Chapter Two #2
The corners of her mouth twitched, threatening to turn her polite smile into something warmer and more real. ‘That is the goal, Your Grace. To grow strong enough to hold your own spoon and wipe your own bottom.’
He laughed; a sound that was almost as weak as his voice had been.
She listened to it and nodded. ‘Your lungs are clear. That is good news. Now you must rest. I will wake you in an hour or two and perhaps you can have a bit of egg with your gruel.’
‘I can hardly wait,’ he said, trying to keep his tone as light as hers was. He did not want to rest. He wanted to keep her talking, just to hear the sound of her voice. ‘Read to me, Cassie, and ease me into sleep.’
‘Of course, Your Grace.’ She picked up the Bible that sat on the table next to her and began to read.
It was quite appropriate, he supposed, for a ministering angel to read from a holy book.
But now that he had gotten a good look at her, he was not in the mood for salvation.
She had large, clear eyes, and rich mahogany hair that was pulled back from her face in a plain bun. Not a single curl escaped from it.
Her dress was equally plain, brown cotton without so much as a pearl button to lessen the severity.
It made no attempt to flatter, but could not disguise her high, full breasts and trim waist. The hands at the end of the long sleeves were soft and gentle.
He had felt the touch of them often enough in the last few days and cherished the memories.
When he was well, in a day or maybe two, he would not let her get away.
He would have her unpinned and unraveled before she knew what was happening.
Then they would discuss a more permanent position in his household.
Something that did not involve sick beds and pap boats.
He would be the one stroking her temples and feeding her on peeled grapes and champagne ice.
It would be paradise.
But his fantasy faded a little as he paused to listen to her words which were full of love more spiritual than physical.
He needed to do something to put her mind on more earthly pursuits.
When she finished the psalm she was reading and turned the page to start another, he held up his good hand to stop her.
‘You have a lovely voice, my dear. But perhaps we could enjoy something a little less…’ He grimaced.
‘Holy?’ she said with a smile.
‘Formal,’ he replied.
She set her Bible aside. ‘Very well. What would you prefer?’
‘There is a book in the drawer of the bedside table that I have already started. My page is marked.’
‘If that is what you wish, I am happy to oblige.’ She turned to the table beside her, opened the drawer and took out the volume, turning to the marked page. Her eyes scanned down the text.
‘He is now in bed with me the first time, and in broad day; but when thrusting up his own shirt and my shift, he laid his naked glowing body to mine…’
The book snapped shut and she stared at him, shocked. ‘I cannot read this. It is…’
‘Just getting to the good part,’ he finished for her. ‘Why don’t you come sit on the edge of the bed so we might read it together.’
The look she gave him was not one of virginal shock. But neither was she stifling the knowing giggle of a woman who might be amenable to his offer. Instead, she looked thoughtful, as if weighing and balancing something.
Probably the worth of his soul against the effort she’d taken to save his body. ‘You are as horrible as they say,’ she said.
He answered with a resigned nod. ‘It would be a lie to deny the fact.’
‘But I am not,’ she said firmly, as if she’d guessed the contents of his mind.
‘Are you a nun, perhaps? A sister who views her nursing as a vocation and will not allow earthly things to sully it?’
For a moment, her lips quirked in a moue of distaste, a puckered expression that only made them seem more kissable. Then, she said, ‘It is not necessary to take a vow to eschew pornography. One simply needs to be a lady.’
‘A lady,’ he repeated and smiled. ‘Many women are deemed such by merit of their birth. But I have found, when the lights are out, that some of them are women first and ladies second.’
‘I am a lady in word and deed,’ she added, with a direct stare meant to dash his hopes.
‘You have been alone with me in my bedroom for several days,’ he said, speculating. ‘And your virtue is still intact.’
‘Because you have been ill,’ she reminded him. ‘I would not be here, else.’
‘All the same, it is a record of some sort. For both of us,’ he added. ‘I have never been so long in proximity with such a lovely woman without at least making a suggestion.’
She waved the book he had requested. ‘We will have to start your clock again. This was more than a little suggestive. And the answer is no.’
‘It is just as well,’ he said, giving her a winning smile. ‘I am in no condition to treat you as you deserve. But in a day or two, when I am better…’
‘I will leave without anything of note taking place,’ she said, giving him a dark look.
‘We will see about that,’ he said, settling back into the pillows and closing his eyes.