Marguerite Kaye - Date with a Regency Rake

Leaning her hot cheeks against the cool of the glass, Clarissa realised that her scathing denunciations of romantic heroines had been naïve in the extreme. Here she was with a notorious rake, and succumbing to his charms—nay, hurling herself wholeheartedly at them— with nary a thought for the consequences. Stupid, stupid Clarissa!

As if that wasn’t enough, she had walked with eyes wide open into this impossible situation. A situation, she was forced to acknowledge, of her own making. She had asked for an adventure. It was natural to assume that adventures involved surprise, and foolish of her to suppose that one so impetuous as Kit would do anything other than rise immediately to her challenge.

What on earth was she going to do? Return home and forget her plan? Clarissa had no doubt that Kit would take her back if she wished. He might be a rake, but he was an honest one, she was sure of it. He said he would not abduct her against her will and she believed him. But to return home was to put an end to everything. She would have failed in her attempts to save Amelia. And she would never see Kit again. Never. At the thought, a huge chasm seemed to open at her feet. Never share a joke with him. Never test her wit against his. Never see that smile, so rarely given, of genuine amusement, which lit up his face, changing him from devilish to absurdly, overwhelmingly handsome. Never taste his lips on hers. Never feel his hard body pressed against hers.

Reminding herself that she had no intention of succumbing to more intimate advances did not prevent Clarrie from craving more of the forbidden fruit she had already tasted. Surely a few more kisses would be no compromise? Surely a few more hours, a few more days in his company, would satisfy her, and suffice to save her sister? Suffice to subdue this fire. Surely a better acquaintance with Kit would cure her of this irrational infatuation? A surfeit of his presence would ensure she saw him in a more rational light, and would have the happy consequence of doing Amelia good too.

Lost in her thoughts, Clarissa stared unseeingly out of the window. Kit watched, judging it best to give her this time to adjust her thinking, refusing to attempt further persuasion. She would come, of that he was certain. She would accede to his terms. He had neither the desire nor the need for an abduction. She would come. He was sure of it.

Checking his watch, he tugged the bell by the fireplace, summoning the landlady. ‘We will dine in twenty minutes. You’ll oblige me by bringing some writing materials immediately, and some brandy too.’ The woman curtsied and left.

‘Dine?’ The words startled Clarissa from her musings.

‘Yes. I know it’s early, but we have a long journey ahead of us. If you’re not hungry now, you should be. And I’m ravenous.’

‘But we can’t be much more than an hour from town. I’d rather wait if you don’t mind, Kit.’

‘We’re not going back to London. I had credited you with more wit than that, Clarissa. You demanded an adventure, but you also demanded secrecy you may recall. You may not be particularly well known in town, but I am. How can we conduct any sort of private liaison with the eyes of the world upon us?’

‘Yes, I suppose—that is, I had not thought …’

‘You had not thought? I find that difficult to believe. Well, you can think now. We are not going back to London unless it is to abandon all. And if we are to continue, we must dine. So Clarissa, for the last time, do you wish to continue?’ He was growing weary of her prevaricating. Had she not been so very tempting, he would have readied them both for the journey home with no regrets. But he was finding her inordinately tempting.

And he wanted, more than he realised, for their liaison to continue. ‘Well?’

It was yes . It had to be yes , she knew that. But some instinct for self-preservation made her stall. ‘What about Mama? I can’t just disappear. She’ll be beside herself with worry.’ Actually, Mama would probably indulge in a fit of the vapours, then simply assume Clarissa had forgotten to inform her of a visit to Aunt Constance, but that was neither here nor there.

‘You can write her a note. You forget, I am already familiar with your ability to deceive. How else did you manage to escape your mama’s tender care for two evenings in a row, and on your own? I am sure you can think of something to allay her fears.’

‘Yes, but why the need for haste? I don’t understand, Kit, why could you not have informed me in advance of your arrangements, then I could have been prepared, packed a bag, told Mama some tale. Surely there was no need for such a rush?’

‘Where would be the adventure then? You wanted a surprise, something memorable—you were most specific. Isn’t the unexpected part of the thrill?’ Kit had been sitting by the fire, watching her from a distance, but now he moved to stand beside her at the window. His voice became huskier as he looked at the small, defiant, and strangely alluring woman at his side. ‘The kisses you bestowed so willingly a few moments ago, my lovely Clarissa, simply confirmed what I already knew. I wish to have the preliminaries of our liaison over as soon as possible in order to enjoy the fruits of my labour more quickly. Your charms, as I am sure you are perfectly well aware, are considerable, and I wish to wait no longer than necessary to sample them more fully. I was persuaded by our kiss last night you know, although your reminder was very pleasant—I thank you.’ A brief, ironic bow accompanied this last remark.

‘I’m sorry, I hadn’t meant to—I don’t know what came over me.’

‘No? Well, whatever it was, I’m grateful. But it might be best to save it until a more convenient time. You won’t have to wait long, Clarissa, never fear. Nor will there be any gainsaying me when it happens. Once I have fulfilled my part of the bargain, I won’t let you renege on yours.’

The glint in his eye was uncompromising. She had known it from the start, he was not a man to cross. Yet she had tried to ensnare him. He had pulled the ground from beneath her feet, but still she fought to recover it, as a general rallies his troops even at the eleventh hour. ‘You are premature, my lord. I won’t go back on my promise, but I must remind you that you have an obligation to fulfil first. My adventure, lest you need reminding.’

‘Strangely, Clarissa, I need no reminding at all. Your adventure has already started. Had you not realised?’

‘I had not mere abduction in mind, and well you know it. I particularly remember, for ‘twas but last night, that we said it should be fun. Lest it has escaped your notice, this is not fun for me, and I am not enjoying myself. So you must try harder, sir, or you will have failed.’

‘This is no mere abduction madam, I assure you. No matter what you may think of my morals, or lack of them, I pride myself on my finesse, as you will find out when the time comes for me to bed you. No, this is but the preliminary to the fun you are so intent on receiving.’

He was angry, frustrated at her refusal to give an inch, unused to being cross-questioned. It made him all the more determined that she would comply. With an effort, Kit bit down on his temper, deciding wisely that an explanation would be more likely to result in cooperation.

‘We drive tonight to the coast, and thence we board my yacht, the Sea Wolf . You seemed so interested in the plight of the French refugees that it seemed only fair to allow you to experience first hand the kind of daring rescue mission required to deliver them from the fate that surely awaits them. It is an illicit undertaking which I confess I am intimately familiar with.’

‘Why, Kit, I had no idea you were involved in such work when we discussed it last night. How exciting. And how very noble of you.’