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December 23, 1810
Morning
Hope came awake gradually, and when she opened her eyes fully, it was to the most welcome sight. Weak sunlight came through the window since the curtains hadn’t been drawn the night before, and she blinked from the unexpected illumination. Clouds scudded across the skies, but they were breaking, and the valiant sun would have its victory, perhaps by noon.
Flutters of excitement went up her spine. The storm was over!
As she watched, snow no longer danced past the window glass and neither did the sound of the wind whistle around the panes. At long last, the work of digging out the roads would begin and if the temperatures continued to climb, perhaps some of the snow would melt.
Then her spirits plummeted, and knots of worry pulled in her belly.
Oh, no! The storm is over.
That meant her time alone with the duke was nearly at an end. With a frown, Hope rolled over. Brook remained in slumber beside her, but unlike the two nights they’d already spent, there was no longer much distance between them on the bed. In fact, he laid in repose not six inches away. Her heart trembled. Unexpectedly, they had become bonded together, but now the snow and wind had subsided, how long would it be before their little charade was done and they would be forced to move on to Yorkshire where he would give her into his aunt’s care?
There was simply no way to tell.
The even rise and fall of the duke’s chest recalled her attention. She planted her elbow onto the bed and propped her chin into her hand while she observed him. Truly, he was a beautiful man. A faint shadow of stubble had crept over his jaw, chin, and cheeks. Blond hair mixed with threads of silver, which matched the hair on his head and chest. There was a faint smile flirting with his lips while he slept, and she hoped his dreams were sweet. Beyond his physical attributes—some of which she’d been more than intimately acquainted with the night before—his soul was lovely. During their time together, he’d been receptive to new ideas and eager to change his thinking.
Both would let him go far as he continued his work in parliament or in the event he wished to enter into the Marriage Mart again. Worry knotted in her belly once more. Even though a shaft of jealousy speared through her, she pushed it away. Of course, he wasn’t for her—they didn’t move in the same circles—but she wished him well in the pursuit of happiness and perhaps finding love anew. He wasn’t the sort of man to spend the remainder of his life alone. A good woman would only enhance who he was.
Never would she regret the time she had been given with him this Christmastide. He had shown her what it was like to be wanted and desired even if they hadn’t coupled, and never would he know how much that meant to her. She would long dine out on the memories created with him while she slept in her lonely bed in Yorkshire.
On impulse, Hope leaned over him and brushed his lips with hers. “I hope you find whatever it is you are searching for, Brook.” Her whispered words sounded too loud in the stillness of the morning. “Above all, I pray you let happiness enter your life again if it presents itself.” When tears prickled the backs of her eyelids, she maneuvered from the bed as quietly as she could without waking him.
Quickly padding to the window, she peered outside. In the weak sunlight, the snow cover sparkled like millions of diamonds had fallen from the heavens. At least a foot of whiteness blanketed the ground. Drifts and hillocks dotted the landscape, but the precipitation had ceased. Sooner or later, the roads would be passable, though it was doubtful that would happen in the next couple of days.
Perhaps she shouldn’t complain, for she would have a bit more time to pretend she was married to the man in the bed. With a smile, she made her way around the bed as the cold seeped into her bare feet.
As much as she tried to ignore thoughts of the duke as she made use of the chamber pot behind the privacy screen, he forced his way into her imagination anyway. In the clear light of morning, she was abashed at her daring from the night before. Good heavens, after talking to him and sharing all of those kisses with the man, she’d sought to bring him comfort and a distraction. Because of that, she’d taken his member into her mouth. She’d orally pleasured a duke, for Jove’s sake! The fact that she’d trespassed so intimately, had done scandalous things to him sent heat into her cheeks. He’d even tried to dissuade her, but she’d done the deed anyway.
Thank goodness for his wherewithal not to spend down her throat. The courtesy was appreciated, but there had been a part of her that had wanted that honor, had wanted to taste him, to be the woman to leave such an impression upon him. What would have happened had he pulled her off him but instead of releasing his seed onto the floor, he’d claimed her body instead?
Oh, it is maddening to think about! And yet, there was a heavy sense of longing sitting inside because she wanted something she could never have.
More confused than ever, Hope washed her face and hands in the icy cold water. It had frozen around the edges but at least she could actually use the water this morning as opposed to yesterday. The bracing temperature of her abbreviated bath served to wake her fully and render her brain more alert. When her stomach released a resounding growl of hunger, she snickered. Never had she been hungrier than she had on this trip.
By the time she returned to the bed, the duke was awake, and he was watching her from his position of being propped against both pillows. The intense look in his eyes sent tingles of excitement down her spine to lodge between her thighs. “Good morning.” The deep rumble tickled through her lower belly. “I trust you slept well.”
“I did.” It was wildly unfair that he appeared so refreshed and devilishly handsome without having done anything in the way of a toilet. “Did you?”
