A Rogue for Christmas

Chapter 5-3

“Are you joining them?”

Perdita suddenly appeared at his side. Lord, the woman could be stealthy. Once they were married, he would have to have little bells sewn onto her gown so he could hear her coming.

“I was instructed by your father to assist the others.” He took his cloak from the footman who had rushed to him with his outerwear.

“You listened to my father? Goodness, Lord Darlington, whatever reasonable, gentlemanly thing shall you do next? I swear you’ll lose your wicked reputation at this rate,” she teased him, and he adored the sparkle in her eyes as she did.

“As a gentleman”—he emphasized the word—“I would like to invite you to join us.”

Her winged brows rose. “Truly? Most men would not think to invite a woman to partake in such a sacred and masculine ritual.”

Vaughn glanced at the collection of eager young lads surrounding them and sighed dramatically.

“Miss Darby, please do me the honor of saving me from this hoard of bucks, who will surely drive me to the nearest bottle with their inane antics if I do not have a grounded, sensible creature to accompany me.”

She giggled. “In that case, I accept. Let me fetch my cloak and gloves.”

He couldn’t deny the excitement that fluttered in him at the thought of spending more time with her. When he’d come upon her in the library earlier, she’d stopped him dead. Before, he’d always focused on women most when they were naked in his bed, but there was something different about Perdita. She was fiery, challenging, yet alluring and sweet. He hadn’t known a woman could be so complex in personality. He found he rather liked that depth to her.

When he’d spied her in the library window seat, he had known he would find a way to rouse her passions, but he hadn’t expected to be so affected by her reactions to him. Holding her in the library, thinking of her secretly penning astronomy essays and defying the conventions of society, then picturing the way she blushed at his exploring hands before trusting him to bring her to c****x…something inside him clicked into place.

This plan of a false engagement had begun as a way to climb out of financial ruin, but everything had changed, and that no longer mattered. What mattered now was winning her heart and claiming her as his wife. He knew he’d settle for no other woman. She was a bottomless pool of mysteries, an enchantress who drew him out with her innocent lips and eyes full of secrets. He was quite convinced he could spend years getting to know who Perdita really was.

Vaughn was still picturing how she tasted when he noticed Samuel Milburn staring at him from across the hall. The man was scowling.

Milburn nodded. “Darlington.”

Vaughn ignored the sour look he was given and offered a nod back. Then Milburn came over, dodging the other young men as they bounded about the hall like pups.

“Chasing the skirts of Miss Darby, are we?” he asked.

“Chasing? No. Caught.” He smiled slowly, watching his meaning sink in for the other man.

“Caught? By that you mean…”

“We are engaged. The announcement is to be made tonight at dinner.” Vaughn pulled on his gloves, allowing his usual uncaring manner to be displayed. He didn’t want Milburn to see any desperation or urgency. The man must not sense the true purpose of their engagement.

Milburn’s cheeks reddened, and his eyes narrowed. “When did you court her? She’s been in the country for the last few months, and I know you’ve been visiting the gaming dens in London.”

Milburn was too bloody astute for his own good. Vaughn finished with his gloves and arched a brow. “You can’t expect a gentleman to reveal his secrets.” Let the bastard make what he could of that.

“I had intentions toward her myself. I’d already spoken to Darby.” Milburn’s voice turned into a low, warning growl. That would have bothered some gentlemen, especially those who knew of Milburn’s cruel and abusive nature. But Vaughn wasn’t one of them.

“Sorry to tell you that I got there first, old boy. And you know I have no intention of sharing what’s mine with any man.” Vaughn slapped the other man on the shoulder. He felt the tension rise between them. They weren’t foolish young lads barely out of the schoolroom. They were men, ready to face each other down like stags over territory. Vaughn was more than ready to battle the bastard for Perdita’s sake. He’d love a chance to bloody his knuckles on Milburn’s face.

Milburn seemed ready to argue further, but Perdita appeared at the top of the stairs, wearing a red cloak with white ermine fur lining the edges. Her dark hair had escaped the loosely pulled up Grecian style, and bright-red ribbons had been threaded into her hair to hold back her locks. She was a perfectly delectable little creature.

And she’s all mine.

