held her captive. The strange feel of his mouth on hers
was mesmerising and, despite the fact that this man was one of her
enemies, she couldn’t bring herself to turn away.
Stephen didn’t deepen the
kiss. His head pounded and he wasn’t in any fit state to compromise
any lady any more than he already had, especially this one.
Unprofessionally, he wanted to tell her everything, just so she
understood that she didn’t need to be fearful of him, but knew that
he would have to wait until another day. He slowly lifted his head
to stare into her stunned gaze.
“ I apologise.
I just wanted to know,” he whispered. His stomach roiled at the
severity of the pain in his head and he wondered for a moment if he
was going to unman himself by being as sick as baby right there and
then.
“ Know what?”
Prudence sighed. She wondered if he wasn’t making sense because of
his head injury, or whether her mind had just been
scrambled.
“ What it was
like to kiss an angel,” he replied with a gentle smile.
He opened his mouth to
say something else when pain exploded in his head for the second
time that night.
“ Prudence,
are you alright?” Eloisa demanded as she dropped the same piece of
driftwood Prudence had used to hit him on the head the first time
round. “Talk to me,” she demanded. “What was that bounder about to
do to you?”
Prudence couldn’t have
spoken for the life of her. She watched his face disappear and lay
staring up at the stars for a moment, before Eloisa’s concerned
face broke her line of vision. The handsome stranger’s weight was
so heavy that she could barely breathe, and she was left to wave
her arm aimlessly toward him in the valiant hope that they would
get the message and lift his dead weight off her. It felt
scandalously intimate to have him lying almost completely over her,
with his head buried between her neck and her shoulder. While he
had been talking to her he had taken most of his weight onto his
arms. Unconscious, he drove the breath out of her until she began
to see stars again; or was that the night sky?
The ladies rolled the
handsome stranger onto his back and helped Prudence to her feet.
She stood for a moment and tried to get her breath back while she
attempted to ignore the slightly bereft feeling that unnerved
her.
“ Prudence?
Who is that?” Maddie demanded in a voice that quivered with
fear.
“ Mr Simpson,”
Robbie replied dourly. “I don’t touch dead men.” His declaration
was met with startled gasps.
“ Is he
-?”
“ Of course he
is,” Prudence snapped. “Why do you think he is staring at the skies
like that; because he likes star gazing?”
She was more shaken by
the events of the last few minutes than she cared to admit and,
although she was glad that the cavalry had arrived to help her, she
wished Eloisa hadn’t hit him on the ahead again. She touched her
tingling lips with fingers that trembled with fear and cold and was
suddenly very sorry that she had sent Robbie to the house to fetch
help.
“ Mr Simpson
is dead. Unfortunately, if we leave him here, his body is going to
be get swept out to sea.”
“ How did he
die?”
Prudence shook her head
and held her hands out. “I have no idea. Right now, I don’t think
that it is a wise idea that any of us stand out here and try to
find out. First thing in the morning we can send for Rufus. Even if
Mr Simpson does get washed out to sea, we can at least inform Rufus
of what we have seen.” She hated to admit it but she didn’t want to
handle the dead body either, no matter how necessary it
was.
“ Let’s drag
him up there,” she pointed to the cliffs and winced at the weight
of Mr Simpson’s leg. She glared at her siblings in turn until they
each, reluctantly, picked up a limb. Together, they half-carried,
half-dragged the corpse up the beach to the driest sand. They were
panting heavily by the time they got there and had to wait a moment
to catch their breaths.
“ Look!”
Maddie gasped as
was mesmerising and, despite the fact that this man was one of her
enemies, she couldn’t bring herself to turn away.
Stephen didn’t deepen the
kiss. His head pounded and he wasn’t in any fit state to compromise
any lady any more than he already had, especially this one.
Unprofessionally, he wanted to tell her everything, just so she
understood that she didn’t need to be fearful of him, but knew that
he would have to wait until another day. He slowly lifted his head
to stare into her stunned gaze.
“ I apologise.
I just wanted to know,” he whispered. His stomach roiled at the
severity of the pain in his head and he wondered for a moment if he
was going to unman himself by being as sick as baby right there and
then.
“ Know what?”
Prudence sighed. She wondered if he wasn’t making sense because of
his head injury, or whether her mind had just been
scrambled.
“ What it was
like to kiss an angel,” he replied with a gentle smile.
He opened his mouth to
say something else when pain exploded in his head for the second
time that night.
“ Prudence,
are you alright?” Eloisa demanded as she dropped the same piece of
driftwood Prudence had used to hit him on the head the first time
round. “Talk to me,” she demanded. “What was that bounder about to
do to you?”
Prudence couldn’t have
spoken for the life of her. She watched his face disappear and lay
staring up at the stars for a moment, before Eloisa’s concerned
face broke her line of vision. The handsome stranger’s weight was
so heavy that she could barely breathe, and she was left to wave
her arm aimlessly toward him in the valiant hope that they would
get the message and lift his dead weight off her. It felt
scandalously intimate to have him lying almost completely over her,
with his head buried between her neck and her shoulder. While he
had been talking to her he had taken most of his weight onto his
arms. Unconscious, he drove the breath out of her until she began
to see stars again; or was that the night sky?
The ladies rolled the
handsome stranger onto his back and helped Prudence to her feet.
She stood for a moment and tried to get her breath back while she
attempted to ignore the slightly bereft feeling that unnerved
her.
“ Prudence?
Who is that?” Maddie demanded in a voice that quivered with
fear.
“ Mr Simpson,”
Robbie replied dourly. “I don’t touch dead men.” His declaration
was met with startled gasps.
“ Is he
-?”
“ Of course he
is,” Prudence snapped. “Why do you think he is staring at the skies
like that; because he likes star gazing?”
She was more shaken by
the events of the last few minutes than she cared to admit and,
although she was glad that the cavalry had arrived to help her, she
wished Eloisa hadn’t hit him on the ahead again. She touched her
tingling lips with fingers that trembled with fear and cold and was
suddenly very sorry that she had sent Robbie to the house to fetch
help.
“ Mr Simpson
is dead. Unfortunately, if we leave him here, his body is going to
be get swept out to sea.”
“ How did he
die?”
Prudence shook her head
and held her hands out. “I have no idea. Right now, I don’t think
that it is a wise idea that any of us stand out here and try to
find out. First thing in the morning we can send for Rufus. Even if
Mr Simpson does get washed out to sea, we can at least inform Rufus
of what we have seen.” She hated to admit it but she didn’t want to
handle the dead body either, no matter how necessary it
was.
“ Let’s drag
him up there,” she pointed to the cliffs and winced at the weight
of Mr Simpson’s leg. She glared at her siblings in turn until they
each, reluctantly, picked up a limb. Together, they half-carried,
half-dragged the corpse up the beach to the driest sand. They were
panting heavily by the time they got there and had to wait a moment
to catch their breaths.
“ Look!”
Maddie gasped as
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