Page 35 of Rescuing a Tantalising Heiress
And yet their newly realized intimacy felt entirely normal under the circumstances, and as he returned with the ointment, Isabella had already slipped her foot from her stocking and had her foot up on the footstool by the hearth.
“Another reason I shouldn’t have gone for a walk today,” Isabella said as Edward knelt in front of her.
“Not at all. You were right. You couldn’t remain cooped up in the house all the time. But let me look at the wound. It’s still prominent, though healing,” Edward said, and he gently lifted Isabella’s foot in his hands, resting it on his knee.
At his touch, a shiver ran through Isabella. His hands were warm, and she smiled, surprised at the pleasure the sensation brought her. It reminded her of the day he had bathed her wrists. His touch had been gentle then, and as he pulled up the hem of her skirt, another shiver ran through her.
“It’s very kind of you,” Isabella said, and he looked up at her and smiled.
“I could wake Augusta, if you’d prefer me to. I’m sorry, I should’ve asked before,” he said, but Isabella shook her head.
“No, I’m…glad it’s you,” she said.
It was a strange thing to say, even as shewasglad to share this moment with the man she had come to trust, the man who had saved her and kept her safe. The revelation of his philanthropy had only added to her admiration for him, and now he applied the ointment to her foot, rubbing it gently into the wound, as Isabella breathed a deep sigh of relief.
“Does it feel a little better now?” Edward asked, and Isabella nodded.
“It feels a hundred times better, thank you,” Isabella said as the heady scent of the ointment filled the air.
Edward applied a little more, still holding Isabella’s foot gently in his hand. When he had finished, he replaced the dressing, wrapping it carefully and tying it securely in place. He picked up her discarded stocking from the floor, easing it gently over her toes.
Isabella watched his steady, methodical practice, smiling now as he paused, unsure, it seemed, of what to do next. The stockings were long, and to pull them up, he would need to run his hands up the length of her leg, something he would certainly hesitate to do, despite the intimacy of their circumstances.
“I’m glad,” he replied, still holding the stocking over Isabella’s toes, as now she reached down to place her hands on his.
He looked up at her, their gaze meeting, and now she pulled his hands gently towards her, the stocking sliding over her foot as she smiled. Isabella had never known such intimacy before, having never found herself alone with a man under such circumstances. Her heart was beating fast, and yet she saw no scandal in what they were doing, merely the happy expression of a blossoming friendship.
“I hope I haven’t…” he began as Isabella pulled his hands further along the length of her foot.
She shook her head, bringing her forehead almost within touching distance of his and running her tongue over her lips.
“You haven’t,” she replied, and now he leaned forward and brought his lips to hers.
Isabella had never been kissed, and she held onto the moment, savouring it, before Edward sat back, his eyes wide with embarrassment.
“I’m sorry,” he said, but Isabella shook her head.
“There’s nothing to be sorry about. It’s quite all right. I…I liked it,” she said, pulling her stocking up to her knee.
Edward looked surprised, as though he expected her to accuse him of taking liberties with her. But the kiss had been entirely natural, and Isabella now imagined it occurring again. She did not entirely know what it meant or what it would mean for the future. But, in that moment, in the intimacy of the study, the two of them together, Isabella would gladly have kissed him again.
“Well…I shouldn’t have…I took a liberty,” he said, but Isabella smiled.
“Or perhaps I took a liberty. Did you kiss me, or did I kiss you?” she asked, for a kiss required two people—Isabella knew that much, at least.
“Ah, well, I suppose so,” he said, tossing the ointment aside and wiping his hands on the cloth he had used to bathe her foot.
He still looked embarrassed, but now he smiled, offering Isabella his hand as he rose to his feet.
“I think I can walk on it,” she said as he helped her to stand.
But as he pulled her to her feet, she overbalanced, and he caught her in his arms, holding her in his embrace. She gazed up at him, laughing, as he helped her to balance.
“Did you drink a glass of claret in the kitchens, too?” he asked, and now their lips met again, their kiss lingering, each enjoying the sensation of their intimacy.
His hands ran down the small of her back, and Isabella pulled him closer, steadying herself even as he held her.
“Should I have done?” she asked as their lips parted.
