“You cansee the past, Neil!Just imagine what you could do with that—what you might discover!”
“But nobody would believe me!”he protested.
Ellie waved a dismissive hand.“You don’t have to go about advertising it to them.You could find the physical evidence to support what you saw—because you’d know exactly where to look for it!”
Neil seemed thrown.“I… I never thought of it that way.”
With a sudden impulse, he pulled Ellie into a hug.“Thank you, Peanut.”
Ellie soaked up the warmth of the embrace, her brother’s chin tucked against the top of her hair.
Adam frowned down at the front of his soaked, torn shirt.“I’ve got Jacobs’ blood all over me.”
“That doesn’t seem very hygienic,” Constance commented with a wicked glint in her eye.
“Doesn’t, does it?”Adam shot Ellie an unrepentant smirk.
“Oh, go on!”Ellie huffed indulgently.
He yanked off the shirt and tossed it to the ground, exposing the firm lines of his tanned chest.Ellie’s mind momentarily blanked as she soaked up the view.
Constance shot a devilish look at Neil.“Your shirt’s a bit worse for wear as well, Stuffy.”
“Absolutely not,” Neil returned flatly.“Now, are we going?”
?
Thirty-Seven
Constance should havebeen worrying about the platoon of sepoys on their tail or relishing in the thrill of searching for supernatural artifacts in a legendary ashram.
Instead, her thoughts were glued to Neil.
The results of Constance’s experiment in the stepwell had been conclusive.The man had set her onfire.
Constance had indulged in her share of flirtations in the past.There had been staid kisses and sloppy kisses, firmly not to be repeated.Other kisses might have had potential if it hadn’t felt as though she and the gentleman in question were dancing to different tunes.
There had been nothing out of tune about Neil Fairfax.
Constance could still remember the way his lips had felt grazing and tugging at her own.How his hand had gripped her hip as he pulled her closer, trails of electric heat singeing her skin with every touch.
Constance’s attraction to Neil wasn’t new.She would hardly have been considering taking him as a lover back in Egypt if she hadn’t appreciated the view he offered—but she had never suspected that Ellie’s scholarly brother was hiding a sensual beast under that staid, play-by-the-rules exterior.
Now that she knew it was there, Constance couldn’t help but see it every time she looked at him.
His shirt was damp from their plunge through the edge of the falls.It clung to the firm line of his shoulders and the curve of his spine.
Constance could run her fingers up that arc until she reached the soft, damp hair at the nape of his neck, threaded her fingers into it, and hauled him down for another go.
He had tasted like coffee and dark spice.Smelled like amber and old books.His eyes grew more fascinating the longer she looked at them, notes of green mingling with stormy gray and earthy brown.The light hint of stubble on his jaw was a touch of ruggedness that belied his proper exterior, hinting at something wild underneath.
Well, she supposed she’d had more than a hint now—and it had only deepened her interest in exploring further.
Not that she’d mentioned any of that to Neil yet.Constance knew him too well to think he’d be comfortable throwing himself into a wild temporary affair.Such a move would also be complicated by the fact that, as far as the rest of the world knew, Neil was her fiancé… at least until Constance was through having Indian princes thrown at her by her well-meaning family.
Then they could break things off—but what would that mean for their relationship?Ladies didn’t stay friends with the gentlemen who had jilted them.
Well, Constance would find a way to do it.She was not giving Neil up over this.He was a part of her life now, whether he liked it or not.Whatever rules there were, she would break them—and drag Neil along with her.
