For the first fifty feet the water was only at their ankles, rising to their knees as waves crashed in, but soon the water reached their waists. With each wave that rolled in they got wetter and the ocean crept higher.
“What if she went the other way?” Dane called over the water.
“We have to check as many as we’re able,” she called back. She didn’t tell him there were two more caves beyond this that would flood at high tide. They’d never make it there. This cave was their last hope.
A large wave crashed in, lifting Juliet from her feet and smashing her against the rock, cutting her cheek. She cried out and Dane squeezed her hand. “I need to take you back.”
“No,” she answered, her gut clenching in fear and worry. “I’ll be fine. Just a bit further.”
And that was when a head popped out of the cave, now twenty feet away. Charlie.
Dane looked at the blood oozing down Juliet’s cheek, his fear sharpening, expanding. He couldn’t lose Charlie. But Juliet, in just a short time, was just as precious. He didn’t want to live this life without her.
The knowledge near knocked the wind out of him. Or perhaps that was the freezing water.
“Dane,” Charlie screamed. “Help.”
He turned in the direction of her voice and saw her head sticking out. “Hang on, we’re coming,” he yelled.
“Hurry,” she cried. “The water’s starting to flood the cave.”
Gripping Juliet’s hand tighter, he made his way the last twenty feet. “Lower yourself into the water. I’ll catch you.”
Charlie shook her head. “I can’t.”
Juliet slid between him and the rock, coming to his other side even as waves crashed into them. “It’s all right,” she said reassuringly. “You’ll be between us. We’ll keep you safe. Your feet will still touch. Don’t worry.”
She reached for Charlie and took her hand as Charlie jumped into the water. His sister let out a scream even as he grabbed her other hand, pulling Charlie against his body.
“Don’t let her go,” Dane looked into Juliet’s eyes.
“I’ll keep her safe,” Juliet said as they started moving.
“I know you will,” he answered, his heart still hammering. “I’m worried about you.” They formed a human chain, him slowly pulling both women through the freezing water. Twice, the waves hit them so hard they smashed their joined hands into the rocks, drawing blood. He gritted his teeth, angry he hadn’t done a better job of protecting them. Charlie was his responsibility and Juliet…
Juliet was everything. Chase, Ophelia, and Bianca stood on the sand watching them. Some of the tension in his chest loosened. Rathmore waved and sprinted toward them, splashing into the water. Without a word, Dane pushed Charlie toward their cousin. Chase scooped his sister from the water, turning back toward the sand.
Dane didn’t say a word as he grabbed Juliet’s waist, lifting her into his arms. His legs burned with effort but he swung her up out of the water, pushing through the churning waves toward the sand until he was finally on dry ground again. She snaked her arms about his neck and buried her face into his shoulder. He dropped to his knees as Juliet sobbed.
She’d been so calm throughout the entire rescue, she deserved to cry. Suddenly Charlie had her arms about both of them and she let out a wail herself. Before he knew it, Bianca and Ophelia had joined into the hug even as Juliet broke into wracking sobs. Chase was last, wrapping his arms about the outside of the group.
He looked at his cousin even as he grazed a kiss across Juliet’s head. “I understand now.”
Chase gave him a small smile. “Good.” Then his smile grew. “Damn but you’re thick.”
“I am,” he answered. Juliet had been so brave and strong. And she’d executed a perfect plan when he might have been seized with worry. This was his woman…the love of his life. He didn’t need time. Dane didn’t need to know anything else. His heart had known the answer all along. He had fallen in love with Juliet.
Chapter Fourteen
Since the moment in the dining room when she’d realized Charlie was down on the beach, Juliet had pushed her feelings aside. It had been like any other plan she’d developed. Think of the parts, possible outcomes, and account for them.
But now, with Charlie safe, the fear and worry had overwhelmed her. She drew in a deep breath of Dane’s skin, diluted by salt and pressed against his heat. He softly shushed her, over and over. “Shhh. It’s all right. We’re all, all right.”
