Page 13 of When She Loved Me
A thick brow raised in his too-thin face. “Rather jaded, that judgment,” he said with a queer little smile.
“Am I far off the mark?” She wondered, leaning back in the chair.
“I suppose not,” he answered, his present stare causing her a bit of alarm. “But some people, I believe, are genuine despite society’s creed that all this market business is only that—business.”
“Perhaps,” was all she allowed, but her mind was again thinking on Trevor.
“Come upstairs with me, Nicole.” Edmund urged, standing again. “Dance with me,” he said, putting great emphasis on ‘me’, intimating that his interest was sincere.
Nicole was saved having to answer by the arrival of Trevor himself, throwing open the door fully and giving a hard glare at poor Edmund.
“My future sister-in-law has promised this set to me,” Trevor said, his voice clipped.
TREVOR’S ANNOYANCEonly grew as the much younger man showed only a self-possession and not even a small fear, despite Trevor’s darkest scowl. The viscount did not scurry to be away, but sauntered actually, Trevor thought with growing intolerance. And then the young viscount risked his life yet more by giving only a half-hearted and unintimidated apology for his attempts to sway Miss Kent, though Trevor had only a moment ago quite clearly and brazenly heard the man call her Nicole.
Wanting very badly to close the door behind the man, Trevor denied himself the possibilities that action might allow and turned to face Nicki, still sitting in his chair. He liked her there, despite the fact that her eyes were unsettled upon him, and hewas then disheartened when she stood and came around the desk, trying to leave the room as well.
“What is it about you and strange men in darkened places with no other persons around?”
“I did not invite Edmund—”
“I’ve cautioned you about this before,” he growled at her, catching her wrist in a tight grip as she attempted to sidle around him and away from him. “If I so much as catch you wandering in darkened rooms or upon terraces or in gardens without a chaperone, I will return you so fast to Kent House, those curls of yours will spin into tight knots upon your head.”
Her dander rose, he could see it in her eyes, storminess replacing the wariness, her brows crinkling over darkened green.
“Sounds shamefully equal to the wolf guarding the sheep, my lord,” she said, a bit of an uncharacteristic sneer to her tone. “You of all people haven’t any justification to treat me in such an irrational manner and with such coarse behavior.” She looked down to where his hand held her wrist.
He was overbearing, he knew. He couldn’t seem to help himself. He didn’t care that Sabrina quite obviously preferred another man to him. Oh, it made him angry, but not because of the obvious rejection, and Sabrina’s unwillingness to even give him a chance, but rather because of his own distaste, being the one who was removing all their choices. Regarding Nicki, there was an anger, illogical though it be—she wasn’t his, for God’s sake!
“If you won’t guard your reputation, Nicki, then I will. I’ll have to soon enough, if I’m to be part of your family. Someone has to take control of you.”
She stared at him, aghast, her expression telling him in no uncertain terms that she thought—correctly—that he wasindeed acting absurdly. With great intent, she said to him, “It is not presently your duty to see after me. Perhaps it never will be, if Sabrina and Marcus Trent have anything to say about it.”
“I don’t give a damn about Marcus Trent!”
Toe to toe now, she raged right back at him. “You are betrothed to Sabrina! Chase her around with your brooding presence—why do you care what I do?”
With a gentler tone, seemingly hampered by his own demons, he said, “Christ, Nicki. I can’t seem to help myself.” And he swept her up in his arms and kissed her. It was easy to ignore her want to be away, easy to manipulate her body against him that in a moment she was pliable and near eager in his arms, her lips soft as he ground his against her. He persuaded her to open for him, sliding his tongue into the sweet wetness of her, tasting her. His arms flexed, crushing her more tightly against the hardness of him, then sliding lower, cupping the rounds of her bottom, bringing her hotly against his fast growing erection. She allowed this, moaning into his mouth, answering his need with a passion of her own until her hands raised, not pulling him closer, but pushing him away.
“Please don’t do this to me, my lord,” she begged in a broken whisper against his lips. “I can only stand so much.”
Barely raising his head, so that still their noses almost touched, Trevor replied, “But you see where the problem lies, little Nicki. You respond so sweetly—you taste so damn good—how can I resist you?”
“This has to stop. We cannot pursue this, my lord,” she persisted. “This is madness! Perhaps,” she continued, drawing further away from him, until they only touched where her handsheld still at his forearms, “we might be best served if I went away for a while.”
Instantly, he was still and frowning darkly. “Go where? You cannot leave, Nicki. Not now.”
She moaned audibly. “If not now, when? After we’ve...sinned completely against my sister?” She removed her hands from his arms, clasping them together in front of her.
“Goddamn Sabrina!” He cursed thickly.
“My lord, you are betrothed to her—do you not even consider that?”
“Not when you are in my arms.”
“And when I am not?” She asked sadly.
“I think about getting you there.” He reached for her again, his hands on her hips. She closed her eyes against his touch, and he knew she steeled herself not to respond.
