Lord Melvedere's Ghost (28 page)

“
Go away,” Cecily whispered from the opposite side of the
door.

“
Let me in, Cecily,” Jamie demanded, rattling the door
knob.

“
Just leave me for now, Jamie,” Cecily replied, turning away
from the door. She sat on the window seat and curled her legs up
before her glad that Jamie appeared to have given up for
now.

Jamie
stood on the opposite side of the door and studied the lock. One
swift, hard kick would be all that it would need, but he didn’t
know if there was a spare lock in the house to replace it with, and
he couldn’t afford to leave one of the doors half hanging off its
hinges. Cecily needed to be able to lock the door at night, if only
to keep him out.

“
If you don’t come out by this evening, I am going to kick the
bloody door down,” he growled knowing she could hear him. After
several moments of silence, he made his way back down to the study
and wondered if he could ever put things right.

As it
was, Jamie didn’t make it back up to her room later that evening.
Determined to achieve at least something with his time at home, he
turned his attention to the business matters on his desk with
ruthless determination. He paused briefly to eat from the tray
Warren brought him and asked if anyone had checked to make sure
Cecily was all right, only to learn that she hadn’t answered the
door to Warren either.

Fine, let her sulk,
Jamie thought
churlishly. She would come out when she got hungry enough. The news
she had received had been shocking enough, she would be inhuman not
to be struggling with the import of it. At least she knew that
Portia was alive and well. As long as Archie kept her that way,
that was fine.

Now all he had to do was persuade her that life at Melvedere
was better than anything the poor house had to offer. He as a
little insulted that he was even considering trying to persuade her
to make a choice. As far as he was concerned, there
was
no choice. He had
more than enough money to provide her with anything she wanted,
whenever she wanted it. She found him desirable. They got on well
together. So what was wrong with her? Was he not the knight in
shining armour she had expected? He didn’t care what she
expected;
he
was
all she was going to bloody well get, tarnished and slightly
battered armour and all.

He
frowned and considered the ceiling for a moment. Closing the book
on his desk he paused, and stared absently at the fireplace. Had
Warren missed something? Was Cecily really all right?

A cold
feeling began to settle around him. Cecily hadn’t eaten dinner. Was
she still in her room? Dread settled low in his stomach and he
shoved roughly away from his now clear desk. Racing across the
room, within seconds he was tearing up the stairs without a
backward glance.

He was
barely out of breath by the time he reached the top. His narrowed
gaze landed on the untouched tray just outside the sitting
room/bedroom door. He didn’t need to try the knob to know that it
was still locked. Tearing through his bedroom, he twisted the knob
to Cecily’s bedroom and pushed, cursing fluidly when it resisted
him.

“
Cecily?” He thumped on the door, his blood going cold in his
veins. So many scenarios ran through his mind. Had someone
kidnapped her? Had the room been locked from the outside? Was
Sophie mistaken in that she hadn’t seen Cecily go up the stairs at
all?

“
Open the door at once!” Jamie demanded, stepping back several
paces.

One
swift kick was indeed all it took. The cracking of the door was
accompanied by the resounding thud of the panelling thumping
against the wall. Jamie stalked through the door, gun drawn, and
frowned at the darkness. He was usually cool and unflappable in
such circumstances. This time though, with so much at stake, his
hands shook on the cool metal of the gun he held in his hands, and
his cool grey eyes held a hint of desperation that was impossible
to hide.

“
What are you doing?” Cecily demanded, pushing out of the
blankets. She stood beside the bed and stared at the splinters
littering the rug on the floor, and the gaping hole in the door
where the lock had once stood.

“
What do I think I am doing? What the
hell
do you think
you
are doing?” Jamie spat, dropping
his gun on the chair beside her bed and turning toward her with his
hands on his hips. This time he was going to get answers, and
neither of them were going to go anywhere until matters were a bit
more settled between them.

It was
apparent from the smudges on her cheeks that she had been crying.
Why did she always seem to want to be by herself to deal with her
problems? Why didn’t she want to turn to him? Didn’t she know that
he would be there to comfort her whenever she needed, and lend an
ear to however much grumbling she wanted to do?

“
I am sitting in the window seat minding my own business,”
Cecily snapped moving to study the door. “You have ruined it,” she
whispered, staring at the mess he had made.

“
Leave it,” Jamie ordered when she bent to start to pick up the
splinters.

Cecily
ignored him and moved toward the door, picking up splinters as she
went.

“
I said, leave it,” Jamie snapped, scooping her up into his
arms.

“
Put me down,” Cecily demanded, wriggling and
squirming.

“
So you can get splinters in your feet? How are you going to
run away from anyone then?” Jamie snapped, shouldering his way
through the door leading to his bedroom. He had already moved the
dresser across the passage doorway to prevent any intruders during
the night. With the main doors to the hallway shut, the entire
suite was secure.

Jamie
dropped her unceremoniously on the bed, making no attempt to hide
his interest in the length of bare leg that flashed before him as
her skirts rode up. His usually stoic patience had evaporated. He
was fed up of not understanding her. Sick and tired of trying to
persuade her gently. He simply didn’t have the patience to wait for
all eternity for her to make her bloody mind up. If she was
seriously considering the poor house over him, then he was at least
going to bloody well give her something else to think
about.

Cecily
tried to tug the hem of her dress down and gasped when Jamie’s knee
landed on the bed next to hers holding her leg still upon the
sheets. She glanced up into the fiercest eyes she had ever seen.
His face was hard and chiselled, his grey eyes glistening with
intent. She wasn’t sure whether she should scream or just cower
under the covers.

