Elphi's voice was thick with sleep and slid into a deep yawn as she whispered, "Good morning."
So much for avoiding detection as he'd hoped.
"Morning," he murmured with a shy smile curling his lips as he stole a peek out of the corner of his eye. "Sleep well?"
"Surprisingly, yes," Elphi sighed before peeling herself off him. She mumbled an apology as she scooted to the opposite edge of the bed. "You?"
"Better than I have in a long time," Rufus said with a nod as he sat up.
He bit back a grin when she grumbled several expletives at failing to find the curtain's edge. "There's a pull cord on either side of the headboard," he murmured, exposing the loop of gold braided cord on his side before giving it a gentle tug to open the curtains around the entire bed.
Bright sunlight bathed the room in a cheery glow and warmed the floorboards beneath Rufus's feet when he stood. He stretched and yawned, absently scratching his chest just as the disapproving faces of Percy, Bradford, and Fitz materialized directly in front of him.
He stumbled backward onto the bed, a startled expletive escaping his lips.
Elphi whipped around to face him, her eyes wide with alarm and a hand to her throat. "What is it?"
"Nothing," Rufus lied, scowling at the snickering, smug-looking ghosts, then glanced at his wife over his shoulder and climbed off the bed. "I merely lost my balance while stretching."
When he stood at his full height again, he cast another glare at the three tormentors and walked to his armoire.
"Are you hungry?" He asked, pulling the doors open before selecting a clean shirt, navy waistcoat, and pair of trousers.
"Famished," Elphi said behind him.
Rufus stuffed his right leg into his trousers, then the left, and began buttoning his fly as he turned to Elphi. He'd intended to tell her his housekeeper usually had breakfast laid out for him by quarter to seven since he was an early riser.
But at that very moment, he felt reduced to a boy of fifteen, suddenly struck speechless by the breathtaking woman across from him bathed in the morning light.
Which, he thought, was absurd. He was a grown man of twenty-seven and hadn't been frightened into silence by a woman since first meeting Edwina.
Distance, perhaps, but not silence, he mentally corrected himself as his hands abandoned the last two buttons of his fly and fell limply to his sides.
Thankfully, Elphi paid him no attention, focused as she was on brushing her hair while gazing out the lead-paned windows.
Sunlight silhouetted her body through her nightgown and created an auburn halo around her head, making Rufus suddenly wish he were an artist with an endless supply of canvas and paints at his disposal to capture the picturesque sight.
"Will you be working in your..." The remainder of her question dwindled into silence when she glanced at him over her shoulder and turned to face him, clutching her hairbrush to her chest.
She swallowed. "You're staring."
Rufus blinked a few times but try as he might, he couldn't look away. "I am."
Elphi dipped her head in a hesitant nod, making it clear she'd caught the inflection in those two small words that made it a statement rather than a question as he'd intended.
Rufus grunted, vaguely aware the more proper response on his part would now be to utter an apology and turn his attention elsewhere.
But propriety be damned because he couldn't look away. Air lodged in his throat, his mouth became dry as a desert, and his heart hammered against his ribs.
He'd never realized how captivating and utterly distracting a woman in a prudish nightgown could be until now, when the morning sunlight revealed all of Elphi's graceful curves as effectively as the white cotton garment kept them concealed.
"Are you feeling all right?" She asked, taking a cautious step forward and giving him a concerned look that suggested the only acceptable answer was in the negative.
"I'm fine... I was thinking."
Much to his sorrow, Elphi walked out of the sunlight to the washbasin as she arched a dubious brow. "It appeared as though you got lost a bit."
A rueful chuckle escaped him as he scratched his head and raked his hand through his hair, giving himself a mental shake. "I did."
"Is thinking usually such a strenuous task for you this early in the morning?" She teased, flashing a cheeky grin before braiding and pinning her hair into a bun. Then, after smoothing a few errant strands into place, she turned to one of her trunks and knelt to sort through its contents.
His lips curled in an answering smile as he heaved a sigh, deciding it was best to remain silent and focus instead on getting dressed rather than attempt witty, conversational sparring in his current mental state.
"You didn't answer my earlier question," she murmured several moments later.
Rufus glanced over his shoulder as he pulled a shirt over his head and stuffed his right arm through the sleeve, then did a double-take when he caught her standing in her chemise and bloomers at the foot of the bed with her back toward him while strapping herself into her corset.
