Dangerous Desires Page 6

  “And to think many call him a rakehell.”

  Though Arlie hated to admit Dominic was a rakehell of the worse sort, she knew it was true. But despite that knowledge, she still felt unwanted desire whenever he was around. All he had to do was look at her and the hair on her arms stood on end. He made her thoughts turn wicked—to things no virgin should ever think of, yet she couldn’t help it. She wanted to see his body, to learn every line, every muscle. She longed to touch his dark skin, to feel the length of his manhood. She wanted him to take her virginity, to take her to stars and make her feel like the heroines in those naughty stories she read. “Why do they call him a rakehell?” she asked, although she already knew the answer. She had witnessed it firsthand.

  “My dear Miss Whitman, it’s not right for me to go into any of that, especially since you are in the man’s care. Let me just say that many find it hard to believe he is a good choice to serve as your guardian. He has a reputation with women that is not, how do I put this, flattering.”

  She bristled at the words, hating how protective she felt of Dominic. She released Daniel’s elbow. “Rochford is a wonderful guardian. He’s given me the best of everything.”

  Daniel walked over to the shade of an old oak tree, just far enough from the others to have a little privacy, yet close enough for propriety’s sake. She followed him.

  He took one of her hands within his own. “I’ve upset you.”

  He appeared distraught, so she smiled. “Rochford’s my guardian, and he doesn’t deserve what is being said about him.”

  He nodded, and they spoke no more of Rochford, much to Arlie’s relief. Time passed quickly and Arlie enjoyed Daniel’s companionship. He took the liberty of introducing her to many of the guests, most of whom she had met the previous night but had forgotten in the excitement. All were very kind, as well as curious about her life before coming to live with Dominic. One man in particular asked a lot of questions, mostly about her background. Arlie carefully answered, hoping she sounded convincing when she lied and told them her father had been a baron.

  When the group turned back to the manor, Arlie sensed Daniel’s disappointment at returning so soon. With a sigh he extended his arm and they headed back, lingering behind the others.

  Arlie took the arm he offered and enjoyed the peacefulness of the late morning. She breathed deeply of the morning air and smiled as a flock of sparrows flew overhead. Content, she listened to Daniel talk about his family in America.

  “Will you be staying in London long?” Arlie asked as the manor came into sight.

  Daniel’s eyes gleamed as he stared down at her and then stopped altogether. Arlie guessed he thought her question meant she hoped he would be staying on for a while. He turned to her, taking both his hands within his own. “It depends…”

  Rather than ask what it depended on, she smiled, letting him come to his own conclusion.

  “I would like very much to spend more time with you, Miss Whitman. I know we have only just met, but I feel I have known you for—” His gaze had shifted to something beyond her shoulder. “Your guardian does not appear happy, Miss Whitman.” Daniel dropped her hands, and Arlie turned.

  On the manor’s steps, hands planted firmly on his narrow hips, stood Dominic. Though Arlie could not see his expression from where she and Daniel stood, she could guess by Rochford’s body language alone that Daniel was right. He was not happy.

  She frowned. What in the world could he be so upset about? Certainly it couldn’t be that she and Daniel had gone for a walk. Good gracious, it was ridiculous that he should be angry with her, especially when it was mid-morning. Plus they’d been surrounded by a crowd of at least twenty or more people, and Daniel had been a perfect gentleman…a quality Dominic would know nothing about.

  And why did she care what he thought anyway? Why wasn’t he off with his married mistress?

  “It’s fine,” she said softly, reassuringly. She took his hand in her own, finding a perverse pleasure in doing so knowing that Dominic watched her every move. As though reading her thoughts, Rochford walked down the steps and onto the gravel. He looked menacing. Thankfully the others who had returned before them had gone into the house, and no one else was about save a gardener who paid them no heed.

  Arlie glanced over at Daniel and noticed the sheen of sweat on his brow. “He is harmless, really.”

  “I hope you’re right, Miss Whitman.”