“You found her,” Adrianna called from the path. “Thank goodness.”
She managed to unwind one arm from around Dane’s neck and reached about Charlie. “Are you hurt?”
Tears streamed down Charlie’s face. “I’m fine. I…thank you.” Then she pressed her cheek to Juliet’s. “You warned me. I am so sorry. I…”
“Charlie.” She held her tighter, one arm around Dane and the other about Charlie, tears still spilling onto her cheeks. “We all do those silly, foolish things.” She squeezed the woman tighter. “That’s why you need a good family about you to help keep you safe.”
She squeezed her eyes shut as Charlie pressed closer.
“We are all richer for having you here, Juliet. Not one of us hasn’t benefitted from your level head.” Ophelia reached in her hand. “You know when I told you the other day that your plans weren’t wanted?”
Juliet opened her eyes to look at her sister. Those words had stung deeply. “Yes?”
“I was so wrong.” Ophelia touched her hand that was around Dane’s neck. “Say that you forgive me.”
She drew her brows together. “Of course, I forgive you.” She reached for her sister’s hand letting Charlie go to pull one more person into their tight circle.
“Let’s get back to the house and out of these wet clothes,” Dane said, though no one made a move.
Juliet wasn’t certain she cared about the soaked garments. His heat radiated out of his body through his clothing, keeping her rather warm despite the crisp breeze.
“Dane’s right.” Ophelia pulled at her hand. “If we don’t move soon, the water is going to overtake us.”
Finally they got up, trudging back up the hill. Except for her. Dane carried her the entire way. She tried to protest. “Charlie needs you.”
“Chase will care for Charlie,” he replied. “It’s time for me to care for you.” He stopped for a moment and several members of her family stopped too. He lowered his head and captured her lips with his own.
She heard a gasp, though she had no idea who made it. Her eyes had fluttered closed at the feel of his mouth pressed to hers.
He lifted his head and started moving again.
When they made it into the house, he didn’t stop but carried her straight to her room. As they started up the stairs, he called down to her sisters, “Notify the staff. She’ll need help changing from these wet clothes.”
Juliet’s mouth tipped up at the corners. “I’m not the only one making plans and issuing orders.”
He stopped in the middle of a quiet hall. “If it hadn’t been for your level head, I don’t know if I would have ever found Charlie and I doubt, even if I had, that I would have been in time.”
“You don’t know the caves like I do.” She touched his cheek.
“Still.” He looked down at her. “You saved my sister’s life. And if I am honest, I think you’re saving mine too.”
She pressed her palm tighter to his cheek. What did that mean?
But he started walking again. “I’m going to leave you for now. But once the servants have finished changing you, tell them that you’re famished and have them bring you a large spread of food. I’ll be back in your room in an hour.”
“In my room?” she asked, nibbling her lip.
He stopped and kissed her again. “That’s right,” he answered. “I need to keep my eye on you.”
A warm flush was moving down her body despite the chill of her clothing. “I can’t, Dane.”
They’d reached her room and he
flicked open the door, stepping inside. “What?”
“I promised you and myself that I’d not be alone with you again. Time, remember?”
He grumbled, deep in his throat. “I don’t need time. I need you.” Then he set her down and kissed her one last time. “One hour.”
Then he turned and was gone.
Dane spent the next hour making certain his sister was cared for. Once she was tucked in bed, a large tray of food at her side, he set about getting himself dry.
Fortunately, all his pacing kept him warm. How could he have gotten things so completely wrong the last few days?
There was Juliet, literally risking her life to save his sister. Was that a woman who didn’t care for him? Who only wanted a title? The very idea was ridiculous. And the fact that she’d had to jump into freezing cold water and be pounded by waves to prove to him how pure her intentions were set his teeth on edge. He should have seen it all along. When he thought back, Dane saw every interaction in a new light.
There was her physical response to him, first and foremost. That did not speak of a woman who was acting.
