Scoundrel With A Noble Heart (sequel of Disgraceful)

Chapter 67

Dear my beloved readers, I know this part of the story will upset some of you, but I think making mistakes is an essential part of character development. If you have read my first book Disgraceful, you should have known that the hero is also fatally flawed. However I hope Matthew's mistakes don't make him irredeemable and eventually you'll be able to forgive him. Enjoy this chapter, and please be warned that this chapter contains mature themes.

Stolen Innocence

From the moment she emerged out of the water, and all the way to the edge of the lake, Arabella couldn't stop laughing at the silliness of the situation. At the moment, Matthew realized how he loved seeing her bright, happy face and hearing her infectious laughter. He had to admit that no one else could make him feel so alive. Not even Maggie. And her beauty never ceases to amaze him time and again, no matter how often he's seen her. He'd seen her in her finest clothes, and now, soaking from head to toe, she fascinated him no less. She just couldn't not look gorgeous. Try as he might, he would never be able to deny his attraction to her.

Since they had to dry their sodden clothes, they had no choice but to shelter in the old house. They slipped into the house through the unlocked back door, navigating the gloom of long, empty corridors that echoed their footsteps.

"Do you think we'll meet a ghost?"
She giggled, looking around the dim space in excitement.

"I don't think so." He observed his surroundings keenly.

"How can you be so sure?

"There's no such thing as ghosts. I once sheltered in an abandoned house for almost a month, and I'd never seen anything like that. The real thing to fear is you might step on a broken floor or stairs or the ceiling might cave in upon you."

Arabella expelled an irritated breath.
"Matt! You're such a killjoy!"

A few steps later, they reached a corridor with a row of doors on either side of the passage. In a short distance, light spilled from a partially opened door. They followed the light and found a drawing room with a window and a fireplace. Arabella surveyed the room, running a hand along the dusty surface of a grand piano that had been moldering away for years.

"This was once a beautiful house. I wonder what happened to the owner that they had to leave." She muttered, observing the heavy velvet drapes and expensive furniture while Matthew headed right to the fireplace and started cleaning the ashes.

"Perhaps the father lost it in gambling."
He replied, stacking the dry woods he found in the grate.

"Then why did the new owner leave it abandoned?"

"Probably the man had already been too rich so he cared little about his confiscated goods."

"How appalling." She commented, coming over to watch him build a fire. Soon the embers started to glow and in no time strong, steady flames blazed and sputtered.

"If we don't want to catch a cold, we should hang our clothes to dry. You can warm yourself up here, I'll be in the next room."
Rising to his feet, he left Arabella and moved to the next room, repeating the process of starting a fire. Afterwards, he stripped off his clothes and wrung them out before draping them over a chair. Then he stood naked in front of the fire to warm himself up. Closing his eyes, he let the delicious heat seep up into his damp skin, melting the cold away. His mind wandered to Arabella on the other side of the wall. By now she must be divested of all her clothing. He couldn't help imagining her damp, naked flesh bathed in the golden glow of the firelight. How smooth her creamy skin would look and how it would feel to touch it. He imagined skimming his hand over her soft, warm body, burying his face between her ripened breasts and taking the sweet little tip onto his mouth, making it wet and hard before shifting his attention to the other. A helpless moan escaped his lips as he continued to picture himself trailing his tongue down her soft belly and lower, pushing her legs apart and dipping his head between them to taste her there, in her most secret part.