“That won’t be necessary, Tilly. I’ll see to the countess’ needs tonight.” He flashed a smile at the girl that had the maid blushing and stammering. “You’ve had an ordeal the same as Lady Hadleigh. Please take the remainder of the night off and find some rest.”
“Thank you, my lord.” After she’d executed a curtsy, the girl fled.
Andrew looked at Sarah. His eyes were more blue than gray in the flickering candlelight. “Would you like me to comb your hair?” He roved his gaze up and down her person while she cinched the dressing gown’s tie at her waist. “I’ve never seen it down before.”
Tingles danced along her spine. “I’d like that.”
Wordlessly, he moved into the dressing room. When he returned, he held the silver, ivory-handled comb in one hand. He crossed the room to stand behind her, and as he began to draw the teeth of the comb through her hair, working out the tangles with a gentle hand as if he’d spent a lifetime doing so, a shuddering sigh escaped her.
There was something both erotic and relaxing about having a man pamper her. Awareness of him rippled over her skin, and she shivered.
“Are you cold? Still suffering from reaction?” His warm, clove-scented breath skated over her cheek. Had he brushed his teeth before joining her?
“No. It’s you.” There was no sense in denying that she was besotted by her husband, for it was bound to come out in the next few weeks.
“Good.” Andrew continued to comb her hair until all the tangles and snags had worked loose and the damp tresses fell down her back in smooth waves. “So much like gold it’s unbelievable.” He tossed the comb onto the foot of the bed and then moved the mass of her hair over one of her shoulders. “I’m in awe of you.” When he pressed his lips to her nape, another shiver racked her body. “And you wore the emeralds.”
“You said I always should.” She pushed her spectacles back into place. “I’m nothing special.” His words sank into her heart infusing it with joy.
“Oh, but you’re wrong.” He moved to stand in front of her, his eyes intense, dark with desire and shining with the deeper emotion of love. “To me, you are everything.” He drew his fingertips along the curve of her cheek and his hand shook. “You peered into the soul of this Storme and found something I had no idea was worth saving.”
Tears pricked the backs of her eyelids. “I knew what you could be, built upon who you are. That’s all.” Did every woman feel cherished and safe when a man finally realized he was in love with them?
Surprising her further, her husband dropped to his knees on the Aubusson carpeting. He held her hips in his hands, but he laid pressed his lips to her belly. As he stared up at her, he asked, “Is it true, what you let slip out there?”
“I think so.” Sarah finger-combed his still-damp hair. The threads of silver glimmered in the low light. “It’s too early to have a midwife confirm, of course, but I missed my menses last week, and that never happens with me.” Another shiver raced down her spine, anticipation for everything she’d ever wanted culminating within her blood. “I don’t want to hope in the event I’m wrong or nature takes its course, but…”
“It’s a bloody miracle. You’re my hope, Sarah, my salvation, and I promise to try every damn day to be worthy of you.”
A tear fell to her cheek. “You are, right now, as the man I see here.” The change was noticeable, in his expression, his eyes, his attitude, how he acted, and it stole her breath. “I’m so proud of you, so glad it was you who ran me off the road that day.”
“When you gave me the biggest dressing down of my life?” They shared a chuckle and he tugged at the sash of her gown. “With that one meeting, I set my feet on the path I’d need to walk, for it would lead to you and a life I had no idea I wanted.”
She sucked in a breath as her robe gaped open and the relative coolness of the room wafted over her skin. “When did you turn into a romantic?” How was she supposed to think when his hands were beneath her robe and gliding over her bare legs?
“You bring out the softer side of me.” A wicked gleam popped in his eyes. “I’m going to show you right now how much I adore you.”
As her robe slipped from her shoulders to pool at her feet, Sarah smiled. “I can’t wait.”