An Unconventional Countess (Regency Belles of Bath 1)

‘You know, I’ve been thinking about our conversation yesterday.’ His gaze darkened, as if he were feeling the same impulse to touch her.

‘Oh?’ Her heartbeat quickened at the reminder. ‘Which part?’

‘About love and what it feels like. I even went to the library to look it up.’

‘Love?’

He nodded, grazing his fingers lightly against the sides of her shoulders. ‘According to Dr Johnson there are several definitions, but essentially it means “to regard with passionate affection”. That struck me as fitting.’

‘I suppose so.’ Her lips and throat felt very dry all of a sudden.

‘Then I read a few poems to be sure. They were slightly more dramatic, but the gist was the same.’ He paused, his gaze profound and yet wondering at the same time. ‘Which led me to only one conclusion.’

‘Oh?’

‘Yes.’ His hands curled gently around her upper arms, drawing her towards him. ‘Then it struck me that my first proposal wasn’t very romantic, so...’

‘Samuel!’ she shrieked, grabbing hold of his shoulders as he started to lower himself back under the water. ‘What are you doing?’

‘Going down on bended knee.’

‘You can’t do that in a pool!’

‘Why not? Apart from anything else, it gives me a chance to look at you properly.’

‘That’s what I’m afraid of.’

‘Are you?’ His voice sounded guttural. ‘Are you afraid of me, Anna?’

‘Not you, but...’ she gestured at their surroundings ‘...all of this.’

‘I know.’ He stood up again, turning sombre. ‘I know that it’s not what you or I want, but it’s made me think about what I do want and that’s you. I’m in love with you, Annabelle Claudia Teresa Fortini, and I want to be with you no matter what the future holds. But...’ he winced guiltily ‘...I promised you time to think about it.’

‘I don’t need time.’ She lifted her hands to his chest. ‘I love you, too, and I want to be with you...’ she swallowed ‘...no matter what the future holds.’

It must have been the cold, she thought, making her say crazy, impulsive things. To her numb ears it sounded as if she’d just accepted his proposal—a proposal she would have considered out of the question just a few days before, which meant turning her whole life upside down, leaving her shop and becoming a countess if he inherited the estate. She didn’t know which was crazier, the fact that she’d just agreed or that she meant it.

‘Is that a yes?’ He looked taken aback, as if he thought she were toying with him.

‘I...’ She took a few seconds to make sure that she wasn’t delirious. ‘Yes. Yes, it is. I’ll marry you, whoever you are—’

She didn’t get any further as he caught her around the waist, dragging the whole length of her body tightly against his and crushing his lips to hers. His body was substantially warmer than the pool, she noticed, encouraging her to slide her arms around his neck and push herself even closer, kissing him back even when his tongue slid between her lips. That was warm, to

o. Warm and soft and searching, heating her up from the inside as if he were determined to explore every part of her mouth. The water between them made their bodies slick, moulding her breasts to his chest as heat stoked and scorched between them. Her legs seemed to float up from the bottom of the pool of their own accord, wrapping around his waist as if it were the most natural position in the world.

The water was seething around them now, splashing over the edge as Samuel curled his hands beneath her thighs and lifted her higher, dragging his mouth away from hers to run it over her throat and each of her breasts. She let out a low moan, excited by the combination of hot kisses and cold water, her whole body aching with a quivering, yearning sensation deep in her abdomen.

‘Breakfast.’ He broke away abruptly, setting her apart and lowering her gently back into the water.

‘What?’ For a moment, she couldn’t make sense of the word. ‘Are you hungry?’

‘Not for that.’ His gaze still burned with heat. ‘But we should get back. The others will be getting up.’

‘Oh!’ She felt a sudden rush of blood to the head. He was right. If they weren’t careful, the whole household would see them traipsing back to the house together in broad daylight and it would be hard to look anything other than guilty. Not that it necessarily mattered now they were engaged...though the very idea seemed to make her feel dizzy.

‘Where’s the ladder?’ She looked around the edge of the pool.

‘Over here.’ He led her towards the rungs and then proceeded to ignore them himself, using his arms to hoist his body out of the pool with ease. Anna started to climb out, too, and then stopped self-consciously. It was one thing to be engaged, another for them to see each other completely naked. Which seemed ridiculous considering where her legs had just been, but she still didn’t dare to peek upwards, no matter how great the temptation.