Before Baird could make sense of that bizarre volley, Aurelia kicked him in the shin.
Hard. Baird’s eyes widened in shock, then Aurelia bent and bit at his fingers where they still grasped her elbow.
Baird bellowed in pain. He muttered a curse as his hand flew open.
“What in the hell is that all about?” he roared, but Aurelia was gone.
She had turned and fled like a doe, straight back down the stairs. A hoot of laughter rose from the workmen, but Baird was concerned for his tiny charge. She was running wildly, without care for her own safety, taking the steps three at a time.
And in outright fear of him.
That was not a good feeling. Baird had never sent a woman fleeing before, but this seemed to be a day of firsts. Baird was determined to set Aurelia straight.
But first, he had to catch her. Baird bounded after his resort’s first guest. Aurelia glanced over her shoulder and ran faster.
She’d kill herself!
Aurelia leapt down the last four steps like a bird taking flight. She just brushed the floor with one bare toe before Baird snatched her up from behind. She was light, but fought like a tigress.
Baird tossed her over his shoulder, hoping it looked effortless, and turned in one smooth move to begin up the stairs again. The workmen cheered, but Aurelia seemed less than impressed.
“No! I will not permit you to do this!” Aurelia struggled and squirmed, she pounded her fists against his back and kicked him as hard as she could, but Baird marched impassively towards her room.
“Quit your fighting! You wanted a bath,” he growled as they gained the summit. “And by God, you’ll get one.”
Aurelia froze, then struggled with renewed vigor. Baird clamped his arm over her knees and held on tight. It was high time that he and Aurelia got a few things sorted out between them.
And there was no time like the present.
*
The way Aurelia wriggled against him was not helping Baird collect his jumbled thoughts in the least. Even through her robe, he could tell that the buttock bumping against his jaw was round and firm, that the breasts that brushed periodically against his back were temptingly full.
And those feet. As Aurelia struggled, her delicate feet danced before Baird, challenging every scrap of his self control. He half-wished he was the uncivilized barbarian these Brits expected Americans to be.
Instead, Baird used his passkey, then shoved open the door to her room. He stalked into the bathroom, flicked on the light and dumped the lady on her feet.
Before she could start to make wild accusations, Baird sat on the side of the tub, locked the drain and turned on the water. Steam rose from the cascade of water spilling into the tub, and only then did Baird look to the woman who had fought him tooth and nail.
She was backed against the far wall, her arms folded across her chest. Her eyes were narrowed with suspicion and she held her room card out between them as though it would ward him off.
So much for hoping she wasn’t nuts.
Baird shoved one hand through his hair and let a smile quirk his lips as he watched Aurelia, hoping he could reassure her. “See? Bath right on cue.”
“You stay away from me,” was all she said.
Trust him to have a chivalrous impulse to help the first lunatic who came along. This would have been a lot easier if there wasn’t something about Aurelia that reached right into the core of Baird.
And twisted hard.
Baird kept his tone low and even to reassure her. “Don’t worry. I’ll stay right here.”
But Aurelia did not step forward. “Save your lies! You brought me here to torture me!”
“I brought you here to show you how the bath works,” Baird corrected matter-of-factly. “You wanted a bath, didn’t you?”
Aurelia’s gaze flicked to the running water as though she couldn’t control her curiosity any longer. Baird watched amazement cross her expression, then her wary gaze flicked back to him. “How did you do that?”
And suddenly, her argument made sense.
Aurelia just didn’t know about indoor plumbing. She must have thought that someone would have to haul buckets of water from a well, then heat it on the stove for her bath. And haul it up the stairs from the foyer.
No wonder she had been so annoyed when he told her to do it herself!
There were people at home who had never seen indoor plumbing - why should he be surprised that someone who had lived on these remote islands might be similarly amazed?
The irritation slid out of Baird like magic and he pushed one hand through his hair. He found himself oddly relieved that Aurelia’s thinking was really very logical, now that he knew her assumptions.
Maybe she wasn’t crazy, after all. Baird found that possibility more encouraging than he thought he should have.
“You just turn the knob.” He demonstrated with one hand and beckoned to her with the other.
Aurelia recoiled. “I will fight your foul intent with every fiber of my being!” She waved the room key at him wildly. “Do not imagine that I will easily surrender to the likes of you!”
Right. Torture and rape were on the agenda, though not necessarily in that order. How could Baird have forgotten such pertinent details?
It must only be his injured pride that insisted he make sure Aurelia recognized his sterling character.
Baird deliberately kept his tone even. “I’m just here to show you how the bath works.” Aurelia eyed Baird and clearly did not believe him. “The knob was a bit tight, probably because it’s new, but you should be able to manage it now. Come here and see.”
“I will not make your rape easier!”
“I’m not going to rape you.”
Aurelia arched a dubious brow. “Torture, then!”
Baird shook his head. “Nope. No torture either. Wouldn’t know where to start.”
She chewed her lip and lowered the room key a little. Her voice was low and her eyes narrowed. “You swear that you have no intent to rape or torture me?”
This was far from the most flattering exchange Baird had ever had. “I swear it. Not now or ever.”
