Chasing Eliza

by King, Rebecca

  She scowled up at him and didn’t notice the masculine interest in his gaze as he studied the white shirt tautly covering her full breasts as it tapered down into the narrow waistband of her breeches. Well rounded breasts that were now clearly outlined through the cotton material. Breeches that were stretched devotedly over the feminine roundness of her womanly hips leading down into the longest legs he had ever seen in his life.

  Edward felt sweat break out onto his brow and fought the urge tug at his collar.

  “I need back-up.” He muttered weakly, before sweeping his cloak off his shoulders and dragging it around her, tying the laces at the top together tightly.

  “Ouch!” Eliza protested as he jerked the cloak closed enfolding her in the long folds. “What’s wrong?”

  The material of the breeches and even the shirt clung lovingly to every curve and hollow of her deliciously rounded frame. There was no way she would be able to pass as a man. As soon as any man with blood in his veins and eyes in his head saw her, he would know her sex right away and undoubtedly want to prove for himself that those luscious curves were real.

  With the greatcoat, the hat and a horse, it may be possible if she kept her face partially covered that they might – just – get away with it. As long as nobody got too close and she didn’t remove the cloak. For his sanity, he prayed to the heavens above that she didn’t ever remove the bloody thing.

  His libido had taken enough of a battering without being teased mercilessly for his forbearance. Shaking his head he gave her one last look and ordered her to walk around the room several times, prompting her to change her gait to walk like a man rather than a woman.

  To Eliza it was all very surreal. The last thing she had expected of the day was having lesson in masculinity from Edward. Despite the gravity of the situation she began to giggle, the thought of the reaction they would get from people if he decided to kiss her swimming before her eyes, renewing her mirth.

  “What’s so damned funny?” Edward grumbled after several moments of studying the startling change in her face when it was lit with happiness. Her eyes practically sparkled, impishly teasing him to join her. Her deliciously tempting lips were stretched over straight white teeth giving her a look of such adorable abandon that he couldn’t help but reluctantly smile back.

  “Nothing.” Eliza replied, keeping her secret to herself. She couldn’t actually admit that she found the prospect of him kissing her hilarious and instead continued to smile gently to herself.

  “If you think you can keep up the act, let’s go. Don’t speak to anyone, and keep your face partially hidden in the cloak.” He ordered eyed her lingering smile. He wasn’t sure she had even heard his last order, but couldn’t find the heart to snatch the first smile he had seen on her beautiful face so remained quiet.

  “We’ll be lucky if we get out of the village alive.” He murmured quietly easing the door open and peering up and down the corridor cautiously before turning to eye her haughtily. “Just don’t take that cloak or hat off.” He ordered, pointing a long finger at her in warning.

  Eliza huffed and followed him as he stalked out of the door. She had to practically run to keep up with his long legged stride. She was so intent in staring at his legs as he left the inn that didn’t notice when he suddenly stopped, and barrelled into the back of him with an ‘oomph’ of surprise.

  Edward sighed deeply and hoped he didn’t have to put his hands on her. It had taken all of his determination not to sweep her into his arms for a kiss inside the room. He blithely ignored the soft press of her body against his back and glared at her while she regained her balance.

  Edward closed his mouth with a snap, and swallowed harshly against the tight lump lodged in his throat. He couldn’t help but wonder if she was an angel sent from heaven to fulfil his every wish, or a demon from hell visiting him to tease and tempt him into insanity.

  In the end their departure from the inn went without a hitch and within moments they had settled their bill, leaving the stable yard at a steady trot on horses that were practically bristling with energy.

  It was a good thing too because the day was long and arduous. Although they stuck to the roads to make the riding easier, something she considered Edward had decided to do out of consideration for her, the hours sitting on a hard saddle began to take its toll on her bruised bottom. As the afternoon gave way to the onslaught of dusk she began to feel stiff and uncomfortable until she wasn’t sure how much longer she could continue.

