He thrust again. She arched into the impact.
Together and apart.
Together again.
Harder.
Faster.
Yes!
Pleasure swept her away. Then once the rush of it eased, happiness remained. Happiness that she knew was love.
Love for tonight. For now.
It was more than enough.
Chapter Forty-Two
Max did notstay the night, though he clearly wanted to.
“There are things I must do tomorrow morning,” he said. “This morning.”
Her body was sore, her feet aching, but she was loath to let him go. She held him as long as she could, but in the end, he left her. She pressed her nose to the blanket that still held his scent, and she dreamed about what they had done.
Tonight, she’d been loved.
Maybe tomorrow night she could feel it all again.
*
He stayed everynight afterwards, sometimes for a short while, sometimes until just before dawn. Yihui’s heart had never been so full. Her days were busy, and her nights were a delight.
For two weeks she prepared the shop to open. With luck, the customers would find them out of curiosity. And then, when her feet were better, she would go to the docks to buy what she lacked. It might take a year or longer before she had enough supplies, but she would work with Druina to find new recipes with English plants.
She always spent afternoons with the duchess, learning everything possible to become presentable at court. It was tedious, horrendous work, but she was making progress. Occasionally, the lady would give her a satisfied smile.
And then, at night, Max would reward her for her diligence. Together they found such bliss that she could not believe her luck. How had she found such perfection? Every day brought new challenges and every night had new joys.
Too bad it could not last. Every moment ticked her life closer to the day she would have to cry off her engagement to Max. And if she forgot that their time together was nearly at an end, the duchess made sure to remind her. It was the day before she was to be presented at court, and she did it in the apothecary shop, the one place Yihui thought herself powerful.
“Yihui, I must speak with you.”
So many people had said that to her over the last weeks. So many people had come to her asking for brews for every ailment. But never once had she heard the duchess’s voice in her place of business.
So Yihui looked up with wary eyes and a heavy heart. The only reason the lady would come to her here was because she wanted to bargain. And the only thing the lady wanted was her son’s freedom.
“Welcome to My Lady’s Apothecary,” Yihui said with a smile. She was in the back mixing room, trying to understand Madame Druina’s recipe book. The plants here were so different from the ones at home. She was not sure she could make the transition to English medicines while she waited for seeds from China. “Please sit down, Your Grace.”
She would have leaped off her stool, but she still had to be careful of her feet. Though she could totter about on her heels, Mr. Torres had told her it was best if she waited another month before trying to walk again.
“Would you like some tea?”
“No, I would not,” the lady said tartly. “Really Yihui, you are to meet the prince tomorrow night. Do you really think you should spend your morning working?”
Yihui smiled. “I am not working, Your Grace. I am learning and that is always a lady’s pleasure, is it not?” Those were the exact words the duchess had said to her when she demanded Yihui memorize generations of English kings.
“Don’t be churlish,” the lady returned. “I’ve come to you to discuss something we both care about.” It was clear she thought it an insult that she had to travel to see Yihui.
