"I need to apologize," Ezra said, interrupting her thoughts. "For before." For the life of her, Bits could not imagine what he was referring to. "When Vani kissed me," he clarified. "That is not normally how it is done. Vani is young and without much guidance, but still, I should have seen her intent and stopped her before it became too late. Unfortunately, I was still suffering a bit from Residual myself, and once the energy transference was started--"
"It seems we both have a bad habit of apologizing for things we have no cause to be sorry for." True, the kiss had done more than a little hurt at the time, but either time or Neit's soothing presence had erased all the damage to the point it was as if it never existed. "I would imagine it would be hard to stop Vani once she made up her mind to do something. Her parents must despair at what to do with her."
They passed a cottage where a woman gathered vegetables in the garden while two small children chased one another around in circles. Ezra raised his hand in greeting, and the woman called out a happy how-do-you-do in return.
"Vani doesn't have parents," he said, once they'd made their way past the cottage. "She showed up at the gates of Corrigan five years ago, her hair in knots and clothes nearly falling apart from wear. She asked for the Oberon, and then informed him she was here to take care of his dragon problem."
"Were the dragons attacking the village?"
Ezra chuckled. "No. As far as we knew, we didn't have a dragon problem. Jack said as much to her, but she told him if he didn't allow her to stay, then we would regret it.”
"And so he allowed her to stay? Without supervision? Five years ago she would have had to have been no more than twelve.”
“Thirteen, actually, if she's to be believed, which is always up for debate. Several families tried to take her in, but she always ran away. She found the old Walters cabin and claimed it as her own. After six months, everyone gave up and let her have her way. Mrs. Green and several of the other women send baskets out on a regular basis to make certain she has plenty to eat, and I stop by once a week to make sure she's okay and tend to whatever injuries she has managed to gain."
No wonder she was such a wild, unrefined thing. It was a wonder she had any manners to speak of at all.
"You are very kind to look after her." Many men, even those who had dedicated their life to medicine, would have written Vani off as a lost cause long ago. "It's no wonder she's half in love with you."
"What are you going on about? Vani is not in love with me."
Bits laughed at his bewildered expression. "Why are men always oblivious to such things?"
"But she's barely grown!”
"That doesn't mean she doesn't have feelings. Quite the opposite, in fact. I would imagine at her age she's nearly bursting at the seams with feelings." Bits could well remember those tumultuous days of feeling everything so intensely. Some days she thought she never quite outgrew those days of heightened emotions as one ought. "And even if she wasn't in love with you before, you did manage to make her toes tingle."
"That is ridiculous. Any kiss properly done makes one's toes tingle."
"Does it truly? That seems strange. I can't imagine why the activities of one's lips would have any bearing whatsoever on one's toes. The two aren’t connected any other time."
Ezra brought the carriage to a halt and turned on the bench so he was fully facing her. "Are you telling me you've truly never been kissed? Not even once did you permit such a small intimacy with some love-struck suitor?”
One of Bits's greatest faults was her abhorrence of dishonesty. She might have been able to allow him to draw his own, erroneous conclusions about her lack of kissing, but like this, with him asking her directly while looking at her, she couldn't do it, no matter how much it might damage her esteem in his eyes.
"It was never up to me to deny. If you will remember, I have never exactly had an influx of suitors. I sat out many more quadrilles than I ever danced, and most of those who asked for a turn around the floor did so under duress. More often than not my partner made a quick getaway the moment the last note was played. Certainly none of them ever stuck around long enough for a kiss to become even a remote possibility."
Ezra's eyebrows dipped low over his eyes. "Come now. Surely they all were not so stupid as to eschew spending more time basking in your company. Maybe someone who was not inclined to dancing. A less sure-footed gentleman who sought you out on the fringes of the ballroom."
