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Indiscretions
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Copyright © 2011 Madelynne Ellis
Edited by Allison Jacobson
Photography and cover art by Les Byerley
Electronic book Publication INDISCRETIONS April 2011
This book may not be reproduced or used in whole or in part by any means existing without written permission from the publisher, Ai Press, 10435 Green Trail Drive N, Boynton Beach, FL 33436
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This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental. The characters are productions of the authors' imagination and used fictitiously.
Indiscretions
Madelynne Ellis
To my readers---for your infinite patience.
Author Note
You can read more about Vaughan, Lucerne and Bella in my novels A Gentleman's Wager and Phantasmagoria. The events in Indiscretions occur in the time period between the aforementioned books.
15th April 1799, Kensington, London
Behind his mask of bored indifference, Vaughan, Marquis of Pennerley, inwardly grimaced. His hostess might call this overblown cacophony singing. He called it torture. Two minutes of screeching scales and he already felt as if someone had gone at his head with a saucepan and ladle; much more and he'd gladly perforate his own eardrums to end the malaise. The sound, reminiscent of a fox let loose in a chicken coop, was not a form of entertainment he normally sought.
Vaughan turned to his lover. They were standing at the back of the small seated audience of guests invited to the evening music recital along with a few other latecomers. "Lucerne, can we not leave?" he whispered. Lord help him for wishing it, but the young woman tormenting them with this aria would benefit from an acute case of the morbid sore throat.
Despite the halo of golden hair that framed Lucerne's face and his serene expression, Vaughan knew his companion found the performance equally excruciating. Although not a musician, Lucerne appreciated such talents in others. Sadly, unlike Vaughan, he was far too polite to express his disappointment at tonight's torment. "We can leave only if you intend it as a deliberate snub," he observed. "The girl is our hostess's niece. A little fortitude will serve us well enough."
"Assuming my ears don't start to bleed." The woman deserved more than a snub for putting him through this. "How much longer is the bloody piece?" Vaughan flicked open the case of his pocket watch and stared in irritation at the ornate face. Alas it did nothing to speed up the performance.
"Shh! Stop it." Lucerne closed his hand over the top of Vaughan's, flipping the watch lid closed in the process. "Mrs. Wincombe will be mortified if she hears you, and she's desperate to impress. So let's just persevere and try to enjoy ourselves. She has a nice figure, don't you think?"
Vaughan stared at the joined palms for a moment, before returning the timepiece to his waistcoat pocket. "Wincombe?" Their hostess sat at the front of the rows of seated guests, balancing a pudgy toy poodle upon her lap.
"Miss St John."
"Hm." Vaughan gave the songbird another pained glance. She was skeletal in all regards save for an over-endowment of bosom, which he provisioned in part to judicious bolstering. He couldn't in all honesty say that she'd have turned his head, but then his attention rarely strayed in the direction of women.
"Not to your taste?" Lucerne asked in response to his silence.
"You know me. I've always had a thing for blonds."
A wide, disarming smile spread across Lucerne's face, causing delicate creases to appear around his eyes. They crinkled in the exact same way after sex, when for a few brief moments they were truly at peace with the world and one another.
Things were simple when they were lost in one another's arms. Only when their embrace ended did the trouble start. As Vaughan gazed at Lucerne, captivated by the thought of oneness, a warm glow slowly suffused his loins. That's what he wanted to be doing with this evening---making love, not listening to this caterwauling.
Lucerne's smile turned to bemusement over Vaughan's prolonged scrutiny. "I don't need to ask what you're thinking, but you might consider our location before it becomes perfectly apparent to everyone else too."
To the devil with perseverance! It was time he turned the tide of the evening's events in a more enjoyable direction. Instead of tempering his thoughts, Vaughan allowed them to expand and solidify into a far filthier image of him and Lucerne top to tail in bed, sucking upon one another's cocks. His lips parted as his imagination filled in the details of texture and taste. He caught an undercurrent of Lucerne's scent in the sticky heat of the salon, and breathed deeply. It was a scent he associated entirely with indolent mornings spent cocooned together in bed, sleeping off the excesses of a night's debauchery. The sort of debauchery that left them with stubble burns and muscle aches, and sometimes bruises. Nights spent chasing a single moment of bonded perfection.
They were perfect together.
Only, together rarely involved just the two of them anymore.
Just like that the blissful vision shattered. Bella was part of their lives now. He couldn't deny it, but that didn't mean he had to like it. Triangles were supposed to be strong, but sharing didn't come easy to Vaughan. He didn't want a slice of Lucerne's affection. He wanted it all, and if he saved his wicked thoughts until they got home, the arrangement would no longer be the same. Bella would be present, and by God, she'd demand a role in whatever they had planned. There was no hiding from her, no escape. Locked doors didn't keep her out, nor alas did threats, and he disliked casting idle ones.
She was with them here, but sat apart with some friends at present. This place, this moment, provided the perfect opportunity to slip away and find some quiet time together.
Vaughan reached out and caressed the outline of Lucerne's arse through his breeches.
Lucerne jerked in alarm. "Vaughan!" The tremulous tenor to his lover's voice only boldened Vaughan's stroke. Fear brightened the blue of Lucerne's eyes as he warily turned his head. "Not here. It's too risky. There are too many people." A pink blush crept over Lucerne's high cheekbones and up into his hairline.
"Of course," Vaughan acquiesced with a nod. He closed his eyes and allowed his jaw to relax, faking deep affinity with the music. The risk itself was half the appeal. What he intended wasn't merely taboo, like stealing away with a maiden for a quick grope in a broom closet, it was illegal, a deplorable and debased act according to both the Crown and the Church.
"Stop it!" Lucerne tilted his head towards him so that his hiss blew straight across Vaughan's ear. "I'm not fooled. I know what you're planning."
"But no one else can read my mind." Vaughan pursed his lips and allowed Lucerne's imagination to fill in the details of the fantasy running through his head. The result increased the colour in Lucerne's cheeks to a warm shade of ruby. "You're blushing like a virgin now." Actually, Lucerne blushed far more prettily than any of the virgins he knew. Vaughan touched the tip of his tongue to his upper lip. The one thing guaranteed to set Lucerne's blood afire was anticipation. Lucerne was all about the slow burn, and Vaughan could stretch out this tease for five minutes or the rest of the night. Regardless the outcome would be the same, Lucerne overeager, standing to attention and begging for affection.
Fear of reprisal really wasn't everything. Sometimes lust prevailed.
"You know you've got me all wrong," Vaughan said a moment later.
"Have I?"
"Actually I was imagining things the other way around. You must contemplate that too sometimes, don't you? You have to have considered how it feels to give and not receive."
Lucerne's jaw fell slack.
I have you. Vaughan knew it would work. He was after all dangling a very tender morsel before his lover's eyes. Bella's presence necessitated certain arrangements. Namely that she and Lucerne took turns being in the middle. He never gave up his position of dominance. Anything else would upset the delicate balance of their relationship. That and he struggled to master his emotions at the best of times. There was no question of his being able to do so while Lucerne was swiving him. The sensations involved were far too exhilarating and far too raw. In truth, he didn't like to dwell on where such a scenario with the three of them present would lead. Individually the pair continually stretched the limits of his endurance. If they ever made a genuine, concerted attack on him... Well, the results were unlikely to be pretty.
But Lucerne alone, with no observers was a different matter. For Lucerne he'd willingly prostrate himself. Particularly if it got him exactly what he wanted.
Lust really was an intolerable thing. He tried hard not to let it rule him. A smile stretched the corners of his mouth. But sometimes giving in to it was life's biggest reward.
"Vaughan." Lucerne's teeth were pressed tight to his lower lip. His gaze continued to dance about as though any moment he expected them to be seized and their relationship made public.
"Would you like to fuck me tonight, Lucerne?"
He actually heard Lucerne gulp. "Don't do this now."
Vaughan looked deep into Lucerne's eyes, binding their thoughts together. He wished he could reach up and offer even a touch of reassurance. A simple caress was all it would take to seal the pact, but maintaining a certain distance was absolutely essential to the rouse. "Do it now. Here. While she's still warbling. It'll mask the cries."
Lucerne's tongue flicked once over his lips. He tugged at the edge of his collar. "As if you're genuinely game. I know when I'm being teased."
"Do you? I'm not teasing. I want you inside me. I want you to fuck me."
"No, you don't. You've never wanted it like that before."
"Haven't I? Ever considered that something...someone kept getting in the way?"
"This is not about Bella."
"It's absolutely about Bella. Don't you think it's a little unfair that the pair of you get all the fun all of the time?"
"Wha---No." Lucerne shook his head. "There's no way you're going to let me do that. Besides, what makes you think that being sandwiched between you and Bella is fun?"
Vaughan lifted his shoulders in a shrug. "Something about how hard you come. Not that we're involving Bella. This is purely about you and me."
Another shake of the head followed. Lucerne hid behind the fringe of his hair. "Listen to the recital," he rasped after another minute or so.
"Wouldn't you rather hear me sing?" Vaughan cocked an eyebrow in the direction of a carved oaken screen. "Conservatory."
"No."
"Now. Right now. Go, or I'm going to kiss you in full view of the room." He wasn't, or leastways not in any way that could be construed as anything other than acceptable behaviour, but Lucerne didn't need to know that.
Lucerne's shoulders lifted as his back straightened, then he passed quickly behind Vaughan and headed for the conservatory.
Good man. Vaughan folded his arms and waited a minute or so. He doubted anyone was paying them any attention, the audience's focus remained on the girl, but it never hurt to take precautions.
\*
Someone had thoughtfully left the key in the lock. Vaughan turned it, isolating him and Lucerne in the conservatory. Thankfully the Wincombes were fond of foliage, so that the glass space was filled with vines and big leafy bushes, rather than rows of orchids or strawberry plants. He found Lucerne near the centre of the room, in a small secluded arbour, shielded on three sides by greenery. The fourth provided a view out over the twilit lake. Unless someone pressed their face to the glass they'd remain unseen.
"You know this is folly. There are too many people about."
The very thrill of the crowd's presence vibrated beneath Vaughan's skin, lending a sense of urgency to the proceedings. He tossed the key into an empty jardinière. "All I see are stars, quarry tiles and you."
"It's too damn risky." Lucerne back-stepped as Vaughan walked towards him.
"It's too good an opportunity to miss. Live a little, Lucerne. What's life without risk?" He caught hold of Lucerne's lapels and forced their bodies into contact. Ah, the pleasure of hard muscle pressed tight to his torso. Their mouths met as he girdled Lucerne's hips. Tentative only for the first second, then turning greedy and demanding. Lucerne's tongue stabbed between Vaughan's lips, goading him into giving more of himself. The fumes of after-dinner brandy tingled on his lips, burning in much the same temperature as Lucerne's skin. As Lucerne was pale skinned, his growing arousal always tinted his cheeks with a rosy glow.
Vaughan allowed Lucerne to lead a moment, before tightening his grip on the M-shaped collar of Lucerne's coat and seizing control. Rather than deepening the kiss, he made it light and flighty. He knew the torment would serve to further arouse Lucerne. Frustration made him wild. Within seconds, they were both panting and stiff enough to bruise.
"Are you really going to let me do this?"
Vaughan slowed their kiss until he felt the tension melt out of Lucerne's limbs and his breaths turned into moans. "You know I'll let you do whatever you want. All you ever have to do is ask." The deep well of emotions he kept hidden came rippling to the surface. Tension tended to have that effect, and rather surprisingly he found he really did want this. He liked the idea of reversing their roles for a change. He sometimes dreamed of Lucerne truly overpowering him.
