Blood Blade Sisters Series (37 page)

“What about that one?” he asked, pointing at her shoulder.

“Which one?” she asked, already knowing which one he meant. Her back hit the edge of the door, forcing her to stop.

Richard trailed a finger along the scar that poked out from the neckline of her robe. “This one.”

“Oh.” Brynne tried to keep her breathing slow and even but couldn’t seem to catch her breath. “My sister mended that one. Couldn’t reach it myself.”

Richard laughed, though it was different than before. Still amused, yes. But with an intense undertone that hadn’t been there before.

“Talented family.” He reached behind her and slowly pushed the door closed. Brynne kept her back pressed to the wood, walking backwards until the door clicked into place and she was trapped between it and Richard’s arms. He braced a hand on either side of her and leaned in, brushing his lips against hers.

Brynne’s head swam and, for a moment, she let herself be carried away on the wave of sensation that Richard was creating as his lips moved over hers. She knew she couldn’t let him continue.

She turned her face. “Richard,” she breathed. She leaned her forehead against the arm that kept her imprisoned while his lips continued their path over her cheek and neck. “Richard, we shouldn’t.”

Brynne ducked under his arm, but Richard caught her about the waist. “No more running,” he said, drawing her back into his arms, pressing her back to his chest.

He kissed her cheek, the sensitive spot under her ear, and trailed his lips down her neck. She hesitated only a second more and then, with a small groan of surrender, she turned in his arms and leaned in to kiss him back. Her lips met his with a desperation that had been building between them for months. All the looks, the small touches, and the stolen kisses, erupted in a fireball of passion that she was sure would consume them both.

Brynne wrapped her arms around Richard’s neck, her hands tangling in his hair, keeping his mouth molded to hers. He scooped her up and carried her to the bed, not breaking the kiss as he laid her down and stretched out beside her. Her fingers pulled at the ties of his robe and he tore himself away from her only long enough to divest them both of their clothing.

For a moment, he gazed down at her, speechless at the gift she was offering. “You are so unbelievably beautiful.”

She reached up for him, made more confident by the desire she saw in his eyes. “Come here.”

He was more than happy to oblige.

Chapter Eighteen

Brynne squinted against the brilliant light filtering in through a crack in the drapes. With a groan, she rolled over and tucked herself into Richard’s side, sighing when he pulled her tight against him and kissed her head. He wrapped his arms about her and drew her further into the blankets.

She wondered if the snow had melted enough yet for him to leave and found herself fervently hoping that wasn’t the case. The morning after their heist, they’d awoken to find the snow so deep they couldn’t get through the door. Richard said he couldn’t remember a time when it had snowed so much in one night in Boston. And then he’d taken her back to bed and proven what a blessing being snowed in could be. That had been four days ago, and they’d barely left her rooms since then.

Taggart had taken to leaving their meals outside her door and the rest of the staff seemed to have made an agreement to leave the lovers in peace unless they expressly called for something. Which they rarely did. They spent nearly every waking minute reveling in each other.

Brynne burrowed into Richard, burying her face into his neck. He cringed a bit and chuckled. She kissed him under his jaw line, loving that he was ticklish. He growled and rolled her onto her back, putting her lips to much better use.

Brynne was still amazed at how her body responded so completely to Richard’s touch. She’d only had a month with Jake before he’d disappeared. Hardly enough time to learn all the ways one could love. She still had much to learn about the more physical aspects of loving someone. And Richard was only too happy to teach her.

They were both content to take it slow this time, lingering to explore each other, over and over, until there wasn’t a coherent thought left in Brynne’s head. Afterwards, they lay together, Richard’s words floating over her in a pleasant haze.

His soft chuckle caught her attention and she looked up at him.

“You haven’t heard a word I said, have you?”

Brynne gave him a lazy smile. “I heard all of them,” she insisted. “I’m not sure how many actually sank in.”

Richard laughed again and gave her a lingering kiss. “I was saying that if you preferred not to live at the clinic after the wedding, then we can start looking for another home. I would prefer a place a little closer to the clinic than this house is, if you are amenable. However, I know it might be more comfortable for Coraline if we lived here since she is already settled in and if you preferred to stay here, I’ll abide by your choice. If you are open to moving, however, that would be wonderful as I’ll still need to spend a considerable amount of time at the clinic until I can find someone to help me. But I am more than happy to do whatever you feel is best for you and Coraline.”

Richard’s words finally sank in and Brynne sat up, clutching the sheet to her chest. “Richard, slow down. What are you talking about? What wedding?”

Richard frowned. “Our wedding.”

Brynne’s heart skipped several beats and for a split second, she let the exhilaration at the idea of being Richard’s wife flow through her. But the initial jolt of happiness faded quickly. It hadn’t been some declaration of undying love. It hadn’t even been a proposal. He was making plans for their entire future and hadn’t even bothered to ask her about it first.

