Page 14 of Awakening a Lord's Desires
With a quick curtsy, she left, practically flouncing through the grasses, her skirt in her hands as she walked away from him. He leaned against the tree trunk, crossed his arms, and watched her go.
He did not like this, watching her walk away from him towards another man. Something was afoot between the two of them, but he wasn’t sure what. And he certainly didn’t like the way it had made her pale instead of confident and teasing as she had been only seconds before.
It seemed that the nymph from the woods had more secrets than she wished to have known. He had so many plans for his time in the countryside, plans for reading, plans for helping his father’s tenants, who had been so far neglected. He still would do those things, certainly, but at that moment, he thought he could spend a lifetime trying to figure out Miss Caroline’s secrets.
Chapter 14
Caroline had felt like she had been on fire only seconds before ice had flooded her veins.
Max is here.
The basket hung limp at her side as she stalked forward through the meadow, away from the forest towards her home. Away from where Lord Charles was to where Max was. Max had arrived, and even though she’d known he was to come, she had not spent sufficient time preparing for his arrival.
Perhaps he has changed. Perhaps he is not as terrible as you remember.
She held on tightly to that hope as she entered through the servants’ door, dropped her basket of herbs with Cook, and stalked up the steps quietly, so she could return to her bedroom to change before she greeted her rather vain guest.
It was not as though Max was the worst person in the world. He was far kinder than Penelope and many others. But he irritated her so for his vanity and his attempts to forever be pleasing. It did not feel genuine, and it only made her feel like she would never truly know him. Not that that bothered her.
Luckily, she had been able to go to her room without notice of the others, but she could hear the voices in the sitting room. One of the reasons she hated having Max around was because her stepmother would turn into a completely different person.
While she was cold, harsh, and abrupt with Caroline, she was fawning and sweet and rather annoying whenever her nephew was about. Her father told her it was because Penelope had never had any children of her own, so she treated her nephew like her own son and enjoyed the chance to spoil him. But all that spoiling only made him all the more annoying to be around.
She changed into a light green day dress, and she looked into the mirror for a moment, twisting a finger around one golden lock that hung over her shoulder. It was not that she cared about her appearance in front of Max, but Penelope would comment on it either in front of Max or later that she had not tried hard enough to look pleasing.
But Caroline also wanted just another few seconds on her own before she entered the sitting room. She wanted to think about what had nearly passed between her and Lord Charles out in the meadow and behind the tree, almost in full view of the house.
He nearly kissed me.
She had never been kissed before, ever, for Penelope had made sure that she was never on her own for too long with any young gentleman. But Caroline had seen the look in his eyes and had felt the way his thumb had rubbed along her side, making the spark of her desire flash only brighter, burning into a flame.
Her fingertips slowly reached up to touch her lips. If only Max hadn’t arrived when he had, then perhaps she would know what it was like to be kissed. She could join the ranks of the men and women who knew how it felt to give in to their desires if even for just a moment. The thought thrilled her to the core. That was the reason she had paled when she’d seen Max’s carriage arrive.
It was embarrassment—she had been fearful that Lord Spencer could see just how strong was her desire. It had always been taught to her that that was a lack of femininity at its height, to show any sort of strong emotion, and desire was the most wicked of them all.
But it was also frustration that she had to deal with Max, as well as Penelope’s sudden bout of mothering. And she had also been angry to leave that beautiful sun-soaked, magical spot for none other than Maximilian Thornhill, who was a thorn in her side in many senses of the word.
“If only I could do spells,” she said to her reflection. “Then I would return to that moment and make sure that Max did not arrive before that kiss.”
Letting out a frustrated breath, she left the room and slowly walked down the stairway, her hand brushing along the banister. The voices got louder the closer she got to the sitting room. Outside of the door, she paused for a moment, took another breath, and then opened it.
“Ah, here she is,” her father said, smiling from his seat, holding out a hand for her to come and stand next to him.
She did slowly walk across the room, her eyes moving ever so hesitantly in Max’s direction. When she’d first entered, she’d seen him sitting with his aunt’s hand on his arm before he’d risen with a smile.
Max was not an ugly man. She was surprised he was not yet married, for he had all the charms that a superficial young woman would find very intriguing. And yet to Caroline, his good looks were too perfect. They were perfect in a way that made them seem disingenuous. He was refined and coiffed, and he always seemed to say the right thing in every situation. But there was nothing boyish or natural about him.
He certainly would not wander along in meadows or forests listening to a young girl speak about herbs.
As she took her father’s hand, Max bowed with his hands behind him. “Caroline,” he said in that slow flirtatious way of speaking that was already annoying her, “such a pleasure to see you again after such a long time. I would like to thank you too for allowing me into your home. It is always wonderful to know there is family about now that my own parents are gone.”
Caroline merely blinked at him for a few seconds, turning to her father for explanation, but his expression said nothing.
Does this mean he’s staying forever?
The thought made her want to scream with outrage and helplessness.
“Max. You are welcome,” was all she could muster, but her smile was frozen on her face. She could feel it, but Max did not seem to notice.