"You're going to relinquish control?" Lucerne traced a loop upon Vaughan's stomach, and then drew a finger down to the tip of his cock.
Anticipation made Vaughan edge forward a fraction. Sometimes he needed to let go and allow himself to feel all the raw and painful parts of love. Although right now he wasn't anticipating pain, only pleasure.
Lucerne released the buttons of Vaughan frontfall, and then cupped the swell of his cobs. He tickled their underside with the feather light stroke of his thumb.
"Do it," Vaughan hissed into Lucerne's open mouth, "now, before I change my mind."
The glow of warmth in Lucerne's eyes expressed his eagerness far more successfully than any amount of words. He didn't wait for a second invitation, but tore open the placket of his own breeches, releasing his cock, which seemed to swell further just from the freedom.
Vaughan feasted on the sight of him; splashes of blue added detail to the pale length of his lover's shaft. His foreskin was drawn back so that the plum tip of Lucerne's glans lay exposed. Part of him wanted to sink onto his knees and wrap his lips around that delicate head, suck and lick it until it released its blessing. However, he'd made a promise, and he didn't need to look into Lucerne's eyes to know that his lover was fired up because of it. "How do you want me?" he asked.
"The bench," Lucerne gasped, as his fist opened and closed around his shaft. "If you grasp the back."
They shuffled over to the spindly iron seat. Vaughan braced himself with his elbows locked. He still had his breeches on, but he left Lucerne the pleasure of removing them, or rather roughly shoving them down to his knees. Lucerne's large hands worked circles over his rear until the whole area was sensitised and the brush of each fingertip made him jump.
If they'd been home, he'd have insisted they got naked. He craved the sensation of Lucerne's lean, muscled chest against his back. Skin on skin contact lent a certain intimacy that simply didn't exist when clothing divided them. And even if they weren't already taking a huge risk, Lucerne's clothing simply wasn't the sort you threw on or off in a hurry, since it was sculpted to his form.
"Where is it?"
One of Lucerne's hands left his arse, and began searching among Vaughan's coat pockets.
"Left side. Inside the skirt."
Lucerne's hand brushed his thigh as he sought the bottle of oil from the pocket. Just a few heartbeats later, the throb of Lucerne's cock nuzzled between the cheeks of Vaughan's bottom. The rigid heat slid against his skin. Vaughan braced himself for the moment of surrender. Somehow it wasn't quite as easy to relax as he'd originally anticipated, even though by God, he wanted this.
"What is it you always say---breathe out?" Lucerne's hand fisted the ringlets of Vaughan's long black hair, and tugged his head over to one side. Lucerne bit him through his cambric shirt. Pain flashed through Vaughan's senses, lit bright sparklers on the inside of his eyelids. He hadn't realised until that moment that his eyes were closed.
The sharp caress of Lucerne's teeth worked its intended magic. Vaughan's body hardly resisted the thrust of Lucerne's cock.
He was inside him. Hot and tight and insistent. The rawness caught him by surprise, shocked a groan from him that was half ecstasy and half he wasn't sure what. "Oh, lord!"
"Yeah, you feel good to me too," Lucerne reassured. "But I'm barely inside you yet. You're so goddamned tight. Need to get deeper."
"Yes." He needed that too, even though all that rubbing against his tender nerve endings was almost enough to drive him insane. Vaughan pressed back tight against Lucerne's body as his lover coaxed him into taking him fully. Lucerne kept things steady, but the fact that the motion was so slow only escalated the rawness. He needed this faster, with more drive and less of an excruciating rasp upon his senses.
Vaughan pulled forward. Then he pushed back against Lucerne's loins, causing their skin to slap together as they met. Somehow his lover understood. Lucerne picked up the pace, rolling his hips so that his cock performed a nice steady glide.
"We're bloody fools for this," Lucerne's breath tickled his ear and blew strands of dark hair across his face. "Anyone could burst in. There are probably other keys to that door. How are we supposed to explain it? How are you going to survive it? Not only will they know you're a sodomite, they'll realize you're all front. I mean think about it, the great Lord Pennerley allowing himself to be pricked as if he were a cheap whore."
If they were caught, they'd have a whole lot more to worry about than fearing for his social rank. They'd probably be hanged.
The thought only spurred the movement of his hips.
Vaughan's grip tightened on the bench back so that the metal grew warm. The fullness in his arse was so bloody perfect and the touch on his cock so sweet he thought he might actually sing. He had sort of promised Lucerne that he would. The rush of his breath tickled his vocal chords until he was keening in between laboured gasps. This wouldn't last long, which was probably best given that they couldn't risk prolonging it.
Vaughan's arousal dipped a fraction when he thought of resuming their lovemaking at home. This current arrangement simply wasn't possibly with Bella around. It would forever be a pleasure snatched in unforeseen moments.
Lucerne pulled his hair again, returning some of the aggression he was usually on the receiving end of. Vaughan could hardly blame him. He didn't blame him. He wanted more. Fighting with Lucerne was always a guaranteed prelude to a really good fuck.
"You love it, don't you, having me do this? Why can't you let her watch, Vaughan? Wouldn't it make things more complete? Don't you want this oneness where we can really appreciate it?"
"I don't want her to be part of it. I've never really wanted her to be part of us."
"Would this be the time to remind you that you're the one that invited her to join us?"
"It was the most elegant solution given the circumstance. Now stop talking about her and give it to me harder."
"Like this?"
Vaughan grabbed Lucerne's hand and curled his large palm around his cock. Tingly heat suffused his shaft. "Oh, yes!" The slide through Lucerne's fingers, coupled with the sensation of his cock in his arse set explosions off right down his spine. Tightness filled his balls, and gripped his shaft. At the same time, Lucerne pulled him up onto his toes, lining them up in a slightly different way. Ecstasy filled him like a drug. His seed erupted so hard it left streaks over the plants three feet away. Vaughan's knees buckled. He clung to the metal bench for support, crying out in ululating gasps as the moment rolled over him with such intensity that he could feel it in every cell.
"Ah, that's good." Lucerne's orgasm brewed equally swift and sticky. He stayed inside Vaughan's arse until the last tremor faded, his arms wrapped possessively around him. "There's no going back now. I'm going to want you like this again."
Vaughan huffed out a grunt. "Maybe if you ask extremely nicely."
Lucerne turned him around so that they were facing. Vaughan's bare bottom rested against the warmed metal.
"Maybe next time I won't wait for an invitation. I'll simply take, just the way you do."
A laugh rumbled up Vaughan's throat. He made to hitch up his breeches, but Lucerne knocked his hand aside. "She's still singing. Let me do a little something for you." Not waiting for an answer, Lucerne dropped onto his knees and took Vaughan's half-hard cock into his mouth. The sudden stimulation sent a surge of life back into his shaft. Within moments he was rolling to Lucerne's rhythm again, enjoying the soft warm comfort of his lover's mouth. Lucerne's talent for fellatio had improved greatly with practice, and he gave him plenty of practice. It was more unusual for him to independently volunteer.
Vaughan tangled his fingers in Lucerne's golden blond hair. Lucerne had a way of using his tongue that exerted just the right amount of pressure in all the right spots. In moments, he was as erect as if he'd never come, and keening lowly.
He watched Lucerne's head bob. His eyes were closed, so that his long eyelashes shadowed his cheeks. My Lucifer... My fallen angel---a smile tweaked his lips upward at the thought. What he wouldn't give right now to just click his fingers and have them appear at home. He wanted time to savour this experience, but the singing performance seemed to be building to its crescendo.
Once they got home, he'd have Bella watch while he got Lucerne to pick this up where they left off. He loved forcing her to watch, especially when having banned her from touching him first.
Bella did so struggle with restraints.
Her image filled his thoughts, brown hair tumbling over her shoulders in waves, her curves tightly confined by her rigid corset, and the dark triangle of her quim peeping enticingly beneath the cream of her stays. Maybe he wouldn't just let her watch. Maybe he'd let Lucerne swive her tonight. Each breath she made would be rapid and loose. Yes, and while Lucerne took her, he'd take him. Neither of his lovers would protest the plan.
Applause broke out on the other side of the door. Vaughan turned his head in that direction, but foliage blocked the view. Time they ended this. He upped the pace, and chased his climax to completion. Bemused, he watched Lucerne wipe the shiny evidence of their lust from his lips before rising to straighten his clothes.
They slipped back into the salon room, faking deep conversation as if the discussion were all that had led them away from the entertainment. Mrs. Wincombe spied them almost immediately and tracked determinedly in their direction, leading her niece by the wrist. "Milords, may I present to you, Miss St John."
The girl, thrust before them like an ornament for inspection, dipped into a graceful curtsey. Vaughan managed a very thin smile. He barely looked at her, choosing instead to peer over her head having already sensed what was coming.
Un-swayed by his action, Mrs. Wincombe bundled her niece into his field of vision once more.
Vaughan scowled. If he went into dinner with the girl it would be all over town by morning and the society matrons would expect a proposal within a week. Better that he draped Bella off his arm instead. Masquerading her as his cousin had certain advantages. So, fine, it didn't quell all the speculations, but it did make things significantly less awkward.
However, much to his astonishment, Lucerne extended a hand to the girl, and off the pair went, smiling prettily at one another.
Mrs. Wincombe obviously having discharged her duty took one glance at Vaughan's scowl and made a hasty retreat. Vaughan lingered as the train of people moved into the dining room. Few people remained when Bella appeared by his side and entwined an arm around his.
"Hungry?" Her eyes twinkled with mischief as she looked up him. "Music always gives me an appetite."
"Indeed. Though not as I recall, for food."
\*
Bella left the dining room unaccompanied forty minutes later still hungry, and now irritated too. Vaughan had been right. The food, though delicious, hadn't sated her appetite. What she craved was something more physical, something akin to the sensuous journey Lucerne often made with his tongue up her spine, better yet, the feel of his hands warming her bottom as a prelude to slipping into her welcoming heat.
Sadly, Lucerne continued to be monopolized by Miss St John, who, to her disgust, had taken to fluttering her eyelashes and leaning too close. Worse still, Lucerne was reciprocating with half-smiles of his own.
Had Vaughan not noticed the flirting going on? He didn't normally tolerate such competition. She spied him on the far side of the dance floor, surrounded by his barnacles, seemingly oblivious to what was going on. There was no question of her approaching him; her effort would only meet with some noxious rebuke that made her feel small. That or he would make her some lewd conciliatory offer to satisfy her in place of Lucerne. Only, she didn't want Vaughan's comfort. She wanted Lucerne---Lucerne, who was supposed to be her lover.
How she longed to press herself against his lean limbs and feel his taut muscles moving beneath his clothing as he guided her around the dance floor. She wanted to feel the ache in her womb grow and know that Lucerne's need for her was equally great, and that when they got home he'd fill her exactly as she needed him to.
Vaughan wouldn't provide that. Vaughan would leave her burning and frustrated. Only with Lucerne did she ever find true relief.
"Three dances," she remarked when she finally obtained Lucerne's hand. "Wasn't that a little excessive. Do you truly like her that much?"
"It costs me nothing to be polite, and I'm making up for Vaughan's absenteeism."
Bella cocked her head to better take in his expression, a typically half-fixed smile. "You know, I don't think it works like that."
"Does it not? Won't they remark that while she failed to ensnare Lord Pennerley, she thoroughly bewitched Viscount Marlinscar?"
"Likely," Bella conceded. "But if you don't mind, I'd like to bewitch you now. Let's slip away and spend the night together. Vaughan won't notice us leave."
