Jane Feather - Charade by Unknown (howl and other poems .TXT) 📕

to his feet, the blue black eyes hard and coldas quartz chips. "I do not wish to hear any more!" He strode to theconnecting door. "I go alone to Paris and that is my last word on thesubject."

The door closed behind him with a decisive click. The devil take thewoman! He tore off his robe and thumped into bed. For nine months shehad been playing her own game without a word to him. If she

had nodesire for motherhood so soon then he would not have quarreled withher. But the idea that she had taken such matters entirely into her ownhands drove the Earl of Linton into a teeth-grinding impotent fury, andthe utter determination that now more than ever would he compel herobedience in the matter of the journey to Paris.

Danny finished undressing and crept into bed. The secret had been toldand she could consider herself lucky that her husband had not exactedthe penalty with fist and crop. She lay in the dark in the wide lonelybed and decided that the matter of Paris must be postponed. For themoment she must think of some way of restoring her husband's badlydamaged pride. If only she had thought to discuss the matter with him,but the knowledge had been given her like the passing down of a secretfemalerite—something that a man must never know, and Louise had impressedupon her daughter the need for absolute secreey. Her possession of aknowledge held normally only by the inhabitants of harems and brothelswould be considered disgusting.

But she had made a grave error of judgment in not telling Linton; orperhaps the error had been in telling him. If he was now disgusted withher . . . supposing he could no longer desire her, knowing what she haddone. Danielle tossed and turned, for some reason icy cold although itwas a warm night. It would

not be surprising if he found her bodydistasteful and the idea that she could enter the act of loving simplyfor pleasure, hideously immodest. But he had taught her how to takethat pleasure freely and joyfully. The nightmare picture of a lovelessmarriage where the conjugal union was simply undertaken forreproductive purposes tormented her thoughts. At some point she mustgive her husband an heir and maybe from now on he would only take herfor that purpose. It would be an appallingly appropriate punishment.She would have no weapons then with which to fight MargaretMainwairing, or any of the others who would fill Justin's empty arms.She shivered and flung herself onto her face, hugging a thick featherpillow hoping for warmth and comfort. None was forthcoming from theinanimate object and Danielle knew that she had no choice. Torturingherself with fruitless speculation would achieve nothing. She must findout the extent of Justin's wrath and what he intended to do. Maybe hewould, indeed, divorce her. No, that was impossible, the House ofLinton would tolerate no scandal of such magnitude, but he could do asthe Prince of Wales had done with poor Princess Caroline and force aseparation by locking her away in miserable exile in the country ...

This was ridiculous! Danielle flung aside the covers and sprangdeterminedly out of bed. Typically, she didn't think to cover hernakedness as she gently turned the knob on the door to her husband'sroom

and slipped into the moon-washed chamber. She could hear only hisdeep, rhythmic breathing and stood immobile for a moment. Somehow shehad expected him to bewide awake, tossing and turning miserably as she had been, and the ideathat he had fallen so quickly asleep, Danielle found callous,disconcerting, and perversely annoying.

In fact, Justin was not asleep but at the sound of the turning knob hadinstinctively deepened his breathing and now watched the still figurein the moonlight through half-closed eyes. She was so damnablybeautiful with those proud, perfect breasts, the narrow waist and flatbelly and that impudent, entrancing little rear. Just what was sheintending to do? he wondered—knowing Danielle, nothing predictable.

She stole on tiptoe across the room and round to the far side of thebed. Justin closed his eyes completely and waited with interest.Danielle shivered and with sudden resolve gently pulled back the coversand insinuated herself carefully beneath them. She lay very still,scarcely breathing until she was sure her movements had not disturbedher slumbering husband; but his breathing continued unchanged exceptfor a small snore. Danielle tried to relax, but she was still freezing.She inched experimentally toward the figure at the far side of the bed,and when nothing changed edged closer still until some of the heatradiating from his body lapped her skin. Danielle turned softly ontoher side, facing away from him, the only position she ever foundcomfortable for sleep, but it still wasn't right—she needed his skin.He was so deeply asleep he wouldn't even notice, she decided crossly,and traversed the final few inches.

"Danielle! Your bottom's like a block of ice!" Justin yelped, shockedout of his pretended slumber.

"You weren't ever asleep," Danny accused indignantly. "I was trying sohard not to wake you and you were awake all the time."

"I was," he agreed. "But I had a lively desire to discover what youwere about. Why are you so cold, child?"

"Because I'm unhappy," she wailed. "Are you not?"

"Not particularly. I was too angry to be unhappy."

"Was?" she asked with a tremor of hope.

There was a long silence before Justin replied. "For some extraordinaryreason I find it impossible to remain angry with you formore than a few moments. I never know what you will do or say next and

I don't imagine I ever shall. I have to remind myself constantly ofyour strange upbringing. I just wish

I had thought a little more of theconsequences of that upbringing before ..."

"Before you married me," Danielle finished for him as cold fingers ofdesolation crept across her skin.

"Certainly," he agreed. "It would not have changed my plans in theleast, but I would have been better prepared for disclosures of thekind you were considerate enough