Chapter 6
CHAPTER 6
Georgiana was made of stars.
She was certain of it.
Because the light that suddenly burst before her eyes at the press of his lips against her mouth made her feel otherworldly. And she had been in love with Ellis for years. Now, with his body against hers, warm and firm, and his hand gently cradling her head—well, it was like a balm to her soul to know she could relax and fall into that moment, and he would catch her.
Because Ellis always seemed to catch her, and this was no different. And as amazing as the kiss was, she couldn’t deny the ache in her body, the subtle craving for more that overwhelmed her.
And it hadn’t disappeared nearly a week later.
She groaned as she opened her eyes, waking from a dream of kissing him once more, as she had for the past several mornings.
Romeo butted his head against her cheek and purred loudly, and she stared up at the ceiling peak, still there. She felt a need thrumming through her body. She didn’t quite understand it, but she knew it was because of Ellis—and she needed more .
And while he hadn’t disappeared entirely after their kiss, he had withdrawn into himself the few times they ran into one another. He made it a point to be there for breakfast in the morning. He pored over the newspaper at the opposite end of the table and asked her about her plans for the day. She could tell he was exhausted, and he had stayed awake for her anyhow.
It didn’t make it any better.
She needed to seduce her husband.
She had let the idea tumble around in her head for a few days now, but it was time for her to take control—not only of her life, but over her own desires. The problem, of course, was that she had wanted—desperately wanted—to be wanted by someone, anyone, her entire life. She couldn’t sort out whether she had really loved Ellis and wanted to seduce him to become her husband, or if she just wanted his attention and to feel needed. If her plan went poorly, it would backfire, and she would have no one to blame but herself.
The cat rolled over, revealing his tummy for pets, and she laughed to herself, a little sad. If she was to seduce her husband, she wouldn’t know where to begin, but she knew someone who could help.
“If only he would notice me,” she said out loud to the cat. The cat merely rolled back over, turned its back, and jumped off the bed with a definitive meow.
“You’re no help,” she grumbled.
She dressed, brushed her hair, and looked at herself in the mirror, amazed at how, in only a month’s time, her appearance had changed. She hadn’t fully realized the dark place she had been in, but there was hope now, and she wouldn’t let go of Ellis so easily.
She had snuck out once, and it hadn’t gone to plan, but this time she would do it while he was asleep, when no one was sure to bother him.
She grabbed her reticule, bid farewell to Hester and Esther, and walked a few doors over to Madame Marie’s. She knocked on the door, quickly glancing over her shoulder at the passersby, determined not to let embarrassment claim the better of her.
Yes, this was a bold plan.
But if Georgiana could count on anyone, it was herself—that she knew now for sure.
A man opened the door. “Service entrance is in back.”
“I’m here to see Madame Marie,” Georgiana said. “You can tell her that Linny sent me.”
“Right, right,” he grumbled, and he waved for her to follow him inside.
She didn’t know what she was expecting. She had never been to a brothel before. Maybe it was na?ve to say she thought it would be something baser than what she discovered because the entryway to the brothel looked comparable to Ellis’s club. All marble, gilded picture frames—it felt luxurious. And it was warm, and cinnamon perfumed the air. As they walked deeper into the club, darker colors surrounded her, enveloping her, drawing her near.
This is what she wanted, right? She wanted to seduce her husband. She didn’t even know what that meant, but showing up in his office had worked for a kiss. And it was a good kiss, obviously, because she couldn’t stop thinking about it. Maybe she was a little greedy, but she wanted more, and she wouldn’t let herself down. She deserved more. She’d promised that to herself.
Madame Marie had some curtains acting as a makeshift door. The rouge on her cheeks was bright, and she clapped her hands together and tilted her head, narrowing her dark eyes on Georgiana.
“Well, this is a pleasant surprise,” she said. “Linny sent you?”
Georgiana cleared her throat, a little embarrassed. “No,” she said. “No, I’ve come on my own. I’ve come for lessons.”
“Lessons?”
“Yes, I wish to seduce my husband.”
Madame Marie threw her head back and gleefully cackled. “My girl, you’ve come to the right place.” She clapped her hands again. “Let me take your things, and I’ll introduce you to someone who can help.”
Ellis groaned as he sank into the hot bath. It had been a hellish night, and he wasn’t certain there wouldn’t be gossip leaking out into the press after he had to break up fisticuffs when two men accused one another of cheating at the card tables.
But the house always won, and the night had been sorted.
Except he missed Georgiana at breakfast this morning, part of him glad because he hadn’t been able to rid her from his mind since their kiss in his office.
He slid farther into the hot water, taking himself in hand at the memory of her soft sigh when they kissed. He was the very devil for it, but that damn kiss had haunted him all week. He’d almost wager his club at this point if he could win another kiss from her.
Which was dangerous.
“Boss,” Shaw’s voice called out from outside the washroom door.
Ellis let go and sat up, half disgusted he had pleasured himself to the memory of her. “What?” he snapped.
“There’s a situation.”
Wasn’t there always?
“What now?”
“It’s Georgiana.”
He leapt out of the tub, skidding over the tiled floor as he grabbed a towel and wrapped it around his waist before yanking the door open. “What’s happened?”
Shaw chuckled. “She’s managed to wrap you up into a right mess, hasn’t she?”
Ellis only glowered.
“Georgiana has left, and word is she’s paying a visit with Madame Marie.”
