Lady Eden met them at the bottom of the wide stairway that rose from the large main hall to divide in the center, one section going to the front of the house where the guest rooms were, the other to the back of the house where the master bedrooms were located. A railinged walkway surrounded this hall on the second floor to reach the many rooms upstairs, leaving the whole area below visible from above, with a mammoth chandelier hanging from the center of the domed ceiling, at the moment glittering down on the white marble floor.
Roslynn was looking forward to a tour of the rest of the house, and Regina didn’t disappoint her, insisting her guests could wait. She further put Roslynn at ease with her bright chatter and charming manner as the three of them moved from room to room on the lower floors.
Silverley was an immense country house, almost castlelike with its central main block and corner turrets, but there was nothing medieval inside except perhaps the antique tapestries that graced many of the walls. It was tastefully furnished in different periods, Queen Anne and Chippendale dominating one room, Sheraton another, still another in a combination, including a few quaint French Provincial pieces. Roslynn was left with the impression of a home, not a showpiece, though the latter term could certainly be applied.
The tour ended at the back of the house where the guests were gathered, and simply standing in the small antechamber with its floor-to-ceiling stained-glass windows, they were able to see into the drawing room on the left, which opened into a music room beyond. A large dining room was on the right, and off that was a lovely conservatory, which Roslynn promised herself a closer look at later. But at the moment, what with guests roaming through these connecting rooms, all of which fronted a vast parkland behind the house, Regina was cornered into making introductions before they had even entered the drawing room.
“There is one neighbor of mine I think you’ll enjoy meeting,” Regina commented to Roslynn when she was finally able to usher her and Frances into the drawing room. “Not everyone hies off to London for the season, you know. I wouldn’t have gone myself if I hadn’t promised, but I’m glad I did since I got to meet you. And don’t worry, we’ll have a chance later to discuss what Nicholas had to say about the gentlemen you’re interested in.”
“I see only Sir Artemus, Ros,” Frances said uneasily, remembering how worried Roslynn had been about whether her “possibles” would be here or not.
“That’s true,” Regina said. “But there is still tomorrow, so I wouldn’t discount the other gentlemen yet. I did have acceptances from all four of them. But in the meantime, you really must meet Lord Warton. Nicholas is so jealous of him, you know. In fact, I wonder sometimes what would have happened if I had met Justin Warton first.” It was easy to see by her impish grin that she wasn’t in the least serious about that last statement.
“Justin’s not as old as your other gentlemen, Roslynn,” Regina continued. “Only about twenty-eight years old, I believe, but he’s so nice, I just know you’re going to like him. Devoted to his family and abhors London, so you wouldn’t have been able to meet him otherwise. He goes to town only once a year to take his mother and sister shopping, and that off season. Now where is he?” With her diminutive height, Regina had to stand on tiptoe to see over a few shoulders, but finally she smiled. “There, by the fireplace. Come along, m’dears.”
Roslynn took two steps and stopped abruptly. She had immediately seen the large, handsome man sitting on a cream-and-gold sofa near the fireplace, flanked on one side by a young woman with the same blond looks as he and on the other side by an older woman, obviously Lord Warton’s sister and mother, respectively. But she had in the next instant seen the two elegantly attired gentlemen several feet beyond, standing directly in front of the fireplace, the Malory brothers, and it was the dark one she locked eyes with, who made her pause, and groan, and feel the strangest rush of giddiness
It took the greatest effort to tear her eyes away from Anthony Malory and continue to follow her hostess, who hadn’t noticed her pause. She would have much preferred to turn around and retreat, rather than close the distance to a mere six feet from the fireplace where the sofa was situated, but there was no help for it. And since there wasn’t, she decided it would behoove her to concentrate on the Wartons, Justin Warton in particular, and to keep her back to the Malorys.
