Page 77 of A Soft Kiss in Summer
Kicking her boots under the table, she stretched out her legs and wiggled her toes, slowly glancing up to find Josiah still watching her.His attention would have left her beyond elated a few short weeks ago.Now, it only left her confused and starved for more.
What were they to do now?They weren’t really married.Not that it mattered.They’d only been pretending to be a couple since Edwin showed up in Silver Falls, so no one back home knew their marriage was anything but real.In their eyes, they were husband and wife.If they went home and said the marriage was fake, that the preacher had been fake, they’d just expect them to get married properly and that would be the end of it.
But if they refused, staged a fight like they’d planned to begin with, what would people say?
“You’re thinking too hard.”
She looked up when he spoke.
“You get these little lines between your eyes when you think too much.”
Raising a hand, she touched the skin between her eyes.Sure enough, it was wrinkled.She blew out a breath and lowered her hand.“What are we going to do?”
“About what?”
She flung out a hand and motioned between the two of them.“About us.”
“What about us?”
“Josiah,” she said, exasperated.She stood and walked the space along the foot of the bed.“I mean, when we get back home.”
She walked back, turning when she reached the table before turning again at the door.She paced the floor in short, quick laps while chewing on her bottom lip.“Assuming we get to leave at all.If the sheriff decides to take the word of the lady who said she heard you say you’d kill Edwin, we—”
“—Violet.”She stopped pacing at the sound of his voice and looked over at him.“One day at a time,” he said.“Right now, all I want to do is enjoy my evening and I could do that a lot easier if you weren’t walking a hole through the rugs.”
She blew out a breath.“I can’t help it.The anxiety of all this is getting to me.”
“Then stop thinking about it.”
“How?I can’t ju—”
“—Undress and get in the bath with me.”
She stilled at his words.Did he say what she thought he did?
“The water is still warm.”
He did say it.Her heart started thumping as she stared at him.
Both of them naked in the bath would not be so innocent as them just—bathing.Especially not with the look in his eyes.His head was tilted back, resting on the lip of the tub, his eyelids lowered.He looked completely relaxed and—he was asking her to get into the bath with him.
“Unless you’re scared.”
Scared?Ha!Not even a little.But what would this mean?They weren’t married.If she got in that bath with him…
This might be your last chance to love him.
She met his gaze for a long moment, the look in his eyes daring her to join him, and she wasted no time reaching up to unbutton her blouse.He watched her, his gaze on her fingers as she reached the last button and let her blouse hit the floor.
The silk ribbon on her chemise was pulled slower than she normally would untie it but she had his undivided attention and she wasn’t going to rush a single moment of it.
She left the chemise untied, her breasts all but spilling from the material as she reached behind her to unhook her skirt.The material pooled at her feet and, stepping out the mounds of fabric, brought her closer to the tub.
Lifting one leg, she braced her foot on the tub and slid her chemise up far enough to untie the ribbon holding her stocking up, taking her time about removing it and rolling her stocking down her leg.
She repeated the action on the other leg and reached for the top of her chemise to pull it down, her nipple so hard from nothing more than the way he was looking at her, the material rasping against the sensitive buds caused a shiver to race down her spine.
Standing naked before him, she let him look his fill before stepping closer to where he lounged.His gaze moved over her body as if he’d never seen a naked woman before and her skin felt over sensitized from his perusal.