  Edward had regaled her throughout most of the journey with stories from his childhood and such humours anecdotes of his brothers that she couldn’t wait to meet them. She wondered if it had been his intention to try to alleviate the boredom of the miles and miles of empty road. Although she was glad the disguise had worked as well as it had, not having to think about anything other than which road to take was incredibly boring.

  “Tell me about your childhood Eliza.” Edward murmured after several hours of desultory conversation touching on topics that were mundane and safe.

  Eliza studied the horizon carefully for several moments before slowly shaking her head, shooting Edward a look of regret.

  “No.”

  “Why?” He studied the sudden sadness that had swept over her face and wondered if her childhood had been harsh. Although magistrates were paid well for their services, she had grown up with only a father to raise her.

  Eliza sighed, wondering how to voice the tumult of emotions that battered her already bruised senses. She couldn’t bear to open up the box of memories; she was barely holding herself together as it was.

  “It’s too painful right now.” She shot him a smile of regret, hoping he would drop the subject.

  “Was it a harsh childhood?” He wanted to probe a little further, to get her to open up to him. He hated secrets and wanted her to trust him completely, even with memories that were painful to her.

  “Oh! No, nothing like that.” He wasn’t going to give up until he had more information and she didn’t want him thinking ill of her father.

  “Father adored mother. When she was alive the house was a happy place, full of teasing and laughter. Then one spring mother became ill and didn’t recover. When she died, father changed and was never the same after that.” Her voice turned whimsical as she remembered the change in the carefree childhood to the slightly sadder, more reserved childhood following her mother’s death.

  “He did the best he could, but the laughter wasn’t as free-flowing and he spent so much time at work. I didn’t understand it at the time with being so young, but I think he tried to lose himself in work to cope with the grief.”

  “I’m sorry, I didn’t want to break open painful memories for you.” Edward murmured, wishing they had the time to stop so he could give her a hug. She looked so lost, so bereft as she visited the past that he suddenly wished he hadn’t broached the subject at all.

  “It’s alright really; it’s just difficult to remember those happier times right now. It seems such a long time ago that it almost feels like it happened to someone else. When the smuggling became rife, father struggled with the amount of paperwork he needed to do to process everybody through the courts, so Jemima took over a lot of his writing, accounts and such. I took over the running of the house; the cleaning, laundry, that kind of thing. It worked well for us – until.”

  “Until Scraggan appeared.” Edward finished for her, his voice hard and flat. If he could have caught sight of Scraggan there and then he would have happily run him through for all of the death and destruction he had caused so many people, not least the remarkable woman sitting beside him.

  Silence settled between them as they rode through the patchwork of emerald of the rolling countryside, slowly making their way towards Huntingdon.

  They paused several times to rest the horses and eat, but to anyone who was passing, they were just two men travelling together who didn’t warrant a second glance. Eliza wasn’t certain but thought she may have seen two of Scra
ggan’s men heading in the opposite direction several miles back. After one brief, cursory glance, neither man looked at them again, seemingly oblivious to the opportunity they had missed. They had been close enough to leave Eliza feeling somewhat uncomfortable, all traces of her earlier enjoyment vanished in an instant.

  Edward mentally cursed the men, and watched the shadows of doubt and worry steal the lingering contentment from Eliza’s face. He hated to see the shadows of fear lurking in those beautiful amber eyes.

  “Do you think they realised it is us?” Eliza murmured, too afraid to glance over her shoulder.

  Edward leant forward ostensibly to brush something off the toe of his boot and cast a quick glance behind them as he did so. Although the men had stopped, they weren’t looking at them or giving chase. He frowned and considered their options for several moments. The light had already started to fade. He didn’t want to spend another night chasing through unfamiliar roads again, the dangers were just too inherent to risk Eliza’s life.

