Gentleman's Guide 02 - His Contrary Bride) (19 page)

Marius accepted the reasoning behind her
rejection, but it had not altered his plans. If only he could be
alone with her, only for a short time. Then he could convince her
of the rightness of a marriage between them.

With Ramsey as her chaperone, Marius had
hoped he would get an opportunity to speak with Sabrina alone. Now
Taylor stood guard and sent him a look which clearly bespoke that
there wasn’t a chance in hell Marius would be alone with Sabrina.
It wasn’t that Taylor was worried about what Marius may do, his
friend just enjoyed having the control of making Marius suffer.
They had been friends too long not to know his intentions.

As the chords of a waltz struck, Marius took
his opportunity. Stepping forward he bowed and asked Phoebe to
dance. Taylor began to object but Marius quickly reminded him of
his duty to watch over Sabrina.

In the center of the floor Marius bowed and
Phoebe curtseyed before they began to dance.

“I might be flattered if I didn’t know the
real purpose for this dance.” Phoebe smiled up at him.

“You wound me.” Marius placed a hand over
his heart attempted to look insulted. “What possible other reason
could there be other than wanting to bask in your beauty?”

Phoebe laughed loudly, drawing a few looks.
“You should be on the stage, Mr. Parker.”

“You think so? It could be fun I
suppose.”

Phoebe simply laughed more as he twirled in
a spin across the floor.

“As you must have heard, my first proposal
didn’t go very well. I need to speak with Sabrina again,
alone.”

Phoebe looked up at him as if considering
his words.

“You know I can’t openly court her now that
her uncle is in town and your husband isn’t about to give me an
opportunity this evening.”

Phoebe glanced toward Taylor before looking
back to Marius with a mischievous glint in her eyes. “Suddenly I am
growing tired. Would you mind seeing Sabrina home, Mr. Parker?” She
asked innocently.

“I could kiss you, Phoebe, but I don’t want
to get up at dawn to face your husband.”

“Wise decision.” Phoebe offered her arm so
Marius could lead her from the floor.

Taylor began to object the moment Phoebe
made the suggestion.

“Oh please, Taylor, what could possibly
happen in a carriage?”

Her words were met with stunned silence from
Marius’s friends. Her smile alone indicated she knew very well what
could happen, but everyone remained silent regardless.

An hour later, Marius had her by his side in
the dark carriage. She remained stiff in her seat and stared
forward. He lowered the shades when they were on the street away
from the manor and lit the lamps.

She turned to look at him, eyes wide. “What
are you doing, Mr. Parker.”

“I wish to protect your reputation and I
don’t want to risk your uncle seeing you with me.”

By the tightening of her jaw he assumed she
gritted her teeth. This was not going very well. He lifted her
gloved hand and kissed the back of her hand.

An eyebrow rose in question.

“I would like you to reconsider my proposal,
Sabrina.”

She closed her eyes briefly, willing herself
to be strong and not succumb to her emotions. “There is nothing to
reconsider. I am appreciative of the offer, but the reasons are
wrong.”

Marius leaned closer. “Then perhaps I should
give you another reason,” he said before taking her lips.

Sabrina sat, stunned for a moment, shocked
at his actions. In no time she was melting, as she always did. It
never crossed her mind how she should behave. He hadn’t given her a
chance. Sighing, she leaned into him and Marius took the
opportunity to deepen the kiss. Molding her face in his hands, he
tilted his head, brushing his tongue over her lips. Sabrina opened
for him and soon he was kissing her deeply. The pleasurable shock
sent lightning bolts through Sabrina and her own reaction was to
imitate his actions. Marius groaned and crushed her to him.

It took Sabrina a moment to it to register
he had pulled away. She lifted a hand to her swollen lips. How
could she have let that happen? She knew to be on guard around him,
yet she didn’t bother with a slight objection as his lips met hers.
She knew she should have asked to ride home with Lord and Lady
Meadows and this is what she deserved for wanting a few moments
with Marius. She would never fall out of love with him in this
manner so why did she continue to set herself up for the pain?

