A Passion For Him Part 13

Fortuitously for her but unfortunate for him, his driver had chosen to travel along the very street she and Maria traversed in their search for him.

"Maria," she said urgently, afraid to tear her gaze away for fear she would lose sight of him.

"Hmm?" her sister hummed distractedly. "I see masks in the display here."

Before Amelia could protest, Maria slipped into the nearest store, the merry chiming of bells heralding her departure.

A mult.i.tude of pedestrians milled around them, though many steered clear due to Tim, who towered over everyone and guarded his charges with an eagle eye.

"Tim." Amelia lifted her hand and pointed at the carriage, which continued to move farther away. "Montoya is in that black travel coach. We must move swiftly or we shall lose him."

The sensation of something precious sifting through her fingers caused a sort of anxiety she had never felt before. She grabbed her skirtsand followed at a near run.

A hackney discharged its pa.s.sengers a few yards up the street. Amelia hurried toward it with one hand lifted in a frantic wave.

Realizing her intent, Tim cursed under his breath, grabbed her elbow, and dragged her along. "Halt!" he roared as the driver raised his whip.

The man turned his head and froze at the sight of Tim. Swallowing hard, he nodded. When they reached the coach, Tim yanked the door open and thrust her up into it. He looked at the two lackeys who followed them. "Go back with the others and find Mrs. St. John. Tell her what happened."

Sam, a red-haired man who had been in St. John's employ for years, gave a jerky nod. "Aye. Be careful."

Tim lunged into the coach, forcing Amelia back into the interior. "I don't like this," he said gruffly.

"Hurry!" she urged. "You can chastise me on the way."

He glowered and cursed again, then yelled instructions to the driver.

The hackney lurched into motion, pulling away from the milling pedestrians and into the traffic of the street.

The doorbells were still chiming when Maria came to an abrupt halt just inside the door of the shop.

A tall, elegantly attired gentleman blocked her way to the deeper interior. At his side, a lovely blonde was wearing the very latest in French fas.h.i.+on. Maria's gaze moved from one to the other, noting what a handsome couple they made.

"Simon!" Maria gaped in startled recognition.

"Mhuirnin." As he captured her hand and lifted it to his lips, the tender affection in the beloved voice was palpable. "You look ravis.h.i.+ng, as always."

Simon Quinn stood before her looking more sinfully delicious than any man had a right to. Dressed in buff-colored breeches and a dark green coat, his powerful frame drew the eye of every woman within viewing distance. He bore the form of a laborer, while clad in superbly tailored garments fit for the king himself.

"I was not aware that you had returned to London," she chastised gently. "And I admit I am more than slightly piqued that you did not seek me out immediately."

The Frenchwoman smiled a smile that never reached her cold, blue eyes. "Quinn..." She shook her head, setting the festive ribbons that adorned it to swaying. "I t appears your poor treatment of women is an unfortunate recurring trait in you."

"Hush," he snapped.

Maria frowned, unaccustomed to Simon being curt to lovely females.

The bells chimed again, and she attempted to step out of the way when her arm was caught by a grasping hand. Taken aback, she pivoted in a swirl of deep rose-colored skirts and found Sam looking far too anxious beside her.

"Miss Amelia saw 'is coach," the lackey blurted out, "and ran after 'im. Tim's with 'er, but-"

"Amelia?" I t was then that Maria realized her sister was not beside her. She rushed back out the door and onto the crowded street.

"There," Sam said, pointing at a hackney moving down the street.

"She saw Montoya?" Maria asked, her gut knotting with apprehension. Lifting her skirts, she pushed her way through the milling pedestrians.

Simon and the blonde came fast on her heels, and more of St. John's men barreled through directly after them. They were causing somewhat of a melee, but she did not care. Reaching Amelia was her only concern.

When it became apparent that there was no hope of catching up to them on foot, she stopped. "I need my carriage."

"I sent for it," Sam a.s.sured from his position at her side.

"Seek out St. John and explain." Her mind rushed ahead, planning out the possibilities of the next few hours. "I will take the rest of the men with me. Once we find Amelia, someone will be sent back with our direction."

Sam nodded his agreement and departed to collect his mount.