Then there were her words. She’d promised him time, asked for romance not marriage. How could he have been so stupid?
He closed his eyes. Because he’d been burned before and because he’d been raised to believe that marriage was a cold contract of mutual benefit and nothing more. But he didn’t want that. He wished for warmth, kindness, caring. Hell and damnation, he wished for love. Him. The man always lecturing about weighing actions and making rash decisions had gone and fallen in love.
The weight of it settled over his chest like a warm blanket. Funny. Love didn’t feel like a risk any longer. Not with Juliet. It felt so right…like she was always meant to be his.
The very idea stole the air from his lungs.
But how was he going to make up for the fact that he’d doubted her? A smile touched his lips. She wanted romance. To be valued and cherished. That, he could do. Both privately and publicly.
Having washed all the salt from his skin, he dressed and left his room. Once he got close to hers, he hid behind a large potted plant, making sure no one was nearby. Then, he snuck down the hall, opening her door a crack and listened for voices.
“Dane?” she whispered. “Is that you?”
He quickly opened the door and slipped inside, closing it softly behind him and then turning the lock.
Next to her bed sat a large tray of food, enough to feed multiple people for an entire day. Perfect.
He looked at the large bed where she lay in the middle. Encased in a dressing gown, the covers were pulled up under her arms. Her hair, having been freshly washed, lay damp across the pillow. A muscle in his jaw ticced as he stared at the beauty before him. Did he even deserve this? “Juliet. You look…”
A blush climbed into her cheeks. “Like I was near-drowned?”
He chuckled moving closer. “Actually, more like a sea goddess sent to shore.”
“Oh,” she breathed, her smattering of freckles disappearing in the color. “That’s such a lovely thought.”
“You are lovely,” he whispered as he moved closer.
She held up a hand. “Dane,” her voice sounded a bit strangled as her fingers spread out. “We need to talk.”
Talk? He stopped because she asked, not because he wanted to. He wished to kiss every inch of her body. What more needed to be said? “Yes, love?”
She swallowed, her head dipping lower. “I know you feel a certain amount of gratitude after today.”
His brow furrowed. “Gratitude doesn’t even begin to describe what I feel.”
Her eyes widened and her tongue darted out to lick her lips. “But I’m committed to making our courtship…if that’s what we’re doing…”
“We are.” He started moving closer again.
Her hands fluttered. “Then we should proceed with caution. I wouldn’t want you to do anything that you might regret.”
A soft chuckle escaped his lips. He’d never been more sure of anything in his life. Slowly, he lowered his hands to the mattress until he was bent low enough to capture her lips in a long kiss. He felt her breathing stutter at the touch. Lifting one hand, he cupped her cheek. “Any worries or doubts I had washed away in the tide today,” he said, looking into her eyes. “You are the woman for me, Juliet Moorish, and I intend to spend as long as you need romancing you into feeling the same.”
Her hand trembled as she reached up and wrapped it about his wrist. “Oh,” was the only word she uttered as she stared back. Then again. “Oh.”
Speechless was exactly what he’d hoped for and he leaned in to kiss her again, parting her lips and gently probing her tongue with his. Her entire body began to tremble and he sat on the bed to pull her close and tuck her against his body. “Are you cold, love?” He’d warm her. He was a raging inferno of heat.
“N-n-no,” she answered, trembling against him. “I’m just a bit nervous. This is so…” Her words trailed off.
He gave his head a slight shake. “There is no need to be nervous.” He settled her onto his lap, wrapping an arm tightly about her waist, the other hand returning to her cheek. “We don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do today. In fact, we don’t have to do anything at all. I only wish to hold you. Warm you. Show you,” he kissed her again, lightly and slowly, “that I am the man for you.”
She shivered again, her arms wrapping about his neck. “Oh.” Her eyes fluttered closed. “But I already knew you were the man for me.”
Possessive need rumbled deep in his gut at those words. “You did?”
