Sylvie Sommerfield - Noah's Woman Read online

  love, are there any ghosts that linger in your past?"

  Leaping to the conclusion that he was questioning her chastity, she stiffened.

  "I have been with no man."

  Noah's eyes narrowed. Was she deliberately misunderstanding . . . or was she still protecting Hamilton? He was shaken at how that thought hurt.

  "I have never questioned your virtue, Charity, not for a moment." He smiled to himself. There was an innocence about her that a man of his experience recognized at once.

  "Let's begin again. I want no arguments with you over unimportant things. We'll forget everyone else . . . there's just us."

  "I'm sorry I sounded jealous." She paused. "No, I'm not sorry. I was jealous. I've seen Anne Ferrier and she is lovely. But you're my husband, Noah, and I can't . . . I won't share you."

  "I love you more for saying that, and for being what you are. My sweet, we will share each other and only each other."

  "Noah?"

  "Yes?"

  "Where are we to live?"

  "Where would you like to live?"

  "You won't misunderstand, . . . I do like your family, but . . . I've never had anything of my own. No name, no family, no place that is mine."

  He could hear the little girl she had been, and all the past loneliness she had felt tore at his heart. She needed security and protection, and he meant to provide it.

  "Then you shall have a place that is yours," he said gently. "And I hope my name will content you." He drew her tighter to him. ''And as for family, maybe one day we'll have children of our own. You are now Lady Charity Morgan, and your children . . . our children, will never know the loneliness and insecurity you have had to bear. I'll do everything in my power to make you happy, that I swear."

  In the semidark coach it was impossible to read the depths of his eyes, but she heard the love in the promise he made.

  "I shall be a good wife to you, Noah. I will never do anything to dishonor your name."

  Surely now, Noah thought, she will tell me of Hamilton and the stolen papers. Surely now she will put an end to all the barriers and start our life as it should be. He waited; hope filled his heart. Don't let Gregory Hamilton come between us, Charity. Don't doubt me . . . don't. He waited, but the words did not come.

  He struggled to keep disappointment from spoiling the beginning of their life together. There was time. He would teach her to trust him.

  "I believe that, Charity," he said softly. Very slowly he lowered his head to brand her lips with his. Charity sighed as the kiss grew deeper.

  Noah was caught up in the sweet giving and the taste of her. Charity felt strong arms lift her higher against him until she was snug against the length of his body. Still new to real desire, Charity was overpowered by the force that seemed to come awake in the deepest depths of her.

  When the coach came to a halt, Noah took Char-

  ity's hand to help her alight and she looked at the scene before her. Mellow light glowed from the windows of a rustic-looking house that was much too large to call a cottage. She guessed there were perhaps eight to ten rooms.

  "My family's hunting lodge," Noah said as he dismissed the coach and they watched it roll away. "I used to spend a lot of time here as a boy and as a young man. My father taught me to shoot and to ride up here." When they reached the door, Noah took her arm to stop her. She looked up at him questioningly.

  "It's not the ideal place for a honeymoon. I could have taken you to"

  "Noah"Charity interrupted by touching his lips with her fingertips"don't you know that I'd much rather be here, with you, alone, than any other place in the world?"

  With a deep, exultant laugh, Noah swung her up in his arms. He pushed the door open and carried her inside.

  Charity looked about her in awe. Comfort was her first thought, luxurious comfort. A fire burned low in the fireplace. A table was set before it, laden with food. All the light came from candelabras placed randomly about the room.

  "Noah, how beautiful. You've done everything so perfectly."

  "I'm glad you like it, love, because you're trapped here with me for days. I gave orders that no one was to come near this place on pain of death." Noah let her feet touch the floor but kept his arms around her. "I have you all to myself."

  "Noah?"

  "Yes?"

  "Why can't we live here?"

  "Here?" He was surprised that he hadn't thought of it himself. "What a delightful creature you are. I think I have a great deal more to learn about you, Charity. What kinds of mysteries do those lovely green eyes hold?"

  "I hope," she said softly, "there are no mysteries you can't solve."

  If Noah had been considering the slow seduction of his new wife after an excellent supper, his original plan was slipping his mind rapidly. A growing appetite of a different sort was taking over the situation. He could feel the soft, warm contours of her body mold to his, and her willing lips were close enough to have another taste . . . and another . . . and another. It was only by calling on all his willpower that he regained control and gently put Charity from him.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Charity was breathless and felt strangely empty when Noah released her. Would she feel this same emptiness for the rest of her days if he was not part of her life? She shivered.

  "Are you cold?" Noah asked, as he began to unfasten her cloak. "Perhaps you'd better come closer to the fire."

  "No, I'm not cold." Charity tried to smile. "It's all the excitement, I guess." But it wasn't and she knew it. It was because a lie and deceit lingered between them.

  "But you must be hungry. I've been watching you, and you hardly ate a bite at the reception. Besides"he grinned"I want you to appreciate this fine supper I've gone to great lengths to have ready." He drew

  her with him to the fire. "Come on, Charity, a little wine will do you good."

