A Soldier’s Heart(17)

“What do you love about me?” The huskiness caused her to whisper.

A thrill of enticing fear shook her as he brushed each of her eyelids with his lips.

“I love the goodness shining out of your eyes,” he whispered. He trailed a finger down her cheek. “I love your perfect nose.”

A shy rapture made her heart pound against her ribs as his finger traced her mouth.

“I love the very proper words coming out of these cherry lips. I love the way you chew just here when you’re considering the proper way of things.”

Suddenly the tip of his tongue replaced his finger on her often-abused lower lip. “Quite simply, Serena, I love everything about you.”

“I believe”—her voice shook slightly—“that is enough for now.”

Finally their lips met, and sweetly they tasted one another. Shifting his arm, he eased her closer so her body came in contact with every inch of his. Without words he held her until her tense limbs slowly yielded. Only then did he continue brushing her lips in feathery kisses which left her wishing for deeper contact. With a sigh he acquiesced, his lips parting hers, tenderly probing, filling her with exquisite longings hitherto unknown.

Like a wonderful dream, she could do naught but flow with his magic and follow his tender encouragements. Wrapped in his arms, suffused with new, exquisite sensations, at last, she fell asleep.

When the embers in the fireplace were nothing but a faint glow in the darkness he reached for her again. Joyfully she went into his arms.

If the books Buckle had provided and the excitement of London had stirred new emotions in Serena, Blackwood carried her to a magical place where the contentment of her past life became a pale, faded image. Contentedly resting her cheek against his warm bare chest, she almost forced her weighted lids open at hearing an unfamiliar voice, but Blackwood reassured her with a quiet whisper. So she sank deeper into him, refusing to wake from her dream. She was safe now. Nothing, ever, could take this away from her.





The Separation





1813



Sometime during the night they shifted position: Serena was no longer resting her cheek against Blackwood’s chest, nor could she hear the strong, even beats of his heart. But she could hear his voice repeating her name over and over again. To respond she must brush aside the cobwebs of sleep and open her eyes.

He was sitting beside her on the edge of the bed; but with a jolt that brought her fully awake, she realized he was already in traveling clothes.

“Oh, no, I’ve overslept! You’re ready to leave for our bridal trip to Avalon Landing.” Struggling up from the pillows, she pushed strands of loose curls off her face. “I shall be ready in a trice, I promise.”

“Sweetheart, I have bad news.” His now familiar and dear whimsical smile didn’t quite reach his dark eyes. “Orders arrived unexpectedly last night from the War Office. I must return to my regiment immediately.”

Still dazed with sleep, it took a few seconds for the full impact of his words to sink in. “You are leaving now?” The question came out in a breathless little whisper. Last night she had with eager hands let go of the past to joyfully embrace the future; now it was ending with hardly more than a beginning.

Biting her lower lip, she felt tears wash her eyes—Blackwood’s stricken face wavered through a watery haze.

“Sweetheart!” He crushed her against his chest, holding her in the strong arms she’d so very recently come to know. “I’m sorry about the Landing. You’d love it there! But I must return to my duties.”

Rubbing her cheek against the rough wool of his jacket, she gave a small hiccup. “I know. But I thought we’d have time to become better acquainted, as we started to last night. I was quite looking forward to it.”

“The things you say,” he chuckled into her ear, placing a kiss there. “I wished the same, sweetheart. But it’s not to be.” Shifting long fingers through her curls, he settled them around her throat and with gentle thumbs tilted her face up so she was gazing into his face, his eyes deep and fathomless.

“Remember I leave my heart here in your keeping.”

“And you take mine with you,” she whispered, trembling with the emotions his words evoked. She closed her eyes and swayed against him. With a sigh of relief she felt his lips press hers and she clung to him as if she could not get close enough. Her lips burned against his, urgently wanting to leave a mark there so she could not be forgotten in the months ahead.

He pulled away first to cup her tearstained face with long fingers, his mesmerizing eyes searching her every feature. “I want to remember you just as you are now. Sweet, perfect Serena. Promise me you’ll never change. That when we’re reunited everything will be just as it is at this moment.”