Birching His Bride (Domestic Discipline 1) Read online

  Lately his own thoughts had turned to marriage. His parents were ensconced firmly in the countryside, but that didn't stop his mother from sending him constant letters inquiring as to the steps he was taking to find a wife. After all, he was her only child and if something were to happen to him then the title would go to a distant cousin. The last few letters his mother had sent had hinted at coming to London herself to offer her assistance. Considering how much either of his parents hated to leave the country, he didn't want her to feel as though that was necessary.

  Now, tonight at this ball, he realized what he had been waiting for this past year. The milk and water misses held no allure for him, despite the fact that many of them were quite beautiful, they all bored him. He wanted a different kind of marriage. Not one where with he would have to respectfully knock on her door, request admittance, and then make boring, gentle love to, but a wife that had spirit, sensuality, passion, and preferably the occasional need to be disciplined. A wife like Collette's lucky husband had. Eleanor would make a splendid future Countess; truthfully, she'd been hovering in the back of his mind constantly ever since he'd seen her birched. Of course, her late debut had caused a bit of gossip but he didn't care about that.

  Although they’d only spent a week together during the previous year, and he had seen for himself what sharp-tongued brat Eleanor had turned into during that time, he also knew what she had been like before she turned spoiled. He knew that she had once followed Hugh, Wesley and himself around practically begging for attention, trailing her doll Rose along with her everywhere she went. He knew that she'd worn pink for two years straight and refused to put on a dress in any other color. He remembered when she'd found some neighbors boys bullying one of the village girls and had chased them off before offering up her doll, Rose, for the little girl to play with. At that point he'd kept a sharp eye out in case one of the boys had wanted to retaliate against Eleanor, but they’d had the wits enough to realize that it was best to leave the eight year old and her new six year old friend alone. There was still that sweet, generous spirit inside of her, he believed, it was just buried deep down under the desire for silks, jewels and worshipful male attention.

  Deciding that he might as well get to know this new Eleanor so that he could make an informed decision, Edwin crossed to her side of the room. Her debut dress was white, of course, and it looked quite well with her complexion, emphasizing the pink of her cheeks and lips, the bright gold of her hair and her shining blue eyes.

  "Lady Harrington," he greeted her mother with a slight bow, smiling his most charming smile. "Lady Eleanor."

  "Lord Hyde, you rogue," Lady Harrington said with a smile. "You've been staring at my Eleanor here for the past fifteen minutes and you're only just now coming to talk?" Edwin winked at her teasing.

  "I was too arrested by the sight of her beauty," he said smoothly, "and have only just now found my tongue again. You are looking particularly lovely tonight Lady Eleanor." The neckline of her gown was low but not immodest, in fact it was almost demure compared to some of the gowns other women in the room were wearing. He was quite sure that he had seen Eleanor eying them enviously. Obviously still wanting things that her father said she couldn't have.

  "Since you have found your tongue again, one would think that you would use it for something other than the usual banal compliments," Eleanor said a little waspishly. He hid a smile. Not because he wasn't offended at her brash remark, but because it was obvious she still had some of her spirit and that a husband would have ample opportunity to discipline her if she couldn't get her own tongue under control.

  "Eleanor!" said her mother in scandalized tones, fanning herself vigorously as if feeling faint. "You are being quite rude. Please do forgive her, my Lord." She fluttered her eyes at him. If this was an example of how Lady Harrington reproached her willful daughter, Edwin could well understand how Eleanor had become so spoiled under her care.

  The lady's mouth puckered mulishly, almost pouting in a way that made him want to bend his head down and kiss her, despite the ire in her eyes. "It's just Edwin, mother. We've known him forever." As if that excused her rude behavior.

  Smiling genially at Lady Harrington, Edwin turned a more rakish look on Eleanor. One that she wouldn't have seen on his face before, because he'd never turned his flirtatious charm on his friend's sister. Looking at her through half-lidded eyes, he leaned in closer and his smiled broadened as she inhaled sharply, looking up at him in consternation.

