Read Eden's Pleasure Online

Authors: Kate Pearce

Eden's Pleasure (8 page)

50

Eden’s Pleasure

I sank into the nearest seat and stared openmouthed at the woman. Whether she

wore a wig or not, she bore a remarkable resemblance to me. Gervase swore softly

beside me.

“Damnation, I thought she would have been replaced by now.”

I put my hand over his mouth as the woman helped the knight to remove his

armor. Then he got into the large wooden bath and she leaned over him, soaking her

thin linen shift with the water. She spent a long time washing him and caring for his

wounds, stopping frequently to kiss his face and allow him to touch her breasts.

Eventually, the knight responded by pulling her into the bath on top of him and making

love to her.

I tried to imagine Gervase playing the wounded knight and found it all too easy. He

was a soldier, well used to battle and well deserving of comfort. I turned to look at him

and found his face unusually still as he watched the woman tend to her knight. Had he

come here and thought of me? Had he wanted me to offer him comfort in the past wartorn years?

With aching tenderness, I drew his head down and kissed his warm generous

mouth as the woman on the stage gasped and moaned her pleasure.

“Now, Gervase,” I whispered. “I’m begging you now.”

In answer, he swept me up in his arms and hurried me towards the exit. While we

waited for his carriage to be brought around, he held me pressed against the wall, my

face buried against his muscular chest. I could feel his heartbeat and the pulse of his

arousal through the thin black silk of my undergarments.

The carriage arrived and he handed me inside with a terse command to his

coachman.

“Drive around until I tell you to stop.”

Without further words, he opened his breeches and his cock sprang free. He

dragged me astride him and, with a hoarse sound of need, entered me with one swift

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upward thrust. I wrapped my arms and legs around him as I sought to adjust to his

hard length. The carriage picked up speed and rocked me closer into his arms.

I purred with pleasure as he pumped into me, dug my heels into the seat and

arched my spine. He kept up the demanding pace and depth of his thrusts until I came

hard and wet around him. He gave me no respite but rode me through the pleasure

until it began to peak again. His mouth latched onto my silken-clad breast and suckled

me without ceasing.

I screamed then and he growled. “Yes, scream again, I want my coachman to hear

you and get hard wishing he could have you.”

I tried not to but Gervase was a demanding lover. My body lapped up the pleasure

he gave me until I didn’t care if the Prince Regent himself heard my moans of delight.

“Again.”

He urged me on despite me begging him not to, one set of fingers twisting my

nipple, the other rubbing my clitoris as he pounded into me. I came again, and with a

groan he followed me into the realm of pleasure we had created together.

As I slumped, exhausted against his chest, he thumped on the carriage roof with his

cane and we soon arrived at Gideon’s house. Gervase gave me no opportunity to aid

myself, he simply picked me up in his arms, carried me into the house and deposited

me in my bed.

I watched with a ripple of anticipation as he stripped off his clothes and came down

over me. He removed the wisps of lace and silk, which were all that remained of my

underthings after his rough handling, and stared down at me. Leaning across, he

brought a branch of lit candles closer to the bed.

“Open your legs, Eden.”

I whimpered as his finger sought entrance to my swollen passage. He smiled softly,

his face illuminated in the candlelight.

“You think you are too sore to take me again?”

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Eden’s Pleasure

I nodded as his fingertips dabbled in the thick and seemingly endless stream of his

seed that ran down between my legs. “How long do you think it will take me to get

inside you again?”

I shuddered at the feather light touch of his fingertips caressing me so carefully but

didn’t answer.

Gervase continued to touch and to talk.

“Do you remember when we met in the barn at Harcourt Hall farm? You had

grown up considerably since we had last seen you. Who did you prefer to watch,

Gideon or me?”

“You…” I gasped as he swirled his thumb over my clitoris, barely touching it.

