An Alluring Lady’s Inevitable Match – Extended Epilogue

Three Months Later

Dorothy looked up when she heard the sound of a carriage approaching. Putting her book aside, she hurried to the window and looked out. Sure enough, a carriage was coming up the drive, white horses trotting along sedately.

Dorothy grinned.

“She’s here!”

Lucas smiled, not looking up from his own book.

“She’s going to be here for three weeks, Dorothy. You don’t need to get that excited.”

“I haven’t seen her for months! Letters just don’t compare!” Dorothy hurried over to him, almost falling onto him as she leaned over. “Besides, you’re going to be the same when Pierce gets here.”

“Not a chance,” Lucas snorted. He kissed her. “Let me finish this part and then I’ll join you. I’ll let the housekeeper know that our guest has arrived.”

Dorothy kissed him quickly and got up without toppling back onto him. Then she hurried from the room, sure that her smile was going to end up splitting her face. It had been three months since she had come here with Lucas, and while she had enjoyed their time alone, Dorothy did miss her friend. Frederica had communicated with her through letters, but that was nothing compared to talking to a close friend face to face. She was looking forward to spending her days talking for hours with her friend and exploring her new home.

Of course, Lucas would be there, and Pierce would be joining them in a few days. Dorothy knew that Lucas would keep her from getting into trouble, and she was sure Pierce would do the same for Frederica.

Then again, given how the attraction between their friends had been growing during their time, it would probably end up with Dorothy and Lucas trying to keep Pierce and Frederica in line. That was going to be interesting.

Frederica was getting out of the carriage as Dorothy came outside. She beamed when she saw her friend and came down the steps.

“You’re a sight for sore eyes, aren’t you?”

Frederica laughed.

“I’d like to think so.” She hugged Dorothy warmly before stepping back and looking her over. “I can’t believe how much you’ve changed in a short space of time.”

“I don’t think I’ve changed that much.”

“You have. There’s a glow about you that wasn’t there before. And I see a sparkle in your eye.” Frederica’s eyes widened. “Goodness, you’re not pregnant, are you?”

Dorothy burst out laughing.

“I doubt it, but anything’s possible.”

“Well, if you tell me while I’m here that you’re pregnant, it will not be a surprise.” Frederica linked arms with Dorothy, and they headed into the house. “Where’s Lucas? Is he out or in the study?”

“He’s reading in the morning room. He said he would join us shortly.”

“Reading?” Frederica looked perplexed. “I remember a time when he wasn’t keen on reading at all. Now you’ve actually got him sat down with a book in his hands?”

“He’s found he enjoys it more than he remembered as a child. And we get to do something together.”

“You two sound really boring now.”

Dorothy bit back the response that they did a lot more than just read, but that was not something her friend needed to hear. Sometimes, even their closeness did not warrant discussing.

Lucas came out into the foyer as Frederica was giving the butler her bonnet and coat. He approached her with a warm smile and clasped her hands.

“I’m glad you’re here, Frederica. Dorothy’s been overly excited for your arrival.”

“I’m sure you’ve been the same, Lucas,” Frederica teased as Lucas kissed her cheek. Then she inspected him. “Is it me, or are you more relaxed than before?”

Lucas glanced at Dorothy, who held up her hands.

“Don’t look at me. I didn’t say anything.”

“Hmm.” Lucas released Frederica’s hands. “Why don’t you take Frederica onto the terrace? I’ll go and see if I can find the housekeeper. She’s probably setting up one of the guest rooms.”

“Of course.”

Dorothy and Frederica started walking down the hall as Lucas took the stairs two at a step. As he moved out of earshot, Frederica turned to Dorothy.

“By the way,” she said with a lowered voice, “have you heard?”

“Why are you whispering? Lucas can’t hear us.”

“I don’t want to find out that his hearing is sharper than I thought. And I don’t think he would want to hear about this.”

Dorothy frowned.

“What are you talking about?”

“So you haven’t heard about Gabriel?”

“No, he’s not made contact with me since the day Lucas proposed to me. Why?”

“He’s got married.” Frederica’s eyes glinted, which meant the gossip had to be something to salivate over. “To Lady Marcia.”

