Elizabeth Elliott (46 page)

“You are wrong, Claudia. If that were his only reason, he would demand payment of that debt right away. At the very least, he would demand that a debt of some sort be put in writing. Once you are my wife, he knows that I am bound to that debt by nothing but my word. Given the decided lack of friendship between us, ’tis a risk few men would take.”

She considered that for a moment. “But he tried to kill you the very day I arrived. I heard you both threaten to kill each other while I lay ill.”

“I believe he had a change of heart.” Guy eased the gown off her shoulders, and she felt his heated gaze touch her as surely as any caress. He sucked in his breath when she pushed the gown over her hips and it fell in a damp puddle at her feet.

“You may be right,” she mused. “Perhaps I did misjudge him. I did not take time to consider what Dante must have felt when he realized that a man he thought of as his enemy had succeeded where he failed. He said the words himself when he agreed to our marriage, that you would give me the home and security he had always promised.” She stepped away from the gown and made her way to the small trunk placed next to his cot, trying her best to seem unaware of her nudity.

“I, ah—That is—”

She glanced up at him and realized he did not have the vaguest idea what they were talking about.

“Dante?” she prompted.

“Aye. Dante.” His distracted gaze returned to her face and he gave her a sheepish grin. “Do not fret, love. We have yet to see the last of your brother. ’Tis a certainty the king will want me to present my new wife at court, and there is a good chance we will see Dante there as well. Edward tends to keep your brother close at his side these days.”

He moved closer to draw a line down the curve of her back, moving lower and lower until she shivered. “You have dimples in the most surprising places.”

She felt a blush spread from her cheeks all the way to her breasts, and hastily turned around. “When do you think we will—”

She found herself staring at the front of his breeks. The garment looked strained at the seams by his hard erection. Her mouth felt suddenly dry. Perhaps she was rushing things a bit. She snatched up one of his tunics that lay across the cot and held it up in front of her with one hand, then sat abruptly on the cot to cover more of her nakedness. “You wished to change my bandage?”

He nodded, but made no move toward her.

“There are fresh bandages in the trunk,” she said, “and the salve is there on its top.”

Guy strode forward to reach for the small jar. Water dripped from his sleeve, and he took a moment to strip off his tunic. Claudia eased most of the wet bandage off her shoulder until only the square patch that covered the wound itself remained.

“Here, let me take care of that for you.” He knelt beside her and removed the bandage, then started to remove the patch. “It came away easier than I expected. I feared it would be stuck to the wound. The welt on your shoulder does not look so red and swollen today, but it still looks far from healed. Perhaps your foray into the cool river water actually did the injury more good than harm.”

He worked the ointment into the seared wound, his hands so gentle that his tender ministrations did not bother her in the least. The sure knowledge that he would be just as gentle in their lovemaking eased away her worries.

“To answer the last of your questions,” he went on, “it was your brother who made certain we knew of your peril. Apparently he did not trust you alone with my brothers, and he ordered his men to follow you this afternoon, but to remain out of sight. Armand rode to the abbey to warn us when he saw Lonsdale’s soldiers enter the woods, while Oliver sent the nearest patrol to meet us. A larger force of my men set out as soon as they received word, but we had the situation almost in hand by that time.”

“That would be about the time a Lonsdale soldier nearly split your skull while you were busy dispatching his companion?”

“Aye, that would be the time.” His grin disappeared when the tunic dropped from her fingers. He turned away to unroll the fresh bandage and kept his gaze averted as he handed her a new patch. “Hold this in place, and I will wrap the bandage around your shoulder.”

“Be sure to bind it tight,” she said. “If the bandage is secure, my shoulder scarce bothers me. Even when I undertake a strenuous activity.”

“There is no strenuous activity you must undertake today.”

Her hand brushed along his cheek to caress a muscle that twitched along his jaw. She waited until he met her gaze, her voice warm and inviting. “There is one I would like to undertake.”

“Nay, do not tempt me.” He tried to drape the tunic around her, with little success. She kept tugging it away.

“You must finish tying the bandage in place, Guy.”

He tried his best to fulfill her request, but she stroked her fingers through his hair as he went about the task. That seemed to distract him mightily. “We will not make love, Claudia. Stop your teasing.”

“ ’Tis not teasing,” she murmured, as her fingertips began to explore his chest. “I need you no less now than I did this morn. Indeed, with all that happened this day I would find great comfort in your arms.”

“I will hold you all you wish, comfort you all you wish, but I will not make love to you. ’Tis too soon.” He stared at her breasts. “I feel a sinner just thinking about—”

She pressed her fingers against his lips, and even managed to turn that into a caress. “There is no sin in anything we do. If you will recall, my brother agreed to our marriage. That means we are once more betrothed.”

Guy tied the bandage in place, and made certain it was tied securely. “There is sin in every thought you put into my head.” He caught her hand in his and placed a kiss in her palm, then against the sensitive skin of her wrist, then worked his way up her arm. Their gazes met, and she saw her own desire reflected in his eyes. “The first time I saw you standing on the steps of a chapel, I thought you looked like some heavenly vision. I am beginning to think you are no saint after all, my lady.”

Claudia smiled and did her best to prove him right on that account.

Epilogue

Montague Castle
Three months later

“Y
ou might have warned me.” Claudia kneaded her fingers into Guy’s back and knew he did not deserve the soothing massage. Not that she believed the story that he had strained his muscles in his most recent contest with Kenric. Guy just liked to have his back rubbed. Because she liked to rub his back, she decided not to challenge his story. Besides, she would need ministrations of her own after this trying day with his family. “You
should
have warned me. I felt a fool.”

