Page 58 of A Gentleman's Wife

“What’s happened?” she asked.

Thomas ran a hand over his face. “We summoned the parish chimney sweep, and he was able to douse the flames from above, but that’s only put out the fire. He thinks it was a collection of dry leaves or a bird’s nest stuck inside that caught and spread. There is likely much more to repair in the flue come morning. And your room will be uninhabitable for some time.”

The heaviness of the situation and the darkness of the room settled over her. “I understand. I can have Mrs. Bamber prepare a guest room––”

“No.” The one word he spoke stole her breath and set her heart to pounding. “You’ll stay here tonight. I’ll sleep better knowing with certainty you’re safe.”

Marianne swallowed hard, desperate to dispel the lump from her throat. “Here? In your bed?”

She caught a whisper of his smile in the moonlight. “The bed is plenty big, Marianne. I promise you won’t be disturbed while you sleep.”

Then he moved around the foot of the bed to his side, where he pulled down the blanket and settled himself.

“You can stay until your room has been fully cleaned and repaired. And don’t worry about my fireplace. It’s behind me, so if there is another fire outbreak, it will hit me first.”

Marianne smiled. “That doesn’t make me feel any better.”

“It does for me. As long as you’re safe.” His voice was steady. “Are you certain you’re all right?”

She pulled the blanket up around her neck, though it didn’t seem to do much good. “I might be a little cold.”

And then almost as if her dreams became reality, his arm moved across the bed, curling around her waist, and pulling her across the sheets until she was nearly flush against his chest.

“Better?” The one word was so dark and deep that it brought gooseflesh to her skin.

“Mm hmm.” She couldn’t even manage words, not with Thomas this close.

His nose gently brushed over hers, leaving Marianne with a certain knowledge that should she tilt her head up ever so slightly, she’d be able to kiss him again, just like in her dreams. She could hear the thundering of his heartbeat in his chest, and it somehow mirrored her own exactly. Could she collect all her courage and just…

He moved first, lifting his lips to her forehead, and lingering there in a way that could have easily lulled her back to sleep with its ability to calm her.

“Rest, Marianne,” he whispered, his breath warm against her skin. “I promise I won’t let anything happen to you.”

Snuggling closer to his chest, Marianne felt assured of his words, and gently slipped into a peaceful sleep.

Thomas stirred in sleep with a smile on his face. There was a sense of foreboding that something was wrong, but there was also the knowledge that something else was right. In the cloudiness of not quite waking, he felt a warmth in his hand, and it urged him to wake.

Discovering Marianne in his bed widened his eyes, and suddenly he remembered everything. The fire in her bedchambers, his insistence that she stay with him. He’d slept on his side, facing her, holding her. Now she slept a few inches from him, which was farther than he would have liked. Her right hand rested over her stomach, and with her left hand, she was clinging to his, holding it against her chest, almost deliberately tucked into her neck. His heart awoke then too, longing to caress his fingers over the skin of her jaw, her cheek, but he wouldn’t disturb her sleep. If she needed sleep to avoid fits of epilepsy, then he would refrain and simply enjoy the view of her calm slumber.

Her brown hair had loose strands straying from its braid, her full lips were parted slightly with the gentle breathing of sleep, and there was no twist of tension in her brow. Her resting state gave her the peace she deserved, and in it, he found her beautiful. Perhaps in every form, in every moment, he loved her. All of her.

Marianne let out a breathy sigh, nestling closer to him, and Thomas had to swallow hard to keep from waking her, from kissing her like he wanted to. He wanted to linger with her, stay until she awoke, but there was too much to do. He needed to go and examine the burned room, see the true state of things in the daylight, and evaluate the cost and work to be done. But he would be thinking of her throughout the day and wanting to know the state of her thoughts after everything that had happened.

He slowly slipped his hand from her grasp and carefully removed himself from the bed, but unable to leave without satisfying at least one selfish desire, he pressed his lips to her forehead in a lingering kiss.

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