Winter's Woman (The Wicked Winters Book 9) Read online

  Devil lowered his head and sucked on her pearl once more. “Now,” he murmured against her sodden flesh, before pressing a kiss there and then sucking.

  “Mmm,” came her telling response.

  It was all he needed.

  Evie woke with a smile on her lips to what appeared to be late-morning sun filtering in through the window dressing of the chamber she had been occupying for the last fortnight. She stretched, still feeling deliciously sated and alive in places she had never imagined existed before.

  Everything seemed the same.

  And yet, everything had changed.

  Theo had kissed her…between her legs. Her face burned at the memory of what he had done in those early-morning hours, but so too did the flesh he had pleasured. She was throbbing there, filled with a strange sensation of emptiness and neediness all at once. A desperation to know more. To feel his lips and tongue on her, his finger inside her, again.

  Who could have imagined such raw, unadulterated joy existed? That such pleasure was possible? Certainly not her.

  He had been so sweet and tender to her. After he had brought her to the heights of bliss three times, he had helped her to dress and guided her back to her chamber just before the servants had begun to roam the halls for the day. The way he had gazed down at her just before he had left her at the door to her chamber made her heart feel as if it had grown twice its size.

  The walls he had continually built had been dismantled at last. He had pressed a kiss to her crown, wrapped her in an embrace. For a moment, he had simply held her, pressed tightly to his chest, his warmth and strength surrounding her. She had breathed in deeply of his scent, clinging to him as well.

  All too quickly, it had been over.

  He had disengaged and left her standing in the hall with trembling limbs and a pounding heart.

  The door to her chamber flew open suddenly just then, interrupting her solitude.

  But it was the person flying over the threshold that shocked her more than the intrusion. Addy was racing toward her, face a mask of worry. “Evie, how are you feeling, dearest sister? When Devil sent over a note that you were ill, I feared the worst.”

  Her lovely twin sister, the dark to her light, swooped down on her as if she were a mama bird, pressing a hand to her forehead. “You do not feel feverish. Mayhap the fever has broken.”

  Feverish?

  Ill?

  Theo had sent over a note?

  The lovely sensations that had lingered as she woke were abruptly dashed as she blinked the remnants of slumber from her eyes and frowned at Addy. “Why are you here?”

  “Is it a lung infection? An ague?” Her sister frowned right back at her. “Have you been coughing? I have had a poultice made for you to lay on your chest. How long have you been sick? Devil said it was quite dreadful, these last few days. You do not look pale, however. Indeed, you appear quite hale.”

  Suspicion colored her sister’s tone by the time she stopped speaking. But the misgiving in Addy’s voice was nothing compared to the doubt that was suddenly threatening to drown Evie.

  “I am not ill,” she told her sister. “Not at all. I am perfectly well, as you can see. What nonsense is that which you speak of?”

  “Devil’s note suggested it was quite grave, that I must come here at once…”

  Addy’s words trailed off as she appeared to make sense of the situation.

  So did Evie. The walls which had been torn down had been erected once more. Only this time, he had built parapets atop them.

  A stinging rush of pain seared her. “Where is he?”

  She already knew the answer without having to ask the question. However, if there remained the smallest, most incremental chance he had not disappeared from her life as she suspected, she wanted to know. Had to know.

  “Where is who?” Her sister’s frown deepened. “Devil?”

  Evie almost corrected her with Theo until she realized how her familiarity would appear. As if she had been intimate with him. As if she were in love with him. All of which she was, of course.

  Good heavens.

  She barely stifled a bitter bark of laughter.

  “Yes,” she managed. “Mr. Winter. Where has he gone?”

  “I do not know where, only that he was called away.” Addy shook her head. “Back to The Devil’s Spawn, I expect, though Dom does his best to spare me from such matters. But it is you who must give me answers, Evie. Devil’s letter was most distressing. If you were feeling so poorly, why did you not give us warning before now? Despite the danger, we would have found a way to help you.”

  The danger, yes.

  Evie had all but forgotten about that in her distraction. A certain man had occupied her every thought these last two sennights. He occupied them still, in fact. She suspected he would never stop.

  But he had left her.

  He was gone.

  He had stripped her of her garments, taken her to the heights of pleasure, and then, he had disappeared. She ought to have suspected he would, at the very least. But she was ever the naïve, hopeful duke’s daughter he accused her of being. His fool, it would seem.

  She was not going to allow him to disappear, however.

  If he thought he could simply call back those walls that had come crumbling down between them in the early hours of the morning, he was wrong.

  “Evie?”

  Her sister’s worried face hovered before her, tearing her from her tumultuous thoughts.

  “I am not ill,” she managed to say.

  At least, not in the sense Addy had been led to believe by Theo’s nonsensical missive and obvious attempts to force her from his life.

  “Not ill?” Addy blinked. “I do not understand. Devil said it was imperative that I come to see you. He sent Blade here in his stead, to make certain you are protected.”

  Blade? Did every Winter sibling possess a dubious sobriquet?

  She shook her head, dreadfully distressed by this sudden, unwanted development. “Theo was being dishonest with you, Addy. He wanted you here so I would not go chasing after him.”

