His Wicked Lady (9 page)

“I am.”

She laughed. His humor was wonderfully
refreshing. It’d been a long time since she’d had such a delightful
conversation with someone.

Malcolm came into the room, not looking any
happier than he had when he stormed out. He glanced from her to
Logan and rolled his eyes. “You two would get along. Let me guess.
You’re both trying to think of ways to irritate me?”

Logan cocked an eyebrow in her direction.
“Did I mention he’s self-absorbed?”

“Pardon me for having something better to do
than to sit around and gossip all day,” Malcolm muttered as he
walked over to Regan.

“What was that?” Logan asked.

“Nothing.”

“Oh, please do repeat it. I know how
important everything you say is.”

Regan tried to hold back her laughter, but it
came out anyway. She quickly compensated for it with a cough.

Malcolm groaned. “I can already see how
things will be.” He looked at her. “It’s a shame you didn’t marry
him when you had the chance.”

She stood up from the settee and gathered her
veil. “Your sister’s happy with him. And I’m sure, in time, you’ll
find I’m not as bad as you think I am. You might even be happy with
me.”

“I’ll settle for contentment.”

“Promise me you won’t be that boring,” Logan
told her.

Helena and Melissa came into the room, and
Logan jumped up so he could give Melissa a kiss on the cheek.

“Where are my parents?” Melissa asked.

“Oh, they left with the vicar,” Logan
replied. “They figured the damage was already done and if they
stayed here, it would only get worse.”

“Too bad not all of us had that option,”
Malcolm blandly said. Turning to Regan, he asked, “May we
talk?”

Regan nodded. “We may. We’ll take my carriage
to my townhouse.”

“Actually, I was thinking we could go in my
carriage to my townhouse,” he argued. “I am the husband, and it’s
the wife’s duty to go where the husband is.”

“But I have a son, and everything is already
arranged for him at my townhouse.”

“You can have his things moved over to my
townhouse.”

“This townhouse belonged to his father. It’ll
one day be his.”

Logan snickered. “I love my new
sister-in-law.”

“I think we’d all be better off without your
comments,” Malcolm snapped, shooting a pointed look at Logan that
dared him to say something.

Logan only shrugged and slipped his arm
around Melissa’s waist. “I’ve grown bored of his childish antics.
Take me to our happy home.”

“I’ll be over to see you soon,” Melissa told
Regan before she allowed Logan to escort her out of the room.

Regan turned her attention to Malcolm. “I
left Leonard at my townhouse with my mother-in-law. She watches him
from time to time.”

Though he tapped the floor in irritation with
his boot, he finally said, “Fine. We’ll go to your townhouse.”

Glad he at least was willing to do this,
Regan offered a thank you to Helena, who gave her a sympathetic
smile, then headed out of the drawing room.

Malcolm followed, and though he didn’t say
anything, she could hear him sighing in frustration.

To be honest, she wasn’t the least bit
surprised. She’d fully expected this. He felt betrayed, but he was
unwilling to take responsibility for his part in the whole
deception. Had he shown her enough consideration to meet with her
prior to today, he would have known exactly what he was getting
into…or he could have taken measures to prevent the wedding from
happening. Either way, she refused to take sole blame for this.

Without a glance in his direction, she went
straight to her carriage and got in. She wasn’t sure if he’d join
her. In fact, she expected him to take his own carriage and follow
her. But he was soon sitting beside her, looking more like a child
denied his favorite toy instead of a besotted groom. What a
contrast to her wedding day with Frederick. He’d been so happy he
couldn’t stop smiling and talking about all the things they’d do
together. Things, of course, they had such a short time to do. They
hadn’t even been able to do half of them, but she had his son. She
wouldn’t trade that for all the sorrow following his death.

The carriage pulled forward, and she pulled
herself out of her memories. Frederick would want her to be happy
with someone else. Life was too short to be stuck in the past.

“Will we have this talk before or after we
get to the townhouse?” she finally asked Malcolm.

“Might as well do it before. I don’t wish to
be arguing in front of an innocent child.” Then, he quickly added,
“Or your mother-in-law.” He turned his gaze to her. “Do they know
you were going to marry me today?”

“Yes. I told Leonard you were going to be his
father after I left your townhouse the other day.”

“How unfortunate it is you didn’t think to
tell me.”

“You had your chance, Malcolm. I sent you a
missive requesting to meet with you. You were too busy to waste any
time on me. You had your pressing engagements.”

“And yet you came by unannounced to talk to
me.”

“I had to know if you would be good to my
son.”

“Apparently, I was or else you would have
stopped this travesty.”

She knew he wasn’t trying to be funny, but
something in the way he crossed his arms and cocked his head to the
side, his eyes going skyward, made her laugh. If there was one
thing she could say about him, it was that he had no trouble
letting her know exactly what was on his mind.

“Part of this is your fault, Malcolm,” she
said. “You should accept that instead of trying to blame it all on
me.”

She wasn’t sure he would listen to her or
not, but fortunately, good sense prevailed. He uncrossed his arms.
“You’re right. I should have taken the time to meet with you before
today. Though, it would have been nice if you had mentioned
something about you being my bride when you brought Leonard
over.”

“Maybe this will teach you a good lesson. You
shouldn’t ever assume anything.”

“Well, I just hope you’re happy with how
things developed. You’ll be stuck with me. I married for the sole
purpose of having children. I want people I can pass on my legacy
to.”

“I understand, and I’m more than willing to
comply.”

He stared at her, a critical frown on his
face.

“What?” she asked. “Don’t you believe
me?”

“You seem all too agreeable to my
demands.”

