Page 37 of Eloping With The Princess
“I do believe the Spanish would be appalled at what the English have done to their military technique,” he said.
“Am I holding this correctly?” she asked.
He stood parallel to her, then moved her right elbow out. “Extend it this way.” And then they were locked in a mirrored stance, him behind her, guiding her arms and legs to the appropriate positions. The warmth from her skin rolled off her, practically caressing him. Perhaps this hadn’t been a good idea, after all. He quickly went back to facing her.
“This?” She moved forward, lunging the foil at him.
“Precisely.” He shifted toward her. “I advance and you retreat. Then you advance and I retreat.” They repeated the actions several times in silence while he let her get used to the activity. She bit her lip, clearly concentrating, and he was struck again by how lush and full her lips were. How eminently kissable.
“Fencing is as much intellectual as it is physical,” he said as he circled her. Mostly, he said it to distract himself, because watching her while she fenced was too tempting. “It is about knowing your opponent and deliberately trying to mislead him.” He lunged and she retreated. “You must anticipate their next move and how they’ll react to yours.” She lunged at him and he met her strike. Her balance wobbled. “And try to throw them off, as it were. You make them think you’re going to do one thing, and then you do something else. It’s a mind game. It’s trickery and deceit.”
Their foils hit, clanging delicately. She was naturally athletic; he could tell that from the ease with which she moved her body. She struggled a few times, stumbled more than once, but always persevered and refocused on the task at hand. It was an admirable quality. He couldn’t help wishing she had fewer admirable qualities. This would all be much easier if he didn’t like her as well as desire her.
Thirty minutes later they were both winded and perspiring. Her cheeks were flushed, and damp curls framed her face, and she’d never looked more alluring. He wanted her even more, if that were possible.
“Isabel, might I ask you a question?”
“Of course.” She withdrew the protective covering he’d given her and handed it back to him.
“Do you know how to dance? Waltz and quadrille and the like?”
“Yes, although I have only ever had other women as partners because of the school,” she said.
“Judging by today’s performance, we shall be all right at our ball. I suspect that was all the practice we needed.”
“I was not that terrible, was I?” she asked with an impish grin as she came to stand right in front of him.
“Indeed, you were quite good.” Unable to resist, he reached out to tuck one of her curls behind her ear. Her smile softened from one of open glee to something a little more enticing.
Afraid if he stood there much longer, he would do more than merely touch her hair, he took the foil from her hand and carried it along with his own back to the equipment chest. He busied himself arranging the equipment, even when he heard her approach from behind.
“I enjoyed this lesson very much. Do you think we can have another one?”
A better question was whether he could stand to give her another one. Even now, he wondered whether this had been a mistake. But how could he disappoint her? Yet he was afraid he wouldn’t have the strength to tell her no. Not when he had already denied her so much.
“We shall see,” he said. “You’re quite welcome to make use of this room whenever you like.” It was the least he could do.
“I shall.”
He pretended to be absorbed in organizing the equipment chest until he heard her leave the room. Only then did he turn around to stare at the closed door through which she had just left.His wife was entirely too desirable, whether she was dressed in the height of fashion for a ball or sweaty and flushed from the exertion of fencing. But it changed nothing. Everything he’d told her about fencing was true, and he knew that those principles were how he led his life. He was always on defense, waiting and watching and anticipating what moves others would make so that he could counterattack. He never let anyone get close enough to him to hit their mark. Because he knew that his secrets were his and his alone to bear. So with fencing, it was with every relationship he had: always staying one step ahead, keeping one layer between him and everyone else.
It wasn’t that he didn’t want things to be different. He did, but he knew they couldn’t be, especially with her. The fact that he wanted her as much as he did was a red flag warning him not to get too close. Everything about her made him want to lay his vulnerabilities before her, but if she knew the truth, what would it change? Nothing. He still couldn’t have her. She wanted children, had said as much to him. He would not give her that and, therefore, couldn’t give her the life she deserved.
…
Isabel hadn’t seen much of Jason in the days that followed their fencing lesson. His behavior toward her ran so hot and cold, he nearly made her dizzy. Gone was the charming man who’d teased her in the library when she’d first arrived at his home. Although she’d seen glimpses of him when they’d been fencing, for the most part, Jason avoided her.
Her dress had been delivered, as had a plethora of other articles of clothing, shoes, ribbons, and jewels. He’d likely spent more money on her in that single day of shopping than Thornton had her entire life. Jason certainly created the outward appearance of a doting husband.
The shimmering green dress hung on the door of her armoire, and every time she walked past it, she ran her fingers over the luxurious fabric. It was nearly time to get dressed. There was a rap at the door, followed by a line of women entering Isabel’s bedchamber. Four maids, then Evie, and then her aunt Lilith.
“Could it truly be you, Aunt Lilith?” Isabel asked, blinking back the tears that pricked her eyes.
“It is me, squirrel.” Isabel couldn’t remember why Lilith had started calling her “squirrel,” only that she had done so since they’d met.
They embraced, and Isabel wished for only a moment that they were alone and she could share all the goings-on that had happened over the last couple of weeks.
Isabel smiled. “You have no idea how pleased I am you are here.”
