It was inevitable.
Even though he might have been resourceful at picking pockets, it meant nothing the moment he’d arrived on Norfolk Island. In truth, he wished he’d died on that ship, as it would have spared him the horrors that would come…
“Devin! Wake up!”
The voice sounded like that of his angel, but that was impossible. She had never visited him in this hell.
As hands reached for him, he lashed out, caught in between the realm of reality and fantasy. “Shh. It’s all right. You’re safe here. No one can hurt you.”
Not until a slight whiff of lilac surrounded him, followed by the touch of a cool, feminine hand on his forehead, did the horrific images slowly fade and Devin’s eyes popped open. He was still wary at first, expecting to see the enemy standing above him, but it was Constance’s face staring at him through the torment.
Devin blinked, confused. “Where am I?” he asked hoarsely.
From her position beside him on the bed, his angel spoke again. “You’re safe with me. In London,” she added, as if for good measure.
Earlier that evening her eyes had held censure, but when those green orbs looked at him now, he saw something far worse—empathy. “I don’t want to know what happened to you in those colonies, but I’ve seen the scars on your back, and then the sound you made just now…” She paused, as if collecting herself. “I’ve never heard anything like it. It was like an animal in pain—" She shook her head. “I couldn’t just stand by and let you suffer alone.”
Devin shoved aside the covers and got up on the opposite side of the bed, feeling equal parts foolish and embarrassed that, he’d not only allowed the criminals of his past to return, but that Constance had found him in such a harsh state. Since he slept naked, the trousers he’d discarded were in easy reach, so he hastily slipped them on. As he fastened them, he tried to ignore the way his hands trembled.
Keeping his back to her, he shoved a hand through his hair with a harsh exhale. “I’m sorry to have disturbed you. I’m fine now, so you can go back to bed.”
The bed rustled, her footsteps making a whisper of a sound as she moved toward him. “You don’t seem fine to me,” she said softly.
He closed his eyes, as her breath caressed his shoulder and made him yearn to take her in his arms and pleasure her until she was screaming his name. But he knew that was not what she wanted. Or, at least, it wasn’t what she would acknowledge. He set his hands on his hips. “It’s not wise to taunt me right now.”
“That’s not what I’m trying to do,” she whispered. As she placed a light touch upon his arm, he hissed between his teeth.
“Isn’t it?” he growled. He spun around and captured her hands in his. He backed her up against the wall and lifted her arms above her head, pinning her there with his body. His cock was hard, but his emotions were tumultuous as he ground his hips boldly against hers. He wanted to bury himself inside of her, to forget the memories that still swirled around him like a nightmare that he knew would never truly end. “The only thing I want right now isn’t something you’re willing to give.” He released her as abruptly as he’d caught her in his grasp and stalked over to the other side of the room. “Now, I’m not telling you again. Leave.”
Chapter 14
Constance’s throat had been tight when she’d dared to open the door to Devin’s room. He’d left his lamp turned down low, which didn’t offer much light, but what she saw was enough that it made her stomach clench.
He was lying in bed, but the sheets were a tangled mess about his bare legs, his chest rising and falling with every deep breath that he took. His brow was furrowed and a glistening sheen of sweat covered his body, plastering his dark hair against his forehead.
Her chest had ached as she slowly moved forward, because she knew a desperate cry for help when she heard it. And she hadn’t been lying when she said that she’d saw his scars. It had been difficult not to do so when the doctor had examined his wound from Granelli. But she’d wisely not mentioned anything to Luke when those crisscrossed white scars had been revealed. However, her heart had shattered just imagining what he’d gone through.
She also knew it was the invisible cuts that hurt the deepest.
In that instant, Constance made a decision, and there was no going back. “I’m not leaving you like this.”
His back stiffened, and he pivoted to face her. He opened his mouth to speak, but she was already undoing the back laces of her blue satin dress that she’d worn to the musicale.
He hadn’t been the only one who’d had trouble sleeping that night. In between her upcoming confrontation with the baronet the next morning and the regrettable way she’d acted toward Devin when he had treated her with nothing but respect, her conscience had been gnawing at her for the past couple hours. She’d actually dared to imbibe a bit of brandy to ease some of her anxiety.
Now, as her gaze traveled the length of Devin’s strong frame, she brought to mind something even more effective than alcohol when it came to calming a nervous countenance. And if she was going to be forced to entertain Sir Isaacson upon the morrow, then Madame Corressa might as well enjoy one magical night with Devin.
Devin’s dark eyes followed every move she made, his nostrils flaring slightly as her gown slid to the floor in a puddle of material, as if inhaling her scent, her very essence from across the room. She allowed her petticoats to follow suit, and once she removed her slippers, she stepped out of the pile. Attired in her corset, chemise, and stockings, she recalled a night not so long ago when he’d touched her so intimately. This time, she wasn’t going to tell him to stop.
But when she would have started on the laces of her corset, he uttered a command. “Stop.” It was gravely and low, but she heard it all the same.
Constance slowly lowered her arms to her sides.
And waited.
Devin crossed the room and stood before her. He reached out a trembling hand and cupped her breast through the confines of her corset. “You’re so damned beautiful,” he whispered.
Constance exhaled in a rush and her eyes threatened to close from just that simple touch, but she refrained. She didn’t want to miss anything. She wanted to enjoy every moment together, as it would likely be the first and last time.