She still didn’t look convinced. “Your word of honor?”
Well, she didn’t give up easily, did she? Annoyance swept through Baird. Had there ever been a woman who found him more offensive than a three-inch cockroach?
Baird gritted his teeth. “I give you my most solemn word of honor.”
To his relief, that seemed to satisfy her.
Aurelia kept the room key steadfastly between them as she came closer, though Baird couldn’t imagine why. Those little feet with their delectable toes halted uneasily just an arm’s length away from Baird’s boots.
There was still a vestige of mud in between them.
Baird’s pulse accelerated as his imagination supplied the possibility of his thoroughly cleaning each toe in succession. They were so tiny and soft, so perfectly shaped. Her foot would fit snugly in his hand, he just knew it. Baird’s pleated cords got a little tighter and he forced himself to examine the wall tiles.
He really could pick them, that was for sure.
“I do not understand,” Aurelia confessed, her fair brows drawing together in a frown.
“Hot, cold.” Baird seized on practical matters. He gestured to the brass knobs in question, then turned the hot one. “On, off. Same as everywhere else.”
But Aurelia’s expression revealed that she had never seen anything like it. Baird slid towards the base of the tub and gestured to the taps in his most non-threatening manner.
“Try it,” he encouraged.
Aurelia fired a glance at Baird. “I will not interfere with your magic,” she hissed.
“Then, the water will overflow.” Baird’s tone was matter-of-fact. Her gaze darted between him and the rising water as though she wasn’t sure whether to believe him.
But then, people were always suspicious of new technology - or old technology that was new to them.
> “Come on. It won’t bite. Adjust the temperature.” Baird stood and put even more distance between them. He shoved his hands into his pockets.
Aurelia crept towards the tub, one wary eye on Baird’s precise location as she sidled past him. Aurelia flashed a glance to him - just checking! - and her eyes were so wide that he could see the silver gray perimeter around the intensely blue iris of her eyes.
There certainly had never been a woman who was outright terrified of him.
That must be what was bothering him. Baird must just want to see the record set straight. He knew he had never done anything to inspire a woman’s fear, especially this one’s.
Or had he? Could he have met Aurelia, hurt her feelings in some way contrary to how he always treated women, and then forgotten her? That was too much to believe.
But how could he have recognized her if they hadn’t met? The hair on the back of Baird’s neck stood at attention and he had a very uneasy feeling that he wouldn’t like the truth.
Aurelia tentatively turned the hot knob as he had done, her tiny fingers barely making their way around the knob. The strength of the water coursing from the tap changed and she gasped.
But before Baird could show her, Aurelia reached forward again. She certainly wasn’t shy, once she had the hang of things. Baird smiled to himself, liking the way this woman seemed to grab life with both hands. Aurelia adjusted the temperature with dawning confidence and grinned like a child with a new toy.
Baird put the lid down on the toilet and sat there, bracing his elbows on his knees as he watched her play.
“So, you see, you can draw your bath alone.”
Aurelia turned a bright gaze on Baird and an enchanting flush rose over her cheeks. “I am sorry,” she admitted. “I did not know such marvels existed.”
Her heartfelt apology made a part of Baird melt like butter in the sun. He cleared his throat, unaccustomed to such a feeling, and arched a brow that he hoped looked skeptical. “Perhaps the next time, you might give me the benefit of the doubt.”
She said nothing, but again Baird had the impression that she was thinking furiously. What was in her mind? And why was she so determined to distrust him? He wasn’t that bad of a guy!
Hoping to encourage Aurelia’s trust, Baird dared to smile at her.
She flushed scarlet and dropped her gaze in obvious discomfort.
So much for his charm. Baird cleared his throat. “Could you tell me where we’ve met before?”
Aurelia frowned. “We have never met before.”
“But we must have! I feel as though I know you, as though I recognize you…” Baird’s voice faded before her steady gaze.
She looked as though she thought he was crazy.
Now there was irony.
“Never,” she repeated with quiet determination.
Then, how had Baird recognized her? It made no sense!
But Aurelia stared steadily back at him, her wide blue eyes all innocence. The rushing water made the bathroom humid and unexpectedly intimate.
Baird’s errant mind supplied the feel of Aurelia’s breast in his hand at this most inopportune time.
Powerless to stop himself, Baird glanced to Aurelia’s perfect feet. She was wriggling her toes against the bathmat. His mouth went dry as desire roared to life once more.
A hot flush passed over him, heating his flesh from heat to toe. Baird wanted to kiss Aurelia again, taste her, caress her, savor the weight of that breast in his hand. He wanted to peel off his clothes, tear off that bathrobe with his teeth.
Baird wanted to climb into the tub with Aurelia - or better yet, the shower - massage her, lather her with soap, tease her until she moaned with pleasure. He wanted to bury himself to the hilt in her softness and never come back. His need for her was primal and so overwhelming in its intensity that he felt dizzy.
It was the steam from the bath. Baird was too hot, in more ways than one.
He had to get out of here.
“Well! That’s settled, then.” Baird pushed to his feet, not believing that for a minute. “So, now you know how the bath works. I guess I’ll see you at dinner, say about six?”
