Page 21 of Mistress of Darkness

Chapter 10

Gwen sat in her bedchamber, about to open one of the last remaining journals, when she heard Robert’s voice out in the hall.

“A message?” he was saying. “From whom?”

She emerged to see Parks at the top of the stairs, his coat dripping with rain. The poor man was shivering. Bless him for going to Renwick in such weather.

“From your family, I was told, sir,” Parks said, handing over the letter.

Robert took it and said, “Thank you, Parks. That will be all. Go warm yourself by the fire.”

“Thank you, sir,” he said with a small bow. He nodded quickly to Gwen, “Miss.”

Scowling, Robert opened the letter. He read it slowly, once, and then twice. Looking up at her he said nothing but she saw the blood drain out of his face.

“Robert,” she said, going to him and taking his hand. “What is it?”

He held out the message to her, and she read it quickly, her hand flying to her chest. “Oh, Robert,” she whispered, her voice catching. “I’m so sorry.”

His mother had written to inform him that his father had died, and that her sister, Robert’s aunt, had joined her.

Robert’s eyes glistened with unshed tears. “I knew Christopher’s disappearance would be too much for him. I shouldn’t have told him.”

She shook her head, reaching up to cup his cheek with her palm. “It isn’t your fault,” she whispered. “You did what you had to do, what any responsible son would have done. You had to prepare him for even more tragic news, should it come. Keeping the truth from him would have served no purpose. He was already gravely ill.”

“Yes,” he whispered and nodded, though he didn’t sound convinced. “I’m sure you’re right.”

“I am,” she said, “because I always am.” She smiled up at him. “So I’m afraid there’s nothing for it but to believe me.”

“Ah, my dearest Gwen,” he said, putting his hand to her cheek. “How I wish it were that simple.”

As she gazed into his shimmering eyes, the sadness there broke her heart. Tears sprang into her own eyes as she turned her face to his palm and placed her lips there.

He took in a sharp breath and then didn’t move. She felt his gaze as surely as if it had been a heated brand. When she finally dared to look up at him, he took her by the shoulders and slowly drew her to him. In moments only inches separated their lips, as though an unstoppable force attracted them.

Warmth suffused her, as it had just after the storm, heated by his touch and his nearness. He was so close that his breath brushed across her lips and her head filled with his musky sweet scent. If he were to stop now, she thought she might go mad, but then his lips pressed into hers. She wavered a moment, before she surrendered to him, wrapping her arms around him to steady herself.

As though she’d unlocked something in him, he ravished her with his mouth, his tongue flicking against her lips. She opened to him, melting against his body as he swept his tongue against hers. His strong arms wrapped around her waist and she moaned softly, as his body pressed into hers.

He shuddered and then did the unthinkable, pulling away slowly. Gwen looked up at him through heavy lids, feeling as dazed as he looked. Her breath came in ragged snatches, and she saw his nostrils flare.

He rested his forehead against hers. “You must be sure, Gwen,” he whispered hoarsely. “For I am sure that I will not be able to stop.”

She could feel him pressing against her skirts, his flesh so hard that it took her breath away. “I am sure,” she gasped. “I have dreamt of this moment.”

In one smooth motion he reached down and swept her off her feet before she knew what was happening. In the next moment they were in her bedchamber, and he kicked the door closed behind him. As he lay her on the bed, his mouth found hers again, hungry and insistent, kissing her breathless. Her fingers fumbled with his shirt, trying to untuck it from his trousers, until his lips released hers.

Tremors ran down her spine as he stood and began to strip, throwing his coat to the floor, and tearing his shirt off over his head. Mesmerized, she watched him, as the hard planes of his gorgeous chest were revealed. Suddenly he was back on the bed with her, reaching behind her to unbutton her dress. Her fingers roamed over the smooth flesh of his chest and the hard ridges of his stomach. She could feel his hands shaking, but when he finally undid the last button, she forced herself to push him away. If he was going to undress her it would take forever. She stood, and in short order she removed her dress, petticoat and stays, until only the thin linen chemise and stockings remained.

“I would see you, Gwen,” he growled, stepping to her and lifting the chemise up and over her head. Cool air swept down her body, tightening her bare nipples. “You’re so beautiful,” he murmured, as he went to his knees and laved her belly with kisses.

Heat flooded between her thighs, as she carded her fingers through his thick hair. She kneaded the bunched muscles of his shoulders and his hands softly squeezed her breasts. A wild tremor suffused her core as the aching need between her legs pulsed so fiercely that she nearly lost her balance.

“Robert,” she gasped. “I need you.” When his fevered eyes gazed up at her, she could see that he felt the same. “Show me yourself.”

He needed no other urging. As he stood and stripped off his boots and trousers, his thick length sprang free. She stared at the heavily veined flesh with its satiny, engorged head, and couldn’t imagine how it would feel. Slowly he moved her back toward the bed, and then lowered them both to it, as he settled down between her thighs. But instead of bringing that rod of flesh to the wetness between her legs, his clever fingers found her opening and one slipped inside.

With a sudden gasp, Gwen felt her face burn and tried to bury it in his chest. She’d never felt anything so thrilling and yet no other man had ever seen her naked, let alone touched her there.