Meant to Bea

CHAPTER THREE

Soft whispers awakened Bianca. Turning to her side, her eyelids gave way to the image of an unfamiliar man standing by the doorway with his back to her.

“Father?” She blinked, scrubbing her eyes with her sleeves.

She scanned the unfamiliar room briefly, remembering as she did so, the events of the last few days. Just then, the man closed the door and turned around. She snapped her eyelids shut, afraid he'd notice she was awake. She laid still for several seconds, listening to the sound of the unrelenting rainfall outside the window.

Perhaps it was time to start getting dressed so they could begin their journey early? Still, she was nervous and hesitant to face him considering his rejection the night before. What would she say to him? And would she be required to get dressed in his presence? She blushed and tore her eyelids apart. There was most likely no time to contemplate her questions.

She made to rise up, but her eyes immediately caught sight of Mr. Belington getting dressed by the fireplace.

Sucking in a breath, she laid motionless on the bed. Her eyes traveled down the length of him, drinking in the sight of his manly form. Surely he thought her asleep, for he stood so unashamedly before her.

She laid watching every move he made, until he was fully dressed. He didn't bother to comb his hair, before turning and making his way out of the room.

She pushed herself to a sitting position then, her eyes darting briefly to the window; the rain still fell unrestrained outside and while she doubted they would still be capable of traveling, she didn't want to upset Mr. Belington, so she slipped out of her nightdress and made her way to the trunk by the foot of the bed.

A creaking sound drifted to where she stood. Turning around sharply, she was just in time to find Mr. Belington standing by the door, his eyelids widened as he ran his gaze down the length of her.

Her lips fell open, her mind scrambling for ways to hide her unclad form from his wandering eyes. Still, her legs held her captive, leaving her exposed to his scrutiny.

They stood in silence for several minutes, her body warm from embarrassment. She tried to move, to scramble for the covers, but her limbs would not comply. She tried to listen to the fire as it consumed the wood in the hearth, but the sound did nothing to ease her anxiety.

“We cannot travel today,” He finally said.

Slowly, she lifted her eyes to him. His eyelids were back to normal, and the stern look on his face had returned.

“The continuous rain has left the roads flooded.” He motioned to the window but she didn't think she could bring herself to look away from him. “We are stuck in this boarding house.”

“F-f-for how-” She swallowed, trying and failing to sound calm. “For how long?” She glanced down, certain she couldn't think properly standing naked before a man.

“Until the rain stops and the roads are cleared.”

“Oh, very well.” She nodded.

“Mrs. Kent, the owner of the boarding house wanted me to pass across the information that breakfast is served. Would you like to come down for breakfast, or would you like to eat here?”

She shook her head, wanting to be in the company of people other than Mr. Belington. Perhaps it would ease the awkwardness between them.

“I will be down shortly.”

He nodded. “Very well.”

When the door slammed behind him, a puff of air escaped her lips, as her legs wobbled beneath her. Settling gingerly on the edge of the bed, she pressed a hand to her chest where her heart laid pounding loudly.