Innocent in the Ivory Tower

She wanted to cry, but she couldn’t show that weakness.

She had just made the biggest fool of herself in the history of her life, and now a man who couldn’t stand her—moreover a man who was an utter pig of an unreconstructed idiot, who couldn’t see simple truths if they hit him in the face—was carrying her into …

His bedroom. Maisy’s heartbeat sped up despite the pain.

And wasn’t this what you were hoping for at the beginning of the night, Maisy Edmonds? a little voice niggled at her.

His bed was large and plain and masculine, with expensive dark blue linen. Fresh sheets, she registered. Had he been planning to seduce her here? Everything he had said to her came home, and she knew with every inch of her body she didn’t want to be in here. It was too humiliating.

She began to struggle. ‘Put me down. Put me down now!’

He was forced to release her and she slid to her feet, holding her arm folded over her chest. It was throbbing, but she had no intention of playing victim.

Alexei didn’t say a word. He just made a phone call whilst she stood there, not sure what to do. He finished the call. ‘A doctor’s coming up to the house,’ he said heavily. ‘Where is the pain coming from?’

‘I don’t know. I think I jarred it,’ she answered, swallowing hard. ‘I’ll go and wait in my room, if you don’t mind.’

‘Maisy, you had a nasty fall. Lie down here and let yourself to be checked out, okay?’

It sounded so reasonable, and the pain was pumping through her body. But she kept seeing the look on his face when she’d told him the truth about the Kulikovs. It shouldn’t matter so much, but it did.

In the end the pain won out and she sat down awkwardly on his bed. Alexei did something surprising. He dropped to one knee and reached for her foot, sliding off one shoe and then the other. There was something about seeing him silent on his knees in front of her that made her say, ‘It’s not your fault I fell. I did that to myself.’

‘How’s your arm?’ he asked quietly, not making a move.

‘I think it’s going numb,’ she said in a small voice.

‘You landed at a bad angle.’ He lifted his hand, hesitated, and then gently smoothed the tangle of curls that had been disturbed and now fell over one side of her face. Maisy swallowed. ‘I’d give you some painkillers, but I think we should wait until the doctor has a look.’

‘Okay.’ The truth was she didn’t want to be alone—not when her body felt as if it was in shock. And it wasn’t only the fall. The implications of everything he had thrown at her were beginning to sink in.

The doctor was an urbane older man who clearly knew Alexei. He was scrupulously polite to Maisy as he examined her shoulder and prescribed painkillers, which he handed over to Alexei with instructions. Nothing was broken. Sleep and time would heal her.

‘I’m a fraud,’ she said tiredly. ‘Nothing broken after all.’

Alexei sat down beside her on the bed. ‘Take these, Maisy,’ he said, and pressed two white pills against her lips.

More physical proximity she couldn’t handle. Maisy drew them in with her tongue, brushing against his fingers, blushing. He’d think she was coming on to him.

He poured a little water into her mouth and she swallowed them down. His thumb lingered on her bottom lip and Maisy gazed back at him, startled, feeling heavy and tired and numb. She shifted awkwardly as the boning in her bodice dug hard.

‘I need to get my dress off,’ she said uncomfortably. ‘I can’t sleep in it.’

‘Right.’ He reached behind her, his fingers starting on the dozen tiny fabric buttons. His touch whispered down her back and Maisy shut her eyes, wishing everything was different. ‘That’s the problem with couture,’ he said in a deep voice. ‘No zips.’

‘Anais gave it to me. I didn’t know it was couture,’ answered Maisy dully. ‘I never looked.’

She caught her bodice with her good arm as the dress sprung free. She sat there, huddled in it, looking anxiously over her shoulder at him.

‘If you turn your back I can stand up and drop it and then get into bed,’ she explained awkwardly. She waited miserably for him to make some crack about it being a lousy attempt to seduce him.

Instead he said quietly, ‘Of course.’

He was so formal she could only stare at him as he stood up and turned his back.

Maisy got off the bed and dropped the frock. Self-consciously she stepped out of the dress and kicked it away, shifting back onto the bed, pulling the cover up to her neck.

‘Thank you,’ she said awkwardly.

The pillow felt blissful beneath her head. She could feel the drugs beginning to take effect. Alexei scooped up her beautiful dress.