“Oh? Have I fettered you, then?” She made her voice light and airy when in fact she was profoundly touched by his dedication to her.

“You know you have.” Snaking his arm around her, he pulled her up against him and blanketed her mouth with his, kissing her deeply and thoroughly, as though needing to prove that she was equally fettered to him.

Only she feared she was more so. That she and her heart would remain bound to him until the end of time.

Chapter 21

Too many days later to count, Selena languidly stretched in her bed. Glancing over, she imagined how glorious it would be to be greeted by the sight of Aiden each morning, to see him unshaven, unkempt, his hair sticking out in all directions, his slow smile just before he reached for her and tucked her beneath his powerful body. She doubted very much that he would adhere to the nobility’s practice of the husband and wife sleeping in separate bedchambers. No, he would hold her as she slept, his body warming her, his hand cradling her breast, just as he’d done at Sheffield Hall.

That night seemed so long ago now because so many nights had followed, nights when she’d gone to him. She’d thought of asking him to come to her, but it would not do at all for her sisters to discover him visiting, which they no doubt would because she and Aiden lost in the throes of passion was not a quiet thing. She kept expecting their joining to shift into a staid and boring routine. But beneath his hands she turned to kindling, beneath his body she became enflamed.

When the knock sounded, she pushed herself upright and settled back against the pillows. Early in her marriage, she’d gotten into the habit of taking her breakfast in bed because that was the manner in which a proper duchess began her day. Although at present, she was anything except a proper duchess. Still, as Bailey walked in carrying a tray laden with dishes, Selena fought to give the appearance of one.

Bailey set the tray over Selena’s lap, went about fluffing up the pillows behind her, then wandered over to the windows and threw open the draperies with a dramatic flourish, as she liked nothing more than letting in the day.

Selena lifted a lid to reveal buttered eggs, their aroma causing her stomach to grow a bit queasy. Deciding she wasn’t in the mood for them, she covered them back up. Toast and jam appealed.