Michael held his arms wide and grinned. "What do you think?"
"I think you have made an honorable and courageous decision." He embraced his young brother.
"After my training, I'll be stationed in Gibraltar."
"That's a safe enough place, but the regiment could be sent into battle at any time."
"None of us know what the future holds. I've wasted enough of my life. From now on I'm going to make it count for something."
Michael is right. I too have wasted enough of my life. I know what I want, so why not reach out and take it?
Chapter Fourteen
Julia was thrilled when she received two dozen yellow roses. The card that accompanied them said: I will be calling upon you at six this evening. Nicholas.
"He's coming at six. That gives me no time at all. Come with me while I dress."
Dottie followed Julia to her bedchamber, ready to give her advice. "I think it's a pity Claire won't be here when his lordship calls upon you."
"Personally, I think it's a blessing that Mother is away." She opened her wardrobe. "What shall I wear?"
"Wear something fashionable so he'll be tempted to take you somewhere to show you off."
"I like this cream silk chiffon."
"Yes, it's delicate and subtle; perhaps too subtle. You need something vivid to set it off. I have the very thing. I shall give you my new peacock taffeta redingote. The style is far too young for me."
"Thank you, Dottie. I've had my eye on it ever since you bought it."
"Put up your hair and I'll lend you my diamond and turquoise earrings.
In less than an hour, Julia was dressed, coiffed, and awaiting her caller with breathless anticipation.
Nicholas arrived promptly at six and Hastings brought him up to Dottie's third floor sitting room. He did not come empty-handed, but brought a nosegay of orchids for Julia's grandmother.
"Very pretty indeed. Not many men realize that flowers will get them farther than flattery."
"Good evening, ma'am. I'm happy to find you well." He took Dottie's hand to his lips, before he turned his attention to her granddaughter. "Until this moment, I didn't realize how much I missed you, Lady Julia."
"Thank you for your letter, my lord. Won't you have a seat?"
"I might as well come straight to the point," he told Dottie. "I seek permission to court Lady Julia, with a view to marriage."
"My dear Lord Royston, permission to court her is granted. The decision to marry you will be entirely Julia's. I believe this calls for a toast." Dottie moved across the room and poured three glasses of Madeira. She handed them out, then raised her glass. "To this moment, and the moment yet to be."
Nicholas sipped the sweet Spanish wine and looked from Julia to Dottie. "I'd like to take you to dinner at a fine restaurant tonight."
"Go and enjoy yourselves. I have no intentions of playing gooseberry."
Nicholas set down his empty glass. "That's most generous of you, ma'am." He picked up the peacock taffeta and helped Julia put it on. "I'll take good care of her."
"See that you do." Her eyes twinkled. "I won't wait up for you."
Outside in Berkeley Square, Julia said, "I missed our nightly walks."
"We can walk now, if you like. My favorite restaurant is quite close."
"That would be lovely." She tucked her arm into his, and they set off for Albemarle Street. "You will be relieved to know that I no longer write Scandal by the Ton."
He squeezed her hand. "Did you give it up because of me?"
"Partly. When I saw how horrified you were, I began to realize it could have damaged your career."
"Once my shock lessened and I began to think about it, I found it rather humorous."
"It will give me more time to devote to my serious writing."
Nicholas greeted the doorman at Brown's hotel, and then led the way to the dining room. The maître d'hôtel showed them to a table for two, then went for the bottle of wine that Nicholas ordered.
"How is the book coming?" He helped her remove her redingote, then cupped her shoulders in a brief, intimate gesture before taking his seat opposite her.
"The first part went very well, but now I'm at a standstill."
He smiled. "Are you experiencing writers' block?"
"No, I'm afraid it's ignorance block."
"Perhaps I can help?"
She returned his smile. "I have no doubt of it, my lord."
Julia ordered sautéed bay shrimp and scallops followed by roast leg of lamb, while Nicholas ordered a thick cut of aged beef.