"That would hardly be fair, now would it? I do wish you two wouldn't make everything into a contest. Can't you simply accept that I enjoy having you both?"
"I'll accept it when he does."
As they turned and swirled to face one another again, Vaughan swooped between them and claimed Lucerne's hand. Bella came to an abrupt halt, suddenly un-partnered in the centre of the dance floor. Around her, snorts of mirth accompanied the frantic flap of fans. Lucerne and Vaughan were dancing together. Within seconds, several of the other rakehells had taken to the floor similarly paired, only to split up again moments later to claim prettiest ladies.
Bella waved away offers from three gentlemen in order to follow Vaughan and Lucerne as they sneaked away. She found them outside, standing on a lantern-lit terrace overlooking the gardens. Stars twinkled overhead and the mingled scents of chamomile and lavender fragranced the breeze.
"How dare you embarrass me like that?" She marched right up to Vaughan and growled into his face.
Vaughan's dark eyes reflected the night sky. He looked down at her slowly. A stab of heat pierced Bella's innards as she gazed upon his face. There was no denying he was a breathtakingly beautiful man and his seditious and yet somewhat melancholy expression only added to that.
Sometimes she hated his beauty. Right now, she hated the fact that he was so much taller and hence couldn't meet him eye-to-eye.
"I dare," he said simply. "Don't worry. I didn't have to exert myself."
She sensed Lucerne biting his lip in order to stifle his smile.
"You're no better." She poked him in the ribs. "You let him insult me. You allow him to get away with this sort of thing."
"Twas no more than a bit of fun, Bella."
"It was impossibly rude."
Vaughan shrugged. "Why the devil would I want to stand around waiting when I had the perfect means of getting what I wanted immediately? You'll never understand. Opportunities should be seized."
"Is that what this is about, seizing a chance to abscond with Lucerne and leave me behind again? He's not yours, Vaughan."
"Nor is he yours."
"I never claimed him to be. Ours, remember. That's what we agreed."
Vaughan stepped forward so that less than an inch of space lay between them. His hand cupped the back of her head. Bella tensed, unsure whether he intended to kiss her or bite her. He'd done both on numerous occasions and his mood was no predictor.
Strangely the prospect of both excited her. Vaughan's kisses burned. They consumed her senses, but when he bit... Well... The strangest feelings ran through her making her think that the show of dominance wasn't so much about aggression and scaring her off but making her his possession too.
"Step back, Vaughan." She formed her fists, ready to strike him if necessary. Not that she anticipated it being so. There were simply too many people around for him to attempt anything truly terrifying. Besides, he'd never yet done anything to her that had caused her any real harm. Mostly, he just frustrated her beyond reason.
"He's coming home with me," Vaughan said, his voice low enough so that only she could hear it. "And you're not invited."
There he was, staking his claim again, trying to prove that his will took precedence and that she was insignificant. His words washed over her, failing to rile her in the way he'd intended. She knew Lucerne loved her. Once or twice she'd doubted that fact, but never for long. If Lucerne hadn't cared for her, her presence wouldn't have rattled Vaughan so much. She grinned winningly up at him. He could pretend all he liked, but she remained as much Lucerne's lover as he, and neither of them had any more right to Lucerne than the other.
"And what does Lucerne say to that?" she asked.
They turned their heads as one, only to find Lucerne had gone.
\*
They were driving him demented. Lucerne slipped away from Vaughan and Bella as they stood bickering and made his way back into the house. Never-ending strife, that's all he had to look forward to. As much as he loved them both he couldn't face yet another squabble over whose turn it was to share his bed; rather, it seemed better to sleep alone for once.
Thankfully the number of guests in the salon had thinned a little. Lucerne helped himself to a large measure of brandy from off a side-table and swallowed it eagerly. Sometimes it felt as if he were the rope in a tug o' war contest. They both wanted him and constantly pulled in opposite directions. Worse still, there were times like the present when they were so busy fighting, they forgot what it was they wanted.
Most of the time he stuck around and played mediator. This evening he couldn't face the ordeal. Perhaps leaving them to it was the best thing to do. Let them work the tension out of their systems and come back later when they'd calmed down.
In the hallway he caught sight of Lord Darleston, and fell into step between him and his brother. "Going on?" he asked.
"In a fashion. Why, are you up for some fun?" Darleston asked as he accepted his cane and box coat from the Wincombe's footman.
"You know, I think perhaps I am."
"Good man." Neddy, Darleston's twin brother clapped him upon the back. "Then you can choose the game, although I'm all for easy mort myself."
"Actually, you're just easy," Darleston said. He turned his gaze to Lucerne and looked at him down the length of his rather pointed nose. "You're more than welcome to join us, Marlinscar. Can we expect Pennerley too?"
Lucerne shook his head. "He's otherwise engaged." He wondered how long it would take Vaughan and Bella to notice he'd left. A while at least. Generally they were so caught up in each other whilst arguing that lightning could strike a foot away and they wouldn't notice. "Shall we, gentlemen?"
They bade Mrs Wincombe goodnight and then strolled out into the night air, their canes tapping in time with their steps. Lucerne cast a wan look back at the building. Part of him wished that Vaughan or Bella would come tearing down the steps and snatch him back, yet another part of him felt weirdly free.
The three of them being together all the time had become rather claustrophobic. He never had any space or peace. His every move was scrutinised for signs of favouritism. He wasn't sure when he made the decision, but he intended to stay out all night.
Bella stumbled and fell against the soft pile of Vaughan's coat as he dragged her from the carriage and up to the front door of the Mayfair townhouse they shared with Lucerne. If William, their footman, was surprised by the nature of their abrupt return, he showed it only in the brief lifting of his beetle-black eyebrows.
"Where's Lord Marlinscar?" Vaughan barked, as he threw off his hat and gloves. Bella tugged at the ribbon fastening of her cloak, only for Vaughan's grip to tighten again around the top of her arm causing the garment to fall and puddle around their feet.
"Has he not returned with you, milord?"
"If he'd returned with me, I wouldn't be asking, would I?" Vaughan snarled.
William's habitually wooden-like face scrunched into a frown. "No, I suppose not, milord."
Despite the pinch around her upper arm, Bella fought to stifle a giggle. Though she remained vexed at Lucerne for running off, and doubly so at Vaughan for dragging her from the music recital at such an early hour, seeing Vaughan succumb to a snit was far too great a delight not to appreciate, particularly as he saw himself the victim of some conspiracy.
"Parlour," he barked at her, and then marched her across the hall, leaving poor William to retrieve her rumpled cloak. Just over the threshold, Vaughan spun her so that they were facing. "Where is he, Bella?"
Her ghostly reflection shone in the dark heart of his pupils. "Have I not told you a dozen times already? I don't know. I no more saw him depart than you did."
"And you know perfectly well that I'm not asking about the direction in which he walked. Where did you arrange to meet him?"
"Hmm," she sighed, raising a hand to cover her lips. She wished she had arranged such a meeting. "I must have forgotten that conversation, for I don't recall making such an arrangement. When could I have done so? I'd only just reclaimed him from Miss St John when you cut in, and before that you were the one playing his prize barnacle."
"Where there's a will, Bella."
Bella shook off his hold and began to pluck pins from her hair. Even after eighteen months in town she still hated to have her hair dressed and piled upon her head. There were still days when she longed for the freedoms living in the wilds of North Yorkshire had afforded her. "Think what you wish. However the truth remains that I don't know where he has gone, other than away from the both of us it would seem. I wonder if he doesn't tire of your possessiveness."
"My possessiveness?"
"Yes." Bella placed her hands squarely upon her hips, knowing the stance would further infuriate Vaughan. He positively hated the fact that she was prepared to knock heads with him. Most folks backed down. But then most folks considered him quite horrid to deal with when angered, while she had always delighted in his antics when he was at his most foul. She knew him, understood him better than most, and more fully than even Vaughan realised. Without Lucerne around as an outlet for his frustration, he'd turn his attention to her, and though he would madden her this night, he'd also give her unimaginable pleasure. In the unruly world of Vaughan's emotions sex reigned supreme. He hid in it, wielded it like a weapon. He'd make her scream and sigh and weep, and she'd relish every single moment, because no one else ever quite made her feel so alive.
The flicker of his pulse showed at the side of his temple, thumping in rapid succession almost in synch with the rhythm of her heart. Oh, he was delightful, and it raised butterflies in her stomach to further provoke him. The more she vexed him the more punishment he'd dole out. "Honestly, do you think that if Lucerne and I had arranged a tryst I'd have stood arguing with you and then allowed you to tug me hither and thither? No, I'd have made sure that I was well out of sight and reach of you before either of us slipped away. Lucerne acted alone. Maybe someone else caught his eye." She didn't really believe that, but the lick of pain that shot across Vaughan's face suggested that he wasn't quite so convinced.
"Who would he meet?"
Bella shook her head, for in truth there was no one she could even imagine Lucerne slipping off with. The three of them might bicker and fight, but the arrangement they shared was also deeply satisfying. Well, save for the fact that she gained little time alone with Lucerne, but that was a minor gripe.
"You'll forgive me if I'm not entirely convinced by your honesty or your little theory," Vaughan said. He turned away from her and strode over to the fireplace, where he took up the poker. Bella watched him stab at the white-glowing coals causing them to collapse and spit hot ash over the hearth.
Vaughan stamped upon the glowing embers, and then shovelled up another scoop of coals, bending low to do so. The fabric of his breeches pulled tight across the back as he bent, giving her a glorious view of his perfectly muscled arse peeking through the back split of his tail coat.
Bella came up behind him, wanting to touch him, but not quite daring to be so bold. "You may think whatever you please. The truth remains that I have no more idea of where he's gone than you do. Don't you think I wish that I did? Imagine the night I might enjoy without you around spoiling things and dictating everything. Do you have any idea how long it has been since Lucerne and I were allowed to make love to one another without your interference?"
Vaughan drew his hand across his face as he turned, pushing his hair back off his forehead and leaving a smudge of coal dust behind. He did not seem surprised to find her standing so close, or to find her hand partially extended toward him. He stepped closer still, closing the gap between them to an indecorous few inches.
The glow of the fire danced in his eyes as he leaned over her, raising her expectations as well as quickening her pulse. Any moment she expected him to pounce and demand she pay a forfeit for her role in ruining his night.
"Why can't you ever leave us alone?" she goaded him.
Vaughan regarded her silently, his mouth set in a grim line. "You'd not thank me if I did. How long do you think you'd last together if I wasn't around?" The edge of his fingertip traced the lacy neckline of her gown. "He'd tire of you quickly enough. He needs more than you can give him, Bella." The implication as he held her gaze and traced a circle around one covered nipple was that she too would tire of Lucerne, if they were left in peace.
I don't need you, she told him silently, even as she leaned into his caress. Yet, a prickle of uncertainty ran beneath her skin. Vaughan might infuriate her, but he also enchanted her. She would miss him if he were gone, though gaining Lucerne for herself surely countered that. She loved Lucerne, after all, while she reminded herself daily that wasn't the case for Vaughan.
Heavens, if Vaughan weren't around, then maybe Lucerne might actually propose to her, as she knew her brother Joshua so often wrote to him insisting upon. If Vaughan weren't around, things would be very different.
Relaxed. Tranquil. Calm.
Calm was not a state that ever existed in this house with Vaughan dwelling in it.
Suddenly, she doubted her need for his company. Was her tolerance of his actions keeping him here? If she fought harder to gain Lucerne for herself might Vaughan leave?
"I'm going to bed," she said stiffly, stepping back from Vaughan's touch.