“That is the other reason we should wed,
Sabrina.”

She looked up at him. “Because we
kissed?”

“You can’t deny our kisses are special.”

“I enjoy kissing you, Marius.”

“Then you will finally agree to marry me.”
He grinned, as if satisfied with himself for some reason. Well,
perhaps he should be proud that his kisses did have a way of
befuddling her, but not enough to agree to marry him.

“Because I like to kiss you?”

“It is more than that. Don’t you feel the
passion?”

Her face heated and she looked away. “I
don’t have much experience in this.”

“Then trust me. What we share is rare.”

“It is still not a reason to marry.” It
wasn’t. She would love to kiss him for the rest of her life, but
she wasn’t willing to take the risk.

“It is more than a lot of people have when
they marry.”

“How do I know only your kisses make me feel
this way? You have experience. I do not.”

His face fell and eyes widened. He almost
looked afraid. “I am positive,” he insisted. “I can feel the
difference.” Placing his hands on her face, he brought her around
to face him. “Don’t be foolish Sabrina. Marry me.”

“Foolish?” She screeched and pulled back.
“I’ll tell you what foolish is, Mr. Parker. Foolish is marrying
because of passion or protection. I am not foolish enough to marry
for those empty reasons.”

“Be reasonable, Sabrina. You are
misinterpreting my intention.”

She glared at him. “I am being reasonable
and just to prove my point, I am going to kiss other gentlemen to
prove to both of us that your kisses aren’t any different.” Opening
the door, she stepped outside.

Marius started to follow her. “You can’t be
serious.”

“Yes, I am.” Slamming the door on his face
she turned her back on the carriage and marched up to the
house.

Once she was alone in her room, Sabrina
berated herself for letting her anger get the best of her. She
hadn’t been so impetuous and short sighted in years. Now what was
she to do? If she didn’t go through with her threat, Marius
wouldn’t believe she was serious. Oh why had she even suggested
such a thing? The answer came to her immediately of course. His
arrogance.

Snuggling into her bed, Sabrina weighed her
options. In the end she had no choice but to kiss her gentlemen
callers. There was one possible outcome. She could find someone who
made her feel the same way Marius did, though she seriously doubted
that would happen.

*

“Thank you for escorting me outside.”
Sabrina smiled up at her last dance partner. It had been three days
since she had made her threat and this was the first opportunity
she had to proceed.

“It is dreadfully chilly out here, Lady
Sabrina. Are you sure you don’t wish to return inside?” Kelsey
Thomas asked.

“Actually, there is a reason I wanted to be
alone with you.” Sabrina looked up at him shyly. This wasn’t as
easy as she had hoped it would be.

“What would that reason be?” He stepped
closer.

Sabrina decided to plunge right in. “A
certain gentleman, who shall remain nameless, has kissed me.”

Kelsey appeared outraged. “How dare he.”

Sabrina looked at him with surprise. “That
is not what concerns me.”

His shoulders relaxed as if he were relieved
for some reason. “Then what Lady Sabrina?”

“He insists that we should marry because of
that kiss. Of course I told him no. Besides, how do I know his
kisses are any better than any other gentleman’s? Surely you
understand my dilemma.”

“I’m not sure I do.”

Perhaps she should have chosen a less dense
gentleman. “How am I to know if he is telling me the truth if I
don’t find out for myself?”

His eyebrows shot up. “You brought me out
here to kiss you?”

He finally understood. “Yes. If you don’t
mind.”

Kelsey needed no further invitation. He
pulled her close and lowered his mouth to hers. The kiss was
pleasant enough but Sabrina felt nothing, other than the actual,
physical contact of their mouths. Nothing stirred in her being and
she patiently waited for the kiss to end.

Finally he raised his head and looked down
at her.

“That was nice, but I am sure you understand
I need more than one comparison.”

“Yes, actually I believe I do.”

Sabrina was able to kiss two more of the
gentlemen who regularly paid court to her that evening. None moved
her, but she wasn’t about to call a halt to her experiment yet.

