8. Chapter Eight

CHAPTER EIGHT

T he formal opening of Dr. Nash's medical practice meant that his days became busy, and he was rarely in Ruby's sight. She was glad of that—firstly, because she had a lot to do herself, and secondly, because their recent intimate conversation had unsettled her deeply, and she had yet to decide how to respond.

She knew she should be repulsed by his open offer to bed her, but she wasn't. She hadn't lied when she told him she'd always enjoyed the intimate side of her relationship with Sidney. In truth, she suspected her infatuation with the physical had been a significant factor in her decision to follow him to Leeds and leave her family behind. As a more mature woman, and a mother, she couldn't afford to be so stupid again.

And she was legally married to Charles Nash. He had obligations toward her, and if he didn't fulfill them, her brother-in-law would never let him forget it. Francis might be an aristocrat by birth, but he reminded Ruby of the ruthless working men she'd met during the protests and strikes in Leeds. She doubted Francis would allow a few scruples about fair play and honor to interfere with his revenge.

She set the bonnet she was sewing for Nora on the kitchen table and checked the stove was still burning brightly. As Charles rarely left his rooms before seeing every patient, she'd begun to alter the time of day they ate to accommodate him. He'd told her not to fuss, but she was determined to hold up her side of their bargain and be a good wife. In truth, she took pride in it. For all his faults, Charles was appreciative of her efforts and always thanked her, something Sidney had often failed to do.

She liked him… for his brutal honesty, his passion for the things he cared about, for his impatience when things didn't meet his high standards. She'd admired Sidney, but often felt she could never live up to his ideals. Whereas with Charles, she could be herself, good and bad. He wasn't the kind of man who held a grudge and even admitted he was wrong sometimes—something rare among the gentlemen of her acquaintance.

Bridget came down the stairs with Nora in her arms. "I'm taking the little one out for her walk, ma'am. Do you wish to accompany us?"

"No, thank you." Ruby smiled at her daughter who looked the picture of health. "I've got some darning and mending to attend to."

"I'll give you a hand when I get back," Bridget promised. "Has the butcher's boy come by?"

"Yes, he brought some excellent beef for a stew."

Bridget wrinkled her nose. "I suppose you'll make dumplings, as it's cook's day off?"

"Yes, Dr. Nash loves them."

"Then I wonder if you'd be willing to try my mam's recipe?"

"Are mine very bad?"

"They are rather heavy in the stomach, ma'am. If you don't mind me saying."

"I'm not the best of cooks," Ruby admitted. "I seem to have lost the knack for it."

Bridget beamed at her. "I'll find you the recipe and show you how it's done when we get back."

"Thank you." Ruby held the backdoor open as Bridget wrestled with the perambulator they'd inherited from Alice. "Don't go too near the construction sites. Dr. Nash says it's not good for your lungs."

"I'm going to the park. Nora likes the duck pond."

Thanks to Mr. Hepworth and a few of the mill owners, Millcastle now boasted a town park with iron railings, well-tended flower beds, and budding new trees. Privately, Ruby wondered how long the park would thrive in the factory smoke and soot, but she applauded the effort. It was exactly the sort of thing Sidney would've approved of.

Ruby waved Bridget off and returned to the kitchen as the house settled into silence around her. The clock Alice had given them as a wedding present ticked steadily away on the high mantelpiece over the range, offering its own share of stability and sanctuary. She'd pawned everything she'd had in Leeds and had left there with nothing except Nora, her most prized possession.

Ruby gave herself a little shake. How lucky was she now with a roof over her head, a thriving child, and a purpose in life once more? She would never take such things for granted again. She picked up one of her husband's socks and stuck her finger through a hole at the toe. Charles tended to go through a lot of socks, because his work at the navvy camps took him miles into the countryside, and he often had to walk.

She threaded her needle with black wool. It would be no hardship allowing herself to touch Charles Nash… He was a handsome man. Did she really want to live out the rest of her life without being bedded again?

"Ouch!"

"What have you done?"

She looked up to see Charles coming through the door.

He paused at the sight of her. "I thought you'd gone out."

"Or else you wouldn't have come in here?" Ruby asked as she studied the bright red bead of blood on her thumb. "Bridget took Nora out for a walk."

