Page 48 of Taming Ivy
Had he ever laughed like this? Surely, he must have. Only, it must have been years and years, maybe even since before his parents died. This came from somewhere deep within him, a place where sunlight did not dare venture. Ivy wished to crawl up into Sebastian’s lap and kiss him for that beautiful, golden sound. It liquefied and burnt to a cinder every intention she possessed of erasing him from her life. She could not bear to let him go.
The carriage proceeded from Rotten Row to a more secluded section of the park, and the laughter faded, the lighthearted moment replaced by a shaky truce.
Sebastian regarded her solemnly. “Will you forgive me?”
Ivy’s heart thumped. If she accepted, things would go on as before. If she rejected the apology, Sebastian would deliver her to Kinley House, deposit her on the doorstep and that would be the end of matters. This business of forgiving him was becoming too familiar. And far too easy.
Her throat tight, Ivy nodded her consent as she examined the parasol. “The poor thing. You’ve ruined it.”And me. I’m at your mercy, fool that I am.
“It served its purpose well as Slayer of Bumblebees. I shall purchase you another, although I believe the cost is offset by the damage my coat suffered.” After showing her the rip in the garment, he took the parasol from her, tossing it to the opposite seat. “A rather flimsy weapon, but necessary for your protection.”
“My protection!” She gave him a mock frown. “You were only interested in saving yourself. It is a shame about your coat, although you might have avoided the mishap by not standing up in a moving carriage.”
“I’m convinced you assisted with my tumble.” The accusation was half-hearted even as he gave her that lazy grin which never failed to set her heart to racing.
“Perhaps I could have held tighter to you.” A giggle escaped Ivy at the thought of the earl waving the parasol around his head. “Oh, what do you suppose others thought? Our exploits shall keep the scandal sheets quite busy this week.”
“The gossipmongers can hang.” Sebastian reached for her, gathering her into his arms, tilting Ivy’s face so her pretty hat was not in his way. “Ah, Ivy…damn it all to hell. I might possess the willpower to resist you if your lips did not taste like the finest of wines.” His lips brushed against hers, laughter evident in sweetness of the gesture. “And if I did not have every intention of becoming intoxicated.” For a long moment, he kissed her, making up for the time missed over the past few weeks.
On the return to Kinley House, Ivy did the unthinkable, the rash, the absolute scandalous. She invited him to the monthly dinner.
“If you are otherwise engaged, it is understandable,” she assured him, the words hovering on her lips to remind him of the dinner’s intent. But surely, he knew. It was no secret this took place once a month. Sebastian was absent from London during the last one, but he must know.
Earlier, he had captured her hand, his fingers tangled with hers and every so often, he lifted it to his lips, his mouth skimming her knuckles. He did this now, lingering to taste her skin, sliding her palm to cup his clenched jaw. He held it there, the force of his hand covering hers and Ivy stayed, a willing prisoner.
“Of course, I shall come.” His gaze darkened. “I see no reason why this should not be a nightly occurrence.”
“Every night?” Ivy’s heart beat so erratically it was difficult to form words. The faint stubble of his chin scratched her palm, the heat of his skin warming hers. She dared not hope too much, but he could only intend one thing with a statement of this nature.
This would be the last night of the Pack’s monthly dinners. As each devotee requested her hand in marriage, Ivy would refuse in customary fashion until the last one. That request would be the one she wished for her entire life. When Sebastian proposed, she would sayyes.Yes,with her heart unlocked, her soul open to his. A thousandyes’s.
Sebastian loved her. The spark in his eyes, how his breathing hitched whenever their gazes collided, it all told her the truth. A fire ignited between them when their flesh happened to touch, whether fingertips, or lips, or other, more intimate places. They belonged together. She belonged to him. She would say yes. To anything and everything he wanted. She would be his wife.His.
Ivy curbed her soaring exhilaration. “Eight o’clock, then.”
Sebastian waved Bowden’s help away as he exited the carriage. Gathering up her gloves and the ruined parasol, he handed them to a Kinley footman before gripping Ivy about the waist to swing her down. Pedestrians on Mayfair stared at the sight of the Earl of Ravenswood with his arms wrapped about the Countess of Somerset as though they were a married couple.
Setting her on the sidewalk, his embrace lasted longer than was proper. Finally, with a frustrated sigh, Sebastian tilted her chin with a forefinger, his gaze inscrutable. “I shall count the seconds until I see you again.”
CHAPTER 12
“Are you sure?” Alan shook his head with a bemused smile.
The two men lounged in Sebastian’s library. Having gone over a report on a mining operation considered for investment, the invitation to the countess’s dinner was mentioned in casual passing.
“Of course. She did invite me, after all.”
Alan choked on a laugh, taking a swallow of his brandy. “I doubt you shall fit in very well with the usual company.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” Alan’s amusement exasperated Sebastian. What was so comical about dinner? It simply existed as a prelude to the real purpose behind the evening’s agenda. The countess would be his and he was imagining the ways he would have her. Her reluctant admission of a broken heart was the key to unlocking the last door to her surrender. And he grabbed it to force his way inside.
“You honestly don’t know?”
“Enlighten me.”
“It’s the Pack’s monthly dinner.” Alan’s grin was unabashed. “They arrive at Kinley House at the same time, on the same day, once every month during the season. A great to-do since Lady Kinley’s coming out. You missed the grand affair last month when you took off for Scotland to purchase those new racers, but everyone knows- I thought you did as well.”
“You mean, she…” A terrible, dawning fury washed over Sebastian. He’d been deceived. The game, this game of blood and revenge, was hers all along.
