Cinders and Ashes (7 page)

Sebastian remained silent and reluctantly watched her leave.
It was only when the door closed behind her that he realised he had
told Amelia everything about his current circumstances, and what
had led him to her door; but had yet to learn Amelia’s
story.

What had
happened to enable her to live alone, in a tiny, ramshackle little
cottage? Ostensibly isolated from the background she had been born
to live in?

Making a
mental note to ensure he got the answers as soon as she returned,
Sebastian closed his weary eyes and slept.

“
Amelia!” Sebastian cursed roundly when she didn’t
twitch.

The room
was so cold he could see his breath fog out before him. Despite the
gnawing pain in his side, he gritted his teeth and drew himself
onto one elbow. Scowling across the room at the small bundle of
rags curled up in front of the now cold hearth, he cursed fluidly.
He was frozen even beneath the blankets. God knew how cold Amelia
was.

She was
lying upon the stone floor with little to protect her from the
elements but the thin dress she wore and a threadbare blanket. What
the hell did she think she was doing? Did she want to be ill? If he
was not much mistaken, she had given him all but one of the
blankets she owned.

“
Amelia!”
If she didn’t answer him
this time, he would bloody well get out of bed and get her,
he thought as he glared at her.

“
Amelia. For God’s sake, woman!” His bellow echoed off the
stone walls of the small, almost empty cottage. She still didn’t
move.

Fear
began to grow. Was she unwell? Had she fallen ill because she had
continued to go out into the storm to collect wood while being
exhausted and inadequately clothed?

Sebastian gritted his teeth and swung his legs over the side
of the bed. Immediately, the cold night air swept over his warm
flesh, snatching all remnants of warmth from his body with
relentless fervour, until he began to shiver.

His eyes
were locked on her as he lurched to his feet, dragging a thin
blanket around him to protect his modesty, and Amelia’s
blushes.

God, he
was so weak. He had spent at least two days lying on his back in
bed, and he had legs like a newborn foal. Shaking his head at his
own decrepit state, Sebastian shuffled over to the
hearth.

“
Amelia, darling, wake up for me.” His knew his voice was
almost pleading, but at that moment didn’t care. He needed her to
wake up and confirm she was alright. Fear tightened in his gut, as
he contemplated what he would do if she had become ill. She was too
precious to lose.

Shocked
by the depth of emotion that began to unfurl inside his chest,
Sebastian edged towards her.

“
Amelia. Darling, wake up.” His persistence was rewarded when
Amelia suddenly jerked, and moaned softly in discomfort.

“
Wake up for me, please?” Sebastian leant his hips against the
table for support. He knew that if he gave in to the urge to drop
to his knees before her, he probably wouldn’t have the strength to
get back up again. But he hated to see her lying on the cold, hard
floor. Curled up tight to protect herself and preserve what little
heat she had. His heart ached at her sacrifice.

Amelia
ached all over, and was so very tired she struggled to form any
thoughts, let alone move. So why was she awake? She was
contemplating getting her aching legs to uncurl when a rich,
masculine voice, so very close, snapped her awake.

“
If you don’t get up and off that floor this instant, I will
drag you up.” His voice brooked no argument.

It had
the desired effect upon Amelia, who suddenly jerked upright with a
wince as her cold, stiff muscles protested. She was shocked to find
him standing so close. Her cheeks flushed fiery red, as she took in
his near naked state, poorly covered by the thin blanket wrapped
haphazardly around his lean hips. It was the first time she had
seen him upright.

From her
lowly position on the floor, he was a huge tower of masculinity.
The broad expanse of his well-muscled chest was tantalisingly
close. Curling her fists into tight balls against the temptation,
she turned her face away, twisting around to look towards the cold,
empty grate beside her.

“
You asked for it,” Sebastian warned, seconds before his large
hands swept beneath her arms and she was swept to her
feet.

“
What are you doing?” she croaked with alarm, when she was
unceremoniously dragged upwards.

Sebastian moaned softly. Instinctively, she knew his low
groan wasn’t one of attraction. He began to sway and his hands
tightened almost painfully on her ribs as he fought the wave of
pain that engulfed him.

“
Now look what you have done,” she grumbled, wedging her
shoulder under his arm to stop him falling to the floor. She was
struck again by the sheer size and strength of him. The corded
muscles across his stomach rippled as he struggled to remain
upright.

“
Me?” Sebastian gasped, fighting the blackness that threatened
to engulf him. “It was your fault,” he accused, with a dark scowl
on his handsome face.

“
My fault?” Amelia gasped. Her senses reeled as she craned her
neck to look up at him. “What did I do?” She was about to remind
him that she had been soundly asleep before he had rudely awoken
her, only for him to beat her to it.

“
You were asleep on the bloody floor again,” he grumbled. He
shouldn’t be using coarse language in front of a lady, even an
impoverished one. But the sight of her in such dire circumstance
irked his temper. He had to fight to withhold the words he really
wanted to use.

Amelia
harrumphed, and shook her head. “I can’t sleep in the chair, I told
you.” She scowled up at him, trying to ignore just how much his
masculine presence disturbed her.

“
It goes against everything I am, to see you lying upon the
floor. You have my word of honour as a gentleman, that I pose no
threat to you Amelia. Please, for my sanity, get some sleep on the
bed.”

Sebastian’s fingers tingled with the urge to slide into the
frothing mass of riotous curls that cascaded in silken glory past
her shoulders. He ached to discover for himself if it really was as
soft as it appeared, and shifted restlessly as his body immediately
began to respond to her closeness. She didn’t seem to be too
shocked at his lack of clothing, but nonetheless he had no
intention of showing her just how attracted to her he really was.
Not until she was ready.

