How to Seduce a Scoundrel (9 page)

“You are looking a bit peaked, no doubt the result of your indulgence last evening. I daresay you’re ready to renounce wine forever.”

She averted her gaze because she didn’t want him to see that his jest hurt.

He chuckled. “You’re awfully touchy today.”

Hester let out a disgusted sigh and ambled over to the sofa. “Marc, you brute. Do not tease her.”

Julianne drew in her breath, determined to pretend she didn’t care. “I’m impervious to him.” She didn’t spare him a glance as she marched over to the sofa directly across from his aunt and perched upon it. For good measure, she covered a yawn.

“You did not sleep well last night?” he asked.

She would never admit it. “On the contrary, I slept like the mummy.”

“Julianne, you know why I’m here,” he said. “I’ll hear your explanation and your apology now.”

“Marc, she apologized to me last night,” Hester said. “Let us forget this matter.”

“An apology won’t satisfy him,” Julianne said. “He expects me to grovel.”

“I expect you to tell me why you tricked me last night,” he said.

She huffed. “You act as if I have done you an injury.”

“You barely escaped ruining your reputation last night,” he said.

“I find it exceedingly hypocritical of you to criticize me when your reputation is firmly entrenched in the mud.”

“If you think to divert me, you are sadly mistaken,” he said. “Your brother named me your guardian, and I intend to protect you, whether you like it or not.”

“He must have been out of his wits.”

“I believe that described
you
last evening,” he said.

“Now, now,” Hester said. “She was only a tad tipsy.”

“She was three sheets to the wind,” he muttered.

“If you had not acted like an ill-mannered ogre last night, none of this would have happened,” Julianne said. He’d all but made a public declaration when he’d gazed
into her eyes after their waltz. Then he’d denied any tender feelings for her. He was a heartless cad.

“You blame
me
for your indiscretion?” he said, his voice rising.

The dogs growled.

“You are agitating Caro and Byron,” Julianne said.

The dogs growled louder.

“Hush,” Hester cried.

The dogs started yapping. Hawk ordered them to cease. They kept barking, making Julianne’s temples throb.

“I will see to them.” Hester pushed to her feet. Despite her cajoling, the canines refused to obey. Then she grabbed two biscuits off the tea tray, walked to the door, and called out, “Treat, treat.”

The spaniels raced out of the drawing room.

After Hester followed the dogs out and shut the door, Hawk took three long strides until he stood at Julianne’s feet. “Now you will explain, and don’t lie. I’ll know.”

His words last night pierced her heart anew.
Lady Julianne is practically a sister to me
. He knew that he’d misled her and everyone else at that ball.

“Answer me,” he said.

She rose from the sofa, refusing to let him loom over her—not that it did much good since he was a head taller. “You presume I planned to escape the ballroom for mischievous purposes.”

“It is fact, not presumption,” he said.

“I left the ballroom because you made a scene when Ramsey asked me to dance.” Her hand had shaken uncontrollably. If her friends had not intervened, she might have shed tears and disgraced herself.

“I thought you would have the grace to take responsibility for your poor judgment,” he said.

“You embarrassed me in front of my friends.”
In front of the entire ton.
Misery engulfed her. Everyone had heard his words. Others standing nearby had smirked. And he was so blind he didn’t even realize what he’d done to her.

He scoffed. “Ah, I see. You were so disappointed that you ran off to drown your sorrows.”

She ought to be relieved he’d not guessed the real reason she’d left the ballroom, but his callousness made the pain far worse. “I needed something to soothe my nerves.”

“That, my dear, is one of the sorriest excuses I’ve ever heard.”

She glared at him, tempted to ask him what his excuse was for misleading her and everyone else at the ball. But if she voiced the words, he would know she’d tumbled head over heels for him. She would never give him that satisfaction. “You made a spectacle of yourself. Ramsey is my friend’s brother, and you insulted him. You had no right to refuse on my behalf.” In truth, she would have claimed weariness to avoid dancing with Ramsey, but she’d no intention of admitting
that
to Hawk.

“I had every right,” he said in a low, dangerous tone. “You will stay away from him.”

She didn’t give two straws about Ramsey, but she would not let Hawk give her orders. “I will not treat my friend’s brother as if he were a pariah. If I wish to dance with him, I will.”

Hawk’s eyes blazed. “If you think to add Ramsey to your long list of conquests, you had better think twice. He is not one of those besotted cubs who hang on your every word. You are out of your depths with him.”

“I am not a green girl fresh out of the schoolroom,” she said. “And your concerns about Ramsey are ridiculous. He would never do anything to risk his reputation or that of his family.”

“I know the man. He’s risked scandal repeatedly. His exploits reached his father recently. The marquess is pressuring him to marry in hopes of reforming him—a wasted effort, I might add.”

“Now I understand. You object to Ramsey’s marital aspirations because the loss of one bachelor could spur a matrimonial landslide. All your dissolute friends would abandon you for their wives. Such a lonely prospect must be terrifying to a rake like you.”

“Enough of this nonsense,” he said. “Ramsey is the worst sort of devil. He views you as a prize. The unattainable Lady Julianne would puff up his overblown consequence. Trust me. He’s unscrupulous enough to put you in a compromising position, and then you would have no choice but to marry him.”

“Oh, I’m shaking in my slippers,” she said, not bothering to hide her sarcasm.

“Seduction is no laughing matter.”

“Goodness, I had no idea,” she said.

His jaw clenched. “No, you clearly do not or you would not make light of the matter.”

He obviously thought she didn’t have a brain in her head. “Even if Ramsey were to attempt to lure me into an indiscretion, which I seriously doubt he would, I am not foolish enough to fall for such a trap.”