  He knew she had to be a bit frightened, but he would ease that by making sure he didn't rush her. Her kiss had already signaled the fact that a very sensual passion lay beneath her delicate beauty.

  Noah poured the wine and carried a glass to her.

  "A toast, my lady, to you, the most beautiful bride I have ever seen. And to our love; may it last a lifetime."

  "And a toast to you, Noah, for making me as happy as I am tonight."

  They drank, and Noah watched the reflection of the firelight in her eyes. Food was the last thing on his mind, but he sat down opposite her and prepared a plate for each of them, handing hers across the small table. While they ate, Noah tried to involve her in conversation about herself, but it seemed only to aggrevate her nervousness. So he desisted and regaled her with humorous stories of his childhood until her smile reappeared.

  When the meal was finished, they sat before the fireplace and sipped wine and began to talk about their future. Noah drew her gently against him, and she nestled in his arms as if she had belonged there forever. In fact, she felt just that, as if Noah were another part of herself.

  He tilted her chin up, and in the glow of the firelight she could see the warmth in his eyes. He kissed her gently, a light touch of his lips on hers. Any fears she might have had melted in the promise of that kiss.

  "Tonight there is only you and me, Noah. I do so love you, beyond anything in the world. Nothing else matters at all."

  Her words were silenced by a kiss that stopped all rational thought. When he rose and extended his hand to her, she smiled and put her hand in his.

  In the bedroom, there was a fire in the small fireplace, but it showed signs of dying. Noah went to kneel before it and stirred it to new life, then rose and turned his gaze to meet Charity's across the room.

  She had moved to a nearby table and poured two glasses of rich red wine. She stood with a glass in each hand and a smile of invitation on her lips that could not be denied.

  He gazed at her for a moment, then crossed the room to join her. But instead of taking a glass from her hand, he reached up and slowly began to pull the pins from her hair, l
oosening it and working his hands through the heavy mass until it drifted about her in golden profusion. Only then did he take both glasses from her hands and place them on the table.

  "We don't need any more wine tonight," he said quietly. He pulled her into his arms and kissed her tenderly. Her lips parted under his, and she could feel the glowing flame deep inside her burst and flood her whole being like molten lava. His hands slid down to her hips to hold her tighter to him, and she could feel the hard demand of his passion.

  Noah loosened the hooks at the back of her gown and slid it from her shoulders to lie in a heap at her feet. The thin chemise she wore hid little, and she thanked Kat for insisting she would not need a con-

  fining corset or any other obstacle tonight.

  Noah could see the rapid rise and fall of her breasts through the gauze-like material. He held her again and kissed her deeply, letting his kisses roam down her throat to the swell of her breasts. His seeking hands and mouth found the soft flesh beneath her chemise.

  Only when she was lost to desire and the room swirled about her did he swing her up in his arms and carry her to the large and inviting bed.

  He laid her gently against the pillows and for a moment stood above her absorbing the intoxicating view.

  Charity watched as he removed his clothes. First his coat was thrown hastily on a chair. Then his muscular arms appeared from beneath the white shirt. The rest of his clothes followed rapidly, and he stood before her in the glow of the fire: long limbs, taut and heavily muscled: broad shoulders and chest; strong, narrow hips. Charity rose on one elbow and gazed at the muscular beauty of her husband. She wanted him as much as he obviously wanted her. She lay back against the pillows and raised her arms to meet him.

  Never having been a hesitant man, Noah needed no further invitation. He joined her on the bed and gathered her into his arms to kiss her again.

  His tongue probed the soft moistness of her willing mouth, and hers answered, timidly at first, then more urgently as her need for him filled her.

  Noah wanted to touch and know every inch of her. Moving his lips down the curve of her throat, he ex-

  plored the soft, rose-tipped breasts until he could hear a purr of contented pleasure.

  She felt the fire flow from him to her, and she arched under him with a soft cry of passion. But he moved slowly, exploring the gentle curve of her hips, the flat plain of her stomach, the inner flesh of her thighs which parted willingly.

  He brought a moan from the depths of her as his mouth discovered soft, intimate places while his fingers penetrated the heated softness of her. They stroked gently . . . firmly . . . rapidly, until she forgot all but him.

  "Charity," he whispered with a half groan as with silken body and boldly seeking hands she stirred to higher heat the fire of his passion.

  His hands stroked her body, savoring the petal softness of her skin. She was lost and he knew it. He desired nothing more than to bury himself in her . . . but he waited until he was absolutely sure she was ready for him. And she displayed that readiness with a fire that made his breath catch in his throat and the blood surge in his veins. Their bodies came together hungrily, and she returned his fevered kisses as she clung to him, giving herself wholly to him. He luxuriated in her giving. He entered her as easily as he could and felt a joy such as he had never known as she lifted to him with an urgency that matched his.

  Only then, when she was consumed with the rippling pleasure that washed over her in wave after wave, did he allow himself the freedom of total surrender. They moved as one, dissolving in mutual fire.

