“Yes, I keep hearing how important you are. That being the case, isn’t it necessary for you to have children to pass on your legacy to?” She reached him and slipped the key into the pocket of her robe. “I’m afraid there’s only one way you’re getting those children. But don’t worry.” She took the pitcher from him, ignoring his gasp of protest. “I promise it won’t hurt one single bit. In fact, you’ll even enjoy it.”

  “I-I-I…” He struggled to find the right words to voice his complaint, but the words didn’t come.

  She removed her robe, and his gaze went down the length of her body, noting her plentiful breasts and the nice patch of hair between her legs. She was exquisite to look at. There was no denying that.

  She kissed him, her body lightly touching his in a way that excited him. Had he not gotten an erection, he was sure she wouldn’t have noticed the effect she had on him.

  Deepening the kiss, she lowered her hands and touched his arousal, her fingers teasing him, notifying him of just how much she knew and how much he had to learn. He’d been so used to teaching others what to do, he didn’t know if he liked the idea of being the one who had more to learn. But it hadn’t been his fault he was inexperienced in this area. Money was much too important to be distracted with other pursuits.

  Ending the kiss, she took his hand and led him to the bed. “I promise I won’t make this long. You’ll have plenty of time to be alone while you bemoan your fate.”

  She pushed him back on the bed and straddled him. Without wasting any time, she took him into her, the passageway of her wet warmth wrapping ever so nicely around him. And in that moment, he forgot all about his misgivings about this night. On its own accord, his body urged him to thrust deeper into her. With a groan, he slid partially out of her and right back in. She felt heavenly. Absolutely and completely heavenly. And somehow, she’d managed to bring him to a point where he couldn’t even think. All he could do was feel.

  She seemed more than happy to encourage this, too, for she rocked her hips, an action that not only made her breasts jiggle in the most arousing manner but also brought him closer to an orgasm. He tried to fight it off. He wasn’t ready to end this round of lovemaking. Not when he’d never felt so good in his entire life. But he couldn’t fight it. He grew still and released his seed, crying out, clenching her hips and staying as deep inside her as her flesh would allow.

  She moaned, wiggling over him in a way that prolonged his climax. When he finally descended from the heights of heaven, she brought his hand between her legs and used his thumb to rub a part of her that seemed to bring her intense pleasure.

  Despite still reeling from the effects of his orgasm, he focused enough on her instructions to follow her lead, rubbing her in the way she’d demonstrated. Her moans grew louder, and once more she was moving on top of him. He watched her breasts bounce in the same delicious manner they’d been dancing moments before. Even sated, he couldn’t resist the appeal of those wonderful breasts. Who knew they looked even better out of a dress than filling one?

  “Oh yes,” she moaned, bringing his gaze to her face, noting her determination. Her eyes met his, and she whispered, “Faster. Do it faster.”

  Something in the way she made the order excited him. Yes, he was doing her bidding, but he was more than happy to oblige. He did as she instructed and was rewarded with even louder moans. For a moment, he wondered if all this noise was a good idea. It wasn’t possible anyone could hear her, was it?

  Soon, she grew still and cried out her pleasure, this one being the loudest cry of all, and he was torn between enjoying the fact that she had peaked and wondering how many servants knew what they were doing. But certainly, all the servants were downstairs. So they really wouldn’t be able to hear them. Right?

  She settled next to him, out of breath. Since she snuggled up to him, he found himself putting his arm around her. He told himself it wasn’t because he wanted to. It was simply because it’d be awkward if he didn’t. If nothing else, he was always a gentleman.

  He closed his eyes, not expecting to doze off to sleep. But he did, and when he woke up, he noticed Regan was gone. He should have been relieved. After all, he really hadn’t been looking forward to making her leave so he could finally have some much needed time alone. He wasn’t relieved, though, and he couldn’t figure out why.