  “I think we will put a bit of distance between us and find ourselves a coaching inn. Unless I am mistaken, Wellby is just a few miles down the road. We can lose them there and find ourselves somewhere to stay. I don’t know about you but I’m hungry.” He glanced across at her, frowning at the sudden paleness of her cheeks. “We’ll be fine.” He hoped the calmness of his voice and apparent relaxed pose would be enough to reassure her that everything was under control.

  Although she flicked a brief smile at him, her eyes remained shadowed and solemn and he knew she wasn’t convinced.

  “Let’s go.” He ordered, nudging Guinness into a canter. Within moments she appeared beside him, all too willing to put as much distance between them and Scraggan’s men as possible.

  “Maybe she was tired.” He mused considering the miles they had covered that day. He was feeling exhaustion pulling at him and he was used to riding frequently. For someone who hadn’t ridden for a while, he was surprised she wasn’t falling off the saddle in pain.

  It was with a huge sense of relief on many levels that they rode into the stable yard an hour later. Ordering the ostler to accommodate their horses and keep them in the stable out of sight, he escorted her into the tap room and drew the innkeeper to one side.

  Eliza watched the man’s eyes bulge as he glanced at the small mound of coins in his hand before quickly pocketing them. He immediately bowed and offered them anything they needed. In addition to the man’s silence of their presence in the inn, Edward ordered a meal be sent up to their room, ignoring the raised eyebrows as the man considered Eliza for several moments. Squinting at her more closely for several moments, his eyes popped wide as realisation dawned as to her true sex. Eliza merely stared at him steadily, before slowly dropping one eyelid in a cheeky wink.

  Edward bit back a chuckle as he watched ruddy colour suddenly sweep over the man’s face as he turned himself inside out deciding whether to greet her as ma’am or sir, either or both. Shaking his head ruefully at her, he caught her elbow and escorted her up the stairs.

  “Minx.” He whispered, solely for her ears. Rewarded with a quirk of her lips. He really should chide her for revealing the truth of her identity, but was greatly relieved that despite the exhaustion of the day she was still sufficiently light hearted to impishly tease the man. His heart swelled with newfound pride in her and respect for her courage and fortitude in the face of adversity.

  Eliza smothered a yawn as she swept into the room, relieved that the day was now over and pleased with the distance they had covered. In a strange kind of way it had been nice to spend the time with Edward, without the threat of Scraggan looming over them so intently, and even nicer to learn something about him that wasn’t marked by smugglers, secrets and lost relatives.

  “I’m going to the tap room in search of some brandy and leave you to freshen up. I’ll be back in a while.” Edward murmured eyeing the dark shadows beneath her eyes. He wondered if she would still be awake when he returned and doubted it. He didn’t wait for her to respond and quickly turned on his booted heel, cursing the response of his wayward body at the sight of the large bed waiting for them. With the taste of brandy already teasing his tongue, Edward quickly took the stairs two at a time, hoping that time, distance and the hustle and bustle of the busy tap room would give him something else to think about.

  Unfortunately the busy tap room was far too noisy for his wellbeing. His head began to throb with the mingled voices, loud laughter and clanking of pottery and tankards. He watched two heavily laden trays of food disappear upstairs and heard his stomach rumble despite the din of the room. The scent of the food tantalised his nostrils and after ordering and waiting for a bottle of brandy to take to his room, Edward returned to the room.

  Slowly lifting the latch on the door, Edward pushed it open without stopping to knock. The sight that met him was one that would remain with him for the remainder of his days.

  The shutters were closed and curtains drawn to ward off prying eyes. The fire glowed heartily in the grate, bathing the darkened room in a cheery glow. Eliza was standing before a small table in the far corner of the room, a ceramic bowl of water in front of her. The white shirt she had been wearing was unlaced down to her waist, the ripe mound of one breast pressing dangerously against the loose confines of the shirt that was hanging open. The breeches she wore clung lovingly to the rounded curve of her bottom as she bent over the bowl to trail the moisture over her neck and chest, totally oblivious to the dampness of the increasingly see-through material. Her soft moan as she enjoyed the delicious slide of the water was pure sensuality.