Guy lay amidst the pile of pillows in front of the hearth. He glanced over his shoulder and gave her a devilish grin. “And ruin the surprise? I waited months to see that expression on your face when Tess and Helen rode through the gates. It was worth every second.”

“I gaped at your sisters a good hour after they arrived. You knew I had braced myself to meet giants, and you even encouraged me to think Kenric’s wife would look every bit as fierce as her husband. Your sister, Helen, is no more than half an inch taller than me, and every bit as pretty as you are handsome. Yet it was Tess who left me dumbfounded. She is so small and delicate that she looks half fairy or sprite. Then there is all that gold hair, and those unusual eyes. They are the color of violets.” Claudia shook her head. “It will take time to accustom myself to the fact that she is married to that brute you call a brother.”

“Give yourself a few days,” Guy said. “Soon you will wonder how you ever thought them anything less than perfect for each other. They are very much in love.”

“Aye,” she agreed, “ ’tis obvious by the change in your brother whenever she is near him. I did not know Kenric could smile so much. I found it hard not to stare at him as well, yet Lady Tess seemed to catch me each time I did.” She stopped rubbing his back and leaned closer. “Do you think your sisters will ever learn to like me?”

“They like you already,” he said surely.

“I am not so sure.” Her hands worked at her task again. “They seem very close. It does not appear that they need another friend.”

She felt him stiffen, but his voice sounded unconcerned. “No one can have too many friends, my love. Just be yourself around them, and give them time to know you better. Helen mentioned already that I made an excellent choice of brides. She thinks you are very nice.”

“Lady Tess thinks me rude. She frowned at me several times during dinner, quite pointedly, I might add. I have no idea what I did to offend her.”

“She thinks you covet her husband,” Guy quipped.

Claudia tilted her head to look down at his face. His eyes were closed, but she could see no trace of teasing in his content expression. “Why would she think such a thing?”

Guy’s lips curved into a smile. “Tess thinks all women covet her husband, that they cannot help but be drawn to his handsome face.”

“Kenric’s face? We are speaking of your brother?”

“Aye, Tess thinks her husband irresistible to all women. It will take her time to realize you are well satisfied with your own.”

“You jest with me.” She could not imagine that any woman would think Kenric irresistible.

Guy shot her an indignant look. “You are not satisfied with your husband, my lady?”

She pressed one hand to her forehead and affected a pout. “Alas, my lord, you have found me out. I am cursed with a husband who but towers over other men rather than make them look the size of ants. And his face is far more
suited to some dull, heroic statue than a barbarian’s nightmare.” She bit her lower lip and looked thoughtful. “Yet he does have one or two qualities I find appealing.”

“Such as?” he prompted.

She leaned back until her palms rested against the backs of his knees. “All women wish for a husband who can be brought instantly awake at any time of the night when they feel in need of … a little companionship.” She smoothed her hands higher and wished she had asked him to remove his breeks before she started this massage. Still, she felt his body tense beneath hers. “Aye, a man so ticklish behind his knees is quite handy to have about in such circumstances. Once he is awake, ’tis no great chore for a wife to trail her hands along his hard thighs to see if there are other parts of him so sensitive to her touch.”

He shifted beneath her and rolled over to lie on his back. Desire warmed his eyes already. “I assure you, lady, that your husband possesses parts that are especially sensitive to his wife’s touch.”

She wriggled her hips to test that theory and was rewarded with a deep sound of pleasure. “There is one other matter that piques my curiosity, my lord. Do you think my husband can produce children as handsome as those made by his brothers?”

“Sweet Claudia, it pains me to see you so perplexed by this.” His grin turned wicked as he pressed the source of his pain against her soft core. At the same time, his hands disappeared beneath her skirts to start a slow, smooth caress toward her thighs. “I see that I must work on the answer to this question right away.”

She splayed her hands against his chest and her lips curved into a secretive smile. “Your work is done, my lord. We will know the answer come spring.”

For a moment his seductive expression did not change, then his eyes widened in surprise. “You are certain? We have made a child?”

“You need not sound so surprised,” she teased. “ ’Tis rare
you give me rest from my wifely duties. Babes are most often the result.”

“Your wifely duties could be called wifely demands on more than a few occasions, love.” His hands reached her hips, then suddenly stilled. “ ’Tis said a man must not spend his lust on a woman who is breeding.”

“You think I will stand idle while you spend your lust on one who is not?” She pinched the taut skin of his belly to emphasize her point.

“Ouch! Cease your scowls, vixen.” He caught her hands and brought them to his lips. “I would become a monk rather than have you entertain ideas of making me a eunuch. My lust belongs to you alone, as well you know, but we must both have a care for the child.” He sat up and eased her off his lap. “How long after a child’s birth must a woman wait before she can make love?”

“How long …” She stared at him in amazement. “You think to leave me untouched until spring?”

He raked a hand through his hair in an abrupt gesture of frustration. “I know little of babes and breeding, Claudia. What if I hurt you?”

“You did not hurt me last night,” she reasoned. She braced her hands on either side of his hips and pressed an innocent kiss at the base of his neck, then rubbed her body against his chest in a purely seductive caress. The sound of his indrawn breath made her smile. “Or the night before, or the night before that.”

“True,” he admitted. “That seemed to cause no harm.”

“ ’Tis a certainty your brothers are well versed in such matters.” She placed small, tempting kisses at the corners of his mouth. “Somehow I feel certain they did not deny their wives as long as you would deny me.”

“Aye, that does seem unlikely.” His arms went around her and his lips captured hers for a long, deep kiss. She was sitting astride his lap again by the time it was done. “I shall be sure to ask their opinion on the matter. Tomorrow.”