Had they consummated their marriage last night? She hadn’t thought so. She remembered him making her drink water and then… nothing.
“You’re thinking too loudly. Stop it.” He drew her even closer to him. “Nothing happened. You are still as chaste as the morning rose.” This time, she felt him, as much as heard him, chuckle.
“I didn’t realize the morning rose was virginal,” she couldn’t’ help responding. Such a foolish thing for him to say!
But then she processed his words logically. Why was he in her bed if not to…? Oh, how she hated not understanding certain things. From everything she’d ever heard or read, a man spent the night in his wife’s bed for one reason and one reason only.
And this morning it hurt her head too much to think.
“Next time I send dinner up, remind me to tell the maid to forgo the wine.” He spoke sleepily, as though he hadn’t really minded.
“Hm.” She couldn’t stop the sound before it escaped.
Marcus had been sweet last night. He’d apologized.
And then he’d made her drink water and held her through the night. But why? Never in a million years would she imagine Marcus Roberts as a cuddler.
Gentlemen could be the most vexing creatures. One minute he was telling her not to expect emotion from him and the next… this.
Except the sensation of his arms wrapped around her really was a lovely one. She couldn’t remember ever waking with another person in her room, let alone in her bed.
Touching her.
Holding her.
Pressing hismentulaagainst her.
If she felt better, she’d pepper him with questions about it. She might even wiggle her bum a little and see if she could make it twitch.
As it was, she felt contented enough to simply close her eyes and promise her brain she’d ask him about it later.
The next time she awoke, she was sprawled across the center of the bed… alone. Her head wasn’t pounding so loudly this time, and the curtains had been drawn.
Thoughtful of him really. She’d almost believe he’d drank himself into oblivion a time or two himself. Oh, but a full tumbler of water sat on the nearby table, and upon closer inspection, she discovered a packet of willow bark powder sitting beside her spectacles.
Blessed man.
She drank the medicine and uncovered a basket with some pastries. A few tentative bites were all she could get down, however, until her stomach refused any more. She felt at least forty-five percent human again.
Which might be enough to get her moving.
Where had he gone?
And then she bit her lip. Would he wish to begin their journey back to London today? She couldn’t even think about it. Rolling and bouncing along, feeling as she did, ugh. Her stomach rebelled at the thought.
Nonetheless, she washed up to the best of her ability and donned another of the gowns Marcus had purchased for her.
She still couldn’t’ quite wrap her head around the idea that she was a married woman.
Married.
No longer Miss Emily Goodnight, she was Emily Roberts now.
LadyBlakely.
LadyBlakely!
“Lady Blakely.” She curtsied to herself in the glass.
