Katie Rose (22 page)

“Allison? Wanted a tarot reading?” He lifted away from her slightly, seeming to listen to her for the first time.

“Yes. We thought it odd, especially since she ignored us at the Rutherfords’ ball. Winnie thought you two were plotting. I defended you, however,” Jennifer declared loyally.

Gabriel scowled, apparently unimpressed. “But not to the extent of giving me the benefit of the doubt,” he thundered. “So why lock me up?”

“There was a séance planned tonight,” she explained, her face flaming in embarrassment. “We had to make sure you weren’t going to interfere …”

“So you jailed me like some common thief.” Gabriel shook his head in amazement, while Jennifer squirmed beneath him. “How long were you planning to keep me captive?”

“I don’t know, just until we were sure …” Jennifer felt his arm tighten around her, and she gasped. “The weekend.”

“You were going to kidnap me all weekend?” It was his turn to look astonished. His expression turned quickly to outrage, and Jennifer’s eyes grew wide with fear. “My God, woman, you tempt me to …”

His hands tightened around her waist as he pulled her
from the door and into his arms. Desperately, Jennifer struggled against him, not knowing what he planned to do, but not wanting to wait around and see. Her robe slipped from her shoulders in her struggles, and she gasped as she felt the flimsy material slide traitorously to the floor. Her bare shoulders gleamed in the dim light, and her hair loosened in the struggle, to fall around them enticingly.

Panic welled up inside of her as she saw his expression, and she knew she was in a very different kind of trouble. The fury on his face had changed to something else, something even more frightening to Jennifer. His eyes looked smoky, eager, and intense, and there was some kind of primitive male need rising in him that she could only sense. All pride and defiance left her, and she knew there was nothing to do now but surrender. “Please let me go! I didn’t mean to cause you any trouble. I was just following you because … because I like you, and I wanted you. You can laugh at me all you want, but that’s the truth.”

Understanding dawned on his face, and Jennifer blushed in humiliation. She never meant for things to go so far, never meant for any of this to happen. She wanted so much to be like a real lady for him, someone of his own class, someone he could be proud of. Yet, once more, fate had taken that choice out of her hands.

He eased his grip on her, but he refused to release her from his embrace. Jennifer struggled weakly, appalled at herself and what she’d just admitted. Gabriel held her firmly, but his hands soothed her, comforting her, caressing her back and shoulders as if she were a desolate little girl. He gently ran his finger over her profile, then his finger stopped when it reached her lips. She paused, almost afraid to take a breath as his thumb rubbed gently against her moist lips, then slowly, tenderly, he lowered his mouth to hers.

It was a compassionate kiss, filled with sensitivity and kindness, meant to comfort and reassure her. Jennifer tried to resist its potency, but it was impossible. All of the suppressed emotion she’d felt for this man rose up within her, and she responded to him with an ardor that was achingly poignant and devastating to him. Pleasure, shocking and exciting, raced through her blood as he deepened the kiss, his tongue fully tasting the depths of her sweetness. From a distance, she heard his groan of desire, a sound that was strangely exciting. Wonder filled her, and she surrendered to him, dizzy with sensation.

Gabriel eased his mouth from hers and gazed into her eyes, tipping up her chin so that he could fully see into their mysterious gray depths. “My God,” he murmured, seeming as stunned as herself by what was happening between them. “You surely are an enchantress.”

“I think you are beautiful,” Jennifer said, her voice achingly real and filled with awe. Her hands traced down his shirt, feeling the muscles beneath, and she gazed up into his face with reverence, as if seeing the dark curly hair and blue eyes for the first time. “You’re like an angel,” she breathed.

“Jennifer, my sweet Jennifer,” he whispered, then took her into his arms. His mouth took hers, possessing her completely with his fierce need. Passion, pure and simple, ignited between them, and the kiss changed from one of seduction to an explosion of white-hot desire. Intoxicated, Jennifer melted against him without inhibition, wanting more of the emotions he was stirring in her. His hand lowered from her waist to the small of her back, urging her even closer, but she needed little convincing now, and she threaded her fingers through the hair on the nape of his neck, wanting to experience everything to the fullest.

