TUESDAY MORNING, GWEN woke to a sweltering day. “Ugh. I can’t move.”
Andrew reached for her hand. “Possibly because you wear entirely too many clothes to bed, sweetheart.”
“I may be inclined to agree with you today,” she said with a groan.
“Mrs. Bean will have breakfast prepared by now. Would you like me to bring a tray?” He leaned over and kissed her.
“No, let’s eat in the dining room.”
Andrew climbed off the mattress and smiled. “I’ll have her prepare a bath while we eat.”
Gwen sat up slowly. “A cold one, please.”
“Absolutely, beautiful.” Andrew chuckled as he pulled pants and a shirt on.
Gwen grabbed her lightest robe and they made their way downstairs. Andrew held her chair and kissed her neck once she took her seat. He prepared coffee and a plate for her and then for himself before taking his own seat. Gwen slid a stray strand of hair behind her ear. “Are we still having dinner at Adam and Elizabeth’s tonight?”
“Yes, if you’d like to.”
“I’d love to.” Gwen sipped her coffee. “It will be nice to get to know your sister better. I feel as though I’ve known Christine and Nona forever, but Elizabeth is somewhat of a mystery.”
Andrew smiled. “She’s always lived her life somewhat unconventionally.”
“Why do you say that?”
He set his fork down. “Well, Michael and Nona were married quite young, so when Nona left, Elizabeth became the big sister. Elizabeth never did what people expected her to do. She is highly intelligent and wanted to study at university, not get married and have a family.”
“That is different,” Gwen agreed.
“Liza never had anyone to confide in. Girls her age were quite taken aback by her ideas, or at least their mothers were, so Christine became the one she shared everything with. Our holiday to Europe was something unexpected. Adam pursued her over the ocean, and she wasn’t quite certain what to think. I often overheard conversations between her and Christine about what she should do.”
“Is theirs a love match?”
“I believe so.” Andrew sighed. “She loves Adam and the boys, but she also wants to study. They’ve lost two children since Ambrose was born...” He trailed off, his expression turning pensive.
Gwen reached over and squeezed his hand. “Losing a child is devastating, Andrew.”
He took a deep breath. “Christine survived.”
Gwen sipped her coffee. “Hmm.”
His eyebrows knitted together, and he studied her with suspicion. “What do you mean by, ‘hmm’?”
Gwen leaned an elbow on the table and pursed her lips. “You’re feeling left out.”
“Am I?”
Gwen nodded. “My guess is that you’re not close to Elizabeth, and you feel as though it’s because she’s chosen to distance herself.”
Andrew shrugged as he slumped in his chair. “Christine has lost a husband and a child. I suppose I expected Liza to be as strong.”
Gwen raised an eyebrow. “Christine had the hospital for distraction. She was also blessed with Sophie, who is the reason she allowed herself to be open to Stephen. No one has done that for Elizabeth.”
Andrew tapped his fingers on the table. “You don’t think Adam has tried?”
“Sweetheart, I wouldn’t begin to presume I know anything about Adam, but he is British aristocracy.”
“Very true. Say no more.” Andrew smiled. “He’s somewhat closed off himself.”
“Exactly.” Gwen set down her cup. “Be patient with her. She needs it.”
“Mr. Simmonds?” came a voice from the doorway.
Andrew stood. “Good morning, Mrs. Bean. Breakfast is excellent, as usual.”
“Thank you, sir.” Mrs. Bean gave a short nod. “Mr. Whitman is here. I asked him to wait in the parlor.”
“Thank you.” Andrew turned to Gwen. “Stay and finish your breakfast, sweetheart. I’ll see what Adam needs.”
Andrew made his way to the front room and found Adam pacing the length of it. “Adam?”
“Good morning. I’m sorry to interrupt, but we’ve had another threat.” Adam handed him the missive.
Andrew read it and let out an expletive. “What’s in that ship, Adam?”
Adam shrugged. “I honestly have no idea.”
“It’s your damn countrymen,” Andrew snapped. “What could possibly cause them to go to these extremes?”
“Question of birth, proof of conspiracy.” Adam ran his hands through his hair. “Many things could influence certain individuals to go to these extremes.”
Andrew slapped the envelope against his palm. “Well, I don’t think we can ignore them anymore. We’re going to have to turn them over to the Cabinet. Chris and Clay must be informed.”
Adam rubbed his forehead. “Yes, all right. I’ll gather the notes and you can have them when you come for dinner tonight.”