Bits laughed at such a ridiculous idea. "Sorry, but no. There were no clubbed-footed gentlemen wooing me behind potted plants, as lovely as that sounds. But I must say, after learning of this toe-tingling business, I find myself rather intrigued. I regret never having the audacity to seek out a kiss of my own. I haven't a clue as to what gentleman I might have managed to talk into it. Maybe Trowbridge. He was always so kind--"
"I will do it."
Bits nearly slid off the bench. "I'm sorry, what was that?"
Ezra adjusted his cravat and cleared his throat, more ill at east than she'd ever seen him.
"That is to say, if you are merely curious and wish to experiment, I would be willing to assist you." His smile was two-thirds rakish and one-third embarrassed. "I hear I'm rather good at it. I can even make an innocent girl who spends her days talking to dragons have tingles in her toes."
"Oh. Well." Had the sun suddenly become very, very warm? And what had happened to the air? They were traveling down the mountain, but it had grown very thin in this area. "That is, if you’re agreeable..."
"I would be honored."
Heavens. What was happening? Was he really going to kiss her? Just like that?
"It's only a kiss, Bits. We don't have to if you would rather find a more fitting candidate."
"No!" She hadn't meant to be so forceful, but surely he knew there was no better candidate. In fact, if she was to have her choice of all the men in the whole world with whom she might share her first kiss, she would pick Ezra. "I mean, no, I have no desire to find another candidate when a willing one is right here. I would certainly appreciate your... assistance."
He smiled at her again, and for a moment she permitted herself to believe he wanted this as well, that it wasn't some ingrained sense of duty that led him to volunteer his services.
"The first thing you need to do," he said, sliding closer to her on the bench, "is relax."
"Right. Of course." She breathed in through her nose and let it come swooshing back out. "There we go. All relaxed."
Ezra chuckled, the sound going straight to the core of her where nothing had ever touched before.
"Don't think about it too much," he said, smoothing his hands over her shoulders, which she be belatedly realized we're scrunched up next to her ears. "Just allow yourself to feel and enjoy."
Feel and enjoy. That sounded very nice and quite acceptable, especially with the warmth of his hands burning through the material of her dress. In fact, they could quit right now and she would be happy knowing he'd given her the most wonderful sensations she'd ever experienced simply by running his hands over her shoulders.
Then again, if that was the most pleasure she'd ever experienced, then maybe it was best they went through with the whole kissing thing. It was quite sad that a touch to a clothed piece of non-erogenous flesh was what she considered the height of physical sensations.
"Very good," he muttered, and Bits swayed towards the sound. He really did have the most lovely voice. She could listen to him speak for hours. "Now close your eyes."
She did as he asked. There was a moment of doubt, fear of this all disappearing like a dream while she could not see, but then he was there. A soft caress of lip against lip. And then again. A whimper escaped her throat, then he was back. This time the angle was different, and the press of his lips against hers more firm. Without thought, her hands found his shoulders, grounding her to this moment, to him. His caresses became more certain, and she tried to mimic his movement. A hand slid from her shoulder to her jaw, and then he moved her so the angl
e changed once more. Something warm and wet teased at the seam of her lips, and she parted them, allowing him entry.
She was a novice, an untried miss. One who normally failed spectacularly at all the things other ladies knew to do inherently. Yet, in this she felt confident, as if led by some age-old instinct. Her hands wandered, one sliding down his firm chest to press against the beat of his heart and the other searching out the soft curls of his hair. Her tongue danced with his, more graceful than she ever dreamed of being on the dance floor.
And her toes curled up in her boots and tingled right along with the rest of her.
Chapter 19
He shouldn't have kissed her. That much was obvious from the moment he'd felt the softness of her lips beneath his own. By the time she was making small noises of encouragement, it was much too late. He'd taken things further than he ever intended, yet nowhere near as far as he wanted to go.
Still, he shouldn't have done it. For one, he was supposed to be foregoing all pleasures of the flesh. He needed to focus on his magic, not the way her body felt pressed against his. For another, Bits was a lady, and a right proper one. He'd taken advantage of her curiosity, yet his first thought when he'd finally broken the kiss hadn't been to apologize as he should, but instead, "Let her think of Trowbridge now."
