Chapter Twenty-Three
Lord Oliver, Duke of Hayesford
It was my wedding night, and my stomach was tied in knots. I stood inside my dressing room and shifted from foot to foot. I’d dismissed my valet after changing into my nightshirt and robe, the uneasiness I’d been fighting all night holding me in its grip. My mind screamed to go find Amelia, but my feet couldn’t seem to move from this spot. Oh how I wish Noah were present to guide me. I’d asked him to join us, and he’d turned me down. In hindsight, it was a cowardly thing to do on my part.
The slight displacement of air drifted up under the hem of my robe, the cooling effect soothing my overly heated body. I looked up to see Noah striding across the thick carpet. He must have entered through the sitting room that was situated between my room and Amelia’s.
My wife. Amelia was my wife.
Knees weak, I locked my legs in place and willed my fears aside. “You came. Does that mean you changed your mind about joining us?”
“No, it means nothing of the sort. I just wanted to check on you and see if you needed any last-minute advice. There is no shame in admitting you are nervous.” Noah placed his hand on my shoulder and squeezed. “Everything will be all right.”
“I pray you are right.” My hands were shaking, an utterly un-duke thing to happen. My father would be horrified if he’d seen me thus. Amelia would think me the worst sort of milksop when I desperately wanted her to see me as a man.
Warm lips settled on my cheek, his hand drifting down my upper back to relax on the curve of my bottom. I arched into his caress, his teeth tugging at my lobe. “Amelia is a sensual woman who welcomes your kisses. Be sure to play on that strength,” he said.
“I do enjoy her kisses.” It was one of my own strengths. I swallowed the uncertainty that rose into my throat. I hated to be horrible at anything, and successfully bedding Amelia was crucial to the happiness of my marriage. “It is the other part I worry about.”
He stepped in front of me. With an encouraging smile, he dragged his fingers over my belly and cupped my cock through the fabric. I gasped at the sensation, blood flooding into my groin. “You are overthinking this. Amelia is your friend. Tell her the truth. She will understand.”
A bark of incredulous laughter escaped. “Tell her I desire men? I don’t think even she will understand my unnatural desires.”
“Your desires aren’t unnatural.” He pumped my cock with more pressure, adding to my semi-aroused state. “They are honest and pure. It is society that’s the issue, not you.”
“We live by the rules of society, and I must comply, as must you.” I looped my arm around his neck and drew him in, my mouth finding his parted lips. He angled his chin, allowing my mouth to press tighter to his own.
A distinctive gasp sounded through the haze of passion enveloping me. “Oliver, oh my God,” Amelia said in a harsh whisper. “And Noah! Whatever is going on here?”
Noah stepped back, his frantic eyes moving from me to Amelia standing at the door. I cursed under my breath at my own imprudence in yielding to the impulse to kiss him.
“Amelia, it isn’t what you think,” I said, although I realized the foolishness of it the second the words escaped. I’d lost track of time, and my carelessness had resulted in an ill-advised confrontation.
“It isn’t what I think? I’ve been waiting for you to come to my room, and then I find you here kissing Noah. You were kissing Noah!” She clutched at the neckline of her gown. The white fabric was sheer, and the dusky tips of her nipples showed through the cotton. I tried not to stare and averted my gaze to Noah.
“To be fair to Oliver, I was kissing him.” Noah exhaled a long breath, but his calm demeanor never changed. I wished I could be as cool under pressure and keep my panic from rising.
“And you think there’s a difference?” She shook her head, fury dotting her cheeks. Hurt also rested in her eyes. Standing erect, she glared at me and Noah in turn.
I felt like the worse sort of heel for kissing someone else while married to her. It was unfair, and I needed to explain. Except there truly wasn’t an explanation past the obvious. “Well, I know it looks bad. But it’s not what you think. Well, it is what you think, I suppose. I—”
Amelia lifted one arched brow, the muscle under her jaw jumping with fury. “That made absolutely no sense, Oliver.”
“Very true, very true,” I said, digging the hole of despair deeper with my bumbling words. Noah cleared his throat, and I inhaled a deep breath, needing to regather my thoughts before I made it even worse. “I owe you an explanation.”