"What the devil is going on?" Simon asked, a frown marring the s.p.a.ce between his brilliant blue eyes. The blonde, for her part, looked only vaguely interested.

Maria sighed. "My sister has become enamored of a masked stranger she met at a ball several nights ago, and she is chasing him."

The sudden tension that gripped Simon's frame increased her anxiety. I f he sensed some danger from the situation, she knew it must bemore than worry for a sibling that drove her.

"I have been fretting over it ever since," she continued, "but she cannot be swayed. I attempted to reason with her, but she is determined to find him. As is St. John. I offered to a.s.sist Amelia in her search as a way to control at least a part of the whole affair, but apparently she spotted him on the street a few moments ago and is now giving chase."

"Good G.o.d!" Simon cried, eyes wide.

"Oh, this is delightful!" Miss Rousseau said, her eyes finally showing some signs of life.

"I will come with you," Simon said briskly, gesturing to his footman who waited nearby. The boy rushed off to fetch Simon's carriage.

"You do not have to become involved," Maria said, heaving out her breath. "You are presently engaged. Enjoy your day."

"You are upset, mhuirnin. And perhaps I can help. We were on our way out of Town for holiday, as it was. Miss Rousseau does not mind the alteration of our destination."

"No, no indeed," the Frenchwoman said, smiling. "In fact, I should like to come along. Foolish young lovers are always so diverting."

Simon growled, the sound so edgy that Maria reconsidered her continuing protests and held her silence instead. Simon had been her lieutenant for many years, and his a.s.sistance would be tremendously valuable. Whatever the situation was between him and Miss Rousseau, it was for them alone to work out. She had enough trouble of her own to manage.

I t was a few moments longer before the gleam of highly polished black lacquer heralded the approach of the St. John town coach. Maria hoped that the distance to be traveled was not one that would need the st.u.r.dier travel carriage.

Simon's equipage drew up behind hers, and with laudable haste they were all in hot pursuit.

Colin vaulted down from his travel coach with relief, his long legs cramped from the many hours spent traveling from London to the small posting inn just past Reading. He stood in the courtyard a moment and surveyed his moonlit surroundings. Jacques alighted behind him, and together they entered the inn to secure their lodging for the night.

The dim interior was quiet. Only a few patrons remained in the main room; the rest had retired. The necessary arrangements were quickly dealt with, and shortly, Colin found himself in a small, spa.r.s.ely furnished room that was clean and comfortable.

As soon as he was alone, melancholy descended in a cold, weighty mantle. He was a day's ride away from Amelia, with the morrow bringing even more distance between them. Frustrated by the progression of events, he prayed sleep would offer him a brief respite, but after years of dreaming of Amelia, he did not hold out much hope.

He was reaching to close the curtains when the door opened behind him. Gripping the hilt of the dagger hidden in his coat, he canted his torso to make himself a smaller target.

"Montoya."

Amelia's sweetly feminine voice caused him to freeze in midturn. He had hoped to be followed, but not by her. Now the danger that stalked him shadowed her as well.

"I had to see you," she murmured. "Your carriage pa.s.sed me in the street, and I could not allow you to go."

Only years of training and living by his wits leashed his surprise, preventing him from ruining everything by facing her. Instead he closed the drapes, dimming the gentle light of the moon before turning toward her. I f he was fortunate, the banked fire in the grate would keep his face mostly in shadow, lessening the possibility of recognition.

Mentally prepared only for her reaction to him, Colin was completely vulnerable to his own reaction to her. The sight of her by the door-and near a bed-hit him like a blow, freeing a possessive, primitive growl from his tightened throat. She s.h.i.+vered at the sound, her lips parting with quickened breaths.

His hands clenched into fists at his sides. Did she know what she did to him?

She stood proud and undaunted before the door, a beribboned hat tied at a jaunty angle, her slender body encased in a gown of s.h.i.+mmering satin and delicate white lace. The innocent cut of the dress made the years fall away, made him hard as a rock and hot to claim her. He loved her deeply and completely with lingering traces of his boyish adoration, but he also l.u.s.ted for her with every drop of the wild Gypsy blood in his veins.

