Page 69 of The Rogue’s Countess

When he realized she was watching him, Gideon looked at her with an emotion that almost appeared to be one of affection as his beautiful mouth curled upward. His smile was a glimpse of heaven, and she knew that no matter how careful she was in hiding her love, she would eventually fail.

One day soon, he would realize how much she loved him. It would be a devastating moment, but until then, she would take every moment of happiness she could and keep each of those precious minutes locked inside her heart. They would sustain her in the years to come when Gideon would look at her and only feel pity. “Why don’t we start with the heart and work our way outward.”

It was a simple suggestion, but something in his voice made her think there might be hope for the future. Phoebe returned his smile and immediately pressed her fork into the dessert and prayed for a miracle.

§ § §

“Are you certain hunting is the thing you are the least skilled in?” Phoebe laughed as she pulled the rubber and game’s last trick over to her stack of cards won.

“I am playing with a card-sharp,” Gideon muttered with obvious frustration.

“I am not a card-sharp.” Phoebe sniffed as she eyed him in amused self-disgust. “Either you’re worse at cards than shooting, or you’re having extremely bad luck with the hands you’ve been dealt.”

“Or it could be that my beautiful wife has proven to be the worst distraction a man could have while playing All Fours.” There was a mischievous, almost boyish, look on his face as Gideon teased her, and she shook her head as she rejected his comment.

“Your compliments are falling on deaf ears if you think I shall take pity on you and add up the points wrong.”

Laughing, she picked up the small pencil next to the narrow note pad. Before she could sum up the final score, a strong hand wrapped around her wrist. Startled, Phoebe’s gaze jerked upward to meet Gideon’s. Desire smoldered in his gaze, and she was unable to look away from him. His thumb began to rub small circles over the spot where her heartbeat pulsed.

“It is not just a compliment. It’s a fact. The Countess of Chelmsford is enough to drive her husband to distraction.”

The soft words wrapped around Phoebe’s senses, and her cheeks began to burn as if she were standing too close to a flame. In truth, she was. Gideon was the flame, and she was simply the moth flirting with danger. A voice inside her urged her to embrace the danger. It told her to fly into the flame and let it singe every inch of her until his touch consumed her.

“Are you trying to seduce me, Lord Chelmsford?”

“At least you did not refer to me as Lord Chelmbee,” he murmured with a self-deprecating smile as he avoided answering her question.

“Was I wrong in failing to do so?” she asked breathlessly as a wave of excitement washed over her. It signaled she was more than ready to embrace the danger. Gideon dropped his gaze to where his thumb was stroking the inside of her wrist.

“No, the only honey I shall ever seek again is that which you possess, my sweet Phoebe.”

The soft words were like a feather drifting across her skin, and his endearment made her pulse flutter wildly. The moment her heartbeat accelerated, Gideon stopped circling his thumb over the inside of her wrist. He lifted his head, and she saw desire flare in his gaze. A split second later, he released her and began to gather up the cards to replace them in the wood box they belonged in.

Disappointment spiraled through Phoebe as she silently helped him collect the cards off the braise-covered tabletop. Even though he was still shuffling the cards together and storing them in the box, she could see how hard his muscles were beneath his jacket. The tension in the air seemed to expand as he stood up and carried the card box to the cabinet where it was kept.

“Gideon…”

“Yes?” He didn’t look at her, but she saw his entire body tense. All too aware of the fire she was walking into, a desperate need to be in his arms made Phoebe’s entire body tightened with a familiar hunger. Damn the future, she wanted to live in the present.

“I think I will go to bed now.”

He didn’t reply except to nod his head as he closed the cabinet door in front of him and kept his back to her. Disappointment washed over her again. Was it possible he didn’t want her? No, she didn’t believe that. He’d already expressed how much he desired her.

Gideon’s silence left her with only one other possibility. He’d said he would not force her to do anything she didn’t want to do. It was the only explanation for why he had not turned to face her or suggest he join her. He wanted her to come to him of her own accord. Taking that final leap, she drew in a deep breath then released it.

“Would you…would you wish to join me?”

At her hesitant question, Gideon stiffened then slowly turned to face her. The tension radiating off him was almost palpable, and his handsome features were sharply defined in the room’s soft glow of the gaslight sconces on the wall. Gideon’s gaze locked with hers in a penetrating look as he clasped his hands behind his back. He stood as still as a statue with his only movement that of a small tic in his cheek.

“Is that what you want, or are you asking because you feel obligated to do so?”

The strained note in Gideon’s voice emphasized he was struggling to hold himself in check. Phoebe stiffened as the enormity of Gideon’s question swept over her. He’d promised she would have the right to do as she wished, and his words said he intended to honor his vow.

Gideon was making it clear that entering his bed was a choice for her, not an obligation. If only he loved her. She would not have even asked the question. She would simply have run to him and tell him how much she loved him, needed him—needed his touch to make her feel truly alive.

“I do not feel obligated. I would like…very much…for you to join me.”

Chapter 18