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‘You shouldn’t do this, Benneit. I do not wish to cause problems.’
‘It is far too late for that, mo ghràdh. You were a problem from the day I agreed to Lady Theale’s demand. You’ve turned my brain to pudding and my body into a green lad’s and made me envious of my own son. McCrieff is well compensated for my freedom and it is not in his interest to cause trouble. We will weather the speculation and the villagers are already predisposed in your favour since Mrs Merry and Beth would go to battle for you and their word is law on Lochmore land. And they’re kindly disposed towards me at the moment, thanks to the distillery plans and all that fine gold coming in. Now stop looking for loopholes and do something about warming me. It was a long, wet ride catching up with my runaway Duchess.’
‘There is the blanket.’ She gestured to the colourful afghan on the seat across from them.
‘That wasn’t what I meant, pixie, and you know it.’ Still, he reached for the blanket, tucking it around her, gently wiping the mud that still clung to her flushed cheeks. ‘I remember that day, in the carriage—watching you cuddle in this and wanting to touch you. I knew you were trouble, but I had no idea what was in store for me.’
‘And if you had?’
He smiled and traced the sweep of her lips, soft and warm and his. His. The joy was so sharp he couldn’t speak for a moment and when he did his voice was rough.
‘And if I had, I would not have changed a moment of it. Not even if we could not have been together, not even to escape the pain. I will never disregard what a gift I have been given, to live my life with you, Jo.’
Her eyes widened and warmed, blurring with tears, the sky blue around her pupils very evident now. She pulled his hand under the warmth of the blanket, her fingers tangling with his as she pressed it against her heart, his thumb brushing the weight of her breast.
‘Neither will I. I cannot even begin... You don’t know how much I love you, Benneit.’
‘Tell me, then.’
‘I will. Often. You will be begging for silence.’
‘I don’t think that is what I will be begging for.’
She laughed.
‘I don’t know how I can ever thank Tessa. We must do something wonderful for her, Benneit.’
‘We will see she does not suffer from this if we can help it. Once we return.’
‘We are going somewhere?’
‘You and Jamie deserve a voyage so you can torture me with your dampened skirts again. We won’t be gone long. I want to return in time to make love to you in the garden while the wisteria is in bloom. You will like my...our bedroom there better than the castle—it has a view over the garden to the sea and the sunsets are even more spectacular than from the castle.’
‘Would it be terrible to admit I like The House better than the castle already?’
‘We can live there if you like. We can live in a cottage in the village if you like. I’ll take a muddy hovel with you over Lochmore without you, Jo.’
‘Not muddy. I don’t think I can afford to ruin any more dresses, Benneit.’
He slid his hand through the opening in the pelisse and stopped, drawing back abruptly as he realised she was wearing one of Celia’s dresses.
‘Jo! Good God, woman. I thought we were well rid of these horrors.’
‘Mrs Merry didn’t want to give a stained dress to Widow McManus, but then we managed to remove most of the stains. I did not wish...’
‘You wished to make a grand and wholly unnecessary gesture, you prickly little pixie.’
‘It wasn’t unnecessary to me... Benneit! What...? You cannot do that here!’
Benneit continued unbuttoning the dress.
‘I can and will. This dress is not passing through the castle gate.’
She laughed helplessly as he tugged off one sleeve.
‘You are mad, Benneit.’
‘Whose fault is that? Raise your delectable posterior so I can—that’s better.’
The dress sank on to the carriage floor with a sullen thunk. With a deft twist he opened the door of the carriage and with a swipe of his boot the dress was gone. He smiled at Jo who was giggling helplessly, tucking her back against him and pulling the blanket about her.
