“You can’t see much lower. You’ve got me pressed up against you.” She had meant this to be a light response, but all the ease went out of it when she realized that her nearness had aroused Nathan and her body was responding. She could feel the tension in her limbs, the hardening and sensitivity of her nipples, the heavy warmth in her abdomen. She had never been so intensely aware of her body.
A burst of laughter reminded them of the men downstairs.
Reluctantly, they moved apart. Nathan’s aroused state was easy to see. Delilah knew she ought to turn her eyes away, but for a few seconds her gaze lingered on his groin. She knew something of what she could do to his mind and his emotions. Now she knew that she could inflame his body as well. It gave her a feeling of power.
“We shouldn’t be doing this. Not here.”
“We could go to my room”
“NO, we couldn’t,” Delilah stated emphatically. “Serena might wake up at any minute, or Priscilla could come back. And you have guests downstairs”
“I don’t care about any of them,” Nathan said.
“Well, I do. I’ll not have my name smeared, even for the pleasure of kissing you.”
“You enjoyed it?”
“Of course. But it's too dangerous”
Serena groaned and opened her eyes. She put a hand over them. “What happened?” she asked.
“You just had a little dizzy spell,” Delilah told her. “Go before she sees you,” she whispered to Nathan. “Maybe I can get her to sleep before she remembers everything that happened”
“I haven’t finished what I want to say.”
“Not now,” Delilah said, pushing him toward the door.
“After breakfast, in the library. We can go over the list again.”
“Out,” Delilah hissed. She pushed him through the door just as Serena sat up.
“Who’re you talking to?”
“It was just Colonel Clarke asking about you, but he’s gone now”
“Dear Lucius, always s? thoughtful, and tied to a wife who only accepts him in her bed out of duty. It’s a shame we can’t pair ourselves up better”
Chapter Fifteen
The noise woke Delilah out of a sound sleep. There was someone in the house. She could hear movement downstairs. She heard a low moan. Serena again. Quickly she swung her feet out of the bed, searched for her worn slippers, and reached for the thick robe that lay across a ladder-back chair.
Serena was walking very unsteadily across the second-story hall. Holding her robe so she wouldn’t trip on it, Delilah hurried down the stairs. She reached Serena in the same moment Nathan’s bedroom door opened.
He had only removed his coat and tie, but his shirt, open at the throat, allowed Delilah a glimpse of the smooth skin of his chest. The sight affected her like a physical blow. Her stomach lurched and odd sensations began to radiate to all parts of her body. Then came the almost overwhelming, compelling need to reach out and touch him—and she ached with immediate, throbbing desire. If she had been powerfully affected by his body before, the effect was doubly powerful now.
She struggled to refocus her mind on Serena.
“Get Priscilla,” she said as she approached the older woman.
Serena allowed herself to be guided toward her own room, all the while moaning and talking. Sometimes she raised her voice to a near shout, but Delilah couldn’t understand any of the words.
“Priscilla’s not here,” Nathan said, flabbergasted. “Where could she be at this time of night?”
“Maybe she’s staying with one of her friends,” Delilah suggested.
Serena fought free of Delilah and staggered two steps before she fainted. Nathan caught her.
“Open her door. I’ll carry her to the bed.”
Serena continued to fight, but she was no match for Nathan’s muscular arms. Delilah looked at his powerful shoulders from the back, let her gaze wander down to his narrow waist, then pause for a time at his firm buttocks before taking in powerfully muscled thighs. Her stomach lurched once again, and a hot, heavy feeling began to burn in her belly.
With a visible effort, she wrenched her gaze away from his body. “I’ll get her robe. She’s liable to catch a chill with nothing on but that gown.”
Delilah opened the door of a large wardrobe. She had actually reached in and taken hold of the robe before she saw the empty brandy bottles at the bottom of the closet.
So this is what happens. For a moment she stared at the two dozen or so bottles.
Then Nathan helped her get Serena into the robe. It wasn’t difficult with two of them. It would have been nearly impossible to do alone.
“I’ll stay with her,” Delilah volunteered.
“She’s not your responsibility. You can’t be expected to sit up with her.”
“Maybe not, but you can’t do it. I don’t know what makes her go off like this, but I think it has something to do with a man. If she were to wake up and find you here, she might get worse.”
“You are an astute young woman.”
“I just do what has to be done. Most women are like that, and we don’t expect any praise for it.”
“You’ll get plenty from me. And permission to neglect your duties tomorrow”
After they had settled Serena between the sheets, Nathan walked around the bed until he faced Delilah.
“One of these days I’m going to find a way to repay you. But until then …” He took her hands and put them on his waist. Delilah trembled when she felt the warmth of his flesh through his shirt.
Nathan put his arms around Delilah’s waist and drew her toward him until their bodies touched.
“Nathan, please …”
The pressure of his body increased until she wasn’t aware of anything except the points where their bodies touched. Her breasts pushed up against Nathan’s chest so hard they ached. His thin shirt was no barrier at all. Despite the thickness of her robe, she felt naked in his arms, as though he had stripped away her defenses.
