On a Midnight Clear by Sandra Sookoo

Author:Sandra Sookoo
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: war vet, disfigured hero, widow, mother, enemies to lovers, Christmas romance, holiday romance, Regency romance, affair, past lovers, single mom
Publisher: New Independence Books
Published: 2020-10-26T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Ten

December 19, 1814

When he woke that morning, slightly less sore than yesterday, after dressing, Cecil began the task of clearing out a couple of drawers in the bureau to finally put away his belongings. It was nice not to live out of a trunk or a knapsack for the first time in twenty years.

As he removed some of Sarah’s unmentionables, scarves, and shawls from the drawers, his mind wandered to her. How could it not after she’d kissed him yesterday and then run from this very room as if the hounds of hell were after her?

Every morning at dawn, she snuck in to retrieve clothes for the day. She assumed he slept through her furtive visits, but what she didn’t know was that he never stopped being alert. A man too long in the military learned to sleep lightly—if he slept at all—for there was always something to remain watchful for.

And every morning he pretended to sleep while she gathered her things. Most times, he’d watch her though slitted eyes, took in the rounded curve of her hips, the nip of her waist highlighted by the apron’s bow at the small of her back, the enticing swell of her bosom, the sweet slope of her cheek. Time had been kind to her, and she was even more intriguing, perhaps beautiful, than she’d been all those years ago. No longer was she a recent widow, new to and curious about bed sport. Now she was a woman with life experience, touched by sorrow, marked by the highest joy.

Perhaps they both were. Changed from what had happened to them, and he had to believe it was for the better.

But how to make that mindset stick?

Beyond her morning visits, he wondered about her, this woman he’d had no choice but to throw in his lot with for the sake of sharing a cottage and keeping the Christmastide peace.

Since the intruder had spooked her, Cecil’s protective instincts had flared. The fear in her eyes after that incident had troubled him, for it had been all too real. What hadn’t she told him about her life, and why wouldn’t she fully trust him with the secret? He didn’t know, but if someone hunted her, was bent on nefarious trouble, he was honor bound to protect her. Beyond that, he had to admit to himself that it was nice having someone take care of him, of eating hot meals, of having someone to talk to in the evenings after the work of the day was done.

Never say I’m succumbing to domestication.

A grin tugged at the corners of his mouth as he removed two carefully folded shawls from a drawer. Her violet scent clung to the clothes and teased his nose, further binding him to her in ways he didn’t understand, for they were nothing to each other. Did she want him here with her? That quick, impromptu kiss from yesterday indicated that she did. Yet he’d glimpsed her eyes even as he’d reveled in the petal softness of her lips; she’d been as surprised by her actions as he was.

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