“Why?” he asked idly. “What was it that I did that Gideon didn’t?” Gervase slid

downwards and commanded. “Touch your breast for me, Eden, while I attend to your

pussy.”

I tried to think back as Gervase licked his way up my thigh. The tip of his tongue

flicked lightly against my engorged clitoris with masterly restraint. I stroked my nipple

in time with Gervase’s licks and started to feel warm again.

“Gideon never seemed to enjoy himself as much as you did. He seemed to make all

the right gestures and then seemed disappointed or bored by the final act.”

I squirmed as Gervase drove his tongue deeper and I felt myself opening up to him

like a flower. He brought his dripping face up for a second and shook his head like a

dog. His teeth gleamed white in the candlelight.

“How very perceptive of you, Eden.” He glanced at the clock on the mantel. “Five

minutes to make you soaking wet and fuckable, love. You are far too easy.”

I tried to struggle out of his grasp as he knelt up to show me his straining cock. He

laced my fingers with his and wrapped them around the huge base as he positioned

himself between my legs.

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“Don’t look so annoyed. I wasn’t trying to be insulting. After all, you do the same to

me.” He glanced down at his cock and grimaced as he parted my labia and slid inward.

“If you think that this is normal for a man after the night we’ve had, you will be sorely

disappointed. I’ve never been this insatiable before, and like you, I will pay for it in the

morning.”

The thick base of his shaft nudged my pussy. He groaned and ground his hips hard

against mine. He chuckled into my neck. “Just be thankful that unlike me, you do not

have to go on duty and sit astride a horse for four hours tomorrow morning. Promise

me that you will not walk past headquarters tomorrow. God help me if I think of you

then!”

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Eden’s Pleasure

Chapter Six

I sat at my dressing table and reread the note delivered to the house that morning. I

was not surprised that the viscount had discerned my whereabouts. He always seemed

to know my secrets. Rumor had it that his association with the Foreign Office during

the war had resulted in a number of captured French spies and thwarted plots. Keeping

an eye on one wayward female relation probably seemed easy by comparison. With a

deep breath, I looked at my suddenly pale face in the mirror. The twins’ father was back

in London and wished me to present myself at his dwelling on the morrow.

My idyllic days with Gervase were drawing to a close. I was not sure whether to be

glad or sorry. He had stirred unwelcome emotions in me that I had sworn to forgo. My

hands clenched on the note and my green eyes darkened and reflected my anguish. I

could not bear to be in love with Gervase again. I could not allow myself to be left

desolated by his desertion.

I smoothed powder onto my face and rose to my feet, suddenly needing to be

outside. A walk through the tranquil glades of Hyde Park seemed necessary to soothe

my agitation and to give me time to formulate my plans for the future.

I strolled through the park. My maid followed at a discreet distance. I scarcely saw

the beauty of the emerging leaves and the bitter, sweet, sharp colors of spring. Could I

face another elderly husband after Gervase? Other desperate or clever women had

chosen this route before me and seemingly felt no compunction in cuckolding their

elderly partners with a succession of eager young lovers.

I shook my head. My experiences with Mr. Carstairs had made me wary of such an

arrangement.

I looked up as a pigeon disturbed the leaves on a cherry tree. A fistful of pink

blossoms floated to the ground around me like a shower of bridal confetti. What if

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Kate Pearce

Gervase asked me to be his mistress and suggested he set me up in my own

establishment? I came to a halt as a wave of misery washed over me. No, I could not

accept that either, despite my desire for him. It would only prolong the inevitable

heartache when he chose to marry some fresh-faced chit straight out of the schoolroom

and discarded me.

I resumed my walk. The break would have to be complete for me to bear it. Tears

threatened in the corners of my eyes as I contemplated the muddle I had created for

myself with such blithe overconfidence. How in God’s name could I have thought that

going to bed with Gervase again would be anything but heart-wrenchingly wonderful?

How could I have believed that I would escape unscathed?

“Excuse me.”