Nothing protected her from the effect of his limbs pressed tightly against her own. This was a new experience for her, and she didn’t know how to handle what was happening to her body.
Then Nathan kissed her, and she forgot all the rest.
There was nothing quick or tentative about this kiss. Holding her in an iron embrace, his mouth came down on hers in a hungry, possessive, demanding, hard kiss that bruised her lips and ignited her senses. He neither asked nor implored. He took. She felt limp in his arms, completely helpless to do anything but return his kiss.
As Nathan pressed himself against her with no regard for the electric response in her breasts or the churning sensation deep in her belly, his mouth became more insistent. His tongue insinuated itself into her mouth. When she parted her teeth, it touched her tongue, exploring her mouth.
Delilah broke away with a sharp intake of breath.
“We’ve got to stop;” she said, when she finally managed to push Nathan away.
“Why?”
“We can’t go on kissing in Serena’s bedroom. It’s … it’s … I don’t know what it is, but we shouldn’t be doing it.”
“Kissing you can’t be wrong no matter where I do it.”
“You try it in front of Reuben and youll discover your mistake quick enough”
Nathan laughed. ‘Are you always so practical? Do you ever throw caution to the winds and do what you want?’
“I’ve never had that luxury. Most of the time people use that as an excuse to do something wrong.”
“Is what we just did wrong?”
“No, extremely unwise” He looked so disappointed she couldn’t help adding, “At least here.”
“Then I shall start to build a kissing room first thing tomorrow, and we shall always have a suitable place.”
“Don’t be foolish,. Delilah said severely. “People would swear you’re crazy.” But she couldn’t help but be touched by the thought.
“You make me crazy.”
“You hav
e to leave.”
“I’ll go, but only if you promise to see me tomorrow”
“I will.”
“Alone”
“Yes.”
“Miles away from the house”
“Maybe”
Nathan sat down on the edge of the bed. “Maybe nearly always means no. I’m staying right here until you make up your mind”
“Very well, I’ll meet you down by the river, but only if you leave this minute.”
“Are you sure you don’t need any help?”
“Positive”
“Maybe shed start screaming at you”
“She won’t”
“Maybe I ought to remain, just in case.”
“You ought to go to bed. Serena won’t thank you for seeing her like this. I don’t think Priscilla will either”
He still seemed reluctant to leave.
“You haven’t been well treated here, not even after the kind things you’ve done for all of us”
“We can talk about that tomorrow. Now leave”
Delilah breathed a sigh of relief when the door closed behind Nathan. As much as she feared Serena might wake up, she was more afraid of herself. Things had moved too quickly. She liked being with Nathan, but she needed time to decide what she wanted to do about the feeling developing between them.
At present she had two questions, one dependent on the other. Did she want the mutual attraction to develop into something permanent? If so, how could she resolve her conflicting loyalties, specifically how could she give her heart to Nathan and remain true to Reuben?
Delilah had never felt so happy as when she was with Nathan. Even her fears for Reuben and the regulators couldn’t vanquish the joy she found in his company. Nor could Serena’s bitter enmity make her unhappy. She didn’t know why Nathan’s regard should be so vital to her, how it could so quickly induce a bliss and a contentment her family could not give her.
That had to be due to the indefinable something which happens between two people when they’re falling in love. But whatever the cause, this feeling was too powerful to be ignored just because it couldn’t be explained logically.
Delilah gave herself a mental shake. She’d be better off trying to deal with Serena. That she could explain.
But there was very little she could do, not as long as Serena remained unconscious, whether from sleep or brandy. The older woman’s breathing was heavy but unlabored. The breathing of a drunk, Delilah thought, remembering some of the men who had passed out at her uncle’s tavern.
She wondered what could drive a woman like Serena to drink.
About an hour later, Delilah heard footsteps in the hall downstairs. Serena was still sleeping peacefully, so she went to the door and opened it a crack. In a few moments, she saw Priscilla coming up the stairway with extreme care so the treads didn’t squeak. Just as Priscilla was about to pass her mother’s room, Delilah opened the door and stepped out.
Priscilla couldn’t stifle a gasp.
“You scared me half to death jumping out at me like that,” she said, her voice tinged with anger. ’What are you doing in Mother’s room?
“Step inside,” Delilah said. “I don’t want to wake Nathan.”
“I want to know what you are doing here?” All pretense of friendliness had left Priscilla. If Delilah had ever had any doubt that Nathan’s cousin had been playing a role most of her life, she had it no longer. Priscilla was a very angry dangerous woman.
“She had another sleepwalking spell tonight. She seems all right now, but Nathan had a struggle getting her in here.”
Priscilla rushed over to the bed. She tenderly felt her mother’s brow and readjusted the covers over Serena, but when she turned back to Delilah, there was a harsh, antagonistic look on her face.
“What did you do to here she demanded. “She never has a spell unless something upsets her.”
“I didn’t do anything to her,” Delilah said, unable to hide her resentment at Priscilla’s automatic assumption.
“If it wasn’t you, it must have been Nathan.”
Delilah felt an almost overmastering desire to tell Priscilla just exactly where the fault lay, but she decided such a tactic would achieve nothing.
