An Earl to Enchant (17 page)

The longer she stared at the rushing blue, the stronger she felt. She had a lot to be thankful for. She had finally made it to England, where all she had to do was see to it that her father’s formula was found and delivered to the Royal Apothecary Scientific Academy before Mr. Rajaratnum sold it to the highest bidder. And she had faith that Mr. Warburton would help her get that done.

Morgan stepped close to her and touched her arm. “Are you cold?”

“No, it’s the water.” She turned and settled her gaze on his face. “I was just thinking that it is so different from this level than it is looking from the bow of the ship. It even sounds different. I know that it’s powerful, destructive, and menacing at times, especially to a small ship, but here from the shore it almost looks peaceful.”

He smiled, and his eyes questioned her. “Menacing? I’ve never thought of it like that, but I supposed it can be at times. If not treated with respect, the water can be dangerous. We can’t stay down here long or walk very far, but come, let your feet get wet.”

Arianna followed Morgan to the edge of the water. It washed over her feet, lapped at her ankles, and the sand shifted beneath her toes. As they started down the shore, a breezy wind tossed her hair away from her face and fluttered her clothing against her skin.

In her wildest dreams she never could have believed she was walking barefoot on a wet, sandy shore with a handsome earl beside her, the moonlight shining down on them. If only she could stay a little longer. If only she didn’t have responsibilities that must be attended to.

A rogue wave splashed up to her knees, wetting the hem of her night rail and cascading down her legs, but Arianna didn’t mind the cold water. She found it invigorating and kept walking. She looked over at Morgan. The wave hadn’t bothered him either.

Morgan broke the silence by asking, “Are you smiling at me?”

She’d been caught. “Me? What? Was I smiling?” she answered playfully.

He seemed amused. “Yes. What were you thinking about that made you smile?”

You.

“Oh, several different things.”

“Hmm. Like what?”

Like what am I going to do now that you have awakened feelings and desires inside me that have never been brought to life before? Like how wonderful and safe it is here. Like how right it feels to be here with you on the shore at Valleydale.

But she couldn’t say any of that. Instead she offered, “One of the things I was thinking is that this will probably be the last time I see you alone. Thank you for allowing me to stay here. In a lot of ways it has reminded me of my early years in the Cotswolds. Not the landscape, of course. It’s the feeling of safety and contentment that I feel here that is the same.”

“Safety? Why do I still, at times, get the feeling there are things about your life that you haven’t told me.”

She averted her eyes from his gaze. “There are always things about our lives that we don’t share with others, are there not?”

“Perhaps. Probably. Yes.”

She laughed. “There’s one other thing I want to say. I’m sorry if I caused you embarrassment when your cousins were here. I fear I must have, yet you denied it.”

Morgan stopped and stared at her. The moonlight was so bright she had no trouble seeing his eyes sparkling with a teasing light.

“Embarrassment?” He chuckled lightly. “Never. What makes you say that?”

“They saw me dancing in my costume. I’m sure you didn’t wish that.”

“No, I didn’t wish it, but embarrassment is not what I felt, Arianna, and I can assure you, neither did my cousins.”

“We haven’t had the opportunity to talk since they left. What did they say about me?”

“They asked, who is that beautiful lady with her light auburn hair shimmering around her shoulders? What does she have on, and how does she move her body like that?”

Her eyes widened. “Truly?”

He chuckled again and started walking. “Maybe not in those exact words, but close. It doesn’t matter what they said, Arianna; believe me, they will never forget they saw you, and neither will I.”

“And you swear I didn’t embarrass you.”

He glanced over at her and grinned. “I swear.”

“Good. Do you mind if I ask you a personal question, my lord?”

“Of course not.”

“Is Mrs. Pepperfield your mistress?”

He frowned. “What? That’s rather a bold and awkward question for you to ask.”

“You gave me permission to ask you,” she said innocently.

“I didn’t know what you were going to ask,” he argued in a tone that let her know he wasn’t miffed by what she asked, just stunned.

“I said I wanted to ask you something personal,” she reminded.

“Arianna, have I ever told you that it is times like this that I want to change your name from Miss Sweet to Miss Tart?”

She tried not to smile. “Maybe more than once.”

“Oh, well, to answer your question, no, Constance is not my mistress. She has been a good friend to my family for a long time.”

“She is very beautiful, commanding, and she is a widow.”

“Yes, I agree. She is all those things and more, but she is not and never has been my mistress.”

“And what about Miss Goodbody?”

He continued to look straight ahead and never missed a step. “What about her?” he returned.

“She is the lady you were expecting the night I arrived.”

He nodded, but said nothing.

“Is she your lover?”

He laughed low in his throat, and he shook his head. “No, I can truthfully say that she has never been my lover, either.” He looked toward Arianna again and said, “You know I take back what I said.”

“What? You know you can’t take anything back once it has been said.”

“That sounds like more wise words from Lord Chesterfield, but this time I can. You can no longer ask me personal questions. I’ve said all I’m going to say about personal matters.”

They walked on quietly for a few moments, Arianna feeling very pleased to know that neither lady had been his lover.

Morgan stopped and bent down. “Look, here is a crab.”

