The Rakehell Regency Romance Collection Volume 2(338)

"Plenty of time for packing later. Right now I want you to let me love you all over again."



She tried to step towards the bed but he shook his head. "Right here. Right now," he said, positioning her in front of the mirror and moving to press into her throbbing feminine core.



Her blue-violet eyes sparked in answer. "Well, since you put it so nicely, how can I possibly refuse?"





The next morning, Blake recalled with delight the thrilling night they had shared, and had actually hoped that he could convince her to defer their trip once more.



She could see what he was trying to do. Much as she adored his methods for distracting her, she knew the time had come for them to go back and face whatever fears haunted them both.



Blake felt terribly gloomy as they neared their destination. But they were welcomed so warmly by the Jeromes that he could not help but smile back at each of the family and return their hugs and kisses.



He felt as though he were poised on a knife edge as he walked into the house.



But Arabella, on the other hand, seemed completely calm and unflustered, so that he allowed himself to relax.



He immediately tensed again like a cobra about to strike, however, when he discovered that both Adam and Oliver were in the drawing room, and indeed, had been paying court to Ellen and Georgina in their absence.



Was he imagining things, or did the brothers pay special attention to Arabella and inquire after her health more than once?



Arabella was calm as always, and did not seem to react to her cousins or the house in any particular way. She enjoyed everyone's company, and only Blake seemed to be uneasy.



He began to dread going up to their old chamber as the evening progressed. It would only serve to remind him…



She nudged him with her foot. "I said, darling, it was a long trip, so I'm sure no one will mind if we retire early."



"What, oh, er, no."



Adam seethed and Blake looked at him once more. Surely he wouldn't have dared…. But someone had attacked his wife. Adam and Oliver would bear watching. If anyone had had a reason to be furious it was them.



Of course, it could have been Martin or Samuel. There was certainly something very wrong with the grim-faced, silver-eyed Martin. Something terrifying within him which defied explanation.



Or it could just have been some madman, a passing vagabond perhaps?



He looked at Adam and Oliver again. Surely neither could be the kind of fiend who could have done something so heinous to Arabella?



He cursed his own stupidity, suddenly feeling danger all around him. He should never have allowed her to convince him to return here. It could only spell disaster for them both.



He took his wife's arm and went upstairs. He decided to write to Antony Herriot at the clinic again in the morning and check with the local authorities. Perhaps that string of attacks and deaths so close to he and Arabella in London and now in this district had not been so random after all.



"Are you coming to bed?" she asked impatiently as he checked that the door was locked for the tenth time.



"Oh, er, yes. The wind is picking up. It's made me a bit unsettled."



But being back in their old room they had shared so passionately before their wedding had prompted a few pleasant memories for him too.



Banishing his unease, he stripped off his clothes with a grin. Blake got into bed beside her, sitting on the mattress facing her. He held up on index finger in front of him, and licked it.



"Darling, what on earth are you doing? There's no draft. All the windows are shut."



"You once said to me I could set you on fire with only one finger. So thought it might be fun to try."



She giggled happily and reclined on the bed in her most seductive pose.



"You must have been raised in a harem."



"No, I grew up in your bed though. I became a woman."



"Technically it was your bed, but forever after, it shall be ours. Now just lie back and see if I succeed."



"Only if you let me try afterwards."



"Whatever you want, my darling, so long as you're happy."



"I am."



"Please God you stay that way."



She gazed at his close-off expression, the granite one having suddenly reappeared with their return to Jerome Manor. "You're not still worried about your meeting at Horse Guards, are you?"



"Of course I am. I couldn't bear being parted from you now," he said, the pain evident in his tone.



She grasped his thigh and squeezed. "You mustn't let your morbid fears get the better of you. It will all be fine."



"You're always the light in my darkness," he said as he trailed his single finger along each nipple, then down to her navel.