Chapter Twelve
“At Lady Daphne Rancur’s dinner party, Lord M__ was seen again going upstairs with a certain blonde country miss who has been much in his company lately!”
-The Times
Jasper watched herexpertly lead her sister away on a wild goose chase. One minute, she was a blushing innocent, wondrously finding release at his touch. The next, she was quite expertly using her cunning to trick her sister.
He sighed. At twenty-eight, perhaps he was becoming too old for this indulgent licentiousness. No one was who they seemed. When the ladies had moved a goodly distance, he dashed from his cover to the steps and then to the veranda before slipping indoors.
Then he paused.Should he go back out there and ensure their safety?
He thought better of it. Miss Sudbury would probably be furious. Besides, it was unlikely Lady Worthington would believe he’d happened upon them accidentally. Moreover, he hadn’t escorted either one to the ball, so it wasn’t his place to watch over them.
So why was he feeling so protective?A libertine such as himself didn’t care for the well-being of others, especially not women who didn’t belong to him. Yet he’d already saved Miss Sudbury once.
Yes, that must be the reason for wanting to keep her safe.
The only reason!
Regardless, he kept his eye upon the door and waited. If the sisters weren’t back by the time the current dance ended, he would go out there and find them, come hell or high water. Meanwhile, he withdrew a silver flask from his pocket and took a sip of brandy.
With his hand close to his face, he caught the essential scent of Miss Sudbury. He took a long sniff and his groin ached as it had when he’d watched her climax, wishing they were some place where he could have drawn the process out far longer and joined her in the act.
Still, he recalled vividly the way she’d tilted her head back, closed her eyes, parted her lips and panted. He groaned. Everyone at the ball would see his arousal if he didn’t get a handle on his thoughts.
But she was superb. The way her nipple had pearled, he’d longed to take it between his lips. And the way her passage dripped its honeyed desire on his fingers...
He took another sniff and then sipped the brandy, blending the two. He wanted her neck arched back and her lips parted while he stroked the inside of her with his cock.
Then he would be finished with this obsession!
God, he hoped so, for not another woman in the room held a candle to her. The music ended, and he started to walk toward the veranda door when it opened. The sisters entered holding hands and laughing.
Julia must have found the fountain with the four silly nymphs, each holding a different animal. Once, he’d had a bold tryst with a woman on the other side of the fountain, seated on a stone bench. It had been a bad idea and most uncomfortable, not to mention cold. Worse than that, he couldn’t remember the female’s name or face.
Shaking his head, he sipped again. Maybe it was time to give up his rakish ways for good.
And then the ladies were upon him.
“Where did you disappear to?” he asked, smooth as cream, keeping his gaze on the countess so as not to make Miss Sudbury’s cheeks flare with guilt. It was a delightful trait, blushing so profusely, but not handy in polite company.
It was the countess who answered first while, he noticed with amusement, Miss Sudbury kept her eyes averted.
“We found the silliest fountain.” Then she glanced at her sister. “We also found a couple—”
Miss Sudbury coughed delightfully to stop her, but the countess shook her head.
“I’m sure the earl has seen the same before,” Lady Worthington said. “I fail to understand the lure of a chilly garden with gnats and scratchy plants and the very real fear of discovery. How do they even enjoy themselves out there?”
Miss Sudbury coughed again, sounding as if she were choking. He longed to pat her shapely shoulder.