“Shays dosed the Supreme Court today,” Delilah began, trying to keep the exasperation out of her voice, “and everybody came here. Serena tried to turn them against Nathan by showing them some sketches she said he’d done. She got very upset when I said I did them.”
“Did you?”
Delilah’s gaze didn’t waver. “I proved it by doing a sketch of your mother”
“I don’t imagine it was very nice”
“She hasn’t been very nice to me. She was particularly unkind tonight. She got upset when the men didn’t believe her, but I think what upset her most was Nathan’s saying he would cut her off without a penny if she did anything like that again”
“The bastard” Priscilla let out a furious hiss. The bloody, stinking bastard.”
Delilah had decided that Priscilla was not nearly so sweet and helpless as she tried to appear, but the chiseled look of rage on the young woman’s face shocked her.
“Why can’t he just bloody well leave her alone?”
“Serena attacked him in front of his friends. She tried to turn them against him by showing them those pictures.”
“Where did she find them?”
“In Nathan’s room.”
“You mean she …” She turned back to her mother.
“Nathan was livid.”
“I suppose he was.”
“Why does she hate him so much? She’s always saying something cruel or trying to discredit him. She even said something about his mother one time. I thought he was going to strike her then.”
“There’s a lot you don’t know,” Priscilla said.
“Would it explain why the bottom of her wardrobe is filled with empty brandy bottles?”
“By God, you’ve been snooping”
“I was looking for her robe.”
“Does Nathan know about the bottles?”
“No”
“Do you plan to tell him?”
“That depends on your explanation.”
“And if I don’t explain?”
“Your mother’s growing more out of control every day. Whether I tell him in a way that will protect Serena or he learns it in a way that will put her in a very bad light is up to you”
“Why are you doing this?”
This was no time to dissemble. Priscilla knew Delilah had a personal interest in protecting Nathan, but maybe they could work together instead of against each other.
“I doubt you’ll believe this, but I feel sorry for your mother. She’s obviously miserable. I’ve had enough unhappiness in my own life not to wish it on anyone”
“And Nathan?”
“That’s not so easy to answer.”
“Try. I imagine it’ll be interesting if nothing else.”
Delilah didn’t like exposing her most private thoughts to anyone, especially Priscilla, but she decided only candor would serve at this point.
“Part of it is guilt. When I came here, I disliked and distrusted him as much as anyone. And I made no effort to hide it. I blush to think of some of the things I said. I even meant to spy on him. Nathan knew all this, and_ he still shielded me from your mother’s ill treatment. He even tried to ease the shame of my position by providing me with nice dothes and inviting me to dine with you occasionally.”
“So much for your conscience” Priscilla’s tone was bitingly cynical. “Now why are you really doing this?”
“Because I admire him very much.” Delilah took a deep breath. “And I like him even more than that.”
“Now we get to the crux of the matter. The little serving girl wants to play Cinderella, to move from deaning the grates to being mistress of the castle.”
“Of course I would like to marry someone rich and handsome like Nathan, what girl doesn’t dream of something like th
at happening to her, but I’m no fool. I don’t know anything about London or the kind of life he’s used to leading. I could make a fool of myself and not know why”
“Do you think he’s interested in you?”
“Yes, but partly because most of the people here won’t have anything to do with him. I know I’m pretty, but there are prettier girls in Boston and Providence, especially London. And that’s where he’s likely to go when all this is over and he gets his money.”
“Are you in love with him?”
Delilah was not too taken up with her own thoughts to hear that Priscilla’s tone of voice had become halfway sympathetic.
“I don’t know I’m so bewildered I hardly know what I feel. I never thought anything like this would happen to me. I dreamed of a Prince Charming, but Nathan is real’ She shivered. Then tonight, when your mother was wandering about the hall, he came out of his room in nothing but a thin shirt. Open at the throat. I nearly forgot about your mother”
Priscilla frowned. “Nathan saw Mother?”
“He carried her in here. I couldn’t control her. She fought me.”
“Did he say anything?”
Quite a lot but nothing I’m going to tell you. “He wondered why you weren’t home.”
Now it was Priscilla’s turn to feel uncomfortable, but she didn’t seem very concerned about what Delilah might think of her.
“I was visiting a friend.”
“I don’t think Nathan realizes how often you visit this friend.”
“I don’t care whether he knows or not” Priscilla was defiant.
Go slowly. There’s something her you can't see just yd.
“But I will tell you why my mother acts the way she does. I don’t think it would change how Nathan feels about her, but you may feel differently”
“Don’t judge him before you give him a chance. I did that, and I was very wrong.”
Priscilla didn’t look convinced, but she let the statement pass.
“My mother married Abner Noyes when she thought she was too old to attract a man any longer.”
“But your mother must have been very pretty when she was younger”
“I don’t know why she felt like that; she just did,” Priscilla continued. Mother didn’t want to marry him—he was an older man and he made her a little uncomfortable—but Uncle Ezra told her to marry Noyes or leave his house. Mother had nowhere to go, so she did as she was bid. She met my father almost immediately after that.”
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