The Taming of a Vixen Read online

His mind was as empty as his body as he lay upon her afterwards, feeling her hands stroking his back, her body shivering with little tremors of pleasure as the aftershocks caught up to her. He buried his face in the smooth satin of her hair, breathing in the scent of their mating. He felt weak, as if she’d drawn him inside out. But he also felt incredibly powerful, remembering the cries he’d wrung from her, the welts her nails had dug into his back burning with the pleasure he’d been able to bring her.

  With a grunt of effort, he lifted his head, staring down at her. Her eyes were closed, her hair a riot of curls around her face; a few strands stuck to the perspiration that covered her skin. Her lips were swollen from his kisses and her own teeth and he saw where she’d bitten into one, causing a drop of blood to form. He leaned down, kissing that spot, licking the coppery taste of her blood away, hearing her moan softly.

  “Are you okay?” he asked her, lifting his body from hers. He smiled as she whined grumpily at the loss of his weight and warmth. He stretched out beside her, his leg coming across to hold hers down.

  “We aren’t dead then?” she asked, opening one hazy gray eye.

  He chuckled, huskily, pushing the hair from her damp face. “No, love, we aren’t dead.”

  “I didn’t think the human body could do things like that.” He chuckled more at her words and leaned down to kiss her. Her lips clung to his, hands roaming with ever growing confidence over his body, creating a stir in his loins. He fought the primitive urges that told him to take her once more.

  “Wait,” he said, grabbing her hands and holding them above her head with one of his. “I think I’ve created a monster.” He planted another long, slow, sensual kiss on her swollen lips. “Love, you are probably too sore for more of me now,” he said, even as his body strove to disagree with his mind.

  Alyssa pouted, making him laugh again. “When, then?” she asked, wriggling her wrists under his confining hand. “When will we make love again, Jamie?”

  “I think first we should concentrate on getting you home, before your father sends the guards out after us. He’ll be frantic if he finds your coach with you gone and the riders protecting you dead.”

  She sighed, knowing he was right. “I think the rain has stopped,” she said.

  “Yes,” he agreed, lifting his head to listen before releasing her hands. He climbed to his feet, pulling his breeches up and refastening them in front of her avid gaze then leaned down and lifted her, picking up his shirt and helping her into it. She lifted her hair out from the collar, letting it spill free over her shoulders. With it mussed from his hands, her body outlined so frankly by his shirt, she looked as if she’d just thoroughly and pleasurably been made love to.

  He reached out, pulling a piece of hay from her long locks, dropping his head to kiss her warm responsive lips once more before bending and picking up his jacket and laying it across her shoulders. She slipped her arms into the sleeves, looking up at him.

  “What about you? Won’t you be cold?”

  “Love, with you in my lap, being cold will be the last thing I’ll be worrying about.”

  Alyssa chuckled, wondering what she looked like, wearing his shirt and jacket and the tiny silver slippers that went with the stolen gown. He probably thought she looked a mess, with her hair down and in need of a brush, stray pieces of hay sticking out of it. “I can’t believe that, considering I must look a fright,” she said quietly.

  He took her hand in his, lifting his other hand to her chin to force her to look up at him. “You look like a lady who has fallen into a bit of mischief and very, very beautiful. If I weren’t worried about your father’s reaction, we’d be curled up together in that hay right now and I’d make love to you again in the morning with the sunlight streaming across the fire in your hair.”

  She felt her heart leap into her throat at his words and the feeling she could hear in his voice. He meant every word. And the image of making love to him, of seeing that handsome body of his during the light of day, of sleeping in his arms…it made her body shiver with pleasure.

  “Oh, no,” he said, seeing the soft heat come into her eyes. “As much as I would love to give into your feminine wiles, my love, we are getting on my horse right now and I am taking you home before anything else can happen.” He took her arm, barely resisting the urge to kiss her again and lifted her onto his horse’s back. Opening the barn door, he took a deep steadying breath of the fresh rain-washed air and then picked up the reins and climbed into the saddle behind her, lifting her sideways across his lap.