Her body protested the loss of the caress, her nipples tingling and growing increasingly steepled, while her ribs started to ache, until she realised she'd been holding her breath, anticipating more from him that this idle toying with her.
"His, I suppose," Vaughan remarked as she started to turn.
Bella jerked her head round to face him again. Her lips formed into a tight moue. "I do have a bed of my own." Though she'd spent no more than three or four nights in it, and it was true that she'd intended to snuggle into Lucerne's vast tester bed. Why shouldn't she sleep there? She had no reason to suppose Lucerne wanted her out of his bed, and at least in it she'd be cocooned in Lucerne's scent while she waited for his return. "I certainly wasn't planning on spending it in yours."
Vaughan eyed her cynically. "You weren't invited."
\*
Bella thought Vaughan would stop her when she turned away from the fire, but he allowed her to depart unmolested. Despite their verbal sparring she still expected him to act in a certain way. He might be mutable, but the pendulum arch of his moods followed predictable patterns. Excitement over him having his wicked way with her ebbed as she mounted the stairs, and transformed into genuine unease by the time she reached the bedroom. She remembered all too well the previous occasion when Vaughan's mien had turned cold and instead of meeting fire with fire, he'd stayed his distance. She'd almost lost both him and Lucerne, which was not a prospect she cared to face again.
Damn Vaughan to the fiery pits of hell. She could count on one hand the number of nights they'd spent alone together. Why couldn't they spend tonight having fun? So what if she'd sport a few bruises by morning. It'd be worth it. It always was.
And damn Lucerne too, for that matter. Why in heaven's name had he wandered off, and where had he gone?
Once undressed, Bella dismissed her maid and climbed between the sheets of Lucerne's bed. She closed her eyes, only to open them again almost immediately when the door latch lifted. "Lucerne?"
Bella raised her head a little when he made no reply. As the banked embers of the fire provided little light she could only make out his fuzzy silhouette through the gap between the bed curtains. He appeared to be undressing.
"Lucerne? Is everything all right?"
The mattress dipped as he climbed onto the far side of the bed. "Sorry to disappoint. He's still not home."
Vaughan! Her pulse punched rapidly into life. "What are you doing in here?"
"Ah, Bella! You seem to have forgotten, this is my bed too. I'm waiting for Lucerne, though I seem to have found his whore instead."
He knew perfectly well this was where she'd intended to sleep, which meant he'd come here looking for a fight. Clearly, he had not liked that she'd had the last word downstairs. If walking away from him could be considered that.
Vaughan lay on his back away from her, so that a broad expanse of cold sheet lay between them---the space where Lucerne ought to have been. Bella folded her arms and remained propped upright against the pillows. Heaven help her, but she could smell him, all spicy and musky, with a sharp hint of cologne. It took all of her willpower simply to sit still and maintain a steady pace of breathing, when what she wanted to do was to roll towards him and bask in his heat.
Fact---she wanted Vaughan. More than that, she wanted him to want her. Her whole body tingled simply due to his nearness. She coveted his caress.
"Are you asleep?" she asked after what felt like an eternity in purgatory, listening to the even sounds of his breathing. Her shift brushed mercilessly against her skin adding to her frustration. She'd put it on out of habit, but most nights she slept without it, pressed naked against Lucerne for warmth.
"No."
"What are you thinking about?"
"Miss St John."
The girl from the recital. He was thinking of Miss St John, not of Lucerne or whatever punishment he had planned for her for colluding against him. For one frightening moment, she wondered if he intended to lie beside her all night and ignore the tug of desire between them.
"Do you like her?"
A small chuckle escaped his lips. "No. She's no nightingale whatever her aunt may think."
A smile tugged too at the corners of Bella's lips. In friendlier moments, on those rare occasions when she and Vaughan truly saw eye to eye, he'd been known to call her his nightingale, though not for her singing proficiency.
"Vaughan, I didn't arrange anything with Lucerne. I swear it. I just want him to come home."
He remained silent. Bella wished she could discern more of his expression, for the poor light made him even more difficult than normal to read. "I know you didn't," he said at last. "You'd have taken me to him if you did, rather than have me drag you home and leave him waiting forlornly somewhere."
Bella rolled onto her stomach, reducing the gap between them to a matter of inches. "Is that why you're not punishing me?
She felt his snort of mirth, as a tremor in the mattress, rather than heard it. "You're angling again. Dear God, anyone would think you craved my love, the way you're prompting me."
Smiling Bella rose onto all fours and reached out to make contact with his chest. It wasn't his love she wanted, not even really his affection, but how he could make her feel. He was bad for her, and she knew it, but like the opium addicts that occasionally moved among society, she continually hankered for another fix.
Bella splayed her fingers wide across Vaughan's abdomen. The hard slabs of muscle beneath her fingers tensed, but he did nothing to dissuade her approach. "We both know it's not about affection." She leaned closer to whisper, so that her heavy breasts swayed above him and her nipples brushed the diamond of dark hair upon his chest, while the motion also caused her shift to bunch up around her waist.
Crouched over him, she looked down into his eyes. The black pupils shone in the dark like bottomless pools she could fall into and drown. His other features were less distinct, the sharpness of his cheekbones and jaw line tempered by the lack of light. He still remained the most beautiful man she'd ever met. Beautiful, not handsome like Lucerne, who while angelic, was still more rugged than Vaughan. Rather he was flawlessly saturnine. Lucerne and Vaughan---her angel and her devil, both with personalities to match. No wonder she loved sharing their bed, and risked everything day in, day out in order to do so.
"You know I don't just perform for anybody," Vaughan whispered back, prompting her to further coax.
Bella flicked her hair back over her shoulders. "But I'm not just anyone. I'm a very persuasive someone."
"Really?" The hint of a challenge darkened his voice.
"Yes." Bella dragged her palm down from where it lay against his stomach towards his groin. He was not as she'd supposed, already semi-erect, rather his cock lay slumbering against his thigh. It stirred readily enough as she stroked him, stiffening and growing in both thickness and length.
"How persuasive?" Vaughan's hands settled upon her shoulders, and exerted a downward pressure.
Bella wriggled backwards, while still working his cock. "Very, very, very persuasive."
"Show me. I'm not sure your efforts really warrant that claim just yet."
Bella trailed a line of kisses down his body until she reached his cock. She didn't take him in her mouth immediately, but instead directed her attention to his inner thighs, running her tongue over the delicate skin there, and teasing him with gentle nips. She knew it wasn't nearly enough to satisfy him, but then they were only toying with one another so far. Even after all this time living together, they still circled one another like beasts before fucking.
However, before they reached that part, there was the small matter of Vaughan's unnatural stillness to contend with. Generally, he took charge. Bella could think of no more than a handful of occasions when he'd lain so placidly and seemed content to wallow, rather than institute some action. He'd certainly never allowed her to pet him like this before, nor to direct things so much.
Bella dipped her head. She pressed a kiss to the very base of Vaughan's shaft, and then ran her tongue up to the very tip, where a tiny drop of moisture exuded from its eye. Then she flicked her tongue against the head of his cock, provoking an extravagant groan.
Pleased with the response, she followed that with another lick and another. Then she circled his glans all around her parted lips before allowing him to dip properly inside. She released him again a moment later. "You know I'm not so familiar with this particular act. Maybe you ought to give me some instruction, or explain to me how Lucerne does it."
Vaughan affectionately ruffled her hair. "You're doing just fine, which is hardly a surprise given how much time you spend sucking Lucerne."
It was true, that she'd performed this act numerous times before. Lucerne had a small fetish for fellatio given while they travelled by carriage, or maybe it was simply that the confines of the carriage gave them a degree of privacy they rarely enjoyed elsewhere, but she had little real experience of sucking Vaughan.
In fact, she wasn't sure she'd ever done so. It seemed a small thing at first until she deliberated on it further. Considering the many crude and debased acts he enjoyed and how often he chose to penetrate her arse, it seemed odd that he hadn't made this particular demand before. It was only when she took him more deeply and began to lavish attention on his shaft that she understood why.
Vaughan stiffened quickly, swelling from root to tip. His hips bucked up off the bed and rolled in time with her movement, until he was sweating and trembling, as eager for her touch as she was in need of his. He couldn't quite hold onto his distance while she was arousing him like this. He had to relinquish control.
Bella basked in the moment of glory, sucking him harder, and using her hands too in order to make him groan with pleasure. His hips rolled faster, so that their combined motion caused the headboard to tap out a rapid tattoo against the plaster.
Between her thighs, Bella's quim was flush with blood. She was moist and ready for him, longed only for the feel of his cock pushing against her and filling her up. Rutting with her, like some feral beast.
Instead, Vaughan's fingers laced within her hair. He clove to her, hips jerking compulsively. "More," he insisted, aiding her descent, so that his cock pushed deeper into her mouth almost making her gag. Bella fought a little against the intrusion, but he remained insistent. "Breathe, damn you," he cursed, allowing her time to make a shallow gasp. "Now, again. Take me. Take all of me."
Just when she thought she'd gained some control, Vaughan snatched it back.
Dizzy from lack of air, Bella meekly complied, letting him drive the full length of his cock into her throat, swallowing and breathing when he said, though her sharp fingernails curled into his thighs, marking him with half-moon shaped bruises.
"Good," Vaughan encouraged, as they slowly found a rhythm that didn't leave her choking. "You're right, Bella. You can be very persuasive. This is how Lucerne takes me. He's still not quite mastered the art. You're doing rather well."
The compliment made her beam and work a little harder. She took him repeatedly, drank him down, while her body trembled with the strain of keeping pace with his thrusts.
"That's right. Just like that. Just a little more."
Vaughan heaved beneath her, rapidly approaching climax. The pungent taste of his seed tingled on her tongue. It dawned on her then, that he had no intention of stopping. Rather he intended to come in her mouth, leaving her aroused and desperate.
She could envision it so clearly, even as she continued to satisfy him. He'd simply peel back the covers and walk away. Leave her to the paltry satisfaction she could gain from rubbing her own clitoris.
Bella dug her fingernails more sharply into the tender part of his inner thigh, finally breaking the cycle and causing him to withdraw.
"What!" he growled, reaching for her again, as she rested on all fours panting. Moisture covered her lips and chin.
"You were going to walk away."
Despite the arousal still driving the roll of his hips, Vaughan's lips peeled back into a callous smile. "Says who?"
Bella planted a palm firmly upon his chest and drove him down hard into the mattress. "When are you going to learn that this isn't all about you, and that I'm not just going to let you take?" She'd had her fill of that. She'd heard the stories the married women told too, of how they were constantly left wanting and unfulfilled.
Vaughan stroked a hand between her pussy lips. "You're wet because you like what I do. If you wanted prissy lovemaking you wouldn't have grabbed hold of my cock. Accept it, Bella. You like it rough, and you like that you're left wanting."
"No. I like being satisfied. Lucerne does that."
Vaughan pulled her close so their noses were pushed together and they were looking straight into one another's eyes at close quarters. "I like fucking Lucerne, but I've no wish to be him. And you're wrong if you think he's all you need. Now, I want to come in your mouth, and you're going to oblige me, aren't you Bella."
"I can't see any reason why I would."
Vaughan flipped her onto her back, and pinned her down. "Let me see if I can't persuade you a little." His cock replaced his fingers against her clit. Bella muffled a cry, but there was no masking the pleasure she felt. He stroked back and forth in her wetness, not penetrating her, just teasing, until she was lost in lust and frantic to have him deeper. "Shall we make a deal?" he crowed into her ear.
"No." She knew better than to believe he'd adhere to a pact, or even propose one without it being greatly to his advantage.