“Remarkably, yes. I cannot remember the last time I had no dreams—bad or otherwise.”
“Perhaps you needed the uninterrupted rest.”
“Perhaps.” With casual elegance and leisure, he drifted his gaze up and down her body. “Thank you for last night. All of it. I, uh, appreciate what you did for me.”
Was it her imagination or was the section of sheet draped over his lap tenting? Knowing he might be aroused by her again tugged a smile from her. “We all deserve a surcease from grief, Brook, all deserve to know there might be hope.”
“Indeed.” He grinned. “Hope.” The corners of his eyes crinkled, and that look was devastating to her peace of mind. “You are hope, did you know that?”
Was he... flirting with her? Heat slapped at her cheeks. “I like to give that to others. Perhaps my parents named me correctly.”
“I’ll wager there’s a story behind your name, hmm?”
“A bit.”
“Will you tell me?”
“That depends.” Her stomach released another definitive growl.
“On whether you have breakfast?” he asked with another grin.
“Yes.” Oh, why was it so easy to talk to him? And why couldn’t she stop staring at his naked chest? Or thinking that it might be fun to lap spilled tea from that flat abdomen?
“Very well.” He nodded. “Shall I order breakfast, or do you wish to go down?”
Was it possible to expire from heat? Seeing him in such a state of undress in the daylight was rapidly diminishing her ability to think clearly. Touching that chest in the privacy of the darkness was one thing but being presented with the undeniable truth of his masculinity without shadow was quite another. “Uh...” She forced a swallow into her suddenly dry throat. “Honestly, I would rather eat here in this room, with you.”
Would he think her a ninny? A bumpkin not fit to converse properly with a duke?
“Then I shall make it happen.” Amusement twinkled in his blue eyes. “Though the storm has blown itself out, I’ll venture to guess we will not leave this inn anytime soon.”
From your lips to God’s ears. And heaven help her to have the strength to leave him when that time did come. It had been all too lovely having a man pay such specialized attention to her.
Brook finished with a simple knot of his cravat in some bemusement, for behind the privacy screen, Hope was dressing, and she was all too excited about the prospect of breakfast. It was such a simple thing, but she apparently considered it a wonderful part of her day.
And perhaps she had the right of it. When he reached for his jacket—a rich brown superfine today merely to break the monotony of wearing the same thing—he glanced toward the screen. The prospect of dining with her in the privacy of their room was all too charming.
How was it possible a woman he’d met two days ago was making such an impression on him? It was maddening, or perhaps he was slowly going insane due to a Christmastide storm, but as she approached the bed, her smile lit the room, and he thought things wouldn’t be half bad if he could wake up and see that for a handful of years more.
“The navy dress suits you.” Cut more whimsically than her traveling outfit, the bodice was lower and gave a glimpse at the tops of her modest breasts, and it featured three-quarter sleeves. A faint trim of a satin ribbon, also in navy, went about the bottom hem of the dress.
“Thank you. I’m afraid my wardrobe is quite dull compared to what you are accustomed to seeing on ladies in London.” She plucked an ivory woolen shawl from the bed and then wrapped it about her shoulders, which hid that tantalizing peek at her décolletage from view.
“Pish posh, Mrs. Gerard. You would look lovely in anything you don.” Or sans clothing if you would prefer. Damnation, but how much did he want to see her naked and reclining on that bed for his consumption and perusal? His mind jogged to what she’d done to him last night, what he’d let her do, and heat twisted up his spine. He shouldn’t have indulged, shouldn’t have agreed, but the moment her warm, wet mouth had closed over his shaft, he’d been lost.
A pretty blush stained her cheeks. “You are too kind.”
I am a man who hasn’t been physical with a woman in far too long. And perhaps he was slowly going insane because of it. “No. I am honest.” He struggled into the jacket, for if he asked for her assistance, he was afraid that her touch during an ordinary act such as putting said garment on might push him further into temptation.
Once more, he retreated into musings. Perhaps his earlier thought was ridiculous, but the longer he spent in her company, the more he came to admire and appreciate her. Life didn’t work like that, and not between two people so far apart on society’s scale. Hell, he’d courted his wife for six months before their engagement, and then was engaged for another six after that. Yet Hope, that bit of womanhood with bewitching features and a sense of fun, made him think he’d known her for a long time, and that if she were with him a few more days, she might give him a new purpose.
Was that what he wanted?
There was no way of knowing. Perhaps she merely had an old soul or perhaps it was fate that had put them here at the same time and it was just happenstance. Nothing more, but then how to explain the near-instant attraction and the scandal there were already mired in?
He didn’t want to think too much about it, so he quickly did up the buttons while Hope shoved pins into her hair, securing the nondescript knot once more to the back of her head.
A discreet knock at the door interrupted any chance for further conversation, and as he swung the panel open, a modicum of relief shivered down his spine. At least right now he wouldn’t act on the urge to claim her body. He gave a tight smile to the footman in the narrow corridor beyond.
