In the Wake of the Wind (41 page)

A great honking came from behind them and they both turned their heads toward the source.

The swans lifted their wings in unison, one pair white, one pair black, their necks craned back, their beaks raised as they called their song to the sky. The clouds had parted and a brilliant shaft of sunlight fell onto the glassy surface of the water just where the swans floated, illuminating them in the gray light.

Aiden grinned. “I want to make love to you here and now, but I’m damned if I’ll do it in the full view of a pair of birds who have nothing better to do than honk at us. I want a warm, dry bed, and a great deal of privacy for what I have in mind.”

Serafina
burst into laughter. “You’ve suddenly become shy, have you? I don’t remember your minding the swans too terribly the last time we were out here.”

“I hardly registered the bloody swans the last time we were out here, but I’m not about to give them a repeat performance.” He stood and scooped her up into his arms. “We’re both wet, muddy, and bedraggled, thanks to you.” He kissed her nose. “And you look utterly adorable, by the way.”

“I think I like you muddy, wet, and bedraggled,” she said, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck. “Are you planning on carrying me all the way back to Townsend?”

“I am. What sort of gentleman would I be if I allowed you to get your feet wet?”

Serafina
nuzzled the soft lobe of his ear. “My feet couldn’t get any wetter, and you’re no gentleman in any case,” she said softly.

“You’re right about that. And I’m about to prove it to you.”

“H
ome, my sweet, and not a moment too soon for what I have in mind,” Aiden said, carrying
Serafina
up the steps, her arms wrapped in a most satisfying fashion around his neck, her cheek resting against his. It felt so damned good to have her back in his arms, and it was going to feel even better once he’d gotten her safely upstairs to their bedroom, where he planned to show her exactly how he felt about her.

The last thing he’d expected was to make an impassioned declaration of love to her while she was sitting ten feet above him, wrapped around a tree limb, but the words had come out unbidden and they were the truest he’d ever spoken. And now they were out, he had no intention of retracting them.
Rafe
was right. He was head over heels in love with his wife, and he felt like the luckiest man on earth.

With his usual efficiency, Plum opened the door just as Aiden reached it.

“Oh—my lord … her ladyship? Is she injured?” he cried, his usually composed face badly out of place. “Oh, heavens above! Shall I call the doctor?”

“Her ladyship is perfectly well, if a little wet,” Aiden said with a laugh, although he was touched by Plum’s fervent devotion to
Serafina.
“We’ve both had a soaking, thanks to my wife’s penchant for running about in thunderstorms.”

“So I see, my lord,” Plum said uncertainly. “It will be a miracle if you don’t both catch your deaths. I should call for the doctor right now.”

Serafina
lifted her head. “Don’t worry, Plum. A little rain never hurt anyone, despite what your mother may have told you.”

The idea of Plum having a mother struck Aiden as being singularly amusing, although he supposed Plum must have one somewhere. He couldn’t help imagining an older, female version of the balding butler, sitting in a cottage somewhere knitting socks for her dignified son.

“From the looks of it, my lady, the rain has only done you good,” Plum said. “The color’s back in your cheeks, and that’s a blessing to be sure.” He turned his gaze to Aiden. “Lord Delaware returned from London in your absence, my lord, bringing Janie and Tinkerby with him. And your sister wishes a word with you.”

“You can tell my sister to go hang,” Aiden said succinctly. He had no intention of getting into another sparring match with Charlotte, especially with what he had in mind for
Serafina.

“Aiden?” Charlotte’s pleading voice came from the open doors of the drawing room. “Please? I need to speak with you and your wife.”

“I think we should at least give her a minute,”
Serafina
murmured quietly against his ear. “She deserves that much, Aiden. She probably feels terrible.”

Aiden swore softly under his breath, then gently set
Serafina
on her feet. “One minute, Charlotte, and one minute only,” he said. “We both need to get out of our wet clothes.”

He put his arm around Serafina’s waist and led her in, both of them leaving wet trails in their wake. He hoped Charlotte was having heart palpitations at the sight of them dripping water and mud all over the immaculate marble floor, not to mention the priceless Aubusson carpet.

“Well?” he demanded as soon as he’d shut the doors behind him. “What do you have to say?”

“Only that I’m deeply sorry,” she said, gazing down at her lap. “I was—I was wrong to have accused your wife and Raphael of misconduct. I should have looked farther into my heart and known it could not be true.”