Shuddering with pleasure, Gabriel slid his hand upward to the front of her gown, then cupped her breast.
Jennifer gasped, feeling the nipple rise beneath his fingers. A ragged moan escaped her as her body responded to him, and she pressed herself more fully into his hand. The delicious ache she’d felt for him earlier had now increased tenfold, culminating shockingly between her legs.

“Gabriel, please,” she whispered breathlessly, not knowing what she craved, but needing it all the same. She surrendered to him fully, pressing herself against him, wanting everything that he promised.

“Sweetheart. Jennifer, my darling.” He released her slowly, and she could feel the reluctance within him to leave her even for that short moment. Feverishly, he began unbuttoning his shirt, his eyes never straying from her face, his own burning with desire. “I think it’s time I got rid of these.”

Jennifer watched in fascination, crossing her arms and shivering against the cold. She knew she should stop him, should tell him that she’d never been with a man before, but her own blood was afire. She was lost in the intoxication of his kiss, and his caresses, and she didn’t know how to begin to stop. His chest emerged, and she saw the lean, hard muscles beneath his shirt, and the dark matting of hair that traced enticingly lower to where his trousers began. He doffed those as well, and Jennifer turned away in shocked embarrassment as he came to stand before her, naked and magnificent.

“I think it’s time we undressed you, too,” he whispered teasingly, easing her gown from her heated body.

“I don’t think—” Jennifer tried, but her words were lost as he placed scorching kisses on every inch of skin that he bared. By the time he’d taken the gown from her, she was writhing and whimpering in his arms. Chuckling softly, he lifted her up, then placed her on the little bed. The blanket felt scratchy beneath her hot flesh, but that only added to the heady sensations that consumed her. It seemed
every inch of her was tingling, especially as Gabriel traced kisses along her neck to her elbow, then to her hand. He lathed her palm with his tongue, and she squirmed on the bed, clutching fistfuls of the blankets with her other hand, awed that her body should have so many hidden sensitive places. His tongue traced dizzying patterns back up to her elbow, then down from her throat, then lower, weaving a hot erotic tapestry around her.

“Gabriel,” she panted. “I don’t know if I can stand it …”

“I know,” he whispered. “Just a little more. My God, Jennifer, you’re so damned beautiful. I want to wait, but I don’t know if I can—”

When he turned that same attention to her breasts, licking her nipples into diamond-hard points, she pleaded with him earnestly. His hands crept lower, caressing her legs, her inner thigh, making the heat burn impossibly hotter. Soon she was arching against him, begging him for release from this sweet torture as she felt him poised at the moist, hot entrance of her body. Answering her plea, he pressed forward, and she gasped as he thrust deeply within.

And stopped in surprise. “Jennifer? Are you all right?”

Jennifer bit her lip and nodded. Gabriel eased back instantly at her discomfort, and now spread teasing, wonderful kisses along her heated neck and throat, then lower, bringing her back to the same burning need she’d felt before. Soon all thoughts of resistance left her, and she clasped him closer to her, wriggling beneath him, responding eagerly to his expert touch. Withdrawing slightly, he entered again slowly, carefully stoking her pleasure until a fire raged within her.

Jennifer moaned, lost in the sublime feeling that swept over her. When she began to squirm once again beneath him, Gabriel couldn’t resist. He thrust more deeply into her, trying to hold back, while his body urged him
onward. Jennifer rose up against him and arched to meet his hot thrusts. An almost painful pleasure exploded within her and she cried out his name in wonder. Gabriel groaned, and he held her even tighter as he reached a shuddering climax.

Jennifer saw his beautiful face, suffused with pleasure, and she smoothed the curls from his forehead. At this moment, she felt much more complete than she’d ever felt before in her life. Wonder and awe filled her as Gabriel held her tenderly, his expression full of reverence. He kissed her gently, then rose a bit to stare down at her.

“Jennifer. My sweet Jenny. My God, what a woman you are.”

A wave of incredible pleasure swept over her at his words. She sighed, feeling his arms wrap around her in contentment. Bliss filled her, along with a sense of euphoria. So this is love. She knew it, the way one knew all true things when seeing them for the first time.

She smiled at him shyly, unused to having a man’s naked body so close to hers. It was intimate, strange, yet wonderful all the same.

“Gabriel, I didn’t know … I had no idea,” she breathed, trying to convey the rapture that possessed her. “I never knew that love could be like this.”