"Ah, that's the commotion I heard." He paused. "We really must get some kind of storage built into the yard for the pram."

"It's fine to keep it in the hall," Ruby countered.

"You're bleeding." He came over and knelt at her side, his hands gentle as he examined her finger.

"It's nothing."

"I've seen people die from less." He drew her to her feet. "Come and wash it at the sink."

Ruby sighed but let him take her where he willed. He pumped some water into the bowl and eased her hand down into it. The coldness made her catch her breath.

"Does it hurt?" He was so close that his breath stirred the hairs at the back of her neck. "Stay right there. I'll fetch something to clean it out properly."

Ruby waited until he returned with an ominous looking brown bottle. He uncorked the stopper and tipped some into the water. This time she did screech.

"That means it's working." He held out a washcloth. "Dry your hand and let me take another look at it."

"I'm not sure I want you to," Ruby grumbled as he bent over her hand.

"Come now, Mrs. Nash, be brave. I won't even charge you."

"One would hope not," Ruby said. "Seeing as I was injured while attempting to darn your sock."

He lightly kissed her knuckles. "I appreciate that."

Her thumb was throbbing slightly. She wasn't sure if it was from the wound or the treatment.

He produced a strip of linen from his pocket and wrapped it tightly around her thumb before securing it with a complicated knot.

"I suggest you keep it like this while you're working today," he said as he reclaimed his bottle and headed for the door. "It should be fine by bedtime."

"Thank you." Ruby had to shout after him as he was moving at some speed.

Maybe she wasn't the only person struck dumb by their nighttime confidences. She couldn't deny that his physical closeness made her yearn for things she thought she'd renounced forever, but did he feel the same? Of course he did; he was a man. But the thought of another pregnancy made her shudder.

His door shut with a bang, and she knew she wouldn't see him until dinnertime. If he'd intended to get himself something to eat, she'd foiled his plan. Ruby went over to the pantry, extracted a loaf of bread, some butter, and the sliced ham from the cold store, and set about making sandwiches.

By the time Bridget returned, she'd brewed a pot of tea and opened a jar of Alice's pickles. She set out three plates and a bowl for Nora, who had recently been introduced to gruel and porridge.

"Thank you, ma'am!" Bridget said as she settled Nora into the highchair at the end of the table. "You didn't need to do that."

"I was making Dr. Nash something for his midday meal and thought I might as well finish up the ham." Ruby pointed at the tray. "Could you possibly take that through to the doctor while I start feeding Nora?"

"Least I can do when you've made me lunch." Bridget winked at her. "And some of those nice pickles, too!"

* * *

Later that evening, after Nora and Bridget had retired to the top floor, Charles sat opposite Ruby in the parlor, his boots stretched close to the warmth of the hearth, his stomach full of beef stew and vastly improved dumplings. If he hadn't been stupid enough to offer to bed his wife and scare her out of the damn thing, he would've been heartily content. He glanced over at Ruby. She was reading a book, her brow slightly creased as she turned a page, her face serene in the lamplight.

"Did Nora enjoy her outing?"

Ruby briefly looked up. "I believe so. Bridget took her to the new park."

He waited but she didn't elaborate. "Is your thumb feeling any better?"

"It is, thank you."

"Excellent." He stared into the fire, his fingers drumming on the arms of his chair. "Did I mention that I intend to find another physician at some point so that I don't have to be on call all night?"

"Can you afford to do so?"

"Not yet." She nodded and he continued. "As you are the person doing the accounts, ma'am, you would know that better than anyone."

She set her book to one side and looked at him. "You need more patients who can pay you immediately."

He shrugged. "That's not always possible."

"I'm well aware of that. It took me months to pay back the doctor who attended me during Nora's birth."

"You had a doctor in attendance?"

She raised her eyebrows, and he hastened to qualify his remark. "Most women use midwives or have family members present at births."

"I had no one," Ruby said. "Sidney decided to get the doctor when he returned home and found me laboring alone. It didn't occur to him to ask how much it would cost or how we would pay for it."

Charles grimaced.

"It was not a pleasant experience," Ruby said. "In truth, I cannot imagine going through it again."

