A Stranger at Castonbury(49)

Jamie burst out laughing. Catalina had never heard him laugh like that before, full out, nothing held back. It was a rich, glowing sound, brighter and deeper than any spiced wine on a cold night. It made Catalina feel warmer just hearing it, and she found herself actually giggling with him.

‘Oh, yes,’ he gasped. ‘Very proper indeed.’ He sat back on his heels and braced his palms on his thighs as he laughed. ‘As if I don’t remember what you look like naked, Catalina. Your beautiful skin, the curve of your back. Do you still have that little freckle just behind...’

‘Stop!’ Catalina cried. Her sides ached from laughing. She wrapped her arms around her waist and shook her head, trying to catch her breath.

Finally they were able to stop laughing, and somehow the tense atmosphere in the little room felt easier, lighter. Jamie leaned forward and rested his hands on the blanket on either side of her hips. He was so close she could smell the rain on his skin and see the drops of it sparkling in his hair.

‘When did we become so ridiculous, Catalina?’ he said. ‘So silly and prudish.’

‘I am not prudish,’ Catalina protested. ‘Of course I know we have seen each other before. I just think we should be...’

Naked together again? Kissing, touching? Yes, all of those things—if only it was not all too late.

‘Should be what?’ he said.

‘Cautious,’ she answered, far more firmly than she felt.

He studied her for a long, tense moment. Finally he nodded and pushed himself to his feet.

‘Fair enough,’ he said. He turned to face the corner, his arms crossed over his chest. ‘There now, my back is turned.’

Catalina slowly stood up and stepped closer to the fire, her own back turned to him. She unbuttoned and removed her spencer to spread it out on the hearth. She could hear nothing from Jamie except the soft sound of his breath mingled with the patter of rain on the walls outside. She eased the long sleeves of her dress down her arms, pulling at the high, gathered neckline until the wet, clinging muslin fell away. The fabric slithered down to a sodden pile at her feet until she stood in only her chemise and stockings. Her damp skin, bared to the warm air, prickled.

‘Now you,’ she said. After a long moment she heard the slide and rustle of Jamie’s clothes as he undressed. She closed her eyes tightly, but in that darkness it was even worse. She could see it all in her mind—that wet shirt falling away from Jamie’s chest, leaving him bare. The smooth, warm skin, the strong muscles of his chest and his shoulders flexing with his movement. His long, elegant hands loosening the front of his breeches, easing them away from his lean hips—oh, yes, she remembered it all. She could just imagine those breeches moving lower and lower....

Catalina groaned and pressed her hands over her closed eyes. Jamie was right—they were ridiculous. It had been so long; she shouldn’t still want him this much.

‘Catalina, are you all right?’ Jamie said. She heard a soft whisper of sound, his footsteps on the floor, a rustle of cloth, and then a warm, dry blanket eased over her shoulders.

‘You’re still shaking,’ he said, so quiet and deep.

Catalina swallowed hard and nodded. ‘The rain. When do you think it will end?’

‘Very soon. Don’t worry—I’m sure your charge, Miss Westman, is safe enough at Castonbury with my sister.’ Jamie stepped away from her, and Catalina opened her eyes to see that he knelt down to stir at the fire. ‘Come, sit closer, it will warm you.’

Under the shelter of the blanket, Catalina wriggled out of the chemise and unfastened the velvet garters to roll down her damp stockings. Now she had only the blanket over her nakedness—and Jamie still wore his breeches. All her wild imaginings were for naught.

Catalina almost laughed and she clapped her hand over her mouth. The other hand held her blanket closed at her throat.

‘Come, sit,’ Jamie said again. He pulled the blankets on the floor closer to the hearth.

‘I know Miss Westman is fine at Castonbury,’ Catalina said as she sat down. She tucked her legs up under her and watched the fire leap higher. ‘Your family has been very kind to her.’

‘They can be kind sometimes,’ Jamie said with a laugh. ‘We’re not always complete savages, no matter what the gossip says about us.’

They could be kind when they had a purpose? Was that how Jamie truly thought? Was that what had happened in Spain? Catalina blurted out, ‘They want you to marry her, you know.’