When Atticus held out his hand to assist Fallon into the carriage, she found she was grateful that they were both wearing gloves. Otherwise, the tremor that passed up her arm would have been much more pronounced.
She was settling her skirts around her when Atticus sat down beside her. Her breath caught slightly when his thigh brushed hers and she glanced over at him sharply. However, he was looking straight ahead, as if nothing untoward had occurred. Fallon decided to let the slip pass, although she scooted over to the edge as far as she could to put somemuch-neededdistance between them.
“Is everyone ready?” Brendan asked over his shoulder. Without waiting for a reply, he flicked the reins and they set off with a decided jerk. Eliza squealed in delight as she clung to his arm as the carriage wheels bounced and flew across the ground. Fallon, however, had to throw out one hand to brace herself, while the other desperately held her hat in place.“Dear Lord. Is he going to drive this reckless all the way to where we’re going?”she muttered.
“You’re welcome to lean on me if you want.”
Fallon narrowed hereyeson Atticus, who was sitting calm and collected beside her, appearing not to have a care in the world, although hisgazesparkled with mirthand something… deeper.
“I’m fine, thank you,” she returned tightly.
He shrugged. “Suit yourself, but you should know that Brendanengages in several races throughout the year, so he always drives as though he is competing.”
The blood promptly fled Fallon’s face.She was used to riding horses,butsuch high perch vehicles like this one had always made her uneasy because they were so tall. She dared to peek down at the ground which was whizzing by at a remarkable speed, and quickly shut her eyes against the sight.
When they abruptly hit a bump, her lids flew open and she lost her grip on the side. She had a terrifying moment when she thought she might actually fall out of the carriage, but a firm hand caught her about the waist and pulled her back to safety.
She was brought up against a solid chest, with barely a breath separating her from Atticus Clare’s tempting, masculine lips. She wanted to tell him to release her, but something kept her from the retort. Perhaps it was the fact his body wasfirmandrather…comforting, or that those dark eyes kept her immobile, stealing the air from her lungs.
In the end, he was the one who retreated. “You should be more careful,” he murmured evenly as he let go of her and faced forward once more.
Fallon sat back against the seat. Plenty of distancestillseparated them, although her heart had ceased to stop racing.
***
Atticus kept his focusdirectedforward and attempted to concentrate on anything other than the tempting woman at his side. But then, this little escapade had been his idea. He’d approached Brendan earlier that morning with a proposition slipped in under the guise of hunting quail.
Once their dawn hunt had been concluded, he’d mentioned his desire to see Eliza’s cousin again. The other man had turned to him rather curiously and wanted to know why,and damned if Atticus didn’t have a reply at the ready, so he’d merely shrugged and said, “The Raven finds that she is of particular interest because of her close tie to Locklyn Durmor.”
While that had been enough to satisfy his close friend’s curiosity, the truth was that theRavenhad spent several sleepless nights consumed with thoughts of the dark-haired Miss O’Malley. Even his attentiveness to Josephine had been lacking of late, so he’d decided that thewayto cure himself of the enchanting woman was to tell himself that the night he’d bedded her had been like so many others before.
But the moment she’d walked in the front door with Eliza, Atticus knew he was a lost cause. If anything, Fallon was even more beautiful than he’d remembered, even though his brain had tormented him fiercely for the past week.
He was still trying to figure out how to deal with her request to the Raven, knowing that she would soon write to her devoted priest in Carraroewith another entreaty. But the longer he could keep her from returning to Ireland right now, the better off she would be. The country was in turmoil and if Stephens succeeded in his current plan to bring over thousands of Irish immigrants to fight for the cause, it was about to become even worse, perhaps even afull-blownwar. He didn’t want her mixed up in that sort of chaos, as the concern for her safety would be more distracting than her current presence at his side.
And that wasverydistracting.
The moment his eyes had lit upon her, it was as though he’d been a starving man in the desert offered a drink of cool water, except he hadn’t known exactly how much he’d been in need of the sustenance. Josephine had been alivelycompanion of late,but they were workingtogether toward a mutual cause,and anyfeelings he might have held for her long ago had turned into deep respect andasimple friendship. She no longer inspired the fire within his soul like Fallon did, and even then, he wasn’t sureJosephinehad ever made him burn this bright.
He had to curl his hand into a fist on his thigh to resist reaching out and touchingFallon. He wondered if she thought of the Raven as much as he reveled in the sweet taste of her thatstilllingered on his tongue. He could feel his cock responding to the passion of that night, and her eager responses. He couldn’t believe that she’d been a virgin, for the way she had boldly reached out and touched him had made him believe otherwise.
The idea that she might allowLocklyn Durmor the same libertiesmade Atticus see red.Thankfully,she had made her distaste of her intended quite known. It was part of her plea in returning to Ireland, so that she might escape him, so his anger cooled considerably.
As the phaeton finally came to a haltnear the edge of the Hayes property near a line of trees and an open patch of land on a hill that overlooked the sea, Atticus had to hold back the grin that wanted toreach thesurface at theobviousrelief on Fallon’s face. He could imaginehow shewouldreact whenthe Raven ordered about his crew on rough seas. She would likely turn green if she couldn’t handle Brendan and hisdaringmanner withthe driving ribbons.
Eliza clapped her hands together, obviously ecstatic about the journey, while Fallon clenched the seat in front of her and took a deep, restoring breath before she allowed Atticus to assist her to the ground.
Once her feet touched a solid surface, her knees wobbled slightly, but Atticus was there to steady her.As Brendan tied up the horse to a nearby tree to happily munch on some hay that he’d brought along,Eliza must have noted her unease, for she said sympathetically, “I’m so sorry! I should have warned you what a daredevil Brendan can be. Do you want me to wait with you until you are recovered?”
“It’s quite all right.” Fallon waved a hand. She didn’t wish to be the reason Eliza didn’t get tospend timewith her betrothed. “Go ahead and I’ll be along shortly.”
“I’ll stay with her,” Atticusoffered, and Fallon glanced at him while they both tried to ignore the twitch of her cousin’s lips.
As Eliza and Brendan headed off with the blanket and wicker picnic basket, Fallon stepped out of Atticus’s grasp. While it was obvious she didn’t yet trust herself to stand on her own, she held on to the phaeton’s frame. “There’s no need for you to remain with me.”
He crossed his arms over his chest and shrugged. “I don’t mind.” He lifted a dark brow. “Unless you want me to go?”
Fallon opened her mouth, likely to send him away, but she surprised him by relenting. “If you feel the need to stay, Isuppose Idon’t see any harm in it.”
