Page 56 of The Baron Takes a Bet
Holly felt a slight jab of guilt. It was true. She and her siblings would leave as soon as their annulment went through.
She shook her head slowly, her gaze dropping.
“Even still. I should think we would remain friends, after all this is figured out.” Gavin didn’t answer and so she continued. “I don’t know why John thought this was a good idea. I wish I had known about it. I could have talked some sense into him.”
Gavin’s hand suddenly reached for hers, and to her surprise, she let him as she stared into his eyes.
“You know, I’ve tried to be indignant about it. But all I can muster up is that, I’m not sorry it happened.”
“You’re not?” she breathed.
“No.”
Holly’s heart began to thud hard against her chest as their hands interlocked. The excitement that had filled her body the morning at the inn came flooding back, and she sensed something on the horizon, but she didn’t know what.
Nervously, she slowly pulled her hand back and stood up.
“Well, I suppose I should return to my rooms.”
Gavin nodded. He exhaled loudly as he stood up himself, coming terribly close to her. Holly’s breath hitched as she stared at her for a long moment, and she was sure she was turning all shades of red.
“Good night then,” he said quietly, and to Holly’s surprise, he leaned forward and kissed her gently on the cheek.
The barely-there stubble of his jawline grazed hers, and her eyelids fluttered shut. The scent of lemon and mint filled her senses, and when he didn’t pull back immediately, she felt herself begin to sway.
The slight, slow burn she felt whenever they were near one another seemed to ignite once more. Her eyes flickered open as the heat between them grew, and she saw his hands lifting, hesitating to touch her arms. There always seemed to be some resistance within him, as if touching her would pain him somehow.
Leaning closer toward him, she tried to let him know that she wasn’t afraid of his touch. Prompted, his fingers lightly gripped her upper arms as his head lowered toward hers. Their mouths nearly touched when he suddenly stepped back, holding her at a distance.
Holly nearly stumbled, so lost in the moment was she, and when he spoke, she barely registered what he was saying.
“I’m sorry,” he said, the faintest hint of self-deprecating humor in his tone.
“Why do you do that?” she whispered, unable to stop herself.
“Do what?”
“Pull away.”
She looked down after a moment, aware that she was asking an obvious question. He clearly stopped them each time because it was the correct thing to do, because he was a gentleman. She, on the other hand, couldn’t help herself. He was merely doing what she couldn’t.
“Because I’m sure I can’t keep you,” he said, derailing her thoughts. “And if I knew what it was like to truly have you then I don’t think I should react very well if I couldn’t have you always.”
Holly’s mouth fell open, stunned at his confession. He wanted to keep her? Why, what a strange, wonderful thing to say. She didn’t know why such a response should make her feel so giddy and heartbroken at the same time, but in the next instant, she stepped forward and kissed him.
Something had broken within her.He wanted to keep her. Her fingers curled into the front of his shirt as she held on to him, afraid that he might stop her, but his arms came up around her, to her delight and fright.
Glee rolled through her bones as Gavin kissed her. But as soon as he started, he pulled away again.
“Wait. Wait,” he said, his tone husky. “What are we doing?”
Holly stared at him, half confused, half mortified. Didn’t he know?
“Um, well, I’m actually not quite sure. I’ve never—”
“No, no,” he said quickly, cutting her off, the faintest tone of humor on his breath. “What arewedoing?”
The meaning of his question dawned on her.
