Page 15 of The Moonstone Hero
“Blast it, Ella. Are you crying?” He did not appear to be angry with her. In truth, his voice was achingly gentle. “You didn’t cause anything bad to happen. It is a craven world we live in. Sometimes we manage to avoid looming disasters, andsometimes we find ourselves caught up in the middle of them with no hope of escape.”
“I’m so sorry I ruined this day for you. We were having a nice time, weren’t we? Then I went ahead and drew out that newspaper.”
“It was a good day,” he insisted, shifting his position so that he now sat upright. “Ella, you are still looking at me with big, sad eyes.”
“I cannot help it. I meant to cheer you, and instead I’ve made things worse.”
“You are not to blame. Despite appearances, you have made things better.” Ignoring the pain he felt with every movement, he reached out and caressed her cheek.
It was such a kind and thoughtful gesture, it left her undone. “How is it that you are making the effort to cheer me up when I am the one who should be doing this for you?” she asked in a ragged whisper.
“You have cheered me, Ella.” He took her hand and drew her closer so that her hip leaned against his bed. “Close your eyes.”
Instead, they widened. “Caden, I forbid you to kiss me.”
He drew her closer still. “What makes you think I intend to kiss you?”
Had she misread that look in his eyes? “Oh, because we are suddenly very close to each other. I can feel the heat of your body and breathe in the lavender scent of your skin. But…I’m sorry. I thought… Aren’t you?”
“Going to kiss you?” His dark eyes turned smoldering. “Do you want me to?”
Her face turned hot as the blush crawled up her neck and spread onto her cheeks, which now burned with embarrassment.
“Ah, you do like me after all. Close your eyes and trust me, Ella.”
“Oh, dear heaven.” Well, she owed him that much for opening up his painful wounds, did she not?
She held her breath and shut her eyes.
He placed his hand to the back of her head, his roughened fingers exciting her as he drew her ever so slowly closer. She felt their breaths mingling, then felt the whisper-soft touch of his lips to hers, those full, manly lips that now sank down on her slightly parted ones with possessive heat and surprising tenderness. There was something exquisite about his kiss, conquering but also quite protective, as though he was claiming her for his own, but also promising to watch over her, guard her and keep her safe.
Well, there was nothing halfway about Caden. If he wanted something, he went for it in a completely commanding and breathtaking way.
Did he want her?
He drew her up against his hard body.
Was she hurting him? She was almost atop him and pressed immodestly against his chest.
He did not seem to mind or care.
Well, why would he? He seemed to be enjoying her surrender.
She felt strength in those magnificently muscled arms of his that now surrounded her.
She inhaled the heat of his skin, the maleness of it and the light lavender scent of his soap that he complained made him smell like a girl.
It didn’t.
Caden was all hard, stubborn male.
She felt the tip of his tongue slide along the seam of her lips before he suddenly drew away and nudged her off his bed. “Bollocks. Bad timing.”
She wasn’t certain what was happening until Elmer came bounding in. “Oh, Lady Ella. I did not realize you were still here.” Fortunately, the boy was oblivious to the reason her face was in flames. She dared not touch a finger to her lips that were still tingling from Caden’s kiss.
Instead, she turned away and pretended to fumble through her basket in the hope Elmer would not notice her appallingly heated response to the cad now grinning at her from his bed.
She tossed Caden a disapproving frown.
