Authors: Nichole Matthews
He felt her swallow hard as he
r cheek rested against his chest. The rough wool of his hacking jacket rasped against her skin. She could hear the even beat of his he
art under her ear. Its steady thump
comfort
ed
.
It was easy to sink into his warmth
and absorb his strength
. She let her hands wrap around his neck as he pulled her into his lap.
At first her muscles tightened, pushing away. He shifted her closer, his arms strong around her.
Her skin
eased, no longer crawling
when touched and her breath no longer spiked
with fear at the intimacy.
Her heart skipped a beat as he
touched her hair, then the side of her neck, then his nose nuzzled into her nape
. There was nothing inherently sexual about the touch, just two people who were intimate taking comfort in closeness.
Emotions swelled and broke loose as
Persephone
was unable to hold in her feelings any longer. She
sobbed against him. She let herself go
as his arms folded more tightly around her
surrounding her in his warmth and comfort
.
She cried for Tillie and
she cried for all
she had lost. She was so young
, she had had dreams. Desires
. She cried for herself. She cried because she’d been strong for so long
,
that it felt good to let go.
All the while, Parker held her close, sometimes murmuring soothing words in her ear, sometimes just rocking her against him.
His body strong and sure eased around hers, a
salve
to her chafed emotions.
After a long while, she heard the strong beat of his heart
again
as she began to
slowly come back to the present
. He was a solid warm body to cling to. She knew what she should do. She should push him out. She should be strong, but she seemed to have used all of that strength up.
She wanted to lose herself completely
in his strength.
“Persephone.” Parker’s voice
was soft and close to her ear.
“You’re thinking too much.”
They were curled around each other like newborn kittens
and Perse
phone was ashamed at her
body’s response to his proximity
.
She
thought those feelings would have been beaten out of her
by now
. She had resigned herself to living in fear of a man’s touch, not melting under his heated caress. The feelings frightened her and aroused her at the same time.
Parker’s blue eyes grew soft, and he ran his hand through her hair. Everywhere he touched, she felt the connection to him
, felt his strength
. His deep voice pulled at her. “Let me help you.”
His chest tightened.
She stiffened at his statement
, but forced herself to look directly into his kind blue eyes.
She wanted nothing more than to give in to her feelings, and yet something kept her distant.
He didn’t know all and she was certain that when he did, he would want nothing
more
to do with h
er or Til
lie. She pulled away
,
her green eyes looking straight ahead
, but he still saw the flash of pain in her eyes
. The sadness, the uncertainty was still there. Her green eyes were wide and filled with tears.
He wanted them gone.
He tightened his hold on her hip securing her in place when she tried to slide off his lap.
What was he supposed to say? How was he su
pposed to relieve the pain if
she w
ouldn’t trust him
?
C
ouldn’t trust him
?
Anger ran through
him, knotting his muscles. The desire to
kill the bastard who made her feel th
at
way
still
too
strong
.
Why?
But what shook
him
to the core
was when she
looked up at him with desire
in her
big green
eyes that she quickly shuttered behind
at first a hint of wariness, then
a vacuous
stare
.
Parker’s eyes narrowed,
he was pleased with the desire that had flickered, albeit briefly in her eyes, but knew that she wasn’t ready for anything more intimate than what he had already given her.
There were still moments when
she
flinched at his slightest touch.
“You’
ve done enough, my lord.
”
The words
were spoken so softly, they were barely audible
. His nearness and touch sparked deeply hidden longings that she would prefer stayed buried.
“
Are we back to formalities
so soon?”
His knowing
gaze focused on her face.
Stepping back, he waited.
“Parker,” she quickly corrected.
“That’s better.” His voice casual.
“I’ve done nothing but offer you a kindness.
There is nothing extraordinary in that.
I would hope any human being would offer
the same
.”
“You would be surprised,
” she blurted before she could stop herself
. Her eyes widened, and she slapped a hand over her mouth and stared at Parker with shocked eyes
.
“Very little surprises me, Persephone.”
His gaze darkened.
“But I do have hope for my fellow man.”
She couldn’t stop the derisive snort that escaped.
She drew comfort from the fact that she wouldn’t be a scared mouse forever and that he didn’t expect her to si
t
meekly by with no opinion of her own.
One eyebrow rose
, and his gaze stabbed her to silence.
And
he
waited.
Persephone blinked and frowned.
“I can’t…”
He lifted
her
face
with a finger under her chin
.
“One day you will.”