"Come now, Bella, what's so bad about me spilling a little seed in your mouth? You're not a prude. I'll even let you spit it out afterwards if you've no taste for it."
"Do women do that?" She'd always swallowed before.
Vaughan's smirk suggested not if they knew what was best.
"Bella," he coaxed again, dipping his head down towards her so that he could brush his soft lips against hers in a teasing kiss. "Don't make me get insistent about this. Let's not make it a fight." He sucked gently at her lip, before bestowing more flighty little kisses. "I promise I'll let you come."
"You promise?" She hardly dared believe him. Denying her pleasure after he'd taken his fill was one of his favour methods of torturing her.
"I promise. In fact, I swear it on my honour and Lucerne's life."
There had to be a catch. There was always a catch.
"And all I have to do is let you come in my mouth?"
"Yes."
Despite lingering reservations, the tension drained from Bella's limbs. She wanted him too much to refuse. After all, refusal would gain her nothing. It'd simply mean relinquishing the bed to him, and hence any affection from Lucerne when he returned.
"Very well, I'll do it." She lifted her hips and rubbed harder against his cock. "But not like before. It's too much."
Vaughan smiled so that just the very corners of his mouth curved. "Shame, and there I was thinking you had jaws like iron. How then?"
Bella pushed against him so that he backed away onto his haunches, then she shimmied around so that her head was at the tail end of the bed. He clearly understood for he settled back down beside her, his toes pointing towards her head.
Bella threw off her shift, letting it sail into the gloom of the bedchamber. She caught his hot look, before he slid into her mouth again, so his thick shaft filled her up. He tasted of her musk and the seed that leaked from his slitted eye as tiny pearlescent droplets.
True to her hopes, Vaughan obligingly buried his head between her parted thighs. It was better this way, more exciting. He blew gently, so that his breath tickled her hot skin, then aimed true with the flick of his tongue. Back and forth it worked across her nubbin, driving her into a state of demented excitement. Bella squirmed and rocked against his clever mouth, her excitement building fast, perhaps faster for simultaneously knowing the taste of him, until it built to such intensity that she walked the line between pleasure and pain, and her hips bucked convulsively.
Vaughan pulled back cutting her flight to ecstasy off abruptly. Instead, his hot breath scalded her thigh as he drove into her more rapidly chasing his own climax.
She'd have cursed him as a bastard if there were any room in her mouth for words. Instead his seed filled her mouth in hot spurts. He moaned and nuzzled against her until his orgasm had wrung him dry and his cock began to soften.
"Devil!" she cursed, pushing him away. "You promised. You promised."
Vaughan rolled onto his back with his hands clasped behind his head. "What promise have I broken, Bella? You never specified that we were to spend together, only that you expected to come. The night's young yet."
"You knew perfectly well that's what I expected." She moved cautiously, her body uncomfortably aroused. The lips of her sex were puffy and flushed with blood, and her little nubbin tender and yet desperate for another caress. "I expect fulfilment." She jabbed him hard in the ribs with her index finger.
"You know as well as I that I'm not going to be doing anything for a while."
"That's where you're wrong." She straddled his head and pushed her puss right against his face.
Though muffled by her flesh, she distinctly heard him laugh. His hands settled on her arse, lifted her up a little as his tongue began to work its magic. Bella ground herself against him, depriving him of air in the way he had her. Even---that's all she ever wanted, for them to be on an even keel. She'd accepted back in Yorkshire that she would never have Lucerne entirely to herself and that she would have to share, but Vaughan refused to make anything about their dealings fair. Well tonight they would be. Neither of them had Lucerne, and they would both gain their pleasure from one another instead. Vaughan had taken his, and now it was her turn.
It felt good to be astride him for once, making him work at giving her pleasure, rather than him dictating everything according to his whim.
Somehow, though, while it made her smile to have him in such a position, she knew deep down she was short changing herself. Vaughan knew how to make her climax. He'd done so many times with his tongue. What he would rarely do was make love to her. If things were genuinely to be fair between them this night, then she ought to demand that of him.
"Enough." Bella shimmied backwards down his body so that she straddled his hips instead.
Vaughan propped himself up on his elbows. His hair hung loose framing his face. Two sable ringlets lay against the pallor of his chest. He wiped a hand across his lips. "Letting me up for air?"
Bella shook her head. "Not exactly, no."
"Then what?"
"Make love to me."
His dark eyebrows arched into his hairline. "You'd have to tie me up to get me to comply with that, and we both know how things turned out the last attempt you made at that."
Yes. Yes, they did. "You promised me satisfaction," she snapped again.
Vaughan curved his hand around her cheek. A wan smile danced upon his lips. "I promised you nothing of the sort. All I promised was that I'd let you finish. The whys and wherefores were left entirely unspecified."
"Pig," Bella cursed, scooping up a pillow to batter him with. Always she trusted him, and always he betrayed that trust. She ought to know better. "Bastard."
Vaughan raised his arms to fend her off, but Bella kept on hitting him until the pillow split, sending plumes of speckled feathers into the air. Only then did Vaughan wrestle her down and roll on top of her again.
Bella tore at his back with her nails. She used her knees to try and lever him off, all to no avail. He was bigger and stronger. He simple captured her wrists and locked them tight over her head.
"Lie still. Be still, Bella," he hissed at her through gritted teeth. The feathers clung to his hair like a wreath of laurels.
"Why can't you play fair?" Bella retaliated. Tears of frustration blurred her vision. "Is it so hard for you to give?" He crushed her with his weight. The feel of him above her like that only exacerbated her frustration. He'd grown hard again too, as he'd lavished attention on her quim, so that the brand of his erection lay pressed between them like a hideous taunt, warming her, but not filling her as she wished. "Why?" she cursed again, straining against his hold. Why did he always leave her wanting? Why could he never simply offer contentment?
Vaughan ran his tongue upwards along the crevice between her breasts. "Because you don't want me to play fair. The reason you didn't come while sitting on my face has nothing to do with whose wish it was, rather it's to do with your own psyche. You like it rough." He sucked hard upon one of her nipples, which crinkled and puckered into a tightly furled peak. "But what you like more is the loss of control, like now. It excites you, does it not?" He nipped the upper part of her breast, making her squeal, yet her cunny heated despite the throb of pain. "You don't want me to make love to you. That would be altogether too soft. Save soft for whatever tedium you share with Lucerne, but be honest when you're with me. You're looking for passion, not love in my arms, and that's what I always give you. Aren't I good to never disappoint?" His teeth raked across her skin again.
Bella cried out, yet arched towards him. She wanted to deny everything he said. Claim it all to be lies, but she didn't have to delve very far down into her thoughts to know the truth of the matter, and lying had never rolled easily from her tongue.
"Admit it." He looked down into her face. "You love me because I'm such a bastard."
"Love," she spat, "is entirely too strong a word." Love she reserved for Lucerne.
"Fine, you hate me for it, but either way you can't help yourself."
Vaughan forced her arms together above her head, so that he could transfer his grip so as to hold her with one hand. He then hooked his free hand under her bottom, forcing her to tilt her pelvis. The head of his cock found her entrance. He rubbed mercilessly, teasing her with his nearness, so that she was wet and so ready for him the ache of waiting made her keen. Bella parted her legs wide, but there was simply no coaxing him.
She braced herself instead, knowing what he intended. Sure enough his attention slowly moved away from her quim, and drew down towards her bottom. She could feel the tip of his phallus nudging against the forbidden entrance there. "Oh," she murmured, pressing back against him, despite her better judgement. Always, always he insisted on taking her like this. In the same way in which he took Lucerne.
"That's it. Let me in."
Intoxicating lust washed over her from toes to the tips of her ears. Her muscles gave a little, and Bella surrendered entirely to Vaughan's cock pushing inside her.
All at once her temperature seemed to spike. He was inside her. Possessing her. His balls brushed against her cheeks as he pushed in and withdrew. He kept the pace moderate to begin with, allowed her to relax, let her nerves soothe to a low level jangle before he upped the assault.
With each nudge of his cock her nubbin tightened, sending ripples of pleasure throughout her abdomen. Bella squirmed against him, begging him to use his fingers, wishing that Lucerne were also present, so that he could fill her quim, so that she might drown in the moment and experience that perfect release.
Lucerne remained absent. It was simply her and Vaughan. And he used her. He pushed her back and forth on his shaft, and snarled when she tried to twist in order to direct more of his thrust across her nub.
"Now, now, Bella. What is it? Not quite enough." He pumped his hips a little faster.
"I need a touch." She strained against his hold. If only she could get a hand free, then she'd be able to rub herself. It'd be enough. All she needed was a little extra stimulation to her nubbin. But Vaughan continued to hold her tight. "Please. You know what I need. Just a little extra. Please, Vaughan."
"A little extra what? Do you require a finger in your arse as well as my cock?"
"No."
"Then what? Spell it out, Bella. Speak plainly."
"I need your thumb on my nub," she spoke softly, but the words seemed to echo around them. Always she hated it when he made her plead like this.
"Like this?" He covered her clitoris with the pad of his thumb. "Or do you require some movement?"
Bella swore at him.
"How so?"
"Goddamn you, Vaughan. Quick and hard. Press down. Yes, like that. Now circle. Oh, yes..." Her stream of words broke off into a lengthy intoxicated sigh. Her nubbin poked out from beneath the shield of its hood. Soon the circling would be too much, but her climax was fluttering in her womb, just out of reach at the moment, but growing steadily closer. It was tumultuous race. She jerked against Vaughan, impatient to reach her goal and desperately afraid of having her pleasure slip away from her.
"Easy," Vaughan slowed his circling, though his thrusting quickened.
"Yes, yes," she gasped. Her pulse raced. Then everything seemed to pull tight. Vaughan collapsed against her, his weight a welcome pleasure. His cry was sharp against her shoulder as his climax took hold, freeing him from all restraint. His loving, unguarded sighs, coupled with the quick pulse of his ejaculation was enough to undo Bella completely. She came with him, surrendering utterly as the release tingled throughout her body.
Afterwards, he lay still above her, his weight a heavy press against her form. "Vaughan," she whispered. "Sleep with me."
He rolled onto his side, and pulled her tight against him, so that they lay nestled like spoons, but he didn't say a word.
The following morning Lucerne sat at his writing bureau, composing letters. The house had been silent on his return and rather than go searching for Vaughan and Bella, he'd simply slipped into the study and taken up some correspondence.
"You shouldn't have done it."
Startled, by the sound of his lover's voice, Lucerne looked up to find Vaughan poised against the study door with his arms folded. The man was stealthier than a cat; he really ought to have heard him coming, given the noise that everyone else made walking across the entrance hall.
Lucerne blotted a drop of ink, which had fallen onto the letter, and tried not to think about how exciting he found the sight of Vaughan's pursed lips and tensed jaw. He'd been expecting him, after all. Anticipating this moment since he'd walked away last night, the only surprise here was that it had taken Vaughan this long to confront him. He'd been home over an hour.
Vaughan's footfalls barely sounded upon the deep pile rug. He didn't speak, but stopped just shy of Lucerne's elbow.
Determinedly, Lucerne pressed on with the instructions to his estate manager. What had they to say, really, when it came down to it? There'd never been any real promises made between them. He'd left him with Bella. It wasn't as if he'd left him with no entertainment, and it wasn't as if he'd promised to remain faithfully by his side.
