There was someone in the room with her, a man sprawled in one of the plump chairs beside the hearth. She immediately recognized Julius, for his handsome face was bathed in a golden light that emanated from the blaze of a warming fire. His eyes were closed and his head casually rested against the cushioned seat back.
However, she did not think he was asleep.
There was too much vibrancy about him even in repose. In truth, his muscles appeared taut, his body tense and ready to spring at the slightest provocation.
She eased back against her pillows, liking the comfortable silence that filled the room.
It wasn’t tomb-like, just peaceful.
There were a few familiar sounds such as the quiet whoosh of the wind outside and the hiss and crackle of burning wood in the hearth that gave the room an aura of coziness.
She took advantage of the quiet moment to study Julius in his unguarded pose.
He had the handsomest face she had ever beheld. Indeed, his facial structure was absolute perfection. Firm jaw, aquiline nose, high cheekbones, full lips that she ached to feel upon hers. Even his body structure was perfect. Broad shoulders, trim waist, long and powerful legs. Muscled arms that she yearned to have hold her.
She wiped away a stray tear that trickled down her cheek.
Would she always feel this desperate longing for him?
Gory rarely cried, but she had lost count how many times those tears had spilled forth today.
Some of those crying jags could be attributed to the laudanum she had been dosed with to stem her pain from the ugly wound now tightly stitched and pulling on her scalp. A duller pain throbbed throughout her head. Front, back, and sideways in her skull.
Some of her tears were due to this actual physical pain, but not all.
Her tears also flowed because she mourned for her uncle and the unnatural cause of his death. She also grieved for her aunt, as unlikable as the woman was. But no one should have to deal with such an abrupt and devastating change of circumstances.
Finally, Gory’s tears came on at odd moments whenever she was feeling vulnerable and heartsick because of her love for Julius.
It tore her heart to pieces knowing they would never be together.
Why had she agreed to marry Chandler Allendale? All hope of building a life with Julius would be lost once she wed the viscount.
As slim a hope as that was, it existed as a possibility while she remained unmarried.
Dear heaven.
Should she not put off the wedding? No one would think twice about it if she did. Her uncle’s death. Her injury. The ongoing investigation.
These were all persuasive reasons for delaying the ceremony.
Or was she merely prolonging her misery by her impractical, and somewhat desperate, wish that Julius might someday grow to love her?
“Gory?”
He must have heard her sniffles, for he was immediately on his feet and stalking toward her with the familiar grace of a big cat. “Do you need more medicine? Dr. Farthingale told me to wait until midnight before I gave you more laudanum. But…”
“I’ll manage until midnight. I wasn’t crying out in pain.”
He grazed his knuckles across her cheek in a loving gesture. “Then why are you crying, love?”
For you.
“No specific reason. Because of everything that’s happened, I think.”
He sat on the edge of the mattress beside her, no doubt settling close for a better look at her. His hip touched hers, for the mattress dipped as he settled his weight on it and slid her toward him.
Not that she needed any encouragement to draw closer to this man.
