He came up gasping a few yards ahead. Damn, but the water was cold. He remembered the water always being cool, even at the height of summer, but not being this cold. No matter, vigorous swimming was sure to warm him up in no time.
By the time he had taken several turns from one edge of the pool to the other, his blood was pumping and his body had acclimated to the temperature of the water. The exercise and water soothed his muscles as he stood directly under the cascade of the gushing waterfall, letting the water massage his shoulders and back.Ahh,heavenly.
He was so relaxed that it took him a while to notice he was being watched. But as soon as he became aware of someone’s presence in the bushes around the clearing, he knew it was her. Abigail. How he knew he had no logical explanation. It was as if a part of his brain had a special power to detect her nearness. What was she doing here? Had she followed him? Why wouldn’t she leave?
The knowledge that she watched him swim naked created a distinct tension in him. Sexual awareness was never too far away whenever she was near, but now it was nearly overpowering. His mind provided a fantasy of her joining him in the water, naked, of their wet bodies sliding together. Of him holding her in his arms while she straddled his waist. He would lower his head to capture and suckle her nipples. His cock swelled and stiffened, and not even the cold water of the stream was enough to calm his ardor.
Damn, but this was inconvenient. The sun was already setting. Soon, the sunlight would have waned completely. Since he had stopped swimming, his body was cooling. He needed to get out of the water and into his clothes, but he couldn’t emerge while she watched.
At least the cold would prevent his erection from getting out of control, right? He swam farther away from her and lowered his hand to tug discreetly at his upright member under the concealment of the water. He couldn't get out in this state of arousal. And his cock wasn't subsiding, nor was she leaving.
He took a couple of laps around the stream to keep warm, all the while feeling her gaze burning his skin. A rustling of leaves gave away her hiding place. Which was near to where he had left his clothes. Double damn.
He would soon have to come out or freeze, and he wasn’t looking forward to that. It wasn’t a matter of modesty, but his gnarled body was not something he wanted to display in front of her. He could call her out, ask her to leave. But he didn’t want to embarrass her. If she knew he knew she was watching him, it would make her self-conscious around him. Maybe she would start avoiding him and he couldn’t have that. He treasured the moments they had together.
There was no help for it. He would have to come out. Wrestling his thoughts with an iron will, he forced himself to think about unarousing thoughts. Sinking down low in the water, he surreptitiously pushed at his erection. Willing it to subside. It took a few moments to focus his mind on boring tasks. The estate drainage project, the manure composition to best fertilize the fields... yes, that last did it. After a few minutes, his cock subsided from a rampant erection to only a mild perk up. Enough to allow him to emerge from the water without looking like a fool.
He would rather she leave so that he could get out unobserved, get dressed, and go home. Or come out and join him so that he could bury himself in her. But she was doing neither. And her passivity spurred something wicked and angry within him. He perversely now wanted her to see him. To move her to something. Either desire or contempt. He was past caring at this point, but he needed her to act.
He started walking towards the shore, exposing more and more of his body, facing her straight on. He would rather display his cock than his back. Acting naturally became the most difficult part as more of his body came into display.
When the water swirled around his genitals, he heard a rustle of leaves. A moment later, his still semi-erect cock was exposed, and he heard a muted gasp, followed by more rustling and retreating footsteps. She had left. His mouth twisted cynically. Well, what had he expected? She had probably just been morbidly curious. Trying to sneak a peek at his misshapen body. And meanwhile, he had been getting hard at the thought of her regard. Like a green lad.
He smiled without humor. It seemed he had routed his voyeuristic stalker after all.
CHAPTER 10
ABIGAIL RAN AS FASTas she dared in the encroaching dark of the twilight. She stumbled, barely managed not to fall, and continued at a more sedate pace. This is what she should have done the instant she had spotted Lord Hartfield in the stream. The instant she realized he wasnaked.
She had come here to clear her head and think. The stream with the small waterfall was one of her favorite spots on the estate. Wild yet tame, beautiful and secluded. The sound of the falling water never failed to soothe her. And she needed to relax and think about her reaction to the handsome and enigmatic earl.
She had thought herself completely inured to men. It had been a long time since she had regarded any man with anything but a mixture of fear and disgust. At the very least indifferent contempt. After her disastrous marriage, she had no intention of becoming involved with a man ever again. That was the reason she became a lady's companion instead of remarrying. The mere thought had repulsed her at a visceral level.
However, less than two weeks after his arrival, she couldn't help but have feelings towards the Earl. She recognized it was because she had begun to trust him and admire him. His patience and calm demeanor, together with the kindness he displayed at every step, had been eroding at her instinctive repulsion.
And once she could enjoy his company, her dormant desire had awakened. She had come here to analyze her feelings and reason herself out of these inconvenient yearnings. Instead, she achieved the exact opposite when she found him swimming naked in the stream.
