Page 18 of The Duke's Treasure
At first they said nothing at all, but Mariana actually enjoyed the comfortable silence. Of course, birdsong, wind whistling through nearby gorges, and echoes of wildlife filled the air, providing its own melodic backdrop, and Mariana sensed a closeness with Edward that was akin to what she felt with some of her friends, such as Raquel, but this was different. This was a…chargedcloseness, and finally it became too much. She began to point out the landscape as they rode, their horses keeping a quick but leisurely pace.
They had ridden for what must have been just over an hour when the hills became closer, and Mariana began to actually think about the duke’s question and what he was searching for.The truth was, she wasn’t sure where her husband would hide something so substantial — if he did actually have anything to do with this — but the only place she could think of was near the mountainous areas.
“How would one transport the treasure there?” the duke asked when she told him.
She shrugged. “Wagon, likely. I’m sure we would have something in the stables that could have managed it, but Javier would never have been so stupid. At least, I don’tthinkhe would have. If he was actually part of this, then I question everything I ever knew about him.”
“You don’t think he had it in him to do something like this?”
“Was he vindictive, traitorous enough? Yes, most likely. His only allegiance was to himself,” she said. “But while he was many things, I would never have called him a stupid man.”
“He was if he ever made you feel anything less than worthy,” Edward murmured, causing Mariana’s head to snap around and look toward him.
“What did you just say?”
“You heard me,” he said, his eyes daring her to accept this longing hovering in the air between them. “You deserve the world, and your husband was a fool for making you feel anything less than the prize you are.”
Her eyes met and held his intense blue stare, and Mariana couldn’t have said for certain what would have happened had their gazes remained locked as they were.
But she would never know, for that was when the first drop fell.
CHAPTER 7
“Is this common?” Edward called out, unsure if she would even be able to hear him over the pounding horse’s hooves, the rain falling in torrents around them, or the thunder that crashed through the air at alarmingly more frequent intervals.
“Yes,” she yelled back. “Especially in spring. Follow me, I know a place we can go.”
He put his trust in her and allowed her to lead. It wasn’t long before they were riding beneath a rocky overhang, a hollowed-out cave in the hills beyond.
The noise didn’t disappear, but it did become more muted, as the rain hit the rock above and the thunder was slightly muffled.
“How long will this last, do you suppose?”’ Edward asked.
“Likely no more than an hour,” she said. “The storms leave as quickly as they come upon us. Not to worry. We will have ourselves a quick lunch and then continue.”
He nodded, even as he wanted to say what was truly on his mind – that he was hungry, but not for food. Seeing her wet garments clinging to her, her hair now down around her face in unruly curls, he was having difficulty keeping his thoughts under control.
They slid off of the horses, tying them underneath the overhang so they wouldn’t get soaked in the rain before wandering slightly farther back in the cave themselves. Mariana opened the saddlebag on her horse and pulled out a blanket and then a bag, which Edward could only guess was filled with food.
She whipped open the blanket, letting it fall on the rocky ground, and Edward sat first, pleased to find it was thicker than he had imagined.
He held out a hand to help her down, and she sank beside him in a pile of skirts. She wore a green waistcoat today, fully enclosed over her generous green skirt below, yet somehow, despite the multitudes of wet fabric, she managed to sit rather gracefully.
She shivered slightly, and he became much more attuned to the slight trembling of her lips.
“Are you cold?” he asked, and she bit her lip.
“Somewhat,” she said, and he could tell she was trying not to shake. “I know it’s warm, but the rain has seeped beneath all of my layers.”
“You could…” he swallowed thickly as he realized just what he was about to say, “take some off.”
She looked up slowly, her eyes finally meeting his, before she nodded almost imperceptibly. “Very well,” she said, turning around, pushing the food to the side as it no longer seemed necessary. She tilted her head and began to loosen each button on the front of her waistcoat. Even though Edward couldn’t see the front of her body, he couldn’t help but close his eyes and imagine her long, slender fingers slipping each button through its hole.
He tried to look away, but he couldn’t tear his eyes from her. His desperation for her had grown to an overwhelming ache, even though he knew that not only did she seem to want nothing to do with him in turn, but he had no time to give to her. Hewas here for one thing and one thing only. The riches of theSan Juan. Except, somewhere along the way, his aim had changed. For the more time he spent with this woman, the more he began to think that even if he never located the treasure, he would be happy just to have her.
She began to shake out of her jacket, and when she appeared to be struggling, he reached out, just inches away from helping her when he paused.
“Do you want help?” he asked, needing to clear the thickness in his throat. When she nodded, he tugged on the sleeves of her jacket, sliding it off her arms to show the waistcoat and shirt underneath. She seemed inclined to remove the waistcoat as well, and the time it took her to undo each of the buttons on the front seemed torturously long. She finally slid that off, leaving her in her shirt which was plastered to her skin, translucent enough that he could see the stays beneath.
