“Across Picadilly at least.”
It would be bad enough if she was caught alone out on the streets of London.If someone saw her with a man, her goose would be cooked.
But Elizabeth wasn’t yet ready to relinquish Tom’s company.Goodness, given a choice, she’d never leave him.Which was mad.Through four seasons, no swain had made her heart skip a beat.After one snowy afternoon in Hyde Park, a stranger had enthralled her so completely that she had difficulty imagining they would never meet again.
“Thank you,” she said, pulling her hood further forward and slipping her hand around his elbow.Already the act of walking at his side seemed natural, something she could happily do for the rest of her life.
She waited for him to resume their playful banter, but he remained quiet as they walked toward the gates that she’d used to enter the park.She didn’t say much either.It was one of those awkward occasions when one said absolutely everything lurking in one’s heart or nothing at all.
To her relief, nobody spared the tall man and the caped woman at his side a second glance.Right now, being in Tom’s company made her less noticeable than if she was unescorted.
They wended their way through the streets to Piccadilly, crossed the road, and paused in the recessed doorway of a closed glove shop.A few feet away, the world and his wife went on their merry way.Traffic clattered past, and people hurried home out of the cold, looking forward to their Christmas revels.
Lucky them.Most years, Elizabeth enjoyed the Tierney family Christmas.Not this year.And not just because at the very least, she’d have to be civil to Stanton Morley-Bridges tonight.
In the shadows of the doorway, she could barely see Tom’s face.He was just a warm, solid presence in the gloom.Now that she couldn’t see him, that alluring, spicy scent flooded her nostrils in a most intoxicating way.She was more aware than ever of his imposing height.
“Can you get home without consequences?”His velvety baritone stroked her senses as powerfully as if he touched her.
“I should be able to sneak in through the kitchens.”As long as the servants weren’t back already.She really was taking a risk, lingering now.The timing grew dangerously tight.
Out of sight of the street, Tom rested one hand on her hip where it pressed against the shop’s wooden door.The heat that radiated from his touch vied with the creeping chill in her heart at having to forsake him.
“I don’t want you to go.”His voice turned low and savage.“These hours with you have been magic.I can’t even kiss you goodbye.”
She tipped her face toward him.“We should have gone back to our hidden place in the holly.”
When he shook his head, she knew he smiled.“No, we shouldn’t.”
“Oh?”
“Because we’d still be there.”
They would.“You can’t take me all the way home.If anyone sees us together, there will be the devil to pay.”
“I’m not leaving you alone in the middle of this crowd.”
From the start, she’d recognized his strong protective streak.He’d demonstrated it when he climbed an oak to save the presumptuous Cyril.It had made him offer Elizabeth his company when he saw her.
“I live in a square off Piccadilly.”That was an admission of her status.He’d know even more about her, if he accompanied her to the short side street leading to Lorimer Square.But she’d decided that she didn’t want to be a mystery to Tom.She wanted him to be able to find her again.
“Then I’ll take you that far.”
“Thank you.”She rested her hands on his chest, wishing several layers of fine English wool didn’t muffle his heartbeat.A winter meeting involved far too much heavy clothing.She wished to heaven that they’d met in summer, so when she touched him, she could feel the warmth of his skin.
Although in summer, the park would be so crowded, she’d never risk a solitary walk.
Their kisses had sparked a craving for more than his conversation.She loved talking to him.She loved his sense of humor.She loved his transparent interest in what she said.Pretty girls were used to men admiring their looks, but less used to men being curious about their thoughts and feelings.
But Tom had awoken her animal impulses.Now above all, she wanted physical contact.Kisses.Touches.His breath on her skin.His heart thundering beneath her palms.
“Damn it, I want to see you again.”His Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed.Could her hands on him have the same incendiary effect as his on her?“Can you get away tomorrow?”
While hearing that he didn’t want things to end was no surprise, it made her happy.“I don’t know.”
How dictatorial was Papa likely to be?Would he forbid her from leaving the house?
A faint frown drew those expressive brows together.“Do you want to see me again?”
