Cinders and Ashes (12 page)

Sebastian sat on the side of the bed, and watched the curvy
bottom of his intriguing lover disappear from sight. Ignoring the
surge of desire that swept through him at the sight of her
delicious curves displayed so gloriously, he swore loudly. He knew
the prospect of leaving scared her, but had hoped the passion they
shared would have tipped the balance in his favour.

That the thought of leaving him was too painful for
her,
he thought ruefully, considering his
arrogance. Her vehement refusal to go with him was a minor setback
he would just have to skirt around somehow.

He shook
his head as he carefully banked the fire. There was one thing he
was certain of; when Sir Hubert left later that morning, Sebastian
could waste no time in leaving Glendowie with Amelia in tow,
whether she liked it or not.

He could
only hope Bestwick was reliable, and provided the relevant manpower
and transport.

“
Come on, Amelia,” Sebastian muttered quietly from his seat in
the dark confines of Lord Bestwick’s most luxurious travelling
coach. Bestwick had been true to his word. A few hand-picked men
had appeared as planned, along with the conveyance, a few minutes
ago. They were under strict instruction that under no circumstance
was Amelia to be unduly scared any more than was necessary, or
harmed in any way.

So far
he was impressed. The men had quietly disappeared into the dark
shadows of the woods, and he hadn’t seen or heard of them since.
Even the two horses hitched up to the carriage had remained quiet
and steady under the groom’s calming hands.

Heart
thumping, he became aware of a sudden flurry of movement within the
trees. A soft squeak of surprise rent the air, before all four men
appeared at the side of the carriage, a small bundle of squirming
blankets held between them.

Sebastian opened the door and watched as the wriggling mass
was set gently down on the carriage floor at his feet, before the
door was slammed shut. As planned, the carriage immediately moved
off at a fast clip.

“
You bastard!” Amelia spat, shaking the blanket off her head.
She was so angry with him that she could have happily clawed his
eyes out. “You can just turn this carriage around right now and
take me back. I
will not
go with you!” The last was bitten out through
clenched teeth, as she fought to free herself from the rough
confines of the covers wrapped tightly around her. “Let me
up!”

“
I take it they didn’t hurt you?” Sebastian’s question was
almost conversational as he carefully settled back against the
squabs, clearly not prepared to help her.

She
didn’t bother to answer, as she tried desperately to squirm her way
out of the tangled mess wrapped around her.

“
Take me back, for God’s sake. How dare you do this?” Her
voice trembled with anger.

“
You haven’t listened to a word I have said, have you?”
Sebastian’s voice was so calm and unaffected, she wanted to kick
him.

Amelia
tried hard to ignore his masculine length lounging nonchalantly
against the seat opposite. “I have listened, but I don’t agree. You
have no right to override my wishes in such a high-handed way! Who
do you think you are?” Amelia ranted, her voice rising to a
near-shout.

“
I am not your bloody servant you can order to do as you wish!
I demand you turn this carriage around and take me home!” Her tones
were clipped and cultured. Once again the speech she had slipped
into, in her fury, was pure aristocracy.

It
confirmed that there was much Sebastian had yet to discover about
his future wife.

Sebastian shook his head slowly. “Sorry, darling, I can’t do
it. Not only do I not consider it in your best interests to return
you to that desolate hovel you call home. But the coachman has been
instructed not to stop unless it is to change horses. We are to be
taken directly to Tingdale.” He leaned back against the squabs
nonchalantly. “I could bang on the roof for the next ten minutes,
and he will ignore me as he has been instructed to.”

Closing
his eyes, he pretended to settle back for a snooze, seemingly
ignoring the soft thumps coming from the opposite side of the
carriage as Amelia unravelled herself from the blankets.

“
Take me back, Sebastian, now.” Amelia’s voice was harder than
he had ever heard it, and it was enough to make him open his eyes
and consider her warily.

Her
stony glare glinted at him through the dimness of the carriage.
Whether the moisture was from tears or temper, he wasn’t sure.
Still, he couldn’t afford to cave in and let her have her
way.

“
Stop this carriage now, or I will jump out.”

He
tensed, wondering if she was serious. Within moments he had his
answer as she moved towards the door. He didn’t hesitate to drag
her hand away from the handle, and tug her down onto the plush seat
beside him with a thump. He lay over her to hold her still when she
tried to squirm away from him.

“
What the hell do you think you are doing?” His voice was
incredulous as his own temper began to rise. “Do you not remember
the state I was in when I jumped from a moving carriage?” he
snapped. He couldn’t believe she would be that stupid, even when
she was so upset.

“
I told you to take me back.” Amelia's chest heaved with
temper.

“
No!” Sebastian replied, softly but firmly. He had not seen
this side of her before, and it intrigued and worried him in equal
measure.

A small part of him wanted to prod and provoke her a little
just to see how she would react. How much could he get away with,
before his spitting kitten revealed her claws and scratched him? He
felt his manhood begin to stir beneath his breeches, but knew this
wasn’t the time.
She would probably snap
it off and beat him with it; if he showed her the effect having her
angry at him was having upon his loins,
he
thought as he slowly eased away from her. Shaking his head when the
tantalising mental image of her naked body in the firelight crept
into his mind, Sebastian shifted his hips and kept a wary eye on
her.

“
Let me up, Sebastian. Now!” Amelia wanted to smack his
arrogant face, she was so angry. “Damn you, I should have left you
in the woods,” she bit out, wishing she had at least a foot free so
she could kick his arrogant shin.