After caressing her cheek, he set her aside and stood
with an unconscious prowess,
towering over her, but trying not to intimidate her with the disparity of his size.
Relief swept through her so powerfully that she shuddered.
He saw her tremble. Her fear was still too great. Whoever had done this to her must hold a great deal of power
to keep her this frightened
even from a distance
.
She was surprised that he didn’t press more. Didn’t demand that she tell him all of the details.
All of her secrets.
She could see
he possessed a
dominate nature, but he did well with keeping it in check. He wasn’t a brute like her uncle.
He was j
ust a man who was used to wielding a lot of power and getting his way
more often than not.
“Are you
still
afraid of me?”
His voice was gruff and deep.
She shifted uncomfortably
, but quickly answered,
“N-n-no.”
His lip
s
quirked as she stammered out her reply.
“Excellent.” A change came over his face. “Then we are on the right path.” He held out his hand, his head tilted.
She cocked her head to the side and stared curiously at him. “Aren’t you tired of my tears?”
He
crouched in front of her at eye level and
leaned her way.
“I’ve lived with two sisters for twenty years.”
He gave a light chuckle. “I’ve grown accustomed
to tears.”
Persephone
sighed.
Tension was gone, swamped by raw emotion.
He stared at her a long time and gave thanks that he could make her feel safe.
“Would you allow me to escort you back inside?”
Persephone shook her head. “I believe I will remain a bit longer.”
He looked up at the blue sky. “It is a beautiful day. There won’t be too many more left before winter is fully upon us.”
He
rose,
bowed and made his way
into the house and
back to his study, but not before Dobbin’s stopped him with a message.
“And Lord Rockwell is waiting for you in your study, my lord.”
“Thank you, Dobbins.”
Parker entered his study to find Rockwell sitting in the tall leather chair in front of his desk with his boot
ed feet
propped on the edge.
“Dear Lord, R
ock.
”
Parker’s
voice one of mock disapproval.
“
Do
have a care for
my
outrageously expensive furnishing
s
.
”
Rockwell
barked in laughter, sitting
up straight and placing
his feet on the floor. “Touchy.”
Rockwell grinned.
“I believe Peyton was correct when he said you were becoming an old stick.”
Parker rolled his eyes
pacing across the room to stand
befo
re the tall window
, br
oke the seal on the letter and read
what
Fothergil
had discovered
.
“Is this about Miss Smith?”
Rockwell knew the instant Parker’s facial expression turned serious, that it was.
An idea crawled into Parker’s head.
Bracknell
was only about twenty miles from Ashford; perhaps he
and Rockwell could
take a ride that direction to seek
out more information. Perhaps they could
do that tomorrow.
There was so much more to Persephone. He couldn’t quite put his finger on it, but he could recognize fear. And her eyes were full of it.
“Are you up for a tedious
fact finding mission
tomorrow?”
A scowl settled over Parker’s f
eatures.
“When have you ever known me to turn down a little adventure?”
Rockwell’s deep voice was threaded with subtle amusements. He
looked at him with a
narrowed gaze. “It is serious?
”
Parker sighed deeply. “Yes.”
His thumb and forefinger rubbed over his lower lip.
“It’
s about time.”
“I’ve never experienced anyone quite like her.” He closed his eyes. “She’s been through so much, yet she is still so strong.”
“Well, my friend,”
Rockwell said with a nod.
“Let’s get the fucking bastards that did this to her.”
Parker sat down in his chair. “Why does it seem like we are always rescuing someone
?
”
“Give it up, Parker.” Rockwell shook his head. “You’ve always been a knight.”
“
Fuck
.” He glanced at Rockwell and almost laughed out loud at the serious expression on his face. “
Bracknell
it is
.”
Persephone
’s
heart skipped
wildly
as she
slipped around the corner a
nd leaned heavily on the wall distressed at
what she’d
overheard. Her heart
began a fast race
and the blood ran from her cheeks leaving her feeling weak and desperate.
Bracknell
.
She wished she would have heard more than the last word, but she knew what it meant.
***
“
Kneel.”
She sank to her knees not only because she’d been ordered to, but because she wanted to. The command sent a dark thrill down into the pit of her stomac
h and heat between her thighs.
Granville turned to the two other men in the dark room. “I believe the whore is ready.”
He knew damn well she would want to run screaming through the halls if she knew what they had in store for her, but instead she
went down on your knees
at their feet
i
n
misplaced, yet
eager an
ticipat
ion of
their next move.