Chapter Twenty-Nine

L eo was surrounded by a suffocating warmth.

It's so damn hot.

A series of coughs racked him as he thrashed, desperate to feel the cool air on his skin.

"More cool water. Open those windows. Where is the doctor?" Saffron's fear-ridden voice carried as she barked commands.

He closed his eyes. His face was so hot, and his right leg throbbed. He kicked the blankets away, but someone held him and wrapped him up again. He moaned, then coughed until his throat was raw.

"Rest, Leo. It's not over yet."

A small hand slipped into his and squeezed. He pulled all the comfort he could from the gesture and did his best to avoid fighting the people who were trying to save his life.

A cool cloth touched his temple. It felt so good against his skin that he moaned.

"I'm here," Saffron said. She swept his hair away from his forehead. He leaned into her touch, a distraction from pain. As if sensing his need, she ran her fingers through his hair, again and again. At the same time, she kept talking to him, soft words that he clung to without any real understanding.

"You might not have made it if it weren't for Angelica and Mr. Mayweather following you. My sister was so angry with me."

"Angelica is still determined to marry the Duke of Canterbury, against my advice." A deep sigh. "She won't listen to me. I told Mr. Mayweather to show her how he feels. Maybe he will be able to get through to her."

Silence, then, for a long time, although Saffron's hand continued to caress his head.

Later, the embers burning around him transformed into a cold so intense that his teeth chattered, and his fingers prickled. He curled his legs to his body and burrowed deeper into the nest of blankets.

"Leo?"

Footfalls approached, then the bed dipped.

"How are you?" Warm fingers touched his cheek, then she gasped. "You're freezing!"

She tugged at the blankets. "Leo, please, let me check your leg."

Grudgingly, he relaxed his grip and let her peel the blankets away from his lower body. When she was done poking and prodding him, she covered him up and then vanished. He strained to hear her voice, wished he could shout for her to come back. She could do whatever she wanted to his leg, if only she stayed. Her touch, her voice, chased away some of the pain.

After what seemed like hours, she returned. This time, he didn't wait for her to make up her mind. He shot his arm through the blankets and grabbed her hand.

"Stay," he croaked.

More sniffling. Then he felt her lie beside him on the bed, above the covers. He wanted more, longed to have her sweet warmth pressed against his frozen flesh.

"Leo?" she whispered.

He forced away the fog of pain to focus on her voice. "Yes?"

She peeled away the blankets around his head. He was glad to see her, even if her eyes were puffy, her cheeks flushed. She touched their noses together once, gently. The tenderness in her eyes made his heart throb.

He inched his head close enough to press a gentle kiss to her lips, then pulled back. "If I don't survive this, know that I love you."

She smiled, even as tears dripped down her nose to dampen the sheets. "I love you too. And you will survive. I won't let you die."

"Get under the covers."

She blinked twice, then laughed. "When you recover."

"Stay until I fall asleep, then," he said.

She sniffed again. "Of course."

With that promise, he let his fatigued body drag him into slumber.

*

When Leo woke next, the world was clearer. Aside from the gray haze and pinch in his chest, he felt almost normal. As he made to stand, his head spun, and he fell back. The door creaked open, and someone stepped inside. It was a young maid who approached him cautiously.

He groaned, getting up from the bed. Every muscle in his body ached. "Where am I?"

"The home of Mr. Simon Mayweather, milord," the maid said. She scurried forward, set a tray containing a large breakfast on the table beside the bed, then left, almost catching her skirt in the closing door in her rush to depart.

Odd.

How long had it been since the crash? Simon's home was miles away from the Briarwood lands, in the middle of the countryside. How had they transported him so far without him realizing it?

More importantly, where is Saffron?

He remembered her calling to him in the water, her pale arm sinking beneath the waves. A moment later, new memories slid into focus, hazy snippets of conversation as he thrashed beneath covers that were too hot. Her voice calming him, her soft hands touching his cheek. Their declarations of love.

His heart soared. She loved him. He hadn't dreamed that part. Wherever she was, he was certain she was safe. She could not remain by his side throughout all hours of the day, nor would he have wanted her to.

The savory smell of the tray beside the bed made his stomach growl. He tried to remember the last time he had eaten but couldn't. Pulling his legs out from beneath the blanket, he reached for the tray.

Then he realized that below his knee there was nothing but a rounded stump marred by an angry, raised scar.

He could still feel his foot, could still flex, and sense the motion of his toes, but there was nothing there. He reached for the air where his foot would have been, and the sensation was eerily familiar, as if the bottom part of his leg were invisible.

I'm seeing things , he thought, waving his hand back and forth beneath his knee. I'm still delirious in bed.

He grabbed a pitcher of water from the tray and peered into it. The face that stared back was pale and thin, with heavy bags under the eyes. It was a face that spoke of a long convalescence.

He threw the pitcher against the wall and fell onto his back on the bed. Anger swirled inside him, at the doctors who could not save his limb, and at himself for making the mistake that had led to the amputation.

What will Saffron think of me now?

He tucked his mangled leg beneath the blanket, unable to look at it.

His stomach rumbled, and he grudgingly rose. When he'd finished sopping up the last of the eggs with a rich slice of bread, he went to itch his foot, but there was no foot there to scratch. His fingers curled into a fist. He put the tray aside and attempted to rise. His remaining leg nearly buckled beneath him, but he forced his way to stand, stretching out each muscle until it screamed.

