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‘Yes?’
‘Do I really have to spend the whole day in bed again tomorrow?’
‘Absolutely.’
‘Good.’ She pressed a sleepy kiss against his chest. ‘Because I’m looking forward to it now.’
* * *
Henrietta lay back against the pillows and stretched her arms above her head, feeling like the cat who’d got the cream and was basking in sunshine to boot. As horrified as she’d been by her sickbed appearance the previous day, she was starting to think that perhaps having Sebastian as a nurse wasn’t such a bad thing, after all. All things considered, she would be perfectly content to lie in bed all day long. Not only was he extremely attentive, but his methods of keeping her there were surprisingly pleasurable. She didn’t think there was a single square inch of her body that he hadn’t kissed that morning, though he’d paid particular attention to her ankles, she’d noticed.
She supposed she ought to feel embarrassed by some of the things they’d done, but instead, every time she looked at him, she felt a fresh flurry of stomach tingles. They were beyond friendship now, quite a long way beyond, and, although neither of them had mentioned love, they had a new kind of relationship. One based on honesty, affection, respect and undeniable mutual attraction. And if that didn’t feel like quite enough, a tiny voice at the back of her mind argued, it was still better than a lot of marriages.
No, she had no regrets, she decided, watching the ripple of Sebastian’s shoulder blades as he drew a knife across his cheeks and frowned into the mirror on the dresser that had given her such a shock. None except that she hadn’t been able to persuade him to keep the beard, but he’d claimed it was too itchy, promising to compensate in ways that made her imagination run riot.
‘There.’ He put the knife down and rubbed a piece of cloth over his face. ‘All done. What do you think?’
‘I think I miss my husband.’
‘Ah, I forgot, you like pirates.’ He placed his hands on his hips. ‘I’ll just have to save that look for special occasions. Now, am I allowed to get undressed and come back to bed?’
‘I don’t know.’ She tapped a finger against her bottom lip. ‘I would say yes, but I thought I was supposed to be recovering?’
‘That was yesterday.’ He was already removing his trousers. ‘The doctor’s given you the all-clear today.’
‘Oh, yes.’ She giggled. ‘He said I looked quite invigorated.’
‘I hope you didn’t tell him why.’
‘No, although he did tell me I was most fortunate in my choice of husband.’
‘And you agreed?’
‘I might have.’ She glanced at the window. ‘What’s the weather like outside?’
‘Wet and cold.’
‘No more snow?’
‘Not at the moment.’ He gave her a quizzical look. ‘You sound disappointed.’
‘I am a little. Part of me was hoping we’d get snowed in.’
‘That sounds blissful.’ He jumped on to the bed and climbed on top of her. ‘Although I thought you wanted to get back to Feversham as quickly as possible?’
‘That was before I discovered what we could do indoors.’ She smiled provocatively. ‘Besides, if we were snowed in, then it wouldn’t be our fault, would it? A delay would be out of our control. And we’d have to fill in the time somehow.’
‘I see.’ He nuzzled the side of her neck. ‘You wouldn’t be trying to seduce me again, would you, Mrs Fortini?’
‘No. It’s your turn.’
‘Challenge accepted.’ He grinned wickedly and dived under the covers.
‘Sebastian?’ She let out a squeal of surprise. ‘What are you doing?’
‘Ankles.’
She laughed at his muffled reply and settled back against the pillows again. Only it wasn’t just her ankles he was kissing, she realised quickly. It was her toes, too, and her calves and the backs of her knees, the insides of her thighs...