Andrew nodded. “How’s Elizabeth?”
Adam took a deep breath. “She’s with child.”
Andrew’s jaw dropped. “How long have you known?”
“About two weeks.”
“Are you happy?”
“I’m thrilled.” Adam sighed. “Your sister, however, is angry.”
“Who is she angry with?”
“Me,” he said quietly.
“She’ll come around, Adam.”
“Perhaps.” Adam shook his head. “Look, I must get back. We’ll see you at six.”
Andrew walked him to the door and then went to find Gwen. Gwen was no longer at the table, so he made his way to their bedroom. He opened the door to their dressing room and found her in the tub. “There you are,” he said with a smile.
“I thought you might be a while, so I decided to take my bath while you were busy.” Gwen ran a washcloth over her arm. “What was the emergency?”
He squatted down beside her. “Another threat.”
She sat up and hugged her knees. “This is getting quite serious now, wouldn’t you agree?”
“Yes. We’re going to speak with Christopher and Clayton tomorrow.”
Andrew took the washcloth from her and began to wash her back, massaging the lower portion with a little more pressure.
“Mmm,” Gwen said with a sigh.
“How are you feeling?”
“Absolutely wonderful. Especially with you doing that.” She turned her head to look at him. “You looked concerned. What’s amiss?”
He sighed. “Liza’s pregnant.”
“Oh! That’s wonderful.” He frowned, and Gwen’s eyebrows puckered. “That’s not wonderful?”
“Adam’s concerned.” Andrew stroked her back. “In fact, he said more than he ever has. He said that she’s angry with him. I have no idea what that means, but he closed up as soon as he said it, so I wasn’t able to find out more.”
“Are we still going to their home tonight?”
Andrew nodded. “Yes. Six o’clock.”
Gwen smiled. “Well, then ask her.”
He sat back and shook his head. “It’s not my place.”
Gwen cupped his chin. “You’re her brother, exactly how is not your place?”
Andrew shrugged. “If she wanted me to know anything, she’d tell me.”
“What a load of crap.”
“Gwendolyn!”
“Now, that is something I learned from Hannah.” Gwen gave his chin a gentle squeeze. “She isn’t going to tell you anything unless you ask her.”
“She won’t tell me, even then.”
She ran her finger over his lips. “She might surprise you.”
He drew her finger into his mouth. “We’ll see.”
“For now, would you do something for me?”
“Anything,” he said.
“Join me.”
Andrew smiled and undressed quickly. He climbed in behind her and pulled her against his chest. He wrapped one arm around her waist as she leaned her head back and turned to give him access to her mouth. His kiss was long and thorough. Gwen sighed and turned to face him. She straddled his hips and kissed him.
“Gwendolyn,” He groaned in surprise. “What are you doing?”
Gwen ran her finger down his cheek. “Remember how you took some advice?”
“Mm hmm,” he whispered.
“Well, so did I,” she said with an evil laugh.
“When? Who?”
She giggled. “Sunday night. Sophie. She gave me a book. I’ll show it to you later.”
She leaned forward and kissed him again. Andrew set her away from him and stood. He climbed out of the tub, lifted her into his arms, and carried her to the bed. He laid her down and rolled her onto her stomach.
“Mmm… this is on page nine,” she said, and lifted her hips.
Andrew groaned and heard his wife giggle.
“I believe you’re supposed—”
“I’m well aware of what I’m supposed to do here, sweetheart,” Andrew ground out, kneeling behind her. Gwen scooted backward and Andrew was sure he’d lose his mind.
He slid into her and her quiet mewl was almost his undoing.
“Don’t stop,” she begged.
“I’m not going to stop, Gwendolyn,” he snapped.
“Well, you’re not moving, Andrew,” she pointed out.
He slid out slightly, then thrust in and Gwen’s head dropped back as a quiet “Oh,” fell from her lips. Andrew flattened his palm against her bottom. “Adequate, my love?” he asked, slamming into her again.
He continued to move as he slid his hand between her legs and touched her intimately, his breathing coming in pants.
“Andrew… I… oh… I—”
“Now, Gwen!” he rasped, and he felt her softness contract around him as he came inside of her, and they ended up in a heap on top of the sheets. Andrew kissed her shoulder before rolling away from her. “You didn’t tell me about this yesterday.”
Gwen grinned. “You didn’t ask.”
“Warn me next time, sweetheart.”
“About what?”
