“Precisely.” Caroline backed away a little. “Great job on all of that.” She waved her hand, stumbled slightly on her way to the door, and turned as soon as she reached it. “I will see you both later.” And then she was gone, hastening away before they could stop her with any more questions.
Leonora laughed. “How transparent can one woman be?”
Philip grinned. “Very, it would seem.” He released her wrist and turned in his seat so he could better face her. “I wonder if you can tell me something honestly.”
Curious as to what he might ask her, she met his serious gaze and said, “I will try.”
He hesitated briefly before asking, “What were you thinking before your sister arrived just now?”
Leonora’s pulse leapt and every nerve in her body started to hum with alertness. He was asking her to make herself vulnerable, to admit to her secret longing for more, to tell him precisely what she wanted. It wasn’t easy, for it would require going against everything she’d been taught to do all her life. It would mean saying something scandalous and being improper.
But if they were to share a future, if trust was to form between them, then she had no choice but admit to the truth.
“About kissing you,” she said, and then, because it seemed suddenly necessary for him to know how strong the urge to do so had been, she added, “I’ve considered it almost repeatedly since that night at the inn.”
“Me too,” he said on an exhalation of breath that caused hot little tingles to scurry across her shoulders. “But I dare not do so here. The chance of interruption is far too great.”
She understood him completely. “Then where?”
His eyes darkened to a wolfish gleam. “If I may suggest, let us finish this garland and the rest of the decorations. Tomorrow we’ll take the baskets to the tenants, and perhaps while we’re out, we’ll find the opportunity we seek.”
#
PHILIP KNEW HE WASbeing a bit of a scoundrel, because the truth of the matter was, he could have kissed Leonora a dozen times already if he’d simply elected to pull her into an empty room, shut the door, and take advantage. Except he didn’t want that. He wanted her to want him with the same kind of desperation he’d felt when she’d stood before him at the inn, dressed only in her chemise, though she might as well have been utterly naked.
The things he’d imagined since then – the dastardly thoughts and the wicked desires he’d had no choice but to quench even as they grew increasingly stronger. When she’d looked at him the previous day and her gaze had dropped to his lips, he’d known what was on her mind, but he’d needed to hear her say it, to have her confirm her desire for more than conversation and the occasional touch. And then, when she told him she’d wanted to kiss him for days...
Every muscle inside him had tightened with expectation, only to be disappointed by Lady Lockwood’s interruption. But he supposed there was a benefit to it, namely that of heightening anticipation. It was why he’d not yet tried to kiss Leonora, because he wanted the question about where and when to make her wonder, make her long, make her crave until she was just as close to expiring from need as he was.
They went to deliver the baskets together in the afternoon. The trip required ten stops by carriage, so it took a couple of hours to complete. Unfortunately, when one of the maids offered to assist and Lockwood told Philip that having her there would be wise, he was forced to accept that his kiss with Leonora would once again be delayed.
“I should have agreed to share the bed with you at the inn,” he murmured when they returned to the manor and he helped her alight.
She blushed as she so often did when he spoke to her in private. “Why didn’t you?”
It was a bold question, deserving of a bold answer. “Because I would not have been able to keep my hands off you for one second.” He ushered her inside, heedless of her gasp and the way her steps faltered in response to his scandalous statement. “You should go take a nap before dinner. This afternoon has been rather exhausting.”
“I do not feel especially tired.” She handed her bonnet and gloves to the butler, and as always, Philip stopped for a second to stare at her gorgeous red hair.
He blinked, shook his head and proceeded to pull off his gloves with sharp movements. “Nevertheless.” He gave her a direct look. “The rest will do you good.”
Her lips parted and for a second he thought she would protest again, but then she nodded and turned for the stairs. “Perhaps you are right, Mr. Dalton. I’ll see you again later.”
As soon as she was gone, Philip strode off to the library in order to find a book, any book, in an effort to look as though he did not have roguish intentions on his mind. Leonora needed to get upstairs first before he followed. He had to appear nonchalant, which was getting increasingly difficult, he had to admit.
But when he entered the library, he found Lockwood there with his wife and daughter, the perfect picture of family unity, intimacy, and love. Lucy was cradled in Lockwood’s arms fast asleep against his shoulder, and that image alone made Philip’s heart ache.
Soon, he reminded himself.
“How did it go?” Lady Lockwood asked from her position on the sofa. “Were the tenants pleased with what you brought?”
“Very.” Philip strode further into the room. “They asked Miss Compton and me to give you their thanks.”
“Where is my sister? If she joins us, we could play a game of charades.”
“I believe our excursion has tired her.” Lady Lockwood’s eyes widened with surprise so he quickly told her, “She’s gone upstairs for a nap.”
Lady Lockwood frowned. “I hope she doesn’t feel as though I’ve been neglecting her.”
