Three Nights of Sin (9 page)

“Mmmm…” he said against her lips. “I can’t remember the last time teaching someone to kiss was this fun.”

The tremors from his words, his mouth, vibrated against hers. “Do you do this often?” she asked against his lips, the movement of her mouth against his suddenly making her grasp what he was trying to teach.

“No, not often,” he murmured. His mouth closed around hers, and this time she followed his lead, responding in kind, warmth flowing through her like a fresh hot brick under her blankets. She had no delusions that she was doing this kissing thing well, but it felt more natural, and he seemed to be responding. The kiss deepened further and she found her body
inching closer to his, brushing against him, seeking further contact.

All sorts of strange feelings flowed through her. A coiling in her belly, as if all the butterflies which had been fluttering there before had been captured in a net and secured—their wings beating furiously in one tight package.

Her body was feeling more languid and relaxed, where at first she had been taut and strung tight. Her embarrassment was a haze above her, not as apparent as it had been previously. Her fingers moved to touch him, and only with strong will did she keep them at her sides, clutched in her tavern dress.

“You can touch me, Marietta,” he whispered. “But then, of course, the opposite is true as well.”

She jerked back, not breaking their contact above but removing all the places that they were touching below the neck. She felt him chuckle again, then his hand at her nape tugged her closer and his other hand wrapped around her waist, bringing her flush against him so they touched
everywhere
. His mouth
seared
hers, the kisses turning from languid and exploratory to dominating and overpowering.

Her hands reached up to clutch his sleeves as he more forcefully opened her lips. Her body leaned in for more. His tongue slipped between her teeth and the shock was absorbed by the bigger shock of feeling something hard pressed against her lower body. His tongue pressed against hers and his fingers stroked her nape, urging her to respond in kind. She tentatively pressed her tongue back against his. It was a strange sensation and she started to feel hot and out
of sorts—the rubbing of their bodies doing strange things to all parts of hers.

She should push away from him right now.

She held on tightly instead, her fingers crushing his linen sleeves.

Did all men kiss this way? She suddenly had the dawning comprehension of how women lost their virtue—and how they became pregnant out of wedlock. Of why it happened. Perfunctory kisses didn’t lead to that state. Kisses like this…

She pulled back, breathing hard. Gabriel Noble smiled and let the hand holding her neck trail along her throat, fingertips scorching her skin before dropping to his side. Her hand pressed against her chest, to the exposed skin above her bodice, which felt overly hot. His eyes searched hers and satisfaction appeared.

“Now we are ready to go.” He turned on his heel, and she followed him out, still feeling dazed and out of sorts.

The carriage pulled in front of a lavish row house in Hanover Square.

Guests were walking through the door and light blazed from the windows.

Noble helped her down from the carriage this time and placed her hand on top of his sleeve. She knew from earlier that the silky feel of his jacket was expensive and fine, and she was glad to have her gloves between them. She didn’t need any more stimulation from that quarter.

A man dressed in black, similarly to Noble, ap
proached them as they walked through the door. “I just spoke with your brother and he said you were bringing a lovely guest.”

Noble smiled, his cheekbones nudging his mask. “Good evening, Alcroft. May I introduce you to my partner for the evening, Miss Rose. John Alcroft.”

Blue eyes speculatively swung her way. “Enchanted, Miss Rose. Long has it been since Gabriel has brought a partner to one of my humble gatherings.”

She didn’t know what to say to that, so she just echoed his greeting. She had met their host, John Alcroft, before, briefly, but didn’t know much about him personally.

“I need to speak with you later,” Noble said to him.

Alcroft inclined his head. “I can slip away around eleven. Will that do?”

“Yes, thank you.”

“Of course. Enjoy the evening, Gabriel, Miss Rose. Until eleven.”

Alcroft moved past them to greet more guests, and Noble guided her farther inside. The party was in full swing. People were dancing and chatting, a freer atmosphere than a strict ton gathering, yet she saw more than one person she knew. More than one person who could identify her.

