Melissa was relieved when Flit stopped barking and, after a little more encouragement, began to follow the maid back up towards the house. She stopped only to offer a curtsey to them both before continuing.
Watching her go, Melissa avoided Lord Spurnrose’s gaze for as long as utterly possible, trying to regain control of herself. Only when Betty and Flit disappeared into the house did she finally dare to look at him, careful to keep her distance after the things he had made her feel the day before.
“My Lord, it is good to see you looking well,” she said, keeping her tone cool and polite with her hands clasped before her, barely allowing herself the opportunity to smile. “Was there something I can help you with?”
Adjusting his green cravat that almost perfectly matched his eyes, Lord Spurnrose cleared his throat before admitting, “I merely came to thank you for the medicine you brought yesterday. It has worked wonders for my…aches and pains.”
Struggling to stop smiling too brightly, Melissa gave him only the hint of her happiness as she responded, “I am glad to hear it. I would be happy to whip up another batch if you need it.”
“I would be very grateful, Lady Belmont, though you must allow me to repay you,” Lord Spurnrose insisted, reaching into his waistcoat pocket to remove a coin purse. “How much does one of your pain elixirs cost?”
Having taken a few coins from the purse into his palm, he looked at her expectantly. Reaching out instinctively, Melissa curled his fingers over the coins to stop him from trying to offer them to her and shook her head.
“I need no payment, My Lord.”
Her hands lingered on his, her fingers wrapped around his, and their gazes met again. The lump in her throat grew larger until she felt as though she might struggle to breathe if it grew any bigger.
When she felt the ball of his thumb stroking gently against the palm of her hand, heat surged up her arm and spread into her chest. It cascaded down into her stomach and further still until it pooled between her thighs. A warm quiver ran throughout her body, and she found she could not so much as blink.
It wasn’t until he did that she finally managed to snatch her hands away, running them over her apron once more as she tried to remove the tingling sensation she felt at his touch.
“Perhaps I might be able to tempt you with a walk?” she asked, suddenly feeling as though she could not hold herself still for a moment longer. Her cheeks heated, and she was almost certain that he would be able to see it.
Lord Spurnrose pushed his coins back into his purse and placed it back in his pocket before clasping his hands behind his back and glancing at the flower bed she had been working on. “It looks as though you are busy. I should leave you to your work.”
Disappointment, the likes of which caught Melissa off guard started to claw at her insides, and she instinctively took a half-step towards him, hoping to change his mind. But before she could speak, Lord Spurnrose turned his eyes back up to hers.
In the next second, he raised his hand towards her face. For just a second, she believed he would cup her cheek as one might do to someone they wished to kiss. But at the very last moment, he reached up further still and plucked something from the curls just above Melissa’s ear. His fingertips brushed the helix of her ear and sent a shiver through her entire body.
Holding her breath, Melissa could not take her eyes off his. She did not dare to blink or so much as move her little finger, frozen before him like prey caught in the gaze of a hunter. And yet she felt no fear. Only the thrill of anticipation as her thoughts ran away with her, imagining what it might feel like to have him actually kiss her. Even her lips tingled with the thrill of it.
But then the viscount pulled his hand back, a few stray petals clasped between his thumb and forefinger, and the disappointment renewed itself in Melissa’s stomach.
The white petals, which she believed were daisy petals, fluttered from his fingertips, but he seemed not to notice them as they continued to meet each other’s eyes. In a husky tone, he whispered, “I should leave you.”
Melissa wanted desperately to protest, but her mouth simply would not open. Nor could she justify the fact to herself. She had absolutely no reason to try and keep him there. Instead, she forced herself to take a step back and give him a curtsey. “My Lord.”
The words threatened to stick in her throat, and her hands trembled as she hid them behind the folds of her skirt.
“Thank you again, My Lady.”
Lord Spurnrose bowed low and respectfully before taking his leave. And as she watched him go, Melissa could not help feeling flustered. On the one hand, she longed to call him back and spend further time with him, but on the other, she could not wait for him to leave. Maybe then she might be able to control her racing heart.
Chapter 8
Though it was only mid-afternoon when Elijah left Lady Belmont’s home, it took him several hours to wander back to his own estate. Aimlessly meandering home had been somewhat of a comfort to his racing mind as he found himself unable to stop thinking of how beautiful and enticing she had looked as he plucked the stray petals from her hair.
He laughed about it now as he wandered into the forecourt of the newly named Spurnrose House. She had been quite amusing in such a disheveled state, with soil all over her once-white apron and petals trapped in the locks of her hair. And yet somehow, seeing her in her natural element like that only made her more admirable. She was not merely outwardly beautiful but also beautiful on the inside, kind, caring, and considerate not only to the humans around her but also the flora and fauna too. Somehow, the added notion of her not being afraid to get her hands dirty, as most ladies of thetonwere, made her all the more attractive.
But as Elijah finally wandered up the steps and through the manor's front door, he tried his hardest to forget all about her. The forlorn expression that had likely graced his face the entire walk home would likely tip off Harold as to his escapades, and he wasn’t ready for another lecture.
Yet it appeared that was exactly what he was going to get. Almost the instant he stepped through the door, he was accosted by his cousin, who demanded, “Where have you been? We are going to be late!”
Elijah’s stomach immediately tightened, though this time, it was with the discomfort at Harold’s tone and not at all the pain he had been feeling for several months now. Thanks to Lady Belmont, that was gone for now. Yet he could not relax because the look on Harold’s face said he was not out of the woods.
“What could I possibly be late for?” Elijah asked, taking in Harold in all his finery. He was dressed in the finest navy suit jacket with a pale blue and silver waistcoat to match his pale blue cravat. The beige britches he wore stood out against the black polished material of his boots.
“You look as though you are ready for a night on the town,” Elijah commented, looking his cousin up and down.
