“Shall we return to the party and join Cayson and Anne?” Richard said, his eyes twinkling. “We can give the gossips further reason to make your praises.”
Henry looked at him sideways, but his smile was still there. “I had not actually planned on
that
.”
“The gossip?” Richard teased. “But Henry, you are such a ‘kindhearted, romantic soul.’”
Henry’s cheeks colored in that way Richard loved so much. They calmed their expressions as they slipped out of the little garden and returned to the maze path, retracing their steps back to the main entrance.
They walked side by side, each holding his hands behind his back. With the entrance but none of the guests in sight, Henry dropped one of his hands and touched Richard’s fingers as they sat clasped behind him. Richard squeezed Henry’s hand in one tight embrace, then let go as they started up the path to the house. It was all right. There would be time later. They would make certain that there would always be locks waiting for them.
Epilogue
Six weeks later
Richard watched as Henry lifted the saddle from his horse’s back and turned to place it over a nearby railing. There was still an hour left to sunset, and sharp orange rays sliced through the gaps in the walls and the open double doors, illuminating the early-summer dust drifting in the air. Henry moved through the bright lines as he went about his work, retrieving a stiff brush from the shelf and dragging it down his gelding’s glistening coat. The warm light made his blond curls shimmer like gold. Or honey.
Richard’s licked the insides of his lips. Yes, definitely like honey.
“As you so happily told me when we arrived,” Henry said, his lips pressed over a smirk, “your horse is not going to brush himself.”
Richard replied with a snort and continued running the brush down his horse’s flank. The beast was wet and exhausted, his six hours on the dusty roads showing. Richard had been determined, however, to arrive before nightfall. He had waited long enough. Six frustrating weeks of wedding plans and social functions…
“Don’t tell me that the haughty Lord Brenleigh begrudges a laboring man taking pleasure in
the view
,” Richard shot back. Seeing Henry’s raised eyebrow, a good attempt to cover his amusement, he grinned.
“The view, is it?” Henry dropped his eyes to his horse, but his movements with the brush had become distracted. In the warm light, Richard wasn’t certain if it was a blush that colored Henry’s cheeks or just the heat of the day. Either way, his heart rate increased.
They had barely enjoyed more than a handful of precious minutes alone since that day in the garden maze. The whirlwind had begun almost immediately, seeming to pull both of them in the same direction, yet always a very public direction. The stories about Henry arranging events to bring Anne and Ben together had grown to include Richard. Society was now certain that Henry had gone to Richard with his concerns about the poor, unhappy Lady Anne, and that the two of them had become fast friends in their collusion to bring the happy pair to the altar. It meant receiving the same invitations, repeating the same fabricated story to a dozen different ears a night. And every moment had been worth it, a blessing.
No one batted an eye when they saw Lord Richard and Lord Brenleigh in each other’s company.
Richard dropped his brush into a bucket and moved around to the next stall. Henry knew he was there but continued brushing as if unaware. From the side, Richard could see the smile tugging at his lips.
“No servants, huh?” Henry said, his voice catching a little. Over the past six weeks, Richard had been the one to push every opportunity that had presented itself. It had been Henry who had been the voice of reason, keeping them from being reckless. Keeping them from spending too long kissing and touching in some dark room yards from a houseful of people.
“No servants,” Richard said, stepping behind him. He reached around and put his hand over Henry’s, stilling the brush. He leaned forward and pressed his lips to the back of Henry’s neck, loving how he trembled at the touch.
“Not in the house either?” Henry asked, though the question did not need a response. They both knew they were entirely alone. They had planned everything. Richard’s hunting lodge was shut up most of the year, with only a distant caretaker riding by once a month to make certain everything was all right. The ride from London had been heaven
and
a torment, as each mile farther had felt like a hundred, their eyes locking so many times with heated gazes that Richard had become downright uncomfortable in his saddle.
Patience was an overrated virtue.
“I think Bogs is cooled down now,” Richard said, patting the horse’s neck.