They lingered over the food and wine trying to prolong their time together, but as the hour progressed, the dining room began to fill, and by the time they finished dessert both realized that intimate conversation was no longer possible.
Nicholas ached to kiss her and wished they could be alone somewhere. Though he was determined to court her, he began to realize they would have very little privacy if he followed the rules. They could enjoy the theatre and dining together, but the only time they would be alone was in his carriage. He decided then and there that his only option was to bend the rules.
He paid the reckoning and when they stepped out onto Albemarle Street, Julia tucked her arm beneath his and said, "How nice that you live so close; we can walk to Curzon Street."
He felt protective of her and warned, "It would be highly improper to take you to my house."
"Yes." Her smile was mischievous. "The first step on the road to ruin. Let's take it together."
He slipped his arm about her and they moved as one along the gas lit street. Suddenly, there was a loud crack of thunder, followed by a drenching summer shower. "We are closer to Berkeley Square than Curzon Street. Do you want to go home?"
"Not a chance. The last time I got wet, I thoroughly enjoyed the experience."
Nicholas took her hand and they began to run, laughing like children as they splashed through puddles on the pavement. When they reached his house, he opened the door with his key, and waved aside the manservant who appeared. "All we need tonight is privacy, thank you, Bates."
As they climbed the stairs to the living quarters, they left a wet trail behind them. They cast off all care as their spirits rose. All that mattered to them at this moment was that they were together. Together alone.
The fireplace in the drawing room was already laid and Nicholas knelt and lit the fire. When he stood up he saw that Julia had removed her redingote, so he took it from her and draped it over the brass fender to dry. "I'll get some towels."
When he returned he was in his shirtsleeves and, as well as the towels, he carried a velvet bed robe. "Take off everything that's wet and put this on. I won't look."
She removed her wet slippers and set them on the hearth. "My stockings are wet," she said helplessly.
"Royston to the rescue." He sat her in a leather chair before the fire and knelt before her. Then he slid his hands beneath her damp skirts and slowly peeled off her hose. He raised her bare foot to his lips and kissed her high instep.
"I want you to look. Undress me," she whispered, breathless from her own daring.
Their eyes met and silent agreement passed between them. Nicholas unfastened her wilted cream chiffon dress and set it aside to dry. Then he removed her damp petticoat, and she stood before him clad only in frilly drawers. His avid gaze swept over her from head to toes, missing no finest detail of her long legs, tiny waist, and her pink-tipped luscious breasts. "Your beauty always takes my breath away."
He hung the velvet robe about her shoulders. "I don't want you to catch cold. Kneel before the fire and I'll dry your hair." He sank to his knees behind her and began to gently towel her long, dark tresses. As his powerful hands rubbed the wetness from her hair, she became almost mesmerized by the fire and by his touch. He dropped the towel and she felt his fingers comb through the strands and tendrils until her untangled curls fell about her shoulders. He swept her hair aside and placed a kiss on the nape of her neck.
Julia felt a delicious shiver run down her spine at the feel of his lips on the intimate spot. As they knelt together in the warm glow of the fire, she turned to face him and her fingers unfastened the buttons of his damp shirt. "It only seems fair that both of us should be undressed," she teased. "You'll love the feel of the fire on your bare skin."
He needed no further urging. In less than a minute he had stripped and stood before her naked. Julia rose from her knees to gaze at his muscled torso. "I'm glad you're the first male I've ever seen naked, Nicholas." She took a step closer. "This robe is big enough for both of us." She removed it from her shoulders and handed it to him.
He put on the velvet robe and opened it wide. She stepped inside and he drew her naked flesh against his. Possessive hands slid about her to caress her silken back, then his palms moved down to the swelling curve of her bum. He groaned with desire as his hard phallus brushed against her soft belly.
Julia raised her hands to his shoulders, and it brought her breasts against his hard muscled chest with its crisp black curls. She gasped with pleasure as her nipples began to tingle. When she cried out from the excitement of arousal, he dipped his head and took possession of her lips, taking her cry into his mouth hungrily.
