Free His Jilted Bride (Historical Regency Romance) by Rose Gordon

certainly be in need of
rescuing.
     

Chapter Nine
     
     
    “ Cake?”
    “ Cake,” Amelia repeated with a nod as she removed her bonnet
and tossed it over the back of the leather chair that was
positioned in the middle of the common room in the hunting cabin.
“I think you should treat me to a slice of the best cake Bath has
to offer tomorrow.”
    “ You are a very strange young lady; did you know that?” he
asked, chuckling. Who knew Amelia had a hankering for cake? No
matter. If cake is all she demanded of him for having to endure his
female relatives for the better half of an evening, cake is what
she'd get.
    “ Well, now that I'm an old married matron, it won't matter
what I eat,” she said as cool as could be as she set her unneeded
red scarf on the edge of the pale blue settee.
    He removed his grey coat and set it
next to her discarded scarf. “And it did before?”
    “ Of course,” she murmured, running her hands down the front of
the pink gown she'd borrowed from Lady Templemore.
    Without meaning to, Elijah's eyes
followed the path her hands made over her ample bosom, down to her
slim waist, then flared out with her hips.
    He cleared his throat to tell her
something reassuring, but it would seem nothing worked to relieve
himself of that strangled feeling. “Amelia, it wouldn't matter if
you weren't married. You're...er...” The invisible hands that were
strangling him finally choked him tight enough to end his
words.
    Her lips formed a half-smile. “It's
all right. I don't expect you to compliment me.”
    He loosened his cravat,
whether because he needed to in order to take it off for the night
or because it seemed to suddenly be choking the life out of him, he
might never truly know. She was his oldest friend. He'd
complimented her many times when she'd found some clever way to
best Henry at a game and even a few weeks ago he'd complimented her
dancing at his sister's wedding. He cocked his head to the side.
How strange. He had always complimented things she did, never
actually her .
    “ Amelia?”
    She smoothed her skirt and kept her
eyes trained on whatever it was on the floor that had managed to
capture her attention. “Hmm?”
    “ You are a very beautiful young lady.”
    “ Thank you.” Her cheeks turned the palest shade of pink and
she kicked off her cream slippers. “Don't worry. I shan't
overindulge too often.”
    Elijah sighed. “I'm not worried about
you gaining a few pounds, Amelia. I just wanted to tell you—” He
shrugged. “Well, I already said it, so now you know.”
    Amelia twirled a tendril of her fallen
hair around her finger. “Thank you.”
    “ You're welcome.”
    Amelia gave her head a little shake,
almost as if she were shaking off his words, then she bit her lip.
She'd been acting most strange since they'd entered the cabin.
Surely she wasn't afraid to be alone with him.
    “ Amelia?”
    “ Hmmm?”
    Elijah ignored her half-hearted
response and took a step closer to her. She'd been able to put him
off for two nights. But tonight she wouldn't have an excuse.
“Amelia,” he murmured, leaning in to kiss her.
    She swallowed audibly and stood
stock-still.
    Slowly, Elijah brushed his lips across
hers, hoping to fan some internal flame she had.
    “ I—I'm not ready,” she blurted. She cleared her throat and
took a step away from him. “This is all so sudden.”
    He stared at her. Sudden? How could
she even think to claim his actions were sudden? They'd been
married, or on their way to marry, for the better part of three
days, surely she understood that most ladies were expected to share
their husbands' beds within hours of being married. It didn't seem
sudden at all as far as he was concerned. “You were prepared to do
this with Lord Friar two days ago, were you not?”
    Amelia's eyes widened at his frank
words, then she clasped her hands in front of her. “Of
course.”
    “ Then I see no reason for you to have any reservation when it
comes to me.”
    “ Of course