Page 85 of Enticing the Devil

The oddest thing about the fact that she’d had no personal interactions with Beynon in so many days was that, somehow, she still felt his presence. Especially in the mornings when she first awoke. There was always this warm sense of intimacy surrounding her as she opened her eyes and stretched her body to wakefulness. A few times, she even thought she’d caught a hint of his scent and her body had reacted immediately to the suggestion of his nearness. Her belly had tightened and her core melted with a physical longing she felt she’d never shake.

She missed him.

She missed seeing him every day as she had during Lily’s party. She missed the arguments and his broody, challenging manner. She missed his gravelly voice and his rough hands. She missed the way he looked at her and the way he looked.

If she closed her eyes, she could still see him as he’d been that morning on the lakeshore or crouching at her feet in the twilight maze or towering over her as he pinned her to the wall in the darkened hallway.

It had been less than a week since they’d arrived at his home—less than two since their wedding day, yet Anne had had plenty of time to determine this was not how she wanted to continue in their marriage. And if he wasn’t going to do anything about it, then she’d have to.

She’d been reluctant to ask anyone where his room was located because it was embarrassing to admit she had no idea. The house wasn’t that big, after all. The rooms were limited. Yet she hadn’t managed to figure it out on her own.

But to acknowledge such an ignorance was to announce that their union was strained. And though she had no doubt everyone suspected it anyway, her pride simply wouldn’t allow her to admit it out loud until she’d at least tried to resolve the situation herself.

Having come to that decision this evening, she was beset by questions on just how she was to go about such a thing.

She’d been sitting by the window for hours now. The fire in the hearth was down to the faintest glowing embers and the candles had burned out. She had no idea what time it was but the heavy silence filling the house suggested it had to be very late. Yet she wasn’t the least bit tired.

She was determined. And annoyed. And perhaps a bit concerned.

She needed to seduce her own husband but hadn’t the slightest idea how to go about it.

If the decision hadn’t been made out of pure lonely desperation, the idea would have been as amusing as it was shocking. But she craved more with the man she’d married. She might have resigned herself to the fact that they might never develop a friendship of trust and consideration. But must that mean they could have nothing at all?

What about physical connection? What about desire? There was a longing inside her that grew stronger every day. Why should she deny it?

They’d given in to their intense passion for each other once before. Perhaps, if they embraced it more fully, there was a chance it could grow into something more. She had to believe it was possible.

At the faint sound of a footfall in the hall outside her bedroom, Anne was pulled from her heated musings and turned to look at her closed door with a faint frown.

Was it possible someone else was still awake at this hour?

She listened for another sound then stiffened as the handle of her door turned. A moment later, the door swung silently open to reveal the silhouette of a large and familiar form.

Beynon.

Anne’s breath caught as she watched him enter the room with very slow, deliberate steps. He was clearly trying to be as quiet as possible and didn’t seem to have noticed Anne sitting by the window as his attention was intently directed toward the bed. Then he closed the door behind him, enclosing them together in the darkened room.

Anne’s heart leapt to a reckless pace but she said nothing.

Why was he here? Had he come in search of her?

She might have thought so if not for the fact that he was obviously trying very hard not to wake her.

But then, several steps into the room, he stopped. Anne watched as he turned his head to scan the room, clearly having noticed she wasn’t in the bed as he expected. When he finally spied her sitting before the window, his large body tensed and a heavy sound issued from his throat.

“You’re still awake.” His words were gruff and almost abrasive in the night silence. There was a hint of accusation in his voice, but mostly it was surprise and what Anne suspected but could hardly believe was uncertainty.

“I am,” she replied. When he didn’t say anything more in response but remained standing awkwardly in the middle of the room, she decided to be bold. “Why are you here, Beynon?”

Another rough sound rolled through his throat as he glanced toward the bed, then toward the door. And in an instant, she understood.

Heat flooded her body as she realized why she caught his scent in the mornings and why the bed was always so warm—even on the empty side—and why she’d sensed his presence over these last days though she’d so rarely seen him.

“This is your bedroom, isn’t it?”

He turned and strode to the bed. Sitting on the edge, he removed his boots. “Would you have preferred to share a room with Eirwyn and Carys?”

Anne frowned at the annoyance in his tone. But she could be annoyed, as well.

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