Chapter 37

Elsie returned to her room, closing the door behind her. Taking her book from the nightstand she debated curling into bed to read or relaxing by the fire. Her eyes lingered on the bed where there was a notepad and pencil. Picking them up, she recognized Charles's handwriting at once.

She wondered briefly why he would have been near the bed when he came in to light the fire. All of the heat which had suffused her body earlier in the evening returned. Had he looked at the bed and imagined them in it as she had.

Remembering her dressing gown had been hanging by the bed she wondered if he'd touched it. It wasn't her normal dressing gown but one she'd purchased only recently. She only wore it in the privacy of her room. The material was impractical for regular wear but when she'd seen it she couldn't resist. She'd even bought the matching gown, a negligee the sales girl had told her. The way it felt against her made her skin tingle. The first time she'd worn it she'd thought of him. Would it feel as good against her skin as he slid it off her body?

Those thoughts would get her nowhere. He would be mortified to know she had such thoughts about him. She placed the notebook and pencil on the nightstand making a mental note to return it to his office early in the morning. There was no need to embarrass him by letting him know where she'd found it.

Trying to clear her mind, she decided it was best to read away from the bed. She crossed the room and settled into a chair in front of the fire. Opening the book, she tried to lose herself to the words of Virginia Woolf.

Twenty minutes later she closed the book in frustration. It was too warm in the room. She couldn't decide if it was because of the fire or her other musings. Either way, reading was a lost cause. Walking back to the bed and turning down the covers she decided it was perhaps the fire. Not wanting to douse the fire, knowing it would get colder throughout the evening, she finally fixed on the door. She could open it partway and the cooler air of the hallway would temper the warmth of the fire.

As she opened the door, she debated with herself. What if Charles came down? Would he think it an invitation? So what if he did? Maybe she had been too coy. Laughter escaped as she realized the folly of her thoughts. Of course Charles wouldn't come downstairs. He would rather freeze, in the attics.

She opened the door and returned to her bed. Turning out the lights, she snuggled deeply into the bed. As her body and mind succumbed to the luxury of the bed, one random thought filtered through her subconscious, "What if he wanted to be in the attics to be far away from her?"

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Charles woke, shivering from the cold. He pulled at the covers trying to warm himself. He tried curling into a ball to generate some heat. His breath was a puff of vapor in front of him. As much as he hated to admit it, it was far too cold to sleep in the attics. Without the boiler, there was no residual heat within the house.

He lay there debating with himself. A quick look at the clock told him it was entirely too early to get up, dress and start to work. He thought about the chair in his office. He could sleep there, he'd certainly done it before.

No, he couldn't do that. He had too many things to accomplish the next day. He wanted to make sure he was free to take Elsie around London the following day Sleeping in his chair would be unrestful and he couldn't risk being tired and cranky or worse his back acting up. Closing his eyes he grumpily acknowledged there was only one choice. He would have to sleep downstairs.

His body, which had finally calmed while sleeping, responded to the thought. Not to the same point as earlier but definitely a piqued interest. Shaking his head he pushed up, throwing the covers to the side. The cold of the room served as a wet blanket on his betraying body.

He quickly pulled on his dressing gown as he slipped into his slippers. Gathering a few necessities he quietly exited his room and began his journey to the other room. He didn't take all of his belongings, the boiler would be fixed tomorrow and he could return to his attic room.

Entering the hallway, he walked carefully, not wanting to wake her. There were three bedrooms on this hallway, he knew which one was hers so it would be quick work to find the one she'd made up for him. He opened the door closest to the stairs and knew instantly it wasn't the right room. The bed was still unmade and sheets covered the furniture.

Closing the door behind him he walked further down the hallway. Her open door surprised him. He was drawn to it like a moth to a flame. Quietly, he stood in the doorway praying her unerring ability to sense him didn't work when she was sleeping.

The fire lit the room, light dancing quietly across the room. She was curled halfway onto her side, one arm thrown over her head, a bare arm. He swallowed as his eyes raked across her bare skin. It was pale, almost ivory in color.

He'd never seen this much of her before. Yes he'd seen her bare feet and part of her legs but this was more intimate. His pounding heart let him know how inappropriate this was. He couldn't be sure if it was pounding from fear of being caught for from the sheer erotic nature of what he was watching.

She sighed in her sleep, a soft, almost sensual sound, and rolled onto her back. The bare skin of chest was on display. For a moment he thought she was nude, but for the covers, then he saw the pale lace of her nightgown almost blending with her skin.

He staggered away from the door, ashamed of himself. He had invaded her privacy. Turning he headed back to the attics, as he opened the door to enter the stairwell the cold smacked him in the face. He knew he couldn't go back to the attics. The room across the hall from her was his only option.

Resigned, he walked back to the room, opened the door and slipped in as quietly as possibly. The turned down bed greeted him. He cursed silently, she'd known he would come down. Flinging his things into the chair he blustered about, annoyed with her assumptions. Then he saw the coal in the unlit fire and he calmed instantly.

She hadn't known, she'd just prepared. Bending to light the fire he smiled to himself. Just another way she'd taken care of him, the way they both did.

He removed his dressing gown draping it over the foot of the bed. The fire had already begun to take the chill from the room. Lifting the cover he slid between the sheets. He almost moaned from the comfort of the bed. It only took him a moment to settle in. Just before he fell asleep, one thought passed through his mind, "It wasn't her normal sleep attire, why was she wearing it here?"