Despite
the physical reaction to being so close to her, Sebastian couldn’t
resist the urge to touch her, and tenderly trailed a blunt
fingertip down her alabaster cheek. The smudges under her eyes were
darker than ever before. Faint lines around her mouth, and redness
clouding her eyes, highlighted just how exhausted she really
was.

“
You cannot sleep on the floor Amelia,” Sebastian persisted
softly, sensing her reluctance. “It is positively dangerous to your
health. Trust me, I beg of you.” He motioned down his tempting
length, now propped against the table. “Look, I barely made it over
to the table. I promise that I pose you no threat.”

He
mentally sent a prayer heavenwards for that small fib. In reality,
he didn’t pose any threat to her physical wellbeing. Not really. If
she was agreeable to everything he had planned for her; for them;
then she would be very happy with her future
arrangements.

As it
was, in their current situation, she would probably not be
agreeable to what he was about to suggest. Nonetheless the warrior
within him refused to back down from a fight. The gentleman within
him refused to allow her to return to the hearth.

“
Come on.” He took hold of her cold fingers in his hand and
tugged, refusing to let go when she would have pulled free. She had
no choice but to follow in his wake, as he staggered back towards
the bed.

Inwardly, she was relieved he had turned his back at last. He
might not mind his half-naked state, but she was more than a little
perturbed at the sight of his manly chest so blatantly displayed.
It had taken all of her willpower not to blatantly stare at the
ripples of smooth muscle running down his chest, to
the….

Abruptly
shaking her head, Amelia snapped out of her wayward thoughts when
she found herself being drawn down to sit on the bed.

“
I am not sleeping here,” she announced, confused by the
conflicting need to run out of the door, and curl up beside him
without question.

She
might be impoverished. She might not have a protector or guardian,
but she wasn’t a harlot who would sleep with any man who dropped on
her doorstep.

She was
about to inform Sebastian of that, only for him to sigh deeply and
announce,

“
You most certainly are. It is only just dawn, and there is at
least another hour before you are usually up and about. Even if the
weather does abate enough for you to go out and go out again and
gather more wood, which by the sounds of the howling winds it
won’t, there is more than enough time for you to get some sleep. In
bed, where you will be nice and warm.” He could sense her argument,
and mentally cursed her for her stubbornness. Sighing deeply, he
tugged her down onto the bed, wincing as her bony elbow struck
inadvertently his aching ribs.

“
You get up, and I will damned well tie you down,” he
threatened, lying back as far against the wall as
possible.

“
I need to go out and check on Sir Hubert today,” Amelia
replied reluctantly, listening to the ferocious winds rattling the
windows.

Sebastian froze. “Sir Hubert?” A dark scowl settled over his
face as he waited.

“
My boss.”

Sebastian looked down at her, not liking the strength of
emotion that swept through him.

Amelia
tipped her head backwards to peer up at him. “I’m his
housekeeper.”

“
Can’t he take care of himself for a while?” Sebastian asked
with disgust.

Amelia
shook her head. “He’s elderly and isn’t able to get around much.
Although he has food, he will be struggling to manage by
himself.”

Sebastian sighed deeply, wondering if he should go and see
this Sir Hubert for himself, and assess just how old he
was.

“
Does he live far away?”

“
Just through the trees,” Amelia replied, smothering a
yawn.

“
Go to sleep,” he ordered softly, trying hard to resist the
urge to kiss the top of her head.

After
several moments of silence, she began to squirm.

“
For God’s sake, woman!” Sebastian half-shouted, holding
Amelia’s hands still with a curse. “What the hell do you think I am
going to do to you? I don’t even have the strength to walk across
this tiny room in a straight line. Besides which, I don’t force
reluctant virgins!”

His bold
statement made her freeze with embarrassment. Relieved that she had
at least subsided for now, he found himself a comfortable spot and
tried to leave as much of the remainder of the tiny bed for Amelia
to settle in. Which, if he was honest, wasn’t much.

Although
she now lay still, he could sense her hesitation. “Get out of this
bed before the hour is up, and I swear to God I will tie you to
it.” His dire threat made her stare at him indecisively.

Did he mean it?

Amelia
was wracked with indecision. She knew he posed no threat to her,
yet still was loathe to allow him so close. If she did lie on the
bed with him - just lie and nothing else, how could she sleep on
the bed when he was gone?

Her eyes
met and held his briefly, and she was struck by the warning glint
in his eye. She had no doubt he would indeed tie her to the
bed.

“
I am perfectly fine on the floor,” she muttered, reluctantly
settling down beside him.
If she had to
lie upon the bed, then she would keep her clothes on, thank you
very much.
She huffed silently, trying to
ignore the warm bulk of masculinity beside her.

“
You will be ill if you lie on that floor any more. Unless I
am very mistaken, you have given me all but the thinnest of your
blankets.” Sebastian’s tone was purposefully brusque. Inwardly, he
was relieved at his small measure of success and wondered how she
would take his next move.

Amelia
knew she would not get a wink of sleep. Not with him being so
close, and the vision of his naked body so vivid in her mind.
Careful to keep her back straight and her body away from his,
Amelia reluctantly did as she was instructed and settled down on
the wonderfully soft bedding.

She had really missed this bed
, she
mused, issuing a squeak of surprise when she was suddenly encased
in warm blankets and strong arms.

“
Erm…...” Her instinctive protest was weakened considerably by
the sudden heat that swept over her cold flesh.

“
Go to sleep, Amelia.”

She
shivered as his soft voice floated across her ear, so tantalizingly
close. Minutes ticked by as she lay frozen in his arms, until
gradually the warmth and the comfort of his embrace began to work
its magic, and she relaxed against him.