Chapter Two
I n spite of the cold, Venus could have happily removed every piece of her clothing as long as Adonis was so seductively kneading her. She fantasized about feeling his magical touch strumming on other parts of her.
When he stopped, her gaze followed his to that boring reaper that took up a sizable portion of his sizeable barn. The device’s largest component was a metal basin that received the harvest after the contraption had cut it with its moveable scythe. The wheeled basin was as large or possibly larger than a cart that dragged behind a farm animal.
She feigned rapt attention as he explained its workings. Even though she was not especially interested in farming (and dearly hoped her eldest brother would soon display interest in it), she quickly understood how valuable a reaper would be for large farming interests like their family’s farm. “Oh, my goodness, Mr. Beresford, this is magnificent! You must tell me how we can obtain one.”
“I will have my steward, Hamilton, get you all that information.” He stood back and observed her shoeless feet. “I pray you’re getting warmer, Miss Jones.”
How dearly she wished to remove all the barriers between them! “Pray, Mr. Beresford, ahem , James, when it is just the two of us, would you call me Venus?”
He swallowed. He seemed to be doing a lot of that today. “Well... when it’s just the two of us, I suppose I could.” He swallowed again. “Venus.”
She could have swooned with pleasure at hearing her name softly roll off his tongue.
Her gaze swung to an easel-looking contraption centered with a bullseye. “What, my dear James, is that?” She pointed at the target.
“It’s an archery target. I just got it because Emily expressed an interest in shooting bows and arrows. Seems she was introduced to the sport at the Duke of Richmond’s. Now we just need the weather to be less beastly.”
“Oh, I should love to learn how to shoot bows and arrows. Have you experience at it?” She could only imagine how wonderful it would be to have Adonis at close proximity, showing her how to dispatch an arrow properly.
“I don’t expect to win any prizes, but I can fairly accurately hit the target.”
She directed an adoring glance at him. “Please say you’ll show me how.”
“I suppose I could. The next day the sun favors us.”
She found herself staring at the sculpted perfection of his pensive face. Even though it was the dead of winter, the man’s skin took on a caramel hue. His propensity to ride over his lands on a daily basis must account for his coloring. Even his sable hair seemed tipped by the sun’s bronzing rays.
Everything about her Adonis reeked of supreme masculinity. The strong jaw. His deep voice. His towering frame. His every pursuit was honed by male interests. He did not sing along with his sisters at evening recitals. He despised dancing. He abhorred flowery poems. Give this man a rifle, a filly, a flask of brandy, a game of whist.
Just looking at him, being by him, sent her heart fluttering. No other man would ever do for her. She must capture James Beresford’s affections. “Why must we wait for a sunny day? Can you not show me today? I am ravishingly eager to learn.”
His gaze bounced from the bullseye to her and back again, a frown on his handsome face. “If that’s what you want, Miss Jones.”
“Venus.”
He swallowed again. “Venus. We will need to make sure your slippers are back on. One can’t shoot barefoot.”
She waited a moment, hoping he would put her slippers on himself. She loved it when he was doing those things to her. But when he didn’t reach for them, she slipped them on herself and was inordinately pleased when he reached up to lift her and settle her on the barn floor.
He placed the bullseye about fifty paces away in the large barn’s interior. “So, are you right-handed or left-handed?” he asked.
“Right.”
He moved to her. “Allow me to demonstrate.” He took the large bow and a single arrow. “I, too, am right-handed. We start by setting our feet about a shoulder’s width apart. You’ll want your front foot to bear more of your weight.” He placed his feet correctly.
“But you’re not facing your target.”
“No. We face away from the target, but our bow and arrow are directed at it.” He showed her the proper stance.
She would never tell him she had mastered archery while visiting his sister at the Duke of Bentley’s country estate. She must ask Emily not to reveal her secret. How enchanting that her dear friend Em was now a duchess! Best of all, Emma was madly in love with her duke.
Just as Venus was with Adonis.
Now, her Adonis took a shot. His arrow plunged into the ring that circled the center of the bullseye. He shrugged. “Better luck next time.”
“That looks awfully good to me.”
He handed her the bow.
“Can you show me?” she asked.
“I just showed you.”
“I mean can you turn me the proper way?” She placed her feet a shoulder’s width apart, facing away from the target. “I’m not clear on how I point the bow.”
“Permit me to show you. First, you will need to remove your gloves.”
After she took off the gloves, he came to stand behind her. His arms closed around her, his hands settling over hers, guiding her. “Now, pull back the bowstring along with the arrow. You’ll want the arrow perfectly parallel to the ground and your shoulder in perfect alignment with that.”
She did as he instructed.
“Now aim at your target and let it go.”
She did not want to reveal her experience. She deliberately hit just on the outermost edge of the bullseye. “Goodness, James, it’s much more difficult than you make it look.”
“You just need a little practice. That was a very good shot for a beginner.”
She turned to gaze up at him, her heartbeat hammering because of his close proximity. “I am pleased. I have a good teacher. Do you think I will ever be able to hit the bullseye?”
“I’m sure of it. With practice.”
“Do you think if I ever could actually hit that bullseye, I could get a prize?”
His brows squished together. “What do you have in mind?”
She gave him a coy look. “You could... bestow a kiss upon me.”
He burst out laughing. “I should think it will be a long time before you’d be collecting any such prize.”
“Oh, but my dear James, I now have a mighty incentive. Pray, may I have another arrow?”
He looked skeptically at her but complied.
She placed her feet a little over a foot apart, turned to face the target, pulled back on the bow, and launched the arrow. It actually surprised her when it hit the center of the target. She started jumping up and down with glee, much like a small child who’d been awarded a plum pudding. “I can’t believe it! I can’t believe it!” She smiled at her Adonis. “You’re such a wonderful teacher! Can you give me your forfeit now?”
He did not respond for a moment. “You mean... the kiss?”
She presented him with a dreamy look as she slowly closed the gap between them. “Indeed, I do.” She came to stand so close to him she felt his body heat. Her face lifted. “It’s to be a proper kiss, you know. On the mouth.”
He stiffened. “Have you ever been kissed on the mouth by a man before?”
“Not actually, but I’m sure you will be just the one to show me how since you did such a good job with the archery.”
“I don’t think this is proper. You’re a maiden.”
“I’m three and twenty. Old enough to be married and to have given birth to several babes by now.” She edged closer to him.
He looked nervous. “Are you sure? I won’t offend you?”
Her voice dropped to a seductive whisper. “Quite the contrary, James.” Her hands clasped at the back of his neck as she moved so close to him, a pasteboard could not wedge between them.
He cleared his throat, then lowered his head to settle his lips on hers.
If he had thought to give her a peck and be done with it, he would have been mistaken. This was far from a peck. At first, she thought she had initiated the excruciating tenderness of the kiss. She could not deny that she had pushed for this intimacy. She had channeled all this love she’d held for him all these years into this magnificent kiss.
But the softness of his lips, the slow swirl of his tongue, the husky moan all emanated from him. Adonis was enjoying this every bit as much as she was.
His arms came fully around her, his thumbs feathering against her back. She wasn’t sure, but she thought she might have sighed with pleasure. It was hard to tell because her heartbeat was thundering so and her Adonis wasn’t exactly being quiet.
All of a sudden, his head snapped away, terminating the kiss. “Forgive me, Miss Jones. I hadn’t meant to take such liberties.”
“Oh, but my dear James, you didn’t. It was a delightful prize.”
The barn door burst open. The wind was howling, but that is not what opened the door. There stood a middle-aged man in a greatcoat. She recognized him as the Beresford steward, Mr. Hamilton. “There you are, sir! You must come see.”