Ghost of Christmas Past (14 page)

Rupert
was having none of it though. He knew that it was far too late to
head outside and see if he could find it but he knew without a
shadow of a doubt that it was one and the same carriage that
Fornier used. What had happened, though, for her to be so shaken by
a carriage rumbling past?

“
Tell me what it looked like. There is a reason, but I will
tell you in a minute.”

Thea
frowned and described the black carriage. “Then, when he drew level
with the window, he turned and looked directly at me. He looked
like he was on his way to a funeral.”

“
What did he look like?”

“
He was covered in black from head to toe so I didn’t see his
face.”

“
He wore a tall top hat.” It wasn’t a question.

She
gasped and turned to stare at him at the sound of the calm
certainty in his voice. “You have seen it.”

Rupert
nodded. He didn’t want to frighten her but needed to keep her safe.
“I think it is the same carriage that was in the street the night
John was shot. Because of the similarities, I don’t want you
sitting in the window seats for the time being.” He picked her
hands up in his and kissed the back of each one tenderly. “Now, I
am not saying that the carriages are the same, but it seems mighty
odd that the coachman is wearing a top-hat given that carriage
drivers in London don’t usually bother with them.”

Thea
nodded, and felt slightly sick. “John was shot.” She shuddered at
the thought of just how vulnerable she had been doing nothing other
than sitting in the window seat.

He
cursed at the look of fear on her face. “I am not saying that he
would take a shot at you. It isn’t you he is after, so don’t worry
about it too much. There are men outside keeping watch and I have
no doubt they are following him as we speak.”

“
He? You said that it isn’t me ‘he’ is after. You know who it
is, don’t you?”

Rupert
cursed his slip of the tongue but couldn’t insult her intelligence
by denying anything. “We do have a serious line of enquiry, but I
cannot say any more right now.”

He
wished now that he hadn’t brought her to the Mayfair house at all
because he had brought her straight into the centre of danger. “I
will make arrangements for you to go back to Leicestershire as soon
as possible. If John is well enough to travel, you can take him
with you. I am sure that he will enjoy the country air to
recuperate in.”

Thea
felt the heavy weight of disappointment and immediately shook her
head. “It is too late now. He has seen me in the window and knows I
am here. Surely, if we leave the house we will be more at risk. At
least here, you and your colleague are around to protect us.
Besides, I cannot leave Uncle John and he is not well enough to
travel. He needs to remain here for the time being and I need to be
here for him.” Thea read the doubt on his face but refused to allow
him to change her mind. “I am not going,” Thea replied loudly when
he continued to stare steadily at her. He could hardly force her to
leave the house. When he continued to study her far too closely she
heaved a put-upon sigh. “I am sorry but I am not going
anywhere.”

The
strength and determination on her face made him feel immensely
proud of her, and relieved that they would have a little more time
together. He just wished that it could be without the threat of
Fornier hanging over them. He made a decision right there and then
that if she was to remain the centre of danger, she had to at least
have the pertinent facts so she knew who she should be keeping a
look out for.

“
If you insist on staying then I cannot argue with you,
however I need you to take extra precautions, especially now that
Fornier appears to be circling.”

“
Fornier?” She watched Rupert nod firmly.

“
He is French; one of the spies we are after.” Rupert merely
looked at her as though trying to gauge her reaction but she looked
completely unperturbed to find herself slap bang in the middle of
one of the Star Elite’s investigations.

“
I am not going to do anything silly,” she assured him tartly.
“But Uncle John was there for me when I needed him and he did a lot
to make my recovery as smooth as possible. Now he needs me and I
have to be here for him. I am not going to be driven away by
anyone, not least a Frenchman,” she sniffed.

He felt
a little nonplussed and wasn’t quite sure what to make of the
feeling that blossomed around his heart. He wanted to mentally
applaud her determination, but at the same time he wanted to put
his head in his hands and groan out loud with the sheer frustration
of trying to reason with her.

She
waved a vague hand toward the door. “I am sorry for my reaction
just now. I am not sure what came over me. Tiredness perhaps or
possibly too many emotions over a short period of time, I am not
sure which, but I am fine now.”

While
she spoke she tried to keep her voice steady so she didn’t betray
the awareness that began to blossom within her. Although she
couldn’t put a name to it, she knew exactly what it was. She had
only ever experienced it once before, and that had been during the
night she had spent in his bed. It didn’t frighten her. In fact, if
she was honest with herself she yearned to feel it again. She was
drawn to his solid masculinity before her; his strength; his
essence, that was purely him.

She
coughed and shifted uncomfortably when he continued to study her.
As the minutes ticked by she gradually became aware of their
intimate situation. The room was large yet cosy, lit only by the
soft amber glow from the fire. Her cheeks began to grow warm as she
realised that she only wore her nightgown and a thick woollen shawl
while he was fully dressed and looked as handsome and debonair as
he had over dinner earlier that evening.

If only she knew what a beautiful sight she made,
Rupert mused wryly and tried not to stare at the
shadowed perfection of her silhouette displayed so tempting by the
flickering firelight behind her. The feminine curves seemed to call
to him, beckoning him closer. Whenever she moved he could smell the
scent of lavender she wore and his body responded with a fierceness
that made him feel strangely protective. He wasn’t aware of
covering the short distance to kneel before her but she made no
attempt to stop the hand the reached out to cup her chin. He waited
for a moment; assessing her beautiful eyes for any indication that
she wary or didn’t want his attention, but he saw nothing but calm
acceptance staring back at him.

