“Stop where you are! In the name of Her Majesty the Queen, we place you under arrest for the illegal import of goods!”
Rhys grabbed her hand. “We have togo.”
His touch vanquished her shock.
“Follow me,” she said. “I know a place.”
He jerked his chin, and she took off in the opposite direction of her brothers, going back the way she’d come. She couldn’t tell if the loud pounding in her ears was that of her heart or the excise officers giving chase or the waves against the shore, but she kept moving, didn’t look back. She felt Rhys’s steady presence behind her. When her half-boots lost purchase against ocean-slicked rocks, he caught her.
“Keep going,” he growled in her ear.
She didn’t stop until she found the place she’d been looking for. The cavern, that even in the dark, she knew like the back of her hand since she’d spent hours there hunting for fossils. As she headed toward the opening behind an outcropping of rock, Rhys’s hand wrapped around her elbow.
“They won’t find us in here,” she whispered. “The entrance is hidden, and the tunnels inside are deep and winding.”
After a brief hesitation, he nodded.
She led the way inside, darkness enclosing them like a tomb. She didn’t dare light a candle until they were deeper into the cave, so she used her hands to guide her along the familiar rocky walls, following the twisting tunnel that would take them to safety.
At points the passage narrowed, and she could hear Rhys’s harsh breaths behind her.
“All right?” she whispered.
“Fine,” came his clipped reply.
Minutes later, the passage opened into the place she’d been searching for. Fumbling in her cloak pocket, she found her candle and tinder box. In the flaring light, shadows danced across the cave’s walls and high ceiling.
“We can wait them out in here. Even the high tide doesn’t reach this far…” As she turned to Rhys, she trailed off at the anger blazing on his countenance.
“Are you insane?” he bit out. “What thedevilwere you thinking taking part in a smuggling operation?”
“I wasn’t taking part in the smuggling; I was trying to talk my brothers out of it.” Even to her own ears, her rationale wasn’t very sound. “Jeremy told me his plan, you see, and I couldn’t just do nothing—”
“Yes, you could. If someone says they are going to jump off a bridge, you do not jump off with them. You do not risk your neck trying to save theirs.” Hands bracing his hips, Rhys glowered at her. “You stay at home where you are safe.”
She knew he was right. Her plan hadn’t been one of her most brilliant ideas. Impulse had driven her rather than reasoning.
“We’re Goodes,” she said on a resigned breath. “We stick together.”
For several heartbeats, Rhys stared at her.
Then he exhaled and muttered, “You’re shaking.”
She was, she suddenly realized. Now that the after-effects of the chase were wearing off, she felt the icy dampness of her skirts seeping into her. Her teeth chattered.
Rhys began to pull off his boots.
“Wh-what are you doing?” she asked.
“Getting out of my wet things,” he said flatly. “You’ll do the same if you don’t wish to freeze. To conserve heat, we’ll sleep on your cloak and use my greatcoat as a blanket. With any luck, we’ll make it through the night without catching our deaths of cold.”
Of all the things Maggie had imagined herself doing that night, lying in a dark cave in the arms of her former lover was not one of them.
At first, she’d lain stiffly beside Rhys, trying to avoid any contact between her body and his. She’d tried to stop her chilled limbs from shaking. A minute later, his arm had closed around her shoulders, tucking her firmly against his side.
Before she could utter a protest, he’d said gruffly, “For God’s sake, I’m not going to take advantage of you. I just want to keep you warm. Now close your eyes and rest.”
Thus, there she was, clad in her shift and drawers, on her side plastered against his hard form. Her cheek was pressed against his warm, muscled chest, his heartbeat a steady, lulling rhythm beneath her ear. On the one hand, she had to admit his tactic worked wonderfully: she was no longer cold but warm.Verywarm.