  Yes, that was the only thing that made sense. He wanted to retreat to the East End, and he did not want her to follow. That was why he had taken her to his bed. Last night had been his farewell.

  “Theo?” It was Addy’s turn to look confused now.

  Drat, she had forgotten herself after all.

  A flush stole over her cheeks as she thought about the man she had come to know, quite different from the beast she had initially supposed him to be. His head between her thighs mere hours before, his tongue inside her.

  “Mr. Winter,” she managed to correct herself, plucking at the coverlet in her agitation and avoiding her sister’s knowing gaze. “His Christian name is Theodore.”

  “Good heavens, Devil told you his Christian name?”

  “I was quite merciless until he did,” she admitted, because there was no use in keeping the way she felt for Theo a secret from her twin.

  She and Addy shared a unique bond, as close as two sisters could be. No one knew her better than Addy did. Except mayhap Theo, for she had shared parts of herself with him that she had never shared with anyone else.

  “This is worse than you being ill, is it not?” Addy pressed, already sensing the truth.

  She bit her lip, misery swamping her as she lifted her eyes to meet her twin’s once more. “I am in love with Theo, Addy.”

  “Oh, darling. You are betrothed to Lord Denton.” There was sympathy in her sister’s countenance. Worry, too.

  “I have discovered I no longer wish to become his wife.”

  “But Devil? Father will be furious, and I have no doubt he shall blame all this upon me.” Addy’s frown deepened. “In a sense, I suppose it is my fault. I never should have allowed the two of you to be here unchaperoned, in spite of the danger. But I never imagined… Devil scarcely speaks, and the two of you seemed enemies at first sight.”

  What Addy said was mostly true. Their father
had nearly had an apoplectic fit when Addy had returned from Oxfordshire married to Mr. Dominic Winter, the illegitimate owner of one of London’s most infamous gaming hells. Although Mr. Winter had proven himself an excellent husband to Addy—doting and loving in a fashion one never would have expected from the otherwise ruthless crime lord—their father still had not warmed to the notion of his daughter married to a commoner.

  Evie’s marriage to Denton was to have been the balm upon the wound. A means of removing the taint of scandal from the Duke of Linross’s precious reputation. And Evie herself had not minded. Lord Denton was handsome, sought after, the perfect match in every way.

  Save the only one she now realized mattered most.

  She was not in love with him, and nor would she ever be.

  Her heart belonged to one man alone.

  “I cannot explain what happened,” Evie admitted softly, slowly. “I did not care for him at first, it is true. I thought him a rude ogre of a man. But he is not at all the man I supposed him to be.”

  “I do not understand. If you are in love with Devil, why has he suddenly gone from your side? Why did he send me a note suggesting you were ill and that I needed to attend you immediately?” her twin asked.

  “Because he believes we are too different, that our worlds cannot mingle. He is trying to keep me from him, to put distance between us and prove to me that a lady and a man born on the wrong side of the blanket cannot find happiness together.”

  That part still hurt her heart quite desperately. Knowing he would sooner disappear than fight for her… Oh, Theo. She would fight for them both. However she must. She vowed it.

  “It would not be easy for you to be certain,” Addy said. “There will be some doors that forever close to you, as they have for me. Our society can forgive many sins, but mesalliances are not one of them.”

  Evie knew that already, of course, as did Addy. From the time they had been old enough to walk, the rigid notion of propriety, the rules of society, and every expectation their parents had for them had been rigidly ingrained upon them. For all that, they had turned into quite the scandalous lot. Their sister Hannah had been forced into a marriage of convenience by their father to hide her past indiscretions. She had been quite miserable and had only just reunited with the man she loved. Addy had married Dominic Winter, their brother Max was a notorious ne’er do well, and now Evie intended to jilt Lord Denton and chase after Theo.

  Supposing he would have her, that was.

  The reminder of his morning defection stung anew.

  “I do not know if Theo wishes to marry me. Certainly, he has never spoken of such matters,” she confessed. “I…have no expectations.”

  Not even after what had passed between them. He had taken care not to make love to her completely. Evie may have never kissed a man until Theo, but her insatiable curiosity, coupled with some salacious novels Addy had pilfered from their brother’s belongings, meant she knew enough to understand what they had done together hours before had left her a virgin.

  Because he intended for her to marry Lord Denton.

  Her heart gave a pang.

  “He said nothing to you?” her twin asked.

  “Of course he did not.” She sighed. “Theo is… He guards his heart well, I believe. But it is there, big and tender and generous. I want to be the one to keep it, to protect it, if only he will let me.”

  “Evie, please tell me you have not been…indecorous with my husband’s brother,” Addy said, her tone scandalized.

  Evie bit her lip, pondering her sister’s words. “Mayhap you ought to define indecorous. Your notion of it may differ from mine.”

  Addy’s eyes widened. “You know quite well what I mean. Have you allowed him liberties?”

  “Pray, do not act shocked, sister mine.” Evie raised a brow. “Have you forgotten it was I who helped you to sneak away to The Devil’s Spawn without getting caught? Or that you returned at nearly dawn, looking as if you had been utterly debauched?”