  In truth, Eleanor was quite intimidated by Lord Hyde, which is why she had sharpened her tongue on him, feeling as if she had something to prove. He was very tall, very muscular and very good looking, and having him in such close proximity to her, with her mother teasing him about staring at her, had pushed aside all the society masks she'd created since her father had taken a closer interest in her behavior. The number of spankings and birchings had subsided as she'd started bowing to her father's demands and wishes, no matter how much she chafed over his unfair rules. After all, look at the number of young debutantes here with much more bosom showing than herself, in finer fabrics and with better jewelry! This was her coming out ball and she should have shone; instead she was stuck in a dress that catered to her father's stupid and old-fashioned ideals.

  Over the past year she'd learned to keep her thoughts to herself, to pretend to be acquiescent with her father's demands, and to show herself as the perfect little society miss. It was all part of her plan to remove herself from her father's strict household as soon as possible, once she was a wife she could do as she pleased, buy all the clothes and fripperies that she wanted, and her husband would shower her with expensive jewelry. Eleanor knew exactly what she wanted in a husband - a man who loved her to distraction.

  She'd seen the way her parents' marriage worked; her mother loved her father unconditionally and bowed to his every wish. They’d spent the last 6 years in Brighton and she’d never managed to forget the day when she’d overheard her mother asking her husband if he was sure he didn’t want her and Eleanor to stay in London with him and he’d responded “For God’s sake, Penelope, go to Brighton! If you aren’t there by next week I’ll make sure you regret it!”

  And they’d spent the last six years there, rarely going into London for more than a weekend and her father had rarely come to visit them for more than a few weeks. Although he did make the trip quite often, he spent the majority of his time in London with Hugh. Eleanor had felt more than a little neglected, not to mention outraged on the part of her mother, and she’d vowed that such a thing would never happen to her.

  Although she felt sure that her father cared about her mother, he obviously didn’t care enough and he didn’t love her enough to keep her with him, no matter how much Lady Harrington missed him. Eleanor would not fall in love. The person who was not in love had the power and that's what Eleanor wanted, a comfortable life with a man who would worship her and lavish gifts upon her.

  Already she'd flirted with several young men who would do quite nicely. Lord Kilcairn had practically tripped over himself to be the first to secure a dance with her, the second son of the Marquess of Salisbury had begged to fetch her a lemonade and the young Earl of Cawdor had promised to talk to his aunt, Lady Cowper, about securing her permission to waltz. There were plenty of other men in the room looking at her with admiring eyes that she hadn't even been introduced to to yet, although she knew she would be soon. Perhaps she'd even let a few of them take her out on the terrace and kiss her. After all, her debut had come after most of her friends' and so she had some catching up to do - all of them had been kissed at least once.

  Lord Hyde was certainly not on her list of possible husbands. He was too large, too intimidating, too disturbing. The way he looked at her made her feel like he was undressing her with those unfathomable dark eyes; they were admiring of her but there was nothing puppy-like about it. Tonight he was looking particularly fine in a light grey coat that set off his dark hair and eyes and emphasized his shoulders, breeches that molded themselves to his muscular legs, and a charcoal waistcoat that hugged his masculine figure. The slightly amused and yet somehow intense expression on his face did nothing to soothe her anxiety around him; the roguish smile that he gave her only affirmed her wariness of him, but it also made her insides tighten in the most inexplicable way.

  "I could never deny a request from you, Lady Harrington," he said, in that smooth, deep voice of his. Shivers ran up her spine and she could feel gooseflesh breaking out all over her body. She didn't remember him ever having quite this effect on her before. It was incredibly unnerving. Had he ever looked at her quite that way before? "However, I do believe that apologies are more appreciated coming from the source of the offense."

  He looked at her expectantly.

