She looked down the alley wondering how far ahead her sister and Mr. Payne were. “Okay. I’ll do it, if you promise not to tell another living soul about my etchings.”
He gave a slight bow of his head and said, “I am a man of my word.”
They returned the way in which they came, and Ailsa looked down the street to see Robbi and Mr. Payne attempting to entertain the three children at the entrance to the park while they waited for her.
“Tomorrow night at ten o'clock, Miss Blair. Don’t make me regret my decision to strike a bargain. I will not hesitate to ruin you if you back out of our deal.” He tipped his hat and was gone.
A shiver ran down her spine as she turned away and began walking toward Robbi, who was looking at her expectantly. A grin full of pride spread across her face. Her dimples were on full display, and Robbi’s face lit up in response.
“Who’s the better spy now, Sir Williamson? I just infiltrated your network,” Ailsa whispered as she crossed the street and joined her family for a day of fun in the sun.
Caillen combed her fingers through her husband’s hair. The baby was sleeping and her sisters had taken the other children to the park with Mr. Payne as their escort. “Does it bother you that I have chosen to write a wicked novel?”
“Why would any man consider it a botheration to be the erotic standard every other man attempts to achieve?” His confidence was only made that much more enticing by his sensual exploration of her breasts.
“You do realize there are other men to be featured in my book?”
He stilled, his head rising from her nipple to look up into her face, despite the fingers tangled in his hair that were urging himto continue. “Are you telling me that I’m not the main character inMemoirs of a Couple in Love?”
“You will be one of the protagonists, but there will be several men within my pages who know how to pleasure a lady.”
He frowned. “And just exactly how do you intend to learn about these other paragons of sensual exploration?”
“Do you really want me to answer that?” She teased.
“Minx,” he said as he nipped her breasts and made her squirm with delight. “I will make you beg for that.”
She moaned as her body heated, his tongue swirling around her nipple, and her yearning grew as she held onto his silken hair, loving the feel and the scent of him. “I will interview other wives who are happily married for the future editions I publish.”
His hand moved between her legs, and she shivered with anticipation as his fingers drew circles on her inner thigh. “You plan to publish more than one?”
She sighed as his fingers landed on their mark, her back arching with the ecstasy of it all. “Women should…know there are other good men…oh, Simon, that is wonderful…who are interested in more than just their own satisfaction.” She was panting now and thoughts of her book, and anyone outside of their bedroom, were the very last thing on her mind as her husband pleasured her over and over, bringing her to orgasm with such deft debauchery she couldn’t imagine any of the other husbands of the ton matching her own in the bedroom.
Later, while she lay sated and satisfied beyond measure, wrapped in the crook of his arm, she said, “I don’t want to lose what we have.”
Simon kissed the top of her head. “What could we possibly lose?”
“I like to insult you.”
She felt his smile grow against her scalp. “I love to toss barbs back and forth with you as well.”
“What happens when we run out?”
“I will endeavor to make a new list.”
She curled into his side even tighter, loving the way his body enveloped her own. “We’ve never used the same one twice. I don’t want us to become dull and boring and predictable in our old age.”
“That will never happen.”
She looked up into his dark eyes framed with long, luxurious lashes. “How can you say that? What if we’re at a ball and I can’t think of anything to say? The ton will say you’ve tamed me, or you’ve become bored with my shrewish ways.”
He kissed the tip of her nose, his lashes fluttering briefly closed before capturing her gaze once more. “I will scandalously dance with my gorgeous wife two and three times at every ball. How could they possibly believe anything but that I am madly in love with my wife?”
“They’ll say I’ve broken your spirit.”
“Not when they catch us pleasuring each other behind a potted plant.”
“I do find your wit and barbs vastly titillating. Surely, that’s enough incentive for you to continue?”
