Page 19 of Snowbound with the Earl
“Your coachman works for you, and he will probably tell you whatever you want to hear. I’m telling you, it’s not safe.”
“Does this mean you do care for me, Graham?” Was she still trying to scare him away or did she really want to know?
She could see the way he clenched his jaw at her deliberate use of his given name. At least he was not entirely unmoved by her. “Dorsey told you the same thing I did.”
“Dorsey and I didn’t spend the night together,” she said.
“You and I didn’t spend the night together either.”
“But everyone thinks we did.” She put a hand on his chest, unable to resist and desperate to know how he’d react. How long had it been since she’d touched him? A decade, at least. She moved closer, partly to see if he’d retreat and partly because, well, because she wanted to. “Everyone will be looking at you and me this morning, imagining what we did together.”
“Noelle.” His voice held a note of warning. But the sound of her name on his lips sent a shot of heat through her. She’d broken some barrier inside him, and he’d lowered a significant piece of armor. Should she exploit it or retreat?
“If I leave, everything will be less awkward.” She hedged, still not sure what direction to take.
“I prefer awkward to you being dead. I can’t let you go,” he said, his voice dropping to a murmur.
She could barely draw in the next breath. She couldn’t walk away now, not when she looked into his eyes and saw his feelings for her so raw and exposed. Hedidstill care. He’d been fighting his feelings for her as much as she had for him. “Yes, you can,” she whispered. “Just...” But her hand was already sliding up his chest to cup his neck even as he bent to touch his lips to hers. “Let go,” she whispered against his lips.
“Not this time,” he said. His mouth pressed to hers as his arms went around her, pulling her against him. Noelle rose on tiptoes to wrap her arms about his neck as his lips slid over hers. Pleasure radiated from where their bodies touched and soon every inch of her was tingling with heat and desire. The kiss deepened, Graham’s tongue touching hers and tantalizing her further. He’d never kissed her like this before. His kisses all those years before had barely crossed the line of chaste. Bonneville had rarely bothered to kiss her at all. Noelle hadn’t known how much she could enjoy a kiss like this.
Her fingers slid into his thick curls as she kissed him back, trying to tease him as much as he teased her, hoping he’d want her as much as she wanted him in that moment. He groaned low in his throat and pulled back, tugging her bottom lip with his teeth as he broke the kiss.
Noelle opened her eyes and blinked. Her vision was blurry for a moment until she focused on his lapis blue eyes. She could stare at those eyes forever and never grow tired. “Stay,” he murmured.
“Yes.” She tugged at his head, and he kissed her again. This time she allowed herself to sink completely into the sensation of his mouth on hers. Her legs and feet seemed to have gone numb, and she hoped they would not buckle. All she could feel was the way his body melded to hers and the way his mouth claimed her.
And then suddenly, the kiss ended. She made a soft cry as Graham separated from her, robbing her of the warmth of his body and ripping away the pleasure of their connection.
“I apologize for interrupting,” Lord Dorsey said, “but my lady wife says your maid is insisting on readying for your departure, Lady Bonneville.”
“She isn’t leaving,” Graham said. Noelle touched a finger to her lips. They were still tingling.
“My lady, would you like me to speak to your maid?” Dorsey asked.
Noelle had no idea what either man was saying. Why didn’t Graham kiss her again? Why had he stopped? Why wouldn’t Dorsey go away so she could wrap herself in his arms again?
“My lady?”
“Noelle?” Graham said.
Noelle forced her mind to focus on Dorsey. Something about her maid and leaving. “I will speak to Swift, Lord Dorsey,” she said, smoothing down her traveling dress. “If you say the conditions are too dangerous for travel, then we will stay.” She glanced at Graham. “I wouldn’t want to endanger my coachman or my horses.
“Very good,” Dorsey said. “If the snow stops falling then the roads might very well be clear by tomorrow morning. We can check them then, though I know Lady Dorsey would love for you to stay until the twenty-third.”
“Thank you, my lord.” She stepped toward him. “Excuse me, Lord Evergreen.” She followed Dorsey out of the parlor and into the drawing room.
“And here I thought you were simply giving Evergreen an alibi,” Dorsey said out of the corner of his mouth.
“I was,” she murmured as they walked side-by-side. “Never tell me you think he seduced an innocent like Miss Halifax.”
“Of course not, but I couldn’t exactly accuse Halifax of forcing his wife and daughter to concoct a story like that so he could orchestrate the marriage of his daughter to an earl. Halifax made sure I was with him when we came upon Evergreen and Miss Halifax alone in the parlor. He wanted witnesses who could attest to the possibility of her being ruined.”
“Odious man. I will never understand why a father would use his child like that.”
Dorsey gave her a look but didn’t speak.
“Perhaps we should keep my admission in confidence.”