"Tell me you did not travel alone," he bit out, hating to think of such beauty unattended. She was a treasure to be secured and valued. The thought of her on the journey without a guard, unwittingly in jeopardy, tied him in knots.

"I am protected." Her eyes glittered in the muted light, and she queried in a whisper, "Are you angry with me?"

"No," he said hoa.r.s.ely, his heart thudding with rhythmic violence in his chest."The mask..." She inhaled audibly. "Most men look especially das.h.i.+ng in evening attire. You-"

"Amelia-"

"-move me always. Whatever you wear, wherever we are."

His eyes closed as her praise rippled through him. He took an involuntary step toward her, then jerked to a halt. The room was suddenly too small and airless; the need to divest them both of every st.i.tch of cloth was nearly overwhelming. His craving for her grew more ferocious, clawing and biting in its desire to be appeased.

"Are you happy to see me?" she asked in a small voice.

Colin shook his head, his eyes opening because he couldn't bear not to see her. "I t kills me."

Tenderness swept over her finely wrought features and called to something deep inside him.

"I t is the yearning I sense in you that lures me." She stepped closer, and he lifted a hand to halt her progress before she came too near. "As long as you want me, I will want you in return."

"I would have ceased wanting you long ago," he rasped, "if such a thing were possible."

Her head tilted to the side as she considered him. "You lie."

Unable to resist, he smiled at that. She was audacious still.

"You enjoy wanting me," she said, with purely female satisfaction.

"I would enjoy having you more," he purred.

When her gaze shot to the bed, his c.o.c.k swelled to full arousal. Her tongue darted out to lick her lower lip, and a rough, edgy sound rumbled from his chest.

"Come with me," she entreated, her gaze returning to his. "Meet my family. My sister and her husband can a.s.sist you. Whatever plagues you, they can help to resolve."

Colin's gut tightened. He should say no...He should avoid bringing any danger into her life...

But the possibility of having her now...No more waiting, no more hiding...

I t was night, a bed was near, and they were alone. His deepest fantasy made reality.

He stepped toward her. "There is something I must tell you. Something you will find difficult to understand. Do you have time to hear me out?"

She lifted her gloved hand and extended it to him. "As much as you need."

"What of those who came with you?"

"He is drinking below." She smiled. "I lied, you see. I pointed out a different patron and said I suspected he was you. So Tim is occupied with watching him, while I inquired discreetly and found you. You have a unique form-so tall and broad. The maids noticed you when you came in."

"What of your reputation, then? A young woman of obviously fine breeding making inquiries about a bachelor."

"Once I learned where you were, I described my relief at finding my brother who is wearing dark green."

Colin glanced down at his blue garments. Dear G.o.d, w as it true? Could he have her?

She beamed with obvious pride in her cleverness.

"You have gone to a great deal of trouble to find me, Miss Benbridge."

"Amelia," she corrected. "And yes I have."

He smiled. "Turn around, then, and face the door."

Amelia frowned. "Why?"

"Because I need to approach you, and I am not certain how much of my face can be seen in this light." When she hesitated, he said, "You pursue me. You want me. I will be yours, in every sense, but in return you must listen to me without question. Does that frighten you?"

She swallowed hard, her irises overtaken by dilated pupils. Then she shook her head.

"I t excites you," he murmured. Hot, potent l.u.s.t intoxicated him, easing the relentless drive that set him on edge. He had always led the way with her. I t was highly arousing to lead the way in their bedsport, as well. "Turn."Complying, she faced away from him, and Colin approached with a rapid stride, freed from the fear of untimely recognition. He pressed up against her, breathing in the scent of honeysuckle, placing his palms flat to the panels on either side of her head.

The vein in her throat fluttered with her increasing heartbeat, arresting his attention.

The sound of the bolt sliding home stiffened his frame and drew his gaze away.

How simple the action was, that of locking the door, but it aroused him as nothing ever had. She w anted him to take her, to strip her bare, to f.u.c.k her sweet little body until he was spent and conquered.

Though he knew it, he still wanted her to say the words aloud.

"There is no chance that you will depart this room as virginal as you entered it," he murmured, his tongue stroking over her racing pulse.