This was a shocking revelation. Dominic wasn't entirely sure what to do with these new feelings, or even where they'd come from.
In the past, any unwanted feelings had been easy enough to stamp down upon. If he felt himself becoming attached to somebody unsuitable, or somebody who wasn't available for one reason or another, he simply lectured himself severely out of those feelings. And then they just... went away.
This time, it wasn't working.
This isn't appropriate,Dominic told himself.She works for ye. It isn't fair. She's English, she's unpredictable, she has a past which she's not sharing with anybody. This isn't right.
It didn't matter. The small part of his brain that clung onto logic was speedily being shunted aside by the rest of him, which was keener than ever to keep Paisley close.
He remembered conversations he'd had with Thomas, when he was falling in love with Emma. He remembered his friend pacing the floor, wild-eyed and frustrated.
"She doesnae like me,"he'd said, more to himself than anyone else."She's a healer. Nothin' could happen. Delphine – that's the chief healer, by the way, Dom – would tear me head off if I went near her. But I cannae stop feelin' this way. Why can I nae stop feeling this way?"
Dominic had had no answers for his friend back then, and he had no answers for himself now. He only knew that he wanted Paisley here, with him, for as long as possible. He wanted her to be his. She alreadywashis.
He lifted an apprehensive hand, smoothing back her disordered hair from her forehead, tucking it behind her ears.
Paisley shifted under his touch, and he saw her eyes flick open, glittering in the dark. Confusion swept over her face, and she flailed her way into a sitting position.
"Where... where am I? No, never mind, I remember where I am. Um... ah."
She glanced down at Dominic, and even in the dark, he could tell that she was blushing furiously. She remembered everything that had happened last night, then.
Dominic propped himself up onto one elbow, watching her.
"How are ye feeling?"
"Surprisingly good."
"Surprisingly?"
"Well, I had less sleep than usual, and not in my own bed, so I ought to feel a little worse for wear this morning. But I don't."
Dominic nodded slowly, still watching her. She was fidgeting, glancing around with barely disguised curiosity. Before he could ask her what she was thinking, she spoke again.
He should have known. Paisley couldn't stay quiet for two minutes together. Dominic suppressed a smile.
"Should I have gone before you woke up? After all, last time we kissed, you avoided me for a whole day."
Dominic sat up, frowning. He leaned past her to light to candle he kept beside his bed, filling the room with a warm, buttery glow. It was about five o' clock, by his estimation, and the sky was gray with the oncoming dawn.
"What are ye talkin' about?"
Paisley drew in a breath, a sure sign that she was about to embark on a lengthy speech, for which she would need plenty of breath.
"Well, the thing is – and I suspect you've already guessed this – but I haven't done this sort of thing before. Ladies don't, back home, you see. Or if they do, they don't stayladiesfor very long..."
"Only if they're caught." Dominic pointed out.
Paisley considered this. "I suppose you're right. The thing is, I learned about... well, everything regarding what men and women do together from my nursemaid. I was very fond of her, and she was rather a daring woman. She told me, once or twice, about, uh,meetingsshe'd had with gentlemen, not unlike this, and she always mentioned creeping out before they woke up. I daresay there's a great many unwritten rules for this sort of thing, and I'm afraid I don't know any of them."
Dominic tried not to laugh. "Yer nursemaid sounds like an interestin' woman."
"Oh, she is. Of course, all those stories were from her youth, not from when she was raising me."
"Unless she just kept those other, more recent stories from ye." Dominic pointed out.
Paisley frowned. She didn't seem to like that idea, and Dominic was filled with an incredible urge to chuckle.