In stunned silence, he slowly faced forward and stared at his armoire, terrified to move a muscle for fear Elphi would make him leave. After forcing a swallow down a suddenly parched throat, he licked his lips and prayed it would be one requiring a simple answer as he choked out, "Which question was that?"
She didn't answer him immediately and instead mumbled something under her breath. Her tone was laced with frustration when she finally asked, "Will you be working today, or do we get to spend the day together?"
Rufus opened his mouth, only slightly surprised to discover he wanted to say the latter was his preferred option. Then promptly snapped his mouth closed and bit back an expletive upon remembering he'd promised to meet with Lord Waltham this afternoon to investigate a disturbance at his estate. "I'm afraid I'll be working."
"Oh," she sighed with a definite tone of dismay bordering on annoyance loaded into the short syllabled word.
Her reply—or more so, the unmistakable emotion of it—took Rufus by surprise and had him cautiously glancing over his shoulder once more.
Without thinking, he asked, "Would you like to come with me?"
She froze. "Downstairs? To your study?"
He shook his head. "I hate to rob you of the excitement when you so clearly sound thrilled at the prospect, but no." A smile tugged at his lips as he turned around and continued dressing. "I'm to investigate a disturbance at Kernwith Hold."
Elphi blinked, her heart racing as she stole a peek over her left shoulder and saw Rufus with his back to her, tucking his shirt into the waistband of his trousers. "I wouldn't be a distraction to you while you go about... doing whatever it is you do?"
Rufus hesitated, "No."
"That sounded suspiciously like a yes," she murmured, biting back a smile as she reached for her petticoat and hurried to dress.
"I would very much enjoy the presence of your company," he said a moment later, his voice full of a sincere, husky warmth that threatened to turn her innards to mush and her legs to jelly. "Should you care to join me."
Elphi swallowed and finished fastening her petticoat with shaky fingers. There were two reasons she wanted to join him so badly that she felt sick to her stomach from the force of it, though if he asked her, she would only admit to the last.
Reason number one, the thought of being without him all day filled her with anxiety. Waking up in Rufus's arms that morning had stirred something deep inside Elphi's lonely soul, and now she found that, while only a short distance separated them, she craved his presence and the warmth of his touch as desperately as parched desert sands hungered for rain.
And two, she wanted to see Rufus in action. To observe him doing whatever he did while investigating, and perhaps most importantly, learn something about her husband that not even Roderick knew.
Clearing her throat, Elphi strove for a calm tone and said, "I'd love to; thank you."
"Really?"
She bit back a smile at the surprise in his voice and snuck a peek, watching as he sat on the side of the bed to pull on his boots. "Of course... you don't think Lord Waltham will object to your wife joining you, will he?"
Rufus grunted, then held silent before finally saying, "I'll tell him you're also my assistant; he won't press the issue."
Elphi finished buttoning her bodice, then turned to him and forgot how to breathe. Dressed much the same as yesterday in his study, Rufus stood facing her with a mischievous glint in his eyes and an almost disgruntled-looking lopsided grin curling his lips.
It was a captivating and endearing expression that caused a peculiar ache to settle around her heart, brought a smile to her face, and made Elphi realize how delusional she'd been to believe she'd had a chance of harboring only platonic feelings toward the man.
She would have had better success teaching a fish how to knit a shawl. Provided she knew how to knit one herself. Or owned a fish.
A giggle escaped her at the ridiculous image.
Rufus's grin softened. "What?"
"Nothing," Elphi murmured, giving herself a mental shake. "I was merely thinking ridiculous thoughts."
Ignoring his questioning brow and the butterflies in her belly that took flight with every step, she crossed to where he stood and hoped he didn't notice how badly her hand trembled as she smoothed an errant lock of dark wavy brown hair off his forehead.
He held her gaze, and Elphi tried not to get lost in the steel-blue color that reminded her of turbulent seas.
Delicately clearing her throat, she stepped back and ignored her racing heart. "Shall we go down for breakfast? I assume we've time to eat before we leave."
"We do," he murmured, giving her a funny look as he took her hand in his.
"What?"
Rufus hesitated, pursing his lips and shaking his head as they walked out of their room. Then, when they were halfway down the stairs, he finally said, "Are you sure you want to come with me? You won't be bored?"
