Free A Kiss of Lies by Bronwen Evans

that might be searching for her. She was determined to get on board and go below, remaining hidden from prying eyes until they sailed.
    At this early hour, people on the docks were striding around purposefully, all the crew keen to get under sail, needing to make the mouth of the river to catch the evening tide.
    She tried to keep her gaze from darting over the crowd. A shrewd observer might detect her nervousness, and their party didn’t need any more attention. Lord Markham, leaving York to return to England, was a drawing card for every man and woman on the docks. She neither wanted nor needed all this attention.
    Christian pretended not to notice the stares. He gripped Lily’s hand as he strode along the dock with his head held high. Sarah followed behind, watching his legs encased in tight breeches tucked into shiny black Hessians, quite unable to take her eyes off the flap of his coat, knowing what lay underneath. Mentally she stroked the hard contours of his buttocks. She could recall—could re-create—the strong sensations she’d experienced when she’d touched his bare skin. That night in his bedroom, something buried deep inside her had surged to the surface and consumed her.
    She wanted him.
    As if sensing her wicked thoughts, Christian glanced over his shoulder. Their eyes fixed on each other, and his darkened to a deep forest green before Lily’s excited chatter stole his attention away from her.
    This journey was going to be either hell or heaven. Probably a mixture of both if she was going to be stupid enough to give in to her growing desire.
    Christian halted at the base of the gangplank. Lily was already hurrying up it. He stepped aside and allowed Sarah to precede him. As she moved past him, the heat of his large body and his sandalwood scent made walking up the rocking gangplank difficult, and she gripped the ropes for support. She could feel his eyes burning into her back and was ashamed at the way she swayed her hips provocatively for his benefit. A rush of irritation made her miss a step. It appeared she had no power over her body. Not as far as Christian was concerned, for sure.
    Once everyone was on board, shouts rang out, ropes were cast off, and at last they were under way.
    The schooner backed slowly away, and Sarah craved to go below deck to ensure she was out of sight, but a hitch in her plan was that Lily wanted to wave goodbye, and Sarah couldn’t think of any justification for leaving Lily on her own on deck. Christian, meanwhile, was busy with Captain Weatherspoon.
    Lily was tearful at leaving Mrs. Hobson behind. The housekeeper was a born and bred Canadian and would not leave the country of her birth. Her husband was buried there, and she wanted to stay close to his grave. Christian had ensured that Mrs. Hobson had enough money to live out the rest of her life in comfort. The few remaining Pearson staff had been found other positions.
    “Goodbye, York,” Lily cried into the humid air as she waved frantically from the railing. “I wonder if I’ll ever see Canada again.”
    Sarah put her arm around the girl’s shoulders. “You might come back one day when you’re older.”
    Lily looked up at her. “Will I like England?”
    “Well, the summers aren’t quite so hot.”
    “That’s good,” Lily said, nodding.
    “The winters are not as harsh. It very rarely snows in Dorset, but it’s a great deal wetter.”
    She looked down and saw that Lily was no longer listening to her. Instead the girl waspointing at something on the dock. “Look at that man. He’s running along the dock alongside the ship. Is he trying to chase us?” She laughed out loud and called over her shoulder, “He’ll never catch us, will he, Lord Markham?”
    Sarah swung away from the railing at Lily’s words, worried that her bonnet did not offer enough of a disguise. She’d ensured her fair hair was safely coiled on top of her head, as her coloring was an easily recognizable trait.
    This was ridiculous.