‘Thank you,’ she said again, sensing he wanted something from her but unsure what exactly.
‘There is no need to thank me. I was more than happy to help.’ He dropped his hands from around her and she stood quickly, no longer sure of her welcome on his lap.
‘I might have a lie-down,’ she told him. ‘I feel I could sleep now.’ It wasn’t true. Her body was bubbling and she truly believed she could run ten times around Glanmore House and not tire.
An emotion flickered across his face, gone too quickly to read. ‘I think I may go and lie down too. I shall see you later.’
She nodded, but he did not stand or show any other signs of movement. She curtsied, something she had never done before towards him. His eyes gleamed with amusement. Her skin burned and she fled.
Chapter Twenty-one
Edward stared at the closed door, his whole body shaking, urging him to run after Kate, to beg, plead for more time, to pull them both to the floor and to carry on where they had left off. He did none of those things.
He’d been the one to stop their kiss, too, despite never wanting it to end. No matter what his body wanted, his mind was still in control, or at least it had been. He’d realised that the longer they continued, the less grip he would have held on reality. He would have wanted more, would have tried to coax it out of her with touches she was not ready for.
Kate had made it very clear what she wanted from him. It hadn’t been a proper kiss for her; it had been to take away a bad memory and replace it with something else. It was better that he had found out the terms before the kiss; that way he would not be hurt later on. Perhaps she had wanted something sweet and gentle. At least, that’s what he’d been intending to do for her. Their kiss had started off like that, but as soon as he’d got a taste of her, his blood had quickened. Everything had become hot and desperate. For someone who had never been kissed before, shehad caught on quickly, responding to him as if every move he made was exactly what she wanted from him.
He pressed his palms to his forehead and groaned, willing his body to come back under control. He needed to be able to walk out of here and put some much-needed space between himself and this room. Bumping into someone in his current state would not be good; these pantaloons were like a second skin and left nothing to the imagination.
If only he could think of something else, anything else, for a few minutes, he should be able to get up, but his body was still waiting hopefully for her return, even though his mind had accepted it was not going to happen.
When she’d asked if she could kiss him, he had been shocked, not so much by the request but because he’d had no warning a kiss might be something she’d want from him. A few times he’d thought she might experience some sort of desire for him. During a couple of the more recent pianoforte lessons, he had noticed the way she glanced frequently at his hands and the waltz they had shared in this room had suggested she wasn’t completely immune to him. But he had tried not to dwell on it too much. He was still of the mind that he did not want to be the type of man who took advantage of those who depended on him or his family.
Even with that sound principle in mind, there was no way in hell he was going to deny her request once she had made it. He’d wanted to be sure of her motive. As much as he wanted her, the only thing that would have stopped him was if her request was part of some sort of weird obligation over the way he had helped her yesterday evening. Not that he’d done much. He’d managed to stop her having to speak to her former employer and let her talk about it without judgement. But his support might have been enough for her to think she somehow owed him.
She’d made it abundantly clear she wanted to use him to block out a horrible memory. He had no idea if she would have chosen anyone else had they happened to be in this room. He hoped not. She’d certainly looked appalled when he had mentioned kissing Christopher, but he could not decide if his understanding of her expression was wishful thinking on his part; perhaps he had only imagined her reaction because it was what he wanted from her.
The door clicked open and his head whipped up, his heart pounding, only for him to sag back into his seat. It was not Kate returning but something much worse: his younger brother.
‘What the hell happened to you?’ demanded Christopher.
‘Nothing.’
‘You look like you’ve been in a fight—’ his gaze raked over Edward ‘—or…’ His eyes widened, an irritating grin spreading across his face. ‘Yes, I think it is much more likely to be that. But with who?’ He tapped his chin with one finger, clearly enjoying himself immensely. ‘You came back here with us last night, but you have clearly not been to bed. You are too honourable to dally with a servant after what happened with your maid all those years ago, and Emily is married to our beloved brother, which only leaves one person…’ Christopher waggled his eyebrows.
‘Do not be absurd.’
Christopher had the nerve to laugh. ‘Oh, come on. Your hair is rumpled, your cravat crushed. You looked up like an eager puppy when I walked in the door and then immediately slumped back down into a disappointed pout.’
‘I do not resemble a farmyard animal.’
Christopher ignored him. ‘You and the lovely Miss Hornel have been taking your relationship a step further. Not as far as you would like if the scowl on your face is anything to go by, but you are making better progress than in previous weeks. All thatsmiling at each other and blushing was becoming a bit tiresome. I, for one, am very pleased you are finally doing something about it.’
‘I am not trying to make progress.’
‘Really,’ drawled Christopher, and then adopting a ridiculously high-pitched voice he added, ‘Oh, Miss Hornel, please let me teach you how to play the piano. You can only learn if I sit really close to you and impress you with my manly hands and my near-perfect playing.’
‘I do not sound like that and our pianoforte lessons are nothing like you are suggesting.’
Christopher was not finished. ‘Oh, Miss Hornel, let me show you how to dance. No, it is not quite like that; I will have to hold you in my arms for the whole day so that you can learn properly.’
‘Stop fluttering your eyelashes in such an absurd way. You look like a demented butterfly. And it was Emily’s idea to teach her to dance; I was merely there to help out.’
‘Luckily for you, Emily was here to help you. You were getting nowhere by yourself.’
‘I am not trying togetanywhere. Kate is under our protection; I cannot go forcing myself on her.’ He sighed. ‘I have told you as much before.’
His brother groaned. ‘Stop being such a martyr, Edward. You have clearly already broken your self-imposed rule.’ He gestured to Edward’s hair. ‘There is no need to keep denying yourself.’
