He smiled back. “Yes. You’re a remarkable woman, Heidi, and don’t let anyone tell you any different.”
Once again being subjected to Heidi’s scent, her softness and warmth, played havoc with his blood flow. Despite the ice blowing in his face, he still needed to shift in his seat to accommodate her effect on his body.
They stopped in front of Mrs. Wilson’s house, and Michael turned to Heidi. “You took another first step tonight, too.”
“I did?” She shifted away from him, and straightened her coat.
“Yes. You told your parents you weren’t interested in marrying Clarence.”
She grinned. “They were shocked, did you notice?”
He nodded. “But it’s important to let them know how you feel.” He waited a beat, then lowered his voice. “How do you feel?”
Her breath hitched. “What do you mean?”
“How do you feel about marrying a man everyone wants as your husband, except you?”
“Trapped.” The word came out a whisper.
Michael placed his index finger under her chin, raising her head, until their eyes met. “You’re the only one who can release the latch on that trap, Heidi.”
She swallowed, her slim neck drawing his eyes.
Michael’s blood raced to his groin. The icy drizzle had stopped, but even with the cold air, sweat gathered on his chest and back. He needed to taste her. Lowering his head, he took her mouth in a hungry kiss. He cupped her face with his hands, and rubbed his thumbs over the smooth skin of her cheeks. With his heart thudding in his chest, he slanted her head to take the kiss deeper.
Heidi moaned, and he exploded with a jolt of heat and need. He wanted her. Wanted her naked beneath him, gasping for breath, calling his name as her body shuddered with release. He wanted to throw his head back and pour himself into her warm, moist center. Pull her close when he finished, nuzzle her slender neck, run his hungry fingers over her luscious curves.
He broke free from her heat, both of them panting. He ran his knuckles down her flushed cheek, and his heart thudded. Not a woman to trifle with, someone like Heidi deserved to be brought home to a man’s family, then stand next to him in front of a preacher. Over the years, they’d build a life together, have children who would suckle at her breast. Hold hands as they drew their last breaths. Forever. Something he wasn’t ready for. Had vowed he would never be ready for.
Terror struck him deep in his heart as he met her gaze. Her slight smile and shining eyes told him what he didn’t want to know. Heidi Lester was a woman in love-and not with her fiancé.
Chapter Fourteen
Heidi double-checked the list of ingredients for dried apple pie on the faded piece of paper lying on the table in front of her. Mrs. Wilson had given her the recipe, but one she wasn’t familiar with. The last thing she wanted to do was leave something out of an important pie. She grinned. An important pie, indeed.
Although she and Michael attended different churches, Heidi had invited him to her church’s social that evening. Each woman would bring a box supper, and the men would bid on the one brought by the lady of his choice. After the supper, there would be a dance.
Heidi had decided on thick slices of ham, biscuits, potato salad, lemonade and the apple pie. Once she’d placed the pie in the oven, she would relax in a warm bath and press her long-sleeved blue and white gingham dress with the wide white sash. Her heart leapt with excitement at the thought of sharing her supper with Michael, and then dancing in his arms.
Many a night, a young Heidi sat at the top of the staircase, and watched Mother and Papa’s guests dance in the large connecting parlor and dining room when they’d hosted parties. The furniture would be shoved against the walls, the rug rolled up, and Mother would bring out her best china, and silver. With Papa’s encouragement, she’d hire women to clean and polish everything in the house.
Then with extra kitchen help, Cook would pull out her best recipes and prepare the party food. Heidi’s parents permitted their daughter to say hello to the guests, and then she was whisked away upstairs to eat her meal in her bedroom, alone. Her parents feared too much contact with the guests would jeopardize her health.
Once the last bite of dinner had been eaten, the musicians hired for the night would begin to play their magical music, and Heidi would slip from her room. Wide-eyed, she’d crouch at the head of the stairs, hands wrapped around the banister rails. She’d watch the women attired in brightly colored dresses spin around the dance floor, in the arms of the gentlemen. One day, she told herself, she would wear a beautiful silk gown and dance. Her partner would twirl her around the floor and gaze at her like she was the only woman in the world.
But Mother continued to forbid her to attend the parties, even after she was grown. Not good for her breathing illness, she’d remind her. Too many people in one room, and dancing would be out of the question, anyway. Luckily she’d practiced dancing when Mother and Papa weren’t home. Humming to herself, she’d sway, and dip to the music in her head, curtsying to her invisible partner. A man whose features at the time were unknown, but now resembled Michael.
Working quickly, she mixed the pie ingredients together, poured the pungent fruit and spices into the shell, and slid the pan into the oven. As she hurried up the stairs to her room, the front door knocker sounded. Mrs. Wilson had left for an afternoon of shopping, so Heidi headed back down the steps and opened the door.
Her eyes grew wide, and her breathing hitched. “Clarence. What are you doing here?”
He scowled. “I finally managed to pry your address out of your mother. I still don’t understand why everyone kept it a secret. I have the right to know where my fiancée lives, for heaven’s sake.” He stepped forward, his lips in a thin line. “May I come in?”
“Yes. Of course.” She moved back and allowed him to enter.
He brushed past her. “You seemed surprised to see me.”
“I am, actually. Usually you arrive on Friday nights. I thought you’d decided not to come this weekend.” Remembering her manners, she waved to the parlor. “Would you like to sit down?”