He went still at her words. Confusion filled his face, and he seemed to recall something that bothered him. “Jennifer, are you saying …” he looked down at her, as if trying to piece together a puzzle, “that you’ve never done this before?”

“No.” She shook her head, trying to decipher whether that was the response he was looking for. He stared down at her, and his expression became guarded. Something was wrong. She could feel it, yet she didn’t understand why. Fear sparked inside of her, and she gazed up at him, trying to comprehend his thoughts. “Is that bad?”

“No.” He sank back into the bed, stunned by his realization of the truth; Jennifer had been a virgin. Until him. A million thoughts went through his mind, thoughts that he just couldn’t make sense of. Why had she done this? Why him? Suddenly aware that she was waiting for an explanation, he spoke quickly. “No, it’s not bad at all. Most men like being the first. I just … didn’t expect it.”

She stiffened beneath him, his meaning abundantly clear. He hadn’t thought her an innocent. She was the notorious Jennifer Appleton, unlike other girls. She never would be anything else to him. Anguish cut deeply within her, hurting far more than any physical discomfort. She rose, clutching the sheet to her breasts in embarrassment, trying to quell the ache growing inside her.

The look on her face went straight to his heart. “Jennifer, please—”

“Could I have my robe?”

Gabriel was at a loss. He hesitated a moment, but then found the garment on the floor, puddled where it had fallen a moment ago in the midst of pure passion. Handing the robe to her, he waited until she was dressed, then attempted once more to break the awkwardness between them.

“Jennifer, let’s talk about this—”

“I’d rather not.” Pulling the garment around her, she tied it securely, then felt inside the pocket for her key. Thankfully, her pride came to her rescue and she shrugged as if the encounter had meant little to her. “There really isn’t anything to talk about, Gabriel. We both know what happened was a mistake. After all, I’m the notorious Appleton. What’s one more stain on my reputation?”

“You know it isn’t like that!” He rose from the bed, wrapping a sheet around himself, and started toward her. “You can’t possibly think—”

Somehow, she managed to both evade him and answer him calmly. “I apologize for the kidnapping, and for all
the other trouble I’ve caused you. I’ll unlock the door, and you can leave in the morning. There really isn’t anything more to be said. Good night, Gabriel.”

“Jennifer!” he roared, but she swept out of the room and was gone.

The following morning, Jennifer came down to the breakfast table slowly, her heart heavy. She had debated the idea of waiting until everyone had finished, then slipping into the kitchen for a bite, but she knew her sisters. They would be curious about her nonappearance, and would question her relentlessly. Showing up was definitely the lesser of two evils, particularly since she didn’t want to answer queries about her late-night encounter with Gabriel.

She took her place at the dining table, grateful that Winifred and Aunt Eve were distracted by Penelope’s chatter about the new rage in hairstyles. From the glint of the polished coffeepot, she could see that her eyes were still swollen, and she prayed no one would notice. Her only consolation was that Gabriel was gone, and she wouldn’t have to face him. Accepting a cup of the strong brew, she sipped the coffee, nearly choking when Eve spoke.

“I didn’t sleep at all well last night. I kept hearing that odd clamoring. Goodness knows what it was! Almost like someone knocking on the door in the middle of the night. Can you imagine?”

Winifred looked at Jennifer sharply, while Penelope shrugged. “I’ve had dreams like that before. Once I even got up to see what it was, although I was still asleep.”

“I remember,” Winifred said quickly. “You wandered right into the arms of that poor grocer boy, who had shown up early. I daresay the lad’s been in love with you ever since.”

“Pooh,” Penelope said while everyone laughed. “That’s what he gets for waking me up.”

“I don’t think this was the grocer boy,” Eve continued. “In fact, I could have sworn I heard you, Jennifer, as well. It just doesn’t make sense …” Eve’s speculations changed quickly to a gasp, and she looked over Jennifer’s head in astonishment. “My word! Why, what is he doing here?”

Jennifer’s heart slowed to a thud and she glanced once again into the coffeepot, stunned to see Gabriel rounding the stairs. He strode straight into the dining room and surveyed the company with casual ease, as if he did this every day. Panic filled Jennifer as Aunt Eve nearly fainted and Penelope’s mouth dropped. Only Winifred scarcely looked up from the morning paper, determined, Jennifer supposed, to hide safely within its pages.