Vaughan touched the back of his neck, the contact a fleeting brush that might have been mistaken for a draft if Lucerne hadn't been so acutely aware of Vaughan's presence and attuned to his whims. A tingle ran up his spine, causing his muscles to tense. Vaughan's hand closed around the back of his hair, forcing him to tilt his head back and look up from his work. He groaned in protest, only for Vaughan's tongue to press deep into his mouth, silencing him.
This was going to be far worse than he'd thought. It always was when it started with a kiss.
Vaughan pushed his way between Lucerne and the desk, and tugged Lucerne's coat off his shoulders and down around the top of his arms so that it restricted his movement. "I don't take kindly be being walked out on. Where were you? Where did you go?"
"I expect you know already. I dare say you could even describe what I was doing and with whom."
Word travelled fast among the ton.
"Perhaps," Vaughan agreed. "It's possible that I've heard a whisper or two, but I want to hear it from your lips."
To anyone else, Vaughan's words would have sounded even. Lucerne knew him better than that. The slight tick in his jaw and the cold glitter in his violet eyes gave him away. He was genuinely hurt beneath this show of restrained anger.
It's your own fault, Lucerne wanted to say, even as another part of him shrank at the thought of causing his lover pain. Why did it always have to be so difficult to get across the truth of things to one another? Why couldn't they admit that it wasn't sharing their love with Bella that made this difficult, but the inability of the three of them to properly communicate?
Vaughan couldn't relinquish control. He refused to see her as an equal or admit that he loved her every bit as much as he loved Lucerne.
Bella was Vaughan's opposite in more ways than she'd ever care to admit.
And him---he was stuck in the middle playing mediator, when all he really wanted to do was love them both without being accused of favouritism.
Vaughan's fingers closed tight around his nipple and squeezed, causing Lucerne's breath to hitch. "I want to hear it all, Lucerne. Every breath, every caress of your little infidelity, and you'd best amuse me, or I think I might be very cruel." He leaned close so that his words brushed Lucerne's skin raising the tiny hairs. "You know how cruel I can be, now, don't you?" A sharp fingernail scored down the side of Lucerne's neck. He jerked upwards in pain, but Vaughan's weight across his lap kept him pinned within the seat.
"Now," Vaughan whispered as he forced their mouths together again. "Tell me all."
Lucerne breathed hard through his nose. "Very well. If you so desire."
"I do desire, but you may omit the names. Those I don't require." Vaughan's lips stretched into a thin seductive smile that brought a thread of humour to his face. "Skip the foreplay too. I can live without the tedious social banter."
"We kissed," Lucerne began, only for Vaughan to shake his head. He paused then started over. "She got down on her knees and sucked me."
The admission prompted a nod, or rather a closing and then an opening of Vaughan's eyes. "How were you? Standing, sitting, lying upon a bed?"
"Sitting."
"As we are now, then? On a chair with your legs spread?"
"Close enough." The words seemed to take on extra weight as they left his lungs. Lucerne watched with butterflies playing merry hell in his stomach as Vaughan slid backwards off his lap and onto his knees upon the floor. Warm palms encompassed his thighs, pushing them apart. His cock responded immediately, rising to attention as Vaughan's dark head bowed to meet it.
"Do continue."
Lucerne gripped the edge of the desk as Vaughan released the frontfall of his breeches and pushed aside the layers of linen beneath. He scissored his fingers apart and ran them either side of Lucerne's shaft all the way to the tip, where his lips met the glans for the briefest, sweetest of moments. "I'm waiting, Lucerne."
He didn't want to continue the tale. Hell, he wasn't exactly proud of what he'd done. Yet in so many ways it had been borne of necessity. He'd needed the release, the escape into a fantasy land where nothing else mattered besides his own content. However, slowly, slowly, as his desperation for Vaughan's touch increased he began again, tripping over the first few words until his heart rate steadied.
"She sucked me, using her tongue on the underside and on the eye, until I was..." His breaths shortened into faltering gasps as Vaughan's mouth encompassed the head of his cock and the tip of his tongue teased mercilessly at the sensitive eye. Vaughan's mouth was soft and warm, the trace of his tongue like a taste of heaven. The women whose bed he'd briefly shared hadn't been half so skilful. Truthfully, while he sat prone like this he questioned his own need to seek out anybody else. Vaughan knew just how to make this perfect. He moved with the roll of Lucerne's hips, knew to use his hands to stroke the underside of Lucerne's cobs as he sucked. He understood when to move fast and when to move slow.
Lucerne's head fell back against the chair. "I couldn't come like that," he was forced to admit. "I might have, but her jaw ached." She didn't have jaws of steel like Vaughan, nor Bella's forthright determination.
"And no doubt she wanted her own pleasure addressing." Vaughan raised his head to briefly look up at Lucerne, although he kept his hand curled possessively around Lucerne's cock.
Lucerne couldn't hold his gaze. It wasn't the truth that made his cheeks burn with shame, but rather the recognition of the futility of his actions. He hadn't escaped, not truly. Nor had he gained nearly the same pleasure he would have if he'd come home.
"Continue."
"Why?"
"Because I desire you to."
Even though doing so seemed like overkill. They both knew what had followed. Leastways he knew, and Vaughan could fathom it out without hearing every word.
Lucerne closed his eyes. She'd been a waif-like little thing beneath the simple gown. Hot, wet and easy. Vocal too in expressing her joy as he'd slid inside her. What's more, it had been easy. There'd been no stress involved in being with her. He'd lain against her bosom and listened to her mewls of content and known peace for once.
"Lucerne," Vaughan growled into the golden hairs that grew in a thin line down from Lucerne's navel.
"I took her in the quaint. Is that not obvious enough?"
Vaughan rose onto his haunches. His thumb continued to work back and forth over the sensitive eye of Lucerne's cock. "Well I didn't suppose you'd bought her tea and an ice." The sweet caress ceased. Vaughan wriggled a hand under Lucerne's bottom instead. "I think you know what comes next." One finger traced the whorl of Lucerne's anus. Immediately, the muscles in his stomach clenched He really ought to have anticipated that Vaughan would switch their roles so that he was taking the lead. The brief moment of his submission---if indeed it had been that---had long passed. Now they were back to normal with Vaughan dictating the terms. Though in truth, when had he ever stopped doing that?
Lucerne groaned as Vaughan's wetted fingers teased his opening. One digit soon wormed its way inside, possessing him, even as it coaxed him to further surrender. His mouth fell open releasing a cry as the tight muscles of his rear passage relaxed. God, it did feel good. It always felt good, far too good, and all the more so for being deeply, incredibly wrong.
No matter how many times they did this, there remained a part of Lucerne that identified the act as a sin and as a crime. Every time he allowed Vaughan to fuck him, it was like signing his name on a death warrant. Stupidly, that added a thrill to the act, rather than inspiring a sensible response like dread.
Vaughan dragged him off the chair and onto the Persian rug. For the space of several thundering heartbeats their gazes locked. Lucerne lay on his back gazing up at Vaughan leaning over him. Facing! Oh, Lord, he realised, he's going to do it while looking me in the eye. That meant no escape, no pretending that this was anything other than what it was---two men fucking one another.
He'd lost count of the nights they'd spent together now and of all the times Vaughan had claimed him, but he could count on his fingers the number of times they'd done it facing one another.
It wasn't that he was ashamed of what they shared. Rather he was frightened by the intensity of the love he saw blazing in Vaughan's eyes. Loving Vaughan, being loved by Vaughan was not for the faint-hearted. That ferocity scared him to death because he didn't know if he had the capacity to return it.
"You're so pretty when you blush." Vaughan ran a finger over the scarlet heat in Lucerne's cheeks. "Now, details, Lucerne. Let's not forget why we're here. How did you enter her? Fast, slow? All at once, or an inch at a time? Were you a gentleman about it, or a beast?"
Shivers of anticipatory joy ran through Lucerne's limbs. The tip of Vaughan's cock lay poised ready to enter him, while his own staff stood to attention in Vaughan's palm. "A beast," he sobbed, not truly recalling the original act. Lilac sparks flickered across Vaughan's irises. What had made the moment good last night was how illicit it had seemed to bed a perfectly ordinary woman instead of cavorting with his two aristocratic lovers. Oh, he'd bedded whores before, but in the past he'd been free to do as he pleased. He'd never before been in a relationship like the one he shared with Vaughan and Bella.
The girl had been soft, her skin and scent so very different from Vaughan's and Bella's that for a few hours he'd completely escaped the weight of their crushing obsession. He'd needed that respite. Had cared for nothing else.
"I ground myself into her, filled her, until she left scratches on my back and we both came."
Above him, Vaughan's lips curled into a snarl and his grip on Lucerne tightened. He wouldn't be gentle. He'd be hard. He wouldn't demand an apology or offer Lucerne a chance of redemption; he'd simply take what he needed to satisfy his hurt. Vaughan jammed their bodies together. The sudden sensation of being stretched caused Lucerne to buck up off the floor. Tight. Oversensitive. His back passage felt so full he could hardly bare to breath because even that slight motion was almost too much stimulation for his fractious nerves.
He grunted, tried to catch his breath as Vaughan continued to use him, cried out as Vaughan lifted his arse up off the floor and on to his lap. "You understand, Lucerne. You understand what we've got. That there's no room for anyone else. I can give you everything you need."
He could too. In that moment Lucerne believed him absolutely. Vaughan filled him in a way that made him wish they could stay locked together permanently, and when he did this while allowing him to fuck Bella at the same time, that was more bliss than any one man deserved. Right now, Vaughan's fist worked around his cock, stroking him to the rhythm of his thrusts.
Content of sorts settled over him. His mind drifted, thoughts subsumed by the physical as he began to climb the steep path towards orgasm. Quick. Brilliant. Explosive. There was only so much pleasure his body could take before his climax ripped through his knotted muscles and wrung his cock dry onto his stomach. That was normally enough to soothe Vaughan's mither. After the intensity of the chase, Vaughan normally quietened. Today his hold on Lucerne remained steadfast. His hips rolled, taking what he needed without restraint until he, too, came with a shuddering jerk.
Only once they both lay sated, with their skin soiled in sweat and their clothes tangled about them did Vaughan demand another kiss. "I'm not done making my point yet," he warned. "You deserve another punishment."
Lucerne closed his eyes and held on to his lover. He wasn't entirely certain what Vaughan's intended point had been. He understood that he was angry, but yelling, or silence or the withdrawal of love might have got that across better than the desperate, heartbreakingly good fuck they'd just shared. Then again, maybe Vaughan's point had been to show him what he would lose if he sought an alternate companion again.
Eventually, Vaughan extracted himself from the embrace. He pushed Lucerne to arms length and looked at him. "You're right. I do know where you were and who you were with. I suggest you don't repeat the offence or I might have to share that information. How do you think Bella will react if I divulge your little tryst? You're the saint, remember. I'm the blackguard.
"Don't tell her. What purpose would it serve?"
Vaughan grasped him by the chin and forced him to look him in the eye again. "Perhaps you'd like to think about that. What exactly am I set to lose if she leaves you? I never really wanted her here in the first place. I'm not the one in love with her, you are." He released Lucerne's chin with a shove, forcing him backwards. Then he stood and hitched his pantaloons. "Think on that one, Lucerne. Don't test me again. You won't like the outcome." He swept out of the door.
Lucerne gave a weary sigh and propped himself up on his elbows. He shrugged off his dress coat and found a kerchief with which to clean his skin.
"You forgot to ask why I did it, Vaughan," he called after him.
If Vaughan heard, he didn't react.
Releasing a weary sigh, Lucerne rose to his feet. He rang for his valet. Best he got changed before Bella arrived to demand an explanation too. He didn't want to face her smelling of semen.