  ***

  Regan took her time in picking out her morning dress. She wanted to be attractive when Malcolm saw her. He had made the comment she dressed better than most of the ladies of notable means. While he probably didn’t intend to encourage her, she gathered he found her attractive. He wouldn’t be noticing what she was wearing unless he thought so.

  After a fifteen-minute struggle, she finally chose the peach dress because it had a more revealing neckline. It wasn’t anything a prostitute would wear. The dip was subtle. She’d have to lean toward him to get the full advantage of it, but she could find plenty of reasons to lean forward.

  To further encourage him to look at her breasts, she chose to wear a necklace with a pearl that came just short of her neckline. She had her lady’s maid pull her hair back so her hair wouldn’t detract from the necklace.

  Once she was done, she studied her reflection in the mirror.

  “You’re a beautiful lady, but this morning, you are absolutely radiant,” her lady’s maid said.

  “Thank you, Minerva.” Let’s just hope the groom thinks so, too.

  She left her bedchamber and went to Leonard’s room where the maid was combing his hair.

  “He’s almost ready,” the maid told her.

  “I’m having crumpets this morning,” Leonard said, squirming in his chair despite his best effort to remain still. “Father said I could.”

  Surprised her son had taken so quickly to Malcolm, she asked, “You really like him?”

  “Uh huh. He likes it when I talk.”

  She shot the maid an amused grin, and the maid chuckled. Turning her gaze to Leonard, she said, “I suppose being a child makes it hard to get adults to listen to you.”

  “I have to be quiet a lot,” he replied.

  “Yes, I know. It’s polite, and I want you to be polite.”

  “Father thinks I don’t have to be polite.”

  “Oh, I’m sure he does.” If anyone would stress the importance of being polite, it was Malcolm!

  “Then why’d he let me talk?”

  “Probably because he enjoys what you have to say.”

  Leonard smiled widely. “I like having a father.”

  “Well, don’t assume because he is nice to you that you can do whatever you want. You do have to mind your manners, and if he tells you to do something, you need to do it, just as you would with me.”

  “He’s ready, my lady,” the maid told her.

  “Thank you.” Regan waved him to the door. “Let’s see if your father is downstairs yet.”

  The boy bolted for the door, and she had to call out for him to slow down. It was nice he was so eager to see Malcolm. Her only hesitation in marrying again was how well her husband would get along with Leonard, and as it was turning out, the two got along splendidly. Things couldn’t be more ideal.

  Following her son down the hallway, she glanced at Malcolm’s bedchamber door, wondering if he was still in there. He didn’t seem like the type of gentleman who would hide, but she’d been surprised when he’d locked his door the previous evening. Who knew what he’d do this morning?

  Sure, she was wagering he’d go downstairs and had worn her most attractive morning dress because of it, but one thing she was quickly learning was that she couldn’t take anything for granted. He wasn’t anything like Frederick.

  When she reached the drawing room, Leonard peered in, shook his head, and went down the hall. She glanced inside and, as she expected, Malcolm wasn’t there. She followed her son until he darted into the den and called out, “Father!”

  Malcolm let out a startled yelp, making her giggle. The lad, in his enthusiasm, could be loud, and he would have, no doubt, startled her, too, if she’d been Malcolm. Malcolm had much to get used to in acquiring a son so soon.

  She entered the room, watching as Malcolm used the sleeve of his suit jacket to wipe up the water, which had spilled on the table. The ledger had been thrown to the side of the desk, probably in an effort to prevent it from getting wet. From where she stood, the tactic had worked, for it appeared dry.

  She went over to the corner of the room and pulled on the tassel to summon the butler.

  “I’m sorry, Father,” Leonard said, standing beside him. “Are you angry?”

  “No, I’m not angry,” Malcolm replied. Grimacing, he stopped his frantic wiping and shook his sleeve.

  “The butler will take care of it,” Regan told him. “Why don’t you get a new jacket? Then we’ll eat.”

  “Yes, I suppose I should.” Without even glancing her way, he hurried out of the room.

  “I can help him,” Leonard said.

