Jasmine shifted in his arms. As if nothing had transpired, she gave him a soft smile. “Let’s not keep them waiting.”
She reached for her bonnet and stood, leaving an indent from her body on the blanket. Matthew rose to his feet. Before she could do it herself, he reached forward to fasten her bonnet. Carefully, he tied the sea-foam green ribbon below her chin. Her blush accented a smudge of gunpowder on her cheekbone and a black streak across her nose.
Likewar paint.
Had she left her mark on him as well?
Using his sleeve, he wiped soot from her face. Wanting to claw back the moment lost to them, his voice gentled. “What were you going to ask?”
Her gaze slid away from his. A hint of vulnerability flashed in her expression.
And she lied to him.
“It isn’t important.”
Chapter Fifteen
Jasmine didn’twantan answer.
Not yet.
Her heart thumped heavily in her chest. After kissing her like that,Matthew effortlessly reverted to confidence and composure, as if he hadn’t laid all of his cards on the table. He cared for her. Far deeper than she thought.
If he loved her, and she couldn’t return the sentiment, it would break him. He wanted her.Openly. He coaxed but didn’t force—as if teaching her how to swim. She could lose herself in the rapids with him, but the calm of the shallows was unfamiliar territory. With one wave of intimacy, she found herself slipping.
Jasmine laced her fingers through Matthew’s, and guided him back to their family. Cassandra, Caroline, Seth, and Trevor sat on the blanket. Lord Blackmoor stood near the targets with the impatience of a man with places to be and a point to prove. He held a pistol in one hand and a flowing strip of black fabric in the other.
Matthew smirked.
“Blackmoor is a glutton for punishment. He came prepared.”
Jasmine raised a brow. “What is the cloth for?”
“It’s a blindfold.” Matthew leaned in, and his lips grazed the shell of her ear. “Watch carefully, and I’ll show you why I’m theKing.”
A chill went through her at his tone—then, his words registered.
“You’re shootingblindfolded?”
He shot her a dazzling smile.
“You cannot shoot a target blindfolded,” Jasmine argued. “It’s impossible!”
“I have to see it first. And I’m not always on the mark. It’s more of an instinct—”
“If Lincolnshire ever stops wasting time,” Lord Blackmoor drawled, “we might finish this competition today.”
“Very well. You go first, seeing as you’re so eager.” Matthew called to the group. “Who will be his second?”
Caroline raised her hand. “I will!”
Lord Blackmoor gave an almost imperceptible shake of his head. “Trevor will do it.”
Caroline crossed her arms and huffed. Trevor bounded to Lord Blackmoor and stood at the ready. Lord Blackmoor’s eyes narrowed slightly as he looked downrange, raised his pistol, and adjusted his aim. Satisfied, he nodded to Trevor, who tied the blindfold around his eyes and stepped back.
Standing statuesque, Lord Blackmoor shot straight through the center of his target. Jasmine’s jaw dropped at the effortless display. To shoot a perfect target was hard enough—but without even seeing it?
It wasinhuman!