When the kiss ended, she stood on tiptoe and whispered in his ear, "Nicholas, I want to learn all there is to know about sex, and I've chosen you to teach me."
His dark eyes filled with amusement. "That's a tall order. You certainly can't learn everything in one night."
"Then we'll have to spend lots of nights together. I want to become a woman of passion."
He gazed down at her, knowing the gods had smiled on him when they sent him such a lovely innocent yet exciting female. But he was acutely aware of the responsibility he had been given. "Darling Julia, the most precious lesson I can teach you is about your own sexuality."
She closed her eyes and murmured, "That sounds perfect."
"You have to learn what makes your body feel good, what arouses you and excites you. You have to learn all the places you like to be touched. All five senses: sight, sound, touch, smell and taste must come into play." He took off his robe and spread it before the fire. Then he pulled her down to him, and watched the firelight turn her skin golden.
"Mmm, where to begin. I'll start by kissing all your delicate pulse-points to make you shiver." He lifted her arm and placed his lips on her wrist, and then the tip of his tongue traced a path to the spot inside her elbow. When he kissed her armpit, her eyes widened, and when his lips pressed against her throat, the color of her eyes deepened to dark violet. He brushed his lips against her temple and felt her pulse quicken.
"I love the feel of your warm mouth on my skin."
"You'll love it even more when it gets hot and hungry."
"And when will that be?" she asked breathlessly.
"Right about now." He captured her mouth with his and ravished it until she moaned. He cupped her breasts in his palms and his thumbs brushed across her nipples until they ruched. Then he dipped his head and licked and tasted them, making her gasp with pleasure.
His lips trailed down her ribcage then he circled her navel with the tip of his tongue. His hands gently removed her frilly drawers, and then his fingers played with the dark tendrils that curled on her high mons.
Her body quivered with little tremors. "I'm excited and aroused. Will you finally make love to me, Nicholas?"
"Yes." He paused. "I'll make love to you, but only with my mouth."
He blew softly on the dark curls covering her mons, then his thumbs gently opened her cleft and his tongue thrust inside to taste her. With a shocked gasp she raised her knees. He pushed down the knee closest to him and left the other one raised, allowing him to delve deeply into her sugared sheath.
Julia was stunned at the wickedly erotic thing he was doing to her, but the pleasure his thrusting tongue brought her soon overcame her shock. Her arousal became so intense that she arched up into his mouth in wild abandon until she suddenly felt pulsations deep within her woman's center build to a crescendo. Then she experienced a hot shuddering climax that made her cry out at its intensity. Finally she felt herself melt in long, slow, liquid tremors.
He gathered her in his arms, and she pressed her cheek against his heart. He murmured love words against her hair as she clung to him sweetly, enthralled with the intimacy that had brought such exquisite pleasure to her body.
Her inquisitive fingers reached out to touch his erection, and it bucked wildly. "Nicholas, I want to feel you inside me."
"Tonight, I want you to experience only pleasure. If we had full intercourse, there would be blood and pain when I breached your hymen. I know you enjoyed our love play, and in a little while I can arouse you again. You've only just begun to experience desire and fulfillment, sweetheart."
Nicholas crossed the room, filled a goblet with wine and returned to the fire. He held it to her lips. "This will steal your senses." He drank from the same spot on the rim where she had placed her lips, and they shared the loving cup until it was empty.
When he set the goblet down and kissed her deeply, she could taste the wine on his tongue. "You are deliciously intoxicating."
Nicholas proceeded to make Julia aware of her body's ability to become aroused and bring her untold pleasure. He showed her how to enjoy all five senses as he initiated her in the rites of love.
Julia, enfolded in his arms, felt his compelling presence engulf her. She knew without a doubt that she loved Nicholas Royston with all her heart and soul.
