Why had he not discovered this last night? He ought to have asked her more about her encounter with the adder. Instead, he’d allowed lust to take control. And now she suffered for his carelessness. Had he known earlier, she could have begun taking the antidote sooner and perhaps not become so very ill.
And she had been out in the streets. Thank God, he’d sent Salaam with her!
Stephen touched her waist and felt the stiffness of the corset she wore beneath her gown. What the hell had Cecily’s maid been thinking? When a person could not breathe, one did not leave them bound up tightly. “I’m going to undo your corset,” he told her as he began unfastening the back of her dress.
She didn’t protest at all, merely turned slightly so that he could have better access to the buttons and ties.
“The adder bite injects enough venom to make an adult ill, but it should pass soon.” He’d successfully unfastened the dress, and after allowing it to fall to the floor, attempted to untie the knots of the unyielding corset.
“I suppose that old snake is going to get the last word after all.” He attempted to keep her calm; panicking would only exacerbate her difficulty breathing.
The damn ties were knotted so tight that he was having no success at all in loosening the torturous device. Growing more frustrated by the second, Stephen reached into his boot and pulled out a small knife. In less than three seconds, the garment fell away from her body.
As the material loosened, Cecily took in a few deep breaths.
“That’s better,” he said. “In and out, in and out.” He rubbed his hand on her chest now, over her breastbone. Her face wasn’t as pinched as it had been when he’d first walked in. “Poor Cecily,” he said softly by her ear.
She tilted her head and leaned it on the bedpost. “I didn’t know what was wrong. I have never felt this miserable before. And I kept thinking that I needed you. Silly, I realize. I’ve only known you for a few days, but there you have it.” A few tears rolled down the gentle curve of her cheek. “My papa is gone, and I was afraid, and all I wanted wasyou.”
With these words, Stephen turned and pulled her into his arms. “You’re safe, sweetheart. Come now, don’t cry.”
“I know I’m foolish. You must think me very foolish. I’ve never been such a watering pot as this.”
Stephen tilted his head down so he could look her in the eyes. Raising one eyebrow, he attempted to lighten her mood a bit. “It’s just my charming company that brings it out in you?”
She chuckled softly and then buried her face against his chest again. “I imagine so. That and your blinding good looks.” She leaned fully against him now, and he felt her softness all along his body. Memories of being entangled naked with her only hours before began to physically arouse him. God, he was an animal!
He cursed his traitorous body and gently pushed her away.
Not wanting to delay her recovery any longer, he helped her onto the bed. “The antidote for an adder bite is horrible tasting, but it ought to reduce your discomfort.”
She looked up at him and nodded trustingly. She looked so heartbreakingly miserable, curled up with the coverlet pulled up to her chin. Not wanting to leave her, he kissed her briefly on the forehead and then pulled himself away to go in search of Mrs. Taylor.
As he moved toward the door to leave, Cecily’s maid entered. She glanced at the ruined garments on the floor and shot Stephen a disapproving glare before shooing him out. What had she expected when she’d summoned him to help her mistress? No matter. He needed to get his hands on some clivers.
He hoped the household kept some stocked but was somewhat doubtful. Adders were a country danger, not something one encountered in the middle of London. He would probably have to send someone to an apothecary.
As Stephen descended the stairs, he found Marcus waiting in the downstairs foyer wearing a grim expression. “Your housekeeper said she doesn’t keep any clivers on hand, so we’ve already sent Peters after some.”
“How did you know?” Stephen asked. Marcus had often surprised him in the past with his vast memory of unusual scientific facts and information, but he hadn’t even seen Cecily.
“Your housekeeper described the countess’ symptoms, along with the swollen hand, and having learned of the incident with the adder, I merely put two and two together…” He shrugged as though his guess had been a natural one.
Stephen knew he should learn to never be surprised by his friend’s efficiency. “Of course,” he said, “Your aid is greatly appreciated, Marcus.” He suddenly felt helpless. He would have liked to return upstairs to Cecily, but her maid was with her. To hang about inside her chambers wasn’t something he ought to do.
He oughtn’t toeverhave even set foot in them. But he had.
Impatience gnawed at him. The sooner Cecily could begin taking the clivers, steeped in hot water, the sooner she would begin to feel better. They were said to prevent the venom from getting to the heart. He’d also seen a poultice made of the herb and then placed on the actual bite. Waiting frustrated him, for not much could be done until Peters obtained the medicine.
She must be feeling like hell.
Why hadn’t he noticed anything last night? Why hadn’t he made certain that she hadn’t been bitten? The snake must have attacked immediately. If he’d only taken a moment to check her over, he would most likely have recognized the bite right off.
Oh, he’d checked her over all right. He’d just been too damned caught up in his own needs to have noticed something as unimportant as a snake bite.What the hell was I thinking? As he and Marcus waited in the study, he continued mentally chastising himself for all the things he ought to have done differently by her.
“I told your housekeeper how to prepare the clivers when Peters returns,” Marcus said nonchalantly before taking a seat by the empty hearth. “Her airway wasn’t swollen, was it?”
“No,” Stephen responded. “But she’s in pain and deuced uncomfortable. I should have considered the possibility she’d been bitten last night. I don’t know what the hell I was thinking.” He slumped down in the chair opposite Marcus. Leaning forward, he dug his fists into his forehead and then his temples. Another headache, wonderful.
