He held her legs around his waist as if wanting her to hold him there. She obeyed. She had no will of her own. She had turned to stars and dust. She, who had known all power, was now without defenses. She nuzzled his ear and curled his hair around her fingers.
And she was still angry.
But she would go to Cornwall.
He moved first, rolling off her and gathering her close, her buttocks against his hips. As was his way, he covered their nakedness with the bedclothes.
She crumpled the feather pillow under her head, letting him hold her in his arms. The room smelled of them. She was wet between her legs.Herson might already be within her.
“I’ll make it up to you, Cassandra.” Were his words a promise or a plea?
He pressed a kiss on her shoulder. His whiskers scratched. She liked the feeling of his chest against her back.
Cass. His Cass, she wanted to whisper. Instead, she said, “I wonder who my father is.”
He shifted, bringing himself closer as if he could protect her. “There might be someone who knows in Cornwall. Who remembers from that time.”
“But what if it is something I don’t want to know?” She stared at the wall on the other side of the room. “Some lies have been good to me.”
“Until the truth interferes.”
She stirred to look over her shoulder at him. He watched her carefully. “Would I be happier to know that perhaps a great lord was my father? Or a groomsman? Or a traveling tinker?”
“Will it matter to your life right now?” He lifted a lock of her hair and smoothed it back.
“Nothing matters right now,” she confessed. “Except this.” She could feel he was aroused again.
He kissed her neck before whispering, “Another go?”
Of course.
Desire was a good foil for anger.
Her body was tender from the intensity of their last time. Consequently, she experienced even his slightest movement more keenly than ever, almost to the point of needle-sharp pain, and still her blood sang with the joy of being a part of him.
It was quick, forceful, and satisfying.
When they were done, she was finally exhausted. The anger might return on the morrow, but for now, she finally knew peace. It had been his gift to her.
At last she understood women like her stepmother who followed her husband around as if he was all-important in her life. She could even sympathize with Dame Hester, who had such an old husband.
Was Letty Bainhurst right to cuckold her lord?
Cassandra didn’t know. However, she could appreciate lovers in any situation.
She moved so she could study her sleeping husband in the dark’s shadows. She’d not told him about the garnets, nor would she.
The pearl he’d given her was still on its ribbon cord around her neck. She caught the gem in her hand. Its luster shone in the moonlight.
The truth, she realized, was whatever one could make others believe.
It was time she discovered her own.
Chapter 14
The next morning, Soren roused her by whipping the covers off the bed. Cold air hit her skin. She reached for the counterpane, not ready to leave the bed’s warmth.
She was usually an early riser but yesterday had been a day of too much emotion. She curled into a ball, her pillow scrunched in her arms, and tried to continue sleeping.
