Page 35 of Single Desire
“You aren’t the sort who wails at getting a bit damp, are you, Irish?”
“Certainly not.”
“Do you have a sturdy pair of boots?”
“Yes.” She hid her dismay. She had planned to begin her quest for the Circle this very day. “But there’s no need for you to bother yourself with me. No doubt you must have many other obligations, especially given you’ve only just returned home. So I’m happy to explore for myself—”
“Oh, I wouldn’t dream of allowing you to go anywhere alone just yet,” he said smoothly. “It’s a lovely day, too lovely to stay indoors.” He pulled out his pocket watch. “If I have breakfast sent up, can you be ready in an hour?”
“Oh, long before that! No later than a quarter of.”
“A woman who does not spend half the morning in her toilette! It seems we shall deal together very well, then.”
Maura glanced at him sharply. Did he mock her? She couldn’t tell. But his mood was definitely improved.
At five minutes before the hour she rushed down the main stairs. Alec stood at the bottom, gazing up at her, hands behind his back. Both his brows were raised high as he glanced pointedly at the grandfather clock in the entrance hall.
“The house is immense. I took the wrong staircase and lost my way,” she said breathlessly. “I’m afraid I wasn’t watching when Mrs. Yates showed me upstairs last night.” It was a bald-faced lie. She’d poked her nose into a few of the rooms, that she might gain a feel for where to begin her search for the Circle.
“We can’t have my bride wandering around and around, now, can we? Why, you might starve to death and the authorities would blame me.”
There it was again. She detected mockery—or did she? Alec’s tone was light, and now she couldn’t tell, for he’d tucked her arm into his elbow and was leading her away. “I’ll acquaint you with the house and grounds when we return,” he was saying. “As I said, it looks to be an excellent day for an outing, but one never knows when the occasional rain shower may appear.”
Outside the main entrance, a boy waited with a small gig. Alec climbed on the seat and offered a hand to pull her up. He was right, it seemed. The sun had disappeared beneath a bank of clouds.
Once she was settled on the seat, he snapped the reins. Maura turned and glanced back over her shoulder. It was amazing how much different his home looked in the daylight, set back within a haze of green, surrounded by trees, with bursts of color everywhere. Deep red fuchsias, hyacinths blushed with pink. There were dozens of mullioned bay windows in the house. She’d been too rattled to notice last night, but the one inher room was particularly inviting, dotted with cushions. Now, she could well imagine sitting there, snug and warm inside, watching while wind and rain whipped the trees.
The horse trotted along the lane. On both sides sheep dotted the pastures. Behind a stone fence, a border collie raced apace with the gig. A pang shot through her. No doubt McDonough Castle had once looked like this—trees, varying shades of green, masses and masses of flowers. But now there was very little green, flowers bloomed but seldom, no matter how much it rained. Here, nature flourished.
On McDonough land, nothing flourished as it should have.
Before long the lane forked to the right. Behind a scattering of trees, water glimmered.
Alec had noticed the direction of her gaze. “That’s the loch closest to Gleneden Hall,” he said. “It’s quite fine in the summer.”
“I can imagine.” The loch looked to be long and narrow, she noted. Despite the clouds that had begun to gather overhead, she imagined how it might appear in the sun, a sheen of rippling sapphire. Beyond, green hills undulated.
“May we stop here on the way back from wherever it is we’re going?” she asked.
“Perhaps. If we had had an earlier start, there would have been plenty of time.” He slanted her a glance from the corner of his eye.
His meaning was clear. “What!” Maura returned tartly. “Will you drag me from bed each day at the crack of dawn?”
An offhand, lazy smile curled his lips. “My dearest Maura, I would much rather drag youintobed.”
She felt her face flame scarlet. Her breath halted in her throat as a shocking image filled her mind—that of Alec sprawling naked on the bed, tugging her down between the vise of his thighs. Every inch of her naked skin touched his. Her breasts on his chest, her legs molded the entire length of his, one knee nested against his.
She tried and failed to clamp the thought shut. Never mind that they had already lain together naked, though not in such a blatantly erotic way as the one that filled her mind, praise heaven! Even more shocking, in her mind’s eyes her expression was warm and seductive as she willingly offered her lips—
Never mind that such was the very thing to be avoided at all costs.
“There’s also a path through the forest from the house to the loch,” Alec said. “I’ll show you another time.”
Maura scarcely heard. His thigh slid against hers at every little jostle. It was distracting. She couldn’t help it. She was helplessly aware of it. Of him. Everything about him.
He had dressed much as a working gentleman might. Dark boots encased his calves. His breeches were tight, leaving no doubt as to the shape of muscle beneath. The breeze molded his shirt against his chest, reminding her of the night at Lord Preston’s. It was open at the throat, revealing a dark tangle ofhairs. Every inch of him was long and hard and taut. Ah, but then she already knew that from the night spent in his chamber when she’d had to divest him of his clothes. Oh, yes, now there was a sight that would linger forever in her mind! Long limbs, netted with curly black hair, thicker and darker on the broad wealth of his chest…and lower as well, where it grew wiry and dense around—
Squeezing her eyes shut, she banished the image. But still the night of the masquerade remained with crystal clear clarity.
