Her Gift - Bundle Pack by Laurel Bennett Page B

running rampant and
put them in order with a gentle shake. It didn’t work.
    “Trent, His Grace as you call him, and
my master are good friends. He asked my master for the use of my
services. I am not here against my will. Indeed, I’d looked forward
to tonight.” She shrugged. “But it is not to be.” She took
Charlotte by the shoulders and spun her around, then began to
slowly work the fastenings of Charlotte’s gown. “Forgive me in
advance if I still try,” she whispered against Charlotte’s shoulder
as she pushed her gown down one arm. The hair on Charlotte’s arm
stood up, as did every other hair on her body. Not to mention her
nipples. They beaded into small points. Then Charlotte’s lips
touched her bare shoulder. It was a brief touch, but it made
Charlotte’s belly drop toward her toes. “Mary,” she
warned.
    “Beg your pardon,” the other woman
said. But Charlotte could feel the curve of her smile against her
skin. “Trent wanted me to try to seduce you. Without telling you
why I’m here. To see how you would respond.”
    “Not favorably,” Charlotte
grunted.
    Mary stepped in front of her and
tugged the sleeves of her gown down her fingertips and then shoved
it over her hips. “Your bath will be getting cold. I’ll call for
more hot water as soon as I get you settled.”
    “I can do the rest.” Charlotte turned
her back to Mary. She stepped out of her drawers and tugged her
chemise over her head.
    “Allow me to help with the stockings,”
Mary said quickly. Then she was on her knees behind Charlotte,
quicker than Charlotte could blink. Mary took Charlotte’s naked
hips in her hands very gently, her fingers playing over her skin
like the lightest breeze. Nothing at all like her late husband’s
groping, gnarly hands.
    “That’s not necessary,”
Charlotte protested, stepping away from her. “I can do it.” I don’t know how to feel about your hands on me.
They make my heart race. I’ve never felt like this. She slid her stockings down her legs in a quick
thrust and stepped into the still-steaming water. She settled
gingerly against the back and reached for the soap.
    “Allow me, my lady,” Mary said, taking
the soap in her own hand. “Sit forward.”
    Charlotte supposed this was all right.
Her maid did this for her. But for some reason, her maid didn’t
make her heart pound in her chest the way Mary did.
    “I unsettle you.” It wasn’t a
question. It was a statement. A powerful one.
    Charlotte nodded, her chin bobbing
against her knee as Mary soaped her back. “Yes,” she
agreed.
    “I believe Trent wanted me to teach
you some things…” Mary began hesitantly.
    “What sort of things?”
    “About pleasure.” She held up a hand
when Charlotte began to sputter. “But since you’ve no interest in
learning, perhaps we can talk.” She pushed Charlotte’s shoulder so
that she reclined against the back of the tub. Charlotte’s breasts
rose just above the water, and she settled deeper into the tub,
until they were hidden. “Perfect,” Mary said on a whisper, not
drawing her gaze from Charlotte’s breasts.
    “There is nothing perfect about my
body.”
    “That’s what your husband told you?”
She arched her delicate blond brows at Charlotte.
    Charlotte obviously didn’t have to
answer, because Mary just continued. “He was wrong.” She looked
directly into Charlotte’s face when she said it.
    “My hips are too wide. My breasts too
small.” He’d said that and more. Much more. Each statement more
hurtful than the next.
    Mary’s hand dipped into the water and
cupped one breast in a sudsy grip. “Your breast fills my hand,” she
said quietly. “Look.”
    Charlotte looked down hesitant to
verify that Mary’s hand did, indeed, cup her breast in a firm,
comfortable grip. Her husband’s grip had never been firm or
comfortable. It had always hurt. Or shamed. And one was just as bad
as the other.
    “Stop thinking about him,” Mary
whispered with a soft smile.