She gasped in amazement. “It’s incredible.”
They waded for a long time, marveling at the natural beauty. Alexander’s face held a rare grin, and it brought her a deep happiness with it. If only they could stay here, away from the weight of the world.
He moved to the side and took hold of the rock as he looked up at the sky. “It’s beautiful in the moonlight,” he told her. “With the stars above. You used to try to count them.”
They used to swim here at night? She gripped the rock, edging beside him so she could still herself in the water.
“How many are there?” she asked.
He shook his head with an amused grin. “You’d come up with a different number each time.”
Each time. As in, they’d been here under the stars more than once.
Their eyes found each other again, and they fell silent. He drifted closer to her, close enough again to touch. This time, she did. She reached out her hand, slowly, and pressed her palm flat against his chest. The racing of his heart matched her own.
He drifted even closer.
His eyes matched the sunlit pool, and water droplets glistened in the gold of his hair. He was beautiful. She moved her hand up his chest, over his shoulder, and behind the nape of his neck, pulling him ever so softly to her.
And he followed.
She leaned in, tipping her head slightly and bringing her cheek to his. They were so close. Not touching, but so close.
His breath dusted heat over her ear. She dropped her lips to his neck, not with a kiss—just the feather of a touch. The muscle across his shoulders tightened under her hand, and his breaths came faster now. So did hers. She trailed her lips up, still not kissing him, although she desperately wanted to. She traveled along his jaw and over his chin and paused a whisper away from his mouth.
They shouldn’t be here, like this. Yet they lingered. He smelled like he was hers, and she breathed him in.
He ran his hand up the back of her neck and into her hair, and he parted his lips. His body pressed closer, and her breasts brushed against his chest through her chemise. She wanted him closer, still. His fingers gripped her tighter.
They couldn’t be here.
He closed his eyes. An eternity passed in the quiet of their breaths. He swallowed. “We should go,” he said, before opening his eyes again.
His words found the sanity of her mind, and she pushed back from him.
His face sobered. “I’m sorry,” he said. “I shouldn’t have brought you here.” There was a sadness to his tone, a disappointment in himself. “We should go,” he said again. He pulled back and away.
But it was as much her fault as it was his. “Alexander,” she said.
He floated back the way they’d come, moving slowly to keep from splashing.
She sighed and followed.
They reached the point at which they’d started, and Norah found her footing in the shallows. Alexander had already exited the pool. He picked up his breeches and pulled them on.
Norah stepped out of the water and found her dress. And as if putting on undergarments with damp skin wasn’t enough of a struggle, she found the back lacing was just beyond her grasp. Heat flushed across her cheeks. She hadn’t thought things through when she’d stripped it off.
She glanced back to where he stood waiting for her. “Will you?” she called to him, and turned her back for him to help with the ties.
Her ask was met with silence, and she thought he might refuse. Then he stepped behind her. He was still for a moment before he reached out and pulled the lacing tight, closing the back of her dress and skillfully looping each fix.
Alexander shifted closer, and the warmth of his breath tickled her shoulder. A wave of familiarity rippled through her. The dream. It hadn’t been just a dream.
She risked pushing him further away, but she couldn’t help herself. “You’ve done this before,” she said. “For me.”
He didn’t answer. But she knew. He was quick to put up walls, quick to put distance between them, but he seemed to forget sometimes, lapsing into a life that still called to her, a life she desperately wanted back.
“Are you ready?” he asked when he finished, stepping them back into the coldness of normalcy.
She gave a nod.
Alexander offered his hand, with his fingers politely together, for the walk back through the cave. She took it. He moved to start, but she pulled him to pause.
“Alexander. Thank you for giving this back to me. It did take my mind off things for a while.”
His eyes gave a sad smile, and he nodded. Then he led her into the darkness, toward the castle and the pressures that waited.
Chapter nineteen
The skirts were heavy but still allowed ease of movement. Norah pulled them on quickly, wondering what was in store for her. Alexander had knocked on her door early, instructing her maid to have her dress for the cold. She didn’t like the cold much. Regardless, she was looking forward to whatever he had planned. Her mind drifted back to the day before, back to the cave, and a warmth pooled in her stomach. But she pushed it down. She couldn’t allow herself those feelings. Not when she knew her future.
She stepped out into the hall, where Titus was waiting.
“The lord justice is just down the stairs,” he told her.
“I’m sorry I snapped at you yesterday,” she said back over her shoulder as she walked.
“You don’t need to apologize.”
That was what he was obliged to say.
“But I want to. I was having a bad day.” She reached the stairs and started down.
“I know. I heard.”
She frowned. “Do you hear everything?”
“Most everything.”
Of course. What did she expect? She reached the bottom stair, where Alexander was waiting, and he gave her a low bow. She tried to ignore the stir in her stomach.
“Regal High,” he greeted.
His tone and formality sat strangely with her, but she pushed the feeling down and gave him a small smile. “Lord Justice. You’ve captured my curiosity. Where are we headed?”
He turned and led her down the hall and outside into the courtyard. “It’s not so much where we’re headed as what we’re doing,” he said, piquing her curiosity further. He waved back to Titus, who fell farther behind. His voice dropped lower. “But first, I want to apologize. I shouldn’t have taken you to the cave yesterday. Please, forgive me. I’d… like to forget it even happened.”
While not intentional, his words stung. “I don’t want to forget,” she said, shaking her head. She’d forgotten enough.
“Norah,” he said softly. “Please.” His eyes were filled with an emotion she couldn’t read. Sadness? Regret? It unsettled her, but she couldn’t look away. He shifted his gaze, releasing her.
“Where are we going?” she asked, changing the subject.
He let out a sigh but seemed to accept her rejection of his completely foolish idea to forget the cave. She couldn’t have it again, but she wouldn’t forget.
“Where are we going?” she asked again.
The corner of his mouth curved up, but only for a moment. “You’ll see,” he said.
She followed him past the stables and around to the sparring field, where a boy was leaning weapons against the fence in preparation for the day’s use. Alexander made several gestures with his hands, and the boy gestured back before bowing to Norah.