Page 54 of Euphoria

Page List

Font Size:

I frowned, hoping there wouldn’t be trouble because of it. Perhaps I could use my entanglement with him to smooth the waters. The staff needed to let off steam after being so tightly strung for the past month. It was good for morale.

Bessie laughed at my blank stare and shooed me away. “Off with you, Jane. Make sure you come tonight.”

Slipping into the hall, I passed the piles of laundry that sat precariously outside each room, housekeeping staff a flurry of activity within. Descending to the first floor, I left the chaos behind and was alone once more. It was a strange quirk of the old hotel that each section seemed to be quite removed from the next. One could turn a corner and be alone or among a hive of activity and be none the wiser for what was happening next door.

All summer, every corner—save for the darkest—had been alive, but now that Thornfield had emptied, it was as if a switch had been thrown, and all the light and noise that had filled it was stilled just like that.

I was headed toward the main staircase, the same one that descended into the main gallery, when I heard my name. It was a mere whisper, but its tone was unmistakable.

Turning, I found Edward standing at the opposite end of the hall. His eyes were dark, his chin lowered, and I knew a command was imminent. My body prickled with the promise of his harsh touch, and I approached as if I was hypnotized.

“Sir,” I murmured as I stood before him, the string that tethered our spirits becoming taut.

“What a queer sensation,” he said, his gaze drinking in mine. “How Thornfield stills…”

I smiled softly as his thoughts echoed those that had flowed through my mind only moments before. It was if our tether shared more than just physical awareness, and he could now read my mind.

Taking my hand, he tugged me into an alcove where we were hidden from sight. My back was pressed against the oak paneling, our position cloaked by a grand marble bust of a sour-looking old man—a Rochester of days past—which sat on a pedestal fashioned into a Roman column.

We weren’t completely hidden, and the threat of discovery had my body shivering at the scandal of our closeness.

“Jane,” Edward whispered into my ear.

I swallowed hard, attempting to calm my racing pulse. “Sir?”

“Tonight, you must come to my room.”

His command struck me dumb, and I almost couldn’t bring myself to answer. “Your room?”

“I would repeat our interlude in the forest, but this time, in the softness of a bed.”

His lips moved against my ear as he spoke, the memory of our passion in the seclusion of the forest still fresh in my mind. My muscles still ached with the force of his thrusts, and they began to throb upon hearing his intent.

“Tonight…” I began, too scattered to mention the staff’s prearranged party. I would drop all commitments when he called, I was well aware of that, but I had come to care for the mismatched group that tended to the hotel.

“I cannot stop thinking about it,” he went on. “Your softness under my palm. Your wild spirit unleashed…”

“There is a party tonight,” I said, the words erupting from my mouth like an explosion.

His lips quirked as he processed this information, and his hand took mine. “A celebration for a recent departure, I suppose.”

“You are not angry?” I asked, perplexed.

He shook his head softly. “Not at all. Perhaps once, I would’ve seen it as a slight against me and all I stood for, but no longer. I feel as if I’ve softened in these last weeks. I needn’t control all things so tightly.”

“All things?” I inquired. “Only some?”

“Yes. I need only control things which warrant it.” He drew in a deep breath, his fingers stroking mine. “These past weeks have been trying, like walking on eggshells. The staff deserve to loosen their muscles, so to speak.”

“Where has the terrifying Mr. Rochester gone?” I asked breathlessly.

Edward smiled, and I beheld the change in him so clearly I could scarcely believe it had come to pass. The gloomy, arrogant man had all but disappeared and in his place…

“He has been spirited away,” he replied.

Casting a glance over his shoulder into the hall behind the marble bust, he decided we were alone and drew me in for a kiss. His lips were soft against mine, and when his tongue delved, I felt him steal the last of my breath, but all too soon we parted.

“Tonight,” he whispered. “Come after your party, or steal away during if you can manage it. I’ll be waiting for you, Jane.”