Her entire body flushed a deep red and she dipped her head down so she wouldn’t have to look him in the eye. Finally, to her relief, she was able to stop coughing. It was embarrassing enough being naked without having him watch her hack like a chimney sweep.
“Helena?” he asked softly.
She peeped at him through her eyelashes.
“Are you all right?”
“Y-yes.” She gave one more cough and was relieved that it didn’t go on and on.
“Right… well.” He bent down and lifted her into his arms.
She squeaked in surprise, crossing her legs as he carried her over to the bed. Her breasts were bouncing up and down, but there wasn’t much she could do about it.
“I knocked on your door because I came across your lady’s maid going upstairs to bed. I assumed that you had already gone to bed yourself.” His eyes dropped to her naked body as he put her on her feet again and he frowned. “Does she often leave before finishing with you?”
She put a quelling hand on his chest. “I asked her to go. I’m perfectly capable of getting out of the bath on my own.”
He grinned. “It didn’t look that way to me.”
Then, his eyes dropped to her breasts, and his gaze darkened with desire. He reached out with both hands and cupped her breasts, massaging gently.
“You must be cold,” he said. “Do you want to get into bed?”
She huffed. “Cold? How could I possibly be cold after that hot bath, with the fire blazing so high?”
He cocked an eyebrow. “Is it so ridiculous then?”
She snorted. “After the convent? Yes it is.”
He looked towards the bath. “What happened over there? Why were you flailing about like that?”
Her cheeks burned even more. “I was just startled.”
All the while, he was massaging her breasts. She didn’t know if she should say something about it or not.
“Perhaps next time I might join you, if you like to lounge in your bath.” He smirked.
She looked towards the narrow wooden tub with doubt in her eyes. “I do not think you would fit.”
“Mmm, I don’t know. If you were to sit on me, I think we’d fit just fine.”
Her eyes narrowed as she tried to imagine it. It was difficult because his hands on her breasts were very distracting. But when she finally visualized it, the two of them, naked, in hot water, with her in his lap, her eyes widened. His… hardness…would be right under…her brain scrambled, even trying to think about it.
He laughed and she turned to look at him inquiringly. “You know it’s strange. When you first came here, your eyes were so opaque I could barely see a thing in them. But now… it’s like a window into your mind, the glass clear so I can see everything you’re thinking.”
She blinked a few times, nonplused. “And… what was I… thinking?”
Still smiling, he bent down and whispered in her ear, his breath ghosting on her wet neck and making her shiver while his hands moved from her breasts to her waist, holding her close.
“You were imagining us together, in the bath.”
She blanched, her face paling and then showing her colors. Her lashes fluttered as she didn’t know where to look.
“I-I-I…” she stammered.
“Don’t worry,” he continued to whisper, “We will fit very… very… snugly.”
“Oh.” She felt her knees go weak.
