He stared at her across the table, and the way he looked at her mouth made her blush. The food was clearing her head somewhat, but something about being alone with him, the warmth of the brandy through her body, made the memory of the first time she’d met him very vivid. “Tell me, Mr. Armstrong, do you exist in the daylight, or are you only a nighttime ghost, something I’ve created?”
No answer came from him as he ate his food and watched her. When they were finished, he took the plates away and poured more water into the basin. Without a word, he put his hands under her arms and lifted her back onto the table.
She was very tired, very sleepy. “You make me feel like a doll, like I don’t have any arms or legs.”
“You have them both, and they’re all dirty.” He took one of her arms and began soaping it.
She ran her finger along a crescent-shaped scar at the side of his eye. “How did you do that?”
“I fell when I was a kid. Give me your other arm.”
She sighed. “I was hoping it was something romantic, like you got it in your Revolutionary War.”
“Sorry to disappoint you, but I was only a boy during the war.”
She ran one soapy finger along his jaw line and then his chin. “Why haven’t you ever married?”
“I did. I married you, didn’t I?”
“But it’s not real. It wasn’t a real marriage. You weren’t even there. That man Frank was. He kissed me, did you know that? He said he hoped I didn’t marry you, because then he could kiss me some more. He said I had an upside-down mouth. You don’t think my mouth is upside-down, do you?”
With his eyes on her mouth, he paused as he was washing her, and when he started soaping her face he still didn’t speak.
“No one ever told me it was ugly before. I didn’t know.” Tears began to gather in her eyes. “I bet you hated kissing me. I know it felt funny, not at all like it was supposed to feel.”
“Will you stop talking?” Clay commanded as he finished rinsing the soap off her face. Then he saw that more tears were gathering in her eyes and realized the food hadn’t sobered her up much after all, or at least he hoped it was the brandy and that she wasn’t so silly all the time. “No, your mouth is not ugly,” he finally said.
“It isn’t upside-down?”
He dried her arms and face. “It is unique. Now, be quiet, and I’ll take you to your room where you can sleep,” he said, swinging her into his arms.
“My flowers!”
Sighing, he shook his head and bent so she could get the flowers from the table.
He carried her outside, into the main house, then up the stairs as she snuggled against him quietly. “I hope you stay like this and don’t become that other man again. I’m going to stop stealing, I promise.”
He didn’t answer as he opened a bedroom door on the second floor, and as he put her on the bed he realized that her dress was still quite damp. When he saw her eyes close in weariness, he knew she’d never be able to undress herself. Cursing under his breath, he began to undress her, aware that there wasn’t much of the dress or the delicate chemise left. When the buttons gave him trouble, he tore the fabric away.
Her body was beautiful. She was slim-hipped and small-waisted, and her breasts lifted impudently. He went to the dresser to get a towel, all the while cursing the situation. What the hell did she think he was made of? First her thigh, and now he was supposed to treat her like a child and dry her. But she certainly didn’t look like a child!
Clay’s vigorous rubbing woke Nicole from her sleep. As she smiled at the pleasant sensation, he roughly pulled the light quilt back and put her under it, letting out his breath when she was out of view. He turned to leave the room, but she caught his hand.
“Mr. Armstrong,” she said sleepily. “Thank you for finding me.”
Bending over her, he smoothed her hair from her face. “I should apologize for causing you to run away. Now, go to sleep and we’ll talk tomorrow.”
She didn’t release his hand. “Did you hate kissing me? Was it like kissing an upside-down mouth?”
There was a little light coming into the room, and Clay guessed it was nearly morning. Her hair was spread out over the pillow, and his memory of kissing her was far from unpleasant. He bent to
ward her, meaning to kiss her only lightly, but her mouth did entice him and he took her upper lip between his teeth and caressed it, running his tongue along its contours. Nicole’s arms went round his neck and pulled him to her as she opened her mouth under his.
Clay nearly lost himself before he pulled away and firmly put her arms under the covers. Nicole smiled at him dreamily, her eyes closed. “No, you don’t think it’s ugly,” she murmured.
He stood and left the room, closing the door behind him. He started to go to his own room, but he knew it would be no use to try to sleep. What he needed was a plunge in a cold stream and then a long, hard day of work, he thought as he left the house to go to the stables.
When Nicole woke in the morning, her first impression was of sunshine and light. Her second was of a headache. She sat up slowly, her hand to her forehead, and as the bedcovers fell away she hastily pulled them up again, wondering why she’d slept in the nude. Looking over the side of the bed, she saw that her clothes lay in a torn heap.