She knocked on the door of his bedchamber just as Ivo had finished helping him dress and entered smiling. "Did he torture you?" she asked. "He did me. He thought we were in collusion and wouldn't believe me when I said I was as nonplussed as he as to your whereabouts. Where were you, Lucerne?"
The sparkle in her eyes told him she'd enjoyed her night with Vaughan and whatever punishment he'd dished out, but then he'd noticed that Bella liked Vaughan best when he was riled. Perhaps because she could then provoke a reaction from him with the merest whisper, whereas typically he didn't responded to her bait.
"Nowhere special," he replied. "I fell in with the Darleston twins and went on with them. You and Vaughan clearly needed time to work on your differences."
"We worked on something, but I'm not sure it was that," she laughed. After a moment she clapped her hands. "You do know that we're due at Darleston House tonight for dinner."
"Are we? Maybe we could stay home for a change." Last thing he needed was for her to go questioning the twins about his whereabouts the previous night.
"Stay home!" She perched upon his knee and threw her arms around his neck. "Is that actually allowed?" Their gazes met in the dressing table mirror.
"It is if you wish it."
"I wish it." She mussed his hair.
Vaughan would know his reason for staying home and might choose to make an issue of it, so Lucerne would just have to work on ensuring his silence over the matter. They had never sworn any sort of exclusivity to one another, but he saw no point in provoking Bella's ire needlessly. He was not about to repeat the offence. He had only wanted them to understand that he was not a plaything to be squabbled over. Also, that he longed for simple affection, rather than being the centre point of a perpetual war.
Last night he had simply had to be free of their squabbling. Now he felt calmer. Bella and Vaughan had each showed that they'd missed him in their own way, and had hopefully settled whatever issues they had with one another.
That was the major flaw in both of them. They each enjoyed provoking the other too much to simply surrender to the beauty of what the three of them shared. They were like two spiteful, snarling cats in that respect. They had to show their claws and hiss, lest anyone be fooled into thinking they shared a genuine bond of affection.
He knew they did. And wondered what they'd said to one another while he'd been absent.
Lucerne lifted Bella into his arms as he stood. "That settles it then. Although I do think that if we're going to plead indisposition, we really ought to work on making that exhaustion real." He picked her up in his arms and carried her towards the bed.
Bella laughed. "You'll never even begin to exhaust me. Not alone."
That was likely true. He wondered if it was also a hint. Bella attempting a subtle prod, so that they'd all make up and make merry. "Should I call for reinforcements then?"
He knew from the bright sparkle in her eyes that he'd hit on exactly what she wanted. His only doubt was over whether Vaughan would come if he called.
Maybe calling wasn't the way to go about it.
"We could seek him out," Bella suggested, seeming to know his thoughts. "Pin him down. Tie him up. He won't expect that."
"No, he wouldn't," Lucerne had to agree. Vaughan was simply there, a part of his and Bella's relationship whether he was invited or not. He joined in and left as he chose, and while individually he and Bella sometimes sought him out, they'd never sought his affections as a pair. "Let's do it." Maybe it was the key to making things right between them all. Triangles were supposed to be strong. A genuine trinity, that's what they needed to form, so that he could stop feeling as though he sat at the mid-point on a see-saw with Bella and Vaughan bobbing up and down either side of him constantly throwing him off balance.
\*
Vaughan stood the moment Lucerne and Bella entered the library. He set aside the book he'd been browsing and waited statue-like for them to approach. That they'd arrived together put him on alert, told him that there was a purpose to their presence beyond whatever explanation might be offered upfront.
"We're not disturbing you?" Lucerne asked. Now properly attired, Lucerne looked every inch the dandy he was. Tight breeches smoothed over well-muscled thighs and his form-fitting coat perfectly accentuated his strong shoulders and narrow waist. More importantly, Lucerne no long seemed haunted by his actions of the previous night. His step was sprightly, bold even, as he smoothly crossed the room and came to a stop before Vaughan. Their earlier fuck had apparently served its purpose. In place of the ghosts he'd seen hiding in Lucerne's cornflower blue irises, there radiated an air of genuine affection. The only question was why he and Bella had come seeking him together.
Bella's dark hair was bound and pinned in a crown around her head, a style that while fashionable, didn't suit her. He preferred it when her hair hung in a wavy cascade over her shoulders---wild, tumultuous. That was more true to her nature.
She took a more winding route across the library to reach him, approaching from the side. Whatever they were up to had left her wary. Bella was normally far more direct.
"There's been a change of plan," she informed him. "We're not going to Darleston House. We mean to stay home instead."
"Indeed." He found the Darleston twins companionable and their father, the Earl of Onnerley, a twisted dichotomy of a man, far more interesting evening entertainment than the music recital he'd been cajoled into attending the previous night. "Has something else come up?"
Not yet! He could almost hear Bella's thoughts.
Both she and Lucerne were now eyeing him like he was some sort of meal they planned to devour. They'd each convinced him that they weren't in league over Lucerne's impromptu departure from the recital, but there was no mistaking that they were plotting something together now.
Impatient to learn what, Vaughan steepled his fingers before him. He turned his dark gaze first on Bella and then on Lucerne. "You had better speak plainly, or you're both going to be sorely disappointed over whatever it is you think to embroil me in."
Bella's eyes widened slightly. He didn't believe her innocence. Lucerne's chin grew more pointed as he clenched his teeth.
"What do you want?" Vaughan asked. Some manner of truce or permission to spend time alone without me, he imagined. Though heaven knows why they were troubling him with it. They could have spent the entire day tupping and he wouldn't have known.
"You," they replied in unison.
The words sent a jolt through his chest. His heart sped a little even as he continued to gaze on them in wary silence.
"Spend the night---"
"---and the day with us, Vaughan."
"Tell us what to do."
"How to please you."
This was wrong in so many ways. He thought he preferred it when they were begrudging his presence and branding him some sort of demon for not allowing them any space in which to grow together. This smacked too much of deceit. They were trying to get him to lower his guard before attacking. Leastways, he believed that of Bella. He wasn't nearly so sure about Lucerne.
"Do you expect me to believe that's what you both actually want? Me? Together?"
"It's the truth, Vaughan," Lucerne replied, while Bella dipped him a curtsey. He supposed he was vaguely willing to believe it, although there was definitely some purpose behind it beyond affection or lust.
"What are you reading?" Bella picked up his book before he had a chance to put a hand down on top of it. Her mouth fell open in surprise, one that quickly transformed into delight at the illustration revealed. "Lord Pennerley, what sort of book is that to be perusing in broad daylight?"
"A perfectly filthy one, I should imagine if your expression is anything to go by." Lucerne sidled up behind her. Hands resting lightly, yet possessively upon Bella's shoulders, he leaned forward to glimpse the image so that his blond hair flopped over his eyes, partially hiding the delight that flickered there.
Vaughan's lips thinned in bemused silence. If they imagined they'd embarrass him, then they were sadly mistaken. He had no qualms about his sexuality, or what he liked. It was simply a shame the rest of society wasn't so open. "Maybe we should try it," he suggested. If they were so keen on gaining his attention and pleasing him, then they'd best be prepared to indulge some of his kinks.
Bella's head came up immediately, an unvoiced gasp upon her lips. Lips he'd kissed so hard that they were still rather ruddy and certainly a little tender even now.
Lucerne fixed him with an uneasy frown. He took a stiff pace backwards, suddenly defensive. "Who exactly do you envisage being in the middle?"
Vaughan laughed. "Not so game for my affection now, Lucerne? You disappoint me. I thought you were more open than that."
Defensively, Lucerne poured his tall frame into one of the library's narrow wingback chairs, where he folded his arms across his lap. "Open is one thing. I am however no acrobat. I don't think I could hold that position for more than forty seconds, let alone sustain it with a cock in my mouth, breasts enveloping me and a lit candle anywhere near my arse."
A bright image of peeling creamy blobs of hardened candlewax from off Lucerne's belly, his buttocks and groin, played inside Vaughan's head. Had he never punished him so? The thought of introducing Lucerne to such delights enchanted him. Lucerne would protest, claiming pain didn't excite him, but the truth was it aroused him far more than he cared to admit.
Besides, denial of any kind had always acted like a drug upon Vaughan. "Another time, perhaps," he muttered. "What about you, Bella?"
Bella rubbed at her cheeks, which had turned a gaudy shade of scarlet at the mere suggestion. Her reply rolled out of her unevenly. "The person at the centre is clearly a man, which I am certainly not. So I couldn't possibly take such a position, even if it were in the bounds of possibility to do so. Are there not any more sensible arrangements in this tome of yours?" She flicked over several pages, her eyes growing rounder and hungrier over each successive image. "What is this?" she demanded.
Vaughan retrieved the book with its leather unmarked binding from her and returned it to shelf behind a locked glass door. "It's privately published, circulated only to a select few connoisseurs." On another occasion he might allow her to study it further. For now, he preferred to preserve its secrets in favour of more mundane pleasures. "About your proposition---I would suggest that we find somewhere more comfortable, but I do find that discomfort can be equally, if not more satisfying, can it not, Lucerne?"
"I wouldn't know."
"Oh, you know, Lucerne. You know exactly how much you like to be made to squirm." Lucerne shook his head. "I think you're mistaking me with Bella. What I like is straightforward. It's less about dominance and more about enjoyment."
"Are you saying you don't like what I do to you?" Vaughan sallied forwards, stopping when his knees were level with Lucerne's and a mere fraction of an inch divided them. He braced his hands on the arms of the chair and leaned over Lucerne, so that their eyes met on a level. Their gazes locked.
"Haven't you punished me enough?"
"I'll never punish you enough. It stokes the fires in the very pit of my soul to see you writhing in ecstasy beneath me."
"That's not what we came here for."
Vaughan turned his head at the same time as Lucerne to glance at Bella.
"Can't we really be together for once, Vaughan? I mean really together. Without the posturing and pettiness. Won't you lie down and let us make love to you---together?"
"No."
"Why not?"
"You know why. It can never be." He would never lower his guard and let them both press close to him at once. Alone they tested him, shredded all his restraints, which left him feeling exposed and vulnerable. Together they would flay him, expose every particle of his being right down to the core. He would never risk it. Could never risk it. Besides, it would upset the balance of the relationship. Lucerne had to remain central. He was the pivot; all this revolved around him. "You know I think I might go to Darleston House alone."
"No, don't." Bella stepped forward. She lay a hand upon his chest. It was not enough to prevent him moving; it was barely any sort of pressure at all. Still he remained frozen, watching her, waiting as she slowly moistened her pink lips. "Lucerne is right. It doesn't always have to be hard between us. It hasn't always been so. Don't you remember the first time? I remember how you both moved inside of me. How we were all one and in perfect agreement. Will you not join us all together again like that?"
Let her be central. Let her be the pivot. That was what she was asking. Nay, pleading. He saw it in her eyes. She didn't want to be on the outskirts of their relationship looking in. She wanted to be loved by both of them in equal measure. In short, she desired everything to be about her, rather than about Lucerne, whom both she and he loved.
Bella's hand left his chest and pushed upwards into the dark strands of his hair. On tip-toes she leaned into him, offering herself up to him. Vaughan allowed her to graze his lips with a kiss. He caged the growl in his throat, not for her, but because Lucerne was watching his every nuance.
"For me," Lucerne mouthed.
At what price? Vaughan didn't speak. The communication between them passed in silence.
I'll give you everything you desire, later. All you have to do is go along with this now, for me and for her.