"I believe a lot of women feel like that," Charles said cautiously. "And it's quite understandable. I've little time for men who think their wives need to be constantly pregnant to keep them occupied."

She took a quick breath and looked down at her hands which were twisted together in her lap. "It is part of the reason why I am reluctant to recommence the activities that lead to pregnancy."

"Ah." Charles nodded. "I see."

He paused to gather his thoughts, aware that it was not the time to blurt out the first thing that came into his head or to joyfully grab his wife's hand and head upstairs.

"As a physician, I am well aware of… practices that might help avoid conception."

"I thought that was illegal."

He shrugged. "As far as I am concerned, what happens between a man and his wife is between them, and nothing to do with a court of law."

"Can you not be prosecuted for offering such advice?"

"I believe so." He smiled. "I regret to say that it won't stop me from doing it. I've seen the misery multiple pregnancies cause." He waited until she lifted her head and looked at him before saying, "If I am understanding you correctly, Mrs. Nash, would you be willing to consider such… advice?"

She held his gaze. "I might be."

"I'm glad to hear it." He hesitated. "As a physician, I have to note that no method of anti-conception except the complete removal of the womb is guaranteed to work."

"Or castration."

Charles shuddered. "Actually?—"

She held up her hand. "I'd rather not hear the details, thank you." She rose to her feet. "I think I might go to bed."

He stood as well, and she came over to kiss his cheek. He wrapped his arm around her waist and she went still.

"Do you wish to start tonight?" he asked.

"I thought you needed time to research your options."

"We don't have to do everything at once," he murmured. He kissed her until she sighed and kissed him back, her body leaning into his like it belonged there. "I've always enjoyed experimenting."

She eased out of his arms and turned toward the door. "Goodnight, Dr. Nash."

He waited until her footsteps faded on the stairs and took his cup out to the kitchen. It was foggy outside, the gloom illuminated by a single recently installed streetlamp. Mr. Hepworth had assured Charles that the rest of the street would soon be filled with respectable people and their new houses. At the moment, it was a building site, and it attracted all sorts of undesirables trying to steal anything not nailed in place.

He took his time checking the locks on all the doors and made sure his medical supplies were safely hidden away. During his time as a physician, he'd come across patients who craved the drugs he offered like gamblers craved a new wager. It was most disconcerting. He'd heard tales of respectable women stealing bottles of laudanum and morphine and drinking the contents in one swallow. In such a volatile area as Millcastle, it paid to be cautious. The navvies Mr. Hepworth employed to build his railways were infamously light fingered and prone to violence. He'd patched up the wounds from more than one fight between rival gangs or townsfolk.

He returned to the parlor and made sure the fire was out before banking up the stove and heading up to bed. He paused on the landing, his gentlemanly instinct to knock warring with his conviction that a man shouldn't have to beg for entrance into his own bedroom. He wanted her and he wanted to make things right.

He stepped inside and immediately stopped. Ruby had left a candle burning at the side of the bed and sat up against her pillows. She had taken down her hair and left it loose on her shoulders.

"Oh, you're awake."

She fixed him with a challenging stare. "Would you prefer it if I blew out the candle and pretended I was asleep?"

"No." He fumbled with his neckcloth's knot. "Absolutely not."

He made no effort to fold his clothes and only remembered to put on his nightshirt when Ruby looked at him somewhat apprehensively.

"Are you afraid?" he asked as he climbed into bed beside her.

"Of you? Not particularly." She paused. "But am I alarmed at what I'm contemplating doing with you? God, yes."

He leaned in and cupped her cheek. "I promise you I'll do everything in my power to prevent contraception."

She still looked skeptical, and he didn't blame her. Men had held this power over women since time began. He'd seen plenty of men use it to keep women in their place. Mill owners preferred to employ women because they could be paid lower wages. Mothers would put up with the worst conditions simply to feed their children, and their children were employable, too.

"As I said, we're not in any rush," Charles said. "It's not as if I'm in need of an heir…" He stopped, aware that his father might disagree about that. He still hadn't heard back from the old man, and he'd been married for three months.

He kissed Ruby's mouth. "If you'd prefer it, we can extinguish the candle."