  Eliza didn’t hear him enter and gasped at the shifting of a dark shadow in the doorway, swinging around in alarm. The wet shirt clung to the tips of her breasts as she stared at the intruder.

  “Edward?” She gasped, her shoulders relaxing on a tide of relief for a brief moment before she sensed the tension practically throbbing in him.

  “What’s wrong?” She snapped, glancing past his shoulder to the empty corridor beyond.

  She shivered at the stark look on his face as he slowly crossed the room towards her, only pausing when his chest was practically brushing hers. His eyes searched hers for any sign of embarrassment, or reluctance to his nearness but he could see nothing but innocent concern.

  “God, you are so beautiful.” Edward whispered huskily, his eyes sliding sensuously over the milky white skin of her long neck to the dips and hollows of her shoulders. His manhood called for satisfaction as his eyes absorbed the teasing shadows behind the soft white material of the shirt valiantly clinging to the dusky tips of her nipples. The dampness of the material did little to hide her modesty and left him with the driving need to sample their weight in his hands, and taste her to see if they really were as sweet as they looked.

  Without bedding her he knew that one night with this woman would never be enough. He knew from the curiosity and concern in her gaze she had no idea of what she was displaying for his delectation, yet hated to embarrass her by making her aware that he could see everything she had to offer. He swallowed harshly against the raw pain of his arousal and flicked one last, long look at her breasts before handing her a towel from the washstand.

  He turned his gaze towards the wall and coughed to withhold the words he really wanted to say. “I don’t know about you but I am starving. If you have finished, we’ll eat.”

  Walking casually across the room to the waiting food was the hardest thing he had ever done. Everything within him screamed to take what she so innocently offered; to succumb to the driving needs of his flesh and give her a lesson in the delights of the flesh. The urge to possess her was so strong his fingers trembled with the raw need coursing through his veins.

  Keeping his eyes on the food, he busied himself filling the plate with foods he knew he wouldn’t taste and waited for her to join him, hopefully with her modesty covered.

  He mentally swore when she sat down on the chair opposite, the still damp cotton shirt cl
inging lovingly to her curves. She was definitely sent from hell to test his fortitude, he decided wondering if he should just drag her across the table and forget the food.

  Gritting his teeth he kept his eyes on his plate and began to eat, every sense tuned in so acutely to her every move, her every bite and the soft movements of her mouth as she ate that by the time she had finished sweat beaded his brow with the effort it took to keep his hands off her.

  His stalwart determination forced his thoughts towards their current situation. He could make love to her. After all she was already ruined due to the fact they had already spent two nights alone together. A third night sharing a room would be the clincher. Although she wasn’t entitled and wealthy and had no relative or guardian to demand recompense for her ruined virtue, his own conscience wouldn’t allow him to press her into making such a life changing decision as sleeping with him.

  He also had to consider his own reluctance to marry. When he had agreed to help Peter, the last thing he had expected was to land himself in the middle of a mad flight across country, being chased by marauding smugglers. But she was a woman and like most women of his experience, trouble was her middle name. He shouldn’t be surprised to find himself in the middle of the mess they were in but that didn’t mean he had to like it, and it didn’t mean that he had to change his future plans to avoid matrimony.

  He considered the wealth of trouble she brought with her. Even if they did get to Padstow and back to Leicestershire in one piece, there was still the not insignificant problem of elusive Jemima to resolve. Not one, but two bundles of trouble. Moreover there was Peter to consider. While he was happy to help Peter find his wayward obsession, he had no intention of sacrificing his own wants and needs for anyone. No matter how deliciously tempting they might be.

  Despite her earlier hunger, Eliza ate sparingly. Glancing across the table at the muscle ticking steadily in his jaw, she wondered what had happened to annoy him so.