Elphi glanced at him, unsure how truthful in her motives she ought to be. "Yes, I want to come. I'm curious to see what it is you do."
Rufus grunted, and Elphi could have sworn she saw a blush stain his cheeks before he turned away.
"And at the very least," she continued as he escorted her into a cozy dining room with place settings for two and enough food to feed a small army on the sideboard, "we'll be able to spend the day getting to know one another better."
"Unless you suffer from carriage narcolepsy like your brother," Rufus playfully grumbled while grabbing his plate.
Elphi stared at her husband as a giddy smile curled her lips. "You know about that?"
"We've been friends for eighteen years; how could I not?" He grumbled with a teasing wink cast her way before dishing up healthy portions of everything offered.
Rufus tossed two pieces of perfectly browned toast on a separate smaller plate, then turned and caught Elphi watching him. "Is the food not to your liking, or have you decided you're not hungry? I can have a word with my cook—"
"No... neither," Elphi said with a quick shake of her head. Then, watching him from the corner of her eye, she picked up her plate and bit back a smile. "I'm just surprised there's any food left."
He blinked several times and frowned. "Why?"
Elphi bit her tongue, unsure how to answer without sounding rude. She could only hope since Rufus was familiar with Roderick's 'carriage narcolepsy,' as he'd put it, he would also be aware of her brother's breakfast habits. "Because if my brother were here—"
"Say no more," he chuckled and shook his head. "It's been many years since I've experienced Roderick's morning gluttony firsthand—"
"But it scarred you as well?" She gently teased, nodding at the evidence in his hands.
Rufus stood frozen, holding his heavily laden plate for a moment as though he wasn't sure how to respond.
Only when Elphi began scooping portions of food onto her plate did he sit, slowly butter both pieces of toast, slather them with orange marmalade, tuck a napkin in his shirt collar, and pick up his fork.
But he then promptly set it down and waited for Elphi to finish loading her plate and join him before he began eating.
"Is this a typical morning and breakfast for you, Rufus?" Elphi asked, fascinated by the food organization on his plate so that, despite the quantity, there was no touching between each group.
She'd never seen such a thing, yet she completely understood the reasoning behind it and was surprised she hadn't thought to do it herself years ago.
He arched a brow and finished chewing, then swallowed before answering with a teasing smile and a wink, "Parts of it, yes."
Elphi blushed and decided to eat, hoping that by keeping her mouth busy with chewing, she would stop from further making a fool of herself by asking any more embarrassing questions.
A comfortable silence descended until they'd both finished eating several minutes later. Rufus wiped his mouth with his napkin and glanced at his pocket watch, then looked to the clock on the mantle across the room to confirm the time.
"Finished?" He asked, tucking the watch back in its pocket and setting the napkin on the table.
Elphi dabbed at the corners of her lips with her napkin and nodded, surprised there was still room for butterflies in her stomach considering how much food she'd just consumed.
"Wonderful," Rufus murmured, curling his lips into a brief, somewhat shaky smile.
Was he nervous? As they left the dining room, gathered their cloaks, and waited for his carriage, she found herself hoping he was if only so they would be on equal footing.
Peeking at him out of the corner of her left eye, Elphi pretended to adjust the cuff of her right sleeve, hoping to hide the sudden rush of nerves at realizing she was going to be alone with Rufus. All. Day. Long. "What usually occurs on these investigations of yours?"
He gave her an odd, guarded look. "What do you mean?"
She chewed on the inside of her cheek, thinking the question had been self-explanatory and sought a way to rephrase it without being overly obvious. But after a moment's thought, decided subtly would solve nothing.
So, she threw caution to the wind and blurted out, "Do you think we'll actually see any ghostly specters?"
Rufus slowly turned to her, a frown creasing his brow, and convulsively swallowed.
He opened his mouth as though to speak, then snapped it closed and flicked a glance toward the window at the first sound of their carriage. Then, without a word, he yanked the door open, took a step over the threshold, and waited.
Elphi studied him, sensing she'd overstepped some unseen boundary. He stood as though it took every ounce of self-control to keep from bolting to the waiting carriage.
Biting back an apology for the unknown wrong she'd committed, she delicately cleared her throat, squared her shoulders, and walked out into the sunshine with her husband, determined to have a good day.