The stubborn, prideful part of him wanted to disagree. It wasn't that he didn't desire Bella. He did. Admission of desire was not something he had any reservations about. He simply didn't like the implied subtext of taking part. Just because they came together as a threesome, didn't...wouldn't make them whole. But if Bella, nay Lucerne wanted to believe that it did, then he would let them have their fantasy---at least for a little while.
"William," Vaughan hollered. The footman immediately appeared from the hallway. "Make sure that no one comes in. We'll be busy for a little while."
"Of course, milord." He gave a nod and retreated once more, closing the library door behind him.
"Now," Vaughan allowed a sly smile to stretch his lips. "Let's see if we can't make merry like you want to." He stretched out his palm for Bella to take. Once her hand slipped into his, he lead her in a circle around Lucerne's chair, before delivering her up onto Lucerne's lap. She perched there, eyeing him like a tigress, wary but intrigued. Her breasts rose and fell with each bated breath. Vaughan kissed her again, this time allowing his hands to rove over her curves as he did so. The fullness of her breasts filled his palms. Her nipples leapt to attention at the mere brush of his fingertips. Already she anticipated, longed for the pleasure she knew that he and Lucerne could give her together. She'd never forgotten the first time.
And nor had he.
Vaughan took her by the hand again, and directed her touch to the swell of his cock. Already, he was warming, growing erect. Bella took no time at all to release his frontfall. She surrounded his shaft with her embrace.
Vaughan arched against her, driving his cock through the ring she made with her fist. It wasn't enough. The dull ache of longing filled his balls. He shuffled closer, whilst plucking pins from the front of her gown, until he exposed her shift. He tugged that down too, so that her breasts spilled free.
"Beautiful, beautiful, Bella," he heard Lucerne murmur. His lover was holding Bella around the waist, while watching them intently. Part of him wanted to push Bella aside and simply straddle Lucerne. Another part of him accepted that in order to keep Lucerne, he had to accept that Bella would always be part of their relationship.
Bella remained in his arms, oblivious. The look in her eyes told him all. She thought only of pleasure, of his warm mouth around her blood-flushed nipples, and of Lucerne's hands which lay upon her thighs. He was bunching up her long skirts. Already the garters holding up her stockings lay exposed.
Bella's breath tickled his ear as Vaughan lowered his head as if to oblige her wish, but he merely kissed each peak once, before cupping both breasts in his hands and squeezing them together so that they formed a soft pillow around his cock.
"Uh!" she protested, but she didn't push him away. Instead, she pulled him closer, her hands clasped tight upon his hips.
Vaughan leaned over her to reach Lucerne, seeking his kiss while he continued to use Bella's breasts. The touch of his lover's hands upon his face drove him wild. "Yes," he hissed. "Yes," this was good. Their tongues tangled. All three of them rocked to the motion of his thrusts, acknowledging his pleasure above any other.
Then abruptly, Vaughan drew back.
The night they'd first spent together, Lucerne had slowly undressed, and watched while he and Bella were linked together. Now, his and Lucerne's roles were reversed. Vaughan tugged open the elaborate knot of his cravat and sent the snowy white scarf sailing onto the floor. His coat followed, then his waistcoat with its row of tiny pearl buttons. He lingered over each one, knowing he held both Bella and Lucerne's attention. His shirt followed his waistcoat, and finally shoes, stockings and breeches, until he stood before them naked and potently erect.
Bella watched her rival slack mouthed. She didn't recall him ever being so playful. Teasing, yes, but this performance was something different. Seductive, intimate and terrifying. Try as she might, she couldn't pull her gaze away from Vaughan, even though Lucerne's hands were the ones upon her continuing the slow arousal both men had started.
Vaughan had turned her head with his saturnine beauty from the very first, but the slow, sultry way in which he undressed left her gasping for air. Beneath his finery, his chest and thighs were tautly muscled. An intriguing slivery scar ran across one side of his abdomen. Bella reached out and traced its shiny surface. She didn't doubt Vaughan's assertion that it was an old dueling scar delivered by a cuckolded Venetian count.
Behind her, she knew from Lucerne's sharp inhalations, that he was equally entranced. Ever since Vaughan had placed her upon Lucerne's lap, Lucerne had been rocking against her. Now, he was fully aroused, the thick press of his cock against her bottom a constant reminder of what was to come.
Bella wriggled, trying to position him so as to give them both more pleasure. She wanted him inside her, stretching her, awakening her, ready for what she knew they would both give. Already her heart hammered in anticipation. A vision of the three of them locked together swam in her thoughts.
If anyone discovered the truth of what they shared, there'd be hell to pay, but moments like this outweighed the risk in her head. What point was there to life, if she could not live and know sexual bliss?
"Touch me," she pleaded. "I need..."
Lucerne, ever eager to oblige, slid a hand beneath her skirt. He covered her muff with his hand and stroked a single digit between the wet and swollen lips of her quim. Bella stiffened against him as he brushed her pearl. The touch while light was almost unbearable, but she didn't push him away. She wanted him too much to ever do that. Instead she tilted her head back towards him, seeking a kiss.
Their mouths locked in a fierce tango, his tongue artfully playing against hers while she rocked against his touch, taking, accepting everything he offered even though the intensity of it danced the line between pleasure and pain.
"I'm sure somebody said this was supposed to be about me." Vaughan stroked a hand down the side of her throat, and then dipped his head and lavished untold pleasure on her breasts. "Mayhap we should do things a little differently," he suggested. "Let Lucerne play the rear guard for a change."
Bella broke away from Lucerne's kiss to look up at Vaughan. His violet eyes shone with malicious intent. "I'm game," she agreed.
Vaughan captured her hand and brushed his lips against her inner wrist. "Alas, Lucerne is not."
True enough, Lucerne urged her up off his knee. He turned her around, before pulling her back down across his lap so that they were facing.
Bella peeled open the frontfall of his breeches. His erection reared between them, already weeping silvery tears of joy. "Come to me, Bella," he urged.
Come to him. She would come for him. She'd do anything thing he asked to keep his favour. Her life had been nothing before Lucerne.
"Yes," she murmured, her fists tightening around the blond strands of his hair. She could feel his glans stroking her, seeking entrance. Then all of a sudden he was deep inside her, filling her completely. For a few moments it was all about them, just her and Lucerne locked in an ancient dance, as timeless as the heavens. They were one, and that was all that mattered. Too soon, Vaughan was stroking a pathway down her spine and dribbling oil between the cheeks of her bottom, demanding his part in their interplay.
They'd done this before, but each time remained as intense and overwhelming as the first.
Dexterous fingers played against the whorl of her anus. Not only Vaughan's but Lucerne's too. They tested her, teased her with hints of what was soon to come.
"Do you want him, Bella? Do you crave the feeling of him deep in your arse?" Lucerne asked. "I can feel him when he's inside of you. Our cocks are mere eighths apart, rubbing against one another, rubbing inside of you."
"Yes. No," Bella gasped. It always felt too much, like they'd tear her apart. Already, Vaughan's penetration was driving her to distraction, and he'd pushed only the tip of his index finger inside of her. His cock would stretch her to her limits. "Yes, I want it."
"I keep telling you, you're not man enough for her on your own." Vaughan laughed.
Lucerne scowled, but he maintained his hold upon her cheeks, splaying them so that Vaughan could press against her. The head of his cock nudged her opening, begging for admittance. Bella whimpered. Already Lucerne filled her. He slowed the pace of their rocking to the very gentlest roll. "Ready?"
"Ready," she agreed.
Lucerne kissed her hard, stealing away her breath as the white-hot pressure of Vaughan's cock penetrating her behind overwhelmed her senses.
He was like a brand, hot and thick, supple as a birch twig, yet hard as a ferule. Oh, God! Dear God! She welcomed Lucerne's aggressive assault upon her lips, returning it with added fervour. Too much! Too much! She couldn't...
"Relax, Bella." Vaughan insisted, his breath steamy against the back of her neck. "Trust us. You know it's what you want. You're never truly satisfied except for when we take you together."
It was true, but she felt so full. It was almost unbearable to have him move, and yet she couldn't still the motion of her own hips, rocking, rocking, rocking... Wanting...
"That's right, move for us." Lucerne encouraged. His teeth raked briefly over one nipple. The brief intense flash of pleasure acted like a flare. Bella writhed and mewled against him like she was being scalded and he was the only balm to soothe the pain. She drove herself back and forth, taking every inch of Lucerne's cock, and then impaling herself upon Vaughan, right up to the hilt.
Behind her Vaughan's breathing grew ragged. He muttered her name, clutched her tight as though he meant to steal her from Lucerne and possess her entirely. Yet, slowly, slowly they found a rhythm together.
Bella gave herself entirely to the motion, cocooned in the warmth of their combined embrace. She could no longer discern where one man ended and another began. It no longer mattered. Gratification was what drove her now. One in her arse and one in her cunt---bliss beyond measure. What difference did it make whose hands caressed her, which cock filled her where? Every single fibre of her body was straining, reaching, yearning for climax.
It rushed towards her, threatened to consume her entirely with its heat. Tears wet her cheeks. Bella groaned out their names. "More. Just a little more." She was so close, right on the boundary ready to tumble or fly, she wasn't sure which.
They were so close inside her.
"Whore," Vaughan purred into her ear, making her stiffen in outrage. He bucked into her strongly, despite Lucerne's plea to slow down, kept driving into her, until the pulse of his cock, relinquishing its gift inside her arse tipped her over. Her teeth clenched. She was consumed by fire. Only afterwards did she realize that Lucerne had spent inside her too.
Trembling Bella collapsed against Lucerne. His cock still pulsed within her. Losing its hardness, but she couldn't bear to release him quite yet. She hugged him tight.
Lucerne nuzzled against her, comforted her as her body slowly relaxed.
Bella cried out as Vaughan withdrew. Despite his name calling, she still wanted him. Ideally she wanted to lie nestled between both men and idle away the hours, safe in their combined embrace.
From the corner of her eye she spotted Vaughan cleaning himself. "So, about dinner at Darleston House," he said. A mischievous smile played upon his lips. "I think you're right, we should definitely decline---" He paused, further capturing their attention. "--because I'm not remotely finished with the pair of you." Eyes a-twinkle, he turned towards the door. "William."
Bella scuttled out of Lucerne's lap and tugged her gown over her breasts in alarm. He wouldn't. He couldn't bring a servant in here. He was stark naked for heaven's sake. Lucerne's breeches were undone and her hair was flying loose from its pins. They'd know. Rumours would spread.
However, as previously instructed, William didn't enter. "Yes, milord," he called from the hallway.
"Ah good, you're there." Vaughan leaned against the inside of the door. He looked magnificent, every bit the devil he was when fully clothed---beastly, majestic, hers. Well, hers and Lucerne's. "Have a bath prepared, Williams, and make sure there's lots of soap."
Lucerne raised one brow an elegant quarter inch. "Isn't it an odd time of day to be soaking ourselves?" He stood, and fastened his breeches, before cradling Bella in his arms.
"That depends." Vaughan smirked, and Bella knew it meant trouble. "I've an inkling that things are going to get rather filthy, you see."
About the Author
Madelynne Ellis has a healthy obsession with a certain Japanese rock-star, drinks decaf out of preference, and likes scaring the wobblies out of people at gothic horror weekends. Now a multi-published author in both traditional print and ebook formats, Madelynne began writing in 1996 after escaping the Hotel California, the nickname for the parasitology laboratory where she worked. Her aim is to deliver scorching, character-driven stories that both enchant and torment.
Madelynne enjoys hearing from her readers. You can contact her at Madelynne@madelynne-ellis.com
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Ai Press Books by Madelynne Ellis
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