Page 42 of Mentor to the Marquess
It was Thel, wearing less than she was.
He sat on the rock behind her. Taking his cue, she placed her arm across his lap and tilted her head to the sky. Their garb did not exactly match the painting they were emulating, but it was enough for the audience to erupt in applause.
Her insides twisted and her cheeks felt warm. Seconds passed like minutes as she held herself as still as possible. She dared not move or touch him, as she feared her confidence would shatter and she would flee the stage.
“Look at me,” he whispered.
She met his gaze, and the intensity in his eyes made her want to reach up and kiss him. His expression was hiddenbeneath his mask, but the muscles in his shoulders and neck were taut, as if he were holding himself back.
The music changed, indicating it was time to adjust positions. A wicked impulse had her throwing away her prior concerns and crawling on Thel’s lap, straddling him with her arms around his neck. He clasped his hands about her waist and squeezed, making her gasp. Rather than ruin the illusion, she leaned back until her head was tilted to the sky. They froze in that position, although at least one part of him continued to move, or more accurately,grow.
“I don’t know how much more I can take of this,” he whispered in a pained voice.
She chewed the inside of her cheek to keep from laughing. In a sense, his costume was even more revealing than hers. “Carry me off when the song ends.”
He grumbled but remained in position until the music faded. Then she wrapped her legs around his hips and twisted her torso to wave at the cheering crowd as Thel carried her offstage.
Chapter 18
“It’s caught on my corset,” Olivia said from beneath her dress. Thel lifted the fabric, but the damned dress was so light, it fluttered in the slight breeze coming from the open window and tangled further. Olivia struggled until the sheer fabric was draped over her bodice and head until she resembled a ghost. He tickled her sides, making her break into laughter. She bumped a rack of cue sticks on the wall and sent them clattering to the ground. Before she could trip over them, he pushed her into a chair and placed the items back in their places beside the billiards table.
The other actors had left them alone in what appeared to be a gaming room with a raised eyebrow and a wink, as if they knew what they wanted to do. Another whispered word to a footman and their costumes were delivered shortly after. He had already donned his, but Olivia was having more difficulty.
She struggled out of his grip and brutally yanked the fabric off. She tossed it at her feet, then made an exaggerated gasping sound as if she had just come up from beneath the water.
“I thought I would never escape,” she said.
Thel leaned back and took in the shape of her waist in the corset and drawers. “I could have stood to see you struggle a bit more.”
His skin was still dewy from the performance. He could not believe they had done it. The way Olivia had reclined on the stage had made his insides twist. She was so daring, a wildwoman he wanted by his side. If only she would agree to be his wife.
She stuck out her tongue, then plucked strands of silk tulle that clung to the metal clasps of her corset, drooping down like strands of spider silk.
“I have a present for you,” she said.
“Oh?” he asked.
She touched her bodice. “You must unwrap it.”
He reached for her waist, sliding his hands up before unclasping her corset until it came free. Then he dropped to his knees and smoothed his palms along her stockinged shins. He drew her chemise up until it gathered at her waist. She tore it off and stood bare from the waist up.
His mouth went dry. She had threaded rings through her pierced nipples and attached a chain that lay between her breasts like an undulating snake.
His cock throbbed. The glinting silver metal on her soft skin was almost more than he could take.
She took his hand and laid it on top of the chain. “Tug ever so slightly.”
He did so, and she obligingly stepped forward, drawn by the pressure on her bosom.
He dipped his head and took a ring-clad nipple into his mouth. The metallic bite on his tongue was foreign, but not unpleasant, and her skin smelled of soap and roses. He slid his hands up her back, pressing her into him as she made soft, breathy noises.
“Remove them,” she whispered.
He took a ring in his teeth and fumbled with the clasp until it clicked open. She hissed as it left her flesh. He touched his lips to her nipple and ran the tip of his tongue along the hole that remained.
“The other one,” she said.
He repeated the procedure on her other nipple before depositing the chain and rings in his pocket. Then he captured her mouth.