Noble’s hand ran down her back. “Don’t think about them. They won’t recognize you.”

She felt the tensed muscles in her back relax. She knew it was true. She hadn’t even recognized herself in the mirror. “I’ve never seen you at a gathering, even though you seem comfortable enough here. Do you dance?”

He smiled suddenly, roguishly, and held out his hand. “I do.”

He pulled her onto the dance floor, straight into the middle of an already formed set. Bad form, but he somehow seemed above the censure.

And that reason was that he could
move
. There were three types of men in the ton. The ones who were forced to dance, the ones who seemed to enjoy it and were always available to dance, and the ones who made it an art form. Gabriel Noble was definitely one of the latter.

It was like dancing with liquid. Like
being
liquid. Every sweep and curl executed with precision and flair. Never had she had a partner who could move like this. Never had she been twisted and handled and shown off on the floor.

Never had she met a man like Gabriel Noble.

Was he lacking in anything? Besides some of his personal skills, of course—he was quite a bear most of the time. Although past the first few days, he had mellowed slightly toward her—not counting the barbs that he tossed every so often. But the affection he displayed for his brother and the people with whom he worked told a different story.

And even with the animosity, every time she had been in a situation where someone could have harmed her—her brother (not that he would have), the other prisoners, or the barristers—he had taken definitive action.

If you were in Noble’s circle, you were obviously under his protection.

He smiled as he showed her off in a turn. She knew she looked like a wonderful dancer at that moment,
and even though she was passably good,
he
made her look great.

He brought her close again and she could see something in his green eyes, unhidden behind the mask. They had carried that same look earlier when he had been about to kiss her. Heat swept through her, but he simply turned her again.

“You didn’t answer my question.”

“Which one was that?” His body touched hers.

“Do you attend these functions often?”

“No.” He twirled her. “Just Alcroft’s. And his masquerades are the best. Sometimes I think he holds them so often because he knows I will attend.”

“You are good friends? I thought you disliked anyone to the manor born?”

She felt his muscles tense beneath her glove, beneath his jacket. “Alcroft and I have been friends a long time. And I don’t dislike everyone in the upper classes.”

“If you say so.”

He spun her and her breath caught. Her feet barely touched the floor when she danced with him. “I do.”

“Where did you learn to dance like this?”

“Down by the docks.”

She tried to look down her nose at him at the same time she held onto him. She had a feeling the heat she could feel in her cheeks and the excitement from dancing showed on her face and negated any glare.

“My mother, if you must know.”

“You danced like this with your mother?”

“I was required to stand in at dance lessons at one time in my life. It was easy enough to apply what I had learned before.”

“Dance lessons, where?”

He pulled her against him again as they turned and his green eyes turned smoky as he lowered his head. Her breath caught and she had the inane thought that this kissing activity really required practicing right now.

The music stopped and he switched his arm from about her waist to underneath her hand. Before she knew what was happening he was escorting her from the floor.

She caught the admiring glances sent their way. More than one woman was eyeing Noble with an avaricious gaze. She had a feeling that most of the people there knew who he was. Apart from the standard masquerade wear, he hadn’t attempted to disguise himself tonight. And even if he had, after that turn about the dance floor, his identity was assuredly obvious to all those who knew him.

They stopped by the refreshment area.

“Noble,” a voice purred, a woman in a fashionable royal blue dress slinking to his side. “I haven’t seen you in a double fortnight. Been keeping away from us?”

“Mrs. Dalworth. I’ve been busy. How is your husband?”

She waved a hand. “Away, as usual.”

“I see. This is Miss Rose. Mrs. Dalworth.”

The woman barely spared her a look and a baring of teeth. “Charming. I wanted to extend the invitation to meet with the ladies at tea. We are interested in sponsoring your foundation. A formal note will be sent tomorrow too, of course, but I wanted to let you know in person. I stopped by your residence today but your butler said you were out.”