It was easy to see why Regina might think Justin would interest her. He was terribly handsome with his blond hair, strong, chiseled features, and the loveliest pair of dark indigo eyes, eyes that were frankly admiring as they lit upon Roslynn. He was also quite the tallest man she had ever met, as she discovered when he rose from the sofa to take her hand and bring it up to his lips. He was large, with wide, wide shoulders, and he was solidly put together, firmly muscled. But with his immense size, if it weren’t for his boyish smile and charming manner, he could have been quite intimidating.
As it was, he put Roslynn at ease immediately, and for several minutes she almost forgot who stood behind her—almost. The trouble was, she could actually feel those sensual eyes roaming over her body, could see them in her mind’s eye as they had looked at her that night of the Crandal ball. Looked? No—devoured her across the space of a room, as they did now from only a few feet away. It was all she could do not to imagine what he was imagining as he gazed at her.
The interruption by a new arrival was a welcome distraction. “There you are, love,” Nicholas Eden said as he slipped a possessive arm around his wife’s tiny waist. “Why is it that whenever I leave the room, this big clod always manages to show up at your side?”
Whether he was jesting or serious was not evident either by his expression or tone, but Justin Warton didn’t take offense. He laughed instead, as if he were used to such comments from his host.
“If I was of a mind to steal her away from you, Montieth, you’d know it,” Justin replied with a wink for Regina, who was taking these remarks in stride.
“Now don’t start, either of you,” Regina admonished lightly. “Or you’ll have these ladies believing you’re serious. They’re not, you know, not at all,” she confided to her guests. “This, if you haven’t guessed, is my husband.” And she went on to complete the introductions, for although Frances knew of him, she had never actually met him.
Roslynn had expected someone as beautiful as Regina Eden to have an exceptionally handsome husband, and the Fourth Viscount Eden of Montieth was certainly that. He had gold-streaked brown hair and light brown eyes that glowed like amber each time they rested on his wife, and it was easy to see how he could have been called a rake as recently as a year ago and lived up to the reputation, and just as easy to see that he was now quite domesticated and thoroughly in love with his wife. What was surprising was that he was so young, no more than a few years older than she, Roslynn guessed, and yet his manner was that of an older man; in fact, he reminded her distinctly of Sir Anthony, which brought that rakehell promptly back into her thoughts.
“Come now, puss, how long do you intend to ignore us?” Anthony’s deep voice suddenly broke into a lull in the conversation.
“All bloody night, if I have anything to say about it,” Nicholas retorted none too pleasantly.
For a heart-stopping moment, Roslynn had thought Anthony was addressing her. But Nicholas’ surprising reply, which earned him a sharp jab in the ribs from his wife, disabused her of that giddy notion.
“Oh, bother, must I always play referee?” Regina said to no one in particular, then promptly flounced over to the fireplace and gave each Malory brother a kiss. “As if anyone could ignore either of you for very long,” she added with a laugh. “But I don’t suppose for a minute that it’s my attention you’re so impatient for. Come along, then, and I’ll introduce you.” She hooked an arm through each of theirs and dragged them forward. “Lady Frances, I don’t believe you’ve met my uncles, James and Anthony Malory, have you?”
Uncles? Uncles! Why was it that that wee bit of information hadn’t surfaced sooner? Roslynn wondered angrily. She certain
ly wouldn’t have come here if she had known the Malorys were that close to Regina Eden. Their niece. Hell’s teeth!
The uneasiness was palatable with four in their group, the Wartons and Frances. Justin in fact made haste to leave with his womenfolk, protectively getting his sister out of the presence of two such notorious rakes. Roslynn could almost wish she had someone to look after her so diligently, someone to whisk her away from this present encounter. But she held her own. Not by look or word did she reveal that she was just as uneasy with the situation. Frances was not so inscrutable, however. Tight-lipped, curt during the introductions, her animosity for these two men couldn’t have been more apparent, and she wasted little time in making her own excuses and moving on to the next group of people.
Which left Roslynn in a horrid predicament. To depart as well would have been grossly rude at this point. So she had to stand there, for a while at least, and suffer both Malorys’ close scrutiny. And neither of them had any compunctions about openly staring at her.