He found a crutch by the door and slipped his arm over the padded leather fabric. The world spun around him before settling again. He pulled open the nearest trunk and found, to his relief, a pile of clothes. The trousers were tight around the waist, and he had to tie the bottom of one leg beneath the knee, but it was better than waiting to be tended upon like an invalid.

As he struggled to close the small buttons on the cuffs of the white linen shirt he'd found in the trunk, the door opened, and Leo turned to see Saffron clutching at the door frame. She was dressed in a gold-embroidered bodice without the matching skirt, her petticoats clinging to her legs. A maid followed her, hauling a mass of gold fabric in her arms.

"Madam, you ought not—" The maid spotted Leo, and twin circles of red appeared on her cheeks. "Christ, m'lord, you're awake!"

Saffron flung herself into his chest, and it took all his strength to keep her from bowling him over. He staggered back to fall on his rear on the bed, with Saffron kneeling in front of him, her arms around his shoulders.

"I'll leave you two to get reacquainted," the maid said, closing the door.

"I thought I would lose you," Saffron whispered. "Thank God. Thank God."

He pulled her close, breathing in the clean smell of her hair. "You are with me now. That is all that matters." He kissed the top of her head. "Would you mind explaining why we are at my cousin's home?"

"You floated so far down the river. When we got you out, we were afraid to move you. This was the closest house." She pressed her lips to his collarbone and his body reminded him urgently that it had been a long time since he'd last indulged himself. At the same time, he was painfully aware of his own limitations.

"Saffron, I might not be able to… complete the act," he said between gasping breaths. She was doing miraculous things with her tongue that made his toes curl.

"I want to take care of you," she said, continuing her path down his chest. She rasped her tongue over his nipple, and the sensation made his cock throb. He grasped her hips and fell on his back. She remained atop him, her hair unbound and falling around her face.

He'd never seen anything more beautiful in his entire life.

*

Saffron placed her legs on either side of Leo's hips and felt the solid length of him beneath his trousers. She couldn't believe she was acting in such a wanton fashion. Seeing Leo standing had lit a fire inside her that would not be extinguished.

She unbuttoned his shirt, then kissed the inch of skin that was revealed, until there were no buttons left, and her lips had reached a thatch of crinkly hair.

"Should I continue?" she asked, running one finger along the visible bulge in his trousers.

Leo threaded his fingers through her hair. "God, woman. You will make me come undone."

His words fueled her desire, and she could no longer stand the games. With frantic movements, she tore the remaining clothes from his body, and her own, until they were both naked and panting. His scarred leg gave her pause, but not because it disgusted her. It was a wound Leo had received while trying to save her life.

He looks bigger , she thought as she touched the head of his cock. It twitched and a bead of milky liquid appeared at the slit. She wrapped her fingers around the shaft and pumped twice. The bead of liquid dripped onto her knuckle. She rubbed it between her fingers, fascinated by the stickiness of it.

"I can't take much more," Leo said thickly.

She tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear, nervous despite their earlier coupling. How did it work, with him on his back?

"Tell me what to do," she said.

Leo guided her to crawl up until her quim was positioned above him, although she was careful not to bump his wound. Then he took his cock in his hand and guided it to her entrance. As he slipped inside, he uttered a deep moan and closed his eyes.

"What now?" she whispered.

He squeezed her hips, then guided her down, until the curls outside her sex touched his own, and he was seated fully inside her. The feel of him, so hot and deep, sent her skin skittering with pleasurable electric tingles.

More. I want more.

She lifted herself up until he was at risk of falling out, then fell again in one quick motion.

"Ah!" She threw her head back, then repeated the act. It was similar to their previous joining and yet different. She enjoyed him this way, able to pierce her deeper.

She languished in the heady sensation until she could sense the familiar spark of pleasure hovering nearby. It frustrated her, knowing it was close but out of reach. She increased her speed, her thighs burning, but the spark refused to budge.

"Let me help," Leo said. He cupped her breasts, then bent his body up and touched his mouth to her nipple. His ministrations brought her closer, but still, it was not enough. Finally, when she was exhausted from exertion, Leo reached between their joined bodies and touched her.

She exploded in a burst of fireworks that stole the last of her strength. She felt Leo throb within her, and then they were both lying on the bed, staring into each other's eyes.

"You continue to surprise me." Leo dipped his head to give her a long, languishing kiss that brought her tantalizingly close to the spark for a second time, then pulled back.

"Will it always be this way?" she asked.

How did married women ever get out of bed?

Leo chuckled, and the sound reverberated in his chest. "Between us? Perhaps."

The smoldering embers of the fire inside her gave her the courage to be wicked. "Then we must invest in a sturdier bed."

"I agree. I will buy you one as a wedding present."

Her eyes burned with tears, and her throat felt like she'd swallowed a handkerchief. "Does that mean…"

Leo smoothed her hair behind her ear. "I foolishly believed I was protecting myself by not marrying you, that I would not grow to love you if I knew that our time together would eventually end. Instead, I discovered that you are the piece that fills the hole in my heart. Marry me."

There was only one answer to that question, and in the hours that followed, he encouraged her to repeat her answer several times.