She
didn’t mean it. Not if she was truly honest. Finding Sebastian was
the most wondrous thing that had happened to her.

If only he wasn’t
Ton
, and so damned
gorgeous.

“
Now, now; you know you don’t mean that,” Sebastian murmured
tenderly, easing a tendril of hair out of her eyes. He winced when
she snatched her head back, and shot him a filthy glare.

“
Keep your hands off me.” Her voice trembled with fury she did
little to hide.

Pushing
roughly at his shoulders, he eased back enough for her to wriggle
out from beneath him and stumble to her feet. When he made to drag
her back down, her small hands thumped at his shoulders, pushing
him forcefully back against the squabs.

As her
small fists rained down upon his shoulders, he wondered whether she
was just trying to get him to listen to her. But when her tears
began to flow and her small fists moved to his head and neck,
Sebastian grew concerned. A sense of disquiet settled over him, and
he wondered briefly if he had made the right decision in forcing
her to come with him. What if she didn’t forgive him?

“
Calm down, Amelia.” Sebastian cursed fluidly as a well-placed
fist, although small, landed on his brow with surprising
accuracy.

Capturing her frail wrist in his large palm, he pulled her
against him, twisting around until she lay beneath him. When she
continued to thump him with her free hand, he tugged that over her
head too, and held them both down against the seat.

Rather
than calming her, this seemed to enrage her further. She began to
buck and writhe against him. His ears rang with her fluid curses as
she struggled to free herself.

She was
so frail beneath him that he easily held her wrists in one large
palm. Her feminine strength was no match for his masculine bulk and
he pinned her against the squabs far too easily. He was impressed
that she cursed so fluidly, using language that caused Sebastian to
grin widely. His mirth only seemed to fuel her temper.

He
should be angry with her for abusing him in such a way. No woman
had ever been so audaciously brazen as to call into question his
parentage so boldly before. He should be offended. Instead found
her language, and wrestling with her, more of a turn-on than a
turn-off. God, he loved her for her free spirit. The feel of a
feminine curves writhing and twisting against him made him so hard,
he was certain he was going to burst out of his
breeches.

“
Amelia, stop,” he pleaded, as her hip came into close contact
with his rigid shaft. She was still muttering dire imprecations
when he cursed loudly, and slammed his lips down upon hers. It
seemed the only effective way he could shut her up.

Her lips
quivered under his and she fought to resist his sensual onslaught.
She didn’t want the sensations he was creating inside her. Seducing
her into submission wasn’t the answer. If she had any hope of
returning to her little cottage, she had to stand firm against
him.

After
several moments, she wrenched her lips out from under his and
turned her head towards the squabs.

He leant
on his elbows to study her through the gloom.

“
I won’t be your whore,” Amelia grumbled defiantly, refusing
to look at him.

Carefully easing off her, he sat up with a frown as she
immediately moved away to the far corner of the carriage, putting
as much distance between them as possible in the confined
space.

“
Is that what you think this is ultimately all about, Amelia?
I want to take you home to service me?” Sebastian tried to keep his
voice soft, but couldn’t keep the bite of temper from his
voice.

“
You need to understand one thing, darling.” His voice bit
through the darkness of the carriage. “I do not want you as my
mistress. I do not expect you to be my whore. Making love with you
is – well - great.” Sebastian’s tone was matter of fact, while he
discussed one of the most important issues of his life.

“
I know there is much we have to learn about each other before
we decide on a future together. But set that aside for now. You
saved my life, and I owe it to you to keep you safe in return. I
cannot, and will not, leave you to be at risk of the brutality of
Ballantyne. A risk I brought to your door, by the way.” Sebastian’s
voice was harsh in the silence of the rocking carriage.

Great? Great!
Amelia was shocked and
more than a little hurt as she latched on to his description of one
of the most stunning nights of her life. The feelings he created in
her when they made love were amazing. Wonderfully mind-numbing. But
to him, they were great? Had he not enjoyed it as much as she? He
had certainly seemed to. But what they had shared didn’t rate any
higher than simply ‘great’?

She
hadn’t expected any declarations of undying love and devotion. Even
though she knew her heart belonged to him, she was wise enough to
know that men like Sebastian didn’t fall in love with mousy women
like her. Even if he did ignore her lowly status. But to have the
physical love between them reduced in such a casual manner hurt
considerably.

Amelia
felt her cheeks burn with embarrassment. Maybe he didn’t want her
as his whore, or mistress, if she wasn’t that good. His words
highlighted the differences between them.

He felt
a need to protect her because he felt he owed her for saving his
life. She loved him desperately.

To him,
Amelia was the only female around and he had made use of
her.

To
Amelia, she had taken the man she loved into her body, and embraced
their closeness with joy.

She realised just how uncertain her future had become. Not
only was she being dragged back into the
Ton
; the very last place she wanted
to be. But she had to rely upon the man opposite to house her until
she could secure future employment.

“
You owe me nothing,” Amelia muttered quietly, feeling
emotionally battered and bruised from the events of the evening. “I
did nothing I wouldn’t have done for someone else.”

She
turned her watery gaze towards him, staring across the dimness of
the carriage as she fought the overwhelming urge to sob
uncontrollably. The rose-tinted glasses she had been wearing had
just been cruelly ripped off, and she had been made to face the
stark reality of what her life had become. She needed a few moments
to herself to regain her composure and decide what she was going to
do.

During
their conversation, one thing had become apparent. Her future could
never be with Sebastian.

“
Amelia.” Sebastian went to move towards her, only to freeze
when she shook her head and curled up into a tight ball against the
squabs.