Brynne opened her mouth to respond but froze, not wanting to say the wrong thing. Overbearing or not, the man wanted to marry her and that wasn’t something she took lightly.

“Richard, why do you think we are getting married?”

He frowned, his forehead crinkling in confusion. “But of course we must get married. My darling, I’ve spent the last four days in your bed. A fact we may be able to keep quiet for a time, but we certainly need to be married as soon as possible.”

Brynne’s happiness faded. “You want to marry me to protect your good name.”

“No.” He took her face in his hands. “To protect you.”

Brynne pulled away from him. It wasn’t a bad reason, really. She was sure there were plenty of men who wanted to marry her for less selfless reasons. Still, she was nobody’s charity mission.

“That’s very kind of you, Richard. But I assure you, it isn’t necessary.”

“Of course it’s necessary. What if you’re with child?”

The image of a baby, one with Richard’s gorgeous blue eyes and adorable dimple, made her falter. But only for a moment.

“That’s unlikely.” She rose from the bed and grabbed her robe from the floor. Their little haven had been ruined.

“Brynne? Have I said something wrong?”

Brynne pulled her robe about her and shoved her feet in her slippers.

“Brynne?”

A knock sounded at the door and Brynne breathed a sigh of relief for the temporary reprieve. She waited a moment while Richard got up and pulled on some clothes and then opened the door. A flustered Mary stood in the hallway.

“Begging your pardon, ma’am. But I’m not sure what to do and I thought I should let you know right away.”

“Let me know what, Mary?”

“It’s Mr. Taggart, ma’am. He’s….” Richard came to stand by Brynne. Mary flushed scarlet and turned her gaze to the floor.

“Mary?” Brynne prompted. “What about Taggart?”

“He’s gone, ma’am. He’s nowhere to be found.”

“Gone?”

Brynne looked at Richard and saw her concern mirrored on his face.

“Did he leave any word? A note? Anything?” Richard asked.

The girl flushed beet red again and wouldn’t meet Richard’s eyes. “No, sir. And when there was no sign of him this morning, we checked his room. His belongings are gone.”

“Does any of the staff know why he’d leave? Have there been any problems?”

“No ma’am, at least none that I know of. He did get a letter two days ago. It upset him something fierce. He went out for a bit and when he came back, he was right as rain again. I didn’t think anything of it until this morning when he just upped and vanished.”

“All right, thank you Mary,” Brynne said, trying to keep her unease from her voice. Why in heaven’s name would Taggart disappear with no word? A ball of worry gnawed at her gut. Taggart knew too many of her secrets. She could only hope, as uncharitable as it was, that his reason for leaving had to do with one of his own countless secrets, rather than with hers.

“Please send Beth to me.”

Mary shuffled her feet. “Well that’s the other thing, ma’am. Beth left a couple days ago.”

“What? Why did no one tell me?”

“Mr. Taggart said as how we weren’t to disturb you; that he’d take care of it.”

“Why did she leave?”

Mary’s blush deepened to such a severe degree that Brynne feared she’d take ill. “Begging your pardon ma’am, but she said…well, she said that she couldn’t abide working in a house…well, that is, working for a woman who…” Her eyes flashed to Richard and she appeared close to tears.

No matter. Brynne knew exactly why Beth had left. “It’s all right, Mary. Don’t trouble yourself.” She patted the poor girl’s arm.

Mary took a deep breath and squared her shoulders. “The rest of the staff don’t feel that way, ma’am. We think you’re a good mistress, and as long as you’re happy and what you’re doin’ don’t harm no one, well…that’s all right in our book.”

Brynne smiled, knowing it had taken a great deal of courage for the girl to have spoken as she had. “Thank you, Mary. Give me a few moments and I’ll be down and we’ll get this whole mess sorted out.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Mary hurried off with a relieved smile.

Brynne turned around to find Richard regarding her with a grim countenance. “Do you still wonder why I insist we marry? It will only get worse, Brynne.”

Brynne pushed past him and gathered her undergarments. “We’ll discuss it later.”

“Brynne…”

She held up her hand. “Later, Richard. We need to find out what is going on first.” If he continued to harp on the subject, she was going to lose the tenuous hold she had on her emotions.

Richard looked like was going to argue but instead he held out his hand for her crinoline and corset. She hesitated for a moment but as lacing herself into everything would prove difficult and Beth wasn’t around to do it, she needed his help. He helped her into her hoops and corset and tightened the stays with surprisingly expert fingers. Brynne didn’t want to dwell on why he knew his way around women’s undergarments. She had enough to occupy her mind without adding that.

