Dare to be Mine (20 page)

He would normally have enjoyed bringing
her along to shop to her heart's content, as he had done countless times with
other paramours. But he had no desire for Elyssa's name to be associated as
that of a young widow out with another man who was purchasing her lacy
undergarments, and corsets, and dresses with daring decolletages.

an exorbitant amounte weAs the hours wore on and Daniel had
chosen a more than adequate number of silks and prints, Delilah carefully
approached him about an important issue.

"Milord, I am greatly honored to
prepare your lady friend all these fine things, but it will be impossible to sew
them to the perfection we boast without the young lady's presence for a proper
fitting. A centimeter too much here, an inch too little there, and the whole
wardrobe will be useless! Of course, we could always alter the garments at your
later request, but my establishment has never heard a complaint, and I do not
wish to give undue cause to soil my reputation. Please forgive my impudence,
milord, but I seek only to please your lady."

Daniel assured Delilah that he was a
more than adequate judge on a lady's measurements, her blushed cheeks betraying
her distraction at the thought of Lord Fredrickson indeed being an expert on
everything about a woman's body.

"I shall bring my girls in for you
to view. Should any of them appear the size of your lady friend, you must let
me know. If not, I am certain we can guess closely at her measurements."

At Delilah's instructions, the girls
came into the stately fitting room. There were five of them altogether, their
sizes varying from petite to buxom, their ages ranging from sixteen to
thirty-five, every last one of them quite attractive. It was clear to see they
were excited at the prospect of being on display for the rakish lord.

Daniel stood and casually walked about
the women, searching for the one closest to Elyssa's size. He was amused to see
that the most endowed female had undone the top few buttons of her blouse,
leaving him with a glorious view.

One of the girls brazenly suggested that
Daniel hold each of them in his arms to get the precise feel and size of them
as compared to his lucky lady friend, at which she received a harsh slap upside
the head from Delilah and a scolding for her insolent freshness. Daniel was
helpless to smile in amusement at the pretty girl's boldness.

After choosing the young lady closest to
Elyssa's size and height, Daniel advised Delilah to have the garments sewn
according to that particular one's measurements. The girl acted as if she'd
just been selected as Daniel's newest paramour, her elation at being the
perfect size for such a magnificent man certain to keep her on cloud nine for
the remainder of the week. She boldly asked if Daniel would like to remain
during the fitting, already starting to unlace her bodice.

Daniel chuckled as he shook his head and
to lapse in judgment. ed to ">CHAPTER ok his leave of the fitting room. He smiled at the sound of their admiring
chatter as he left the room, his ears only mildly shocked at the wicked things
he heard spoken of himself.

Delilah's intense curiosity at who the
clothes were being sewn for was tactfully dismissed by Daniel. He indicated
only that he would be delivering the things to his lady friend himself, and
that the boxes should be sent to him at Greystone within the next few days. His
excessively generous bonus for such an order left Delilah feeling weak-kneed
and she assured Daniel she would have the wardrobe completed and delivered
three days hence.

Her less pressing customers would have
to wait, and every girl put on the order at once. After watching the departure
of the splendidly tempting male, Delilah rushed into the fitting
room,
breaking up the beginnings of a fight between the
girls over which one could undoubtedly please the delicious rogue in bed the
most.

While Daniel was gone, Elyssa spent part
of the day outside. She dressed warmly, leaving her hair long and loose. After
walking through the gardens and talking briefly with the gardener about his
suggestions for changes and additions to the beautiful space, Elyssa found
herself heading to the graves of Daniel's parents.

She wondered about the woman that had borne
Daniel. From the little Daniel had spoken of his mother, Elyssa learned she had
been a loving and beautiful woman taken before her time. Daniel tried not to
let it show, but her abrupt departure from his life had a definite bearing on
the present bitterness he carried in his heart.

Her eyes going to
Percy's grave, Elyssa's eyes misted in guilt.
The only tears shed over his death had in fact been over her guilt in not
mourning him, and no matter that Percy had not cared about her, it still seemed
infinitely wrong that his wife not be able to grieve his murder.

Murder.
The
word she had striven to ignore the past week, the dark thought of Daniel's
possible involvement coming back to haunt her, and Elyssa could almost hear
Percy's cry for justice. She would never believe, however, that Daniel had
fired the gun that had taken Percy's life. Indeed, no murder weapon had even
been retrieved and Elyssa wondered if perhaps one of Percy's business
associates was the culprit.

Surely Percy was turning in his grave at
the thought she was now intimate with Daniel. She rued the day her parents had
ever forc an exorbitant amounte weed her into the loveless marriage.

The remaining guilt of being with Daniel
was assuaged when she was lying in his arms.
When his mouth
covered hers with sweet kisses.
And she knew that although he cared
deeply for her, the absence of any spoken words of his love remained a factor
in her unease. And too, how could they ever possibly marry, even did Daniel
want to?

Her steps took her to the cliffs and
Elyssa sat huddled against the pitiful remains of the broken castle, the wind
whistling about her eerily. How was it she managed to find such utter
contentment in this place when it had been the lure of death for others before
her? But then, perhaps they'd likewise been drawn to its beauty initially, only
for their fascination toward its serenity and charm to turn into an obsession
until they'd wandered too dangerously close to the edge.
Just
as she'd already been wont to do before, and Elyssa wondered darkly if she
would end up having to fight the desire for death over a love that wasn't to
be.

Her melancholy caused Elyssa's sudden
desire to return to the mansion and she pulled the coat tighter about her as
she began the long walk back to the estate. Her heart ached in loneliness for
Daniel, and Elyssa scorned herself a fool. For however could she survive if he
left her permanently when it was a struggle to even be parted from him for one
day? How many other women had suffered a similar fate at the hands of the
unattainable charmer, how many hearts shattered in the unrealized hope of a
life with Daniel, his philandering habits a mockery to any woman that had ever
dared hope to change
him.

