gently pressing at the corners of her mouth, and she opened her lips at his gentle but firm demand. The sinful, wicked way that his tongue plunged in between her lips and the way he played with her body left her breathless and excited.
He stroked his fingertips along her neck and rested his forehead against hers as they caught their breath. Lydia put a hand to his chest beneath the dressing gown, not to push him away but to simply touch him. His skin was warm and hard, yet smooth to the touch. Brodie Kincade was a hot-blooded specimen of a man. As terrible as her situation was, she had to admit that she was glad she would learn the pleasures of the bedroom with this man and not someone she wasn’t attracted to.
“Better now, lass?” he asked in a soft, intimate tone.
“Yes.” She couldn’t leave, not when she could feel his heart beating so steady and firm beneath her palm. “I do wish you would just ask to kiss me,” she mumbled. Although she was, against her own good sense, starting to like when he stole kisses from her like this.
“Good.” He let her up off his lap.
She was still recovering herself when there was a knock at the door. Brodie called for whoever it was to enter. A trio of boys came in, each with big wooden buckets of steaming water. They poured them into the copper tub in one corner of the room. After two more trips the tub was full enough, and Brodie nodded at her.
He sat down at the table to eat with his back to her. “Time to bathe.”
“I don’t suppose it’s worth asking you to afford me some small measure of privacy?”
“No. I will keep my back turned. That’s all you get, Lydia.” He caressed her name in a way that sounded far too scandalous.
She stood there a full minute before he spoke again. “Better hurry or the water will go cold,” he warned.
Stripping out of her dressing gown and chemise, she climbed into the tub and sighed as the hot water enveloped her. She wanted to stay longer, but Brodie’s presence made her far too self-conscious to do more than the essentials. She washed her hair using a bit of rosewater and then stepped out and wrapped herself in a large clean cloth. She then searched her luggage for a fresh chemise and thankfully found one. Only when she was safely in her dressing gown again did she face Brodie. He still had his back to her.
“Finished?” he asked.
“Yes.”
“Good, ’Tis my turn now.” He stood and removed his dressing gown. Before she realized what was happening, he had removed his smallclothes and was striding toward the tub completely naked.
“Mr. Kincade!” she gasped.
“I respected your modesty, but I never claimed to have any of my own to be concerned about.”
She knew she had to turn away but was still too stunned to do so, seeing first his front and then his backside.
“Paint a picture, lass, if you wish to gaze upon me longer,” he chuckled. “Or you can join me. The tub is large enough.”
Lydia turned away, aroused in a way that only added to her mortification. “No, I think not.”
She kept her back turned and listened to him splashing about. Even that was enough to give her plenty of fantasies, however. She busied herself, or at least tried to, by focusing on what she would wear. Without a lady’s maid to assist her, it was rather difficult to decide. Perhaps she could have one of the maids who worked at the inn to assist her. She would need some help, at any rate, especially with her hair.
She heard the water splash again as Brodie exited the bathtub, but she didn’t dare risk turning around. “Better ring for a maid,” he advised. “And have my valet come and attend me as soon as you are dressed.”
Lydia shuffled over to the cord with her back to Brodie at all times and pulled it. A nice young woman answered the call. It was the girl who’d brought them breakfast.
“Yes, miss?”
“Would you mind helping me dress?” she asked, thinking quickly. “My maid has been delayed on another coach.”
“Of course.” The girl came into the room but froze.
Unable to contain her curiosity any longer, Lydia turned and saw Brodie seated in the chair wearing only his dressing gown. His dark hair was wet and curling at the ends, which only made Lydia’s heart race.