The fact that Beth had run off hurt more than Brynne wanted to admit. She’d assumed she and the maid had a decent relationship and the maid had certainly considered Richard the catch of the century. Perhaps it didn’t count if one bypassed social protocol and enjoyed the benefits of marriage without the actual wedding. And if Beth felt strongly enough about it to leave Brynne’s service over it, then it was only a matter of time before half the town knew that Richard had spent four days in her bed.

Four wonderful, heart-pounding, unforgettable days.

Brynne sighed. All she had to do was agree to marry him and she could relive the last four days every day for the rest of her life. There would be a hint of scandal about their hasty nuptials, but it would soon blow over. And many couples married for far less reason. At least she and Richard were…compatible. Her cheeks warmed with the memory of exactly how compatible they were. And she knew he cared for her. Was it wrong to want more?

Richard finished lacing her up and helped her get her skirt and petticoats on. For some reason, watching him pull the material over her body and arrange the folds of fabric stirred the fire in her blood almost as much as it had when he’d been
removing
her clothing. He held out her bodice, letting his fingers brush across her skin as he helped her draw it across her shoulders. Her breath hitched in her throat and the hands that reached up to button the material shook. Richard pushed them aside, smiling down at her as he took over. He carefully arranged the small lace collar at her throat and ran his hands down her ribcage to her waist, smoothing the form-fitting silk.

Brynne’s lips parted, her whole body yearning for him. If he were to ask her again, she’d say yes. She’d say yes to anything that allowed her to be with him morning, noon, and night. She might regret it later, but at the moment she was having a hard time giving a damn.

With a deep breath and more willpower than she’d ever had to exert in her life, Brynne took a step back. Richard let his hands fall, watching her as she retreated to her vanity table. When she picked up her heavy silver brush and attacked her hair, he turned and gathered his own clothing, dressing hastily while she wrestled her thick mop into some semblance of a simple but proper bun at the nape of her neck. The process might have gone smoother if she hadn’t kept getting glimpses of Richard in her mirror. It seemed a shame to cover such a beautiful body with clothing…

Brynne pushed aside the tumultuous thoughts. First things first. Even more troublesome than Beth leaving was Taggart’s disappearance.

“Why do you think Taggart left?” Brynne asked, desperate to both break the silence and to erase the images in her mind.

“I’ve been running over a few possibilities, and none of them are good.”

“Such as?”

“Well, we’ll need to ask the staff if there is anything missing. If there’s not, that would rule out thievery.”

“I can’t see him stealing from me. He was Jake’s friend.”

“Yes, which makes it all the more strange that he would disappear without a word.”

“Do you think it has something to do with our little excursion the other night?”

Richard frowned. “Considering how willingly helpful he was, I think not.”

A steady throbbing took up residence at Brynne’s temples and she closed her eyes and massaged her head. Richard gathered her in his arms and kissed her forehead.

“We’ll find out what’s going on, I promise.”

Brynne let him hold her for a moment, wishing she could stay wrapped in his arms forever. But as Cilla would say, wishes were about as useful as a skunk in a flower bed. The thought of her tough-as-nails sister brought a smile to Brynne’s lips and an extra dose of courage to her heart.

“All right,” she said, pulling away from Richard, “let us go find out what is amiss in this crazy household.”

Richard opened the door for her and let her lead the way.

…

Brynne thoroughly questioned each member of the household, trying to find any clue as to why Taggart had left. But Richard’s mind was only half on the mystery of the butler’s disappearance. To be perfectly honest, he didn’t care two wits why the man had left, as long as the reason wasn’t something that could hurt Brynne. What he did care about was why the stubborn woman was refusing to marry him. Had the last four days meant nothing to her? He could have sworn that their time together had meant as much to her as it had to him. They hadn’t been merely two people finding pleasure in one another (though there had been
plenty
of pleasure to be had). They had been two people really and truly making love to one another.

All the tender moments, the murmured declarations of love, the—Richard froze.

He knew he’d told her over and over that he loved her while they’d made love. But had he said it when he’d asked her to marry him?

Oh, for the love of all that was holy
. If he hadn’t been standing in a hall full of jittery servants, he’d have turned to the marble column he was leaning on and struck his head against it a few times.

He hadn’t asked her to marry him. He’d
told
her they were getting married. And he hadn’t even managed to give her a good reason, like because he was so madly in love with her he couldn’t bear being apart from her ever again. Oh no. He’d told her it was so the hellhound society women wouldn’t gossip. Of all the stupid, pig-headed, brainless—

No wonder she’d flat out refused him. It was a miracle she hadn’t tossed him out on his undeserving derriere.

Well. He might not be able to bring back her maid or solve the mystery of the missing butler, but there was one wrong in her life he could right. And he was going to do it immediately.

He marched over to her and interrupted her mid-sentence. “Brynne, I need to have a word with you.”