Before he could tell his brother the truth, the doors to the study burst open and then slammed. Two noisy little figures came hurtling into the room like the little storms they were. Alexander’s face was red with excitement, bounding up and down. Emily was quieter, but her face was mischievous. Kenneth knew that his niece had some plans up her sleeve.
“Papa! Papa! You must come with us at once!” Alexander cried, running toward his father and bumping into him with his smaller body. Malcolm gave a mock groan and held his stomach as if his son had just injured him. “The wind had it flying up that huge oak tree in the middle of the garden. Now, the twine is all tangled with a branch!”
Malcolm blinked, confused. He glanced at his brother for guidance, but Kenneth could only shrug.
“What are you talking about, Alex?” Malcolm asked.
“He is talking about a kite, Papa!” Emily replied, her words coming out in puffs of breath. “Aunt Maddy tried to help us fly it, but her dress is too long and heavy. So, she sent us to fetch you, saying that you can help us. Can you help us?”
Malcolm stared at his daughter as if he could not believe she had come and asked him for help. The two children looked at him expectantly. Almost hesitantly, he set his glass of brandy down on a table. Then, he looked out the window where Madeline was standing and waiting. Kenneth did the same.
What is she up to this time?
“She thinks I can help you with the kite?” Malcolm murmured, a smile playing on his lips as his eyes took on a faraway look.
“Yes! Aunt Maddy said that only you could do it!”
“I suppose we need to save your kite from these gnarly branches. Show me the way!”
Alexander cheered loudly, grabbing his father’s hand and pulling him toward the door. Emily followed with a wide smile. Kenneth was left behind with the sour taste of the secret still on his tongue.
All he could do was watch Malcolm and the children join Madeline. He should have been there, but he was stuck in the study, caught up in his rules and fears. He pressed himself against the windowpane, as close as he could get to them without actually being there.
‘Your heart will shatter into a thousand pieces if she leaves you.’
Malcolm’s warning echoed in his mind. That was why he was staying away as much as possible. He needed to be ready for anything. He should not let himself be bothered by a petite woman with curves that kept him awake at night. Kenneth then knew, with a horrifying certainty, that despite his efforts not to let it happen, he was already too deep in.
Chapter 18
“Numbers. Numbers. Numbers,” Kenneth muttered to himself as he bent back over his ledgers.
It was the only reliable way to keep him from listening to the laughter drifting up from the gardens, where his brother, the children, and his wife were all occupied with the kite. The estate was doing magnificently. The figures were precise. He had no reason to be at this desk except that the alternative was the window, and he had spent quite enough of his time there.
Madeline had already taken his nights. He would not surrender his afternoons as well.
So he worked, and the work did what it always did; it narrowed the world to the scratch of his quill and the columns before him until everything else fell away. It was how he had coped with every unwelcome thing for as long as he could remember.
He did not hear the door. He did not hear her cross the room.
He only caught the scent of citrus and lavender a moment before two delicate hands slipped over his eyes from behind.
“Guess who?” The voice was teasing and too close to his ear.
Kenneth froze. All his muscles became stiff. His senses urged him to pull away, and he could if he wanted to, since he was much stronger than she. Still, the warmth of her palms sparked a dangerously familiar ache that had been growing stronger over the days.
“Madeline,” he murmured, his voice coming out more gravelly than he intended. He reached for her wrists. “I am working on this quarter’s accounts. I do not have time for whatever this is.”
“Keep your eyes closed, Kenneth,” she insisted, her thumbs brushing against his eyelids like the softest massage. All his protests were gone by then. “I need you to follow me.”
“I cannot simply leave my work because my wife wishes to play some sort of game in the middle of the afternoon,” he protested, but still kept his eyes closed. His hands were still on her wrists, but he had not pried hers away. “What will the servants think of this?”
“I know you do not really care what the servants think,” she said, her body so close to his. Her breasts grazed his back. He almost groaned at the feel of them, heavy and enticing. Oh, he still kept his eyes closed. “Besides, they are occupied with their tasks. Trust me. I will not take up much of your time.”
Kenneth let out a soft growl. He knew he was losing this round, whatever it was. His control completely crumbled as, by closing his eyes, he saw her more vividly in his mind, spread out for him on the dining table. She had been such a feast, one that he should not want to partake in once more.
When he rose, he let go of her wrists. She struggled to reach his eyes this way, but he gently took her hands off his face andshowed her they were safely squeezed shut.
Madeline guided him. All he could do now was trust her, following her scent, footsteps, and touch. She led him outdoors until he felt the warm afternoon air on his skin. His nostrils were invaded by the scent of sweet jasmine and roses.