  “Miss Whitman.” Dominic’s voice was lethal.

  Arlie noticed the change in his appearance from the night before. Rochford had dark circles beneath his eyes, and he was sallow beneath his usual olive tone. Dark stubble along his jaw line made him look even more dangerous. Apparently, he’d had a little too much to drink—or his mistress had kept him up all night.

  “Yes, my lord,” she said, trying hard to sound civil.

  “I thought you still abed yet I hear it on good authority you decided to take a stroll with Mr. Butler here,” he said without even glancing in Daniel’s direction.

  “There were others with us, my lord. We were not without a chaperone.”

  “Oh?” he queried, one dark brow lifted high. “About a quarter of an hour ago a small group returned from a walk. When I asked if you were with them, they told me that you were with Mr. Butler. So, I waited patiently…and then I waited some more. Everyone came back to the house together, save the two of you, which would leave you without a chaperone.”

  She wanted to tell him that she and Daniel had only been alone for a brief period and that nothing could happen in that space of time. Then she remembered who she spoke to. The Earl of Rochford could accomplish a lot in a matter of minutes. Arlie sighed heavily. “I am here now.” A small group had walked out onto the steps, and Arlie could feel their stares. Her cheeks grew hot. “Please, you are making a scene,” she said under her breath.

  Daniel stepped forward. “I apologize, Lord Rochford, for my impropriety. I take complete responsibility. The time simply got away from us. It shall not happen again.”

  Dominic’s gaze shifted abruptly to Daniel, his blue eyes blazing with a fury Arlie had never witnessed. She could sense the tension in Daniel as he met her guardian’s brutal glare. “You’re damn right it won’t happen again.”

  Daniel flinched as though he’d been struck, but to his credit he remained silent.

  “I suggest you use more sense in the future, Mr. Butler. That is, if you value that handsome face of yours. Now I will have a word with my ward in private.”

  Daniel’s throat convulsed as he swallowed hard, and turned to face Arlie. “Miss Whitman, I apologize for having caused you trouble. I hope to see you again.” With a curt nod, he walked away.

  Dominic stared at her. She could see the nerve tick in his jaw and again wondered why he was so angry. It wasn’t as though she and Daniel were married to other people and cuckolding their partners right beneath everyone’s noses. The man had not even attempted to kiss her.

  When he continued to say nothing, she moved past him, but his hand swept out and grabbed her wrist. “We need to talk. Will you walk with me?”

  Though it was a question, Arlie knew she had little choice but to go with him. He dropped her wrist, and she released the breath she’d been holding. Her heart pounded—from anger or reaction to his touch, she knew not which.

  She walked the immaculate and private garden in silence, watching him under her eyelashes as he kept a good distance between them. Arlie turned her attention to the carefully tended rows of flowerbeds, gravel pathways and enormous fountain in the center. Knowing the beautiful gardens belonged to Veronica took the pleasure from her.

  A good five minutes passed in silence before Dominic said, “Arlie, I’m not used to being responsible for another person. After last night I was concerned—”

  She turned abruptly, surprised to hear him apologize. “We didn’t do anything wrong. I swear it.”

  “I know. You just worried me.”

  “You shouldn’t be. I’
m a grown woman.”

  He ran a hand through his hair and looked to the distance. “I’m reminded of that every time I look at you.”

  At one time she might have taken that as a compliment, but now she didn’t know how to take such a comment. She didn’t understand him. One minute he wanted her to find a husband, and the next he was angry with her for doing exactly what he wanted her to do.

  His gaze shifted back to her. “I know how men can be, and even Mr. Butler is no exception.”

  Undeniably, he was right, but she couldn’t resist saying, “You should remember your words to me when we met. You said you planned on finding a husband for me. How can I do that without spending time with a man?”

  He actually looked stricken at her words. “It is only your first outing. You don’t have to court the first man you meet.”

