Bewitching Kisses (Bewitching Kisses Series) (14 page)

“I can understand why you would want to come here. Oh look,” Sarah whispered. Eyes wide with excitement, she extended her arm toward a shadowy glen where a doe stood guard while her wobbly fawn approached the stream to drink. For a long moment all was still and then the doe turned in their direction and froze. Sarah watched with disappointment as mother and baby quickly darted back into the bushes.

“I thought we would eat here.” Nick descended from the carriage, then reached back to help her down.

Sarah tried to stem the trembling that intensified each time he touched her, but to no avail. Feeling her cheeks grow warm with color, she turned away. “I must confess I’ve never been on a picnic before, so I’m not sure what you want me to do.” She continued to study the water intently.

Nick smiled at her stiff back and reached into the carriage for the blanket and one of the many hampers Mrs. Hempsted had prepared. “Do you mean to tell me that you never had a gentleman call on you before?”

Startled, Sarah spun about to find Nick spreading the blanket at the base of a pecan tree. Did this event mean he was courting her? Her mind whirled.
It can’t be
, reason argued. “
I’m going home soon.
“Are you teasing me?” she challenged.

Nick said nothing, but his smile was slow and lazy.

She fought back a surge of excitement and watched silently as he opened the food hamper. He extracted two delicate crystal goblets, then filled each one with wine and extended a glass. Their eyes met; his warm and full of invitation, hers wary and unsure. She accepted the offered glass and then sank to her knees on the corner of the blanket. Nick leaned back to lie on his side. He touched his glass to hers and then, never taking his eyes from her, took a deep drink.

Sarah raised the glass to her lips and wondered why her chest had grown so tight. She welcomed the mellow bite of the wine, but her hand trembled.

“I’m glad you’re here with me.” Nick kept her eyes trapped with his own.

Sarah blinked, but found she could not look away. “Why?” she stammered.

Nick’s smile deepened as he watched the sun play over her creamy complexion revealing all too clearly the glowing innocence in her eyes. She wasn’t searching for compliments, he realized, and briefly he wondered if even in childhood he had ever been that innocent, that naïve.

“I wanted to be alone with you,” he said finally. “You’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen and I want to spend some time with you.”

Sarah felt her heart begin to pound, sending riotous color to her cheeks. Her wildest dream was coming true, and she didn’t have the vaguest clue as to what to do next.

“You’ve the most enchanting smile,” he continued. “Your eyes sparkle like precious gems and your lips invite a man to taste their sweetness.”

Now she did respond, and her laughter rang out sweet and full and tinged with relief. “Now I know you are teasing,” she chuckled.

Nick watched her intently as she finished her wine. She wasn’t flirting, returning his love talk with clever lines as he was accustomed. And it suddenly dawned on him that she really believed he was teasing. His smile vanished completely as he sat up. He plucked the empty glass from her fingers and edged closer. For a long moment they sat knee to knee in silence, and Nick wondered how she’d react if he simply pulled her to the ground and covered her with his body.

For Sarah the silence was anything but comfortable. Don’t expect too much from me, his eyes seemed to warn, even while they hinted at the ecstasy of the unknown.

His hand reached forward tracing the smoothness of her cheek and her eyes fluttered closed.

“Open your eyes, Sarah.” His breath fanned her face even as his finger outlined the contours of her mouth.

Sarah struggled to obey his commend. He was so close she could smell the soap he used for shaving, and suddenly she wanted to reach up and place her palm against his smooth cheek. She felt so queer, sleepy and excited at the same time.

As his finger caressed her full bottom lip, new sensations invaded her body. She wanted to close her eyes and bask in the warmth he was creating, but his gaze held hers captive. His hand moved to her eyes, stroking the delicate slant of each brow.

“You’re so beautiful,” he whispered, his breath warm against her face. “You have eyes that can look beyond and capture a man’s soul.”

For an instant, panic filled her. She didn’t want to capture anyone’s soul. But her body was mesmerized by his touch and his eyes refused to let her look away.

Nick saw her anxiety and leaned forward to press a kiss against her hot cheek. He reveled in the taste of her and, as his senses heightened, he realized she would be even more intoxicating as a lover than he had first thought. His fingertips threaded through the silky softness of her hair, knocking her small lace cap to the ground. He caressed the edge of her ear, then his fingers skimmed back to her face leaving fiery traces in their wake.

Still holding her eyes captive, Nick let his finger wander down her cheek to her throat. He felt her pulse leap frantically at the base of her neck and his finger continued its journey. Her eyes grew wide as his hand slowly moved from neck to shoulder and then lower. Her breath quickened, but like a small animal caught in a trap, she couldn’t move, and the thought to simply say
Stop
or to push his hand away never entered her mind.

Slowly, ever so slowly, she felt his finger continue its lazy pattern, each time inching lower, each time retreating until frustration and desire raced through her veins.

“Please,” she whispered.

His smile deepened and the promise in his eyes intensified. “Please what?” he teased. “Please stop?” His finger moved back up toward her shoulder. “Or please continue?” This time when his hand dipped lower, it found its goal. Slowly, purposefully, his finger circled her feminine peak, and when his thumb brushed over her hardened nipple, Sarah felt an arrow of exquisite desire akin to pain shoot through her. Her eyes fluttered closed, and deep within her soul her womanhood blossomed for the first time. She felt the warm damp rush as his hand closed over her breast and his lips began to feast on her neck.

“Say my name,” he commanded as his teeth raked down her throat. “You always call me Mr. Beaumont.” His hand moved to her other breast, finding the tip hard and aching for his touch. “I want to taste my name on your lips.”

