Perry coughed into his fist, adjusting the neckline of his shirt. Suddenly, his cravat felt like it was choking him. His body was overheating as this conversation continued.
Resolute, he shook his head. “I cannot ruin you. Your husband will know we have lain together. There are ways for him to detect if you have been with another,” Perry explained. “I cannot risk leaving you at his mercy.” She was so innocent. He didn’t expect her to know that it would be easy enough to tell she was no longer a virgin.
“I’ve heard the maids speaking of ways to trick a man when they believed I wasn’t listening. I will deceive my husband. He is an old man. This is what I want.”
Swallowing, Perry rolled his head back, eyes fixating on the sky. He was no saint, and there was nothing more he wanted than to give her all she desired.
“Lottie…you will be the death of me. I am not strong enough for this.”
“Then don’t be strong. We can be strong later. You have no idea what it is like to look forward to such a bleak future with my betrothed.”
“You know I do,” he said simply, unable to finish the sentence with the words that sat on his tongue.
Any future without you is a bleak one.
“Then give me this. I beg you. A moment of sweetness to carry with me when we go our separate ways. The summer is almost over. Let us comfort each other. The memories will sustain us when the future has its day of reckoning.”
Stroking her hand up and down his arm, Perry shivered, leaning into her. Her touch lit his blood on fire; there was no will within him to resist.
“If you change your mind at any point, you can tell me to stop,” he said, staring into her eyes.
Her mouth pulled into a grin, and he pressed his lips against hers while resuming his previous exploration under her skirts. The tremble of her skin beneath his fingertips was intoxicating, each gasp a shot of poison running through his bloodstream. He would never recover from her. From the memories of their time together.Ever.
The poison of painful memories coursed through his veins to this day. He had marked her, thinking he would eventually have to deliver her to another man. Unaware that when she left his arms, she would never to return. Death would claim the one he held so dear.
He would be left to live with the stamp she had left on his body.On his heart.
Only death would set him free.
Chapter Eleven
Awarm smile teased Charlotte’s lips as her eyes rested on Aurelia, placing her doll gently in the wooden carved bed next to her own. Holding her elbows, Charlotte watched, mesmerized, as the child spoke to the toy in dulcet tones, stroking her hair and caring for her as would a real mother.
A shuffling sound drew her attention to the hallway behind her.
Holding her skirts, Aamina rushed toward her, alarm painted all over her flushed skin. Stealing a last look at her daughter, Charlotte turned to her maid.
“Miss Charlotte! There is a situation to which we must attend!” Aamina whispered urgently, her breathing rapid as she collected herself. “My apologies, I came as fast as my feet could carry me.” The maid nodded toward the hallway, indicating to Charlotte that this matter required privacy.
They strolled to a nearby bedroom, the door snicking softly behind them.
“Lord Spencer has awoken,” Aamina said as she searched Charlotte’s expression for signs of distress.
Relief flooded her chest at the thought of Perryhaving survived his terrible fever. The emotion was quickly replaced with a sense of alarm.
“Has he asked for anyone? Do you think he is aware of my presence?”
“No, Miss Charlotte. He asked about another woman, and we convinced him there was only us servants. He had no reason to question us,” Aamina explained, wringing her hands. “You must be careful. We will keep our little mistress hidden away in her room. I will alert Ann.”
“Yes, Aamina.” Charlotte worried her bottom lip with her teeth, saying a silent prayer for her wonderful and extremely loyal servants. “I will stay close to her, as will Ann. Aurelia must be kept comfortable and innocent of his presence in the house. It might arouse her curiosity. We know well how inquisitive she can be.”
Pressing her lips together, she paced the length of the room, ruminating over the best strategy to keep everyone hidden.
Safe.
“What if he discovers you?” Her maid’s brows gathered in worry.
“We will stay out of sight until Lord Spencer is sent home,” Charlotte reassured. Her eyes locked with her maid’s wide brown eyes. “He may have questions, but you will ease his mind. To maintain that it is only servants residing here, you will ensure he is kept to his room. He mustn’t be allowed to wander.”
