Chapter Twelve
“Alone at last.” Reid closed the door of Prudence’s room, shutting the two of them inside. “Brent and Emmeline are an adorable couple. But I’m done with adorable.”
“Oh really?” Prudence glanced at him.
“Yes. I want magnificent. Come here.” He held out his hands, waiting for her.
“You’re very sure of yourself.” She put her palms in his and let him draw her close.
“I’m very sure of us,” he answered. And kissed her.
Ohhowhe kissed her. It was everything she’d ever dreamed of, ever imagined a kiss should be. It was passionate, loving and demanding, his lips taking her into their own private world where nothing and no one existed but them.
Turning, moving, touching and holding, Pru had no idea how long the kiss lasted, but by the time it was done and they drew apart, she was breathless, a little dizzy and shaking from head to foot.
Raising a hand to her lips, she just looked at him, loving how disheveled he was, how the color in his cheeks had risen and how his eyes were languorous as they stared at her.
“Reid.” She spoke his name with reverence.
“Pru, when I couldn’t find you—my heart nearly stopped.” He held her again, rubbing his hands up and down her back as if to reassure himself she was real.
“I’m sorry, Reid. Really sorry. I shouldn’t have left you like that.”
“No, you shouldn’t.” He snuggled her into his embrace. “But I’m going to assume you had a good reason. And that’s what Ireallywant to know. Why you left our bed, and left me alone.” He let her go at last. “Were you unhappy, love?”
She walked away from him, knowing that now was the time for honesty.
And dreading it.
“No, Reid, no. I wasn’t unhappy. Quite the contrary. I have never been as happy as am I in your arms. And in your bed.” She held up a hand as he made to move toward her. “But I have come to realize that there is something special between us, and I don’t know if I can allow that.”
“I don’t understand.”
“I know. And I will have to tell you. So please, sit. Let me tell my story in my own way. And then we will see where we stand.”
He hesitated, but then nodded. “Very well.” He took the chair and she sat on the edge of the bed. “Please. Tell me what you think I need to know.”
She swallowed and nodded. “As you know, my mother passed away at my birth. But what I didn’t tell you, and what very few people know, is that my father was not the man she was married to at the time.” She looked away, unable to watch his face as she spoke the fatal words. “I’m a bastard, Reid. An illegitimate child who does not know who her father is. That’s why I was sent to Aunt Dorothea.”
She looked at him then, seeing him regarding her steadily.
“I had to wed Eldridge. He was the only man who would accept me, although my aunt did her best to keep my past buried.” Her gaze dropped to her hands, folded in her lap. “He knew, of course. But he was desperate for an heir. And a housekeeper. I served both functions, though his efforts to sire a child came to naught. However, his house was spotless.”
Reid made a sound at this, a kind of grunt. But he did not speak. Perhaps he was trying to think of a way to leave the room politely. He would do it politely, she knew. He’d try not to hurt her, but he would leave. It was inevitable.
“So there you have it. I’m nothing but an illegitimate impostor pretending to be a lady. And as such, Reid, you can now understand why I’m completely wrong for one such as you.”
“Such as me?” His voice was level, but gave nothing away.
“Yes.” She stood and began to pace. She could remain seated no longer, since her unusual nerves were starting to make her apprehensive. It was unlike her, but this was a situation unlike any other she’d experienced.
“Reid, you are a Chillendale. You have centuries of heritage and tradition behind you and duties you owe to your name, your family and your tenants. You’re every bit as bound to your name as are the Spencers or the Devonshires. There may not be a grand title and a house in London with the Chillendale name on it, but your traditions are every bit as rooted in the past as theirs.”
“I see.”
“I don’t know if you do. But think about it. We enjoy being together more than anything. Whatever has happened between us, has happened and there’s no denying it. But we can’t follow through any further, Reid, no matter how much either of us want to. You cannot marry a bastard, to be blunt. You simply cannot.”
“Says who?”
