Page 37 of Ruthless with a Rogue
Livy hesitated, staring at the woman’s pristine white glove.The worst that could happen was word would get out.She would be ruined.The same thought from the night ofThe Devil’s Eyewhispered through her mind: But wasn’t she already?At least now she’d be fashionably dressed while she was at it.
Calculated risks.
She placed her hand in the modiste’s and stepped onto the stand.
A few hours later, Livy flopped back on her bed.She’d had no idea being poked and prodded, thrown in one dress after another, would be so exhausting.But she now had three beautiful dresses ready for her—she glanced to her side where a yellow one rested on the coverlet.Wear the yellow one.
The ones that required more extensive alteration would follow tomorrow, and then even more a week from now.Walking dresses, morning dresses, gowns, stockings, undergarments, spencers, pellises, redingotes.Livy’s head spun, her throat tight.She’d barely been able to push a thank you past the lump lodged there.
She fingered the yellow muslin, its moss-green embroidery winding like vines across the delicate fabric.Which only had a pair of moss green eyes flitting through her mind.Ones responsible for today.The material was petal soft; she’d never felt a muslin so fine.Nothing like the stiff, practical cotton she was used to.And now she had an array of gowns she’d never dreamed would be hers to wear.
She turned to her right and came face to face with a white box.These boxes hadn’t been opened while the modiste had been there.
She tugged on the dusty-rose bow securing the box shut and lifted the lid.She delicately pushed aside the tissue paper concealing the contents.A gasp escaped her lips, and she shoved the cover back on the box, glancing around the room with wide eyes.
Taking a bracing breath, she unveiled the contents once more.Her cheeks flamed.A pair of pristine white silk stockings lay within.And on top of them—a set of deep red garters.The same shade as the red that had decorated his private rooms.
Along with a note.
“Only silk as soft as your lips should be allowed to grace your skin.”
“Yourogue,” she scolded aloud, her words echoing in her empty bedchamber.And now she knew it for certain.This was a clear attempt at seduction.This entire visit was.One she refused to be influenced by.But she couldn’t deny the man was clever.
Clever girl.His whispered words rushed back, and she shivered.
She gently caressed the red silk with her fingertips.
Well played, Lord Dunmore.
22
Livy
LivydescendedfromLordDunmore’s carriage and surveyed the park with a smile.Puffy clouds adorned the vast blue sky.The kind perfect for lying in the grass and imagining what shapes they formed.Her heart gave a pang.It was lovely to be somewhere that remotely resembled the country—even if the air still held an acrid tinge of coal smoke.It wasn’t home, though.It didn’t have Bonny or a rumpled, studious Papa.
But she at least was surrounded by the beauty of spring, lush green leaves, light pastels still clinging to the branches of the trees still in bloom, garden beds popping with color.Birds chirped overhead, and the hum of conversation mingled with the rhythmic plod of hooves, bringing the park to life.A glorious early May day, the perfect day to see and be seen.Her belly fluttered.This was it, her first day being seen alongside a prominent figure in society.And in a dress fitting of his standing.Hopefully, this would be the start of things turning around for her.
“Thank you for escorting me and my aunt today, my lord,” Livy said to Lord Dunmore once he returned from speaking with the driver of his carriage.
He looked dangerously handsome in his inky-black topper, roguish waves escaping just beneath the brim.He’d angled it just so, slightly shading his brow, adding an air of arrogant mystery.Of course he had.Somehow it made his cheekbones even more prominent, his jaw even sharper.Blast it all, the man looked handsome like that.It was extremely vexing.
“Yes, we are most appreciative, my lord,” Aunt Mellie chimed in, smiling widely while she scanned the park.“Oh, I see Lady Monteith just over there!I have been meaning to catch up with her.”She shot Livy a meaningful look.“You two carry on.I will keep an eye on you both from just over there.”
Livy released a soft laugh as Aunt Mellie wandered over to her friend, white parasol spinning over her shoulder.She was sure her aunt was going to try to work her own magic to increase their connections.
“You know very well I was coerced into doing this.”Lord Dunmore’s deep voice danced around Livy.Much too close.Much too hushed.Much too intimate.“If I remember correctly, some slip of a miss stole my clothes and threatened to make me appear in front of a ballroom full of guests in nothing but my smalls.”
Livy bit back her smile.That truly had been one of her finer moments.“If I remember correctly, I also rose to your challenge the other night.I earned this.”She lifted her nose and stared down at him with mock haughtiness.“So, I agree, I won’t thank you.”She set off down the grassy knoll beside Rotten Row, then turned, walking backwards.She lifted her eyebrows and grinned.“I’ll thank myself.”
His grin flashed for a heart-stopping moment before his serious demeanor slid firmly back in place.A genuine smile, soft and boyish, without any ulterior motive of seduction or scorn.Just like the one she’d seen briefly at the gaming hell.Her heart strummed a soft warning against her breast.
With long strides, he caught up to her.“I see you received my gift.You look stunning, by the way,” he said quietly.“There is something incredibly alluring about the fact that the soft muslin covering your naked skin was purchased by me.”
Livy shivered as the breeze kicked up, bringing with it the perfume of magnolia blooms and the faint smell of grass and earth.She most definitely shivered due to the breeze.Notfrom his words.Words she would choose to ignore.
She inhaled deeply, letting the fresh floral scent of spring fill her senses.She paused and lifted her head to the sun, relishing the warm beams of sunlight.But then an all-too-familiar tickle started in her nose.Livy scrunched her nose and desperately searched herself for a handkerchief.
“Are you well?”Lord Dunmore asked, his words pitched with alarm.