I hastily wiped my eyes as I realized I had inadvertently blocked the path. I looked

up to apologize and caught my breath as I recognized the hauntingly beautiful auburnhaired woman whom Gideon had warned me against.

She lifted one arched eyebrow and held out her gloved hand. A bronze-colored silk

bonnet charmingly framed her pale face.

“I believe you are an acquaintance of Lord Gideon Harcourt. Is that so?”

I touched her fingers with my own as I made a brief curtsey and nodded. “Yes, we

are old friends. My mother is his mother’s second cousin.”

She surprised me by slipping her hand into the crook of my arm and strolling

beside me. “Well that is good. When I saw that you had been crying, I wondered if

Gideon had been trifling with your affections.” She shrilled a laugh, which was sharp

enough to set my teeth on edge. “Gideon certainly doesn’t visit my bed anymore but I

am relieved to hear that he hasn’t been breaking your heart in yours.”

Despite the apparent ease of her tone, her fingers tightened on my arm. I was glad

to exonerate Gideon.

“I am happy to reassure you that Gideon has always been the perfect gentlemen.”

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Eden’s Pleasure

Her nails clamped into my skin and her voice came out in a hiss. “Oh yes, Gideon’s

always so perfect. Too perfect to allow anyone else to make a mistake.”

I tried to ease out of her grip, alarmed by the feral glare in her yellowish eyes. She

refused to release me. I looked around for my maid, caught her eye and beckoned her

closer. I sighed in relief as my maid’s presence seemed to release the tension in the

woman before me. I made a point of stepping away and smoothing out my sleeve

before I turned to confront her.

“Miss…” I stopped in confusion as I realized I didn’t know this worrying creature’s

name. My breath nearly ceased as a flicker of triumph lit her eyes.

“You don’t know who I am, do you?”

“All I know is that Gideon told me to keep away from you and now I understand

why. You are clearly unstable.” I gave her a sharp nod. “Good day to you, whoever you

are. I shall definitely heed Gideon’s advice from now on.”

Her smile grew even wider, exposing her sharp pointed teeth. She began to laugh

hysterically.

“Oh, God, this is wonderful. You really don’t know who I am, do you?”

I refused to drop my gaze and she gave me a formal curtsey. “I am Lady Harcourt,

Gideon’s wife.”

I pushed past her, my mind in turmoil. Her mocking laughter pursued me through

the glade of trees and beyond the cast iron gates of the park.

I joined Gideon and Gervase in the dining room at the appointed hour, dressed in

one of my old black gowns. I curtsied to Gideon, accepted an enthusiastic kiss on the

cheek from Gervase and allowed them to seat me between them at the table.

Silence fell as the men attacked their food with their usual gusto. I tried to subdue

the appalling suspicions my encounter with Gideon’s wife had raised in my heart. After

a while, when we were settled with our dessert and port, Gideon waved away the

servants and we were alone.

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Kate Pearce

I wiped my mouth with my napkin and received a glass of port from Gideon. I

caught a searching look of inquiry from Gideon to Gervase and the helpless shrug of

Gervase’s broad shoulders in response.

“She seems unhappy with us,” Gideon remarked.

Gervase half smiled. “I have not quarreled with her, if that’s what you are

implying.” He gave me a sly wink. “She seemed quite well satisfied when I left her in

bed this morning.”

I half rose to my feet and glared at the pair of them.

“If you insist on speaking about me as if I were invisible, then maybe I will oblige

you by retiring.”

Gervase stood up, his intention to bar my way clear in his intense blue eyes.

“Eden, if you have something you wish to say, please say it.” He spread his hands

wide to include Gideon. “We are all friends here, we have no secrets.”

“No secrets?” I managed a tight smile and focused my attention on Gideon who sat

at his ease at the head of the dining table with his habitual air of distance.

“I too thought that we were friends but I find that I am mistaken. I met your wife in

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