“I am in my bathing chamber, Julian,” the earl’s voice drawled. “And you’re to attend to me.”
How was this possible? “Why am I in your bed, my lord?”
She swallowed. Her voice had come out as a squeak and not the low husky murmur she practiced.
“You got intoxicated last night. I could not leave you on the floor of the library.”
“Drunk?” A vague memory of him inviting her to drink with him floated through her thoughts. She felt a leaden weight settle in her stomach, and Juliana covered her face with her hands. How could she have been so foolish?
“Yes, do you not recall the events of last night?”
The amused predatory way he said that had her mouth falling open. Dear God! Yet she could form no reply.
A splash sounded. “My good man, my back needs scrubbing.”
She pushed off the bed, grabbing her clothes from the valet stand, and hurriedly rearranged her neckcloth and put on her jacket. “I will be right with you, my lord.”
Stooping, Juliana donned her shoes, her mind churning. The earl had never asked her to attend him with his bath before. Why was he doing so now? Of course, she knew it was usually the duty of a valet, but he hadn't done so for the last several days.
Did he suspect her?
Do not be silly, she chided herself, if he had suspected me, the earl would have booted me from his home on my arse, not ordered me to bathe his naked body.
She hurried to his private bath chamber to find he was immersed in a large and most luxurious tub. The walls and floor were of blue and white marble, and a had a sunken bath with spigots for hot and cold running water. The modernization of his manor’s bath chamber plumbing saves the maids from the arduous task of lugging pails of hot water up flights of stairs.
His hair was wet and curled at his nape. She kept her eyes glued there, overwhelmingly conscious of how alone they were, of how hazardous this situation had become.
He was naked.
“My lord,” she began. “The maids who brought up the water did they—”
“Your figure in my bed was just a lump under the covers, Julian.”
“Where did you sleep, my lord?” she closed her eyes, wanting the ground to part and swallow her. Why did she ask that?
He was silent, and it was as if she could feel his amusement.
“My back,” he murmured.
She took the soap and lowered to her knees behind him. Without looking down, she dipped it into the water and then brought it to his shoulders. Juliana rubbed the bar against his skin, creating a gentle lather. Her motions were slow as she carefully soaped the expanse of his shoulders and upper back, which were surprisingly muscular.
He shifted, leaned forward for her to reach his lower back. Her gaze landed on his hands, which gripped each edge of the bath as if they were lifelines.
Did she affect him?
Her heart started to pound, and she rubbed his back as quickly as possible. She took a washrag and repeated her motions, closing her eyes so as not to ogle the golden and muscular expanse of his skin.
“I slept beside you,” he unexpectedly murmured. “You are a fascinating sleeper.”
She felt her breath catch at his outrageous remark, and she dropped the soap into the water. Juliana scrambled to her feet, utterly at a loss as what to say. Then the earl gripped the edges of the tub and hauled himself to his feet.
Juliana almost fainted.
His thighs and calves were thick, his buttocks lean, and his back and shoulders delineated with muscle. Water sluiced off his powerful frame as he stepped from the tub and turned around. The earl seemed oblivious to his nudity, while she experienced an acute awareness of it, of him.
Juliana had never seen a naked body before. She wanted desperately to look away but could not. The earl…he was a fine specimen. His body was muscled in wonderful proportions, his skin tone even and implied he swam outdoors in the nude. The very idea was naughty and decadent.
At her mute regard, his sensual mouth curled at one corner. It was a smile…one that was almost a dare, one she wouldn’t have associated with the scholarly earl. Juliana belatedly realized the man before her did not resemble a scholar in any way…but more of a libertine bent on seduction.
Suddenly, the air in the room felt too thick, too tension-filled.
Oh, God, does he know I am a girl, or did he fancy the opposite sex?
She wanted to pretend indifference to his charms but couldn’t manage it. There was a slight trembling of her body, and her heart pounded so hard. The pit of Juliana’s stomach fluttered, and there was a hot, startling ache between her thighs. The response felt strange, primitive, but also right.
“Bring the towel and come here.”
That command had her taking a step back, but her damnable curiosity continually betrayed her, and she swept her gaze slowly over his perfectly formed chest and down…a strangled gasp escaped her, and she froze.
His manhood, a thing she had only ever seen in museums, was not so small as those paintings and sculptures implied! And under her gaze, it lengthened and grew fat. Her mouth fell opened and a very embarrassing squeak emitted from Juliana.
“My good man, I am frightfully curious about the blush reddening your cheeks,” the earl said with mild amusement in his tone.
Oh!
Her gaze snapped up. The handsome lines of the earl’s face were heightened by an expression she had never seen on another. It was intense…and caused her belly to get even hotter. She clasped her cheeks, finding them frightfully heated. Too rattled to proffer any reply, she grabbed the towel through over the screen and flung it at him. Then Juliana whirled around and fled from his chamber as if the devil chased her.
Closing the door with a much too hard slam, she leaned against it, her chest lifting with her harsh breathing. Juliana stiffened, wondering if that very sensual and amused laughter from inside the chamber was her imagination.
Good heavens, what does this mean?
Nothing, she scolded herself fiercely.
It was customary for a valet to assist his master in a bath. It was also expected for the valet to towel dry his master if required.
But it is not normal to run away like a frightened rabbit at the sight of a naked man!
She smoothed her features, drawing upon all her resolve to not betray her thoughts or feelings. Reaching deep inside for equanimity, Juliana opened the door and entered the earl’s chamber. He had withdrawn from his bath chamber to his sleeping quarters, and the dratted man was still naked! He was slowly toweling his hair, the muscles of his shoulder rippling and twisting.
He turned, an expression of surprise and then admiration lit in his eyes.
“You came back.”
“Yes, of course, my lord.”
His lips twitched, and his brown eyes grew warm. “I thought you would have run all the way to London, my good lad.”
He is still calling me, ‘good lad.’ That was most certainly a good sign. Her shoulders relaxed, and the tight feeling in her belly eased.
“I could only get rid of the bug outside, my lord.”
“Ah, it was a bug?”
She lifted her chin. “Of course, why did you think I dashed out so hurriedly.”
He arched a brow and looked like he was suppressing laughter. “And what kind was it?”
Annoyed, she briskly said, “I didn’t look once I got the critter out of my pants.”