Vaughn grinned eagerly as she came down the stairs, and he held out his hands to her. She placed her gloved hands in his, allowing him a moment to study her. She had a cloak on, but her gown seemed a bit thin for walking about in the woods.

“Will you be warm enough, darling?” he asked, genuinely concerned. One did not charge about the snowy woods in a fine tea gown.

“Yes. This isn’t my best gown, but I didn’t want to miss out on the experience simply because I had to change my dress.” When her nose wrinkled, it made her adorably sweet, and Vaughn couldn’t resist smiling. Damn, since when had such sweetness ever been so fetching to him? His bed partners before had been moody, sensual, and as friendly as cats in heat, but Perdita was nothing like them, and he found that refreshing. She turned as though just now realizing Milburn was standing there next to them.

“Oh, my apologies, Mr. Milburn. Did I interrupt your conversation?” Her wide eyes were filled with innocence, but Vaughn knew she had interrupted them on purpose and was glad for it.

Vaughn answered for him. “No, you did not. We were simply catching up, weren’t we, Milburn?” He challenged his rival with one lazy and somewhat contemptuous look.

Milburn’s dark eyes burned with a hateful fire, but he couldn’t lose his temper in front of the other guests. He stormed off, shoving a few lads out of his way viciously enough to have them grumbling and brushing their coats in displeasure.

“No holiday spirit there,” said one.

Vaughn turned to his fiancée. “My, that was exciting. A bit like poking an angry bear.” He chuckled and offered Perdita his arm.

It seemed the others had decided they were ready to begin, and the crowd of men suddenly rushed out the front door in a wall of fluttering cloaks and clattering boots. They bounded into the snow like hearty young foxhounds.

Perdita giggled as the men began their wild romp toward the forest that bordered the property. “Heavens, look at them go. You’d think they’d been kept indoors for a week.”

“My lady.” Vaughn lifted her by the waist and set her down in the snow. Some of the men had already worn down a steadier path ahead of them. It would be much easier on her skirts to walk on packed snow.

Perdita turned her head to hide a blush, then lifted her gown with one hand and began to walk. Vaughn took her other arm, and they moved together into the woods. Due to the heavy snowfall, only a few birds were chattering on trees, and Vaughn couldn’t resist the temptation to tease Perdita.

“Look there.” He pointed with his free hand toward a blue-and-yellow bird with black markings around its throat and eyes. It clung agilely to a tiny bare branch of a stout little tree.

“Oh, he’s lovely.” Perdita paused to watch the bird. The branch was thin enough that the bird’s weight made it dip and bounce as the creature adjusted its position and fluttered its wings.

“That is a blue tit,” he said. “t**s always turn blue in the winter when it’s cold. He has a cousin called a great tit, similar markings, but a much bigger chap.” He waited, holding his breath to see if she realized the joke he was trying to make, that the t**s which turned blue weren’t birds…

“I believe you’re trying to tease me.”

“Whatever do you mean?”

“You know as well as I do that tit has other meanings.”

“As far as I know it simply refers to a diminutive creature, such as a titmouse or a tomtit. I cannot be responsible for any meanings your imagination has come up with.”

“Well, nevertheless, you must stop talking about blue t**s,” she whispered in a half-amused, half-scandalized tone.

“I promise to return yours to a lovely shade of pink once we get back inside.”

“Vaughn!” she admonished.

“What? You began such talk, but that doesn’t mean I cannot contribute. Yes, I believe a few kisses, a bit of sucking will bring the pink back nicely.” He leaned down to murmur the last part, which only made her gasp.

“Stop this,” Perdita said, her face already beginning to flush.

“I suppose you don’t want to hear me describe chaffinches? They have the most attractive pink breasts.”

She looked as if she might punch him, but then she thought better of it. She huffed and walked a few steps ahead before she bent down. Before he realized what she was up to, he caught a face full of snow.

He brushed off the powdery residue from his face, sputtering.

“You will pay for that, my darling.” He crouched down and started to collect his own handful of snow in his gloves. When he rose, ready to aim, there was no sign of her.

But he saw a clear track of dainty boot prints in the snow, leading deeper into the woods. With a wolfish grin, he began to stalk his lady, looking for signs of a red cloak within the snowy forest. When he caught his red-hooded lady, she would pay for her mischievous behavior, and they would both enjoy every minute of it.