  He could feel her damp heat sink into his thigh and groaned silently, wondering if he would make it to her house without taking her again. Her body fit his arms; her head sank into the hollow of his neck as if made for it. She wrapped her arms around his back, holding on to him as the horse found its gait.

  They made good time, and it was less than a quarter of the hour before they were at the back of the Duke’s impressive London estate. He directed his horse to stand under the balcony was outside of her room.

  “Can you climb that?” he asked, peering into her face.

  She blushed, thinking of the view he would have if he watched her, especially when she slipped her leg over the top of the railing to climb to the other side. Then she blushed even more, remembering that he’d seen that view before, very closely. She nodded, too embarrassed to meet his eyes.

  He lifted her chin and chuckled when he saw the blush, knowing what she was thinking. “Should I offer to be a gentleman?” he asked her, “And look away until you tell me?’

  “Would you?” she asked him.

  “Oh, I could say yes and then have you catch me as a liar, or just tell the truth and say it is a view I will treasure to remember you by until next we meet.”

  “Will we meet again?” she asked, quietly, forgetting her embarrassment.

  “It is my fervent wish, my lady, to see you again,” he said, realizing he spoke the truth.

  The smile she gave him was radiant, causing him to catch his breath at her beauty. His head tipped, his lips slowly dropping closer to her own, suddenly unable to stop the impulse to kiss her. She clung to him, her lips kindling a heat that made him feel like he was about to go up in flames.

  “I don’t want you to go,” he whispered against her lips.

  “I don’t want to go,” she whispered back, her tongue slipping past his lips to taste the dark passion of his mouth.

  He groaned, his mouth settling firmly upon hers, ravishing hers for one sublime moment before he released her, lifting her in his arms and boosting her until she stood on his thigh. He winced as her weight landed on the still prominent bruise there, and then boosted her again, watching with a lascivious eye as she lifted herself over the railing. When she’d made it safely, she stood, striping his jacket off and leaning over the railing to drop it into his hands.

  “What about my shirt?” he called softly.

  “I’m holding it for ransom,” she said, pulling it closer around her. “If you want it, you’ll have to come back sometime and get it.”

  He chuckled, drawing his jacket up his arms, feeling her warmth embedded in the fabric. “Don’t think I won’t,” he said, backing his horse away from the railing.

  He blew her a kiss and headed towards the edge of the gardens surrounding the back of the house, glancing over his shoulder to mark the door that led to her room. She was standing there, her hand on the knob, watching him. She waved when she saw him turn. Then she snuck in the house, closing the door behind her.

  The voice, when it rang out in the dark, scared her badly. “What have you to say for yourself?”

  Chapter Five

  “What happened then?” Cat asked, her eyes wide, her hand against her mouth as she sat forward on the bed she and Alyssa were sharing.

  Alyssa grimaced, hating to think about this part of the night that had happened almost a week past. “I told her what happened. That I had been robbed and almost raped and a gentleman came along and rescued me.
We were caught in the rain and he kindly lent me his shirt to return home in.” She hadn’t really lied. Her nanny, who still waited up for her when she was out at a function, had been there to help her get ready for bed.

  The woman had been scandalized by the sight of Alyssa, her hair disheveled and tiny pieces of hay still caught in its depths. The shirt she wore belonged to a man and covered her to the tops of her thighs but left her legs bare...

  But when she heard of the events of the evening, her scolding turned to concern and then horror, though Alyssa had changed certain critical events that she didn’t want to make known. Her nanny had called her father, waking him after sending to the kitchen for a bath for Alyssa. It had to be the most pleasurable bath of her young life. The hot water soaked away the aches and pains from being thrown around and helped with the soreness between her thighs.

  It also washed away all signs of Jamie, as his seed had dried on her thighs. And his scent on her skin was replaced when nanny had added a few precious drops of the perfumed oil her father had gotten her on one of his many trips abroad. But she still could feel him there between her thighs and when she closed her eyes, she could see him, his eyes glittering behind the dark mask, his lips and tongue driving her ever higher up the glorious heights of passion.

