Chapter Twenty
Ralston found Nora in the storeroom with Mrs Hanning cataloging soap and dried herbs. The scent of mint and parsley filled the room. Large bars of soap were ready to be cut into smaller cakes and delivered to each chamber. He also caught a whiff of lemongrass, Nora’s unique scent.
‘Ralston!’ Nora’s eyes were large. ‘You are home early. How did the vote go?’
Both women looked at him with expectant expressions.
His gaze lingered on his wife. She wore a plain blue gown, devoid of decoration or a single scrap of lace, with a simple apron.
A kerchief covered her auburn hair. If there was guile in her brilliant, wide eyes, he did not see it.
He was still processing his political win and his confrontation with Lord Weber afterwards in the robing room.
He addressed Mrs Hanning. ‘May I have a word alone with my wife?’
The woman bobbed a curtsy. ‘Of course, my lord.’ She wiped her hands on her apron then left the storeroom.
Nora began to remove her apron. ‘Shall I meet you in your study?’
‘No,’ he said, stopping her. ‘Here is fine.’ He stepped inside and closed the door. A small overhead window offered sufficient light so that a lamp was not needed. The room was lined with shelves full of preserved jars and bags of flour and salt. Dried herbs hung from hooks in the ceiling.
Nora’s brow furrowed. She looked lovely with whisps of curls escaping the simple kerchief.
‘The second reading of my bill went unexpectedly well and passed in the House,’ he said. ‘It’s now scheduled to go to the Commons. There it will assuredly pass.’
Her lovely face blossomed into a smile. Again, there wasn’t a hint of trickery. ‘Congratulations!’ She came forward to kiss him on the cheek. ‘I had every confidence in you.’
His heart pounded from her closeness. ‘Did you?’
She pulled back. ‘Of course! Why wouldn’t I?’
‘I had a most unusual conversation with Lord Weber outside the House chamber. To my surprise, his arguments against the bill were lackluster at best. When I confronted him and inquired, he told me to ask my wife. Is there something I should know.’
Her eyes widened and she bit her lower lip. It was a habit, he had noticed, when she was nervous, and he had an insane urge to kiss her, to lick the fullness, then suck it in his mouth.
She visibly swallowed. ‘I… I may have given Lady Weber something in exchange for her influence.’
His gaze snapped back to her. ‘What do you mean by something?’
Her fingers tightened before her. ‘When she’d attended my science salon, I noticed her interest in my father’s Armenian bowl.
When you told me her husband was your opponent, a plan hatched in my mind.
I invited her for tea and gifted her the bowl.
In exchange, she promised to persuade her husband to not stand in your way. ’
He stood stunned. Never could he have imagined she would go to such lengths. For him.
Again.
He knew she was intelligent, but he also recognized her cunning. She took time away from her own work to invite Lady Weber, strategically displaying what the lady most desired, and using it to carry out a plan. His wife had many talents and would make a fabulous politician.
And a perfect politician’s wife.
She continued to bite her lip. ‘Are you upset with me?’
‘Good God, no. Do you have any idea what type of true corruption occurs in politics? A gift of a bowl that a lady desires to add to her collection is not even close to bribery. I consider it resourceful and clever.’
His wife was his ally. He was grateful, not angry. ‘I’m only concerned with your sacrifice. The bowl was a gift from your father. Did it mean much to part with it?’
Her mouth curved in a smile and she shook her head. ‘Oh, no. He would have been happy to help.’
‘Then my thanks to you and to your father in heaven.’ Unable to resist her any longer, he swept her into his arms and kissed her.
Her arms wound around his neck, her fingers threading through his dark hair, and too soon a swift passion rose within him.
His kisses turned savage, and she met him with a fierce need of her own.
Silk sizzled against broadcloth where their bodies touched.
The heady mix of his success and the thrilling woman in his arms drove him, and he wanted, needed, to possess her.
‘Oh, Devon.’ She sighed against his lips.
His head lowered, and he nipped the pulsing hollow at her throat. When she arched her spine towards the silken heat of his mouth, his lips travelled above the low-cut bodice of her gown. Her passion was as volatile as his.
‘I was worried you would be angry at my interference,’ she said, her voice breathless.
‘Angry? Never. And that’s not what I feel for you right now.’ He was shaking with his need for her.
