nearness and how exquisite she was.
One hand glided up her back to her neck and the other to her cheek. He positioned her head so that he could bend in and claim her lips with all the desperateness that had overcome him earlier when he’d thought she was dead. His touch was neither gentle nor chaste. It was hungry and full of all the need for her that he’d denied for too long.
She rose on her toes to meet him, greeting his kiss with one as ardent as his. She didn’t hold back.
Through the haze of his passion, he heard the clatter of carriage wheels coming from the direction of Provincetown. From the rapid speed, he guessed the newcomer was either Arch or Nathaniel. Or both. He knew he should stop kissing Victoria before anyone arrived. She’d be embarrassed to be caught kissing him so fervently. It was unladylike and even scandalous.
But he didn’t want to stop. He wanted Nathaniel to see them together. He wanted Nathaniel to see Victoria kissing him in a way that she never had him.
He tipped her head back so that he had access to her neck. He broke away from her lips and moved to her lovely exposed throat. He kissed her jaw line and dipped to the spot below it, feeling the thud of her pulse and the heat of her skin.
From the corner of his eye, he could see that Arch was driving the wildly careening vehicle, which meant Nathaniel was riding as a passenger. As the carriage jerked to a stop, Tom captured Victoria’s lips again. After his teasing kisses upon her neck, she was ready for him and responded with an ardor that would surely show Nathaniel who her choice was.
The horse’s snorting and the banging open of the carriage door didn’t seem to penetrate Victoria’s passion. She was lost in their kiss. Tom waited until he heard Nathaniel’s feet hit the gravel, and then he counted mentally to five before he released her.
She didn’t immediately pull away and would have moved to kiss him again, except that he turned her slightly. “We have company,” he whispered and nodded toward the new arrivals.
Her first glance was disinterested. But when she looked again and understanding lit her eyes, she broke away from him. He wrapped his arm around her waist, not intending to let her distance herself too much. She was his now. He hoped Nathaniel had gotten the message, but just in case he hadn’t, Tom would make sure he understood.
Thankfully, Victoria didn’t protest his need to stake his claim on her. Instead, she sidled into the curve of his arm.
Nathaniel’s eyes were wide and bounced back and forth between him and Victoria. Confusion floundered across his face. His mouth was open as if he wanted to speak but didn’t know what to say.
Arch didn’t move from the high driver’s seat of the carriage. But his broad shoulders visibly relaxed. Tom was sure Arch had assessed the situation as rapidly as he would have. The lone horse, the broken door, and Butch unconscious and tied up on the ground. Seeing that Victoria was standing and unharmed, Arch was content. In fact, Tom caught a glimpse of humor in Arch’s eyes, as though he suspected what Tom was doing and why.
Nathaniel’s eyes, however, had no humor in them, only hurt and surprise. “Victoria? I don’t understand.”
Tom felt the slight tremble in her arm as she wound it behind his back. “I love Tom.”
“But you love me,” Nathaniel stammered. “We’re getting married.”
Victoria shook her head slowly, almost sadly. “I’m sorry.”
Nathaniel searched her face, and his shoulders sagged as though he realized he was defeated. Perhaps he’d suspected it all along but was finally admitting it.
A shard of guilt pricked Tom. He owed Nathaniel an apology for sending the telegram and allowing him to believe Victoria wanted to resume the wedding plans. Even though the deception had revealed Theresa as the culprit, Tom probably could have figured out a way to gain Nathaniel’s participation in the process without setting him up for this kind of pain.
At the very least, Tom hoped Nathaniel would recover from his heartbreak quickly, and hopefully one day find another woman he could love as much as Victoria. He was a good man, but he had to realize by now that Victoria wasn’t the right woman for him. Tom guessed that if she’d gone through with the plans to marry Nathaniel, she would have run away from the ceremony,