Chapter 4
If you cannot get over a gentleman’s kiss, kiss a rogue.
—From the Diary of Lillian Wright
Pippa banged her head on one of the fluffy pillows scattered across her bed. Just how much punch had she drunk to steal a kiss from him!
Nicholas Byrne.
What had she been thinking?
Of course, that was the problem. She hadn’t been thinking … She’d been seizing!
In the past, Pippa had gotten into all sorts of scrapes with her unwavering philosophy. A grumpy cat had scratched her hand. She’d fallen into an ice-cold river after an attempt at fishing. Thorns had prickled her feet when she’d run barefoot across a country field.
But kissing Nicholas …
This was beyond any moment she had ever seized.
The touch of Nicholas’s lips against hers.
The soft scent of pine that clung to his coat.
Large hands encircling her waist. These were infinitely more dangerous than any previous consequences that had arisen from seizing a moment.
Because they were so much more than that.
They were gentle enticements. Little snares.
And she had an alarming suspicion she’d been caught in their toils.
Pippa, Pippa, Pippa.
She’d gone and done it now.
She had always found Nicholas exceedingly handsome. And, once upon a time, she had some flirtatious fantasies. A natural occurrence since the man resembled a chiseled Adonis.
But this was Nicholas.
The man thought of her as his ward. Perhaps even as a second sister. So, the fact that her memory of him last night beamed as vivid as a blooming rose, triggered a sense of danger in her heart. The kiss. The dance. The stealthy glares.
All Nicholas.
Would acting as though nothing had transpired between them be enough?
For him? For her? She certainly did not want to ruin their relationship because of her actions.
That would most certainly affect her friendship with Nancy.
Pippa would never forgive herself if her behavior last night estranged her from her best friend.
But then again, this was Nicholas.
Cold, yes, and serious to the extreme, but also a complete gentleman. Pippa had also gotten what she wanted—her first kiss. In all likelihood, the earl had already pushed the matter from his mind.
Her chest tightened at the thought.
A brief knock and Nancy entered the chamber with a skip in her step. “Awake? Why haven’t you come down for breakfast? I am dying of curiosity! Did you kiss Dare?”
Pippa groaned and pressed her face into the pillow.
She’d run off to her room the moment they returned home, afraid that Nancy would just somehow know that she’d kissed her brother.
Pippa didn’t even want to think about what Nancy would have to say about that.
The last thing she wanted was for Nancy to worry about their friendship or, heaven forbid, orchestrate a forced marriage.
She could just imagine the earl’s sour face!
Nancy yanked the pillow from beneath her. “Well? I’ve waited long enough for all the juicy details. Do tell.”
“There’s nothing to tell.”
“Then it’s as I thought.” Nancy sighed. “Because of Nicholas, right? I don’t understand how he so thoroughly abandoned his reason last night.”
He wasn’t the only one.
“He must have remembered our shenanigans of the previous year,” Nancy said.
“Perhaps.”
“Not to worry, we shall find another opportunity for you to kiss Dare. I’ve decided I shall steal my first kiss as well.”
“You did? With whom?”
“I haven’t quite decided yet. I’m still scouting the prospects.”
“What about Jeremy? You’ve fancied him for years.”
Nancy snorted. “The man is either as dense as a piece of wood or not attracted to me. Even if he is the former, he should have shown a hint of interest by now. A look of longing. A flirtatious remark. Anything. He’s flirted with enough women for me to know he is capable, so I’ve decided to move on. ”
Pippa thought of Nicholas. He had never cast a longing look her way or made any flirtatious remark, either. And having borne witness to her friend’s unrequited love for years, she understood no good would come from reminiscing on last night. Best to let it go.
Pippa sat up. “Well then, I shall help you scout. Or you can just kiss Dare, too.” As for her, she might as well steal another one for good measure. At the very least, it ought to purge a certain earl from her memory.
Nancy yanked the covers from the bed. “It’s already noon. Have you forgotten? We are to meet Jeremy at Hyde Park in an hour. I invited Dare, too. Let’s see if he shows.”
This caught Pippa’s attention. “You invited Dare? When?”
“Yesterday at the ball when Nicholas plundered your dance. Surprised? Grateful?”
Pippa bit her lip.
She suddenly recalled one particular sentence in her mother’s diary that had always amused her: If you cannot get over a gentleman’s kiss, kiss a rogue.
Pippa had planned to kiss a rogue from the beginning. Rakes had no sense of commitment. An easy choice. Plus, according to her mother’s diary, they were excellent kissers. Pippa decided to see for herself.
She would kiss Dare today.
* * *
The third rule of being an exemplary brother: Do not eavesdrop on your sister’s conversation, especially if said conversation is with Pippa Averly.