  “No,” she replied. “This is something he should do by himself. Now, you be good and sit over there.” She gestured to the chair.

  “All right.”

  As he obeyed, she went to the desk and removed the other items that were still dry. Afterwards, she picked up the ledger, surprised it was hers. She’d often had the steward manage the money. Things of this nature didn’t particularly interest her, but it was of much interest to Malcolm. She should have known he’d want to get an idea of how wealthy she was. In fact, maybe it should shock her he hadn’t done this last night since he hadn’t been eager to go to bed.

  “What is it, Mother?” Leonard asked.

  “Oh, just an account of the money.” Noting the confused expression on his face, she added, “It’s how much we spend and save.”

  She set the ledger on a dry area of the desk, marked the page Malcolm had been at, and closed it.

  The butler came into the room. “How may I be of service, my lady?”

  “There was a minor accident,” she said, pointing to the puddle of water on the desk. “It’s nothing serious. Just water.”

  “I’ll get to it at once.”

  As the butler left the room, she sat in the chair next to her son and whispered, “Maybe the next time you come into the room, you shouldn’t yell. I think you frightened your father.” Though she tried to be serious, a chuckle rose up in her throat.

  “Does he frighten easily?” Leonard asked.

  “I’m afraid so. I think he needs time to get used to us.” Mostly her. But she didn’t add that part.

  The butler returned to the room with a rag in hand. Once he was done, he announced the morning buffet was ready when they were.

  She chose to wait for Malcolm to return. If they ate together as a family, maybe it would help Malcolm make the adjustment that much easier. He came into the den five minutes later, wearing a new suit jacket, and she stood up.

  “My ledger is over there,” she told him. “I marked the page you were at, so you can get back to inspecting the condition of the estate after we eat.”

  This time, he did look over at her. As she’d hoped, his gaze went from her face to her neckline. Good. The necklace worked. When his gaze went back to her face, she noticed the slight hint of pink in his cheeks.

  He cleared his throat. “Yes. Good. I want to see what I got myself into when I married you.”

  “You got me,” Leonard spoke up, wiggling out of the chair until he landed on his feet.

  Malcolm nodded. “Indeed, I did, and that was the best part of the arrangement.”

  She suspected he’d said that to dissuade her from coming to his bedchamber tonight, but if he thought she could be discouraged so easily, he was mistaken. He hadn’t put up that much of a fuss last evening. If he’d really wanted her to leave, he would have led her to the door and waved her on out of his room. But he hadn’t done that. Instead, he’d gone to the bed with her and let her take him inside her and…

  She quickly discarded the memory. Now wasn’t the time to let her thoughts go there. If she wasn’t careful, she’d start aching with desire to be with him again. It’d been a long time since she’d had the pleasure of having a gentleman inside her. She’d forgotten how intense an orgasm could be when she was making love.

  Malcolm narrowed his eyes at her. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

  Using as innocent an expression as she could, she asked, “Like what?”

  “Like I’m something you plan to eat?”

  She chuckled. “I’m doing nothing of the sort. You are speaking nonsense.” Before he could argue with her, she took Leonard’s hand and led him out of the room.

  Chapter Ten

  Malcolm was sure Regan kept eyeing him in the most impure fashion during the entire meal. The only saving grace was that her son was too young to understand what her sultry looks meant. The butler who stood nearby, however, was old enough to know what was going on, and it only added to Malcolm’s discomfort.

  Surely, the staff didn’t know what he and Regan had done last evening. Well, yes, they knew. It was the wedding night, after all. But certainly, they hadn’t heard anything. Had they?

  At one point, he glanced at the butler, and he thought he saw the older man smirk.

  I’m imagining it, Malcolm told himself then forced his attention from the butler.

  “What are you going to do today?” Regan asked before she picked up a strawberry.

  “I’m going to White’s,” he said.

  She let out a pretty frown. “You are?”