“About your knowledge. Sudden or otherwise.”
Gwen patted his chest. “You handled that very well.”
“It’s a miracle I lasted,” he said. “You must show me that book.”
“Would you like to see it now?”
“Why not?”
“If you insist,” she said and climbed off the bed.
She reached for her robe, but Andrew stopped her. “Don’t cover your beauty, Gwen.”
Gwen blushed but did as he asked. She walked across the room to where she left the book and brought it back to the bed.
“Kama Sutra?” he said in surprise when she handed it to him.
“Yes. Sophie said she found it in the library. Michael and Nona must have used it at one point.”
Andrew dragged his hands down his face. “Gwen, please! I don’t need to know that.”
She laughed out loud and opened the book. “See, here’s page nine. I like that one. I hope we do that again soon.”
“As often as you like, love,” he said and kissed her.
“The other one that looks fun is on page thirty.”
Andrew chuckled. “You have apparently read this already.”
“Twice.”
Andrew laughed and turned to page thirty. “This one does look good.”
“Can we try it?”
“Of course,” he said.
“Now?”
“Absolutely.” Andrew pulled her onto his chest and kissed her.
“Perhaps later, we can try page nineteen,” she said cheekily.
They spent several hours, investigating as many pages as they could. Before they knew it, the day had passed and it was time to dress for dinner. Unfortunately, they had to rush to get ready, as pages six and eight distracted them for another hour.
Andrew and Gwen arrived at the Whitman mansion just after six. Thomas and Ambrose, who rushed to open the front door before the butler could reach it, greeted them.
“Uncle Andrew, Auntie Gwen!” They squealed and rushed in for hugs.
Andrew picked Thomas up and threw him in the air. Ambrose wanted the same attention, so Andrew obliged.
“Watch that knee, little brother,” came the voice of Elizabeth.
“I’m fine, Liza,” he said and kissed her cheek.
Greetings were shared and the family moved into the large parlor. Elizabeth excused herself to organize drinks for everyone and returned a few minutes later. Dinner was announced and everyone made their way to the dining room.
Although Adam had lived in the States for many years, his love of English food never diminished. The meal Elizabeth chose for the night was superb, consisting of poached pheasant, dumplings, cottage pies, and lemon tarts for dessert.
The children were exceedingly well behaved and the conversation was light until the subject of the threats was approached.
“I think the children should join Nanny in their rooms while Gwen and I retire to the ladies’ parlor.” Elizabeth gathered the children and kissed them goodnight, then she and Gwen sat in the parlor with a glass of port. “I don’t particularly want to hear about Adam’s business dealings at the present time.”
Gwen nodded. “No, it’s rather a worry, I dare say.”
Elizabeth sipped her drink. “Since Andrew and Adam have their meeting tomorrow, why don’t you join me for shopping?”
Gwen nodded. “I have plans with Charity, but we’d love for you to join us, if you’d like.”
Elizabeth sat back in her chair. “That sounds wonderful. Why don’t I meet you at the Maddens’? They’ll all be there anyway. We can take my driver.”
“Perfect.”
Andrew collected Gwen an hour later and they made their way home. Andrew said nothing as he drove the buggy through the streets.
“Andrew, what’s amiss?” she asked as they drove.
“Nothing.”
Gwen glanced over at him. “Did it not go well with Adam?”
He didn’t seem inclined to share what they had discussed, so she changed the subject, choosing to stay on somewhat nebulous topics. They arrived home and Andrew quietly followed Gwen up the stairs to their bedroom. As they started to get ready for bed, she reached up to stroke his cheek. “Are you all right?” she asked.
“Yes, sweetheart. I just have a lot on my mind.”
Gwen frowned. “Are you in pain?”
“Very minor.”
“I have ignored your comfort today.” She slid her arms behind his neck. “I’m sorry.”
Andrew smiled. “You should feel terribly guilty. I have been in agony.”
Gwen raised an eyebrow. “From minor pain to agony? What hurts?”
He pointed to his cheek. “It hurts here.”
She kissed his cheek. “Where else?”
He pointed to his neck. “Here.”
She kissed his neck. “Anywhere else?” she asked, kneeling in front of him. “Like here?” Wrapping her mouth around his hardening length, he hissed as she sucked the tip of him, sliding one hand down the shaft and taking him deeper.
Andrew wove his hands into her hair. “Gwen,” he whispered.
She glanced up at him. “Is this all right?”
“Yes, sweetheart, very much so.”
