Scandalous and glorious at the same time.
He stayed her despite her struggles. “Wait a moment, my lady. You just had a nasty fall. Don’t try to rise too quickly.”
His commanding tone won out and she ceased her efforts. As she relaxed against him, his heat, his strength, his comfort sank into her like a cheerful fire on a cold day. “Why did you come, Captain? I believed you thought it improper this morning.”
“It is still improper, my lady.” He smiled, white teeth glinting in the dark. “However, the more I thought of you journeying alone, with only the three servants, the more uneasy I became. I, too, came to fear that St. Cyr would try to follow you.”
“He thinks me married to you, Captain. Or to Lord Manning rather. Either way, he believes me under the protection of another man. He would not dare pursue me.” She straightened in his lap.
“I believed the same thing, my lady, until I remembered the self-satisfied look on the blackguard’s face just before I ran him off.” Amiable patted her hand. “I fear he realized you were not wearing a wedding ring. It would be a simple matter for him to make inquiries and find out the truth.”
She stretched out her left hand, the bare third finger mocking her. She worked to keep the tears at bay.
“I have attempted to trace your path all afternoon. To warn you and offer myself as escort in case St. Cyr presents himself along the way.” He shook his head and a smile touched his lips. “I must apologize for the lateness of my arrival, but I quite lost you as soon as you left London. I had hoped the magnificence of your carriage would have made people remember it and remark on it to me, but no one seemed to pay it any attention at all.”
“Had it not been for one wee girl atop her family’s vegetable cart I might still be riding the lanes in the moonlight.” His smile broadened. “I had been ready to give up on the St. Albans road and go back toward Berkhamstead, but I stopped to inquire about your carriage and a little girl with a jam-streaked face laughed and asked if I was chasing the grand lady in the black carriage that had passed while she ate her dinner. I gave the mother a guinea for the child’s keeping and rode in this direction, praying I would catch up to you before it got too late.”
“You are very kind, captain.” Juliet settled against his comfortable shoulder. “I am most grateful you found us. How did you know I gave the name Mrs. Dawson?”
Amiable laughed. “I didn’t. I asked the innkeeper if Lady Manning had stopped here, then Lady Juliet Ferrers. He answered ‘no’ to each question so I gave up. I could ride no more tonight, so I thought to make further inquiries in the morning. I asked for a room and gave my name as Captain Dawson. He shot me a strange look, so I immediately said, ‘She hasn’t given her true name, has she? I told her if she traveled alone to use a false one instead.’”
Juliet giggled. “So that’s how you knew?”
Amiable nodded. “I’ve engaged a second room. I told the innkeeper I wouldn’t disturb your rest so late at night. He shook his head and muttered something about me being a daft bloke, throwing good money after bad just for the comfort of my wife.” His gaze lingered on her face.
Heat rose in her cheeks while that fluttery feeling returned to her stomach. She eased off his lap and backed toward the bed. Best put some distance between the both of them while she still had the willpower.
Glynis bustled in, directing two lads with steaming buckets and a third with a wooden tub. She stopped inside the doorway, a puzzled frown on her face. “Why aren’t you lying down, my—” Her gaze followed Juliet’s to Amiable and she gasped.
“Yes, Glynis, isn’t it wonderful.” Juliet jumped in before the girl could give them away. “My husband has joined us tonight after all.” She flashed a smile at Amiable, hoping to encourage him to play along once more. “I am so happy to see you, Captain Dawson.”
“As I am you, Mrs. Dawson.” He grinned back at her, and her stomach twisted. For tonight at least, her dream was realized. She was Mrs. Dawson. She turned her attention to the boys. “Set the tub down near these chairs, and empty the buckets in, if you please.”
Glynis shot a wild look at her mistress then leaped in to supervise the inn servants. When she’d readied the bath, the girl hesitated. “I need to go down with the lads for more water, my…Mrs. Dawson.” She frowned at Amiable, still sitting before the fireplace. “We need a bucket of cold for blending and a hot one to cool for rinsing. They were asleep when I went down and I’m half afraid they’ll go back to their beds if I don’t see to them.”
“That will be fine, Glynis. All is well, now that my husband is here.” Juliet stared her down. No mere maid would keep her from spending a few more moments with Amiable.
With a humph the girl cast a final, stricken look over her shoulder and left.
The door shut and Juliet plopped down on the bed, arms wrapped around one of the posts, at a sudden loss for words. How delicious the bath would feel. How sorely she needed relaxation at the moment. First, however, she needed to dispatch Amiable.
Mouth drawn, his gaze flickered restlessly from her to the tub.
“Oh.” She jerked her head away before he could see the warmth coloring her cheeks. The images forming in Captain Dawson’s mind might be similar in nature to her dream earlier in the day. A sudden ache hit low in her belly and she couldn’t sit still. She stood.
“I apologize for interrupting your bath, my lady.” Amiable lumbered to his feet. He nodded to the tub, keeping his gaze on it rather than her. “I will retire to my room now. I believe it is across the hall, two doors down on the right. If you have further need of me this evening, please send Glynis for me.” He bowed and strode toward the door.
“You did not interrupt my bath, Captain Dawson,” Juliet whispered as he opened the door.
He turned and raked his gaze over her for a long moment. “More’s the pity, Lady Juliet.” He cursed, clutched the door latch then jerked it open and left.
How odd men acted sometimes. Still, he had followed her to the White Hart Inn. That mattered most of all. She crossed to the tub. Idly, she dipped her hand in and trailed her fingers through the exquisitely warm water. Perfect. The whole evening’s encounter had been perfect. Although if Amiable had arrived a mere ten minutes later…
“More’s the pity,” she whispered. A blast of heat began in her face and spread until even her toes had turned red. She doffed her night rail and climbed into the tub. Best have another reason for her bright hue should Glynis reappear.
* * * *
Amiable strode into his room, shut the door and sagged against it. His only hope of staying upright.
“Why the devil did I say that?” Remembering her comely figure in a sheer nightgown beside the waiting bath, he closed his eyes. His groin stirred. He’d come to be her protector, not her debaucher. Still, images of Juliet, warm and wet and naked in that tub had popped into his head as he’d sat not two feet from her.
Unthinkable. Thank God, he’d left her chamber before temptation became too great.
Yet now, just down the hall, she would be sitting, relaxed in that tub, her shining hair piled haphazardly on her head, tendrils and wisps escaping to form a halo around her face. Her milky white complexion turned rosy by hot water, a deeper rose perhaps at the tips of breasts barely touching the water. Breasts that would feel soft and smooth beneath his fingers when he…
“Christ.” He tore at his cravat, doffed jacket, waistcoat and shirt in quick order, then up-ended the whole pitcher of cool washing water over his head. Regrettably, it lacked the icy sting needed to break the spell his charming charge had woven around him. A freezing creek or a chilly spring would be more effective, but he’d have to settle for this tepid water and a little discipline.
The