Malcolm chuckled. He opened the last door at the end of the corridor and, after a quick perusal, stepped back to allow her to go inside. The room was small but thankfully neat. A good-sized copper tub sat in the middle. It had fresh linen draped inside and was filled halfway with water.
A servant bustled into the room. “One more bucket, my lord.” The young man dumped a large bucket of water into the tub. “Clean towels are on the rack there,” he said. His gaze slid licentiously over her body. “Is there anything I can help you with, ma’am?”
Kingsbury stepped forward. “No, that will be all.” He scowled at the servant, sending that delicious shiver through her again. The servant scurried out.
Kingsbury continued to frown. “I don’t care for the way he was looking at you. And I don’t think you should be down here alone and exposed. I shall stand guard in the hallway. Take your time.”
He stepped outside and closed the door behind him. Adeline let out a long breath. It wasn’t the servant that had her worried. It was her own reaction to Kingsbury, and his broad chest and sinewy forearms, and delicious kisses. She tugged off her clothes, mourning the pair of silk stockings stained with muddy water. First, she dipped her fingers in the water. It wasn’t hot, but at least reasonably warm. Then she stepped carefully into the tub and sank down, the water rising to her breasts. The tub was long enough for her to stretch her legs out, but as she was just over five feet tall she had fairly short legs. Malcolm would never fit in this tub.
Thoughts of Malcolm in the bath rose in her mind. He would probably look glorious naked, like one of the Greek gods depicted in her books. Her nipples pebbled in the cooler air of the room. She ran her wet fingertips over them. Circling the peaked tips, she imagined that Malcolm had stayed to wash her. He would be naked to the waist so as not to dampen his shirt. He would take a cloth in his big hands and stroke it over her body slowly, thoroughly. Adeline’s hand slid around the curve of her breast, trailed down her stomach, and tangled in the curls of her mons. She moaned as she imagined his fingers finding her clit, circling and rubbing as she did now.
She opened her knees wider as she played with her sex. Malcolm would surely be a skilled lover. Perhaps he would fill her slick core with his finger. She pumped her hips up, imagining his hands stroking her body, stroking inside her. Mmmm, yes. He would bend over and capture her mouth in a searing kiss. His tongue tangling with hers while his fingers played with her sex below the water. Adeline’s breath hitched. Her clit throbbed under her fingers. Fingers that were frantic now, rubbing her pearl. She was so close to her crisis, but she didn’t want to come yet, so she stilled and pulled her hand away to drag it up and down the inside of her thigh.
In her fantasy, Malcolm would tease her, he would take his time to explore her body. Her breath came out in short pants as she thought about exploring his. Would he allow her to run her hands across his chest and tease his flat nipples? Would they be as sensitive as hers? She pinched her nipples, imagining that Malcolm would tease them with his tongue. Letting out a small moan, she found her clit again. This time, she didn’t hold back. Her fantasy of having Malcolm’s hands, his tongue, worshiping her body sent her right over the edge with his name falling from her lips.
Chapter Twenty-One
Malcolm paced awayfrom the door.Christ.He shouldn’t be listening. Turning on his heel, he strode back to the wooden door—a door that did nothing to block the sounds coming from inside the bathing chamber. Sounds that couldn’t be what he thought they were. No, it must be his own lust-fueled imagination that made it sound like Adeline was inside the bathtub pleasuring herself. Another moan, followed by an audible sigh of pleasure, came through the keyhole.
Malcolm adjusted his pants as his cock began to fill and harden. Damnation. He glanced down the corridor before stepping closer to the door. Leaning against the jamb with one shoulder, he imagined Adeline in the bath, water lapping at her naked body. Where were her hands? What sort of touches did she enjoy? Soft and gentle, or did she like rough, desperate hands. More importantly, what did she think of as she touched herself? He stifled a groan in response to a softyes, that’s itthat drifted out. Did she have her fingers buried in the dark curls of her mons?