“We are married,” she replied with a
suggestive grin. “The process of begetting children will be a part
of things.”

“Process of begetting children? I’m far more
interested in actually having the children.”

She smirked. “Just how do you think you’re
going to get those children?”

“I’m not naive. I know full well how I’m
going to get them. It’s a matter of joining our bodies together.
After the…exchange…is done, we’ll wait for you to have the child
before trying for another. It’s like a business transaction.”

She’d figured he hadn’t been around ladies
much, but she had no idea he was completely unaware of how
pleasurable the bed could be. “Don’t you ever have needs?” When he
frowned, she explained, “Basic urges that lead to an erection?”

He paled. “I would thank you to refrain from
such bold speech.”

“Why? We’re alone.”

“That’s not the point. The point is, you’re a
lady. You shouldn’t be speaking of things like a gentleman’s…” He
waved his hand, as if trying to think of the right word to say.

“Erect penis?” she provided.

He grimaced and shifted in his seat, once
again crossing his arms. “Such a thing shouldn’t come out of a
lady’s lips. You are the gentler and fairer sex, after all.”

“I’m a widow, Malcolm. I’m not some untried
lady. And more than that, I have a son. There’s only one way that
son got here. It’s the only way you’ll get those children you want
so much. And as much as I hate to shock you, it’s how you came to
be. Had it not been for your parents—”

He put his hands over his ears and shut his
eyes. “Don’t say it. I forbid you to say it.” After a few seconds,
he opened his eyes and glanced over at her.

She waited until he lowered his hands before
letting out an exasperated sigh. “It’s a natural part of life.
There’s nothing wrong about it.”

“I didn’t say there was something wrong with
it.”

“It’s how you’re acting. One would swear you
think babies magically pop out of the sky.”

“I know how babies come to be here. I just
never concerned myself with the details because I didn’t have a
reason to make one.” Then, as an afterthought, he added, “Until
now. But this is simply an investment in my future. It’s not
something I intend to enjoy or do a lot of. I just want to do it
enough so I’ll have at least two children. Ideally, we’ll have a
boy and a girl, but I know there’s no way to control the
outcome.”

She stared at him, trying to gauge whether or
not he was serious. But he made eye contact with her and didn’t
blink. He was serious. Absolutely and completely serious. Unable to
stop herself, she burst out laughing.

“What’s so amusing?” he asked with a
frown.

“Haven’t you ever pleasured yourself? With
your hand?” she clarified in case he had no idea what she was
talking about.

He didn’t react right away, and when he did,
his jaw dropped and his eyes nearly popped out of his head.

“What? The thought never occurred to you to
do that?”

“We are not compatible at all. This marriage
won’t work.”

“Oh, of course, it will. Once you realize how
enjoyable the bed is, things will be fine.” She caught his
skeptical expression and said, “I assure you, lovemaking will be
one of the best things you’ll ever do. It might even become your
favorite activity.” Then, just to ease his mind, she added, “You
might even prefer it to money.”

This time, he was the one who laughed. “My
dear lady, I could never prefer anything to money. Money is my one
greatest passion, and I’m good at making it.”

Not to be deterred by his remark, she leaned
toward him and lowered her voice. “Perhaps you will find you’ll
also be good at making children.”

The carriage came to a stop, and he seemed
relieved the conversation was over. Soon enough, she’d have him in
bed, and then she would start teaching him there was more to life
than money.

Chapter Eight

M
alcolm decided to follow Regan into her townhouse. His
coachman had asked him if he should have the butler pack his things
and bring them here, and Malcolm had relented enough to say he’d
like a couple of his clothes and grooming items. He wasn’t quite
ready to admit he was going to live in this place.

Right now, he was staying at her townhouse to
get the matter of the child underway. Not all husbands lived with
their wives. Some chose to even live in different countries,
something he was beginning to think was a good idea.

But he owed it to his future son or daughter
to put in the time to create him or her. That being the case, he
willingly went into Regan’s townhouse.

“I didn’t expect you back so soon,” the older
lady said, rising from the chair where she was playing with Leonard
in the drawing room.

“We didn’t have a breakfast,” Regan replied.
“It was a simple ceremony at the Duchess of Ashbourne’s townhouse.”
She turned to Malcolm and gestured to the lady. “This is my
mother-in-law, Eloise. Eloise, this is Malcolm Jasper.”

“A pleasure,” he greeted with a bow.

“How do you do?” she greeted, curtsying.

“Is he my father now?” Leonard asked.

“You should wait until you’re addressed
before talking,” Regan told her son.

“I’m sorry,” he replied, clasping his hands
in front of him and waiting for his cue to talk.

Malcolm was surprised Regan insisted her boy
adhere to the rules when she, herself, was prone to break them. If
she could bend them when it suited her, Malcolm decided he could,
too. “Nonsense,” he spoke up, interrupting Eloise’s question about
the ceremony. “I’d be happy to speak with the lad.” He waved him
forward. “Come on over and tell me all about your morning. I wager
it was much better than the one I had.”

He caught the startled expression on Eloise’s
face and thought it was just as well he’d upset Regan’s
mother-in-law. Perhaps it would show Regan how embarrassing she
could be, given the right circumstances.

Inspired, he sat in a chair and patted his
lap. “You can sit here if you want.”

The boy hesitated but then did as requested.
“You really want to know what I did?”

“I wouldn’t have asked if I wasn’t
interested.” When the boy didn’t seem to understand him, he added,
“Yes, I want to know. Tell me all about it. Don’t leave anything
out.” With any luck, the lad would talk all day and prevent him
from having to have any more conversations with his mother.