It was ridiculous letting a man - a dead man - goad him after all these years. Yet, he couldn't hear the name without feeling like that same lost little boy he'd been once upon a time.
"Ezra, I did not realize you were home. Did you have a pleasant day?"
No, he shouldn't have kissed her, because now all he could think of was doing it again. For days the taste and feel of her lingered in his memory. He found it difficult to concentrate when she wasn't around, and downright impossible when she was. After that kiss -- really there should be a better word to describe it, for he'd never felt his senses ignite the way they had with her in his arms -- all he had to do was look at her in order to become so aroused he must make an effort to hide the evidence of his lust.
"It was quite well," he answered the siren who had driven him to distraction and now treated him as though nothing was different. As if he was the innocent forever changed and she was the one who had begun practicing her kisses when she wasn't quite old enough to spell the word. "Mrs. Gilbert sent one of her famous meat pies, so we shall all enjoy a treat for dinner this evening."
"I do hope it is steak or chicken," Lily said, scrunching up her nose. "The last time she sent round a fish pie, and if there is one thing I truly detest, it's fish covered in pastry dough."
If there was one thing Lily hated, it was fish, period, but she'd had far too much genteel training to say as much.
"I do believe the word trout passed her lips," he teased just to watch his sister try to conceal the disgust contorting her face.
There was a scratch at the door, and then it opened to reveal Mr. Green looking more serene than normal.
"You have a visitor, Mr. Nash. She says it's a matter of some urgency."
"Please, show her in, Mr. Green." He hoped it wasn't Mrs. Gilbert's daughter. He'd done what he could for the woman who was nearing her ninth decade, but there were some effects of time neither magic nor medicine could cure.
Since their house was so small, he did not have to wait long to see who his visitor might be. As much as he was dreading the appearance of Mrs. Gilbert's daughter, the woman who stepped into the sitting room was an even less welcome sight.
"Miss Yates," he said, standing.
Cora was a Changeling, a person who was born with the powers of the Touched despite having two Untouched parents. Unlike most Changelings, Cora wasn’t sent to the Touched orphanage the moment her powers manifested. Instead, her parents had wanted her to stay with them. It was actually Cora herself who had distanced herself from her Untouched family and insisted on living amongst others like her.
"It's a pleasure to see you again," he said, knowing she would hear the lie in his words. "Have you met our guest, Lady Elizabeth?"
"No, but I have heard much about her." Cora’s father was the second son of a baron who had gone to America to find a bride. He’d wed her mother, a wealthy heiress, and continued to live in New York until Cora was eight. As a result, her words came out as nothing more than a bunch of nasally vowels and hard Rs.
Personally, Ezra thought she worked hard to maintain her native accent. Cora purposefully set herself apart from others and was devoted to over-the-top theatrics. Everything, from the way she talked, walked, and dressed to the things she said and did were designed to create a reaction. Her greatest enjoyment in life was making others squirm with discomfort. To her, life was a game, and the person who laughed at others the most, won.
“Mr. Nash, I would be honored if you would make the introduction," Bits said as if it was everyday a woman walked into the sitting room wearing a day dress made of leather accented with panels of animal skin.
"Miss Cora Yates, may I introduce Lady Elizabeth Warner, sister to the Earl of Braxton. Lady Elizabeth, this is Miss Cora Yates, a patient of mine."
Cora dipped into a perfect curtsy, her smile all teeth. "A pleasure to make your acquaintance, my lady. I must say, it isn't every day we play host to such a large member of Society. An earl's sister!"
Ezra's hand fisted at his side, and he found himself fighting the urge to punch the barb-tongued woman. Hurt and embarrassment shone in Bits’s eyes for a fraction of a second before she was able to cover her emotions with an empty smile.