His voice rose. “You wouldn’t even realize what was happening until it was too late. Either you agree to stay away from him or I’ll arrange to send you home.”

How dare he threaten her? “I will not allow you to run roughshod over me all season.”

“Pack your trunks,” he gritted out.

Her throat constricted. He meant to send her home in disgrace. Everyone in the ton would gossip about her. It would hurt her family. Something hot welled up inside her. “I’ll pack my trunks, and then I will go to Georgette’s home. Her mother will welcome me, and I will be free of your tyranny.”

“If you think I will let you stay in the same house as Ramsey, you are mistaken.”

She scoffed and turned away. “You cannot stop me.”

His hands shot out. She gasped as he imprisoned her upper arms.

“You are too innocent to understand,” he bit out.

“You think me naïve, but I know how to thwart a man.”

“I can prove you wrong,” he said, his voice rumbling. His eyes darkened as he snared her with his intense gaze. She felt as if he were pulling her ever closer, mesmerizing her as if she were the prey and he the predator.

When he wrapped his arms around her, she caught her breath. His chest and thighs were pressed against her, making her all too aware of his hard, muscular body. She tried to resist the exhilarating sensations coursing through her veins, but her knees and her resolve weakened.

All the while, he never broke eye contact with her. His breathing grew harsher, faster, and her own breath hitched in her throat. She told herself to look away, to break this sensual spell he’d cast over her, but the subtle scent of starch and something else, something male and forbidden, filled her head.

He lowered his face until his mouth was so close his
breath whispered over her lips. “Do you think your bravado would stop Ramsey?”

His words sliced through the haze in her brain. “You don’t scare—”

He claimed her lips.

In her many daydreams, she’d imagined he would kiss her tenderly. She’d not expected the urgency, the sheer hunger of his kiss. Nothing could have prepared her for the way he devoured her lips. She knew she should stop him, but as he continued to kiss her, her wits scattered.

When his tongue traced her mouth, her lips parted involuntarily. He plunged inside, setting a rhythm of advance and retreat. She grasped his lapels, holding on for dear life as her knees trembled. None of her fantasies could compare to the reality of his intimate kiss.

He swept his hand down her spine and cupped her bottom, setting her skin on fire. She reached for his shoulders, needing more support as he pressed her closer. Her blood heated to a fever pitch.

He cupped her breast and, through the fabric of her bodice, circled his thumb around her nipple. An unexpected spurt of pleasure shot through her. As his tongue filled her mouth again and again, she felt something harden against her belly. For a moment, confusion gripped her. Then, in shock, she realized he was aroused.

A small voice told her to stop him, but he drew her tongue into his mouth, and the voice grew silent. She was lost, uncaring about anything except the mindless need coursing through her.

He tore his mouth away, leaving her bereft. A haze swirled through her head as she gazed at him. His eyes were darker, glazed with an expression she’d never seen before.

A Scoundrel’s Code of Conduct: Never let the beast take control.

A
dense fog enveloped his brain. His cock strained against the confines of his tight trousers. He was burning up as he pressed her closer. Seconds before he kissed her again, he met her gaze. The innocent blue eyes staring back at him washed over him like a giant ocean wave.

He stepped back, breathing like a racehorse. Bloody hell! He’d kissed and touched Julianne.

Her eyes held a look of wonder as she touched her kiss-swollen lips. She’d probably never been kissed before. His chest burned with shame. He’d lost all control with his best friend’s sister. Damn his sorry soul to hell.

Hawk turned his back and clenched his fists, trying desperately to will his erection into submission. For God’s sake, he was her guardian. Tristan had trusted him to protect her. And he’d failed miserably.

The memory of his father’s denouncement more than a dozen years ago echoed in his head.
You’re an immoral blackguard.

He’d proven his father right repeatedly, but he’d never touched an innocent before. Only the worst sort of scoundrel would take advantage of a young, unmarried lady.

He walked over to the sideboard and splashed brandy into a glass. When he downed the liquor, it burned his throat and made his eyes water. The lust coursing through his veins gradually receded, leaving a dull ache in his groin.

What the hell had possessed him?

He recalled his rising anger at her refusal to take his warnings seriously. Then he’d snapped, meaning to teach her a lesson. All he’d done was show himself to be no better than Ramsey.

He set the glass aside. If anyone had burst in on them, he would have had no choice but to offer marriage. He couldn’t even let himself think of Tristan’s reaction.

Right now, he had to put aside thoughts of what might have happened and deal with the aftermath. All he could offer her was an apology, but hollow words could never make up for what he’d done to her.

He turned to face her, and the blush staining her cheeks made him wince. “I beg your forgiveness. That should not have happened.”

A suspicious sheen filled her eyes, and she averted her face as if she didn’t want him to see. “I… I let you.”

He despised himself. Her first kiss should have been gentle and sweet, but he’d never meant to kiss her. And he’d certainly not counted on the desire that had consumed him the moment their lips had met. “You are not to blame.”

She glanced at him with a miserable expression and looked away again.

He walked over to her, wanting to offer comfort, but he stopped short of touching her again. “I am the one at fault.”

After uttering the words, he recalled walking in on Tristan and Tessa in the library at Ashdown House a year ago. At the time, he’d thought his friend’s guilt overblown. Now he understood exactly how Tristan had felt.

Julianne drew in a shuddering breath. “You won’t say anything to my brother about our indiscretion, will you?”

The uncertainty in her voice seared his conscience. “No good would come of a confession.” The consequences would ruin his friendship with Tristan and alienate their families.