“
Thea,” he growled and dipped his head before she could speak
or push him away.

Thea
knew it was asking for trouble, especially with the siren’s call of
the empty bed beside them, but she couldn’t deny her raging need to
be close to him again. Her fingers clutched at the crisp material
of his shirt and she was immediately flooded with memories of their
night together all that time ago, before their lives had changed
completely. She couldn’t speak, nor did she want to when he slid
one long arm around her back and drew her tight against
him.

He felt
the gentle slide of her small fingers in his hair and shivered at
the sensual feel of her softness against him. It had been so long
since they had been so close, alone and undisturbed, yet it felt as
though it had been only yesterday. Unable to quench the desire that
flared between them, he slowly slid one hand down her back until it
settled on her hip. When she made no objection, his search took him
higher, over the gentle dip of her waist to her ribs, even higher
to cup the gentle weight of her breast.

His
ministrations drew her gasp as burning hot shards of sensation made
her knees tremble. Before she could speak she felt herself swept
high into the air. There was little she could do other than hold
on. Any words of protest that formed were captured by the tender
kisses that rained down on her lips, cheek and chin. She had little
choice but to hang on for dear life as he carried her over to the
bed and lay her on the crisp white sheets before he settled down
beside her.

Rather
than lean over her though, he turned her to face him and gathered
her into his arms. He knew now that their night together hadn’t
been a figment of his imagination, and nothing was going to stop
him from experiencing the very same depth of passion between them
that had haunted him for four long and lonely years.

Her low
moan was all he needed to hear, and he rolled her slowly backward.
When he deepened the kiss, he felt the first flickering flames of
desire take over. Lips fused, bodies melted together as hands
sought to fan the raging fire as they rolled over until their
positions were reversed and she was lying over him. She gasped at
the strange sensation but couldn’t bring herself to break the kiss
or tell him to stop. When she did try to draw away she found her
head captured in his hands and she was tugged back down to his
fervent kisses. She was helpless to do anything other than abide by
his wishes as he reversed their positions again and took advantage
of their movement to lift her nightgown.

The cool
was of night air on her fevered skin was as effective as a bucket
of iced water. Everything with her froze. With a sudden jerk of her
head she wrenched her head to one side at the same time that her
hand tried to stop his. The feel of the cool breeze on the rippled
scars on her thighs brought tears of shame to her eyes and she lay
horrifyingly embarrassed beneath him. She desperately clawed at her
night dress, trying to drag it down to cover her
humiliation.

“
Please don’t,” she whispered as she tried to settle the
painful thundering of her heart. She couldn’t believe that she had
forgotten.

“
Thea,” Rupert groaned and buried his face into her neck while
he tried to control the desire that pounded through him. After
several moments he took a deep breath and leaned back to look down
at her but made no attempt to lift himself off her. “I have seen
death and physical injuries before. I was there when you were
unconscious in the carriage and saw, more than you did what state
your legs were in. I am under no illusions that your injuries were
life changing and you still carry the scars, and will do so for the
rest of your life. However, I had hoped that you would think me a
better man than one who would be put off, or offended by, a few
scars.” When she made no attempt to answer him, he dropped a quick
kiss onto her lips. “Would you tell me something honestly,
Thea?”

Thea
nodded hesitantly. She knew she should push him away and get off
the bed so she could cover her legs completely, but her heart
wanted her to remain where she was and see what he really felt
about her injuries. It wasn’t as if they were going anywhere; she
couldn’t deny their existence. If she tried, all she had to do was
look down at her bared flesh and she would see the thin, rippled
lengths of skin which should have been smooth and unblemished. She
would only need to apply too much pressure onto her leg and feel
the familiar shaft of unease grow into aching discomfort and all of
the memories of that fateful time of her life would come flooding
back. If she had any hope of making him see that she wasn’t the
same person she had been back then she had to show him. However,
the thought of actually allowing him to see her injuries made her
want to squirm with embarrassment.

“
Does it hurt? Lying here like this?”

Colour
flooded her cheeks. Although he had chivalrously covered her bared
leg, he was still draped heavily over her and had made no attempt
to move in spite of her acute embarrassment. Thea considered their
positions for a moment and slowly shook her head. “No, it doesn’t
hurt.”

His eyes
met and held hers and he slowly eased his weight forward until he
was lying completely over her. His position forced her to
accommodate him. He seemed to be gauging her; assessing to see if
she was in any discomfort. “Anything now?” He whispered huskily and
dropped his head to place a lingering kiss on her mouth.

She
couldn’t ignore the growing evidence of his arousal against her and
struggled to lie complacently beneath him. The gnawing ache that
had already started to build gathered frustration with it to the
point that if he didn’t either get off her and let her get up she
was certain she was going to take matters into her own hands. He
seemed to read her thoughts and understand her awkwardness over her
scars because he eased himself off her long enough to remove his
shirt and draw the bed covers over both of them.

She felt
bereft as he temporarily left her and took his warmth with him, but
a thrill of anticipation swept through her at the desire that was
written on his face. His steady gaze as he turned to face her
barely registered and she was left grasping futilely at his hands
as he relentlessly drew her nightgown up and over her head in one
swift motion. She winced a little as the material ripped when she
didn’t move fast enough but he didn’t seem to care and tossed the
garment over the edge of the bed without breaking eye contact with
her.

She was
left with little choice but to flail her arms about wildly in a
desperate attempt to preserve her modesty while keeping the bed
covers over her legs and cried out loud when he captured her wrists
in his large palms and held them still above her head.