CHAPTER 15

THALIA AWOKE WHEN THE pearly light of morning filtered through the edges of the closed drapes. She froze, disoriented at the unfamiliar environment. Until the warmth of the body cradling her from behind brought all the memories from the previous day rushing back with a vengeance.

The marquess. Was it really less than twenty-four hours since she had met him? And now she was lying naked in his arms after the most glorious night of unbridled pleasure she had ever experienced.

But it was more than that. A certain camaraderie had formed between them. They had talked about their lives, shared their deepest, most painful experiences. He had allowed her behind his walls, and what she found was not what she had originally expected from the man the Ton called The Murderous Marquess.

What a horrible and thoroughly inappropriate name. He was caring. Protective. Kind. Deliciously naughty at times. A generous lover, always. And if this journey was any indication, deeply devoted to his family.

She had shared with him things she had told no one. Not even her sister. Her husband's absolute rejection had been too humiliating to talk about with anyone. It had been her secret alone until tonight. But somehow his straightforward, accepting manner had her blurting out the ugly tale. Thanks to that, for the first time in years, she felt ready to leave the past behind. As if she had lanced a wound that had festered, and now the healing had begun.

With him, she felt desirable. Pretty. It was impossible to look at the passion in his eyes and not feel that way. Maybe she was inexperienced, but she knew last night had been extraordinary. Was it over, then? They had agreed to one night with no commitments. Today they would continue their journey to find their siblings and then, whatever happened, they would return to their normal lives. Apart.

She found the prospect unbearably depressing. Chastising herself for craving more than she could have, she turned carefully, wanting to watch him while he slept. He shifted with her to lie on his back, throwing the arm that had been embracing her over his head.

Even in repose, his features were hard. The contours of his face were sharp and uncompromising. Fine lines etched his high forehead and the corners of his eyes. And his body? It was a masterpiece. Fitting that a man who sculpted marble would have a body like that of the Greek gods that the sculptures so often depicted. She lowered her eyes to his broad chest, skimmed her gaze over muscular arms and chiseled abdomen to the edge of the sheet that covered his privates.

With infinite care, she lifted the sheet to feast her eyes on that fascinating part of his anatomy. This part resembled nothing she had seen in Greek statues. It was definitely much bigger. And it kept growing the more she stared at it. Her mouth opened in amazement.

"See something you like?" His voice, raspy from sleep, was a deep growl.

She gasped and dropped the sheet.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to ogle you while you slept," she stammered while her whole face heated at being caught staring.

"Oh, I have no problem with you ogling me all you want. But don't look at me like that when we're short on time to indulge properly."

"How do I look at you?"

"Like you want to eat me."

"Maybe I am hungry," she rasped, responding to the desire reflected in his eyes.

"Oh, hell and damnation. Don't tempt me like that." He rubbed his hands over his face. "I'm hungry too. But I don't want a quick fuck. And we don't have time for anything else right now. It's already light outside. We need to get dressed and find a coach that will take us to this godforsaken town where hopefully we will find our scapegrace siblings."

"Oh, of course."

He had more sense than her. For a moment there, she had forgotten the purpose of this trip.

"Hey, don't look so crestfallen," he said while flinging himself from the bed, gloriously naked and sporting a rampant erection. "It's not what I would prefer, either. As evidenced by my state," he said, gesturing to his member with a complete lack of modesty. "But alas, needs must. Once we sort this matter out, we can indulge some more."

That caught her attention. "You wish to see me again?" she asked, awkwardly creeping towards the chair, wrapped in the bedsheets, to retrieve her shift.

His gaze was utterly bewildered as he responded. "Of course I do. Don't you want that, too? Wasn't last night as glorious for you as it was for me?"

"You know it was. But I didn't know if you'd want to continue our liaison. We spoke about one night only."

"Well, we had our one night. And now I want more. Can we renegotiate the terms of our affair?"

She smiled at his way of phrasing it. "I think I could be persuaded to enter a deal with the right inducement."

He came to her, took hold of her waist and kissed her full in the mouth, stealing her breath, molding their still-naked bodies together, making her knees buckle and her core melt with desire. But all too soon, the kiss ended. Before it could progress to what they both wanted.

"Was that inducement enough, wench? Or do I need to make a bigger earnest payment?"

"I will take that," she replied, dazed. "For now."