Lauren’s pulse raced as Theodore’s fingers trailed over the fine bones of her ankles while the straps of the skates were tightened. She was too stunned to voice an objection as he took her mug of cider, placed it aside, and pulled her upright.
When she wobbled like a newborn foal on spindly legs, his arm snaked around her waist as she’d seen him do with Melanie.
“It is a short distance to the pond, Lauren,” Theodore said in a low voice, and while she’d been shivering just moments before, she was definitely warm now with the heat of his body pressed against hers. “Lean against my shoulder if you need to.”
He was daring her to defy him, although, in her current mood, she wasn’t sure she could manage it. With a stubborn tilt of her chin, she braved a few tentative steps, his muscled arms acting as a brace. A quick glance at Melanie revealed the lady watching them with narrowed eyes, a glint of jealousy evident in their depths.
In a matter of seconds, Theodore had pulled her onto the pond, and Lauren experienced a stab of fear when her feet quickly slid independently of her wishes. She clutched at him.
“Theodore!” Her terrified squeak drew a reassuring grin from him. Other skaters wisely gave them a wide berth, and Theodore kept along the edges of the pond.
“Hold on to me, sweetheart.” He steadied her once more, his body something akin to a sturdy oak. “Now, the most important rule of ice skating is you must never look at your feet.”
“What?” Lauren frowned. “That is the silliest thing I’ve ever heard.” Immediately, she glanced down and suffered a quick wobble that made Theodore tighten his hold even more.
Placing a forefinger beneath her chin, he lifted it until their gazes locked. “See? Eyes up. In fact, keep them on me, Lauren.”
“I don’t want to fall,” she whispered, staring at him while fighting the urge to look at their feet. Were they actually moving, and were they still discussing ice skating? “It will hurt, and I’m frightened.”
“I know.” Theodore was calm, maneuvering her in a way that should have been disturbing but somehow put her at ease. She relaxed the tiniest bit against his side as he murmured, “But if you fall, I fall as well. All right?”
Lauren slowly nodded, keeping her eyes on him.
“Now, do you trust me?” he asked, and when she hesitated, he gave her that smile that never failed to make her head fuzzy. The one that made his sky-blue eyes sparkle like diamonds and was both wicked and mischievous. When he smiled at her like that, she thought she might agree with just about anything he asked of her. “Do you trust me, Lauren?” he prodded.
“Yes.”
There was no time to overthink her surrender. Withdrawing his arm from her waist, he rotated so they faced one another and took both her hands within his own gloved ones. Using strong pushes of his thighs, Theodore moved backward in a move oddly similar to dancing.
“Eyes on me. Hold on to my hands. I’ll pull you… Now, move your feet a little, side to side. Tiny, alternating movements. There. Just like that, sweetheart. You are doing amazing. You’re nearly skating by yourself.”
Concentrating on Theodore’s features made it easy to forget her fear of falling. Basking in the warmth of his smile made her wish he would always look at her like this. The cold air stung her cheeks, and Lauren wondered if, without the skates, perhaps he might have pulled her closer to his body, held her so she could feel his breath on her neck. Maybe even brush his lips against her ear. Or press his mouth upon hers.
I want him to kiss me. But unless he carried that blasted mistletoe in his pocket, there was no good reason he would.
Longing for something so dangerous buckled Lauren’s knees.
Her hands ripped free from Theodore’s. Landing with a thump, the pain at first knocked the breath from her lungs. Thrown off balance, Theodore fell to the ice as well.
A helpless giggle tumbled from Lauren at the comical sight of the fiercely elegant and habitually proper earl sprawled on his bum beside her. That quickly morphed into a chuckle, and before she knew it, she was laughing so hard she couldn’t breathe.
Theodore stared at her for a long moment, concern for her safety obvious in the way his eyes traveled over her. Then, his lips twitched with the hint of a grin. Moving closer, his hand slid up to cup her jaw, the leather of his glove surprisingly warm as though his skin radiated heat beneath the material. Lauren fought the urge to nestle into his touch even while she laughed.
Finally, a reluctant chuckle broke free from Theodore, his eyes roaming over her curved mouth until she licked her lips self-consciously. When he spoke, the words were a husky rasp of familiarity and restrained desire.
“God, how I’ve missed your laughter. Hearing it now makes up for my bruised posterior.”
“Are you truly injured, or is it only your ego that has suffered?” she teased, almost forgetting they sat on a frozen pond in a jumble of skirts and legs and sharp, steel skates while people glided past, throwing them curious stares. It was quite scandalous they’d not made a single effort to rise from the ice. “I told you I was afraid of falling.”
“And I told you I’d go down as well.”
Suddenly sober, Theodore eased forward until their noses nearly touched, until Lauren thought he might actually kiss her.
“Let me in, Lauren, and you’ll never fall alone.”
Chapter 7
They lagged behind the others during the walk back to the manor.
Lauren was oddly quiet, but Theodore could not stop thinking how completely her laughter entranced him. How it left him more determined than ever to capture and claim her for his own.
When he stopped short on the pathway, she did not protest but merely regarded him with such calm Theodore wanted to shake her.
“Leave your door unlocked tonight, Lauren.”
“Why would I do that?”
“Why would you not? We’ve matters between us unsettled from this morning. Remember?” Theodore said in a low voice.
Lauren appeared disconcerted for a moment, then her mouth tightened. “I will remind you again; you are not my betrothed.”
“Damn it all, Lauren.” His words came out in a growl. Pulling her off the path so no one could witness his actions, he backed her against an English yew tree, his hands tight on her shoulders. “Why do you fight what is between us? Jesus Christ, I’m willing to give you anything your heart desires just to have you.”
Lauren shoved him, although the effort proved ineffective. Her chin jerked up, bringing Theodore’s attention to a bit of wild mistletoe tangled in the branches above their heads. “Give me a truth, Theo. Why did you not tell me what was done before I confronted you with it? Why didn’t you tell me I’d been bought for my inheritance?”
“Do you have any idea how difficult it was for me to take care of my estates, to provide for my mother and all those dependent upon me once you voided our engagement contract? Do you?” Theodore countered angrily. “And to keep it all secret on top of that?
Lauren remained stubbornly silent until he rubbed her bottom lip with the pad of his gloved thumb. She let out a tiny gasp as he gruffly spoke. “I would not have used your inheritance; however, the idea it was available carried tremendous weight with my father’s creditors.”