“Now that’s an invitation I canna refuse, darlin’,” she heard him drawl.
“What?”
She’d been startled by the fall, and his remark made no sense until she took her eyes off of him to glance down at herself. Her nightgown—there’d been no thought for grabbing a robe in her haste—was twisted about her hips and hiked up, one side above her knee, the other halfway up her calf. And her knees, God help her, were bent upright, her feet flat on the floor, and spread wide apart.
She understood his remark now, crude as it was. And worse, he was already starting to crawl toward her, albeit slowly and not too steadily. But apparently, he had every intention of placing his body on top of hers to accept that “invitation” he’d alluded to. Just the thought of him doing so sent a core of heat straight to her vitals, which amazed and appalled her at once.
Her reaction to that, however, aside from a choking sound of embarrassment, was first to snap her knees together, then bring her foot, the one he wasn’t still holding, straight up to plant flat against his nearing chest.
“Don’teventhink about it,” she warned.
“Nay?”
“Absolutely not.”
He sat back on his haunches, swayed once, righted himself, then frowned down at her. “You’re a coldhearted woman, Kimber, that you are.”
“Where you’re concerned, I have to be,” she mumbled in reply. She hadn’t said this for his benefit, yet he still heard her and actually perked up.
“Really? Now why is that, darlin’? Can it be you’re tempted and fighting it?”
That was much too close to the truth for her comfort, and she sat up straight. “Can it be you’ve lost your mind again? Look at you, reeking of spirits, bedraggled, blurry-eyed. Tempted? By what, pray tell?”
She came just short of snorting. And to her ears she sounded believable, had used just enough scorn to make him wince. The trouble was, Lachlan was too handsome to begin with. A little messy and inebriated wasn’t going to make him any less desirable.
“I wish I could say the same about you, lass. You’re blurry-eyed yourself, and after that tumble, just as bedraggled, yet I’m wanting—”
“Not another word!” she cut in frantically, afraid she would hear something that might sway her. “And let go of my foot so I can leave. You had no business waking me in the first place, and I’ve got no business being in here.”
He looked down at his hand on her ankle and seemed surprised that it was there. But he did release her with a sigh. “Go on then, back tae your warm bed. I’ll abide the night here on this cold floor, since I canna make it tae my own bed.”
Her eyes narrowed on him as she rose to her feet. “Was that supposed to make me feel sorry for you?”
“Nay, that would take a wee bit of compassion, which you’re proving you dinna have.”
“I’ll have you know I have just as much compassion as any other woman,” she replied stiffly. “Why else would I have come running in here?”
“Aye, you did come. But you can see how miserable I am, yet you’ll no’ stay tae help me.”
“What I see is that you’re in a condition that was self-inflicted, and so undeserving of sympathy. What possessed you to drink so much?”
“You dinna want tae be knowing the answer tae that, Kimber, believe me.”
She ground her teeth in exasperation. And now, as so many times before, it was on the tip of her tongue to retort that she didn’t like hearing him shorten her name to Kimber, any more than she liked his calling her darling. Usually she was too angry to tell him or some other point was more pressing, which was why she hadn’t mentioned it sooner. And this time it would really be pointless, since she doubted he’d remember her complaint in the morning.
“Fine. Don’t tell me. I only asked to be civil, since I hardly care. Your motivations don’t concern me in the—” She stopped when she realized she was protesting far too much, and switched to a blasé tone to finish, “Well, good night, Lachlan. Try not to make any more noise, will you?”
He said nothing as she moved to the door, nothing when she reached it. She wasn’t going to look back at him, wasn’t going to feel sorry for him. If he still felt wretched, well, it was no more than he deserved.
It wasn’t until she was on the other side of the door and closing it that she heard, “I need you.”
Kimberly groaned. She dropped her forehead against the door, closing her eyes, fighting the wealth of emotions those three words provoked. But it was no good. There was no way in hell she could ignore that plea. Not from him. Not put that way.
She supposed she could be grateful, though, that it was only aid he was needing from her, because she wasn’t sure just now if she could resist those same words if said in that other context. And for her to end up in bed with him again, just because of some small thing he said, God forbid, she couldn’t be that much of a fool, could she?
25
Kimberly moved the heavy drapery aside to peer out the window. Incredible. The vague sounds of activity out in the hall and outside the mansion, a cheery whistle, a bang, a bell tinkling, a low-voiced greeting somewhere, all should have given her warning, yet she still found it hard to believe that dawn had arrived—and she was still in Lachlan’s room. How many hours had she been there? Too many.