  “Yes.” The sooner he made it clear he wasn’t going to let her dictate his life, the better. It was bad enough she wiggled her way into this marriage. “I have important gentlemen to talk to.”

  “But I thought you said you had set aside an entire week to dedicate your time to me,” she replied. “I believe it was in the missive you sent when I requested you meet me before the wedding.”

  “Circumstances changed,” he said, forcing aside the small inkling of guilt that threatened to overtake him. “I thought I hadn’t met you when I made that promise. It wasn’t like I knew who you were.”

  Eyebrows raised, she offered a playful shrug. “All right. Have it your way…for now.”

  He didn’t like the sound of that. Before he could consider the impact of her words, she put the strawberry halfway into her mouth. With a wink at him, she let her tongue glide over it, slowly working around the entire thing.

  Face warm, he quickly looked away before the suggestive move excited him more than it should. If he wasn’t careful, he’d get an erection. Recalling the butler, he almost looked in his direction, wondering if the butler had seen her scandalous little act, but he managed to keep his focus on the plate in front of him.

  “What do you want to do today, Leonard?” Regan asked her son.

  Relieved she’d finally taken her attention off of him, Malcolm resumed eating. He didn’t know what to make of his new wife. What other lady would dare do such bold things in front of the staff? Didn’t anything—anything at all—embarrass her?

  He’d have to have a word with her when they were alone. He was her husband now, and since that was the case, it was his responsibility to lay down some rules. This kind of thing couldn’t keep going on.

  “I want to be with Father,” Leonard said.

  Malcolm almost swallowed his eggs the wrong way. Didn’t the boy get enough of him yesterday? He’d spent the entire day with him after the wedding. Surely, the lad had other interests besides him.

  “I’m afraid you can’t go to the gentleman’s club,” Regan told her son. “It’s only for adult gentlemen, and those that are allowed there have to be voted in.”

  “Your mother’s right. It’s an exclusive club. Only the best of the best get in.” Recalling the fact that Logan belonged there, too, he added, “Of course, there are a few who were granted the honor of belonging to it. I’m not sure how they got in. I assume they knew someone of influence or had significant money.”

  “Sometimes it’s who you know that matters in this society,” Regan mused. “Leonard, as you get older, you’ll come to realize this truth.”

  Malcolm bristled. “Well, knowing the right people does matter.”

  Turning her startled expression to him, Regan said, “I wasn’t talking about you. I was speaking of the Ton.”

  He relaxed. “Oh. In that case, I apologize.”

  “Not everything I say or think about has to do with you, Mr. Jasper.” She took a sip of her milk then put the glass back on the table. “I’ll tell you what, Leonard. Why don’t we visit Danette today?”

  The boy’s shoulders slumped. “That will be boring.”

  “No, it won’t. She has toys she brings out whenever you’re there.”

  “But you talk and talk and talk. It’s boring.”

  “I hate to spoil things for you,” Malcolm began, directing his attention to Leonard, “but the gentlemen at White’s do the same thing. They might play chess or engage in a bet, but mostly, it’s talk.” The boy didn’t seem to like hearing this, so he added, “When you grow up, you’ll enjoy it.”

  “After we go to Danette’s, we’ll go to the park,” Regan offered.

  The boy’s eyes lit up, and he was much more content to spend a couple of hours listening to ladies engage in boring talk. Malcolm couldn’t blame the lad for dreading it. Ladies hardly had anything of interest to say. Their talk was often on the fashion, gossip, or babies. Malcolm was much happier dealing with money, which reminded him…

  He wiped his mouth with the napkin then set it on the plate. “I just remembered I have something important in my bedchamber. I need it for White’s.” He glanced at Regan. It would be rude to hop up and leave without her permission.

  As if she could read his mind, she nodded. “You may go.”

  Surprised she didn’t protest or give him another suggestive gesture, he thanked her and hurried to his bedchamber. He searched through his trunk and was relieved to see the butler had packed the modified plans he’d made after going to Warren’s dinner party. Warren would love to see how well the new plans turned out.