‘Then let’s not wait.’ She reached for the top button on the flap of his trousers.
He stopped her. ‘Wait. Do you care if the staff hears?’
‘No. Do you?’ she asked.
Lust raged in his groin and his head. His hands spanned her waist. He lifted her up and turned to one of the shelves. With an outstretched palm, he swept the contents off the worktable and set her upon it. Soap cakes rolled across the floor leaving a strong scent of lemongrass.
His mouth hovered over a breast again as he reached behind her, his fingers deftly working the buttons of her dress until the bodice sagged.
The tops of her lovely breasts above her chemise tempted him.
He deftly worked one free and sucked it into his mouth.
Her nails scraped his scalp, and her moan of pleasure fueled his lust.
He raised his head to look into her eyes. ‘You’re a treasure.’
His hands slid up her stockinged legs, reached past her frilly garters. The temperature in the room skyrocketed, and a film of sweat blossomed across her lovely flesh. He felt sweat beading on his own brow and made quick work of her drawers, which he pushed to the floor.
This time, when she reached for the flap of his trousers, he didn’t stop her. His cock sprang free, hard and urgent. He’d never been more aroused. He couldn’t wait much longer and knew he’d soon lose control.
Her green eyes glittered. ‘I need you, Devon. I need you so much.’
Good God. Sweat trickled down his back. He worried he wouldn’t last, and he needed to please her first. His shards of restraint snapped. He needed to be inside her. Now.
Cupping her buttocks, he plunged inside her welcoming body. She was wet and welcoming, and her body encased him like a glove. He stilled and groaned from the pure pleasure. She squeezed her legs about him, drawing him dangerously close to climax.
‘Nora, I’m not going to last.’
She pressed her lips against his throat. ‘Good. Nor am I.’
He began to move. The table shook with each thrust. He heard other items fall to the ground, dried herbs and a sack of flour that landed with a thud and burst at the seam.
From the corner of his eye, he saw a white puff go up.
Neither paid it any mind. His eyes never left her face, and when she tightened around him, he watched as she tossed back her head, her lips parted, and she peaked.
Her nails dug into his backside and his climax was fierce.
He stayed within her as they both gasped for breath.
Resting foreheads together, their heartbeats slowed.
His lips brushed hers, slow and lovingly.
The ferocity of their passion was rare. Finally, he pulled back and adjusted his trousers.
Reaching in his coat, he withdrew a handkerchief.
Wiping her thighs, he helped her stand and refastened her gown.
‘Nora, that was—’
‘Lovely. Utterly lovely. I believe you were right. The staff must have heard,’ she said.
‘Then they can gossip about the lord and lady of the manor.’ His heart hammered as he looked down at his wife.
He feared more than ever before of losing his heart.
He brushed her lips. ‘As much as I’d like to stay and hold you, I must meet with the gentlemen at the Commons.
Most agree with my bill, but I need to rally even more support. ’
‘Go. Do what you do best. But just so you know, I’m out of antiquities.’
He tossed back his head and laughed.
After Ralston departed, Nora ascended the winding staircase, her steps slow and thoughtful.
She intended to bathe and change, though her body still sang with the memory of the afternoon’s lovemaking in the storeroom.
Her lips curled in a self-satisfied smile.
He had been tenderly fierce, a contradiction she found delicious.
Afterwards, her limbs had melted against his, and for a blissful time, the world had existed solely within the warmth of his embrace.
Her earlier apprehension, when he had confronted her over her interference with Lady Weber, had been for naught. Rather than be upset with her, he had been proud of her efforts to help. He’d thought her clever.
He’d called her his treasure.
Nora pressed a hand to her heart, which now thudded wildly beneath her bodice.
Her feelings for him deepened with each passing day.
Every shared glance, each tantalizing touch, and shared intimacy made her long for him.
Far from being sated, she found herself craving their time together more fervently.
Unable to deny the truth any longer, she realized she was falling in love with him.
He was everything she’d hoped for and more—a man who was not intimidated by her intelligence, who did not merely tolerate it, but admired her for it and encouraged her.
Ralston was a world apart from Baron Umbridge.
And she was grateful beyond measure that she was his wife.
But how did Ralston feel?
He had never spoken words of love. Yes, he admired her. He respected her.
But love?