She nodded.
He wasn’t surprised she’d known before him. He could be terribly thick that way. “This is why I need you. You’re clearly far better at understanding and talking about emotions than I am.”
She smiled and pressed against his chest, her fingers threading into his hair. “I don’t know about that.”
“I do,” he whispered, kissing her again. “But I promise to be a quick student.”
That made her grin against his lips. “All right then. I’m teaching you to trust in your feelings. What are you going to teach me?”
His insides clenched and his manhood, which was already hard as stone, turned to absolute granite. “I can think of a few things…”
He felt her heart speed up in her chest, its thrumming matching his own. “Oh,” she said on a gasp.
“Is that good or bad?” He began trailing kisses down her neck. He’d meant what he’d said. If all she wanted was to snuggle in his lap, he’d happily spend his day doing just that. He stroked a hand up her spine. But if she wanted more…
“Good,” she gasped. “There is so much I want the man I love to teach me.”
He stopped moving his hand, leaning back to look at her as he swallowed down the lump of emotion that had clogged his throat. “You love me?”
“I do,” she said, her gaze never wavering from his. “More than anything.”
He held her face in both his hands. “I love you too,” he answered. “I love you so much it frightened me. But I’m not scared anymore.”
“I’m not scared either,” she whispered right before his lips collided with hers again.
Chapter Fifteen
In her wildest dreams, Juliet had never imagined a more perfect moment than the one she was in.
Wrapped in Dane’s arms, all the worry had melted away. What was left was a certainty that she’d made the right choice, that she was loved and valuable. And it had all happened here, right in Seabridge Gate.
His lips found hers again as he kissed her like never before. The other kisses had been like small flames licking at her core but this one set her body to blaze. Desire thrummed through her as she ached for his touch.
And he delivered. His hands traced her back, her bottom, her legs, then her abdomen. They ran down her arms, laced through her fingers, then over her chest. When he cupped her breasts, she gasped and arched into the touch. She wanted al
l of it and she wanted it now.
She realized she was squirming in his lap, trying to move closer, trying to fit their bodies together.
“Juliet,” he ground out, his hands sliding down to her waist to still her movements. “Your first lesson is in patience.”
“Drat,” she murmured against his lips. “Patience has never been my strong suit.”
He chuckled against her lips. “What has been?”
She leaned back a little, puckering her lips. His gaze dropped to the flesh and she clearly noted the darkening of his irises. She darted out her tongue to lick at the swollen flesh and he made a growling sound deep in his throat. “Well.” She nibbled at her lip and he made another guttural noise starting to kiss along her jaw. Apparently, he liked when she worried her own lips. Noted. “I like to come up with a strategy for getting what I want.”
His hands tightened and for a moment she stilled, worried after Tiffany that Dane didn’t like this side of her. “Tell me, what is your…strategy right now?”
She smiled as his lips slid lower. “You like it when I lick my lips and…”
He rumbled again, his arms like bands of steel around her middle. “Damn right I do.”
She pressed her chest into his and moaned, dropping his face into the valley between her breasts. “And you like—”
“Juliet,” he cut her off. “I can’t wait to hear you detail our lovemaking. But today…right now…I need control.” He drew in a shaky breath. “And if you keep talking, I will lose all of it.”
That made her smile as surge of desire and, honestly, power surged through her. “And you like it when I talk.”
He let out a choking laugh. “I do. But stop. Or you’ll find yourself without your maidenhead in the middle of the afternoon.”
That should have frightened her but it didn’t. Not with him. She scrambled off his lap.
He grimaced, his eyes closing. “I’m sorry, love. I didn’t mean to worry you. I’ll be able to maintain—”
With a single whoosh, she grabbed the hem of her nightshift and pulled it over her head, allowing it to sail through the air and float to the ground, landing in a puddle of sunshine. “I’m not scared,” she said as she turned back to look at him, completely nude.
Romancing the Rake: Seven Regency Romances Page 36