‘Leo?’ She gave his shoulder a gentle shake, but his only response was to make a sound of protest and then shuffle his body sideways, wrapping an arm around her.
Oh… She sucked in a breath as the weight of him pressed against her breasts, pinning her against the seat and making her feel even more confused. Heat flared to life in her chest. And her stomach. And lower, between her thighs, in her very core, where her heartbeat seemed to be beating in a heavy, frenetic rhythm…
Carefully she unpeeled his arm, sliding herself away along the bench, before shaking him more forcefully. ‘Leo? Wake up.’
‘Mmm?’ He opened his eyes, looking so rumpled and disoriented, she felt a strong urge to reach out and stroke his hair away from his forehead.
‘We’re here.’ She moved a little further away to be safe.
‘Already?’ He sat up and rubbed a hand around the back of his neck, apparently oblivious to where his head had just been resting. ‘Ow. I must have been sleeping at a strange angle. My neck is stiff.’
‘I wouldn’t know.’ She twisted her face away quickly, peering out of the window as the carriage came to a halt outside a large coaching inn, its weathered stone half hidden behind huge swathes of ivy. ‘This looks pleasant. Is it the same place we stayed on the way to London?’
‘Yes.’ Leo gave her a double look as a boy stepped forward to open the carriage door. ‘Don’t you remember?’
‘Not really.’ She caught his worried expression and smiled. ‘But don’t worry, I’m not forgetting anything else. I was just preoccupied at the time.’
‘I think we both were.’ He climbed out and then reached a hand back to help her down. ‘Hopefully tonight will be more memorable. Are you hungry?’
‘Famished.’ She dropped her gaze as she descended the steps. The idea of a memorable night implied something other thanwhat he surely intended, but it made her heart start to race again.
‘Then we’ll eat as soon as possible. I sent a man ahead yesterday to reserve a suite, so we should be able to go straight up.’
‘That sounds perfect.’ She pulled her shoulders back and lifted her eyes again, waiting for him to release her hand. Only apparently he had no intention of doing so. Instead, he gave it a quick squeeze before draping it across his arm.
She blinked, taken aback by the gesture. She might not have paid much attention the last time they were here, but he definitely hadn’t done anything likethat.
Their suite was really quite cosy, Florence thought, half an hour later, as she looked around the private drawing room that separated their two bedrooms. There wasn’t a great deal of furniture, just an oak table and two dining chairs, as well as a wooden settle by the fireplace, but what there was looked clean and comfortable, not that she wanted to sit down again just yet. She’d changed out of her heavy cambric carriage dress into a lighter calico day gown, but her shoulders were so knotted and tight, she was happy to stand for a while.
‘Dinner, my lady.’ A maid came into the room, carrying a large tray, just as Florence finished stretching her arms over her head.
‘Wonderful.’ She rapped her knuckles on the door to Leo’s bedroom while the maid arranged everything on the table, but there was no answer. How odd. Surely he would have told her if he was going out?
‘Will that be all, my lady?’ the maid asked.
‘I think so, thank you.’ She smiled over her shoulder, already savouring the aroma of the food. ‘I’ll ring when we’re finished.’
She waited a few seconds until the maid had gone before turning back to Leo’s door, pushing it open a crack and peering through. The light inside was dim, but it was impossible to miss the large male lying flat on his back on the bed, his leather boots discarded on the floor, while his coat, shirt, waistcoat and cravat hung casually over a chair. Only his breeches remained, as if he’d started to change out of his travelling clothes and then been overwhelmed by the urge to sleep instead.
She took a step forward, biting her lip as she let her gaze roam over his chest. He was more powerfully built than she’d realised, his stomach firm and corded with muscle, with a dusting of dark hair that tapered downwards like an arrow towards his breeches. Something about the sight of it made her muscles clench. Briefly she contemplated leaning over and shaking him awake the way she had in the carriage, but this situation was different. One, because he wouldn’t expect to find her there and two, because…well…it was a bedroom and he was very nearly naked.
And, no matter what he’d said about requiring an heir, she wasn’t quite ready for that. No matter how intriguing that arrow of hair might look…
Carefully, she backed out of the room, closed the door and then raised her voice. ‘Dinner is here!’
‘What the—?’ There was a muffled exclamation, closely followed by a thump and the sound of feet on floorboards. ‘I’ll be there in a moment!’
Stifling a laugh, she went across to the table and took a seat, her stomach rumbling at the sight of their dinner. It looked and smelled delicious: partridge, potatoes, gravy and carrots, with a bottle of claret to wash it all down.
‘My apologies.’ Leo emerged from his room a minute or so later, looking noticeably more dishevelled than usual. ‘Imust have dozed off again. I only intended to lie down for five minutes.’
‘It’s your own fault.’ She gave him a teasing look. ‘I was up late enough talking to Cassie, but what time did you and George finish playing billiards?’
‘Too late. It turned into a tournament.’
‘Who won?’
‘Me, obviously.’ He threw her a quick smile and then rubbed his brows. ‘Although I didn’t sleep much afterwards either. I received a letter yesterday from my steward, Sewell, and I spent the rest of the night thinking about it.’