“Tell that to
Serafina,”
Aiden said bitterly. “You’ve caused unnecessary anguish,
Charlotte,
and all because you leapt to a ridiculous conclusion.”

“Yes. Yes, that’s true,” she said, raising her tearful blue gaze to his. “It is I who needs to repent, I see that now. Please accept my apologies.”

“I think it’s best if we put the incident behind us,”
Serafina
said quietly. “There’s no need to dwell on what is past. I’m sure we can go on perfectly comfortably, just as before.”

“Thank you,” Charlotte whispered, her handkerchief clasped to her mouth. ‘You are generous in your forgiveness, dear sister. I am sure I do not deserve it, but I find you most Christian in your kindness.”

“I agree with
Serafina,”
Aiden said, surprised that his wife was prepared to excuse his sister so readily, but relieved that she didn’t intend to make a scene. There had been enough of those to last a lifetime in the last two days. “Let’s all try to pretend this never happened,” he said, although something tugged uneasily at the back of his mind, a feeling that Charlotte’s contrition was too easy. “But everything I said to you earlier stands,” he added, to be sure he’d made his point perfectly clear. “Now if you’ll excuse us, we need to change into dry clothes.”

“Of course,” Charlotte said, twisting her handkerchief into a tight knot. “Please, do not let me keep you a minute longer.”

Aiden took Serafina’s hand and practically pulled her out of the room, other, more important things on his mind than his sister’s lukewarm apologies.

Aiden closed the bedroom door behind them and cocked one eyebrow at
Serafina.
“Well, wife,” he said, looking her up and down. “What do you suggest I do with you?”

Serafina
touched a finger to her chin. “Ravish me, my lord?” she said hopefully. She could think of nothing she’d rather have him do.

Aiden burst into laughter. “You’ve never been one to mince words, and ravish you I will. But first let’s get you out of your wet dress.”

He turned her and undid the buttons on the back, smoothing the material down her arms and dropping a lingering kiss on one bare shoulder as her dress fell in a heap on the floor. “Mmm,” he murmured as he slid his warm hands up her waist, lifting her chemise over her head.

The cool air caressed Serafina’s skin as he bared her breasts, running his palms over them, cupping her in his hands, shaping her to his touch. “Oh, God you feel good,” he said hoarsely, pulling her into his arms and raking her mouth with a deep, demanding kiss.

She trembled furiously under his touch. So long. So very long since he had held her like this, caused her body to sing with hot excitement. She pushed the jacket off his broad shoulders, her fingers seeking the hard planes of his chest beneath the damp linen of his shirt. His nipples sprang up under her touch and he groaned, releasing her for a moment as he tore his jacket and shirt off, then reached down and yanked off his boots, tossing them to one side.

“Aiden,” she whispered as he pulled her into his arms again. “Oh, how I love you. I don’t think I knew how much until I thought I’d lost you. But are you sure you feel the same way?” she asked uncertainly. “I know you wanted me to come down from the tree and you might have said anything to accomplish your objective.”

He lifted her easily in his arms and deposited her on the bed, coming down next to her, his eyes flashing blue fire. “I do love you,” he said, his voice rough. “I think I must have done from the moment we first met, but I was too damned stubborn to admit it to myself, and for that I could kick myself.”

“It doesn’t matter,” she said softly, running her fingers through his thick, silky hair, hugely relieved. “You know it now, and that’s the important thing.”

He kissed her chin. “I might know it, but I have to admit that I’m scared to death, and the last week taught me why I should be. Jesus,
Serafina,
I’ve never been so plagued by furious emotion, and none of it was fun. I never thought in a thousand years that I’d be a jealous husband, but loving you has turned me into a mindless, raving lunatic.” He sighed. “I’m sorry, sweetheart. I’m sorry I ever doubted you, and I’m even more sorry that I behaved like such a bastard in London when that was the last thing you deserved.”

“Don’t, Aiden,” she said, blinking back tears. “I’m just as responsible. I could have told you I loved you, since it was the truth. I should certainly have told you from the beginning about Raphael. But now that you know the truth—you do know the real truth?” she asked, not sure on that point.

“Yes, I know the truth.
Rafe
told me all about your lessons. And I ought to have figured them out for myself, for only
Rafe
is capable of turning a wood nymph into a perfect countess in three short weeks.” He grinned. “But thank God he had the good sense to leave the wood nymph in place. I’d have strangled him if he’d spoiled you. There’s a reason I fell in love with you, you know.”