  A sharp retort was on the tip of her tongue when she saw her father approaching out of the corner of her eye. Immediately she bowed her head, knowing that her mother wouldn't say anything to her father about her misbehavior if only she could apologize and change the topic before he came within earshot.

  "Please forgive me, my lord," she said in a mild, soft tone, giving a small curtsy. "I'm afraid that I am overly excited by the importance of this evening and temporarily lost my manners."

  "Of course," said Lord Hyde. She peeked up at him through her lashes, wondering at the tone in his voice. Was he amused by her? Fury pinked her cheeks, but she couldn't say anything because her father had just reached their group. He exchanged greetings with Lord Hyde and asked if Edwin would call on him the next day. Having agreed to do so, Lord Hyde then turned and asked Eleanor for a dance.

  With her father watching she couldn't do anything but say yes, as graciously as possible. Once on the dance floor she kept on her smooth social mask, finding it the only defense she had against Lord Hyde's probing eyes and heated glances.

  “So how does it feel to be the most beautiful woman in the room?” he murmured as they passed each other, his hand lingering in hers just a moment too long.

  “Don’t allow Miss Cuthbert to hear you say that to me or her heart will be quite broken,” she retorted, having seen the way the pretty debutante had sighed before, during and after her dance with Edwin. But he only laughed. Obviously careless of what hearts he might be breaking and so Eleanor hardened hers, knowing that he was a teasing rake. The kind of man her mother had warned her about and the kind of man she already knew she wanted to avoid, not just because of his reputation but because she could tell he would never be malleable in the way she wished her future husband to be.

  Yet that didn’t stop her heart from pounding when he leaned over and whispered in her ear. “Miss Cuthbert is quite beautiful, but a man always has his preferences.

  And his eyes dipped down to observe the creamy swells of her breasts. Beneath the fabric of her dress she could feel her nipples pucker and she found herself suddenly breathless. His words were not inappropriate, but his meaning was quite clear and made her glad, for the first time that evening, that her gown had a modest neckline.

  All in all, other than the dance with Lord Hyde, Eleanor's come-out was deemed a success by both her and her parents (although of course both of her parents counted that dance as part of her success). Her mother was happy because everything had gone smoothly, her father was happy because Eleanor had behaved - her mother neglected to inform him of his daughter's rude words to Lord Hyde and the walk on the terrace she'd taken with the Earl of Cawdor, and Eleanor was happy because she'd begun her campaign on two eligible young gentleman who seemed suitably malleable and easily infatuated. She was quite sure that removing herself from her parent’s house and into a pampered marriage, where she could return to the lifestyle she'd formerly led before her father took such an interest in her upbringing, would commence by the end of the Season.

  Putting on her most flirtatious smile, she turned her efforts for the night into finding her a malleable husband as soon as possible.

  *******

  At ten o'clock sharp, Edwin presented himself at Lord Harrington's house. Most of the household was still abed, including Hugh, but Lord Harrington was already up and working in his study, which is where he received Edwin. Ten o'clock was rather early for Edwin when he was in town, but he hadn't wanted to deny Lord Harrington's request. His friend's father had seem rather serious when he'd made it and Edwin wanted to put his best foot forward, since he'd decided last night that Eleanor was eminently suitable to be his wife.

  Indeed, he'd gone to bed with visions of her red, dancing bottom in his head. While she put on a remarkable show of being a meek, presentable miss, it was obvious that she still had most of her rough edges and spoiled manners; catching her in those moments would be a delight. The idea of rousing her passions had made him as desirous of her as his craving to have her over his knee. The flare of attraction between them had been impossible to ignore and he’d seen the way she’d responded, despite the sharpness of her tongue.

