Page 13 of A Husband for Esyllt
“I know it’s you, I did not expect anyone else to try and crawl into bed with me,” he growled, throwing her onto the mattress. A heartbeat later she was flat on her back, with her wrists pinned high above her head. Her eyes had adjusted to the darkness and she could see the ire flashing across Connor’s face. “What’s this, wife? Trying to kill your second husband in his sleep?”
Killhim? She’d actually considered kissing him! “I-I didn’t?—”
“Oh, so you didn’t just try to stab me?” he hissed, trapping her under his hard body.
“No, I swear. It was only the c-candle. Some fat fell on you when I moved,” Esyllt explained, fighting her mounting terror.
The man was formidable in his anger and strong as an ox. If he really thought she had been about to kill him, then there would be no quarter. She could understand why he would suspect foul play. Indeed, he would have been startled out of sleep, and he might well have mistaken the stab of sudden pain for the tip of a dagger piercing his flesh.
“What were you doing lurking in the dark?” he asked, relaxing his hold marginally. Perhaps he was starting to doubt he’d been in real danger.
“I-I was watching you.” She was so afraid, so intent on having him believe her that she did not even think of lying. Besides, what else could she say?
He snorted, as if that were a ridiculous answer. “Why?”
“Because... You’re beautiful.”
The admission, so far removed from the one he was expecting, made Connor blink.
He had woken up to a sharp pain on his stomach and his wife bent over his sleeping form. Faced with what he had identified as a threat, his reaction had been instinctive. Had he been too hastyearlier in dismissing Esyllt’s claim that she had killed her first husband and would not be above getting rid of him? What if she was truly intent on hurting him? Perhaps Matthew was right to be concerned over his safety now that they were in Wales.
But now, with his mind clear, he saw that he’d completely misread the situation. He was in no danger whatsoever, his wife had not tried to stab him, she thought him beautiful, that was all.
He released her wrists, wishing—not for the first time—that he slept less soundly at night. From as far back as he could remember, he’d slept with the sleep of the dead. It was why Esyllt’s men had been able to abduct him from his bed so easily the night before. It was highly inconvenient and he feared it might cost him dearly one day.
As to her claim that she thought him beautiful, ludicrous as he had first thought it, he now believed her. Something about the way she had said the words rang too true. She was not lying, she was fascinated by him and, what was more, she was unable to hide it. He remembered the way she’d looked at him when he’d undressed and every time her eyes landed on him her mouth parted slightly, as if she could not believe her luck at being married to a man she found so attractive.
It was an involuntary reaction, and it would no doubt annoy her to know that he was aware of it, but he was.
Because it was the same for him. Every time he looked at her, he was taken aback by how drawn he was to her. He had chosen his wife for reasons as far removed from lust as could be conceived, without even knowing what color eyes she possessed. But every time his gaze landed on her, his body gave an involuntary jolt of longing.
Like now.
He sighed. It seemed he did not even have to see her to be affected. It also happened in the dark, when her lush curves were pressed against him.
Now that he was reassured she had not tried to hurt him, he could feel his body respond to her proximity. Perhaps he should not be surprised. He was naked in bed, on top of a woman he found desirable. In the circumstances, it would be odd if his blood did not stir. He shifted slightly, not wanting her to notice the effect she had on him. He might not be able to stop himself from finding his wife desirable, but it was better not to let her know she had such power over him.
“So you find me beautiful,” he drawled.
He kept his voice calm, so she could trust him to stay in control. Trapped under a trained warrior, utterly at his mercy, she could easily take fright. But killing or even hurting her was not what he wanted to do to her.
Quite the contrary.
“I do find you beautiful.” She could not quite meet his eye but at least she was not stammering anymore. To ease her mind further and calm the raging in his blood, Connor slid off of her but he did not allow her to move away, instead keeping her tucked close against him.
“Is that supposed to reassure me?” he asked. “Am I safe for now? Will you let me live until I have lost my good looks?”
“I...” Apparently, she was nonplussed by the change in mood and didn’t quite know how to answer. He decided to let her off.
“Well. Since you don’t mean to kill me I guess I could go back to sleep. Unless you wanted to make the most of my beautiful body?” he drawled. “I would be amenable.”
“No!” she instantly cried out, scrambling away. This time, he let her go. No sense in frightening her again by restraining her.
“I see that being beautiful will only get me into trouble without providing me with any advantages,” Connor mocked. She was attracted to him, but not enough to do something about it. “Thus far it has earned an abduction and a trussing up in the middle of the night, and now it has caused me to be scalded withmelted fat. A little soothing would not go amiss. You could lick the wound, at least.”
Though it was dark, Esyllt would no doubt see his smile.
“Lick?” she repeated in a breath.