  “True, but you said yourself that within a few months time you expected to place an announcement in The Times. By my estimation, I have less than two months to go. And to be perfectly honest, I don’t want to waste any more precious time. There are a few nice men here, and Daniel is…” she groped for the right words. She glanced at Rochford. His eyes narrowed, but she continued, “He is a nice man, handsome and very kind.”

  All expression slid from Rochford’s face, and Arlie smiled, glad to see her words hit a nerve. “He is witty, charming and I adore his accent.”

  “Well, I wish you and Mr. Butler all the best,” he said through clenched teeth.

  “Your approval of Mr. Butler means so very much,” she said in her sweetest voice. He opened his mouth, but before he could reply, she kissed him on the cheek. “You see my lord, being a guardian is not so difficult.”

  Chapter Five

  It was the longest day of his life.

  Dominic sat back in his chair, watching the group of young men surround Arlie. She had just played a minuet, and as always, she enraptured one and all. Dominic was amazed by her talent, and even more so by her elegance, wondering again where she came by it.

  Glancing at the clock, he moaned inwardly seeing it was only eight o’clock. He was exhausted. He wanted nothing more than to find his bed and sleep off his hangover, but he couldn’t when he had to play chaperone to his ward and her following of eager young men.

  He caught his grandmother’s bemused expression from across the room and quickly looked away. She was enjoying his discomfort far too much.

  Dominic declined the glass of wine a servant held out to him. He had no intention of having a repeat performance of the previous night. Last night after drinking a carafe of brandy, he’d gone back to the party and continued to drink, thinking alcohol could wipe away thoughts of his beautiful young ward, and it had for a little while. Yet when he woke this morning, his head ached so much it felt like it would split in two. Then memories of the night before marched through his mind, reminding him how disastrous the combination of too much alcohol and a willing woman could be.

  Veronica had come to him and they had had sex. He had hoped he could slake his desire, but it didn’t work. When Veronica had caressed his cock and wantonly taken it in her mouth, it had been Arlie’s elegant fingers and sweet mouth he’d wished for. And when he’d cried out his release, finally, he had very nearly screamed Arlie’s name. What the hell was wrong with him? Arlie was a complete innocent. He had to stop thinking about her.

  When Veronica had left she’d mentioned visiting him again tonight. Dear Lord, he hoped not. He had no intention of carrying the affair on a day longer. For too long he had pretended to have no conscience concerning Veronica, but now he had someone else to think of.

  Arlie’s laughter brought him out of his musings. What a fair beauty—like a flower waiting to be plucked. Daniel was obviously enthralled with her. He’d been her constant companion all day.

  It annoyed Dominic that Arlie and Daniel’s names had already been linked as a couple. Before he knew it, rumors of marriage would start flying…and they still had three days of the party left. Now more than ever he dreaded them.

  To make matters worse, Arlie’s anger had not abated, even though he had apologized for his behavior earlier. Obviously she was angry with him for being with Veronica. Would she think differently if she knew he’d been thinking of her while fucking the other woman?

  He closed his eyes. He was beyond redemption.

  “Do I sense trouble between you and your pretty little ward?”

  Dominic turned to Langley who took the seat beside him. His friend, as always, had a drink in hand and wore the smirk he liked to call a smile.

  “Tell me, old boy, when will you tell yourself that you feel something for the girl?”

  “Langley, I’m tired and you’re talking in riddles.”

  His laughter vibrated in Dominic’s ears. “I think you drank far too much last night, my friend. That is the only reason it sounds like a riddle. Tell me you don’t desire her.”

  Dominic shook his head, realizing Langley’s tongue loosened whenever he drank. He did not need more rumors flying.

  “I only want the best for her.”

  “Do you now?”

  When Dominic glanced at his friend, he noticed Langley wasn’t smiling. “Yes, I do.” And to his dismay, his voice even sounded unconvincing.

  “Sometimes what we want is right under our noses. You’ve never been the jealous type, my friend, yet one can see by the expression on your face that it doesn’t make you happy to see her with other men, myself included.”

