Page 64 of A Potion for Passion

Chapter Thirty-One

Lawrence grinned widely as he saw the familiar figure pass the window of the Admiral Duncan. He hadn’t seen Flora for three days but it seemed like longer.

He tucked away the piece of paper he’d been reading, took a deep breath to steady his nerve, and strode out of the taproom to meet her. “Madame Julietta,” he murmured, sweeping her an extravagant bow. “What a fine day it is today. I anticipate plenty of customers. How does our patient?”

Flora was looking positively radiant. She’d abandoned her lacy cap, and now just wore a bonnet over her flaming red hair. She’d trimmed the bonnet to match the color, and held her chin up high, her blue eyes flashing.

This was a woman ready to defy anyone who dared criticize.

This was a woman who’d rediscovered her confidence.

And he liked to think he had a hand in that.

Her brows drew together and she moved closer, setting his heart beating still faster. “Hush! We’re not to mention our patient where anyone can overhear. Let’s go into the wagon, and I’ll tell you why.”

An invitation he had no intention of resisting. Seizing her hand, he hurried her up the steps, secured the flap behind them, took her into his arms, and kissed her.

The sensation was so exhilarating, it took him several moments to realize she wasn’t responding.

Holding her by the elbows, he stepped back, scanning her face in the muted light. “Forgive me,” he said immediately. “I presume too much.”

There now, he really was beginning to sound like one of the gentry. He grinned ruefully and gentled his touch.

“You do presume too much, yes, but that doesn’t mean I’m not glad of the part you played in the major’s rescue. I assume you’ve told no one else about him?” she queried, her eyes solemn.

“Hard to believe it, I know,” he replied. “But no. I’ve been discreet. I’ve been minding my own business, doing a brisk trade, and writing my book. You’ll be so impressed, Flora. I’m quite the reformed character.”

Her dubious expression made him chuckle. What a delight she was! So open, so honest, not scheming like so many other women. She asked no more than he was willing to give. And in her case, he was prepared to give a lot.

“I never asked you to reform,” she said. “But you were drunk when you came to the door that night, however much you claim your use of the brandy was purely medicinal.”

She subjected him to a searching look, and he resisted the urge to smooth down his hair and straighten his neckcloth.

Whatever was wrong with him? He’d never cared about the disposition of his neckcloth before. He knew himself to be handsome, but only Dr. Campaign was vain. Lawrence Campion was not.

“I wouldn’t lie to you, Flora,” he said, hoping he meant it.

“I don’t think you remember anything about that night,” she said, still subjecting him to that penetrating stare. “I told you to lie low. But what did you do? You came knocking at the door as bold as brass, offering your services. And you couldn’t have chosen a worse time. Mrs. Daniell had seen my hair the previous night and had returned to ring a peal over me—again—when you knocked.”

“Would you rather I’d just left you to weather the storm? That’s not what friends do. Part of the reason I knocked on the door was to rescue you from her.”

“Friends? Is that what we are?”

“Certainly. Perhaps more than friends…?”

She tilted her head to one side. “You don’t recall much about that night, do you?”

“What am I meant to remember? I didn’t do anything…lewd, did I? I’d surely be able to bring that to mind.”

Her hands rested lightly on his forearms, a slight tremor in her fingers. Something was affecting her deeply, and he needed to know what it was.

“You said you needed me,” she replied softly.

Judas!Had he really said that? It didn’t sound like him. He was his own man—he didn’t need anybody. But there was a glimmer of hope in her eyes, and he’d been with enough women to understand exactly what it meant.

Sweat broke out on his brow.

Exhaling slowly, he took her hands in his and pressed his fingers seductively between hers. “I do need you, Flora,” he said, moving closer. “You need me, too. Don’t deny it.”