Nicholas could not quite explain his current mood as he entered Hyde Park on the back of his horse. He hadn’t meant to eavesdrop. Truly, he hadn’t. A gentleman never eavesdropped. He’d only casually strolled by Pippa’s chamber …
He hadn’t slowed his steps.
Hadn’t pressed his ear up against the door.
Hadn’t overheard Pippa planning to kiss Dare. Nancy planned to kiss someone too. They were going riding at Hyde Park. Dare might be there.
Nicholas clenched his jaw.
What the devil was wrong with the women? Did they only have kissing on their brain? And Pippa … This, after she had already brazenly kissed him. After he had spent a sleepless night dwelling on her lips. Her scent. Was he a deuced rag to be tossed aside after being used?
Unacceptable.
The fire that had exploded in his chest earlier still raged on. He should have locked them in that chamber there and then. But he hadn’t. Instead, he followed them like a scorned lover adamant about catching his partner in the act.
Bloody shameful.
He told himself to remain calm. Observe. Determine what those mischievous creatures were planning and nip it in the bud. Yet the moment he spotted Dare leading Pippa to his phaeton, all rational thought drained from his head.
Nicholas didn’t bother with pleasantries as he halted his horse beside them. “It’s too dangerous for a ride in a phaeton. The weather is turning.”
“Nicholas?” Pippa’s eyes widened.
Nancy frowned. “Weren’t you heading to your club? Why are you here?”
“My plans changed.”
Dare chuckled but said nothing.
Nicholas clenched the reins between his fingers.
Pippa shot him a meaningful glance. “There’s not a cloud in the sky.”
“Clouds have a way of following the depraved.”
Dare’s smile stiffened. “What are you implying, Chatteris?”
Nicholas ignored him. “The roads are also wet. Driving phaetons in these conditions is reckless.” He held out his hand to Pippa, resolved to get her far away from Dare and any possible kiss between the two.
She glared at him.
Of course, Nicholas knew his behavior was rude, atrocious even. He just didn’t care. The only thing that mattered was Pippa. The gawking onlookers melted away as Nicholas waited for her response.
In the end, she did not refuse him.
She placed her hand in his, gasping when he effortlessly lifted her up onto his horse in one fell swoop.
“If you will excuse us,” Nicholas announced. “We have something to discuss.”
“Pippa!” Nancy exclaimed in shock.
Nicholas caged her in his arms and flicked the reins before anyone could stop them, urging the horse into a gallop.
Her common sense returned before his, for she demanded, “Stop the horse and let me off.”
“No.”
“Everyone is staring at us!”
“Let them stare.”
“This is highly unlike you, Nicholas.” She was seated sideways and turned her head to glare at him. “Not even to say we can’t hold a proper conversation in this position.”
Nicholas leaned close. “Nothing about yesterday or today has been proper, why start now?”
“Have we not moved past the matter?”
“You don’t tell a man to forget about a kiss if you want him to forget about a kiss. Now I can’t forget about it even if I wanted to.”
“So you interfere in my engagements?”
“Are you going to kiss Dare?” Nicholas countered, the mere thought driving him bloody mad. “He is the one you meant to kiss, no?”
Those beautiful eyes blinked. “My birthday is in a few days. I did not want to reach twenty without my first kiss.”
“I see.” Nicholas brought the horse to a halt, his gaze delving into hers. “Since you already shared your first kiss with me, why do you still plan on kissing another?”
“How do you …” Her eyes widened. “You eavesdropped on our conversation?”
“A mere coincidence.”
“Do you expect me to believe that?”
Nicholas cleared his throat, his mind still stuck on this first kiss business. He was the first man to ever kiss Pippa. An extremely satisfying thought.
“Be that as it may, forget about Dare.”
“You have clearly lost all sense.”
“I have lost all sense?”
“This is the second time you have left your sister unchaperoned with a group of men to whisk me away from a big, bad wolf.”
“Jeremy is there.”
“Is he a man?”
“All of England knows he is the equivalent of your hired help.”
Pippa snorted. “For a man always in control, you don’t seem to have a grip on matters. So, pray tell, what do you plan to do now that you have me?”
Excellent question. He’d nearly forgotten about his plan. Nicholas stared at her pretty face, filled with questions and so tantalizingly close to his, and felt his pulse leap. Damnation. His heart was experiencing another event. So much for his calm.
His gaze dropped to the soft arch of her lips.
Full.
Sweet.
Utter temptation.
He now knew how they would feel against his own lips. The soft sensation. The taste of sweetness that branded into his mind. His bones. His soul. He wanted to occupy her mind solely. Her lips. Everything.
He found her enchanting.
Always had.
“Well?” she urged.
Nicholas slowly came back to his senses and smiled. “I plan to take back control.”
Her eyes rounded. “How?”
Nicholas’s grin widened. Then he uttered words he never thought he would ever say to Pippa in this life. “If you want to kiss someone, kiss me.”