Page 67 of The Hunter
Kissing Argent had caused an ache to bloom between her legs, a moist, throbbing, sweet sort of insistence that hadn’t yet subsided. His hunger, his need, even his foul language had created an answering call from inside her that she hadn’t at all expected.
From what she’d gleaned from the whispers of the other actresses and the bawdy scenes in performances, this business of intercourse was supposed to culminate in some sort of… climax. A rhythmic sort of affair with a very vocalto doat the end. She’d also heard that a certain pride came from bringing a man to his completion quickly, because it meant your skills as a lover were that much more advanced.
Millie decided to be proud. Her end of the bargain was complete, and she’d sealed the contract with her body. Nothing to it, really. She couldn’t even remember why she’d been so worried about it. Yawning, she remained prostrate on the fluffy counterpane for another moment, wondering what the silent assassin was about.
“Do you mind if I… can I sit up now?”
He said nothing. Had he left? The man moved about silent as a ghost, and could very well have slithered away without a word.
He’d betternothave done.
Pushing herself upright, Millie turned to perch on the edge of the bed and came face-to-face with brilliant blue flame in the form of the wrath burning in Argent’s eyes.
He towered over her, wide as a Titan and just as dangerous, fists clenching and unclenching at his sides.
Drat. He knew.
“I could kill you,” he murmured through a tight jaw.
Millie blinked, offering him a charming smile, doing her best to diffuse a potentially explosive situation. “A man in your line of work really shouldn’t be joking about that sort of thing.”
He stepped forward, his leg pressing into the folds of her skirt, but he didn’t touch her, not yet. “You think I’m joking?”
“I don’t see what you’re so—”
“That boy isnotyour son,” he growled. “You lied to me!”
Millie narrowed her eyes, forgetting any thoughts about charm. “Jakubismy son.”
“You must think me an ignorant fool; you didn’t expect me to notice your virginity? You didn’t think I’d see the blood?”
“I didn’t think you’dcare.”
The blue flames in his eyes sputtered and died, and his entire body turned to stone.
Millie stood and thrust her jaw forward, proving that it could be just as obstinate as his. That her eyes could contain as much fire as his could ice.
To her surprise, he retreated, stalking to the washbasin and bracing both hands on it, looking down into the sullied water there. She didn’t think he realized that she could see his face in the mirror. That the indecision and doubt broke through his marble façade, and behind it, something altogether bleaker shone through.
Millie stepped forward. “For the last five years I’ve provided a home for Jakub. I’ve loved him, I’ve cleaned up after him, I’ve stayed awake all night cooling his fever and washing his little body with my tears of worry. I assuage his fears, and I applaud his accomplishments. When there was little to eat, I went hungry so he would grow strong. I gave you my…” She paused, emotion clogging her throat and brimming in her eyes. “That. Boy. Is. My.Son.” She jammed a finger toward the door in the direction of the room where Jakub slept. “And I am his mother. And God can damn the bastard to hell who says any different.”
Lord, but what they’d just done had left her raw. Not her body so much as her heart. This was something she’d not expected. Something she’d failed to prepare for. She felt fragile in a way she’d never experienced, and for no logical reason. How dare he barter for sex and then punish her for giving him what he wanted? Just what did he think she owed him now?
“You should have told me.” He lifted his head as though it weighed a thousand stone, his accusatory gaze finding her through the mirror.
“I’m sorry I wasn’t a hundred percent honest with you from the beginning,Mr. Bentley Drummle,” she spat. “But up until you came into my life, this secret has kept us safe. And I’ve done what I had to to keephimsafe.” Her voice broke. “To spare him the awful truth.”
Because the truth was too horrible. Too violent. She didn’t want Jakub to grow up afraid.
“That awful truth could be the key to this entire situation, have you ever thought of that?” He turned to lean against the heavy basin, crossing his arms over his massive chest, his shirtsleeve still rolled up above his bandage.
“I’ve thought of little else.” Millie focused on that bandage, not realizing she sat back down until the bed caught her. She studied the skin of his arm, freckled beneath light, copper-colored hair that didn’t quite match the dark auburn locks he’d swept out of his eyes. “But who have I to trust in this world? To confide in…? You?”
This time it was she who couldn’t bring herself to look him in the eyes, and so she stared at that arm, wondering if the freckles were caused by his time in the sun as he worked on the railway. An innocent boy doing a convict’s work.
“Tell me,” he ordered in a lower voice. “I’ll listen.”
It was more than she’d been offered from anyone else. “I hardly know where to start.” She sighed.