Serafina
laughed through the blur of her tears, thinking that Aiden had very little idea of why he’d fallen in love with her. He wasn’t to know she was his destiny, had always been his destiny, and she doubted he would believe her if she was silly enough to tell him. Which she had no intention of doing. A slip of his tongue in a moment of panic was one thing. To be told he really had once been a prince was another. “Raphael said he could make anything pretty,” she said instead. “You should have seen him try, though. His patience must have been sorely tested.”

“I doubt it—
Rafe
has always liked a good challenge, and he doesn’t take defeat easily. However, my cousin is the last person I want to think about right now.” He pressed a kiss on her forehead.

“Aiden—what about Charlotte?”
Serafina
asked, wanting to have everything clear between them before they went any farther.

“What about bloody Charlotte?” he said impatiently, tracing the curve of her throat with one finger.

“You won’t stay angry with her, will you? She may have made a bad mistake, but we all make mistakes, and Charlotte did seem sorry. I don’t want her to suffer unduly.”

Aiden lazily cupped one breast, flicking her nipple with his thumb, sending pulsing waves of desire through her. “I don’t think she’ll suffer unduly. By tomorrow morning she’ll be back to her old managing self. And I don’t want to think about Charlotte either, or my father, just in case you plan to bring him up next.”

Serafina
hadn’t thought about Lord Delaware at all, but since Aiden had introduced the subject, she thought she might as well dispose of it. “Have you forgiven him?” she asked, trying to ignore the treacherous calling of her body. “He did behave himself beautifully in London. In fact, I think he managed to charm a large number of people.”

Aiden released a long breath. “Yes, he did. And yes, I’ve forgiven him, although it will take some time for me to feel fully in accord with him—there’s a lot of healing still to be done. And no, I don’t wish to discuss the subject any further at this moment.” He dropped his head to her breast, drawing it into his mouth, his warm tongue flicking over her hard, sensitive nub, driving her into a frenzy as his hands reached for her buttocks and cupped them.

She shivered, reveling in his touch. “I love you so much it hurts,” she murmured, running her hands over his strong back, his shoulders. “I think I must have loved you forever.”

Aiden took her face between his hands and looked into her eyes, his gaze dark and intent, his fingers lightly tracing the lines of her cheekbones. “I don’t know about forever, but I do know that you’re my life,
Serafina,
everything that’s important to me. I never thought I’d be lucky enough to find love, but against all reason I have, and I have no intention of ever letting you go for any reason.”

A fresh rush of tears flooded Serafina’s eyes. He really did love her. She knew it by the tenderness in his voice, the way he touched her, so gently, with such reverence.
Swear
y
ou’ll love me
forever …
Aiden. He had been brought to her through time, given back to her. Her memories had sustained her through years of waiting, but the reality of his love was the true gift she’d been given.

She lifted her head and kissed him, her arms twining around his neck. “Make love to me,” she whispered. “Seal our vow, Aiden.”

He didn’t answer her with words, instead moving over her, his hands and mouth answer enough as he caressed her naked flesh, playing over her willing, hungry body until she gasped and writhed beneath his heated touch. His fingers slipped low, tangling in her damp curls, seeking her core, and she drew in a shivering breath as he caressed her there too, driving her to a fury of excitement.

He made a low sound in his throat as she cried out, pushing her hips up against his hand, her body reaching toward the peak of ecstasy, straining toward release. He gave it to her, his fingers stilling as she shuddered violently, her sharp cries of pleasure stifled by his mouth as he kissed her hard, his tongue thrusting deep. Heat. Fire. So much love.

His shaft throbbed against her belly through the doeskin of his trousers and with an impatient oath he sat up and stripped them off, repositioning himself between her thighs.

“Serafina
…” he moaned, sliding into her, so hard, so vital, filling her completely with his length as he thrust. “Oh, God. Oh, God Almighty, that’s so nice.”

She gave herself over to him completely, her body moving frenetically to meet his as he possessed her, pressing deep, withdrawing, plunging back into her, and she sobbed with pleasure at each renewed thrust. Her world spun away from her until there was nothing left but Aiden’s body in hers, on hers, his harsh pants against her cheek, his salty sweat on her tongue as she swept it over his flaming skin, her hands stroking and caressing, urging him faster and harder.