The imposing view of Greystone within
sight, Elyssa's steps quickened and she looked forward to warming herself by
the fire. It would be dark soon, and Daniel should be returning within the next
hour or so. She wanted to make herself pretty for
him,
and the thought of his pleased smile when he would see her warmed Elyssa's
heart.

She took a hot bath in her room, the
servants quietly bringing up the heated water with unusual reserve. Elyssa
didn't bother questioning further, after her maid muttered something
unintelligible in response to Elyssa's question of what was wrong.

After a leisurely bath in the scented
water, Elyssa took her time choosing a gown. She deferred her maid's offer to
help dress, for the woman's curious behavior was beginning to bother Elyssa.
Feeling rather bold that evening, Elyssa chose one of the few gowns she owned,
the only one she'd never worn in Daniel's presence. It was dainty in its
feminine design, yet daring in the extreme, the cream colored silky material
clinging to her every curve. The low-cut decolletage was tight and seductive.
She hoped Daniel would like it. Her aching need to be with him only increased
by the hou gave way tog">CHAPTER r and although Elyssa knew it would be her downfall in the
end,
she finally decided to forget her doubts and fears of
what the future might bring.

If it turned out this was her only time
allowed with Daniel, then so be it. She was determined to make it the happiest
time of her life.
Something to carry with her through
eternity for all the dark, lonely nights ahead.
It was a waste of time
to worry about what might never be. Best that she
appreciate
every moment spent in Daniel’s arms, and let the future take care of itself.

Her thoughts excited at her newfound
determination, Elyssa glanced outside and was pleased to see it was completely
dark. Daniel would be home at any moment, for he'd given his promise he would
be home by nightfall, and he never gave her any reason to doubt his word.
Indeed, it warmed her heart deeply to hear Daniel speak of Greystone as their
home.

Deciding to wait in Daniel's bedroom,
Elyssa walked the short distance down the hall and turned the knob to enter his
room. It was already lit to dim perfection for an amorous encounter and Elyssa
silently blessed the maid for unwittingly seeing to such small details.

Closing the door quietly behind her, Elyssa
started toward the huge bed. She stopped in her tracks, her mouth dropping open
in shock, at the sight of an equally surprised woman already lying nearly naked
in Daniel's bed.

Quick to recover, however, the more
experienced woman lying casually in Daniel's bed as if she belonged there asked
Elyssa what she was doing in his room.

Struggling to find her voice, Elyssa
finally replied, "I would ask the same of you." This woman,
whomever
she was, must have been the cause for her maid's
uncharacteristic quietness.

"You might,"
came
the cheeky reply, "but I doubt you want an honest
answer." Critically surveying the competition, the strange woman said,
"I see Daniel's taste in doxies has taken a turn for the worse these
days." Elyssa's eyes narrowed in a tightly leashed anger, the stranger's
reference that she was a harlot, and lacking at that, made her want to scratch
the woman's eyes out.

Rising to a seated position, the woman's
enticing nightgown was displayed and Elyssa was crushed to note that the woman
was quite beautiful. Her long chestnut hair had enticing streaks of red. Her
dark eyes bespoke of barely reined passion ande;
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thi Elyssa had no doubt her hooded
eyes and tempting face had seduced Daniel on more than one occasion, the
thought making her ill. The pale blue nightgown barely covered her small
perfect breasts, its meagerness making Elyssa feel her own tempting gown was
matronly compared to the decadence of the other woman's.

"I can see you are quite confused
at finding me in dear Daniel's bed, but I assure you I have the right to be
here. We are practically engaged. Didn't he tell you?" Elyssa fought from
crying out, although the flash of shock across her features wasn't lost on the
woman. She smiled craftily, continuing, "I can see that he failed to mention
that small detail. Something I shall have to spend the night scolding him
about."

The slamming of the front doors gained
their attention and the sound of Daniel's announcement he was home gave Elyssa
cause for alarm. Her mind was in disarray, for if the woman was indeed being
truthful, Elyssa had lost her short-lived claim to Daniel's affections already.
Her breath refused to come, her heart skipping a beat at the stark despair of
it all.

Taking one last look at the smiling
woman, Elyssa quickly took her leave and returned to the bleak solace of her
room as she heard Daniel's footsteps begin up the staircase. Soft laughter
haunted her as she fled Daniel's room and Elyssa locked her door before
throwing herself across the bed, bitter tears falling unhindered.

After searching unsuccessfully for
Elyssa upon his arrival, Daniel's lips curved upward in an expectant smile and
he knew that she must be upstairs awaiting his return. He'd missed Elyssa
terribly that day and couldn't wait to see her, to talk to her, to bury himself
deep inside her.

Having removed his coat and jacket
before reaching his chambers, Daniel quickly opened his door and cast them
aside in the chair. The initial sight of the feminine form lying in his bed
brought a rakish grin to head before Daniel noticed it was not Elyssa gracing
his bed, but rather his most recent paramour. His smile quickly faded and he
demanded, "What the hell are you doing here, Catherine?"

"I got bored waiting in Paris for
your return,"
came
the short reply. Her mood
changing quickly to one of passion, a sultry smile graced her lips and she
reached out her arms toward Daniel, frustrated that he seemed disinclined to
accept her open invitation. "Darling, you have been a very naughty boy.
Why, not five minutes past I met your newest lover." Daniel's eyes
narrowed and he became incensed at the prospect Catherine might have hurt
Elyssa in her usual callous way. "Daniel, sweetheart, I can see by the
look on your face that she is more than just a passing fancy. Why is it you
have such a hard time keeping your pants buttoned up, lover?" escaped her lips a toward ">CHAPTER