“Yes.”
“Stubborn man.” Beth grumbled at her bath water as she scrubbed herself.
“What shall you do?” Althea had enough to juggle with the business expansion and keeping her relationship with Evan quiet, but she hated seeing her cousin despondent. Then again, with Evan coming to her house, privacy suddenly felt important.
Beth grinned. “What you don’t know can’t get me in trouble, cuz.”
Althea rolled her eyes. “I am in too good a mood to worry about it. Just be careful, please.”
“Yes, mother.” Beth stuck her tongue out at her, flicking water toward where Althea sat, still in a wrapper. “What are you planning on wearing this evening?”
“I do not know. He’s coming here, so I shan’t dress to go out.”
“Right. You should absolutely dress to stay in, cuz.”
Althea raised questioning brows.
“Do you remember the corset I talked you into that you thought was scandalous, but was perfect for under that one ballgown?”
“Yes. But if I’m not going out—”
“Take one of my chemises. They are shorter than yours. And likely a little lower cut on average. Wear it under that corset. No knickers under the chemise. And your wrapper. Have a bit of wine or sherry andlounge.”
“I don’t normally lounge in a corset. Especially without a dress over it.”
“That does not matter. You are dressing for a man. The idea is suspension of disbelief. He shan’t focus on the improbability. He’ll see your breasts on display, your waist sucked in, all under the thin veil of your wrapper. Lounge in your room, of course. I shall leave my door closed, you leave yours ajar, and send the servants to bed early.”
The store and partnership papers were forgotten as Althea focused on seducing—to the best of her ability—the most sexually knowledgeable earl in Britain. Her body hummed in anticipated pleasure. The folds of flesh between her legs, so recently cleaned and dried, grew swollen and damp again.
She struggled into the corset and threw on her day dress to go ask the kitchen to send a supper tray, Scotch, and wine to her room for the evening. The staff was well-trained enough not to ask about her sudden taste for whisky. After her meal had been delivered and she’d dismissed the servants for the night, she ignored Beth’s closed door and pretended to believe the girl was inside as she crept down to unlock the back door. She’d give Evan a key when he arrived.
In her room, she removed the dress, leaving on a chemise and the daring cream satin and bone corset that Beth had helped her don. Drawing her simple white wrapper on, she caught her reflection in the mirror before she tied it around her. The satin was a shade warmer than her skin, the wrap a shade paler. With the fireplace behind her, she could see the silhouette of her cinched-in form through the muslin. She ran her hands down her body as she watched, sucking in a breath as she imagined they were Evan’s hands. Her nipples poked through the thin chemise, the corset framing each breast but not covering it.
Hurry, Evan.
She sat, sipped wine. Stood, then paced. Sat again and sipped. Seeing a drop of red wine caught on the rim of the cup, she swiped her thumb across it and brought it to her mouth to suck at the wine.
The door swung open farther, and there he stood, his gaze heating when he discovered her state of undress. He, too, was less formal than usual, having forgone a cravat and waistcoat and wearing a dark jacket and trousers.
He stared at her thumb, still resting on her lower lip. On instinct, she pushed the length of it into her mouth, hollowing her cheeks as her throat worked to suck it. She nearly groaned at her own eroticism and wished it was his cock.
“Althea. Damn me, I missed you.”
She pulled her hand away. “Show me.” Her voice surprised them both with its huskiness.
He closed and locked the door, strode to pull her up, and jerked her to him.
Althea gasped at the heat of his body against hers, feeling it more intensely with fewer layers than usual between them. She shoved at his jacket but lost focus and clung to him when his lips found hers, plundering and sucking at her mouth. They needed to be skin-to-skin, that very moment, or she might expire from need. Her chemise chafed the hard tips of her breasts, and her hips flexed forward against his.
His hands were at her waist, then her wrapper was gone. His jacket hit the floor. His teeth clamped gently on her lower lip, and he licked it once before releasing it to mutter, “You want me to show you?”
“Yes. Oh please, Evan.” She dared to palm his cock through his pants, and a rush of heat filtered through her.That. I want that inside me. I’m not sure I care where.
“Oh, you want to see that? Right, then. You shall see it up close.” He pushed her back down in the chair, tore off his shirt, and unbuttoned the fall of the trousers.
“Yes. This.” Her hands were there before he’d peeled the edges back, drawing him out carefully. Her tongue swept out to lick her lips in hunger. “Delicious.”
“You’d best check.”
