Read Online 'Twas the Night Before Mischief by Nina Rowan - Free Book Online Page B

hair that had escaped from beneath her cap. “As you have done with me for quite some time.”
    Penelope’s breath caught when he lowered his head, capturing her lips in a gentle kiss that spread light through her entire being. Her body softened and arched toward his with a natural suppleness, like a flower stem bending to the wind.
    Darius slipped his hand beneath her chin, drawing her closer. Their mouths opened together, tongues touching with a spark, heat blooming. He captured her legs between his as he moved closer, his big hand spreading across her back. Awareness shot through her as her breasts brushed against his solid chest. This close to him, wrapped in the comfort of his arms, Penelope was no longer cold, no longer scared, no longer dreading what lay ahead.
    Instead she knew with utter certainty that in this instant, she belonged right here. She felt comforted. Safe. For all his impassivity, Penelope knew Darius would never let anything happen to her. He wouldn’t shame her for her mistakes or criticize her reckless desires. He would just be there, secure and unyielding as a rock.
    For a woman who felt as if she were hardly keeping herself afloat, it was like reaching the shore after a long journey. She pressed herself closer to him, sinking into the pleasure of his kiss. She felt his heart beating against hers, a heavy thumping that echoed the rhythm of her own pulse.
    Then his fingers tightened around her arms as he broke away from her. They stared at each other, breathing hard. Penelope pressed her gloved hand to her lips as if she could keep the warm pressure of his mouth there.
    â€œI…I’m sorry.” Darius sank back onto the seat, dragging a hand through his hair. “When I told your father I’d bring you home, I did so with the soundest of intentions. I would not risk your virtue to…”
    A flush swept Penelope from head to toe. She clenched her hands together to stop them from shaking.
    â€œMy virtue,” she said, only just suppressing the quaver in her voice, “is not yours to protect .”
    â€œI meant that I—”
    â€œNo. Please don’t. Don’t treat me the way everyone else does, as if you know what is best for me. I returned your kiss because I wanted to. If you blame yourself, you insult us both.”
    Part of her wished she could stalk in indignation from the chaise, but a distant crack of thunder warned that the storm would not be over soon. She sat back on her bench across from Darius and pulled the blanket around her shivering body.
    Silence descended, broken only by the sound of the rain and their breathing. Penelope watched Darius through the darkness, every so often catching sight of a shadow moving across his features. Desire seized her—not only for his kisses that made her feel such a riotous mixture of colors but to know that he understood .
    â€œI never loved him,” she whispered into the cold.
    â€œI know.”
    He shifted, reaching for his valise. He rummaged inside and produced a cylindrical tube wrapped in bright green paper, holding it out to her.
    â€œMore pleasing than the one you gave me at the church all those years ago,” Penelope remarked.
    â€œOpen it.”
    She tore the paper off and broke open the present. A sudden pop burst from the tube. Penelope gave a little shriek. Bits of colored paper and toys spilled onto her lap. “What on earth…”
    â€œI’d been wanting to show it to you since arriving back in London,” Darius said. “It was your idea, that the package should have noise, like an explosion. I’ve been working on a way to do that for the past four years.”
    Penelope stared at him, stunned by the fact that he’d not only listened to her but he had…“You wanted to make my idea real ?”
    â€œI tried a number of things but finally had success with a strip of chemical paper. I’ve not had an opportunity to show your father