Whirlwind Affair

secrets, Robert, Elizabeth 's warning.

Robert.

She pressed her fingers to her temples and squeezed her eyes shut, trying to banish him, but he remained firmly embedded in her mind. She had not seen him since dinner-a rushed meal, as everyone wished to visit with Elizabeth and Lily. Of course, it had been impossible to speak to him in the dining room about what was uppermost in her mind. I think we should become lovers.

And now, Elizabeth 's confirmation that he did indeed have secrets had her thoughts in further turmoil. What was he hiding? What had happened in his past? An almost morbid curiosity pulled at her. In spite of the fact that she shouldn't care, that it should not matter, she felt an inexplicable need, an overwhelming urge to know. What would happen if she, as Elizabeth suggested, simply asked him? Would he tell her? Or would he, as David had, lie? Or deny there was anything to tell? Don't be a fool. If he has not shared his secrets with his own family, why would he tell you? And why would you want him to?

She opened her eyes, and her breath caught in her throat. In the window's reflection she saw her bedchamber door opening slowly inward. An icy ball of fear bounced through her, and she whirled around.

And found herself staring at Robert quietly entering her bedchamber. She blinked twice, certain he was a figment of her overwrought imagination, but he was very real. And here.

A wave of heat engulfed her, instantly melting her fear. From her shadowy corner, she watched him close, then lock, the door. He moved slowly, silently, toward the bed. She knew the exact instant he realized she did not lie beneath the rumpled bedclothes. He froze, then quickly scanned the room.

'I'm here,' she said, emerging from the deep shadows.

Robert turned so quickly he swore he almost snapped his neck. There she stood, in the golden glow cast by the low-burning fire in the grate. Relief hit him so hard he felt an actual need to sit down. Instead, he strode across the room and grasped her by her upper arms.

'Are you all right?' he asked in a tight voice.

'I'm fine.'

'I was concerned.' His voice sounded harsh and more than a little accusatory, even to his own ears.

She raised her brows. 'Then we are even. My heart nearly stopped when I saw my door opening in that furtive manner.'

'It wasn't furtive. It was cautious. I'm relieved you are all right. When I saw the empty bed I thought…' Whatever he'd been about to say evaporated from his mind as his gaze lowered. She wore a cream dressing gown that covered her in unadorned, prim cotton from just below her chin to her toes. A long row of buttons ran down the front, and he imagined an equally plain cotton night rail lay beneath.

He'd never seen her garbed in anything other than black, and the effect was like a punch in the heart. She looked so achingly lovely, and for the first time since he'd met her, he did not feel that the shadow of another man stood between them.

'What did you think?' she asked softly. 'That some man had absconded with me?'

He refocused his gaze on her face. Glossy strands of hair had worked free of her braid, lending her a sensually disheveled air. Lifting his hand, he brushed a single fingertip over the smudges marring the delicate pale skin under her eyes, marks that told him without words that she had not slept. Her pupils dilated at the whisper of a touch, and he instantly wondered what her reaction would be to a bolder, more intimate caress.

'I feared some manner of disaster had befallen you, yes,' he said. 'Based on the events of our acquaintance thus far, you can hardly fault my concern.'

'I was not finding fault. Indeed, considering my conversation this evening with Elizabeth, I appreciate your vigilance on my behalf.'

His fingers drifted down her smooth cheek. She had no idea how vigilant he intended to be. 'What did Elizabeth tell you?'

'That she sensed danger. And that I should not venture off alone.'

'So you know about her… feelings?'

'She told me this evening, yes. Told me she'd felt something about David… that was why she'd tried to persuade me not to marry him.' A humorless laugh escaped her. 'If only-' She shook her head, then stepped away from him. His hands fell to his sides, and he watched her walk across the room to stand in front of the fireplace. Sensing she needed to put some space between them, he forced himself to remain where he was.

'I cannot change the past,' she said. 'All I can do is learn from my mistakes.'

'That is all any of us can do, Allie.'

She contemplated the burning log for several seconds, then turned back to him. 'This ability of Elizabeth 's, it's extraordinary.'

'Indeed it is,' he agreed. 'Her 'feelings' saved Austin 's life. My brother William's and his family's lives as well. We are forever in her debt.'

There was no mistaking her surprise. 'I did not know this. It is a story I would be interested in hearing.'

'Then I shall tell you. But not now. Now there are other things we need to discuss.'

He watched her go still. Then she lifted her chin a notch. 'What other things?'

'The fact that there is still danger facing you,' he said, walking slowly toward her. Her eyes widened slightly at his deliberately measured approach, but she stood her ground. Good. He liked that she didn't back away. Liked the awareness tempered with caution flickering in her eyes. 'There is also the fact that you do not need to worry about venturing off alone because I have no intention of being farther away from you than'-he halted when only two feet separated them-'this.'

Reaching out, he lightly clasped her wrists. Her pulse raced beneath his fingers, pleasing him. 'Then there is the matter of finishing our conversation from the carriage.'

'Have you thought on the matter?' she asked.

'I've thought of nothing else.'

'I see. And have you made a decision?' He had to admire her air of calm nonchalance, an effect spoiled only by the rapid quickening of her pulse.

With his eyes steady on hers, he said, 'Surely there can be no doubt in your mind that I want to make love to you.'

A flicker of what appeared to be relief flashed in her eyes. Yet when he said nothing further, simply stood and watched her, that relief turned to uncertainty. 'Not a doubt exactly,' she said, 'yet I sense a 'but.' '

'I assume you've considered that you could become pregnant.' He forcibly pushed aside the incredible, heart- stopping image of her, large with his child.

'Of course I considered it, but it is not a concern.' She lowered her chin and stared at the floor. 'I am… barren.'

Everything inside him tensed, and a mental No! screamed through his head. Fate would not be so cruel. Swallowing to moisten his suddenly dry throat, he asked, 'What makes you believe that?'

She raised her head and met his gaze. 'I never conceived during my marriage.'

His muscles relaxed somewhat. 'You were not married very long.'

'Eight months. Certainly long enough, especially considering how frequently we… tried.'

His teeth clenched at the thought of that thieving scoundrel touching her, and he was glad the bastard would never touch her again. No man will. Except me. 'Perhaps the fault was your husband's.'

She shook her head. 'No. The failure was mine. David was quite positive on the matter. So positive, in fact, that given what I now know about him, I would not be surprised if he'd fathered a child at some point.' Bitterness compressed her lips. 'Indeed, he might have fathered several. Lord knows I was not his first woman… or his last. Not being able to have children… it was difficult to accept, yet I had no choice but to do so.'

Her words cut deep. He wanted children. Lots of them. And Allie would be a wonderful mother.

But what if she were truly barren?

He looked into her eyes, and his heart turned over. Yes, children were important. But she was essential. If she truly could not bear a child, then they would lavish their love on their nieces and nephews. And in the meanwhile, he'd pointed out the likelihood that her husband could have been at fault for her childless state. If the lady wasn't concerned about becoming pregnant, well, who