Page 25 of A Spinster for the Rakish Duke
Neither of them moved as the closeness of each other's bodies was not something either of them wanted to end. Finally, Donovan did move but not to open the door. His hand moved to Emma’s side, resting on her hip, and causing her to freeze. She didn’t pull away but instead pushed forward, pressing more against him.
“Mist- Donovan. The dreadful timing of everything seems determined to keep us apart, but that isn’t... I want something different,” she confessed.
“It makes me happy to hear that.” His hand slid up and down her side slowly, truly feeling her for the first time. “Touching you is what I’ve wanted so much for so long.”
“You can keep touching me,” she said hesitantly, but Donovan didn’t hesitate to act upon that offer.
Before one of his hands had touched her gently and affectionately; now both of Donovan’s hands explored the woman he had longed to touch. Emma, who had been a spinster for years, guarded herself with the expectations of apprehension and uncertainty. But as each moment passed and Donovan’s hands found new and wonderful places to touch her, his lips soon pressing firmly to her own, the only feeling she felt was desire.
It suddenly felt very uncomfortably warm in the closet, and Emma wished she had room to undress, to allow Donovanaccess to touch her bare and exposed flesh. She was impressed at the ways that he had found to access her skin beneath her clothes, but the longer this went and the more he touched her, the more confined she felt.
Both of them were breathing harder and harder in that confined space. Emma was forced to wrap her arms around Donovan’s neck to support herself, her legs growing weak from his affection. The shift just allowed him more access to her body and drew them closer together. Emma, her mind swimming with possibilities and desire, tried to ask herself where the line was, where she must ask Donovan to stay his touch. But she found no such place. She wanted him to do as he liked and to continue to make her feel so amazing.
Then Emma experienced two sensations at the same time that thrilled her completely. The light touch of Donovan’s teeth upon her neck, and the heavy touch of the firmness of his member against her thigh. Just as she pressed back into those sensations, letting out a loud gasp, Donovan pulled away. In hindsight, she was glad he couldn’t see the disappointed pout she wore on her face as it might have been more than a little embarrassing.
“I... don’t want to stop. But I am certain that if we continue, we will be caught. We should escape this place now, while it is quiet. I’m sure whatever Mr. Herst did as a distraction will only buy us so much time.” There was no doubt how reluctant Donovan was to escape the temporary bliss that was this closet. It was painfully evident in both his voice and the parts of his body that he had no way to move away from Emma.
“Yes, you are right,” Emma agreed. “Dreadfully right.”
Donovan opened the door and both of them stepped out, although separating a tad slower than they probably should have when emerging into public.
“Do you have… business to attend to in the Inn?” Emma asked as she tried to find the most comfortable way to transition to another subject.
“I have concluded what I felt was necessary, asked the questions I needed to ask and such,” Donovan informed her.
“Good,” she said firmly. “Should we look for Mr. Herst?”
“As much as I want to, I feel compromising ourselves again would only render the sacrifice he made meaningless,” Donovan said.
“Even though you know that there is no rumor or truth I could hear that could lessen my opinion of you?” she asked with a wry smile.
“Still, I believe it is for the best if we promptly left,” he reiterated and gestured in the direction that the exit lay.
“If you insist,” she said and followed him closely until they were outside in the streets.
Chapter Eighteen
Mr. Herst did not await them back at the apartment, and this was worrying, but it also left Donovan and Emma alone again. They both seemed to consider continuing where they left off. Seriously consider. Donovan even drew slightly closer to her. But as interested as Emma was in exploring more where they had room to move, something else took priority in her mind.
“Did you discover anything while talking to people at the Inn of Courts?” Emma asked, sitting herself down at the table as she looked at him expectantly.
“I did, but perhaps not the answer you are looking for,” Donovan said a bit dejectedly before he continued, “I was informed that your brother would go above and beyond to avoid conflict at his place of work.”
“That does sound like him...” Emma said. “Did this come from a reliable source?”
Donovan nodded. “A man of God.”
“Ah,” was all Emma added.
“Based on that and the other people I have questioned, I have concluded that one of two things has occurred. Either, for one reason or another, your brother has chosen to go missing himself-”
Before Donovan could continue, Emma interrupted. “He would never do something like that though, Donovan!” she said adamantly.
He held up a hand. “Or the other and more likely explanation. Your brother being missing has nothing to do with him personally, rather it either has something to do with someone he knows or... or it’s a random act. If this is the case, then we have very few options moving forward. There is no way for me to narrow down who I need to talk to in all of London. We must simply wait until we find evidence, or the culprit presents themselves.”
“You... you don’t think anything happened, do you?” Emma asked earnestly, desperately concerned with her brother's well-being.
“I will answer this question honestly, Emma, because it is important for you to understand my thought process. I believe your brother is alive. If he were the victim of a random act of violence, then he would have turned up at the hospital or... somewhere similar.” Donovan did not want to insinuate thepossibility of her brother's death. “It is curious though. If he were taken or kidnapped, no contact or demands have been made from anyone. So, what is it these unknown captors could possibly want from your brother? That is the question that traps us at this point, unable to move forward with the investigation.”
