No words.
Just air moving in and out of her lungs, theshush-shushof her feet on the wooden floor, and the twang of their blades crossing.
Blood pulsed in her ears, clogging her throat and banding her chest.
The faster she went, the more precisely he matched her.
She had thought to banish the allure of him.
But . . . the opposite happened.
The hotter her blood flowed, the more flashes of her former self floated to the surface.
The thrill of adventure. The allure of a different life.
He was stunning in motion—liquid and lithe.
Her eyes kept darting back to the V of his chest at his throat. To the muscles rippling underneath his shirt. To the wedding ring swinging on its chain underneath, pressing against the fine cloth.
Did she, disgraced sailor and future vicar’s wife, truly own this ship master’s heart as he claimed? Had she willingly accepted him as her husband? And had he counted himself lucky for it?
It felt . . . impossible.
And yet . . .
Watching him move . . .
She wanted.
She yearned.
He took advantage of her momentary distraction, tangling her blade in his. The action should have stripped theépéefrom her hand, but instead, he held the blades together, essentially trapping her in place.
He stepped forward, so close scarcely a half a foot separated them.
His pale eyes snared her.
“Anytime,” he whispered.
“Pardon?” she gasped, lungs burning for air.
“I know that look on your face.”
“What look is that?” She licked her lips. His eyes followed the motion.
“The look that says ye wish tae touch me.” He lifted his eyes back to hers, his gaze so very . . . hungry.
Lungs, words, breath, thought—everypart of her froze.
“And my reply—” He halved the space between them, his body so close the heat of him singed her, so close that his breath brushed her mouth. “—is that ye can touch me whenever ye would like. Anytime. Anyplace. Anywhere. I willalwayswelcome your hands on my person.”
He flicked his wrist at that, the final gesture to pull theépéefrom her hand, sending both their blades clattering to the floor.
The abrupt motion caused her to tumble forward, her palm pressed to his chest, pressing tight against the wedding ring there.
He caught her against him, one hand banded around her waist, the other pressed between her shoulder blades.
The sensation was too much.
