‘If you would not mind, Darian?’ Mariah’s voice softly interrupted his erotic musings. ‘My maid will be here shortly to help me bathe and dress for dinner, as no doubt will your own valet. Oh, and, Darian…?’ she added as he gave a terse bow of acceptance before turning to leave, waiting until he had slowly turned back to her before speaking again. ‘Close the door on your way out, please.’
His jaw tightened at the dismissal as he stepped through the doorway and closed the door behind him, knowing he needed the privacy in order to take care of the need throbbing through his body, before he dared to rejoin Mariah!
*
‘You are not intending to appear in that gown in public!’
Mariah turned from where she had been gazing at her reflection in the mirror as she put the last of the pearl clips into her hair, to now look at Wolfingham as he once again stood in the open doorway between their two bedchambers. His appearance was as resplendent as usual in black evening clothes and snowy white linen, an ebony sheen to his hair, his features once again as hard as granite.
It was the look of horror on those hard features, as he gazed back at her unblinkingly, that now brought a wry smile to her lips. ‘You do not like it?’
Like it? Darian had never seen a gown like it before! Well, not outside the walls of a brothel, at least.
The gown left Mariah’s shoulders bare except for two tiny ribbon straps and was made of some diaphanous cream material, lined with the sheerest of lace. It clearly revealed the bare outline of the curvaceous body beneath and darkening at the apex between Mariah’s thighs—revealing the nakedness of the darker curls covering her mound.
As for the bodice of the gown! It was almost non-existent, just that cream diaphanous material covering the fullness of Mariah’s breasts, the nipples plump berries and clearly showing through as being as ruby red as her lips—that ruby colour aided by rouge, if he was not mistaken.
His traitorous body had surged back into full attention the moment he looked at the reflection of those plump nipples in the mirror, and imagined Mariah applying that rouge to those succulent berries. ‘I see that a certain part of you does, at least.’ Mariah looked pointedly at the unmistakable evidence of his arousal.
Darian did not in the least enjoy feeling like a callow youth taking his first look at a naked woman.
Except Mariah was not naked.
Perhaps he would not have reacted so strongly if she had been!
Of course he would, Darian instantly chastised himself. It was only that there was something so provocative about the tantalising glimpses of those slender and obviously naked curves as Mariah moved across the room to collect her gloves from the bed, giving just the hint of those golden curls nestling between her thighs. And her breasts were magnificent; creamy, full and plump, with those red and succulent rouged nipples just begging to be tasted and suckled.
Darian wanted nothing more at that moment than to lay Mariah down upon the bed before taking those berries into his mouth and sucking and tasting their plumpness until he was sated.
If he ever was!
As for the shadow of those darker golden curls and the promise of what lay hidden between her thighs— Darian imagined lowering her gently down on to the bed and pushing her gown up her thighs so that he might explore every silken inch of that hidden treasure. To caress the plumpness of her folds. Taste and suck the tiny nubbin above— Beads of perspiration broke out on Darian’s forehead as he fought an inward battle not to give in to the urge to cross the room and take Mariah in his arms, to fulfil every single one
of the fantasies that had been slowly driving him insane and that he now found impossible to stop.
‘I am ready to go downstairs and join the other guests, if you are?’
It took every effort of his indomitable will to pull Darian back from the brink of giving in to his desires, his voice harsh as he answered her. ‘Do you have a shawl or something you can wear about your shoulders?’ The thought of other men ogling Mariah’s almost naked breasts, and that tantalising outline of her naked curves beneath her gown, was enough to make him clench his fists violently.
Mariah gave a bell-like laugh as she collected up a fan from her dressing table rather than a shawl. ‘You will see, Darian, my gown is quite modest in comparison with the gowns some of the other ladies will be wearing this evening.’
He had no interest in what the other ladies were wearing this evening; they could all walk around stark naked for all Darian cared. But if he caught one single gentleman in the act of ogling Mariah— He was behaving more than ridiculously, Darian recognised self-disgustedly, when he had no more right to approve or disapprove of other gentlemen ogling Mariah, tonight or any other night, than—than the Prince Regent did!
Although he had no doubt that the Prince Regent, if he had been one of the guests this evening, would have taken great delight in enjoying Mariah’s appearance. The man might be plumper and more dissipated than he had been in his youth, but he still had charm enough to seduce the ladies.
Whereas Darian’s charm, what little he did possess—and no doubt Mariah would say he possessed none!—seemed to have completely deserted him for the moment.
‘Darian?’ Mariah prompted again lightly.
He gathered himself to straighten determinedly before crossing the room to hold out his arm to her, feeling much as he had when he had necessarily to prepare himself before a battle.
And unsure whether that battle this evening would be with his own wayward emotions, or with the other gentlemen present.
Chapter Seven
Mariah was enjoying herself.
Actually enjoying herself, when normally she would simply have gone through the motions of doing so at this sort of entertainment, flirting and laughing with the gentlemen whilst at the same time keeping them in line—and their groping hands firmly at bay—with a delicately aimed flick of her fan.