He still wasn’t entirely clear on her undergarments, but he understood that she would need to hide her curves, and that would include her breasts. Now he was imagining their size and shape. Bloody hell, this was beyond inappropriate.
Thankfully, they were interrupted before Roman could make a complete arse of himself. The footman pushed the door, which had been ajar, open all the way and stepped inside carrying a tray. “I brought the last of the peaches along with Bakewell tart. Cook hopes you will enjoy it.” He set the dishes down on the desk. “Shall I take your dinner plates?” he asked.
“Yes, please,” Ellis replied. “I’m finished.”
“I am as well,” Roman said.
The footman gathered up their dishes but left the wine and departed.
Ellis stood. “I think I’ll go upstairs now.” She kept her head bowed, and he feared he’d gone too far with their almost-flirting.
“Must you?” he asked. “Surely you want the tart?”
“I do, but I would prefer to eat it with my own face.” She arched a brow at him, and there was a sauciness that led him to believe she wasn’t upset, just eager to put aside her disguise.
Roman understood, though he was still disappointed. “Of course. Please enjoy your tart.”
She sent him a furtive glance, and he caught the lingering smolder in her gaze before she swept up her dish and strode from the room.
He exhaled, but his pulse, which had kicked up as they regarded one another, was still moving too quickly. Indeed, his entire body was thrumming with an urgent desire. He even had a bloody erection.
This would not do.
He’d enjoyed their first dinner together, but it was perhaps best that it was also their last. He brought the tart before him and picked up the fork.
Hopefully, his lust would diminish quickly. If not, a cool bath would be required.
More than likely, he’d have to satisfy himself in ways his alluring secretary could not. But the rogue in him would almost certainly imagine her doing just that.
After finishing his tart, Roman remained in his office for quite some time. He recalled that Ellis would be using the bathing chamber this evening and didn’t want to go upstairs until she was finished. Because the bathing room adjoined his bedchamber, he’d been able to hear her moving about in there. It was most distracting—in a delightfully sensual way.
Truthfully, it had been a terrible idea to allow her use of his bath. But he didn’t regret it.
Since she’d been due to be done half an hour ago, Roman decided it was safe to go up. Tonight, he’d had the sense she might be attracted to him in the same way he was to her. It was decidedly best if they didn’t tempt that attraction.
He was still in a heightened state of desire as he climbed the stairs. The slightest thought of Ellis hardened his cock again. Past time for that cool bath.
He’d have to ring for water if he wanted a true bath, but the footman had likely left a basin of water for him to wash his face. It was possible Ellis’s bathwater might still be in the tub. No, he wasn’t even going to think about her and her bath.
He stripped his clothes away until only his pantaloons remained, though he unbuttoned the top of the fall. Opening the door to the bathing chamber, he walked inside.
Just as Ellis stepped out of the bathtub.
He froze as she grabbed a length of toweling from a hook. At last, he saw her as a woman. She had long hair. Though it was wet, he could tell it was blonde. The rest of her was completely bare—from the gentle slope of her shoulder to the plane of her back, down her spine, to the graceful curve of her backside, leading to the long elegance of her legs.
Roman’s throat went dry as he stared at her. The erection he’d fought to keep at bay came roaring back as primal lust coursed through him.
She turned, clutching the toweling to her breast, and stared at him, her eyes wide. Her face was bare like the rest of her—no beard or mustache to disguise her unparalleled beauty. Roman had simply never seen a more stunning woman. It wasn’t possible she could ever despise her faux facial hair as much as he did.
Her lips parted. “My lord,” she managed in a strained, dark whisper. Her gaze flicked down his body, lingering on his bare chest, then pausing even longer where his fall was unbuttoned and his cock had lengthened.
He quickly spun around, depriving himself of the glorious view of her. “I didn’t realize you were still in here. I thought you would be finished by nine.”
“That was when I told the footman I would start my bath.”
Damn. He’d utterly cocked that up. “I misunderstood. I’ll not make the same mistake again.”
“Perhaps the footman was mistaken and communicated the wrong time,” she said.
