Part 22 (1/2)

She squeezed the arms of the chair as Simon tossed the first knife. A perfect hit. The crowd cheered. She breathed again, not realizing she'd been holding her breath.

Simon picked up the second knife and paused, weighing it in his hand for a moment. She bit her lip. With a quick movement of his sculpted arm, the knife sliced through the air and hit the target dead center.

She sighed as the spectators shouted boisterously. One more.

Simon picked up the final knife.

Old Benjamin spoke up, loudly proclaiming, ”Captain, sink this knife into its mark; then you can focus on a different target. One with ruby lips.” Laughter ensued. She glared up at Benjamin. She didn't need his fool-headed comments to grate on her frayed nerves.

Simon gave Benjamin a nod, but his face remained impa.s.sive. He turned and positioned his arm. A silence fell upon the square. She felt a bead of sweat trickle down her back.

She couldn't look, yet she was too afraid to turn away. He tossed the knife. She closed her eyes.

Applause and cheers erupted. She snapped her eyes open. There, piercing the center circle was Simon's knife. She was so relieved she felt weak. But her relief was short-lived. She wouldn't have to kiss Anton, but now she would have to face Simon.

The men approached him, including Anton, to offer their congratulations.

”Captain!” Old Benjamin bellowed beside her. ”Please, step forward and claim your prize!”

Her heart leaped to her throat. The crowd parted. Jules and Sabine cleared the stage as Simon stepped up onto it. Still seated, she looked up at him.

He extended a hand to her, a slight smile tilting his sensuous mouth. The ma.s.s erupted anew. She placed her hand in his and forced her legs to stand.

Looking into the depths of his eyes, she was unsure what to do. If kissing her was something he was forcing himself to do, then she didn't wish the touch of his lips either. Liar! cried the foolish voice inside her. The same one that had convinced her to reread the book of love sonnets more times than she should have.

”You do not have to do this,” she whispered.

Somehow, he heard her over the loud spectators. His dark brows drew together. ”I've just won a contest, and your kiss, chere, is my prize. Why would I not claim it?”

”Because we both know how you feel about me.”

”Make her swoon, Captain!” Shouts from the rambunctious crowd pierced their conversation. She turned to the large group, but Simon slipped his fingers under her chin and turned her face to his.

”How do I feel about you?”

”You are...repulsed.” There, she'd said it. And while she looked him directly in the eye.

He looked stunned for a moment before anger flared in the depths of his eyes. ”How can you think-”

”A kiss! A kiss!” they chanted, drowning him out. Anxiously, she looked out at the sea of shouting faces.

Once more, he turned her face to his, this time capturing it between his strong hands. ”Don't look at them.”

”Show her a commoner can kiss as good as any Aristo, Captain!” There was laughter again. She stiffened.

”Ignore them,” he said. ”Let them fade from your mind. It's just you and me here. No one else. I'm going to kiss you. Show you exactly how I feel about you.” He caressed his thumb across her cheek, sending tiny tingles racing down her spine. She watched him lower his mouth, then let her eyes flutter shut.

At the first touch of his lips, exhilaration shot through her system. She braced her hands against his solid chest. His taste, his scent, were a seductive combination. The last vague sounds from the jovial ma.s.s of whistles and applause faded into the distance.

She returned his kiss with zeal. Starved for more. Battling with the overwhelming urge to pull his s.h.i.+rt free, slip her hands beneath, and stroke his warm skin.

And those gorgeous ripples on his sculpted abdomen.

He thrust his tongue past her parted lips. Her s.e.x clenched. Her nipples pressed hard against her chemise, just as tantalized and tormented by this heat he alone inspired. There was so much of this magic he created she had still to know...

He broke the kiss abruptly. ”Dieu. We must stop...” At the loss of his mouth, she snapped her eyes open. Gazing up at him, she fought to catch her breath. The look in his eyes and his accelerated breathing were telling. He was just as affected.

He took a deep breath and let it out slowly before turning to face the exuberant group. They cheered louder. Forming a smile, he took her hand, bowed low over it, and kissed it. ”Thank you, mademoiselle,” he exclaimed for all to hear. ”Benjamin!”

”Yes, Captain.” The old fool still grinned.

”Does this celebration have any music?”

”Of course!” Benjamin motioned to the fiddlers.

The instant the music started, the crowd began to disperse toward the lively melody.

Simon helped her down from the stage, then stalked away in the opposite direction, pulling her along with him.

”Simon, what are you doing? Where are we going?”

Without breaking his stride, he said, ”We need to talk.”

”About what?”

He stopped abruptly and turned to face her. She almost collided into him.

”About what?” he repeated. ”About how hard you make me with just one kiss. h.e.l.l, just seeing you standing there breathing drives me wild. About how I fight to keep myself from you, all the while wanting you day and night. And about the b.l.o.o.d.y ridiculous notion you have in your head that I could ever be repulsed by you.” He resumed his brisk pace.

She bit her lip to keep from smiling.

Chapter Seventeen.

Angelica watched Simon close the schoolhouse door, m.u.f.fling the merry sounds from the festival outside. His large masculine form made the one-room school feel smaller. And deliciously warmer than usual.

He stalked over to her desk, raking his hand through his hair. ”Angelica, I may have been staying away from you, avoiding you, but only because I am trying to do what is right, and that is to keep my desire for you in check. Jesus-Christ, when I look at you, the last thing I could ever feel is repulsion.” His eyes still reflected the heated effects of their kiss. A warm current rushed through her heart.

He let out a frustrated sigh. ”My actions have given you the wrong impression. Forgive me, for I do not know how to be near you and not touch you,” he said softly. ”You are difficult to resist for any man... For me.”

A lump formed in her throat. Tears welled in her eyes.

”The knowledge of your past, I a.s.sure you, makes no difference to me. It isn't who you are. It is something that happened to you.”

She averted her gaze and quickly swiped away an errant tear. Acceptance. Understanding. Compa.s.sion. He was giving her all three, just as she had believed he would. She wanted to throw her arms around him and declare her love for him right there and then. He knew everything, and yet he still saw her as a woman, complete and whole. He hadn't felt disgust. He still desired her. Like a balm, his words soothed the gaping wound she'd had deep in her soul.

”I knew the men would select you...and though I've been trying to restrain my desire for you, I'll be d.a.m.ned if I was going to sit back and allow Anton or any of them to kiss you.”