Sarah struggled to find her wits, but as his mouth hovered a breath above hers, their eyes again met in passion. “Nicholas,” she whispered. “Nicholas Beaumont.”

He took possession then, his lips moving purposefully over hers. His tongue traced the contours of her mouth and then urged her lips to part. She tasted of wine and passion and madness, and he drank to quench an insatiable thirst. A small sound, perhaps a sigh, escaped their lips and Nick took the kiss deeper. Like a starving man presented with a banquet, like a pauper presented with wealth, there was a strange desperation stirring within him. And suddenly he realized that no matter how much he took he would never have enough of her.

Slowly raising his head, he studied her upturned face. Her eyes were closed, her thick lashes dark streaks across her pale skin, skin that glowed with the luster of satin. He could feel the frantic pounding of her heart beneath his hand. Then her eyes fluttered open, and in their smoky violet depths he found what he had created; yearning, desire, confusion. But in the fleeting instant before her eyes closed again, Nick saw the innocence that was the very core of her being.

She was his now, he knew from the way her body arched toward him. But the triumph was missing, replaced instead with an aching desire to cherish and protect. His hand was unsteady as it rose to brush a stray curl from her heated face.
Why am I dong this
? His conscience picked at his brain.
Have I become so jaded with easy women that now I am reduced to seducing innocents?
The honeyed taste in his mouth turned suddenly bitter.

Sarah felt Nick’s withdrawal and her eyes flew open. One minute he had been tempting the very soul from her body and now he sat on the opposite end of the blanket. Her passion-laden eyes filled with confusion as she watched him set out the dishes Mrs. Hempsted had prepared. What had happened? What had she done? Her tongue touched lips that were suddenly parched.

Nick looked up and took her gaze like a kick to the stomach.
You don’t know what you ask for, my sweet,
he thought silently.
There’s nothing I’d like more than to lose myself within your honeyed sweetness, but you’re worth so much more. Much, much more than I could ever give you.

“Are you hungry?” He kept his tone light and forced a smile.

Sarah straightened and felt the heat in her veins turn to ice. How could he sit there and act so calm when her heart still threatened to leap from her chest? He refilled her wineglass and extended the offering, but as their fingers brushed, Nick instantly withdrew.

Insight dawned with painful clarity.
I’ve disgusted him
. Sarah fought back the tremors that started deep within her soul.
I let him touch me and never uttered a protest
. Her breast still throbbed with unsated desire and her mortification grew.

Nick filled a plate with the tasty delicacies and handed it to her. This time Sarah was aware of the subtle way he kept their fingers from touching and her eyes grew hot and stingy. Her hands tightly gripped the china plate as she fought for control of her senses. With eyes huge and wary, she watched Nick fill his own plate and then turn his gaze toward the stream as he began to eat.
He doesn’t even want to look at me
. She felt the tears gather but blinked them away. She’d not shame herself further by crying.

With slow deliberate movements she speared a stem of asparagus and carefully placed it in her mouth. The vegetable turned into a huge chunk of wood as she struggled to chew.

“So,” he said finally, keeping his eyes fixed on the stream before them. “Do you plan to marry when you return home?”

Sarah felt the few bites she had managed to swallow threaten to come up, and desperately she struggled for composure. Her hand pressed hard against her stomach to quell its churning. With quiet dignity she set her plate aside.
If I mean nothing to him, then he’ll mean nothing to me
. She thought, wondering how long it would take her brain to convince her heart of the rightness of her decision.

Her eyes settled on the sparkling water, and it was easy to blame the sun’s glare for the tears that gathered but refused to fall. “I think that it shall be my fate to remain a spinster,” she said quietly. “In Salem, marriages are rarely completed without a dowry.”

Frowning, Nick turned to face her. “What of the land you spoke of? Surely there is someone who would profit from its acquisition and as such would take you to wife.”

Sarah shook her head, but refused to meet his gaze. She’d not give him the satisfaction of knowing her heart was being torn asunder. “I’ve never wanted the land, and its ownership has caused me nothing but heartache.” She managed to keep her voice calm and sure. “My stepbrother Samuel covets that ground and so I’ve come to the conclusion it must be his. He and Elizabeth will put it to good use.” For several moments she remained silent, her hands clenched tightly in her lap. “Samuel has never come right out and asked me, you realize, but in my heart I know this will bring him peace.”

“That land was meant as a gift for your husband,” Nick argued, uneasy with the quiet determination of her voice.

“That is not to be.”

“You could still take a husband.” Nick leaned forward. “Remember, I promised to settle five hundred pounds on you when I return you to your home.”

“I can’t take your money.” Her eyes grew dark from the insult of his words. Did he really think his coin could ease the burden of their parting?

Nick smiled. “But you must. It is the answer to your needs, and I would think a very tempting dowry indeed.” He watched her delicate brow arch in dispute. “Just consider it a gift,” he added quickly. “A gift from me to you for services rendered.”

Sarah felt the pain of his words slice through her like a cut that for a heartbeat refuses to bleed. He considered her a harlot, a woman with no pride, someone to be paid for her favors.

“Surely,” Nick continued, “there is some gentleman who you would consider.”

Sarah shook her head, determined he would never know the source of her pain.“There was a man once . . .” Her words were soft and strained. “I imagined myself his wife and cared for him greatly in my mind . . . but he did not return my feelings.” She looked up and found Nick’s eyes cold and angry. Not understanding why, she shrugged her shoulders and then stared down at herhands. “I could never be married and know that my heart would always belong to another.”

Nick frowned at her quiet stance. Had she been thinking of someone else when their lips had met? Had she allowed his caress so she could pretend it belonged to another? He looked down at his plate and had the sudden wish to throw it, food and all, into the river.

“Mr. Beaumont,” her voice stammered.