Free 'Twas the Night Before Mischief by Nina Rowan

yet, but I’m certain he’ll find a way to successfully market it for the holiday season.”
    Penelope sifted through the paper, the small wooden train, the cocoa nibs and sugared almonds. “It’s delightful.”
    â€œLike you.”
    Oh, she’d been wrong about him, hadn’t she? Darius Hall was more like her than she’d ever wanted to admit before—he also had all sorts of surprises hidden inside him. He also needed to be…unfastened. Unlocked. And Penelope wanted to be the one to open him.

Chapter Six
    A ll right, then.” Darius threw the extra saddle across the horse’s back, then turned to take the orange Penelope had peeled for him. “We’ll go ahead. If Sam returns, we’ll meet him on the road anyway. But we can’t waste more time.”
    They had waited two hours past dawn, and when Sam still hadn’t returned, Darius determined that they would leave for Inverness on horseback with the hopes of reaching the city by midday.
    After finishing their breakfast of oranges and bread, they readied quickly, packing their remaining food and leaving their valises behind.
    Any fanciful or ridiculous thoughts Penelope might have harbored about the pleasure of riding so close to Darius disappeared within fifteen minutes of getting under way. She sat in front, his arms close on either side, and her bottom nestled rather tightly against his strong thighs. On a warm, spring day in Devon, it might have been secretly delightful.
    But on a winter’s morning in northern Scotland with the air still cold from the storm and the frigid sea air gusting in waves…it was nothing short of miserable. Painfully miserable.
    Penelope mustered her fortitude and reminded herself that neither she nor Darius would be in this situation if she hadn’t fallen for Simon’s charms.
    Or if Darius hadn’t come to rescue…er, to find her.
    The horse plodded on, the sun barely peering through the curtain of fog, and Penelope gave up all hope of trying to stay warm. She tucked her arms against her body and tried not to wish that she could press herself back against Darius’s chest. He felt as immovable as a board behind her, aside from the flexing of his thighs as he guided the horse. After over an hour of riding, she didn’t think he’d shifted once, whereas she kept fidgeting to try to maintain a modicum of comfort.
    When she wiggled again to ease the ache in her spine, she felt Darius’s hand clamp around her hip.
    â€œStop moving,” he hissed, his warm breath tickling her ear.
    â€œI’m sorry, but—”
    â€œIf you continue to writhe about like that, I’m afraid we’ll both be far more uncomfortable than we are now.”
    â€œOh, I…” Oh!
    Penelope blushed hotly and tried to remain still. Though she was still a virgin, she had surrendered to curiosity once or twice in recent years. While no man, not even Simon, had tainted her virtue, Penelope had nonetheless learned a bit about male anatomy. Enough, at least, to understand to what Darius Hall referred.
    She gripped the horse’s mane and forced herself not to move. Even so, she could almost feel the heat of his thighs through the material of both his trousers and her skirts. She could certainly feel the clasp of his hand on her hip, which he did not release even when she stilled. His arms were on either side of her as he controlled the reins, and she became acutely aware of the sensation of his breath on the back of her neck.
    The cold lingering in the air slid away, and Penelope found herself rather warm. She pushed back the hood of her cloak, grateful now for the rush of cold air. Experimentally, she shifted again.
    â€œMiss Darlington.” His voice was tense.
    â€œTerribly sorry.” She sighed and fidgeted backward, brushing her skirts against him. “It’s just that this saddle is clearly not meant for two, and I’m not at all