Aurelia frowned in childish confusion. “Six?”
“Six o’clock, in the west hall where the restaurant will be.” Baird cocked a finger at the rising bathwater and ducked toward the door. “You’d better get that before it runs over.”
“Oh. Oh!” Aurelia pivoted and dove for the tap. The steaming water had nearly crested the overflow valve, and she scrabbled at the knobs in her haste to turn off the water.
The pose showed her legs to distinct advantage, making Baird suddenly very glad that he had ordered the short bathrobes for the resort.
Even if it meant special torment for him in this moment.
“Enjoy your bath, princess.” Baird ducked for the door and problems multiplying faster than even he could solve them.
It wasn’t any help that one particular issue on that list had claimed his attention wholesale. That just meant, Baird resolved grimly, that it had to be solved first.
He had to find Hekod and he had to find him soon.
*
Chapter Eight
Aurelia sank up to her chin in the scented bathwater and considered her predicament. Bard, son of Erc, was a man full of enough surprises to keep any woman on her toes. Never would Aurelia have imagined that he would take a pledge to her - though what his word was worth remained to be seen.
The gesture alone was astonishing and hinted at a man of vastly different character than she expected.
But perhaps he only toyed with her. Aurelia chewed her lip and hated that she could not be certain of his intent. Clearly, Bard’s priest believed that Bard should wed Aurelia, though his whore, not unexpectedly, did not share that view.
But what did Bard think?
He had been uncommonly gracious in showing her this water marvel that they all took for granted. And he had not pressed any advantage he might have seen by being alone with Aurelia in the chambers she had been given for her own.
That made twice he had not raped her.
It was most unlike a savage barbarian - which she knew Bard to be - to show such restraint.
Oh, he was handsome, that was for certain, and his charm was undiminished with further acquaintance. That little smile that tugged at his firm lips, the warm gleam in his eyes when he looked upon her, the way he arched a dark brow as though they two shared a jest. Aurelia’s breath caught at the mere recollection.
And the way he kissed.
Aurelia sat up hastily and felt around for the soap, determined not to let her mind dwell on such inappropriate thoughts. She took a soapy cloth and scrubbed the taste of his kisses from her lips with a vengeance. Her breast earned an extra savage cleansing.
Here was a man who knew his asset and played it masterfully. And, just to make matters worse, Aurelia could not keep herself from responding to his touch.
She had to find her father, before it was too late.
And what of the others? There had been hundreds on the walls this morning to counter Bard’s attack, yet Aurelia had not seen one familiar face.
Had Bard slaughtered them all?
There were the dungeons. Perhaps they survived there.
One way or the other, the truth of Bard’s deeds would be discernable. No one could hide the fate of hundreds. At first opportunity, Aurelia would check the dungeons - just one warrior left alive might have news of her sire.
*
Marissa was not amused to have a tempting package like Aurelia materialize out of the blue. And just to add insult to injury, she had to outfit the invader or risk looking petty in Baird’s eyes.
As if looks like that needed any help at all. Every man in the place was watching Aurelia like a dog in heat, and her skin - well! - you didn’t get skin like that living out in the wilds of Scotland. Marissa knew the work of a good spa when she saw it.
Which meant that Aurelia was far from the wacko innocen
t Julian thought she was.
More like an opportunist on the hunt. Marissa easily recognized her own kind and didn’t appreciate the competition. The entire point of Marissa being in this godforsaken place was to have Baird to herself.
Period.
This was supposed to have been her moment in the sun, her chance to persuade Baird for once and for all that they two were made for each other.
Not that Marissa really believed any such romantic nonsense. The math alone said that Baird Beauforte was the man for her, and said it loud and clear.
But Baird just didn’t seem to get it. Oh, Marissa had tried to get him to notice her feminine charms, but Baird seemed so oblivious that she wondered whether he was made of stone.
Marissa dug savagely through one of her Louis Vuitton trunks. Baird had never come to meet her with a rise in his Levis before. For a breathtaking moment, Marissa had dared to hope that she was making real progress.
Marissa didn’t need to be a rocket scientist to notice the way Baird’s gaze followed Aurelia and know what it meant.
And when they had gone upstairs? Well. Baird hadn’t come back to look at her travertine marble samples, that was for sure! Imagine - luring Baird upstairs with some nonsense about not being able to work the bath! And Baird hadn’t seen through the ploy - almost as if he wanted some excuse to go to Aurelia’s room.
Marissa ground her teeth in frustration. Having to lend clothes to a woman who had already claimed Baird’s attention wholesale made her want to spit.
Her only hope was to come up with something hideous.
It was no help at all that Marissa’s trunks were carefully packed with clothes that showed her figure to particular advantage - sensuous silks and delicate lingerie that would contrast wonderfully with rugged outdoor wear. It was clothing she had planned to wear herself to capture Baird’s attention and she didn’t want to part with the advantage of a single item.
Marissa came up with her favorite silk dress and nearly shoved it aside before she froze mid-gesture. She stared at the soft shimmer of the silk pouring over her hand for a long moment. Its creamy hue highlighted her dark coloring spectacularly well.
Time Travel Romances Boxed Set Page 10