“
What is wrong with you?” Cecily snapped, frowning at his knee
that trapped her skirts. She placed a hand on the solid muscle of
his thigh, awed by the thick band of muscle that was unrelenting.
She pushed hard, but was unsurprised when he didn’t move an
inch.

“
Nothing is wrong with me,” Jamie growled. “I am perfectly
fine. It is you who has the problem.”

“
Me? I don’t have any problem,” Cecily argued, jerking backward
when he started to lean over her menacingly.

“
What do you find so offensive about me then?” Jamie demanded
sensing the spark of interest in her curious gaze. Tension
shimmered between them and radiated heat that positively crackled
with sensuality.

Cecily’s
heart pounded. She couldn’t move her legs and, if she twisted
around and tried to crawl away, she would undoubtedly reveal far
more to him than her true feelings.

“
There is nothing offensive about you. It isn’t you Jamie, it
is me,” Cecily’s voice quivered with hurt.

“
I can assure you that there is absolutely nothing wrong with
you.” Jamie declared firmly, his eyes sliding over her body
slowly.

Cecily
felt as though his gaze had branded a long line down her. She
fought the urge to squirm against the delicious sensations while a
part of her wondered how he managed to exert so much control over
her without even touching her. She should tell him to stop. She
should demand he let her get up and leave. But where would she go,
to her room with no door? He would only follow her and they would
be back to square one, wherever that was.

She
jerked when one large palm slid into her hair, scattering pins all
over the bed and floor around them.

“
Jamie,” she whispered, knowing he was going to kiss her. She
placed her palms on his chest and pushed against unrelenting muscle
that continued to grow ever closer.

“
Cecily,” Jamie whispered back, his breath warm on her
lips.

It was
the last that was said for a very long time.

Cecily
awoke the following afternoon with the weight of the world on her
shoulders. She lay perfectly still, acutely aware of the length of
muscle and bone behind her. Jamie’s arms were wrapped tightly
around her and had been all last night, and this morning when they
had both woken up. Jamie had made it clear that they were going
nowhere today and had merely dragged her back down into the bed
before scattering her wits about her for a second time when she had
suggested they get up to eat.

She knew
that she could have stopped him if she had wanted to. At any time
throughout the night’s startling revelations she could have told
him that they could go no further, and she knew he would have
stopped. But she couldn’t find it within her to protest against
anything he did to her. She had wanted to find out what it was like
to be taken by him. She had enjoyed the sensations he had created
within her with a joy that felt so natural that she immediately
wanted more.

Now
though, in the cold light of day, the enormity of what she had
allowed to happen was stark. She – they – had changed everything
and now, she didn’t know what to think about anything anymore. She
knew that she didn’t want to go to the poor house, but she also
didn’t want to stay in a relationship with Jamie, knowing he could
never love her. She couldn’t bear to be in a cold relationship. She
had so much love bubbling inside her, she knew that it would wither
and die if she didn’t have anyone to bestow it upon.

Although
it was inevitable that if she stayed with Jamie, she would at some
point end up with child, and she could bestow that love upon her
son or daughter, it wasn’t the same as having the love of the man
who held her heart. She simply couldn’t settle for second
best.

Did she
have the strength to walk away from him though? The mere thought of
having to bid him goodbye made her feel slightly sick. Could she do
it when the time came? Or, would she need to find another way to
leave the house while his attention was diverted elsewhere? She
knew she couldn’t do that to him though. He had been good, and
kind, and so very generous to her. She couldn’t just sneak off like
the criminal her father was.

She
jumped when Jamie placed a gentle kiss on her ear. “How long have
you been awake?” he whispered, kissing her neck and smiling as she
squirmed against him. His tired body was not going to respond this
time, but it was wonderful to be able to simply hold her the way he
had wanted to for a very long time.

“
A little while,” Cecily replied honestly. “Do you think it is
morning or afternoon?” She mused after several moments of
silence.

Jamie
chuckled huskily. “I don’t really care to be honest. There is
nothing to do today except enjoy each other’s company.”

Cecily
rolled over and turned to face him, making no protest when he
immediately wrapped his arms around her and drew her
close.

“
What about Miss Emstridge?” She hated to bring any more of the
outside world into this special moment but needed to keep one foot
on the ground. It would be so very easy to be swept away with the
romanticism of the moment and forget the stark future that lay
before her.

“
She isn’t going to join us,” he smiled, watching her cheeks
flush.

Cecily’s
lips twisted wryly and she rolled her eyes. “You know what I
mean.”

Jamie
yawned. “Well, I am going to have to go tomorrow to see what I can
find out about her true identity and check the references she came
here with. After that, then we will have to see what happens. The
boxes are being watched; the outside of the house is being watched.
There is little we can do right now except sit and wait for Hugo to
arrive.”

“
What if nothing happens?” Cecily asked absently stroking the
soft fur on his chest while she stared blankly at the thick ridges
of muscle underneath.

“
Then we will have to think again. Meantime, I have a job for
you,” he announced baldly. Ignoring his nakedness, he left the bed
and tugged on the bell pull. “I don’t know about you but I am
starving.”

“
What do you want me to do?” Cecily demanded, trying to keep
her eyes of his toned body, and failing miserably.

Jamie
smirked knowing he had her interest. She had been far more
receptive to their lovemaking than he had ever hoped she would be.
So receptive in fact that he had been unable to keep his hands off
her, even when sated and replete. He had been greedy, and she was
now undoubtedly sore and uncomfortable, but there was little he
could do about it now. He felt slightly proud that he was the one,
and the only one, who could lay claim to her, and had to struggle
to keep the smug grin off his face.