Lahat ng Kabanata ng The League of Rogues: Kabanata 171 - Kabanata 180

Bloody balls.Lawrence despised wearing the obligatory knee breeches required for balls and dancing. He much preferred the cut of a good pair of trousers. He was no foppish dandy, but he did like to look like a gentleman, even if his behavior suggested he wasn't. "She knows I don't want to be here," Lawrence muttered to his brother, Lucien, who was leaning against the back wall next to him. Side by side they could have been mistaken for twins if one didn't know they were four years apart in age.Lucien chuckled. "None of us want to be here. But you know how Mother is. The woman knows precisely what to say to get us to do as she wishes.""What did she say to make you come?" Lawrence asked. Even at three and thirty, Lucien still bowed to their mother's dictates, just as they all did."She reminded me that Horatia won't have the chance to dance during the late summer or fall because of her pregnancy. I have no intention of cloistering my wife away, but Mother's right that she won't

Zehra couldn't help but laugh as Lawrence did his best to lay a blanket down on the soft cool grass. A light breeze kept flipping the fabric into uneven layers rather than behaving and lying flat on the ground."Here, let me." She grasped the other side of the blanket, and together they were able to get it down."Ah! There we are." Lawrence helped Zehra down beside him. Once seated, he opened the wicker basket he'd had his kitchen prepare. She took the opportunity to watch him as he pulled the food out of the basket and placed it on the blanket. He was kneeling next to her, and she admired his strong thighs, outlined by the tightness of his trousers in his current position.Zehra was fascinated by the way his dark hair caught the sunlight on the hill. Golden amber glinted and sparkled in the strands. She'd never seen a man with such hair color. Now that the shock of what she'd been through had finally begun to fade, she was starting to pay more attention to the unusual aspects of hi

Zehra's heart hammered as Lawrence removed his trousers. The man was beautiful, every muscle defined far more than she'd ever expected; every part of him was toned. His skin was paler than hers, and she couldn't help but imagine how it would look to see the two of them pressed together, skin to skin. She had decided to seduce him, afraid he would never make the move if she did not, yet she hadn't realized just how excited and afraid she would be. Fear now hummed at the edges of her consciousness, but it was overpowered by the intense excitement that rippled through her as her desire climbed higher and higher.He climbed up on the bed, fully exposed now, and she couldn't help but fixate on his erect shaft. No book she'd ever read had prepared her for this. A wave of panic subsided as he lay beside her, rather than on top of her. He cupped her face in his hand and kissed her, making her worries fade into nothing. He was a master of kissesno two were the same. Each one sent her pulse s

Zehra slept for much of the coach ride back the following morning. Lawrence was to blame. He had spent all night making love to her. She had collapsed near dawn from sheer exhaustion. It was true, one could have too much of a good thing. She nuzzled his shoulder as the coach rolled to a stop."Are you awake?" His tender voice made her want to sigh and burrow deeper into his arms."If I say no, can you have the coachman take us back to Richmond?" she asked drowsily.Lawrence's laugh warmed her to her toes. "Don't tempt me, darling. I'd like that more than you, I'd wager. Why don't I take you straight to bed and let you rest?" He brushed the backs of his fingers over her cheek, and she smiled."That sounds nice, as long as you join me. No more separate rooms.""No more separate rooms," he agreed. For a moment they simply stared into one another's eyes, their faces close enough for a kiss. In that moment Zehra felt that she could have wanted nothing else in life, except to be with hi

Avery met Zehra halfway across the ballroom and gripped her by the arm. She flinched, not from pain, but from the memory of the night the auctioneer had grabbed her the same way. Not as a person, but as a thing."Avery, you cannot do this!" Lawrence said, his tone full of fury and panic. "If you send her back, Zehra will face slavery again."Avery shook his head. "I assure you, the slavers are dealt with, both here and abroad. And I warned you this had to be done.""Yes, in a week," Lawrence fired back. "That time has still not passed. Why this sudden entrance? Were you not content to have this concluded peacefully? You required some grand show of force? Why?"Avery's face hardened. "Matters have changed, brother. The Persian ambassador has been informed about what happened at the White House, and in his outrage he has demanded a swift resolution to the affair. Somehow he learned that you were in possession of one of these women, and he insisted we take action immediately."Lawren