“Excellent. I will respond posthaste. What good sense you ladies have.” He smiled charmingly and Mrs. Dalworth preened. Marietta wondered why she didn’t see the hard light in the back of his eyes, the edge behind his charming smile. Mrs. Dalworth seemed only to be taken in with his sweet guile. Perhaps she only saw what she wished to see.

Or what he wished her to see. He manipulated women as easily as making a deft turn on the dance floor. She had to remember that.

“I will see you soon, then. I hope you two enjoy yourselves this evening. I have found patience never lets me down.” Her voice lilted at the end as she sashayed off.

The woman wasn’t even trying to be ambiguous. She had a fine figure, and Marietta knew the features beneath her mask were fine as well. But she didn’t have a chance with Noble. Couldn’t she tell?

“No, she never can. What is intriguing is how you can tell?”

She looked up to see Noble watching her, eyes calculating. She realized with a dawning sense of horror that she had said that last bit out loud.

“Your eyes,” she replied.

They immediately shuttered and she cursed herself. She had just begun to be able to read him and she had given her advantage away.

The shutters fell just as suddenly as they’d been erected. She could see amusement there and interest. “Mmmm. I’m interested to see if you continue to guess correctly. Most see only what they wish to see.”

She didn’t comment on his part in that equation—that of providing that vision for them. She didn’t think herself so different from most. She too liked to see what she wished. But desperate times required rationality and attention, and the last few years had made her look more deeply.

“A game?”

“A challenge. Come, Marietta, take my challenge.” His voice was husky and deep, sexual and mysterious. She saw the truth in his eyes, though, which were watchful and keen.

“I accept.”

Pleasure and increased interest joined the watchfulness. “Not everything is singular, though, remember that. There is nothing wrong with discovery alongside a challenge. It is all in how you approach it.”

His hand slid along her back, dipping to touch her natural waist. “I hope you give in to the desire I discovered in you earlier.” He turned her and pulled her against him. Her buttocks nestled in the juncture of his legs. Heat shot straight up her spine.

They had attracted some attention. She tried to calm herself by repeating that no one knew who she was. She was just some woman who had arrived with a too attractive man.

“I want to see my brother released. That is how I’m approaching it.”

She felt his lips brush the back of her ear and she forgot to breathe. “If we are lucky tonight, Alcroft will know of a way to delay the trial. What will you do for the weeks that we might be searching?”

She pushed away from him and turned to face
him, an angry retort on her lips. His smile was lazy and rakish, but his eyes…were watchful, calculating. Damn. He was going to give her a permanent headache.

“You are testing me.”

He inclined his head, watching her. “Perhaps.”

“Well, stop. I am perfectly capable of following through on my tasks, I’ve already told you that.”

He bowed toward her so his face was level with hers, his arms clasped behind his back. “You have yet to be truly tested, Marietta. You may think me poking fun about the kissing earlier, but you will need to carry off your disguise when we leave tonight for the tavern. Your brother depends upon it.”

She lifted her chin. “I will do whatever it takes.”

He smiled that rakish smile again, and this time it was echoed in his eyes. “Perfect.”

At eleven they slipped from the festivities and Marietta followed Noble into a well-appointed study. Bookshelves lined the rooms and everything was very neat. Spartan even. The complete opposite of Noble’s messy desk.

Alcroft was standing in a corner, pouring from a decanter, the liquid falling into three crystal glasses in turn.

“Miss Winters, I presume?”

Marietta jumped. Alcroft had the same way about him as Noble. He didn’t turn around, just expected everything to be as he wanted it. His shoulders tensed
just so
in anticipation that they might not.

“How did you know?” She looked at Noble. He
nodded in affirmation at her unasked question.

For all that she was supposed to be in disguise, a surprising number of people seemed to know or recognize her after only a few brief comments. Anthony, Jeremy, now Alcroft.

“Gabriel told me.” He balanced the glasses and put them on the desktop, waving a hand to the two chairs on the other side. “Please.”