Dorothy tripped over her over feet, catching herself before she ended up flat on her face. She stared at Frederica in bewilderment.

“Did I hear you correctly?”

“You did. Gabriel started courting Marcia shortly after your engagement was made public. I saw them together about a week before your wedding, and Gabriel just gave me short answers before walking off.” Frederica rolled her eyes. “Marcia was also acting like she had a prize and pretty much told me to go and find my own future husband as Gabriel was hers.”

Dorothy felt like she had misheard the last couple of minutes. She shook her head.

“But not so long ago, he said that he loved me and wanted to marry me. How did he turn around so quickly?”

“Well, Marcia is very … persuasive.” Frederica shrugged. “Anyway, they got married last week, and I hear they’ve gone to have their honeymoon in Amsterdam. I heard all this from Gabriel’s sister, who is a little unsure about Marcia being a match for Gabriel.”

If she were honest, Dorothy was a little concerned as well. Marcia was a dominant woman, and this could be Gabriel looking for someone to cover up the hurt of being rejected.

“Did she give any indication that Gabriel wasn’t happy?” she asked as they stepped out onto the terrace.

“Actually, no. Apparently, Gabriel looked very happy on their wedding day. Marcia looked like she had struck gold.” Frederica shrugged. “His family is rather wealthy, after all. It’s probably what she’s looking at.”

“That’s a bit harsh, Frederica.”

“Well, maybe that’s what she was after instead of Gabriel. From what I recall, they barely interacted when we were at my aunt’s home during our holiday. She was more focused on Lucas.”

“It sounds like she’s moved on from Lucas, then.”

Dorothy hoped that was the case; she didn’t want to deal with a woman who was upset about being rejected and kept coming back to pester them. She managed a smile.

“Let’s hope they make it work. I’m sure Marcia will make a better wife for Gabriel than I ever would.”

“I think she will, absolutely. Nothing against you, Dorothy,” Frederica went on quickly, “but she’s more appropriate for someone like Gabriel.”

“I know what you meant, and I’m not insulted.” Dorothy turned when she heard footsteps. “What is it, Jarvis?”

“Forgive me, Lady Dashwood.” The footman bowed. “But Mrs Maskell is requesting your help.”

Dorothy frowned.

“Can’t my husband help? He just went upstairs to find her.”

“I don’t know anything about that, My Lady. I was just told to come and find you.”

Sighing, Dorothy turned to Frederica.

“Would you excuse me? I need to see what that is all about.”

“Don’t mind me, the guest.” Frederica giggled as she walked over to a table that was being set up on the sunny part of the terrace. “I’ll just drink my tea and soak up the scenery. Take your time.”

Dorothy groaned.

“You’re impossible, Frederica, do you know that?”

Frederica simply giggled and gave her a little wave before sashaying away. Dorothy rolled her eyes and went back into the house. Her friend was always finding something that wasn’t there, especially if it involved something saucy.

Not the case here, but it would be hard to change Frederica’s mind.

Dorothy headed upstairs, making her way to the guest room. But she had barely gone down the hall before she was grabbed by the wrist and tugged in the opposite direction. She gasped and fell against Lucas’ chest.

“God, Lucas! You scared me!” Dorothy slapped his chest. “Can we do this later? Mrs Maskell wants me.”

“Actually, I’m the one who wants you.” Lucas lowered his head and nuzzled her neck. “I was moments away from suggesting we went to bed before we were interrupted.”

Even though she knew they shouldn’t – they had a guest, after all – Dorothy felt her body responding to his touch. Her hands clenched into fists in his jacket.

“Lucas, Frederica is here. She’s going to figure out what is going on.”

“I’m sure she won’t care.”

“Can’t you wait until tonight?”

Then Lucas looked at her, and Dorothy saw the fire in his eyes. No, he couldn’t wait. His body was warm and hard against hers, his hands moving low on her back to the curve of her backside. She shifted against him, and Lucas groaned.

“Dorothy, if you keep doing that …”

“Make it quick.” Dorothy grabbed his hand and tugged him toward their bedchamber. “I don’t want Frederica to be kept waiting.”

