Forbidden (Scandalous Sirens) (6 page)

Impressed with her skill already, he mounted his horse and with a challenging smile, he was off like a shot, sending up grass and dirt in his wake.

He heard the thunder of pursuit. His blood raced, excitement flaring through him, pushing him to go faster. He told himself he should be careful for she might be hurt, but he knew she needed to feel the wind whipping her hair and feel the excitement race along her spine—just as he did.

They were far from the hall already, racing across ripe fields and fallow green meadows, through copses of trees and fens.

Her laughter rang out behind him and he glanced over his shoulder to find her leaning over the horse’s neck, pushing it harder and faster. She had removed the cumbersome bonnet and her golden hair gleamed. She laughed. Her smile was devastating—all white teeth and dimples.

Such a strong response to such a simple stimulation as a horse ride was a measure of Elisa’s potential sensuality. What would she be like in a man’s arms? In his bed? The possibilities made his gut clench with a raw excitement completely unrelated to the swift clean joy of riding a galloping horse.

Then he heard her laugh again and the pretty, silvery sound was much closer.

She was gaining on him!

He spurred the horse onwards, entirely caught up in the spirit of the chase.
 
What a delight it was competing against such a carefree and challenging rider. And his mind was busy with an illicit dilemma: Should he let her win and claim compensation, or should he win and claim the victor’s spoils?

* * * * *

Elisa’s heart pounded, matching the rhythm of the horse’s hooves hitting the hard-packed ground. It was a glorious day and the sun shone down on her and Vaughn as they raced across the meadow.

She had lost her bonnet long ago—they would have to retrieve it on the way back. Her hair was threatening to break free of the careful braid. There was hot blood flowing through her veins and she felt absurdly excited, skittish like a colt. She was determined to beat Vaughn despite the severe limitations of a corset and sidesaddle.

It had been so long since she’d felt this free, this alive, and she had Vaughn to thank for it.

If only she could look at him without remembering his hands about her waist, and the color of his eyes as they stared into hers. If only she could look at him without thinking of making love to him. She wanted to erase the memory of last night completely, to rid her mind of the sensation of his thumbs smoothing their way across her flesh. Just the memory of it brought her nipples taut and alive and caused her body to tighten and throb.

She was truly evil. What kind of a woman would desire her fiancé’s son? She must purge this longing.

At least Vaughn seemed to have settled for only her friendship. She should be happy he had made the compromise.

Or was she beyond wickedness—was it that she really wanted him to tell her he had to have her, that he felt a desire for her so intense he could think of nothing else? What else could last night have been but an outward hint of such an obsession?

But she knew with a hard-earned wisdom she was hoping for something that wasn’t there. He was a striking man, used to flirtations and casual affairs. No doubt many women had fallen victim to his charm, for that charm was clearly potent enough for any woman.

Vaughn brought his mount to a halt a good ten yards in front of her. Following his lead, she reined in. Before she stopped, he was at her side, helping her down.

“Come, I want to show you something.” He took her hand in his own and headed towards a copse of trees.

She had never ventured from Fairleigh Hall before. She had no idea what to expect. But in Vaughn’s company, she felt safe from the world at large. He had the authoritative size and power to protect her from anything and now he had declared he would settle for friendship, she felt she could trust him.

“When I was a boy I used to come here to fish. There’s a stream that runs from the northwestern corner of Fairleigh land to the southwestern corner. Only here is it deep enough to swim.”

Stopping abruptly, she let go of his hand. “You don’t intend to swim today, do you?”

He shrugged. “Who knows? It is rather warm.”

It suddenly seemed warmer than it had been moments before.

He took her hand again, sliding his own warm one around hers. “Come on.”

The trail ended at a swimming hole larger than she’d anticipated. Clean, sparkling water rippled over smooth rocks. The water was so clear she could see rounded rocks and pebbles at the bottom. It was difficult to judge how deep it was. Further out, it shone invitingly in the hot sun.

I am not remotely tempted to swim
, she told herself.

However, it appeared Vaughn was, for he was already stripping off his jacket and shirt.

Her heart missed a beat as the items landed on the grass by her feet. Naked to the waist, he was a sight unlike any other she had seen in her life. A broad, well-defined chest tapered down to an abdomen that was rock-hard, the sinew flexing beneath the tight olive skin as he removed his boots. He was watching her.

Elisa swallowed hard and quickly looked away. “It isn’t too warm,” she said, her cheeks turning hot.

“Really? I feel like I’m on fire.”

The tone of his voice made her turn quickly, only to find he had divested himself of his breeches as well, giving her a full view of his firm backside. She gasped aloud. Her stomach clenched at the sight and her breath stopped. A heartbeat later he dove in, disappearing beneath the surface.

“I do not want him…I do not want him…” she chanted under her breath, but even as she said the words, she found herself taking a step closer to the edge of the pond.

Just then he broke the surface, whipping his hair out of his face, his smile wide and inviting.

“Sweet Jesus,” she blurted before she could stop herself.

It was hopeless. There was no way she could not want him. He was everything she had been denied for far too long—a friend, a person she could laugh with, a man close to her own age…a lover. How many years had it been? Too many.

“Come in, Elisa,” he said, his eyes smoldering.

She took a quick step back, tripped and fell onto her bottom.

He swam toward her, but she scrambled to her feet and held a hand up. “No, stay there. Do not get out!”

His dark brows furrowed into a frown, but he remained still.

The water lapped at his narrow waist, scarcely hiding that part of him she yearned for. She knew that part of him would be as impressive as the rest. A warning voice whispered in her head.

