Page 19 of My Lord, Lady, and Gentleman

Chapter 5

The weak autumn sunshine was only just beginning to peep between the drawn drapes at the window of his comfortable, primrose-hued guest bedchamber, but Clayton had been awake for hours.

His stomach wouldn’t stop churning.

Damn it, he cared deeply for Susanna and Joseph and would never do anything to hurt either of them. When they were together, the world finally made sense, even if the world would never make sense of three people finding happiness rather than two. And yet Susanna could say no, that she chose the social norm of life with just her husband. It would kill him inside, but it was understandable. Most of the population wasn’t comfortable with men loving and bedding each other. Hell, the law wanted men to be arrested and transported or hanged for it.

And yet if she said yes, he was certain the three of them could face anything, as long as they were together. Scandal, the ton, his revolting family, and whatever other stinking cesspits stood in the way to their forever after. But he couldn’t pressure her. He wouldn’t pressure her. It had to be an entirely free will decision for this to succeed.

A tentative knock sounded at the door.

“Come in,” he called, about all he could manage as his throat dried to desert-like conditions.

Susanna walked in wearing her brocade dressing gown, her brown hair in a braid. But she looked weary, as though she had enjoyed as little sleep as he had. “Good morning,” she said softly. “I hoped you might accompany me to Joseph’s chamber so we could talk.”

He immediately pushed the covers back and climbed clumsily out of bed. The previous evening he hadn’t bothered to get undressed, instead sleeping in his shirt and trousers, and he probably looked a fright to someone so impeccably stylish. “Of course.”

They walked in silence to Joseph’s bedchamber, and after a brief knock, Susanna entered the room with him close behind. After he’d shut the door, he met Joseph’s gaze. The other man looked nervous as hell as he sat up in bed wearing a nightshirt, his shoulders rigid and brow furrowed.

“Morning,” said Joseph cautiously.

“Good morning,” said Susanna. “I collected Clayton on the way so we could talk together.”

“What do you have to say, my dear?”

She bit her lip. “I’ve been awake all night thinking. And yet I keep reaching the same conclusion: that I cannot make a decision without all the facts. Yes, I was shocked when I saw the two of you kissing, but it wasn’t because it disgusted me. I thought it meant you only wanted each other, that you had been pretending with me.”

“No, darling,” said Clayton hoarsely. “Never that. You are a beautiful, sensual delight. But this is not about what I think. What do you want to do?”

“This may sound foolish,” Susanna said slowly, as she clasped her hands in front of her. “Perhaps it is. But until I see you touch each other…and, um, the rest, I won’t know if it is something I’ll be comfortable with.”

He nodded slowly, even as a kernel of hope unfurled. “That isn’t foolish. It’s perfectly reasonable to want to make an educated decision.”

Abruptly, Susanna shivered. “Goodness me. I didn’t think it would be quite so cold with a fire burning. Could we join you under those quilts, Joseph?”

“Please…please do.”

She discarded her dressing gown to reveal a pretty linen nightgown with a blue satin bow, and then pulled back the sheet and quilts and crawled in beside her husband. Clayton slid in beside her and lay on his side, propped on one elbow so he faced them.

“Ah, much better,” said Susanna, stretching out. “This is lovely and warm.”

Joseph yelped. “Christ Almighty, woman. Your feet are blocks of ice!”

“You should feel mine,” said Clayton. “What is icier than ice?”

They laughed, but the anticipation in the air was so thick it could practically be touched. All they needed was Susanna to say the words, and they could begin a new chapter in their lives.

“So,” she said eventually. “How do we go about this?”

“Well…” said Joseph. “What if Clayton and I tried some things while you watched? If it makes you uncomfortable, just say so, and we’ll stop.”

“Very well,” she replied. “We’ll swap places…then you two can kiss.”

In a flurry of limbs and rustle of sheets, Clayton discarded his shirt and moved to the center of the bed. He locked gazes with Joseph, and a jolt of lust settled low in his belly at the knowledge they might soon be pleasuring each other while Susanna observed. A soft sigh escaped Joseph’s mouth when Clayton cupped his face and kissed him. As in the music room, it started gentle, but swiftly turned carnal, the other man’s lips firm and yet yielding, welcoming his fierce need. Only Joseph’s nightshirt and Clayton’s trousers separated warm flesh moving against warm flesh, and the fabric both irritated and tantalized as they pressed chest to chest, a brief rubbing of their hardening cocks making them both groan.

“Touch his cock, Joseph. Take it in your mouth.”

They both stilled and turned to see a very pink-cheeked and bright-eyed Susanna.