Authors: Beth Trissel
On the
shelf below the rack
were an assortment of v
elvet bonnets sporting
exotic
f
eather
s and st
raw hats trimmed with ribbons,
satin
slippers and
kid
boots that laced up to
the ankle, gloves
of all hues
and winter
m
uff
s
.
“I wish it were cold so I could wear this
swansdown
muff.”
“
Sw
ansdown
?
How can you be certain it’s not the underbelly of a goose
?”
A giggle escaped her, but she was too distracted for a witty retort
.
“Oh Will, look!” She pointed at
a
stunning
men’s
double breasted dark blue tailcoat. The patter
ned waistcoat coordinated wonderfully
, as did the ivory
breeches.
The
white
shirt
had an airy cravat that knotted at the neck and the sleeves
draped below the cuff of the coat
.
It was the sort of outfit Cole would have worn.
She tugged at Will’s hand
.
“
L
et’s
both
try something on.”
“We’re up here for you, Julia.”
“Please.
I
t’ll be such fun
.”
“I’ll wear t
he jacket for now
.
The full ensemble on Mi
d-summer’s Eve.
”
“D
eal.”
She scanned the attic
for a place to ch
ange.
“Wait here
a tick
,” she said,
grabbing
the
pale
blue gown
and
matching
ballet-style
slippers
.
Her heels clicked over the floorboards as she dodged behind another sheeted rack.
Wriggling
out of the
sundress,
she
kicked off the sandals and
stood
barefoot
in her pink bra and panties.
The
vintage
gown was fairly sheer
against her skin
, more so in the sunlight
.
“I could do with
a petticoat
.
I
f you t
ake me out
in this, I’ll be no better off than
before
.”
“
Underclothes
are in one of these trunks
.
I’ll look.”
She heard him rummaging
ar
ound, the clank of keys
and a lock being turned, then
another.
“Just the thing,
”
he said.
A sleeveless white chemise sailed
over the divid
e.
“Brilliant!
”
Julia slid
the old
-fashioned
slip
over her head
and pulled
on the gown
.
The fit was perfect.
She tied the blue sash under her bust and smoothed the
softly draped
lengths of
cloth.
The
low
décolletage flattered her curves
and felt
deliciously feminine
.
If she were properly dressed for the time period
her hair would be done up on her head, not in a
loose pony
tail, and
she’d have
on a corset and
white
stockings.
As it was,
her bra would
have to do
and her legs
would remain
bare
. S
he sli
d her feet into the slippers, stepping
out from the screen
with a flourish
.
Will had donned the
elegant coat.
Even paired with unlikely khakis, it
looked divine on him.
Julia held her breath as she crisscrossed the sunbeams to where he stood.
His eyes never left her.
“You are radiantly lovely, Miss Morrow.”
“
And you are exquisitely handsome
, sir.”
“Exquisite sounds
rather
gay, but thank you
.
I found something you mi
ght like.” With an air of mystery, he
guided
her to a
small
table in a shadowed corner.
He blew the layer of dust from a
n
ornate
wooden box inlaid
with ivory and lifted the lid
Inside were brass workings
like the mechanism of a clock.
He wound a small
gold
key in the back
until it would wind no more, and released it
.
The wheels and cogs turned and w
onderful m
usic flowed forth
,
the beautiful
strains of a Viennese waltz,
The Blue Danube
.
She
clapped her hands
.
“A music box.”
He bowed.
“May I have this dance
, sweet Julia
?”
She gazed up into his velvet
brown eyes, and he gazed back.
She
managed a nod and he
drew her into his arms.
Around the attic he waltzed
with her
secure in his lead.
Everything fell away except
this moment while the haunting melody
played on, taking her back to that faintly remembered place.
She didn’t
even stumble,
not once.
It was
as if
some inner memory guided her in the
steps, even though ball
room dancing hadn’t been a part of her lessons.
The music picked up and he swung her around
and around.
He
r dress swirled as he circled.
W
ith each turn
,
he was Will
––
then Cole, Will
––
then Cole
, both men
in rapid succession
, separate and yet the same.
Her heart pounded from far more than the
whirling
dance.
The music faded and Will
slowly
stopped revolving.
They stood,
his arms circled at her back and waist,
eyes locked
on each other.
His brow furrowed.
“Julia, you look as if you’ve seen a ghost.”
She
ran the tip of her tongue over her lips
.
“Y
ou may be the ghost.”
He
tightened
his mouth
in an impatient line
.
“Don’t try to make me into Cole
again
.”
“Will, listen to me.
I know it sounds crazy, but
I
think somehow
you already are
.”
Dropping
his hands
,
he turned
away
.
“Only because you insist
I am.”
She grabbed his
arm
. “No.
It
’s what I saw while we danced.
You must believe me.”
“Believing
doesn’t make
it any easier,” he said flatly.
“Tha
t’s because you think I’m misle
d.”
He swiveled his head at her.
Exasperation
flared in his eyes.
“There’s a simple reason for my
laboring under that assumption
.
You are.
”
“Don’t be angry.
I hate that I’ve spoiled such a lovely moment.”
“You’ve a talent for that.”
He t
urned
and strode across the floor.
She ran behind him and reached out, catching his plush shoulder.
“Consider me balmy, if you must, but don’
t walk away
.
Please Will
.”
H
e stayed as he was.
“What do you want me to do, Julia?”
“I don’t know.”
She wasn’t strong enough to turn him and dashed in front instead
, grasping his upper arms and twist
ing the fabric in her fingers.
“Something
––
anything.”
He smiled faintly.
“Never say those wo
rds to a man.”
Cupping her face between his hands, he
bent his
head
and closed his lips over hers in an
all-consuming
kiss...so swift
ly
sh
e hardly knew what had happened
.
Even if he hadn’t cupped her che
eks, she wouldn’t have moved.
The
compelling press of his mouth bound her in place.
If possible, Julia’s
heart thudded
even faster th
an it had before.
The surging pulse drum
med through her entire being, reverberating
in places she didn’t even kno
w she had.
From what she
remember
ed
of her dream with Cole, her feelings
had been poignant but tender.
The sensations coursing through her now wer
en’t entirely that.
An exhilarating
p
assion swept
her up in a shocking
tide.
“Who am I now?” Will whispered against her mouth.
She loosened her grip on his jacket in speechless su
rprise,
too breathless to tell him she didn’t care.
****
Julia’s soft lips were
irresistibly
pl
iant beneath Will’s
and a near electric surge crackled
between them.
He’
d never
ever
felt anything so
potent
whe
n he’d kissed any other woman.
What
on earth
had he unleashed
?
Somet
hing he had no business doing.
He was he
r employer, for God’s sake, a
nd couldn’t swear his intentions were
strictly
honorable. How could they be?
It wasn’t as though
he cou
ld
just
whisk
her away and marry her
.
No.
Matters were complicated.
But, oh, how sublime
she felt.
A river of desire
ran h
otly through him.
Breaking their kiss was more of a battl
e than fighting a rip tide
.
A
mighty
force had brought them
together
and it didn’t want to let g
o. Neither did Will.
He craved
nothing more than to
tenderly make love to Julia
, forever
.
With superhuman
effort he pulled back.
For a millisecond.
Then
she
tilted
toward hi
m and he caught
her
close
, her chest rising and falling against his
.
Holding her like this was blissful torture.
For a
winded moment the only sounds in the attic were their husky breathing and
the
birdsong
trilling
outside the
windows
.