“We’re newlyweds. Sneaking away for private time is normal for them.”

“I’m not having that debate right now.” Dorothy opened the door to their room and pulled Lucas in, locking the door behind them. “You want me, show me.”

Lucas didn’t disappoint. Grabbing her, he kissed her very thoroughly as he tugged at her clothes. Between them, they managed to get their garments off without getting stuck or falling over each other. Dorothy nudged Lucas towards the bed, her mind already on what she planned to do. She loved having Lucas beneath her while she rode him; she liked watching him from this angle.

Lucas seemed to have other ideas, though, as he lifted Dorothy onto the bed and turned her so she was on her hands and knees, clambering up behind her. Dorothy let out a moan she was sure everyone in the house could hear as he entered her in one thrust.

Alright, this was another one of her favourite positions.

Their lovemaking was fast and fierce, the bed rocking with their movements. Dorothy tried to keep quiet, aware that Frederica was not that far away, but Lucas’ thrusts were touching a part of her that just seemed to make her sing like a bird. When he slightly changed the angle, it made her shudder.

This time, Lucas’ climax happened first, although Dorothy wasn’t far behind once his fingers moved between her legs and touched her right where she needed him. Dorothy bit down on the coverlet as she screamed, the shivering sensations rippling up her spine. Lucas let out a groan and slumped over, breathing heavily as he propped himself up. For a moment, neither of them moved.

Then Lucas shifted and fell onto the bed, staring at the ceiling as he panted.

“Do you think Frederica heard that?” he asked.

Dorothy groaned and hit his shoulder.

“That is not something you say after what we just did!”

“Apologies, that just came out.”

Dorothy huffed and sat up.

“She also told me something about Gabriel and Marcia. Something about the two of them getting married.”

“Oh. That’s good.” Lucas didn’t look at her as he responded. “It’s nice that they’ve finally found each other.”

Dorothy frowned.

“You don’t sound surprised.”

“I’m not. I set them up.”

Dorothy wondered if she had gone deaf during their lovemaking. She shuffled over to lean over him.

“What do you mean, you set them up?”

Lucas put a hand behind his head, his other arm coming around Dorothy’s waist and stroking her back.

“Marcia was not going to leave me alone. I mean, I scolded her for spreading lies about me and being instrumental in you not trusting me. So, the best thing I could think of was to distract her with someone who would be a better catch.”

“And you set her on Gabriel instead?”

“You make it sound like she’s a predator. I just suggested he would be better for her, seeing as he had more money than me, he was better-looking, and he would certainly give her a more respectable reputation, given she had almost ruined mine.” He shrugged. “From the sound of it, she took my advice to move on to someone else.”

Dorothy stared.

“You matched them together?”

“I’m not going to take the credit, and I definitely don’t want Burville to know about it. I just thought there were two souls who needed someone to help them heal, so I gently nudged Marcia in Gabriel’s direction.”

“And I’m sure finding out that Gabriel is wealthy helped.” Dorothy grunted.

“If it did, that’s nothing to do with me. Her parents have wanted her to settle down for a while, so this will be a good thing for her. And Burville has a wife who would be better suited for his lifestyle than you.” This was when Lucas looked at her, his expression softening in a smile. “You weren’t right for him. As far as I’m concerned, the only person you’re right for is me.”

Dorothy let all this sink in. It felt … surreal, knowing that Lucas had helped set up people he didn’t even like.

“Don’t worry about them, Dorothy,” Lucas said gently. “Worry about us. That’s more important. If they wanted to get married, that’s up to them.”

“I know. I just hope Marcia doesn’t hurt Gabriel.”

“He can hold his own.” Lucas cupped her backside. “Much as I want to hold all of you, we’d better get dressed and go back downstairs. Frederica is waiting, and even newlyweds have to play host.”

Dorothy groaned and slapped his chest, only for Lucas to grab her and flip them so she was pinned underneath.

“You are awful, do you know that?” she said.

“I know.” Lucas grinned. “But you still love me.”

Dorothy was still smiling when he kissed her. He was awful, but he was hers. And that’s how she liked it.

THE END

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