  Even now, days later, she could still imagine his tongue down there. She blushed even thinking of the things he had done, the whimpers and moans he’d driven out of her with his expert lovemaking. And she wondered when she would see him again.

  Her father, on the other hand, was more than scandalized when he realized what had happened to his only child. He’d gone into a fit of temper, demanding an audience at the House of the Lords about capturing the ruffians who’d so terrorized his daughter. Patrols were outfitted and sent out nightly now. They were tasked with trying to capture the group of highwaymen who’d killed her outriders and coachman and robbed her, as well as preventing further danger to noble daughters.

  And a reward was being offered to Jamie, if he would come to claim it, for saving her from the fate the highwayman had planned.

  “Have you seen him again?” Cat asked her, her green eyes gleaming with curiosity.

  “No,” Alyssa sighed, feeling the depression sink in deeper. “I search for him at every ball and supper I’m invited to.”

  “But how would you recognize him?”

  “I’d know his mouth,” Alyssa said, “and the tone of his voice. I’d know his hands and his scent.” She threw herself backwards on the bed, crossing her hands over her middle. “I miss him,” she admitted.

  “What did it feel like?” Cat asked her, lying down next to her, but braced on her side to look down upon her friend.

  “What did what feel like?” Alyssa asked in confusion.

  “To kiss him, silly. What did it feel like?”

  “It was magical,” Alyssa said, a very long sigh escaping her lips. “His mouth on mine, his tongue doing those amazing things in my mouth. I could barely breathe but I didn’t care. You know how it feels, you must know.”

  Cat shook her head, throwing herself back on the bed. “No, I don’t,” she sighed in disgust. “I thought maybe Teddy was going to kiss me at the Edgecombe’s Ball. You know, when we went for that stroll outside in the moonlight? But he was the perfect gentleman, drat him.”

  “You and Teddy? You’re interested in Teddy Paxton, the Earl of Penwick’s son?” Alyssa rose on her elbow to stare in fascination at her friend.

  “Yes, I know, he isn’t what you would expect me to fall for. You’d probably be more inclined to believe my interest was in Teddy’s friend, the Duke. He’s a handsome brute. But no, I can’t help who my heart wants, can I?” Cat batted her eyes, placing her hand over her nightgown-covered breast.

  Alyssa laughed. “Teddy does look at you with those cow eyes all the time, Cat. So why don’t you kiss him if you want him?”

  “I’m afraid of making a mess of it all. I’m not experienced like some people I know.”

  “Hey,” she said, laughing. She laid on the bed, raising her hands and stretching like a small cat, her body arching under the bedclothes. “Do you remember when we were back at school?”

  “Which part? We were there for two years.”

  “Hush. Remember when we used to hear about the girls who would practice on each other? You know, to learn to kiss and whatever else they did?” Alyssa rolled to her side, her eyes seeking Cat’s in the dark.

  “Yes, I remember. Why…wait, you want to teach me to kiss?” Cat stared at her friend, seeing the slow smile that came across her face.

  “Well, that way, if we did…then the next time you convince Teddy to take you for a walk in the gardens, you can kiss him without worrying that he’ll think you are too innocent.”

  “But won’t he then think I’m a woman of loose morals?”

  “I think you’re scared, Cat. What happened to my Catherine, the girl who would do anything and come up with some of the best scrapes, and yet still managed to graduate finishing school on top of her class?”

  “You are truly wicked, Lys.” Cat stared at her best friend, her mind racing. What would it feel like? Would it be strange? “All right,” she finally said, agreeing to Alyssa’s plan. “How do we do this?” She asked, excited and scared at the same time.

  “Close your eyes,” Alyssa said, leaning over her friend. She watched as Cat closed her leaf-green eyes, her dark lashes brushing against her cheeks. “Relax, Cat. I won’t bite you,” she said, giggling a little, amazed at her own daring.

  She scooted a little closer, feeling the warmth of Cat’s body coming to rest against her stomach and breasts, watching as Cat’s face came closer before closing her own eyes. Her lips brushed against Cat’s as light as a butterfly’s wing, coming back to press closer against the softness of her mouth.

