Page 29 of The Pureblood Princess
He glances at her, and the emotion in his gaze shifts ever slightly.I can teach you a good many things,iubit. I need only get you alone.
Heat flares in Nadia’s belly, then radiates outward, down to the spot between her legs and all the way up to her cheeks.
“Oh, come now,” Charlie says, looking between the two of them knowingly. “That’s quite unfair as well, having private conversations without us.”
His keen perception startles Nadia, and she blinks in surprise. “You... know about it?” she asks.
“About your...” He gestures between Nadia and Theodore, seeming at a loss for words. “I’ve read about it, though it doesn’t seem to be common knowledge, even in our clans.”
“So, you two aren’t bonded, then?” Nadia asks, though she already knows the answer.
Her question makes Charlie and Contessa deflate, their shoulders drooping.
“No,” Charlie says, his gaze going to Contessa. “Not in the way you mean, at least.” He reaches out and takes her hand, and she wraps her fingers through his.
“Forgive me,” Nadia says quickly, feeling ashamed of her lack of manners. It wasn’t her intention to bring their moods down, only to learn more about them.
“There’s nothing to forgive,” Contessa says, her voice crisp and clear. She draws herself up and pushes a glossy strand of dark hair over her shoulder. “What you and Theo have is incredibly rare. I’m not so sure I’ve ever met someone with a bond. Have you?” she asks, glancing at her husband.
Charlie shakes his head. “Never. You’re quite an anomaly.”
Beside Nadia, Theodore shifts, pressing his leg a touch closer to hers, and it makes heat flare in her belly once more. She has to turn away and look out the window to keep her carnal thoughts of him from showing on her face.
Contessa leans back against Charlie, tucking herself into his side, and he wraps an arm around her shoulders before pressing a kiss atop her dark-haired head.
When the conversations stalls, Nadia’s thoughts drift to the swiftly approaching gala, and her stomach tightens into knots. The thought of all those eyes on her makes her hands curl into anxious fists.
“Are you quite all right, Miss Magdalena?” Charlie says. “You look a bit pale.”
Straightening up, Nadia shakes her head. “Oh, I’m just fine. A bit nervous, perhaps.”
“There’s nothing to be worried about,” Theodore says, and he shifts his hand as if to put it on Nadia’s thigh, then stops and drops it back to his side.
“My brother is right.” Contessa remains pressed to Charlie’s side, and he twirls a strand of her long hair around one finger.“This is meant to be fun, the one time of year we all get together and can unwind without having to hide our true nature.”
“Well, let’s hope I make a good first impression.” Nadia tightens her fingers around the hem of her shawl, and though they no longer shake, her insides feel as if they’ve turned to jelly.
“Of course you will, Miss Magdalena.” Charlie’s smile is easy and true, and it almost makes her feel better. “We’ll be there with you, and you’ll do splendidly.”
He’s right, Theodore says, though he doesn’t turn to look at her.I’ll not leave your side. Anything you need, I’ll be right there.
Nadia smiles and shifts almost imperceptibly on the cushion, using the skirt of her black gown to hide her thigh as it presses firmly against Theodore’s.
With you by my side, she says,I’m quite sure I can do anything.
Chapter Eleven
That night, they stop atan inn, and Nadia, Contessa, and Lady Rosetti share a room. The children get their own room, and the men share a third. Despite her unfamiliar surroundings, Nadia falls asleep easily, exhausted from the long, uncomfortable day in the carriage.
They rest well into the afternoon and leave the inn at midday, and the anticipation is palpable as the carriage draws nearer to Riverhill.
Contessa helped Nadia with her hair before they left, braiding the crown back to “better accentuate her eyes,” and she went so far as to dab color onto her lips and sweep black over her lids. Now, as Nadia catches her reflection in the window of the carriage, she sees someone else looking back at her, someone she doesn’t recognize. Her mother would never have let her leave the house looking so...promiscuous.
The gown she wears tonight, another of Mrs. McDonald’s designs, is a deep, rich crimson, and it leaves her shoulders startlingly bare. Her chest, too, is exposed, and she wears one of Lady Rosetti’s rubies about her neck.
When they left the inn and Theodore first laid eyes on her, his face went primal, his eyes alighting with green fire and his mouth turning down into a hungry frown. Even now, as Nadia sits beside him in the carriage, she can feel his tension. It rollsoff of him in subtle waves, and his scent has become heady with desire. He keeps his thigh far from hers, and his hands are clenched into fists in his lap.
Though he must be terribly uncomfortable, it brings Nadia endless pleasure to know she can drive him to such madness.