By the end of the week she had managed to
kiss each of the men in her court with disappointing results. Not
one caused her pulse to race, heart pound, or breath to hitch.
Still, Sabrina was determined and decided to look to others. She
loathed having to ever admit to Marius that his kisses were
special. Somehow she suspected he would hold that over her forever
and use it as ammunition to insist they marry. But, until he
understood her reasons for her refusal, her answer would remain no,
regardless of how delicious his lips were against hers.

*

Marius couldn’t believe she had gone through
with it. How many men had she kissed? Two pages alone were filled
in White’s betting book involving Sabrina kissing other men. Not
once was his name mentioned. Some wondered if she were trying to
find a husband or just determine who kissed the best. None of the
gentlemen minded and it didn’t really harm her reputation since it
was simply a kiss and her own little experiment.

“Interesting,” Chambers said while reading
over Marius’s shoulder. “Who do you suppose was the first man to
steal a kiss and why she feels the need to compare?”

Marius shot him a look of irritation and
Chambers refrained from making any further comment.

They made their way to a table on the other
side of the room. “What exactly did cause Cinderella to begin
kissing every man in London?”

Marius stared at him angrily. “A
misunderstanding,” he said through gritted teeth.

Chambers opened his mouth to speak but
froze, looking at something over Marius’ shoulder. He turned to see
what caught Chambers’ attention. They weren’t the only one
interested in the book. Lord Chesterfield stood before it reading
and then turning the pages. Any true guardian would be outraged and
take his ward in hand. Chesterfield merely shrugged and strolled
away with an odd smirk on his face. He was chuckling by the time he
made his way to a corner table.

“You would think a guardian would be
outraged,” A gentleman seated not far away acknowledged with
interest.

“Not if it is in the guardian’s best
interest that his ward not wed,” Marius muttered almost to himself
and only loud enough for Chambers to hear.

*

Sabrina didn’t know the reason, but more and
more gentlemen were approaching her for introductions and a dance.
Her original court had moved on now that their kissing held nothing
of interest. Those gentlemen had been replaced with gentlemen who
could be considered as serious candidates for marriage since none
of them needed an heiress, and everyone believed she barely had a
dowry.

The kisses that followed were not near as
chaste as the ones from her previous court. Most left her feeling
ill or uncomfortable. Not one even sparked an interest and Sabrina
was beginning to fear Marius had been correct all along. Still, she
was too stubborn to give up.

Standing at the side of the ballroom with a
few of her newer friends, Sabrina scanned the crowd. Marius was
here of course and he was scowling at her. She told herself she
didn’t care. It was his own fault anyway. Besides, he had all but
dismissed her already. Except for the few dances and short
conversations, he had otherwise ignored her and not called on her
once since their argument. Just one more reason she was glad she
hadn’t agreed to marry him. She also tried to convince herself it
didn’t hurt.

Pushing her thoughts away from the
aggravating Marius, she looked beyond him. Why was he so different?
Looking over the gentlemen she had previously kissed she made a
mental comparison. They were nothing like Marius. Not nearly as
confident, handsome, strong, or desirable. That was the problem.
She had been comparing Marius to inferior men. Even though she
would never get a perfect match, she could come closer. What she
needed to do was kiss a man who was equal to Marius in almost every
way. Her eyes and thoughts were returning to Marius when she
spotted her next candidates. She felt no desire for either
gentleman but they were as close to being equal to Marius as
anyone. Thank goodness one of them would be claiming the next dance
on her card or she would have to come up with an excuse to approach
him.

*

Marius felt he could relax for at least a
short time. Chambers would be dancing with Sabrina next, then
Felding. At least he didn’t have to worry about Sabrina dragging
those two outside. Even if she tried, they surely wouldn’t
accommodate her. As he became too angry to continue watching her,
he turned and drew Taylor into a discussion when Dillon went to
retrieve Sabrina.

He and Sandlin were discussing horses when
Martin interrupted the conversation. “I hadn’t counted on
that.”

Both men turned to him. “What?” They asked
simultaneously.

“Cinderella was just escorted onto the
balcony by Chambers.”