  Knowing Langley wouldn’t shut up, he patted him on the shoulder. “And this from a man who has bedded every woman in this room, save only a few.”

  Langley looked around the room, his smile returning in force. “Indeed, I would have to say that for once you are right. Except of course for your grandmother, who can’t take her eyes off you by the way—oh, and I haven’t had the chance to get close enough to that little filly over there,” he replied, nodding in Arlie’s direction.

  Dominic frowned. “And you won’t get anywhere near her in the future.”

  “Well—”

  “Langley…”

  He sighed dramatically. “True, I am to be married, but Arlie would make a nice mistress. Indeed I wonder what she would think of my rented flat near Hanover Square.”

  A young woman sat down beside Langley, cutting their conversation short. Dominic turned to find Arlie involved in a game of charades. A light breeze blew through the room, beckoning him outside for fresh air.

  Stepping out onto the lit veranda, he stared up at the full moon wishing himself a long way from here…from all these snobs. Strange, but he wished himself at his country estate, Whitley—a place he usually avoided, except for emergencies, since his grandmother had laid claim to the home. His mother had always teased him, telling him there would come a day when he would yearn for his country home and be tempted to sell the others.

  God, was that what was happening to him now? Was he actually getting tired of all the people, the parties, the gossip? Perhaps it was his age. He was almost three and thirty and not getting any younger. Many of his friends had already settled down, some had children and spent most of their time at their country homes, except for a short season in London.

  “My lord?”

  He turned at the sound of Arlie’s voice.

  “Are you ill?” she asked, her voice mirroring the concern on her face.

  Aside from his mother, who had long been dead, he could not recall a time anyone worried about him the way she did. “I’m fine,” he replied, instantly warmed by her presence.

  Pulling the shawl tight around her shoulders, she looked up at the moon. “I love it when the moon is full. As a child I used to imagine it was a big ball of cheese and that if I reached high enough, I could pick off a piece.”

  He smiled at the image of a young Arlie reaching out to the sky, trying to capture the moon in her hands. “Are you enjoying yourself?”

  She nodded. “Yes, I have had great fun. I look forward to the hunt tomorrow.�
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  Despite his effort not to, he frowned. “You will be participating?”

  “I would like to,” she said with obvious hesitance. “If that is all right with you?”

  Surprised that she had actually asked his approval, he was ready to say yes when she added, “Daniel has asked me to ride with him.”

  “I prefer you come with me…”

  She nodded. “All right.”

  Her quick answer delighted him. All day she had avoided him like the plague, yet now she sought him out, making him believe that she wasn’t as angry with him as he’d originally thought. Or perhaps her anger had simply ebbed with time. He knew he had acted rashly this morning—like Langley said, rather like a jealous suitor. Thankfully, no one else save Daniel had taken much notice. He had to wonder if he could contain his emotions for a few more days. It seemed he had no choice…he was committed for the duration.

  “I’ll see you in the morning then,” she said, already heading back inside.

  “Are you going to bed?”

  She stopped and turned to face him, her eyes bright. “It’s been a long day and I didn’t sleep last night.”

  He watched her, wondering why she hadn’t slept well. A horrible thought crossed his mind. What if she’d heard he and Veronica together? Something in the way she stared at him made him think that might just be the case.

  * * * * *

  Arlie headed toward the staircase and stopped mid-stride upon hearing her name being called from the parlor. Frowning, she walked into the ostentatiously decorated room to find an older woman sitting in a Queen Anne chair. The woman had sharp features, and on her head she wore a turban that matched the pale green of her gown.

  Though the woman’s feet barely touched the floor, there was a regal quality about her.

  “Did you call me?” Arlie asked.

  “Yes, my dear, I did. Please, sit down.”

  Doing as the woman asked, Arlie took a seat beside her.

  The woman’s gaze swept over her. “You favor your mother, dear child.”