Henry stepped to the side to place the brush on the shelf, then turned directly into Richard’s arms. The wall was only a few feet behind Henry, and he backed up willingly as Richard wrapped his arms around Henry’s waist and kissed him.
The kiss was hungry and deep, their tongues gliding over each other in an obvious promise of what was to come. The frantic urgency that had tainted all their encounters over the past weeks was finally absent. No need to rush. No need to keep an ear out for footsteps or the sound of a door handle clicking. There was something, however, that was less than perfect and that they really should deal with first.
Richard broke the kiss and drew back, pressing his lips over a laugh.
“What?” Henry asked, smiling.
“I don’t think our holiday can begin just yet,” Richard said.
“Why?” Henry looked around the room as if he might see some impediment.
Richard leaned in again, pressing the full length of his body against Henry’s until the man moaned into his shoulder, and wrapped his arms around Henry’s neck. He circled his tongue around Henry’s ear, enjoying more of those moaning shudders, before he whispered huskily, “Because, my love, you stink to high heaven.”
“Argh!” Henry shoved at Richard’s chest, his false outrage crumbling immediately into laughter as Richard made to block his punches. They both reeked of sweat, horse, and damp wool.
“And you smell like a bed of roses!” Henry countered. As if to make a visual point of their reality, Henry brushed at the front of his breeches. Dust rose into the air, their long, hot ride on the country roads more than evident. He looked as if he was about to fire another playful insult when he pursed his lips and sighed. “No servants. Do you want to bother heating water or just suffer through a cold bath?”
“Neither. I have a much better idea.” Richard left the stall and picked up the two leather satchels they had tossed near the door earlier. They had traveled as light as possible in order to avoid the necessity of a carriage. Richard grinned with eager intent. He only hoped Henry wouldn’t object. Henry was, after all, the one who was still apprehensive, still not nearly as willing to take risks.
“The white gravel path we passed on our way to the stable,” Richard prompted.
“Yes?”
“Follow it down just past the hill to the lake. I’ll be right after you. Want to fetch some things from the house.”
“Lake?” Henry asked, but Richard was already flying out of the stable, their bags in hand. He did not want to give Henry time to think about it and object. He would have a devil of a time with that later anyway.
HENRY STARED AFTER Richard through the stable doors as he disappeared into the gray stone house. The idea of dipping into a sun-warmed lake was incredibly inviting. Since they were not going to have servants of any kind for a week, it would also be a quick way to wash his clothes. Well, a very cursory washing. Though the glint in Richard’s eyes and the way he had rushed off to the house left Henry certain that laundry was hardly the point.
He bit his lip at the thought and headed toward the path, darting his gaze in almost every direction as he went. The property was beautiful. Lush natural lawns interspersed with copses of ancient trees, and all of it bordered at a short distance by forests. The lake came into view just as he reached the top of the hill. It was a small, pristine body of water, more like a pond than a lake. The forest came right up to the waterline on roughly three sides, leaving the clearing at the end of the path as the only convenient access. It was beautiful, inviting, and secluded.
Very secluded.
Henry’s breath caught in his throat suddenly. He stopped at the water’s edge and strained his eyes to see the opposite bank. He could make out bushes and young trees easily, which meant that anyone who might be there would easily be able to see him. Them. It did not matter, of course. They were only going for a swim, a perfectly acceptable activity for two men on a holiday. Yes.
If I can manage to do
only
that, Henry thought, his groin tightening at the images running through his mind. It would be so easy, floating in chest-deep water, to wrap his legs around Richard’s waist and hold on tight. Or if Henry was good at holding his breath, he might even be able to—
Henry shook his head and stopped near a fallen log to remove his boots. Thoughts like those were better reserved for inside the house. By the time he heard Richard’s steps scratching on the gravel path behind him, he was in nothing but his smallclothes.
“And this view is even more impressive,” Richard drawled.
“I assume you are referring to the lake,” Henry teased, though he did not turn around to let Richard see the renewed flush in his cheeks.
“If you like.”
