This was their first night in London and she’d all but told him this was the night they would make love again. Was she ready? She would have to be. She wanted a child, after all, and delaying the means by which to get one any longer was only foolish.
Mark took a step toward her, grasped her hand, and bowed over it, lightly kissing the delicate skin. “I’ll leave you to rest and prepare for an evening out. We are going to a dinner party at Lord Allen’s house. It’s time for you to begin playing the role of my loving wife.”
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Everything was riding on this dinner party. Before leaving for France, Mark promised Lord Allen he would be here tonight. He’d barely made it back in time. If Nicole had hesitated just one day longer, he would have missed it. Lord Tottenham would be here as well, and he’d be watching Mark closely to size him up as a potential candidate for Secretary of the Home Office.
Mark glanced across the coach at Nicole, who reposed in serene silence. She was dressed in a gown of costly peacock-blue silk with lace trim and her glorious hair was piled atop her head. Long white gloves and a beaded reticule completed her ensemble. She looked more like a goddess than a mortal woman. She was the perfect companion tonight; a member of London’s elitehaute ton, she knew exactly how to comport herself at such events. She would never be an embarrassment to him. On the contrary, her being the daughter of an earl would be nothing but advantageous to Mark’s cause, although he had no intention of telling Tottenham who her family was.
Their coach pulled to a stop in front of an imposing town house not far from theirs. The footmen let down the stairs and Mark alighted, then turned to help Nicole. When he lifted her, his hands around her waist, the scent of her lavender perfume filled his nostrils. He set her on the ground next to him, his grasp lingering to steady her. She glanced up at him and smiled, and white-hot heat shot straight to his groin. He clenched his jaw. Would they make love tonight? He was more than willing, but after his first failed attempt on the journey to England, he wasn’t about to push her. His pride was too great to be rebuked again. She would need to give him some sign that she was ready.
Her gaze lingered on his mouth. “Ready?” she asked. The question emerged low and throaty.
He widened his eyes, his heart hammering. Surely, she didn’t mean…
“To go in to the party,” she clarified, obviously responding to the confused look on his face.
He shook away the momentary pang of lust. “I’ve been ready for this for years. Areyouready?”
“I might be slightly rusty on the proper decorum at an English dinner party.” Her smile turned rueful. “But it’s certain to come back to me quickly.”
He returned her smile. She certainly looked the part. She’d always been at home among these people. She was the perfect wife for a man with political aspirations.
***
Lady Nicole’s grandmother’s ballroom was bright and raucous. The dance floor was filled with couples dancing,the refreshment table overflowed with sweets and drinks, and the noise and temperature rose along with the number of drinks consumed by the crowd. It was downright stifling in the enormous room.
Mark waited for a break in the crowd before darting over to stand next to Lady Nicole on the sidelines of the dancing. She had a smile pinned sweetly to her face, but he could tell she was fantastically bored. Her eyes weren’t sparkling. The smile hadn’t reached them.
He’d never met anyone like her. She was irreverent about the aristocracy. She seemed to scoff at a marquess and she clearly had a sense of both humor and adventure. He’d never met a delicate young miss who was so forthright. Nor one who would chase down a thief in the mews while wearing her ball gown.
He leaned down to whisper in her ear. “Having fun?”
Her smile widened when she realized it was him, but she kept her gaze pinned on the crowd. “Loads of it,” she drawled.
“It’s hot in here,” he said next.
“Yes.” Her smile reached her eyes now. “I’d adore a stroll in the gardens.”
Ah, she’d said precisely what he hoped she would. “If you’re not worried about talk, then meet me there in ten minutes.”
He left, confident she would meet him, but also slightly apprehensive. If she was as adventurous as she seemed, she would be there. If she wasn’t, he’d probably leave after waiting a few minutes, and never see her again.
He waited an excruciating fifteen minutes by the count of his pocket watch before she arrived. She’dsneaked around the side of the house from the other end and met him under the rose arbor. The moonlight cast a glow on the glossy rosebushes and neat hedges that surrounded them. The sweet smell of jasmine floated on the night air.
“I did a sweep before I came. No one is out here but us,” she informed him with an impish smile.
A sweep? That was an odd phrase for a debutante. She sounded more like a spy. “Is that good or bad?” he asked with a grin.
“Good. Very good. We don’t want any talk.”
He crossed his arms over his chest and looked down at her. She was positively adorable. “What would your grandmama say if she knew you were out here with a corporal?”
Lady Nicole’s lip curled ever so slightly. “She’d tell me to get back inside to the marquess, of course.”
“And why don’t you?” Mark couldn’t stop himself from asking.
“Because the marquess has a bulbous wet lip that makes me shudder, and you—” She blushed a glorious shade of pink.
