Page 29 of The Lord's Compass
“What else would there be?”
He grunted his response, and Faith had to keep from laughing. The man was usually so eloquent.
“I didn’t like the feel of the place,” he finally said. “It was creepy.”
“It did have a sombre air to it,” she admitted. “But it was the lack of servants and its disrepair. It felt empty.”
“It was more than that.”
“You know nothing about it!” she scoffed.
“It’s a feeling,” he said with a shrug. “Sometimes that is the best direction to follow.”
Faith scoffed, “Feelings are not facts.”
“That is where we disagree.”
“Very well,” she said as they re-entered the town itself. “But you must admit this is a better opportunity than we could have asked for.”
“Perhaps,” he acquiesced. “But do you not think that if there was a clue to be found, they would have discovered it already? They certainly have not located any treasure of significance.”
“Perhaps they do not know what they are looking for,” she said.
“Speaking of looking – he’s watching us.”
“Who?”
“DonRaphael, through the window. Don’t look up.”
He wrapped his hands around her elbows, squeezed tight, and pulled her in toward him.
“Trust me,” he said, his voice breathless.
And then he kissed her.
CHAPTER10
He took her breath away. When his lips descended on hers, she paused in a moment of shock before she melted into him without thought, the Palencia manor,DonRaphael, and San Sebastian itself fading away as she had only one thought – Eric and his touch.
His lips brushed against hers softly at first, the kiss tender, intimate. He cradled her head in one of his large hands as the other splayed across her back, drawing her close. Their breath mingled, creating a delicate moment, until his kiss deepened, more fervent.
Faith wondered if every kiss was like this – two people moving in perfect harmony, exploring and savoring the taste of one another. A soft, contented sigh escaped her lips at just how talented Eric was at this.
Which was the very thought that had her jumping back and away from him. He was talented because he was practiced. This had nothing to do with her.
“Sorry,” he murmured. “Just had to convinceDonRaphael that we are who we say we are – husband and wife.”
“Of course,” she said, turning away, trying to prevent herself from bringing her fingers to her lips, where he had left an indelible mark – and a craving for more.
* * *
Eric knewthat if anyone was asked to describe him, they would say that he was friendly. Jovial. Happy.
But a few hours after the kiss he had seized in an opportune moment, he was not happy. Not at all.
He knew he should be. He knew that the worst-case scenario would have been for them to be turned away at the door of Castillo de la Luna with no avenue to access the manor and search for what could potentially be a clue.
But as he sat in the cold bedchamber – alone – in a manor that he would bet was filled with ghosts who had died in the most atrocious of ways, he had no ounce of happiness within him.