He picked up a crab about the size of his hand and extended it toward her. The crustacean’s legs and pinchers moved frantically.

Arianna squealed with surprise and backed away from him.

“Throw it down!”

Humor glinted in his eyes, and he continued to advance on her. “I thought you wanted to come down to the beach so you could walk on the shore and look at what the sea has brought in.”

“Yes, I want to look but not touch!”

“So you are afraid of crabs, are you?” He stepped closer, still holding the excited crab toward her.

“Yes,” she shrieked again, started laughing, and bolted away from him.

Her feet kicked water up on her legs and on the tail of her nightshift, but she kept running and laughing. She heard Morgan splashing in the water behind her saying, “Where’s your courage? It’s only a little crab.”

Morgan caught up to her a few steps later and spun her around. Forced to face him, Arianna laughed and squealed again.

She closed her eyes tightly and said, “Don’t put him on me! Throw him down.”

“You are safe,” Morgan said, laughing. “I’ve already let him go.”

Arianna opened one eye and looked at him, not knowing if she should believe him. He held out his empty hands, palms up, for her to see.

Arianna opened the other eye. She liked the way his eyes glistened with pleasure. She loved it that he felt comfortable enough to tease her with the crab.

“Thank goodness.” She shivered. “Why do crabs look so frightening?”

And then, without prompting from Morgan, and not knowing why, she stepped up to him and circled his waist with her arms, laid her head on his chest, and melted against his warm body. His arms immediately went around her and hugged her close. He laid his nose on the side of her head. She heard him breathe in deeply and then let out a contented sigh.

“I don’t know why crabs are scary-looking,” he whispered. “I didn’t really frighten you, did I?”

She shook her head and then raised her face to him. “But it was enjoyable running from you. I haven’t felt that carefree in a long time.”

“Neither have I, and since you enjoyed it so much, may find another crab and chase you with it?”

She hugged him tighter and placed her head on his strong, firm chest again. “Don’t you dare!”

He chuckled lightly and buried his nose in her hair again and kissed her head. His hand ran up and down her back. “Hmm, I shouldn’t have touched you,” he whispered. “I promised myself I wouldn’t touch you tonight.”

Arianna felt her heart pounding in her chest. She leaned back so she could see his eyes. “Why not?”

His gaze was busy on her face, as if he were searching for a sign from her. And she wondered if he could sense the desire for him that filled her.

He brushed her hair away from her shoulders to her back, and then his hands skimmed down the length of her arms. “Because you feel too good to me, and when I start, I don’t want to stop with just touching. I am a greedy man, Arianna, and I always want more, more than touches, more than kisses. I brought you here because I wanted you to see how beautiful the coast is in the moonlight when there is no mist or fog to hide its splendor.”

Awareness that hadn’t been there mere moments before simmered between them. They stood ankle deep in the water; the gentle breeze fluttered their clothing and hair. The sand shifted beneath her feet, but that’s not what made Arianna suddenly unsteady. It was the cold reality that she desperately wanted Morgan to kiss her, to touch her, to take her beyond both their boundaries and ease the longing and hunger deep within her. But he was desperately trying not to oblige her.

When she looked at him, she thought about brief glances, seductive touches, and urgent kisses. She thought about being with him today, tomorrow, and always. And she also thought about what an impossible dream that was. What made her think she could capture the heart of an honorable man like Morgan? She couldn’t.

If Arianna knew nothing else about herself, she knew she didn’t want to leave for London in a few hours and never see Morgan again, never touch him again, and never kiss him again. But that wasn’t her decision to make. It was Morgan’s, and as usual, when it came to intimacy, he was making the proper choice.

Morgan let go of her and stepped away. “Come on, we need to get back. It will be dawn soon, and I don’t want your maid finding your bed empty. I’m sure she would wake the entire household with her screaming.”

Swallowing his rejection, Arianna mumbled, “Yes, I’m sure she would.”

They turned around and started back toward the path they had taken down to the shore, at a hastier step than when they started.

“So remind me,” Morgan said, “what exactly is it that you have to do for your father when you get to London?”

Arianna felt constriction in her chest. If she was ever going to tell Morgan the whole truth about her father’s death and the stolen formula, this was the time to do it. But she didn’t want to spoil this time alone with him by talking about that horrible afternoon. There would be plenty of time to dwell on that when she left Morgan’s house a few hours from now.

She chose her words carefully and said, “He had some research findings and formulas he wanted presented to the Royal Apothecary Scientific Academy for their approval. As my father expected, I will talk to Mr. Warburton, and hopefully he will help me to sort everything and get it ready for presentation to the members of the Academy.”

“I remembered you said he was working on formulas for various illnesses, right?”

“Yes, among other things, including the perfumed water he made for me.”

He inhaled deeply. “I could never forget the perfumed water, Arianna. The scent lingers with me.”

“I’m almost out of it. I’ll have to take the jar to an apothecary when I get to London to have more made.”

“With all you have to do, it sounds as if you will keep busy.”

As they started the climb up the cliff, he reached back and took her hand. His hold was firm and steady. It was silly, she knew, but she didn’t want to reach the top, because when they did, he would let go of her again.