“Your tea and breakfast, Mr. Gerard.”
“Excellent.” Brook stood aside and let the other man into the room. “Uh, has there been a report upon the state of the roads?”
The footman shook his head. “Not yet, but a few of us will go out after breakfast to make an assessment.” He set a tray onto the top of the bureau. A teapot, two cups, and various assorted breakfast foods waited for consumption. “By teatime, we should have a few answers.”
“Thank you.” Brook closed the door once the footman departed. When he turned around, he caught Hope’s gaze with his. She watched him with a certain wary sadness lining her face. “What?”
“I had acclimated myself—”
“—resigned yourself, you mean?” he interrupted with a grin merely to cheer her up.
“Fine.” She sighed, and when her kissable lips curved with a tiny smile, his chest tightened. “Resigned myself to being stranded here for a week, but now that we might be on the road again so soon...”
He nodded as her words trailed off. “I understand. This has been an unexpected but lovely reprieve from day-to-day life.” Cold dread twisted down his spine. Once the roads were passable and he delivered her to his aunt, their paths would separate. He was a duke, and she was in reduced circumstances, forced to take a position. It was highly unlikely they would ever meet again unless he traveled north again to visit his aunt.
Damn, that is a depressing thought.
“Yes.” Her smile widened, and immediately his mood lifted. “It was something not anticipated but I’m glad it happened, if only for the opportunity to meet you.”
Oh, God!
For the space of a few heartbeats, warmth spread around his heart. He experienced a sensation of incredible belonging, then he tamped it before such things could grow out of hand. “I could say the same of you.” If he didn’t gain control of his emotions, he would make a fool of himself. “Now, come, let us partake of this breakfast.”
His hand shook as he poured out tea for her. The sense of dread persisted, though. His aunt would wear Hope down, would harangue her within an inch of her life, and surely dim her spark. How could he allow that to happen? But conversely, how could it not? This was her future, and if she didn’t take this position, what would become of her? Brook stared too intently at her while she took her cup and frowned. If she didn’t go forward, would she be forced to make a living on her back like what happened to so many other women in her circumstances?
Absolutely not. I won’t allow it. Surely if she begged off this assignment, he could help in locating a different one, perhaps have her placed in London with a prominent family so he would have a chance to see her in society...
“Brook?”
“Yes?” He scowled at the teapot as he poured a measure into his own cup.
“What must your thoughts be to put such a fierce expression on your face?”
Heat crept up the back of his neck. “I apologize. Woolgathering, I suppose.”
“Do you want to talk about it?” She joined him at the bureau and plucked one of the loaded plates from the tray. “I’m a good listener.” When she bumped her hip against his, charged reaction streaked through him.
“Uh...” He took a gulp of the tea. It burned his throat and resulted in a bout of coughing. “It is nothing of consequence,” he managed to gasp out as he wiped at his streaming eyes.
“All right.” Hope took her plate over to the high-backed wooden chair. Once she sat down, she balanced the plate on her lap. “Perhaps later we could venture outside?”
“Whyever for?” The piece of toast he’d taken from his own plate remained uneaten in his hand as he paused. “It’s snow.” Truly, he was perplexed by her request.
“Yes, but it has been an age since we have had this much snow at Christmastide. I thought it might be fun to explore while the world has a blanket of white.” A dreamy look fell over her. “Can you imagine what it would feel like to tramp through those woods?” She put her plate on the small table nearby next to her teacup and then moved to the window. “See there, Brook? There’s a fox out foraging for a meal. That’s a good indication the storm is well and truly over. Soon, the snow will begin to melt, I’ll wager, and England will see a return of the rain. All the magic will be gone.”
When she glanced at him from over her shoulder with that bewitching light in her doe-brown eyes and her features arrested in anticipation, a shudder went down his spine. The last thing he wished to do was go out into that fluffy cold world, but with a handful of words, she’d captivated him. How the devil did he think he could deny her anything?
“I would enjoy that.” Perhaps a little too much. “We shall set out once we’re finished with breakfast. Afterward, we will spend a bit of time in the common room with our fellow travelers and see how they’re faring.”
Because he would need the distraction. The more he was alone with Hope, the greater the urge to do something beyond scandalous to her—with her. The two of them could only be so lucky before someone discovered his true identity. Yet...
Hope giggled and once more her smile lit up the room. “Oh, this will be such fun, Your Grace.” She laid a palm against the glass. “I haven’t played in the snow since early in my childhood.”
“Then we shall make certain today is something you’ll never forget.” For I certainly won’t. His heart squeezed as he turned back to his breakfast. Already, he was being pulled forward, back into the land of the living to put distance between him and the heartbreak of the past. How had she managed to do that? He didn’t know, but part of him was anxious to see what happened next.
Even if it meant their eventual parting would prove bittersweet.
