He knew she saw him and he didn’t bother calling out her name, just held his hand out in her direction. Fyre hesitated for a moment before walking toward him.
The carriage rumbled up and the footman got the door. Phillip walked her up and pointed for her to get in.
“I told you I would see you got home. Did you think I would allow you to walk at night?”
“I walk all the time at night.”
He took her hand, not giving her the chance to refuse him. She stepped into the carriage and brushed against him, showering him with a scent he’d not smelled before being around this woman. What it was, he didn’t know, but he did know he longed for more of it. On him. Everywhere.
At the last moment he remembered to have a maid come along. The last thing he wanted to do was ruin her reputation.
I mean, I want it ruined so she will be mine but I will not do it this way.
The coach rocked as he climbed in after the maid and sat across from the women, his back to the horses.
The maid was confused but she didn’t say a word. Fyre, however, watched him with suspicion. He didn’t blame her, for his wants for this woman were definitely not anything for the faint of heart.
He was a lot of things, but a right bastard wasn’t one of them. So he would wait. Bide his time. And wear her down, one tantalizing touch after another.
Then he would be sated from his irrational need for this woman he’d just met today.
God, if his friends could see him now. Rafe and Lucien wouldn’t believe this. He’d been the reckless one. The bastard who didn’t think of anyone else’s needs but his own. Hell, he’d nearly ruined Lucien’s happiness because he’d been an ass.
He was lucky they were still speaking to him.
However, as he got older and watched their families grow, it only emphasized how alone he was. Usually he would just find a mistress and slake his hunger. But the second he’d laid eyes on Fyre, something else had taken over. His craving for her had been much deeper than simplistic lust. He wanted to be hers. Have her be his. Make his the only touch she craved. The only one she experienced. He wanted to hover over her as she arched into his touch and gasped his name in pleasure. Fuck, he longed to see her swell with his child.
I am in so much trouble.
A fact that was only illustrated further when the driver stuck his head in to ask where they were going.
* * * *
“What happened?”
Fyre groaned and rolled over as her brother repeated his insistent question.
“Elonne, this is my one day to sleep past dawn and you are in here squawking like a chicken. Leave me alone.”
“I have a bucket of cold water and I will use it.”
Coming from her brother, it wasn’t an idle threat. With an exaggerated groan, she sat up in bed, rubbing her eyes.
“What is so important that it can’t wait until I have coffee?”
The rich, heady scent filled her nostrils and her mouth watered in response. This was a delicacy that she’d become addicted to and she jealously guarded what beans she was able to get her hands on.
“I did not state I only had cold water.”
She still didn’t open her eyes for her brother, just accepted the warm, chipped cup and inhaled the fragrance once more. It curled around her like the warmth of the sea around their home. At first sip, she purred and finally opened her eyes.
Elonne watched her, shaking his head with amusement. Yet she could see the concern in his gaze.
“Everything is fine, Elonne. I explained the system to him. I go back tomorrow and will see if I have lost that account. If so, I am sorry. I never meant for that to happen.”
He sat beside her on the narrow bed and nudged her with his shoulder. “It is my fault, Fyre. I should have taken better care in regards to the new owner of Hawk’s Cove. It would be a large account to lose, but I can find more work.”
She drank in silence for a while before digging her toes into the thick rug by her bed, made by Elonne’s wife.
“Albie would be a thought if needed.” While she wasn’t a fan of working for him more, she would do it.
“No.” Her brother’s single-word refusal said it all. “Stay away from him, Fyre. He is no good.”
“I have no interest in him in such a way, Elonne. I only mentioned it because he has asked me a few times to work on his books.” Her brother wasn’t going to be happy to learn she already had the man on her schedule.
“He is not thinking books when he looks at you, Fyre. And before you argue with me, the next time he offers, tell him I can fit him in. He will back off and say something about waiting for you.”