Roderick's Purpose - Ellie St. Clair Page 0,20

said, shaking his head. By all practicalities, aye, of course it was a mistake. And yet, something inside of him was telling him that there was more to it, that there was a feeling he should give in to. It didn’t make sense, but he couldn’t ignore the thoughts flooding through his mind. “I think—”

“McDougall.” A tall, burly officer came around the corner, seemingly oblivious to the tension which hung in the air, for which Roderick was grateful. “Did you get the prisoner settled for the night?”

“She is, uh, that is, she’s right here,” he said lamely, torn between wanting to spirit Gwen away from there and knowing she was only in this situation because of her own actions.

“What’s taking so long?” the man asked, looking between the two of them. “Ah well. Here we go,” he said, gently steering Gwen inside the cell. Roderick wanted to step between them, to tell the man to keep from touching her, that she was more than a prisoner. But, quite obviously, he could not. And so instead, he nodded to the man, and without another look at her, he turned and continued down the corridor to the officers’ barracks, completely aroused and, in the same breath, confused.

Chapter 8

“These are your cabins,” Roderick said, gesturing to the two small berths side-by-side. “I shall be across the hall. Unless I am with you, your doors will be locked during the journey — from the outside, of course.”

“Oh?” Gwen asked, arching her eyebrow at him. “And where do you suppose we will go if we were to escape?”

He shrugged. “My duty is to ensure you stay well-guarded,” he said. “You cannot be trusted to wander the ship. I think you will understand why.”

Gwen turned from him so that her face wouldn’t betray her. His words stung, despite their truth. Logically, she knew that, of course, she couldn’t be out and among the other passengers. One might recognize her, true, as the man had on the train, which could raise panic. Even more than that, however, was the possibility that she might pilfer from the other guests. She imagined there were more than a few rich Canadians and Americans returning home for a visit, and there might be more than the odd jewel aboard.

None of the jewels these women wore or carried, however, could rival that which she held against her, though many could fetch a pretty penny. She had seen them on the passengers who boarded at the same time. Except she had no desire to steal from these women. It was only that Roderick, of course, would never believe such words if she told him, which she had to admit she understood.

She sighed. Their kiss had been nothing short of amazing. She had never known it could feel like that to kiss a man, had never known such passion was possible. When Roderick had left, she was shaken to her core and had barely slept the entire night. She had hardly even noticed the horrific state of the mattress she had lain upon, but had rather been entirely focused on the magic of the moment outside of the cell.

Despite the fact she had lived nearly half her life surrounded by men, Gwen was, for the most part, an innocent. Her experience was limited to a hurried, sloppy kiss from a young man who had been part of her father’s gang for but a week or two. He had been handsome, boyish, and she had felt a kinship with him as he really didn’t seem to have a taste for the life. Yet that very reluctance had been his undoing, as her father had witnessed his hesitation and sent him on his way after but one robbery. Gwen had been upset at his departure, but more so at the loss of someone who understood her as none other in the gang, nor her father, ever had.

But this… was something entirely different. Roderick, it seemed, certainly had the experience of a man who had kissed before, and, as far as she could tell, was more than skilled at it. When he came to collect them the next morning, he had seemed entirely unaffected by their encounter, as he had coolly led them to the horses and the train, only speaking to them when he had to. He uncharacteristically said hardly a word to her on the journey to Montreal but had rather stared at her and Doc in stony silence, arms crossed over his chest. She