Part of him hoped she would, but another part of him knew the dangers such an association posed. He’d gone that route before with disastrous results.
But from the moment she had swept into his library, something long buried inside him had begun to blossom. A warmth he hadn’t felt in longer than he cared to remember had crept up his body and into his heart. And the thaw had begun.
Everything about her called to him. Beckoned him to become human again. To feel. And he felt plenty. No matter the possible consequences, he had to seize the chance to begin living again.
He would use this opportunity to banish the demons of his past. Exorcise the memory of another. Maybe she could be a much-needed balm, and maybe she would free him from years of self-imposed solitude.
The raw hurt of the past rushed in with the new awareness of feeling again, but with the pain came the hope of sunshine. Sunshine in the form of a petite, brown-eyed goddess who made him want her with every breath he took. It was high time he took advantage of the luxury his reputation afforded him.
“Sir, shall I send out the carriage as planned?”
Gray looked up as Masterson spoke from the door. He sighed and set down his drink on the desk. “Yes, Masterson. Dispatch it at once. I’ll be in my bedchamber.”
###
Jenna crept down the stairs, quickly turned the corner at the bottom and headed for the servants’ entrance. The light had still shown beneath Sebastian’s bedroom door as she had inched by, praying that no sound would betray her.
With extreme care, she opened the door leading to the alley behind the townhouse. Once outside, she closed the door and quickly donned her cloak, pulling the hood up over her head. Confident that not even the most discerning eye could determine her identity, she hurried toward the street.
As she neared the corner of Upper Brook and Park Street, she saw an approaching carriage. Her eyes flitted over the liveried driver, which she thought odd since Gray wasn’t titled or high ranking in society. Well, not unless you counted his stature among the ladies.
She smothered the giggle that threatened to burst from her lips. Lud, but she was nervous. Relief swept over her when she finally noted the emblem on the carriage doors. Gray had told her his carriage was marked with his initials, and when the carriage turned the corner, the light of a streetlamp illuminated the metal letters.
The carriage slowed before her, and she scurried toward the door. “Lady Jenna?” the driver called softly down.
“Aye,” she said in an equally low voice.
An outrider hopped from the back of the barouche and hastened to open the door for her. He assisted her up and shut the door behind her. Soon the carriage rolled forward, and suddenly she was gripped by the enormity of her actions.
She was going through with it. It was unclear to her whether she was insane or merely the biggest idiot in the whole of England. Perhaps a combination of both. She closed her eyes and pictured Stuart in his tasseled slippers and pink coat. Her eyes flew open and she grimaced. But it had the desired effect. She no longer felt quite so badly about seeking out pleasure with another man.
Besides, it wasn’t like she’d be the only woman in London to take a lover. She knew of too many to count who took their pleasure on the side. However, most of them at least waited until they were married. Well, she would be able to say she hadn’t committed adultery. Though she didn’t think that would make a difference to Mamma or Papa.
Tension gripped her legs as she looked out the window and saw the sign for Green Street. Dear God, she may well have an attack of the vapors. She was moments from walking into the arms of London’s most sought after lover.
The oddest tightening sensation spread rapidly through her nether regions. Her breasts swelled and ached until she fidgeted in her seat. Her throat closed in on her, and she was grateful she wasn’t required to speak...yet.
The carriage stopped, and the door opened as quickly. She descended the steps and was ushered up the path to Gray’s townhouse by the outrider. Almost before she took another breath, she found herself standing in the foyer. The door closed solidly behind her.
No turning back now.
She shrugged out of her cloak and handed it to a waiting maid. “Mr. Douglas awaits you in his bedchamber,” the butler said.
Too terrified to take stock of her surroundings, she mutely followed the infuriating butler up the stairs and down a long hallway. She refused to make eye contact with the impertinent servant, sure she would find something not to her liking in his expression.
“Here you are, my lady,” he said as they stopped outside a closed door. Before she could open her mouth to say anything, he turned and was gone.
Curse the man. What was she to do now? She assumed Gray was waiting for her on the other side, but should she knock? Just go in? Would he be naked? Heavens, where had that come from? But she supposed it wasn’t entirely impossible given the nature of their rendezvous.
She swallowed for the hundredth time, certain that if she did so once more her tongue would be forfeit. Deciding that she really didn’t want to burst in unannounced on someone who could very well be unclothed, she opted to knock.
His voice filtered through the solid oak door in one uttered word. “Come.”
On wobbling legs, she opened the door and eased inside. She nearly wilted in relief when she saw he was dressed. Not that being dressed detracted from his indomitable presence. No, he lounged in the window seat across the room with cat-like grace, but his lazy air did nothing to disguise the fact that he looked ready to pounce. On her.
She gulped and put an unsteady hand to her chest. When he rose and moved toward her, she stepped hastily back, bumping against the door she didn’t remember closing. A wide grin flashed, and his eyes glinted in satisfaction as he closed the distance between them.
Too quickly, she found herself trapped against the door as his hand came to rest on the wood behind her.