Henry did finally turn to see that Richard held a rolled-up blanket in one hand and a canvas bag in the other. He was in the process of laying the blanket out on an area of soft grass when he looked up and caught Henry’s arrested face.
“It will hardly be comfortable to stand around or sit on the dirty ground when we want to dry off. This will be better,” Richard said, his eyes down as he set the canvas bag on one corner of the blanket. He proceeded to remove his own clothes.
Henry headed toward the water before he could voice his objections, or approval, or any of the thoughts racing through his head. It was ridiculous that he should feel nervous about anything. They were in the middle of nowhere, and it was not as if he had not already been with Richard before.
Once. I’ve been with him once.
The water was surprisingly warm as Henry entered, or perhaps it was his overheated skin. As soon as he was waist-deep, he made a shallow dive, the feel of clean water luxurious against his travel-gritty skin.
RICHARD WATCHED AS Henry disappeared under the water. Henry hadn’t said anything, which was a good sign. The urge to simply dart out into the water and grab hold of him was so strong that Richard’s legs tensed. A compromise would have to do. He waited for Henry to surface, shake the water from his golden hair, and plunge under again before Richard removed his smallclothes and headed in. He was waist-deep by the time Henry came up again.
“This is perfect. Better even than a hot bath,” Henry said with a sigh. He leaned back so that his hair dipped into the water, and began giving his scalp a thorough scrubbing with his fingers.
Richard couldn’t resist. He stepped close and easily swept Henry’s feet from under him. One could hardly call it a fall, since Henry was more than waist-deep in water already, but it was enough to give him a start and cause him to sputter as he righted himself. His expression became instantly challenging.
“Oh?” Henry said, launching forward to press down on Richard’s shoulders.
Richard countered by grabbing Henry around the waist and turning, sending him below with a satisfying
thunk
of displaced water. But Henry refused to be defeated so easily. As he went under, he grabbed Richard around the hips as if to pull him down, then let go.
He surfaced quickly, rubbing the water from his startled face.
“You aren’t wearing anything,” Henry gasped.
Just as Richard had feared, Henry’s bright blue eyes darted in every possible direction, as if they were standing in one of the fountains in Hyde Park rather than in a private lake miles away from anything.
“It’s all right,” Richard said, smiling. “You should follow my example.”
“We’re outside,” Henry countered, but the way he chewed his lower lip belied his firm tone. Richard took his hand and pulled him toward deeper water.
“Come,” Richard said, keeping him close when they were almost chest-deep. “No one can see us.”
“But someone
could
,” Henry objected, once again with relatively little force.
“No.” Richard took Henry’s hands and held them at his sides, essentially putting Henry’s arms around him. The proximity, the draw of Henry’s heat through the water, was too much to ignore, especially when Henry pressed his hands to the small of Richard’s back.
Yes.
“Come here.” Richard’s words were barely more than a breath before he opened his lips over Henry’s. The way Henry tilted his head just so, the way his movements were submissive without being passive, and the way he just
fit
against Richard so perfectly—it was enough to make Richard’s chest ache.
Henry moaned when Richard lifted his hand to cradle the back of Henry’s neck. Unfortunately, the sound seemed to break through his lusty haze. Henry pushed away from their embrace, breaking their kiss.
Richard managed not to show his disappointment as he also drew back. After all, little steps were acceptable. If maddening. He took a deep breath. “I’m going to swim out a ways, get some of the dust out of my hair.”
HENRY NODDED AND dived under again. He did a head-over-heel flip below the surface, which mirrored what his stomach was doing anyway. Was Richard disappointed in him for being such a coward? No. Richard would not think that of him. Still, Henry could not help but remember that Richard had had many lovers before him, and no doubt some of them had been quite adventurous.
He took another dive beneath the surface and rubbed his arms and torso vigorously since the whole purpose was to get clean. Richard had reached a point some yards out and was now turning back. Henry decided he was clean enough and headed toward shore. He certainly wouldn’t disappoint Richard when they were safely indoors. Oh, no. He had no plans of doing that at all.