tried to explain. “Lady Thornton, I will not leave my life. It is all I know, all I have ever known as the daughter of a prostitute. Everything I am I owe to Madame Marchander. She taught me to be a lady. She gave me a place to live and work where I am treated fairly and earn more money than I ever could working in a factory or selling flowers on the corner.”

“I do understand. I have seen too many of the women we try to help return to that life for those very reasons. But surely we could provide you with a better situation.” She returned to her seat.

“Yes. We could, but the stubborn chit we are dealing with would refuse. Wouldn’t she?” Brennan stalked into the parlor as the clock struck two in the afternoon.

“What are you doing home at this hour?” Surprised, Serena’s face warmed as he bussed her cheek in his customary greeting and sat down.

“Green sent a note around when you invited the dragon to have tea and discuss our living arrangements.” Brennan helped himself to a dish of tea and relaxed back.

“Finally that bumbling butler of yours shows some promise,” Lady Thornton snapped at her brother.