"Please, don't give my siblings another thought," Bits said with a wave of her hand. "Here I am merely a companion to the lovely Miss Lily."
At the mention of his sister, Cora's fearsome smile turned brittle. She had fastidiously ignored Lily since entering the room, and Lily was valiantly trying to return the favor. For all of Cora's bravado and Lily's cheerfulness, the reason behind Cora's visit was a strain on them both.
"Then I don't know who to envy more," Cora said, recovering quickly from the tense moment. "You for having such joyful company, or Miss Lily for having such an esteemed companion."
"I do believe I am the one to envy," Ezra said, trying to gain control of the conversation before Cora inevitably said something even more upsetting. "I get to enjoy the company of both these fine ladies on a regular basis, and today I have the honor of adding one of my favorite patients to the mix. I must be the envy of every man in British Empire.” Cora tilted her head, ceding him the win. "Tell me, Miss Yates, to what do I owe the honor of your visit?"
Cora's eyes were calculating as they took in the room, lingering entirely too long on Bits. He'd attempted to pin her in a corner, but she had one more move, and she was going to make it count.
"I'm afraid I need to request a private audience, Ez,” she said with a curve of her lips, her eyes never leaving Bits. "You see, it's a matter of the heart."
Chapter 20
Ezra removed several large volumes of human anatomy from his bookshelf and reached behind a row of books to uncover a bottle of whiskey Bricky had brought back from the Americas several years ago. Bourbon he'd called it. He'd gifted it to Ezra when he reset the man's leg after an altercation with a faction of the French Touched. The drink was stronger than anything Ezra typically enjoyed, but he knew by the end of Cora's visit he was going to need it.
"So, the rumors are true," Cora said, picking up a bottle of a lung potion which had to sit unmoved for a week before it could be used. "You're harboring an Untouched princess."
"Bits saved Lady Alice's life and asked for sanctuary in return. I could hardly turn her out."
Cora smiled at him from over her shoulder. "Bits is it? Is that because she makes certain she eats every bit of food from her plate?"
"Lady Elizabeth is a guest in my home. You will do well to mind what you say about her, Miss Yates."
"Tch-tch." Cora clicked her tongue as she turned, dropping a sprig of dried lavender into a bowl of coriander seeds. “Mr. Nash, that sounds almost threatening. S
urely you don't mean to speak so harshly to me of all people. Not after everything I am doing for you."
And there was the crux of the problem with Cora. She was awful to everyone, but she enjoyed poking and needling Ezra the most because he must accept everything she said with a smile and utmost graciousness. For it was her body to give, and her body to refuse. And if she refused...?
No. He couldn't think of it. She'd already agreed, and there was really no other choice. He needed her, and because of it, he would allow her to say or do whatever it was she wanted.
Just not about Bits. It shouldn't have mattered to him so much, but it did.
“Not a threat, but a reminder," he said, trying to determine just how much of the whiskey he could imbibe without losing too much of his senses. "Lady Elizabeth is under the protection of the Oberon. You would do well to tread carefully. You could easily make some powerful enemies by insulting the lady."
"Or gain a very powerful ally." Cora dropped a box of rare unakite crystals to the floor and draped herself in the chair they had once occupied.
Ezra froze, his glass halfway to his lips. "An ally?"
Cora snatched a lodestone from the table and began rolling it around her fingers. Many would have thought the way she was sprawled in the chair haphazard, but Ezra knew better. She was conscious of how to show off her figure to its best advantage, and at the moment she was making sure Ezra could see the swell of her cleavage and curve of her hip without having to make any effort of his own.
Many thought Cora pretty, possibly even beautiful, and they were most likely correct. Her large golden-colored eyes were set beneath dark eyebrows and coal-black hair, and her form was slight with the all the appropriate curves, but Ezra couldn't see the appeal. She had no softness to her. No warmth. She did nothing to ignite his blood. Not the way Bits did.
A Dance Like Flame (Of Magic & Machine Book 1) Page 14
