be sure since the light coming from the fireplace and candles made it difficult to see everything with clarity, but she thought he looked embarrassed.
“No,” he said, “he doesn’t think she should go to sleep.”
Since there was nothing a person did in a bedchamber other than sleep, she had no idea what he was alluding to. “What does he think?”
“It’s not important. I’m here to offer you comfort after what just happened with your brother. We should focus on that. How can I most help you feel comforted?”
She thought about letting the matter go, but now her curiosity was piqued. “I want to know what a gentleman thinks.”
“It doesn’t matter.”
“But I’m curious.”
“Yes, I understand you’re curious, but it doesn’t matter.”
She debated whether or not she should push the issue. She’d like to know what kind of thoughts were going through his head right now. Lilly and Emilia alluded to things with their husbands, but she had trouble understanding what they were talking about. “It’s safe to ask you since you’re my husband, isn’t it?”
“I realize you’re only asking because you’re naïve, but I’d rather not say. As it is, I’ve said too much already.”
“You said it because I asked you why you were sitting in that chair instead of sitting next to me.”
“Yes, I remember that.”
When he didn’t continue, she said, “I’d like to know what you’re thinking.”
He groaned. “Why must you be so persistent? Isn’t it enough that I’m staying here with you in order to make you feel better?”
She frowned. Was that the only reason he stayed here? He felt obligated to? “Does that mean you don’t care about me?”
“I do care about you. In fact, over the past few weeks, I’ve grown to care for you a lot.”
Her heart gave an unexpected leap. “You have?”
“Of course, I have. I don’t make it a habit of visiting someone every day unless I care about them.”
Her skin warmed in pleasure, and she felt a shy smile tug at her lips. “I care about you, too.”
He returned her smile. “Good. I’m glad to hear it.”
A moment of silence passed between them, and she took another sip of the sherry. She tried to convince herself that everything would be all right with the world if she never knew what gentlemen thought while a lady was in a bedchamber with them, but try as she might, the need to know kept prodding her.
She let out a sigh. “I really want to know, Aaron. Why can’t you tell me what gentlemen think?”
He stared at her in disbelief for a moment then stood up. “I can’t do this. I’ll ask your friend to come up and comfort you. I’ll be by tomorrow to take you for a walk.”
She jumped off the bed and set the glass on the nightstand before she ran after him. She managed to reach him before he got to the door. “I don’t understand why this is such a difficult question for you to answer. You spent a night with me in my bedchamber, and all we did was sleep.”
“You slept. I was awake.”
“Why?”
“Because…because…” He groaned again. “All right. You really have to know this, don’t you? You’re going to be as determined to get your way as you’ve been from the moment you found out I hired someone to chaperone you.” He pointed to the bed. “The entire night we were in the bedchamber together, all I wanted to do was get into the bed with you.”
“But we weren’t getting along back then. I don’t see how pleasant sleep would have been.”
“I didn’t want to sleep. I wanted to touch and hold and kiss you and,” he paused as he searched for the right words then continued, “do other things with you. There’s a part of me that isn’t ruled by logic. It doesn’t care if we’re getting along or not. All it cared about was that you were wearing nightclothes.”
“What’s wrong with my nightclothes?”
“They’re thinner than your gowns. I could see the shape of your…your,” he gestured to her breasts, “in surprising detail. And I was already attracted to you anyway. Why do you think I insisted you cover yourself from the neck to your ankles at all times?”
Her eyes grew wide. “That’s why you had me dress in those insufferable clothes? You weren’t worried someone else was going to look at me. You were looking at me?”
“Sadly, yes. I’m not perfect. I might not have wanted to force the issue with the heir, but I’m only human.