crinoline and raced down the drive. Birds darted out of trees, stirred by her anxiety. She didn’t stop until she saw the iron gates ahead. Winded, she dropped her bag and leaned against the bars, gasping for air. She jerked on the handles. The gates didn’t budge. Locked.
She was trapped.
“No,” she cried, resting her forehead on the cool metal for the briefest of moments.
She pushed away, stumbling back. Surely there was somewhere to escape. She snatched up her bag and followed the fence into a patch of trees.
“Ridiculous,” she whispered, pulling up her skirt and stepping over a root. Was the entire property fenced? Unease made her skin crawl. Surely they didn’t keep their servants under lock and key? Ignoring the anxiety, she brushed aside a low-hanging branch and spotted a narrow trail.
“Thank God.”
Brown sparrows chirped and darted through the trees, the only sign of life in the still forest. A soft snap rent the air. Before she could react, her bag fell with a thud to the ground. She stared at the handle, broken off in her palm.
“No!” she cried out, dropping the handle. “No, no, no!” She collapsed onto the forest floor. Petticoats and skirts spilled onto the dirt, leaves stuck to clothing that only yesterday morning Fran had so carefully folded. Ella choked on a sob.
She had nowhere to go.
Nowhere.
Warm tears slipped down her cheeks. She pulled up her legs and rested her forehead on her knees, too tired to move or care. What would she do? Where would she go? A sudden throb pulsed at the base of her core. Ella stiffened, not daring to raise her head. The forest was quiet.
Too quiet.
Turning her senses inward, she recognized him immediately. A warm trail of need spiraled in her body, lighting her soul. The same heated sensation that pulled her under in the ballroom. She focused on that emotion, trying to make sense of the desire. Her body began to ache, spreading down her limbs and pooling in the pit of her belly. But underneath that need pulsed an overwhelming sense of anger and despair. Trembling, she lifted her head.
Ella couldn’t prevent the gasp from escaping her lips. He sat at the foot of a tree and watched her from the shadows, his face unreadable. Dear Lord, would he murder her right where she knelt, where no one could hear her screams? Surely…surely he wouldn’t harm her. Lord Roberts said he wouldn’t. Then again, Lord Roberts had said many things that weren’t exactly true. Desperately, she attempted to make sense of her emotions, to read the man’s intentions, but fear made deciphering impossible.
Like an agile cat, Leo rolled to his feet. He started toward her and Ella couldn’t prevent the slight squeak that escaped her lips. Slowly, as if she were some wild animal he feared frightening, he knelt in front of her. A long, dark lock caressed the side of his jaw. Their eyes met and her body tingled, starting at her toes and shivering its way up her legs like a caress from an invisible lover. She couldn’t seem to look away. In those eerie amber eyes, she could feel his pain, but there was something else…a deep aching need…for what?
Gently, he reached out and brushed his thumb across the side of her cheek. Her mouth went dry. Yet, at the same time, the touch sent a comforting warmth through her body and she knew no harm would come from his large hands. When he pulled away, dirt marked his thumb.
Ella flushed, shifting backward, away from his nearness and the uncomfortable feelings he produced. “I…I don’t usually sit on the forest floor.”
He didn’t respond. Her gaze narrowed; did he understand her?
“I—I must look a fright.” She reached up to her cheek and felt the rough texture of dirt embedded in her skin.
His gaze moved from her eyes, lower to her lips, even lower still so that he scanned her entire body. The heat covering her skin burst into flames. She swallowed hard, resisting the urge to scoot back even further.
Suddenly, he reached out and before she could move, before she could protest, he scooped her up in his arms. Stiff, Ella reluctantly settled against his hard body, too afraid to protest. Her heart thundered as he carried her through the forest. What was he thinking? Under her knees and around her back, she felt the hard muscles of his arms, holding her tightly against his chest. She didn’t dare move.
He ducked under a branch and she tucked her head to his shoulder, avoiding the leaves. She didn’t understand this man, didn’t understand his actions. His heart beat against her cheek, strong and healthy. Unwillingly, she breathed in his scent and felt as if she were falling into a warm pool of earthy pine and salty air. A lovely scent she would never have expected.
She peeked at him through her lashes. His jaw was square, lightly sprinkled with dark hair as if he hadn’t shaved in some time. Her fingers tingled, resisting the urge to reach up and touch the scruff just to see how it felt.
Slowly, her attention moved to his mouth and that heat flared low in her belly. She sucked in a breath. His bottom lip was slightly fuller than the top. Were they soft? Or as hard as they looked? She jerked her gaze away. Blimey! What was she doing allowing him to carry her? She should demand he release her at once.
The roar of water broke through the pounding of her heart. A small waterfall rushed over moss-covered rocks while ferns as tall as her waist thrived around the crystalline spring. She’d never seen anything so wonderful. Lady Buckley’s small estate certainly didn’t hold such beauty.
“It’s stunning,” she whispered, forgetting her unease.
His hold loosened, and she slid down his hard body, each inch sending warm currents over her skin. Had her feet landed, or was she floating? Her fingers dug into his hard biceps for support, and finally she met his gaze. Lightning shot through to her core. She stumbled back, gasping for air.
Distance. She needed distance from the man in order to gather her thoughts, control her emotions and power. She scampered onto a large boulder and knelt by the pool. Away from him, she could finally breathe, finally think. She scooped up water and rubbed at her face, taking relief in the cool liquid. Why? Why did he produce such emotions from her? It made no sense.
He didn’t move, but she knew he watched. She could feel his attention burning into her back. She pulled her handkerchief from her pocket and dried her cheek. Finally, she turned to face him.
“Can you speak?”
He didn’t respond.
Peering into his amber eyes, she tried to discern the truth. She felt curiosity from the man, anger, resolution. So many conflicting emotions her mind spun. But when she tried to delve deeper…to soothe the beast, nothing. Pain sliced through her head, and she cringed, sitting back on her heels. Why was it she could easily read the minds of animals and control the beasts of the forests, but this man seemed impossible to tame? But then, she’d never been able to read a human and wasn’t quite sure of the rules.
“Can you say any words, at all?” she tried again. A light and airy breeze rushed through her body. Humor? Was he amused? Blast, but she could see nothing in his eyes.
“Leo,” she heard and spun around to see Lord Roberts push through the branches. “Thank God, I was worried….” His gaze landed on her, and he stilled. “Ella, I thought you had left.”
She flushed and twisted the handkerchief in her hands, horrified to be caught with Lord Roberts’s grandson in such an intimate setting. “I did.”
“Oh, I see.”
An uncomfortable silence settled around them. Leo stood and without a word disappeared into the trees, melting into the shadows.
“Where’s he going?” she asked, stumbling to her feet.
Lord Roberts stared after his grandson, the area between his bushy white brows creased with obvious worry. “I don’t know. I never do, with him.” Those pale blue eyes pierced her. “Ella dear, I know you must be angry.” Ella stiffened and steeled herself for his words of apology. “But you