Sounds of splashing water came through the door, and then, Malcolm heard his own name on the wings of a soft moan.Christ, had she come with his name on her lips? He silently beat his head against the doorjamb and then let out a long exhalation. His lips turned up into a grin. Perhaps Adeline Amberley was as enamored with him as he was with her. Perhaps all her talk of being mad was a bluff. This he could work with.
He took several deep breaths in and willed his cock to stand down. From inside, he could hear her step out of the bath, the water sloshing as she rose. He took a few steps backward and leaned against the wall. Five minutes later, the door swung open, and Adeline exited looking so pretty in a sunny yellow dress. Her eyes shone brightly, and dark tendrils of damp hair framed her face. Her cheeks and chest were flushed pink. Malcolm felt his own cheeks heat as he thought about how they got to be so. “All done?” he managed to rasp.
She nodded but would not meet his eyes.Take it slow, you idiot.She clearly isn’t ready to tell you how she feels. But God, he could not be this close to her, so beautiful and fresh from thinking about him in the bath, without kissing her. He grasped her arms and lifted her up off her feet high enough he could feel her hot breath as she gasped. Then he crushed his mouth to hers, kissing her with all the pent-up lust he’d harbored for this petite siren since he first held her in his arms to dance. She tasted so sweet as he licked into her mouth. The kiss was fierce and hot. But before he entirely lost his head, he set her down.
Both breathing hard, they stared at each other for a long moment. He had to get away from her before he went and ravished her right here in the hallway. “I’ll go order us some dinner,” he said. Then headed down the corridor.
“Malcolm,” Adeline called out.
He stopped but didn’t turn around. Her soft footsteps came up behind him. Then her hand slipped into his and tugged, urging him to face her. When he did, her whiskey eyes didn’t shy away like before.
“I don’t want dinner.” Again, she tugged his hand, leading him to her room. Unlocking the door, she pulled him inside.
Malcolm shut the door behind them. “What do you want?”
“I want you.” Then her hands were on his chest, and she shoved him, surprising him enough that he stumbled back against the door. Up on her toes, her lips attacked his. Her hands slid from his chest to his nape to tug him down. He willingly sank into her kiss, wrapping his arms around her waist to lift her against him. She was his fantasy come to life, but hell, something felt off. Since when had this quiet wallflower become a seductress? She broke off the kiss and pushed against his chest. He immediately released her.
Her brow furrowed as she paced back and forth between the fireplace and the bed. “What are you doing? You are a good girl,” she muttered. She turned on her heel and walked past him in the other direction. “But it doesn’t matter anymore. Take what you want.” Her hands lifted to cover her face. “What would Mother say?”
Malcolm caught her as she turned once again, grasping her wrists gently and slowly pulling her hands down. “I can’t help but see that you are feeling conflicted. About kissing me? Because I never want my kisses to make this furrow appear.” He tapped the spot between her eyebrows.
She sighed. “It’s not your kisses. It’s everything else I wish to do.”
He brought her wrist to his lips and kissed the tender skin on the inside. “And what do you wish to do, darling?”
“I want to see you without your clothes. I want you to touch me, to feel your hands on my skin. I want things that I shouldn’t want.”
Malcolm went hard as a rock. The things she did to him with her straightforward declarations. And here he thought he would need to woo her when all along she seduced him time and again.
She sucked her bottom lip, her teeth abrading the delicate flesh. “But also, why can’t I want those things? Why am I saving myself for a match that will never happen? Why am I saving myself for someone like Lord Bellamy?”
Malcolm couldn’t stop the growl that erupted from deep in his chest. “You will not marry Lord Bellamy.”
“I hope not. But I cannot be sure what my father will force me to do.” She frowned, the furrow returning.
“He won’t get his hands on you as long as I am around. I promise you that. I told Admiral Daniels about Bellamy and your father’s plans to sell the artifacts. I overheard them speaking about it at the Jansons’ ball the night your brother was beaten.”
