“Too late!” He poured the water over her head. He wiped her eyes and rubbed into her hair. “Your hair is so long.” He added more soap, pulling it through to the ends of her tresses. “You’ve taught me something today, Lily. I never knew hair washing could be such an erotic experience.”
“No doubt you find something erotic in every experience, Your Grace,” Lily said, laughing.
He pushed her away slightly. “I don’t ever want you to call me that again. At least not when we’re alone.”
“I was only teasing.”
He gently pulled the suds through her hair and into the tub. “I love the way you say my name, Lily. I want to hear it all the time. Lean back now. I’m going to rinse your hair in the bath.”
He eased her down until her head was floating on the surface of the bath water. With one hand behind her back, steadying her, he rinsed the soap from her hair with the other. When the water was clouded with lather, he pulled her to him.
“Kiss me,” he said.
Lily slid against his chest as her mouth found his. Daniel’s arousal prodded against her as she straddled him, and she rubbed against it. Suddenly she couldn’t kiss him hard enough, deep enough. She let her tongue wander into the deep recesses of his mouth, exploring every hidden crevice while grinding her pulsing sex against his hardened shaft. He groaned as she teased and stroked. She was near climax when a knock on the door startled her. She broke the kiss and looked up, quivering.
“That’s just our lunch,” Daniel said gruffly. He pressed his mouth to her cheek. “I’ll make this up to you, I promise. Stay here. Don’t come out until I call you.” He left the tub, toweled himself off, and grabbed a dressing robe from a hook on the wall, closing the door of the bath chamber behind him.
Quietly Lily stepped out of the tub, smiling. What would Daniel do about his raging erection when he answered the door? No doubt the servants would act as if it were totally normal. For Daniel, it probably was totally normal. She wrapped herself in a dry towel, found another for her hair, and began wringing the moisture from it. It would never dry in time to meet Rose and the others for the afternoon. She would have to braid it wet and hope no one noticed.
Daniel opened the door and handed her a velvet dressing gown similar to the one he was wearing. “You look delectable in that towel, but I think you’ll be more comfortable in this.”
“I need to borrow a comb.” She dropped the towel and put on the robe. “If I let my hair dry like this, I’ll never get the snarls out.”
“Of course.” He grabbed a comb from a nearby shelf. “Here, allow me.”
“You don’t have to…”
“I want to. Your hair is beautiful, Lily.”
“My hair is wet, Daniel. Ouch!”
“Sorry, love. I’m not used to combing long hair.”
“All the more reason why you should let me do it.” She took the comb from him. “I’ll only be a minute.” She quickly finished and replaced the comb on the shelf. “Shall we?”
Lunch had been set on a table by the bay window. Lily sat down and looked out onto a spectacular view of the luncheon on the front and side lawn. “Lord, my mother and my sister are down there.”
“All the ladies are down there. It’s nearly one. They’ll be gathering for lunch and then for the lawn party afterward.”
“Gossiping and talking of other frivolous nonsense, of course.”
He filled a plate and handed it to her. “I hope you’re hungry.”
“Famished, actually. This looks delicious.” She speared a quail egg with her fork and popped it into her mouth. “It looks like a pleasant afternoon. I love April, especially when it’s warm like it is this year.”
“Do you ride?” Daniel asked. “It’s excellent weather for riding.”
“I love animals, and I’ve always wanted to ride more,” Lily said, “but I abhor riding sidesaddle. It’s dreadfully uncomfortable. I never really understood it, anyway, and frankly, now that I have a keener, shall we say, understanding, of male anatomy, it seems to me that men should ride sidesaddle and women astride.”
Daniel’s laughter rang out like holiday bells. “Lily, I can’t recall when I’ve had a more enjoyable time. I didn’t know it was possible to have this much fun with a woman outside the bedchamber.”
“We’re still in the bedchamber,” she said.
“You know what I mean. In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever relished a woman’s company more than I have today.”
“You flatter me, Daniel. You’d better watch out, or I’m liable to take you seriously.”
“I am serious.”