Page 20 of An Earl's Scandalous Return
Bloody hell, true and utter agony was being held captive inside a carriage with Arabella Simpkin. It was almost worse than being in bed beside her, for he could see her in full, and in the light of day as she nibbled her lovely, plump bottom lip as she read. Every time she did, his body tightened with arousal, and he would only look away when her eyes turned to his.
Was she doing it on purpose? Did she realise how much he wanted her? How much strength it had taken him to quieten his body after that morning at the inn? He tried, every time, to focus on the words on his page, but he hadn’t read a word, not really. And it wasn’t helping that their knees brushed together on every bump on the road, which happened quite often.
He swallowed and yet again tried to focus, praying that something, somewhere, would cut the tension of the moment. They had a few days to travel to Kent, and this was nigh unbearable. All his plans for revenge wouldn’t work if she were the one with all the power.
His prayer was answered by a sudden jolt of the carriage, leaning to one side.
“Oh!” Arabella cried, sliding down her seat and jamming her shoulder into the side of the carriage as it leaned.
“Shit, we’ve lost a wheel, looks like,” Edward said, reaching out for her despite his better judgement. “Are you all right?”
“Yes.” She had dropped her book in the accident, and her breath was now coming fast. They finally made eye contact. “I think so. Are you?”
“Yes.” He kicked open the door, and he helped her out.
The carriage wheel was broken, and the driver was precariously jumping down to his feet.
“Pardon me, My Lord, but there was a hidden rut in the road. I will go to the nearest village to find someone to repair it.”
The young driver wiped a sleeve over his brow, and Edward nodded. “Very good. Remember: we are not Lord and Lady here.”
Nodding, the driver ambled off, and Edward turned to Arabella. “It seems we will have to wait some time. I have no idea where the next village is.” All around them were woods and a small brook bubbling further down the small hill.
“Well, I don’t know that I can sit here and wait,” she said, glancing around them, her hands on her hips again. It seemed she did this whenever she was in thought, frustrated, or embarrassed. “I think I shall go for a little walk.”
“Then, I’ll come with you,” he said, far more abruptly than he intended. But even if he wanted to get revenge on her, he couldn’t allow Arabella to wander in the woods alone.
“All right,” she said hesitantly, her eyes flashing before she turned away, and putting on her bonnet again, she walked down the path, him at her side.
It was a slow walk and a silent one. For the life of him, Edward could think of nothing to say that did not involve the past or their current situation. And he had no desire to discuss the kiss in the bed. For even discussing it would bring on that taut desire all over again, and his body was already tormented from their time in the carriage. And so, each lost in their own thoughts, they wandered.
It was some time until Arabella looked up at the drifting sun and said, “We should go back, I suppose,” the first sentence either of them had spoken in some time.
Edward turned towards the path they’d been walking on, but it had led into the woods, a winding way he didn’t exactly remember going down; he’d been so full of his own thoughts.
“Agreed. The driver has likely returned with someone to repair the wheel.”
He led the way this time, but as they emerged from the woods and onto a larger path, the road was nowhere to be found. He got a sinking feeling in his belly, and he could feel time ticking away as the winds began to pick up. “Was this not the path we took?” he asked.
“I thought so, but I’m afraid I wasn’t paying much attention,” Arabella replied, and he turned to see her paling a little. A sharp breeze had them looking up into the sky, and he swore again, this time silently, as he noticed the heavy clouds coming their way.
“It seems a storm is brewing as well. How fitting.” His tone dripped with sarcasm, and with a sigh, he scrubbed a hand roughly down his face. “Come, we should find shelter.”
“But shouldn’t we return to the carriage?” Arabella asked, her hands on her hips again, facing him.
She was shivering as well, and Edward cursed himself for not paying more attention to where they’d been going. “I don’t think there’s time. Whatever we find first, we take.” He then reached out a hand for her, and the light dimmed, and he could tell rain was near. “Hold my hand, Arabella. The deluge might come hard and fast.”
And so, she did, clasping it into his. He didn’t linger on how it felt so right folded into his own. They had much more pressing concerns. Finding an abandoned barn not far from the path took only a few minutes, and he raced towards it, pulling Arabella along with him.
“This will do,” he said over the growing wind, but the rain fell before he could open the door.
It was like a deluge, just as he’d thought, going from nothing to everything in a matter of moments. Cursing, he opened the barn door to allow her in first, and then, when it slammed behind them, he turned his attention to getting them both dry and warm.
Chapter 22
Arabella wrapped her arms about herself as they stood in the dark and empty barn, rain slapping against the wooden sides angrily as if punishing them for their foolishness.
Had being with him in the confines of the carriage been so bad that she’d been desperate to walk, to breathe fresh air, and get as far away from the carriage as possible? Although she hadn’t expected him to walk with her, his presence so near, even out in the open air, only added to her muddled and rather heated thoughts.