Chapter Fifteen
"It's a good thing you didn't wait up for me, Dottie. I didn't get home until almost morning."
"Did he take you somewhere splendid?"
"Yes, indeed. First, he took me to Brown's Hotel in Albemarle Street." Julia smiled a secret smile. "Then he took me to the stars."
"Well, I did give the viscount permission to court you-- with a view to marriage."
"My objections to marriage are beginning to melt away like snow in summer."
"When a woman meets the right man, they usually do, my dear. Did I mention that when I took the column to the London and Country yesterday I bumped into my old flame, Alex Hamilton?"
"No, you kept that nugget to yourself. Do you still have a fancy for him?"
"I cannot in good conscience deny it, and moreover he hinted that the feelings were mutual. He invited me to the Middlesex music theatre in Drury Lane on Wednesday evening."
"That's absolutely marvelous. You have a certain glow about you this morning."
"I was just thinking the same about you, darling."
Julia smiled. "I think I'll go and write. For some strange reason ideas for the next chapter are coming fast and furious."
Lady Shelborne arrived home in the early afternoon.
Julia greeted her mother and decided not to broach the subject of the missing books. She resolved to let sleeping dogs lie, since all the recriminations in the world would not restore them. "Did you enjoy your stay in Tunbridge Wells?"
Claire sighed. "It was well enough, I suppose. It was a wonderful opportunity to be in the company of the Prince of Wales, who is unfailingly charming, and dear Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire, but there was a dearth of eligible gentlemen to dance attendance on the ladies."
"I don't suppose many gentlemen find Chalybeate water to their taste," Julia commiserated.
"Well, to be truthful, I believe the ladies drink it only to be fashionable. Lavinia confided that she had to hold her nose to get it down."
While Claire was giving orders for Thomas to carry her luggage upstairs, the post arrived. Julia sorted the envelopes and as she'd hoped there was a letter for her. "I'll take Dottie's upstairs, and here's one for you, Mother."
Claire took the envelope and tore it open. "Why, this is a dinner invitation from our neighbor John Fane for tomorrow evening. Strange, it's for all three of us. I can understand you being included since you're Charlotte's friend, but why on earth he'd invite Dottie is b
eyond me."
"Charlotte's father is most hospitable. He always welcomes me warmly. I hope you'll accept the invitation."
"Of course I shall accept it. His uncle is the Earl of Westmorland. There's every chance that he and his countess are also invited. Other members of the nobility could be there too. This is an opportunity that cannot be missed."
Charlotte and her father are so unpretentious; it's likely just a simple dinner invitation from one neighbor to another. But I'd better keep that to myself or Mother might refuse to go.
Julia took her grandmother's letter upstairs. "Mother is home."
"So I gathered when I heard the servants rushing about carrying out her orders."
"The post arrived and brought something for each of us."
Dottie took her letter. "It's my invitation to the theatre. It makes a lovely change. All I usually get in the post are household bills."
"Mother too received an invitation. John Fane has invited the three of us to dinner tomorrow evening."
"How very neighborly of Lord Fane. Perhaps Charlotte put him up to it."
"Yes, I haven't visited her since before I went to Hertfordshire." Julia glanced down at her own letter and smiled. "All my thoughts have been engaged elsewhere."
"Do you suppose your mother will condescend to accept the invitation?"
"Yes, but only because John Fane's uncle is the Earl of Westmorland. She pictures a grand dinner party where she will be able to rub shoulders with the earl and countess and other nobles. I think it will be just Charlotte and her father, but I didn't disillusion her."
"Claire suffers from delusions of grandeur. She's mad to remarry, but she's set her sights so high that she cannot see what is right under her nose. John Fane is a widower in his early fifties, who is also a Tory member of parliament. He's solid husband material, but the Merry Matron of Mayfair fancies herself as a prize above rubies."
Julia and her grandmother chose to wear simple dinner dresses, but Claire adorned herself in blue taffeta to show off her sapphires and to impress the other guests.