Page 32
Sebastian winked at her. “Certainly not like this.”
“No matter how charming you are, it is still embarrassing.”
He laid back down and pulled her to him, kissing the scars on her back. “Don’t be upset. They were just worried about you.”
“I know.”
He kissed her back again and she stiffened. She didn’t want Sebastian to pity her. She hated the thought. “Don’t feel bad for me, Sebastian. I’m fine. You don’t need to kiss them. I want you to desire me, not treat me as if I’m fragile.”
Sebastian pressed his hard cock against her. “Does this feel like I want to treat you like you are fragile?”
He nipped at her shoulder. “I want to fuck you, and trust me, I have no plans to treat you like you are breakable. Understand?”
She pressed closer to him. “Yes.”
*
Diana nodded while Signor Mura explained the origins of the ancient Nora civilization.
Her face became heated, and Sebastian suspected it was the way he was staring at her.
She glanced at him pointedly a few times.
He smirked at her as he leaned against a tree.
His body should be bordering on exhaustion as Sebastian had been in Diana’s room until the early hours of the morning.
He’d done it. Sebastian gave in to the unrelenting temptation and took Diana to bed.
He didn’t regret it. Hell, he wished he would have acted sooner.
Still, he reminded himself this interlude would end when they returned to London.
Out here, it didn’t matter that Diana was a lady, and he was a rogue and the illegitimate child of a marquess.
Even now, he wanted to hustle her back to bed.
He wanted to hear her whimpers of bliss and her pleading for more.
His thoughts flashed to the scars on her back.
They’d been vicious deep marks that had shocked Sebastian.
He’d seen some things in his life, but he was horrified that a lady of the ton could inflict so much pain on her daughters.
There’d been rumors when Diana’s sister had married Sam Kincaide about the duke and duchess’s cruelty, but Sebastian would have never guessed the extent of it.
He shook his head in disbelief that Diana was considering helping her mother resettle in England.
After everything the woman had done, Diana was still willing to be the good daughter.
Their eyes met again, and she frowned at him.
He realized he was scowling because of his dark thoughts.
He gave her a flirtatious smile and she rolled her eyes.
Signor Mura broke their stare by pointing something out to Diana.
Her eyes widened in delight. His smirk turned less amorous as he studied her.
She was the perfect lady to be on this trip.
Sebastian was glad Addie had been unable to go.
His good friend, he imagined, was happily using the profits of the Ladies of London column to move things along for the Historical Society for Female Curators.
Sebastian suspected the difference between him and Diana would drive people to read the column about their exploits.
“Tomorrow, we board the ship for Tuscany. We are almost halfway on our journey,” Monroe said, joining him.
“How long will we be there?”
“A week or two. It will be good for most of the passengers. It is like a little London there. Plenty of lords and ladies from England visit the area, now that the fighting has started to die down.”
Sebastian nodded. Only a year ago, such a trip would have been impossible.
It was strange or maybe surreal how fast the world seemed to move on from devastating events like the revolutions that spread across the continent over the last few years.
Men had fought for freedom and rights. All things he believed in.
While most hadn’t been successful, it had changed how society viewed and included the common man.
Time would tell how much or if for the better.
“She has changed since we left London,” Monroe said, nodding at Diana.
Sebastian glanced at the captain, scowling as he watched his gaze roam down her form. Monroe chuckled. “No need to incinerate me with your stare. I have given up my pursuit of her. It’s clear I never stood a chance.”
“I don’t know what you mean.”
The captain slapped him on the back. “The two of you are safe on the ship. We are like our own little community but tread softly in Tuscany. The place is too much like London. Gossip travels fast.”
Their bubble of privacy would end when they arrived at the popular port. He wasn’t looking forward to it. Diana would visit her mother, and she may potentially return with them. He feared that his time with Diana may be cut short. Would any amount of time be enough? he thought.
The thought disconcerted him. They’d promised each other they would enjoy the time they had and not worry about the future.
Another peel of laughter erupted from Diana.
Perhaps, Tuscany wouldn’t be that bad. Sebastian nodded tightly, appreciating the subtle warning Monroe was giving.
“Is it really that full of lords and ladies?”
“Yes, there is a direct route by land once on the continent and several ships travel much faster paths than mine,” Monroe said.
Fuck. He hated that his time with Diana could possibly end so soon.
Lady Clark had been right. He’d been a fool, resisting the attraction that swirled around them.
Monroe stepped closer to the crowd and clapped to gain everyone’s attention.
“Count Messina asked his family to throw you all a ball tonight. We will be heading back a little earlier than expected. Make sure you receive plenty of rest. It will be a late night before our departure.”
Sebastian frowned. That likely meant he couldn’t see Diana alone this evening.
Both being unwell once was a coincidence, two nights in a row would cause speculation.
He glanced around. Well, in London, it would.
He wasn’t sure about here or this trip. All the norms of society didn’t appear to apply.
He couldn’t let that mess with his head. None of this was real.
He joined Spoor and Haggerty in a carriage, wishing he were with Diana.
“I would have rather stayed and studied the ruins longer,” Haggerty grumbled.
“We have been looking at old rocks for days. It will do us all some good to have a normal night of socializing,” Spoor said.
Haggerty grunted but didn’t say anything. Sebastian didn’t disagree with the scholar, though, his reasons for avoiding the event were selfish. He wanted to spend the evening with Diana, alone. He’d never felt so physically connected to someone.
The carriage stopped and the door opened. Sebastian stepped out, looking at Messina’s manor house. It was an opulent old building. He could understand why Messina loved the place so much. He suspected it was older than even the Derry estate he grew up on with Malcolm.
Diana was still outside, he hoped, waiting for him. Sebastian walked to her and held his arm out. “Would you like to go for a stroll before you rest for this evening?”
“I would love that, Mr. Devons.”
They wandered down to the gardens that sat in the back corner of the estate behind the house, passing a row of hedges. Once the house windows were out of sight, Devons grabbed Diana and pulled her to him.
She looped her arms around his neck. He trailed his lips down her throat. Diana sighed. “Why must we go to this ball? Tell me we should pretend to be ill again?”
“We should,” he said as they fell against a stonewall.
“But we can’t. People might talk.”
At this precise moment, Sebastian didn’t care who talked. He continued his onslaught of kisses on her neck and across her heaving bosom. She grabbed his hand. “Stop. I can’t concentrate.”
He chuckled wickedly. “Good. Don’t be sensible.”
“Truly do you think no one will suspect?”
Sebastian sighed. “No. We both should attend the ball.”
She appeared so sad that Sebastian chuckled again and took her in his arms. “But at least I can dance with you.”
Her eyes widened. “What are you doing?”
He started to hum a song, pulling her close. “Showing you how I wish I could hold you in my arms when we are dancing later tonight.”
Laughter echoed through the garden, and he continued to hum.
They swayed moving around the open area.
He looked down at her and knew he would always remember this moment.
His common sense told him to release her.
He pushed the thought from his mind. There was tomorrow to think about the consequences.
Table of Contents
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