Neither did James feel it necessary to ignore what had just happened. “I do believe the lass is embarrassed for us, Tony. You needn’t be, Lady Roslynn. My brother and I are quite immune to such reactions.”
“You might be, old man,” Anthony remarked with a definite sparkle in his cobalt eyes. “I for one could do with a little sympathy.”
Roslynn was left with no doubt as to what kind of sympathy he would like, since he was looking directly at her when he said it. She couldn’t help smiling. He couldn’t even wait until he found her alone to press his seduction. Now that was incorrigible.
Regina must have thought so too. “Now, Tony, you promised you’d behave.”
“And so I am,” he protested in all innocence. “If I was inclined to do as is my wont, puss, you’d have a scandal on your hands.”
Roslynn had the feeling he was quite serious, even though Regina laughed as if he were teasing her. “You’re going to scare her off, Tony, if you’re not careful.”
“Not at all,” Roslynn demurred.
“There, you see, sweet?” James put in. “You can feel free to run along and attend to your hostessing. The lady will be quite safe in our hands.”
“Oh. I never doubted it for a minute,” Regina said, only to add in parting, “Nicholas, don’t let either of them out of your sight.”
“Splendid.” Nicholas scowled.
James chuckled. “A decided lack of trust, that.”
“Unfortunately warranted,” Nicholas grumbled beneath his breath.
“I do believe he still hasn’t forgiven us, Tony,” James said.
“Speak for yourself, brother. All I did was point out to him that it would be detrimental to his health if he didn’t marry Reggie. You, on the other hand, were responsible for his being confined to bed for several weeks, not to mention your dragging him home from the West Indies when he proved such a reluctant spouse.”
“I was never—”
Roslynn interrupted Nicholas’ snarl. “Before this gets out of hand, I think I’ll just—”
Anthony didn’t let her finish. “An excellent idea. While they squabble to their heart’s content, you and I shall see what’s blooming in the conservatory.”
Without giving her a chance to refuse, Anthony took her arm and began escorting her from the room. They moved no more than five feet before she tried to draw away from him. He wasn’t letting go.
“Sir Anthony—”
“You’re not going to turn coward on me, are you?” His voice sounded near her ear.
Roslynn bristled that he should make it a challenge. “I simply don’t want to leave the room with you.”
“But you will.”
She stopped walking, forcing him to either drag her behind him or stop as well. He stopped, and the tiniest hint of a grin appeared as he bent his head to hers.
“Let me put it this way, sweetheart. Either I kiss you in the conservatory or I kiss you right here, right now. Whichever way, I am going to take you in my arms and—”
“The devil you are!” Roslynn got out before she noticed how many people were suddenly watching them. “Very well,” she amended in a quiet hiss. “I would like to see the conservatory, but there’ll be no kissing, you scoundrel, and I’ll have your promise first.”
His grin was wide and bold now. “Come along, then.”
And he continued to escort her, stopping here and there to have a few words with people he knew, as if they were only strolling through the rooms. Roslynn caught Frances’ eye along the way, and her friend’s expression was quite disapproving and rightly so. But Roslynn didn’t want to press her luck by trying again to extricate herself from this situation. Whether Anthony really would have kissed her in front of everyone was a moot point. She simply couldn’t take the chance.
But she should have sealed the bargain. His “Come along, then” was not a promise by any means, which she found out not long after they entered the large conservatory.
“This is really lovely,” Roslynn said uneasily as his arm slipped around her waist and he began to guide her along the plant-strewn walkway that circled the room.
“I couldn’t agree more,” he replied, only he was looking at her.
She kept her eyes averted, gazing intently at the statues along the walk, at the myriad flowers in full bloom, at the fountain that was on a lower level in the center of the room. Foremost in her mind was that hand resting on her hip, burning through the thin material of her high-waisted gown.
“I—I really should take you to task, Sir Anthony.” Her voice was thin, shaky, and she had to clear her throat before continuing with more force. “That was devilish unfair of you to leave me no choice back there.”