"No, thank you."

He smiled into her eyes. "That's my girl." He stroked his index finger down from her chin to her throat and felt her shiver in response. "I believe it's time to make your proper acquaintance. I've barely touched you below the neck."

She made a huffing sound. "Apart from when I arrived at Caroline's house, and you examined me."

"That doesn't count." He kissed his way down her neck. "I prefer my women to be well when I caress them, and I certainly wouldn't want a reputation for molesting my patients."

"You were always very professional," Ruby reassured him. "Positively disinterested."

He paused, his fingers lingering on her shoulder. "You have my full permission to touch me back."

"I fully intend to."

They smiled at each other, and he allowed his hand to drift lower and cup her breast, his thumb finding her already hard nipple. He watched her face as he circled it, and she caught her breath.

"May I see more?"

She nodded and he unbuttoned her starched night dress until he could pull it over her head. His gaze went to her small breasts and taut nipples, and with an appreciative murmur, he bent his head and licked her. She startled, one hand coming into his hair to hold him closer. He took the invitation with a growl and sucked her nipple into his mouth, his hand on her other breast, his fingernail grazing her tender flesh as she gasped his name.

He forgot everything except the taste, texture, and scent of her, his mouth busy, his fingers echoing every motion until her hand tightened painfully in his hair. He slid his palm down to her hip, pushing the bedclothes to one side in his haste to claim new territory.

"Ruby, I want?—"

He didn't need to finish the sentence, as she grabbed his hand and put it between her legs where she was already wet for him. Even as his cock throbbed against the constraints of his nightshirt, he reminded himself to slow down and not frighten her. He took several deep breaths and gently disentangled her fingers from his hair.

"Lie back for me."

She did as he asked, her gaze never leaving his face, her body flushed a rosy pink from his attentions. He eased between her thighs and set one of her feet on his shoulder.

She frowned. "What are you doing?"

She stifled a shriek as he bent his head, roughly tongued her already swollen clit, and sucked it into his mouth. He couldn't quite believe it when she stiffened and climaxed against his lips without him even penetrating her. God, he wanted to be inside her so badly, but his fingers and tongue would have to suffice for now.

"Charles…"

He sat back a little so that he could see her face while he pressed two fingers inside her. She gasped and grabbed hold of his wrist.

"Too much?" His fingers slipped in and out in a regular rhythm aided by the press of his thumb on her clit. "Do you wish me to stop?"

"I…"

She came again, and he added a third finger and bent to lick her taut bud as he increased his pace. She went rigid again, and he marveled at her sensuality as he felt another clenching of her passage around his fingers. He slid his free hand under his night shirt and roughly stroked his cock, which was dripping wet with the need to come, and timed his action to coincide with her final climax.

With a groan, he collapsed onto the bed beside her and took several quick breaths. He'd never touched a more responsive woman in his life. By some miracle, she was not only his wife, but apparently willing to allow his attentions.

She suddenly sat up and blew out the candle.

"Are you all right?" Charles asked.

In response, she cuddled against his side. He put his arm around her to draw her even closer. He inhaled the lemony scent of her hair and the warmth from her skin. He took another deep breath and simply enjoyed the sensations coursing through his body. He'd almost fallen asleep when she stirred against him.

"Sidney never did… that," Ruby whispered.

"Any of it?" Charles opened his eyes. "One has to wonder how you got pregnant, then."

"He was quite competent at that part," Ruby said.

Charles considered how to ask the obvious question in an acceptable manner. "Are you saying he didn't believe in… a first course or a pre-dinner cocktail?"

"You mean, did he just get straight on with his dinner?"

"Yes, exactly."

He only realized she was laughing when the bed started shaking.

"What on earth?"

She came up on one elbow and looked down at him, her hair pooling on his chest. "I meant he never put his mouth there ."

"Then poor old Sidney missed out on one of those most satisfying experiences a man can have," Charles countered. "And his loss is my gain."

She was still laughing softly as she settled onto her side again. "I never know quite what to expect of you, Dr. Nash."

"Good." He kissed the top of her head. "Now go to sleep. It's Sunday tomorrow, and we promised to visit your sister at Grafton Hall after we attend church."