“Why don’t you want me to get out?” he asked, his voice soft.

“I…just do not want you to.”

“But what if I want to?”

“Then I will leave.”

“No, you won’t.” His smile fled. “I will not get out. Sit down and relax, Elisa.” He motioned to a large rock five feet to her left.

She nodded, grateful to be looking somewhere else and to get off her feet. Smoothing her skirts around her, she sat down and glanced up to find him swimming across the pond, away from her, his strong arms gliding through the water with an ease she’d seldom seen.

He was entirely too handsome and much too unsuitable, she told herself. Worse, since he would be her stepson, he was also forbidden to her. She should be looking at him in a maternal way. He had grown to manhood without a mother. Perhaps he lacked a matronly guiding hand…

He stood up at the far side of the pool, water streaming from him and she was again given a view of his back and buttocks. He was turned a little and she could see the start of the highly pronounced ridge of muscle that ran in a V down to his pelvis. She followed it with her eyes. If he was to turn only a little more—

Quickly, she shut her eyes. It was no use. She could not possibly view him in a purely maternal manner.

“Elisa, are you sure you won’t join me?”

She opened her eyes to find him closer, treading water again, watching her with an intensity that made her nervous.

“I cannot.”

“Cannot or will not?”

“Both.”

He smiled devilishly and she jumped to her feet. “I’ll meet you in the clearing.” She didn’t wait for his response. She only knew she could not sit there a moment longer with him so close, and so…naked.

She couldn’t stand another moment of staring at his hard body without wanting him to take her to the ground and have his way with her.

In a similar way she had once been taken by her husband—before drink and lust had driven him far beyond her reach. On that occasion, she had conceived Raymond.

An intense ache ripped through her at the thought of the son she’d been denied. The son who had been hidden away and was being raised by a family who despised her and who had no doubt turned her son against her. And here she was, responding with the wanton desires she had been accused of—those that had taken her son from her in the first place.

Emotions she had buried came rising to the surface and with them a hurt so devastating she felt she could die from it. She started running, ignoring Vaughn as he called out to her, and she knew she ran not from him, but from herself.

* * * * *

Vaughn dressed quickly. He didn’t know if Elisa would be there when he reached the clearing. What had made her run off like that?

He’d seen the play of emotions on her face as she’d watched him swim. She wanted him. In that regard, her face was unmistakable. But something else had driven her from the clearing.

What was it that haunted her?

As he emerged from the trees he was relieved to find her standing with her back to him, looking off into the distance.

“I think you should leave.”

That was not what he had expected her to say. He pretended to misunderstand, to draw her out. “And we shall, if you are ready.”

“I mean, leave Fairleigh Hall.”

“Elisa, look at me.”

She made no move to turn, so he put his hand on her shoulder. She whirled around, her eyes wide. “Stop it!”

“Stop what?” he asked. Shockingly, there were tears brimming in her eyes. His heart gave a jerk. “What is it?”

“You must leave here.”

“Why?”

“Because I can’t bear to have you under the same roof.”

Her words brought a rush of desire to his already heated blood. As though they possessed a will of their own, his fingers reached out to caress her cheek. It was damp, and soft to touch. “If leaving here will bring you happiness, then I’ll go.”

Her face was filled with so much pain he instinctively pulled her into his arms. She remained stiff, but as he smoothed his hand up and down her back, she relaxed and leaned into him, her cheek pressing against his chest.

“If you left I would be miserable, but I couldn’t live with myself if we became…more than friends.”

“I would not force such an issue on you, Elisa.”

“Yet I see something else in your eyes. You forget I am not a young girl fresh out of the convent. I know how these things work, Vaughn, just as much as you do.”

Of course she was right, and they both knew it. She was not naïve.

“I won’t lie. I desire you, yet I know you’re not willing to give yourself to me. I understand. But I cannot simply leave. Therefore, in order to be close to you, I will be your friend.”

“Then you must act as a friend, and not as a lover would.”

How ironic it was they talked of friendship as he held her tight within his arms, her breasts pushed against him, her heart beating so strongly it pounded against his own. It was as if the devil entered him whenever she was near—he forgot everything of prudence and discretion and could only think of the need to have her. The goading words he spoke, the actions he took that inflamed the passion…none of it occurred because of any choice he made. He was being driven by a power he did not fully understand and therefore had no control over. That in itself should be reason to obey both her wishes and his own dictates: he should leave Fairleigh Hall.

If only she had found him undesirable, he might have been able to ride out the temptation and divert it. But Elisa was clearly as caught up in the spell as he was. Knowing his advances were wanted goaded him to play out this madness.

And yet…for all her desire, something was holding Elisa back. It could only be something or someone other than her, to hold such power over her. He only hoped it was strong enough to hold them apart because he was very much afraid his own will was not enough.

Chapter Four

When they returned from their ride Elisa went straight to the safety of her room for a nap, although sleep did not come easily.

When she did at last slip into slumber, she dreamed of Raymond as she had last seen him—a small, sweet boy with big blue eyes—and woke with her resolve firm; she would be a friend to Vaughn and nothing more. If Vaughn wanted to stay at Fairleigh Hall indefinitely, then so be it. She would cope with it. The price was too great to give in to the madness of her desires.

Yet as she opened the door to the dining room, that resolve was shaken.
 
The dinner table was better occupied than usual. They had guests. Natasha Winridge, daughter of Baron Munroe, neighbor of Fairleigh Hall, was sitting to Vaughn’s left, clinging to his every word.