Silence reigned until his heart drummed in his ears, and he tamped down the sudden surge of anger.
“Why?” he asked, his voice brittle.
“Couldn’t say, sir. Esther told me you might like to know.”
Forever meddling, Esther and Hester!
“Should I get her, sir? Or go…”
“No, leave it to me. Don’t say a word to anyone about it.”
With his shirt still clinging damply to his chest and his wet hair dripping down his neck, he strode out of his club a few minutes later and marched toward Madame Marie’s, each step faster until he pounded his fist against the door.
Once the door cracked open, he pushed through, brushing past Bowdler, the imposing doorman. “Where is she?” he demanded.
“Who’s that now, Linny?”
The damn man must have had a death wish, judging by the chuckle in his voice.
“My wife!”
“Oh, she’s with Madame Marie. You’ve no appointment. You can’t see her.”
Ellis skirted around the taller man and held out his hand in warning. “Bring me to my wife or I’ll find her myself.”
“I’ll help you.” A young woman poked her head out behind the curtain, her black hair tied in a plait with a pink silk bow.
He gave her a quick nod, remembering the half-starved girl he’d once handed a coin to outside the club’s back door months after opening. “Hello, Porita.”
“Good morning, Linny. Come to collect?”
“In a manner of speaking, yes.”
She nodded, then drew back the curtain to allow him through to the long hallway beyond. Madame Marie’s brothel was respectable in that it mirrored the look of his club, except for the circular sofa beyond in the morning parlor. That room was dripping in crystal chandeliers and gilded mirrors. From what he heard, she drew inspiration from Versailles, and maybe that’s why any man who walked through the doors of Madame Marie’s left fancying himself a king.
“She’s lovely, Linny.”
He cleared his throat, scanning the hall, then glancing up the sweeping staircase that led to the rooms upstairs.
“Have a little faith, we haven’t corrupted her completely.”
But he froze in the doorway as Franny sat in a chair in the middle of the drawing room and Georgiana stood behind her, softly tracing her fingertips up the woman’s arm.
“Slower, dear. The key to seduction is not giving into the rush. It’s a slow build.” Madame Marie sat a few feet away, combing her fingers through a man’s hair as he lay reclined in her lap.
“It’ll drive him mad, lamb,” the man added, sitting up enough to sip claret from a golden goblet.
“ Who mad?” Ellis asked, his voice gravelly.
Georgiana startled but remained focused on her fingers and their slow march up the woman’s neck, then back into her pale blonde hair.
“Go away, Linny. We’re working.” Madame Marie untangled herself from the young buck and walked up to Georgiana. “Now, when you kiss…”
“I’ve come for my wife. It’s time you come home, Kitten.”
Georgiana’s eyes went wide, and she jumped back. “I?—”
Madame Marie turned and clasped her hands, a smug smile on her face. “See, works every time, darling. Men are such basic creatures, driven by jealousy and governed by lust.”
“I’m not jealous,” he argued.
The older woman tsked him. “Whatever you say. Come along, Franny and Parkes, it’s time we leave them alone. Take your time.” The older woman winked, then closed the doors behind her.
Ellis scoffed at the cheeky farewell before turning back to Georgiana. “What are you doing here?”
“I thought I was free to go about my life. That was our arrangement, wasn’t it?”
“Georgie.”
She rolled her eyes. “I’ve done nothing wrong.”
“You’re at a damn brothel for seduction lessons.”
His wife nodded, licking her lips in a slow sweep, drawing all his attention to her mouth. His cock hardened at the mere sight of it. Hell, not twenty minutes ago he had himself in hand remembering their kiss. And now she was here, and he…
He was in bloody trouble.
“Why does that bother you, Ellis? I spend all my day in my rooms at the club, and I’m lonely.”
“There are Hester and Esther.”
Anger peaked within her. Her cheeks grew red. “You can’t keep me locked away?—”
“You’re free to go do whatever.”
“Then why are you here if you do not care what I do with my time?”
“I care about what you do with your time. I do. You can start with why you’re at a damn brothel.”
She backed up a step. “I wasn’t here very long. Hardly learned anything.”
“You should be learning from me.”
“Learning what, exactly?”
“Georgie, don’t make me say it.”
“Isn’t that why we’re in this mess in the first place? You didn’t like our kiss. I thought?—”
“You drive me wild! I can’t stop thinking of you.” He closed the distance between them with three big strides. “I have thought of nothing but you night and day since we kissed in my office. It’s been torture. The sweetest, most maddening torture because I crave you, Kitten.”
Her fingers slowly traced the ridge of her collarbone, drawing his focus as she backed up again until her back pressed against the grand piano.
Everything was spinning out of control for Ellis. He had thought he could marry her and protect her, but that hadn’t been the case since he stood across from her and made his vows. It was more than that.
It was always going to be more between them.
“But you don’t want me.”
The truth hit him like a swift uppercut, cutting through his frustration. Georgiana wasn’t trying to seduce him because she needed his protection—she was doing it because she wanted him . Wanted him , not what he could offer her.
He swallowed hard and edged closer until his body brushed against hers. She braced her hands on either side of her on top of the piano to steady herself.
“Kitten, I’m going to kiss you now, and I want you to come home to me. I want you to kiss me back and know without a doubt, you are everything I desire in this world. I’ll drop to my damn knees right now and prove it to you.”
She tilted her head, then flicked her glance to the floor.
Ellis dropped to his knees.