Page 97 of The Moonstone Marquess
She also took a moment to pin her hair up, but he stopped her with a light touch of his hand. “Don’t bother. I like the idea of you as a mermaid. I’ll have those pins out as soon as we’re down on the beach, and you’ll only lose them.”
“I’ll have to wash the salt water out of my hair when we return.”
He grinned. “Is that a problem? Do you have any other pressing plans for today?”
She shook her head. “No, I suppose not. And since this is the first full day of our marriage, I don’t expect we’ll have any callers until tomorrow at the earliest. However, my lord, I would like it read into the record that you are a very bad influence on me.”
“Thank you, my lady. And may I also have it read into the record that you are a verygoodinfluence on me? It is all a matter of perspective. I’ve loosened you up a bit, but you’ve neatly tied me around your little finger. I am utterly lost to you, Phoebe. I am madly, wildly, crazily in love with you.”
“Has it escaped your notice that I feel much the same way about you? Come on, let’s get this done before we shock your staff. Well, I suppose this is mild compared to what they’ve already seen. But I am not one of those ladies, and they’ll need to respect me.”
“They will. Melrose has been walking on air ever since we announced our betrothal. I think he was plotting to have me drowned if I did not shape up and marry you.” He grinned as he helped her into her robe and then allowed her to help him into his.
They grabbed towels but did not bother to put on slippers.
Their feet smacked lightly upon the polished wood floor as they walked down the hall. The floor in the elegant front entry was fashioned of finest marble and felt cool beneath the soles of her feet. The courtyard stone also felt cool, but a little rough.
The sand was just beginning to warm as they reached the beach. Phoebe sank her toes into it, and thought it odd how she took note of all these textures. She blamed it on her heightened awareness of Cormac and of her own body after the unforgettable night they had shared.
He had yet to shave, and there was a dark shadow of a beard now outlined on his jaw. His hair was casually brushed back, as though he’d hastily run fingers through his hair to tame it. He’d failed. He ought to look wild and unkempt, but he looked simply wonderful. His eyes were sharp as crystals and trained on her as she slipped out of her robe.
“Your turn,” she said, attempting to frown at him until he took off his. But his grin was boyish and appealing, and she could feel his happiness in the soft breeze that surrounded them.
After a moment, he shrugged out of it and then took her hand to lead her to the water.
She squealed as they waded in. “It’s cold!”
“Not that cold,” he said, staring at her breasts. “Not that I mind, since it seems to be perking you up nicely.”
She smacked him on the shoulder. “Cormac!”
“What? It is no sin for a man to admire his wife.” He laughed and led her deeper into the water. “But it has the opposite effect on me.”
“What do you mean?”
“Cold water shrivels a man’s…organ.” The water was calm, so he eased away and floated on his back, allowing the gentle current to carry him aimlessly. “It isn’t really all that cold. At worst, one could say the water is cool. But it is about the same as the air temperature, and that is quite comfortable.”
“Well, it’s a little better now that I am immersed,” she said, swimming lazily around him. “It helps that the sun is out and there aren’t a lot of clouds to obscure it.”
“See, not so bad,” he said after a few minutes of relaxing in the water. “Your hot little body just had to get used to it.”
“And what about your body?”
“Oh, it is fully recovered from the cold. Shall I prove it to you?”
She rolled her eyes. “Seriously?”
“Of course. The wonderful thing about that naughty deed is we can do it almost anywhere.”
“As I suppose you have done.”
“Not with you, and you are the only one I am going to do it with from now on. But we can also just swim, if that is really what you prefer. Your body might be sore from last night.”
He stood up in the water that reached to the middle of his chest.
She swam over and held on to his shoulders.
He wrapped his arm around her and drew her up against his wet skin. Hers was wet too, and so was her hair, which he seemed to enjoy. “You are the prettiest mermaid I’ve ever encountered.”
