Page 85 of The Iron Dagger
“She saidno.How dare you touch her.”
A shocked silence had fallen over the ballroom, and all she could see was the throng of gawking faces, the excited eyes of Lady Falk darting between them, and Gideon. His fist trembled slightly as he lowered it, and his jaw clenched in disgust. His perfectly coiffed hair had become a dark mess. Then his cold eyes met hers, and they softened.
“Are you all right?”
“Yes,” she murmured, crouching beside Farrington and inspecting his cuts. “But he needs help.”
Spots of blood littered the marble floor, and someone called for a physician. Hara thought about performing her pain relieving spell on him, but she decided to let him hurt. She did not fancy the idea of whispers growing around her as the court watched her perform magic. He wasn’t worth it.
Two men in medic robes came to crouch beside her, unpacking their kits. She saw Gideon’s hand held before her, and she took it to pull herself up.
“I’ll escort Lady Hara to her rooms,” said Eleanora, and she stepped forward to take Hara’s arm. Eleanora walked purposefully from the ballroom, holding onto Hara as though she were a protective mother hen guarding her chick.
Hara looked over her shoulder, and found Gideon’s eyes among the sea of faces.
How could pale blue look so warm?
Eleanora had planned ahead with beds made up for guests who may have overindulged, and she had prepared a suite especially for Hara to stay after the ball. She led her up the sweeping staircase to some handsome rooms that were paneled in dark wood, and she drew up a bath while Hara stepped out ofher gown. A merry fire crackled in the hearth, filling the room with warmth.
“What a way to end the evening,” Eleanoratsked,removing her long silk glove to test the water. “I’m so sorry that happened to you, my dear. You must not judge us all by his example. He wasn’t even a Falk, after all; he was only a Sneppet. Ill-bred rogues, the lot of them.”
She helped Hara into her bath and said, “There. You just soak and wash. You’ll feel better in the morning.”
It was almost like having a mother, Hara thought, and the back of her throat began to ache. As Eleanora turned to leave, Hara found her voice. “Thank you for being so kind.”
Eleanora paused and smiled gently. “Thank Gideon. He did what you or I could not. Well, at least I couldn’t. You might.”
Hara gave a soft smile. Somehow, she did not think the party would have carried on if Hara had been the one who punched an aristocrat’s son.
Lady Falk left the bathing chamber, and Hara heard the outer door click shut. Hara scrubbed the makeup from her face and washed her hair, trying to calm her nerves. She felt restless and hot, unable to stop thinking about the way Gideon looked as he lowered his fist, his eyes cruel and his shoulders tense.
She would never get used to how easy it was to fill a tub, she thought as she filled it again with fresh water, and sank back to lean her head against the lip.
Her hand wandered over her stomach and lower down, seeking some relief. Closing her eyes, she remembered the clean scent of Gideon’s skin and his erection straining against her as they danced. Sparkles of desire raced across her skin at the memory of his tousled dark hair, the merciless expression on his beautiful features as he stood above Farrington. He was so kind and playful with her that she almost forgot the brutal nature that lurked within him. She could feel herself growing slick andswollen under the water, and the tickling, burning pleasure was making her breaths shallow.
Then she heard the click of the outer door opening again, and the unmistakable sound of a lock sliding home. Hara froze, wondering if a servant had entered her room, but then she knew. Slow footsteps crossed the carpet, and Gideon’s form filled the door to the bathing chamber.
His eyes flicked to her hand under the water as she moved it away from her thighs and tucked it behind her.
“Are you all right?” he murmured. This time when he asked, his voice was calm. It touched her that he sought to confirm her well-being away from the prying eyes of the court.
“Yes,” she replied. “But you know how I feel about you fighting.”
A slow smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. He brought his hand up to his shoulder and jerked on the cord that fastened his cape. It fell to the ground heavily, and he stepped forward.
“I told you I wanted to lick you senseless,” he said, undoing the buttons of his shirt and exposing the shadows of his ridged stomach. He tugged the ends of the shirt free as he approached, letting them fall open.
The sapphire swayed and glinted as he planted his hands on either side of the tub and leaned over her. “I plan to honor that.”
Hara rose from her bath and Gideon stepped back, his eyes raking over her shining skin. They rested on her breasts for a moment before drifting down over the lines of her waist and hips and stopping at her sex.
A hot, feral look was undoing the courtly composure he usually maintained. Hara let him look, watching the way the firelight sent flickers of warmth and darkness over his exposed chest.
Her skin sang with awareness, and as he leaned closer she felt the heady rush of surrender.
Gideon grasped the back of her thighs, and then he was hoisting her up out of the bath. Her legs wrapped instinctively around his waist as he turned and began walking them to the bed.
Their lips crashed together as he did, devouring and raw, yielding and surging until Hara let out a whimper. Sharp little nips caught at her unexpectedly amidst the softness and heat of his mouth.
