To Eternity. Daisy Banks

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СКАЧАТЬ back to where it belonged. I will, too. You want me to stay, I know it.”

      “If you go to London, I promise I will be with you.” A smile followed his words, tender, needy, and half-amused, lifting his former gloom to the expression she’d become more familiar with, the one that so touched her heart.

      “I meant merely to suggest,” he said, “we might leave the house today, perhaps go to a public place where…” The gleam in his gray eyes met her gaze, sending a torrent of need for him pounding through her.

      “I want you, right this second.”

      Magnus shook his head. “I know. I’m afraid the consequences might be to neither of our liking. As long as you don’t have to work on the preparations for the film shoot today we will go out. We can visit”—he gazed up to the ceiling—“anywhere you like in a twenty mile radius.”

      She couldn’t still the smile or stop the tingle in her nipples. When she first visited to check the house out for the Timeless shoot, he’d been a total recluse for more years than she’d been alive. He might look like a man in his early thirties but his true age was far older. That he would suggest a trip out of the house today thrilled her, despite the cause for his suggestion. A journey away from what had nearly become his tomb showed a kind a trust she’d wondered if she’d ever get.

      She offered him a smile. “Well,” she said, pressing a kiss to his smooth chest, “as it happens, everyone thinks I am out of contact until tomorrow. No details about the full moon being the reason, of course, but I had to tell them I’d not be available. I can’t do anything to move the project on until I get a few e-mails back in answer to questions I’ve asked. I also need Richard’s fresh response to my running order. Therefore, I have time on my hands that I can devote all to you. So, yes, we can go out. I’d best do something with my hair. After that, I’ll get the local attractions leaflet printed out.”

      Magnus cupped her chin with his palm, then brushed his lips over hers. “An excellent idea.” A single judder on contact told her how he forced control over his baser urges. She was still struggling with hers.

      * * * *

      “This house feels so homey, so comfortable,” she whispered.

      “I agree. Hatfield has magic in the air.”

      “Have you visited here before?”

      “Yes, I’ve visited once or twice, but not for some time.”

      She darted a glance to him. “Not for some time” might mean fifty years, two hundred years, or perhaps longer. Not a topic they could discuss in such a public place. She held the questions inside and stared at The Rainbow Portrait of Elizabeth I. “I think this image is magical.” She was conscious others in the wood-paneled Great Hall wished to have their own moment of rapport with the daring virgin queen, yet she lingered for another second of admiration.

      “It’s one of the best pieces of propaganda produced in the period,” Magnus said, when she took a pace away from the portrait.

      “Propaganda? But it’s beautiful.”

      “We’ll go to get coffee now.” He ushered her along toward the doors at the back of the hall.

      “Propaganda is a strong word to use. Explain what you mean about the picture?”

      As ever, his smile moderated his gaunt air. “The sweet virgin queen was in her fifties when The Rainbow Portrait was made, an age when many women of the era were already dead or contemplating their demise.”

      “But she looks so beautiful, so… Oh, Magnus, was she?”

      “No. Queen Elizabeth made sure her portrait painters worked to her specifications. If their work didn’t fit her desired image, the paintings were never made public, thus preserving the goddess myth.” He squeezed her half-gloved fingers tight as he gave a low chuckle. “As far as I am aware, none of my genus has ever taken a place on the British throne.”

      “Hmm. I still think she must have been very beautiful. The way she manipulated the media of her day was awesome. Clever.” She linked her arm through his, glanced up to once again admire his profile, the set of his jaw, his sensual lips, the strong cheekbones, each lured her the same way today as they had the morning they met. No man could compare with this one. He was all hers, at least for now, and she’d do her damndest to make sure it stayed that way.

      They entered the coffee shop. She took a seat at a table looking out onto autumnal gardens and he went to the counter. Several female heads turned as he passed. She couldn’t fault the women for their admiration, and he didn’t seem to notice their interest.

      Magnus joined her, placing the tray with coffee and slices of walnut cake on the table. He set out the cups. She added cream and sugar. “I’m glad we came here. I like it,” she said, sipping her coffee. “There are some fabulous places for a still camera shoot.”

      “I don’t know about that, but I’m glad we came here, too. The grounds are magnificent.”

      “There’s a kind of permanency to it.”

      “No,” he murmured. “I can’t feel such a quality here. We’d need to travel a little farther to find such a thing.”

      “Farther? Could we?”

      Magnus stared across the table at her, his expression guarded as he set the cake fork down. “Yes, we could, but not today. We’ll visit the chapel. You’ll like it, I’m sure. The stained glass is exquisite.”

      He’d distanced himself again. After finishing her coffee, she left him at the table for a few moments. Attending to herself in the ladies’ lavatory, she understood the reason for his intent focus on the grounds. In his effort to ignore her menstruation, he had pinpointed a laser beam of concentration to their surroundings instead. Perhaps another day or so, but goodness, how she longed for this month’s period to finish.

      Magnus, wearing a light colored mackintosh that emphasized his height over the other visitors, waited for her in front of the large window at the entrance to the café. His smile of greeting dissolved her, sending her senses reeling.

      “Sorry if I kept you waiting. Chapel now?”

      “Yes. You’ll enjoy it. After, we’ll take a walk to find the oaks. I need a reminder of their power.”

      A reminder? What did he mean?

      The chapel proved as beautiful as he’d said. The exquisite stained glass captivated her. The delicacy the craftsmen of a distant age had created spoke of eternally relevant emotions, hopes, and fears.

      “Are you ready to go?” she finally asked after they’d stood to admire the windows.

      He took her hand in his to lead her out into the autumnal sunlight. She stretched her paces as he hurried her down the path. A fitful breeze swirled leaves, creating a flurry of shadow dancers in the afternoon light.

      She breathed fast in the effort to match his swift long stride. “Is there a reason to hurry?”

      “No, I wanted to wake myself up a little.” He slowed his steps. His eyes gleamed as he turned to her. “It’s good to taste the fresh air.”

      A shiver СКАЧАТЬ