Gwendolyn went back to her task, but Andrew couldn’t take much more, lifting her off the floor and settling her on the bed, sliding into her as he leaned over and kissed her.
“I wasn’t done,” she complained. He buried himself further inside of her and she arched her back. “This makes up for it.”
Andrew chuckled and continued to thrust into her until he felt her come apart around him. He let himself go and, keeping their connection, pulled her close.
Gwen sighed. “I had no idea.”
Andrew chuckled. “Me neither, beautiful.” Stretching out beside her, he laid his hand on her stomach. “I can’t wait for our baby to grow here.”
She smiled up at him. “It’s an exciting prospect.”
Andrew ran his finger gently across her abdomen. “Adam and I have to meet with your brother tomorrow.”
Gwen nodded. “I know. Elizabeth is going to pick Charity and me up at Clayton’s and we’re going shopping.”
Andrew smiled. “It’s a good thing I informed the shop owners you have authority to purchase your heart’s desire.”
“You did? When?”
Andrew grinned. “Weeks ago.”
Gwen sighed. “That would have been good information to have a week ago. I could have spent all your money before marrying you.”
“Then you would have missed out on all of this.”
She leaned over and stroked his chest as she kissed him. “No I wouldn’t. I’d have that and all your money.”
Andrew raised an eyebrow. “You have that already.”
“Charmer,” she said. “You know I married you for more than your money.”
“Oh?”
“Yes, I married you for your renowned reputation in the bedroom.”
“And what reputation is that, beautiful?”
“The one I have been spreading.”
He laughed and kissed her. “There is something else I’d like you to spread.”
* * *
In a small house on the edge of town, Edward sat in the library with the gentleman he’d been plotting with. He’d learned his name was Simon, but they agreed not to exchange last names, in an effort for some sort of anonymity. Two other men had joined their little party… brothers from what he could gather. They’d said their names were Tim and Tony, but Edward didn’t really care who they were, just so long as they didn’t get in the way.
“Is the room ready?” Simon asked.
“Yes sir. The bolt has been installed and everything is in place,” Edward answered.
Simon nodded. “Excellent. Who is watching the house?”
“Six men.”
“Only six?” Tony asked.
Edward squared his shoulders. “Six of our best.”
“I doubt your idea of our best is quite the same as mine,” Simon retorted with a frustrated sigh. “However, you’re all I have at the moment.”
Tony scowled. “You promised retribution, Si. We want Clayton Madden to suffer.”
Simon waved his hand. “And he will. Right alongside Christopher Butler.”
“He better.” Tony jabbed a finger toward him. “We’ll prepare the rest of our crew. Come on, Tim.”
Tony and Tim left the house and Edward faced Simon. “What is your history with Clayton Madden and Christopher Butler?”
“Nothing to concern yourself about.” Simon rubbed his chin. “All you need to do is get their wives.”
“That will be difficult,” Edward said. “Mrs. Butler is never out of Christopher’s sight.”
“Then get his sister, damn it,” Simon snapped. “Do I honestly have to show you how to do your job? Are you that much of an idiot?”
“You listen here, you insolent cur. I am the heir to one of the oldest dukedoms in England. You’re a… a Yank,” Edward hissed. “One who is quite possibly on the losing side of a ridiculous war.”
“Still bitter, Edward?”
Edward chuckled. “We may have been kicked out of the colonies a hundred years ago, but I don’t consider it a loss. Who would want to live in a barbaric nation without rules?”
“Then why are you here, Edward? What are your reasons for working for me?”
“I’m working with you, not for you. Let’s make that clear.”
Simon snorted. “Semantics.”
Edward took a deep breath. “I have a personal interest in this as well, which is really all you need to know.”
“As long as you get Emma and Hannah, or Gwen if Hannah is elusive, you can do whatever you want.”
“Good to know,” Edward said dryly. “I’m interested in someone entirely different.”
“I don’t care if you grab every woman in Harrisburg, just make sure you do what I tell you. And quickly, Edward. This has gone on entirely too long.”
“Yes sir. It’ll be very soon.”
Simon nodded and stalked from the room. Edward stayed and seethed.
A young maid walked in the room, interrupting his thoughts. “Sorry, sir, I thought the room was empty.”
“No, it’s quite all right, dear,” Edward said.
“I’ll return later.”
“No, stay. I have need of you.”
The girl looked petrified. Edward didn’t care. He locked the door and turned to her, an evil smile on his face.