“I know.”
“Was it necessary to be so high-handed?”
He stopped, turning her toward him, his eyes moving slowly over her face as he considered her question. In alarm, Roslynn realized that he had maneuvered them to the far side of the room, that thick branches from one of the trees growing below spread out at their level and effectively concealed them from the doorway. In actuality, they were quite alone for the moment, the sound of the party drowned out by the flow of the fountain.
“Yes, it was necessary,” he finally answered huskily. “When all I’ve been able to think about since I first laid eyes on you is this.”
To save her soul, Roslynn couldn’t find the will to protest as his arm drew her closer. His other hand slid along her neck, the thumb tilting her chin up, and for the breath of a moment her eyes locked with his. Then she felt his lips, warm, beguiling, pressing ever so gently on her own, and her lids closed, accepting the inevitable. She had had to know, and now she did. And for the moment, nothing mattered but the taste of him, the feel of him pressed along her length.
Anthony didn’t frighten her with his passion but kept it tightly leashed, even though he felt like an inferno about to explode. He couldn’t remember when he had wanted something this much, and he took every care not to overwhelm her with what he was feeling, to fan her desire by slow degrees until she wanted him with equal intensity.
It was the hardest thing he had ever done, restraining himself when his body cried out to take her here and now. And in fact he was not as self-controlled as he supposed. Nearly mindless with wanting, he was unaware of the little things he was doing to her, that his fingers had slid into her hair, dislodging pins from her coiffure, that his knee had slipped between her own, far enough that she was practically straddling his thigh. But fortunately for him, she was as mindless as he was at this point. He just didn’t know it.
Actually, that thigh rubbing against her groin was Roslynn’s undoing, coupled as it was with his deepening kisses. He had gradually brought his tongue into play, teaching her the exquisite sensations it could invoke, using it to open her mouth, to taste the sweetness within. He eventually enticed her tongue to explore as well, and once it hesitantly passed between his lips, he wouldn’t let it go, gently sucking it deeper and deeper into his mo
uth.
Helpless under his expertise, Roslynn was quite thoroughly seduced, ready and willing to let him do anything he wanted. When Anthony finally became aware of that fact, he groaned in frustration, for he had unwisely chosen his setting, never dreaming that he would be this successful this quickly.
Trailing his lips to her ear, he beseeched her, “Go to your room, sweetheart. I’ll follow you there.”
She was dazed, hypnotically so, unable to connect one thought with another. “My room?”
He had the urge to shake her. Now was not the time for confusion, for God’s sake! He gripped her shoulders instead.
“Look at me, Roslynn,” he said urgently. “We can’t stay here. Do you understand? There’s no privacy here.”
She frowned up at him. “What would we be needing privacy for?”
Hell and fire! Was Regina right? Could Roslynn really be that innocent at her age? He found himself torn between chagrin and pleasure at the thought. If it were true, he risked losing what ground he had gained by bringing her back to her senses. And yet a tender cord was struck, heretofore dormant, wishing it were true.
Anthony sighed, dredging up a degree of patience to reach her. “We’re going to make love, you and I. That is the natural conclusion to what we’ve been doing. And since we both want to, the thing to do is find someplace we won’t be disturbed. You’ll agree your room is the logical place.”
Roslynn was shaking her head before he had finished. “Och, mon, what have you done? There was to be no kissing—I told you so.”
Her lilting brogue served to stir him even more, and he pulled her tightly back against his chest. “It’s too late to prevaricate, sweetheart, after you’ve surrendered in every way but one. Now be a good girl and do as I say, or I’ll take you right here, I swear I will, and the devil take anyone who happens upon us.”
If he meant to frighten her into complying, it didn’t work. She almost laughed at his effort but didn’t think he would appreciate that in this present mood that could make him say such a thing. Common sense told her he wouldn’t do anything to cause his niece embarrassment. She should have realized that sooner, before she came in here with him.