  Because Evie rather suspected her sister had been debauched that night, though Addy had remained somewhat secretive about what had transpired between herself and Mr. Winter at the time. Evie did not think the gentle roundness swelling behind her sister’s gown could suggest anything other than a thorough bedding on the evening in question.

  Addy flushed. “Of course I have not forgotten, but that was different, Evie. I was aiding Max.”

  “Max should never have involved you in his recklessness,” Evie countered. “But that is neither here nor there. You cannot play the role of outraged sister with me. You are no stranger to scandal yourself. Goodness, none of us are.”

  Addy sighed. “I merely want to protect you, Evie. I fear I have already brought enough danger and upheaval into your life by marrying Dom. If it were not for me, you would never have been shot by brigands. And now, you are speaking of upending your entire future after a fortnight spent with a man whose acquaintance you have only recently made. A gentleman you were quite strong in professing your dislike for.”

  “Do not look at me as if I have lost my wits, Addy. I know what I want, and it is not to be Lady Denton. I want to follow my heart as you have done. I want a love like Romeo and Juliet’s.”

  “Romeo and Juliet both ended up dead,” Addy observed grimly.

  “Not the conclusion of their love,” Evie explained. “But the strength of it, the way it endured despite all the obstacles between them. The way they loved each other, though to the outside world it seemed they should not.”

  If only she knew Theo’s true feelings for her. He had certainly never mentioned love. Neither had she, however.

  “You are certain you are in love with Devil Winter?” her sister asked, searching her gaze.

  “I have never been more certain of anything else. I cannot be Lord Denton’s wife, Addy. Not when my heart belongs to another. It would not be fair to either one of us, and I cannot live the rest of my life longing for the one who could have made me whole. I do not care about the circumstances of his birth. Nor do I care for society or doors that may close to me. He is all I need and everything I want.”

  “I know the feeling, because it is the way I feel about my own husband.” Addy covered Evie’s hand with hers. “Love is stronger than fear. If you are in love with Devil, then you should tell him. See where he stands, and then decide what you shall do from there.”

  Relief and gratitude rushed over her, along with love for her twin. “Thank you, sister.”

  Her decision had been made. She was going to tell Theo she was in love with him.

  All she had to do was find him first.

  Chapter Ten

  The East End was always changing. Families came to power and then sank to the depths of poverty. Babes were born. Men and women died. Buildings were torn asunder or destroyed by flame, only to be replaced with new brick and mortar. New gaming hells opened with regularity. Enemies were always out to prosper. And most men did not possess a goddamn mite’s worth of honor.

  One thing that would never change: Devil Winter would do everything he could to protect his family. And that was why he was being ushered to the lair of one Jasper Sutton alone, with nary a weapon to defend himself. Sutton and his family had long been the nemesis of the Winter clan.

  But at the moment, Devil needed the bastard’s help.

  They had a common enemy who, if what he had learned the night before was to be believed, was also behind the recent fires at The Devil’s Spawn and the shots that had been fired at Evie. His need to protect her was stronger than his pride.

  He would swallow every last drop he possessed—and poison too—if it meant keeping her safe.

  Sutton was on his feet behind a desk fine enough to rival Dom’s, carved lion heads adorning each of the four legs. He was a formidable man, with a height to rival Devil’s and a similarly brutish size. But he also had a bloody reputation and a penchant for poaching Winter customers and staff. He had become a master at copying everything the Winters
did. Prizefights, gaming, wenches at the green baize, hiring a French chef, discovering the source of all their smuggled Scots whisky…the list went on.

  Their rivalry had quickly become bitter.

  But now, another potential enemy, more dangerous and depraved, and far more willing to hurt anyone he could—even an innocent lady—was attempting to move in on their shared territory. The thought of the son of a whore made Devil’s blood boil, the need to exact vengeance all-consuming.

  “We meet again, Winter,” Sutton drawled.

  He was referring to their last, unexpectedly civil meeting at The Devil’s Spawn when Sutton had conceded his waterworks to Devereaux Winter in exchange for one of Winter’s prized warehouses near the docks. The bargain had won Dom the goodwill of his wife and had granted the Winters control over the quality and price of their water.

  Devil offered a mocking bow, playing the part of civilized gentleman. “Thank you for agreeing to see me. Could’ve managed without a dozen of your lackeys searching me for guns and shivs.”

  Sutton inclined his head. “An eye for an eye, a twat for a twat.”

  Christ, but this man nettled him. “Tooth for a tooth, Sutton.”

  Sutton clasped his hands behind his back and strolled forward. “Nay. ’Tis a twat for a twat in this instance. Your brother came to me for a set of petticoats and now you. Besides. You’re both twats.”

  Devil stiffened. What could Jasper Sutton know of Evie? His hands clenched into fists at his sides. “Watch your tongue, Sutton, else I may be tempted to rip it out and feed it to one of your bloody mongrels.”

  Jasper Sutton’s hounds were menacing and notoriously vicious. Word had it they had torn many a trespasser or a thief’s limbs from his body.

  “My dogs only have a taste for the blood of my enemies,” Sutton said. “You’d make a feast for them.”

  “I did not come here to wage war with you, Sutton,” he gritted.