  As she pulled away, Cat’s eyes opened, a strange look in them. “There isn’t more?” she asked, a note of disappointment in her tone.

  “I didn’t think you’d want more, Cat. You seemed a little nervous about just a kiss.”

  “If I’m to seduce Teddy into asking for my hand, don’t you think I should know more?” Cat sat up, forcing Alyssa to rise to her knees.

  “How much more do you want to know?”

  “Everything!” Cat exclaimed. “How is it done? How does it feel? How will I know what to do with my hands? What did you do with your hands?” she asked, holding her own up in front of her.

  Alyssa burst out laughing and then slapped her hand over her mouth to stifle the sound. Lord Matthew’s townhouse had notoriously thin walls, something the girls had confirmed one night when they’d gone exploring and heard the sounds coming from the duke’s bedchamber. They’d stood frozen, staring at each other as every moan, groan, gasp and sigh had come to them, some in very definite feminine tones.

  “You are so funny, Cat,” she gasped, finally managing to calm down a little. “I can’t teach you everything, I don’t have the exact equipment to do the deed the proper way.”

  “But you could teach me how to kiss properly. I’ve seen my brother and Lara when they weren’t aware anyone was watching. It takes a lot longer than the few seconds you kissed me.” Cat grabbed Alyssa’s arm, leaning back and pulling the other girl towards her. “Teach me better,” she said, “so that I may seduce Teddy.”

  Alyssa could feel Cat’s breasts pressing against her own and felt a thrill of excitement. It stunned her, that feeling, for it was almost the same as what she’d felt with Jamie. Brushing the thought aside, she leaned over Cat, pushing her heavy dark hair back from her face. “If you’re sure,” she said, waiting for the nod of assent. “Then part your lips a little,” she murmured, slowly lowering her mouth to Cat’s waiting lips.

  She teased the innocent girl, using all the things that Jamie had taught her, seducing her friend into kissing her back. Dipping her tongue into the girl’s parted lips, Alyssa moaned, tasting the sweetness of her mouth. Cat’s tongue came up as if to push hers out
, then stayed to rub tentatively against Alyssa’s as their mouths parted.

  When Alyssa raised her head, both girls were panting, Cat’s eyes flew open, staring at her friend with amazement. “That was…oh!” she exclaimed as Alyssa kissed her again.

  Tongues tangled and twisted, lips clung and rubbed, breathless moans could be heard as the two experimented upon each other, using teeth, lips and tongues to out do the other. When their lips parted at last, both girls were breathless, gazing at each other with heavy-lidded eyes.

  “What else did he do?” Cat whispered.

  “He touched me,” Alyssa said, her voice as hushed as Cat’s. “He caressed me and made me touch him.”

  “Where?” Cat asked, a strange feeling growing in her stomach.

  “In the barn,” Alyssa answered, laughing when Cat pushed at her.

  “You know what I mean, Lys.”

  “He had given me his shirt to wear, because my shift was soaked from the rain. He was standing there, his chest bare. All that male skin, Cat, it was beautiful. Then he put my hands on his chest and told me to touch him.”

  “What happened then?” Cat asked, pulling Alyssa down to where she could reach her, kissing her lightly before nuzzling into her neck.

  “His skin was so hot under my hands, I thought he’d burn me. And he moaned, Cat. And…and touched my bottom through his shirt. I thought I should faint at the feelings that coursed through me.”

  “Like this?” Cat asked, her hands stroking over Alyssa’s nightgown-covered bottom.

  “Yes,” Alyssa moaned. “And he squeezed it, like he was picking out ripe fruit. Oh, Cat, what are you doing?”

  “I want to know,” she said simply, her hands drawing up Alyssa’s gown until she could feel the bare skin of the other girl’s cheeks in her small hands. “Oh, Alyssa, your bottom is so soft and smooth. It feels nice.”

  “I can’t believe you’re doing this,” Alyssa moaned, pressing back a little into her friend’s hands, her thighs spreading open as Cat’s fingers caressed her.