  As he moved, inexorably and steadily, her body

  quivered in delight. Her breath came in short gasps, and soft moans escaped without her knowledge. They moved together, her body arching to meet his driving thrusts, and her hands digging into the muscles of his back and sliding down to his hips to urge him to even deeper possession.

  Giving and taking, they rose higher and higher until his mouth was all that silenced her cries of ecstasy as they soared to the pinnacle and beyond, clinging to each other.

  Charity held tight to Noah until her world righted itself, until her breathing and heartbeat returned to normal. Only then could she look up into his eyes and see that he, too, had experienced this earthshaking and wonderful thing.

  Noah bent his head and lightly touched his lips to her forehead and then to her cheeks. "Ah, Charity, how wonderful you are, and how much I love you."

  He gathered her to him as he rolled to his side, and she rested her head on his chest. She laid her hand against the bronzed flesh of his chest, and gazed at the ring that glowed upon her finger. The ring was a symbol of their marriage, but what she and Noah had just experienced was the sign of their love. It was overwhelming and fulfilling, and yet a bit frightening. The more she loved Noah, the more her fear grew that she could lose him.

  "What are you thinking?" Noah asked.

  "I am thinking that I would not want to go on with my life if you were not a part of it. That I hope you do not tire of me and find someone else to share this"

  "And if I did?" He was amused at the thought. He was sure that no matter how many years they had together, he would go on wanting her more and more.

  "I would be violently jealous. Most likely I should snatch every hair from her head." She smiled up at him. "Before I rendered you incapable of committing such an indiscretion again."

  "It seems I have caught myself a tigress."

  "Where you are concerned, Noah, I believe I could be. I want you all to myself . . . forever."

  "I shall endeavor to make sure you have just that. Forever . . . Charity I'm so glad I looked behind Aphrodite's mask and found you."

  At the memory of the masquerade ball at which she had met Noah, all of Gregory's plans came back to her. His plans and her part in them. Noah sensed at once that he had touched on a sensitive subject and again waited for her to open her heart to him and confide what he already knew. He wanted to wash Gregory Hamilton from her mind forever, but there was little he could do unless she spoke first.

  After all, how could he tell her that he and Hamilton had been enemies for a long time, and that there was little about his enemy he didn't know . . . except how to break the code in the letters he had found, and when, where, and how the attempted assassination was to take place?

  "You were so insistent," Charity recalled. "You quite took my breath away."

  "I wasn't about to let the finest thing to enter my life escape it. I'm glad I found you again."

  Charity wanted no questions she was unprepared to answer just then. She looked up at Noah, who had risen on one elbow to gaze into her eyes. Reaching both hands up to tangle in his thick black hair, she drew his head down to hers. As the fiery kiss grew, Noah forgot questions and answers. He forgot all but the miracle he held in his arms.

  Under the same brilliant moon that lighted the hideaway of the lovers, a ship was coming into dock in London harbor. On deck a man and woman stood side by side and watched the city come into view. She was an attractive woman a few months short of forty, but her face was young, and contentment radiated from it.

  The man who stood beside her was a brawny fellow perhaps a year or two older than she. He had the appearance of one who has troubles and hard labor, for his eyes were filled with knowledge only time and life can impart.

  His hair was golden brown with silver strands, and his short beard and moustache were threaded with silver as well. He gazed down on the woman with a look of understanding mixed with doubt. He would have prevented her taking this trip if he could, but he knew it was necessary to her peace of mind. He, too, wanted the ghosts washed away for all time.

  ''It is possible that many things have happened since you left London, not all of them good," he suggested. "Perhaps there is no sign of her . . . perhaps she is dead."

  "We have considered these things so many times,

  and all other possibilities as well, but I cannot rest or find any happiness until
I have fulfilled my duty."

  "Why did you not write to this Josine and keep contact so that she would know you were coming?"

  "Because my enemy is too clever. It would have taken no time for her to find where I went. Josine and I had everything planned, and it was necessary for the child's sake to make sure she was of the right age before I came back to see that her inheritance is returned to her."

  "I have watched you over these years and I do admire your devotion to the girl, but you must face the facts. It has been years. Maybe this Josine . . . given enough reward"

  "No! Josine would never betray me or the child. Josine is the one person whose faith I can depend upon completely."

  "Laura, you know how much I love you."

  She turned to him and laid her hand over his. "I know, Andrew, and you know how grateful I am."

  He smiled. "Is your gratitude the reason you finally agreed to become my wife?"

  "Gratitude had little to do with that. I married you because of your strength, your kindness, and because I love you with my whole heart."

  "I would not see you hurt," he said gently.

  "There is another reason why I married you."

  "Oh?"

  "Yes, because of your compassion and loyalty. You think I am chasing a dream, and that the child is lost to me. Still you come with me, support me, and let me lean upon you in my hours of desperation. I do

  not believe I could have finished this if you had not helped me."

  "It is my investment I am considering."

  She laughed softly. "Being your servant saved both my sanity and my life. And I'm quite certain I would not be here today had you not listened to me and made the way easier."

  "I want you to remember, my love, that you still have a long time to serve your indenture. I should think the rest of your life would do nicely."