  Yet he’d also been relieved to see evidence that she was the same sweet girl he’d once known. Because he’d kept a close watch on her the entire ball he hadn’t failed to miss when she’d gone amongst the wallflowers, taking her trailing train of gentlemen with her and skillfully setting them to dance with the other young ladies. Some of whom hadn’t danced all evening prior to Eleanor’s efforts. And she’d done it in such a way that the young ladies blossomed under Eleanor’s smiling gaze, drawing them into conversations with the young men. Although he’d also noticed that there had been two or three gentlemen that she hadn’t relinquished from her side, and he’d taken careful note of them, especially the overeager Kilcairn whom she seemed to save her most engaging smiles for. Young puppy.

  "Thank you for coming so early, Lord Hyde," Lord Harrington said as he set his work aside. Edwin sat at attention. He'd always respected Lord Harrington and looked to him as a model for behavior, even before he'd known about his methods of discipline. Now he studied the man opposite him, a fine looking gentleman with silvering blonde hair, laugh lines about his mouth and at the corners of his light blue eyes. However, his hair was so light colored already that you could barely tell he was going silver, so he ended up looking much younger than his years. "I know that town hours usually dictate a later start in the day for most young men of your age and I appreciate your promptness."

  "Of course my Lord," Edwin said.

  "Edwin,” Lord Harrington dropped the formality now that they were past their greetings, “it come to my attention that you are a fine, upstanding young gentleman, and you seem to have moved past the wild ways of many young men rather early in life. I commend you for your maturity, and it is that maturity that has led me to consider putting a proposal forward to you."

  Curious now, Edwin leaned forward a little. Lord Harrington seemed almost nervous, his forearms folded in front of him on the desk, a rather anxious expression on my face. "I'm flattered that you hold me in such high esteem, my Lord, as I have always held you. I am happy to hear any proposal that you have for me, please continue."

  "As Hugh may have told you, preparing Eleanor for presentation to Society has not been... the easiest task. I noticed your interest in my daughter last night and I also know from Hugh that you run a disciplined household, and that you know and approve of my methods for curbing the worst of Eleanor’s excesses. She needs a firm hand and traditional methods. Despite the progress that I have made with her in the past few years I am convinced that she means to marry some wilting dandy who will let her have her head and she will end up shaming us all. That’s if she doesn’t ruin herself first, which seems all too likely base on her behavior last night.” Lord Harrington winced as if remembering something particularly bad and Edwin wondered what on earth Eleanor had done last night. He had left by the time Eleanor had taken her walk on the terrace with Lord Cawdor, a walk that she hadn't hidden as well from her father as she'd thought. “If you are amenable, I would like you to consider taking Eleanor as your wife."

  Edwin's heart pounded in his chest with excitement. How strange and unusual that Lord Harrington should offer him the very thing he'd been hoping to one day present to the Lord! Still, perhaps it wouldn't do to seem over eager. This was very sudden after all, were there circumstances he was unaware of?

  "My Lord, I am honored that you thought of me, but this is very sudden is it not? Is Eleanor ah..." he paused, unsure of how to delicately phrase the question. Not that he truly cared if she was ruined, as long as there were no consequences that would have repercussions for his family, but he would like to know what he was getting into.

  "She's not ruined," Lord Harrington said bluntly, and Edwin coughed. "No, I'm not angry, I can understand your concern. The problem is that I'm worried she'll attract some young buck who won't be able to handle her and convince him to elope to Gretna Green with her. I'd like to get her married off to a suitable man before that happens. Despite her progress in manners, none of the young men she surrounded herself with last night are what I would consider suitable and if I don’t intervene now she’ll either convince one of them to marry her or someone will ruin her. I don't want her to be unhappy. You're a young and attractive man, you’ve known her and the family since you were a boy and I know I can trust you to take care of her. The only other men who might be able to handle her are much older and I think she would object to that. There seemed to be something between the two of you last night when you spoke and then danced. I think once she realizes that she has a husband who won’t take any of her nonsense that she’ll prove herself to be an asset as your lady wife and you two will be as happy as your parents or my wife and I."

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