It was everything she’d ever dreamed of, and yet Fiona knew it couldn’t possibly last. In another second or two, he would pull away and their kiss – the most precious kiss she would ever receive – would be over. So she did her best to focus on their point of contact – on what it felt like to have his lips pressed gently against hers. They were wonderfully soft and…

He drew back, forcing a sigh from somewhere deep down within. Except, she realized with startling awareness and even with her eyes still closed, that he hadn’t gone far. She could feel his breath stirring her skin, the warmth of it pushing aside the cool winter air. And then his lips were suddenly on hers once more in a similar caress to the first one except this time, this time his hand found its way to the back of her head and held her steady – as if she might suddenly choose to run.

Confused and unsure of how to respond, she remained as still as a statue. Was it possible he actually wanted this? She could scarcely credit it. Not when she’d been so certain of his feelings. Except what should have been one brief and simple mistletoe kiss had now become two and… He shifted closer, his arm winding its way around her back in an intimate embrace and…and… Surely he wouldn’t torment her like this unless he actually meant it. Would he? She had to know but was too afraid to ask, too afraid that the slightest sound might shatter the magic and make him remember she was Fiona, the girl he’d chosen to think of as Fee because it reminded him of a sprite. Not a goddess or siren or some other creature who might bring a man to his knees.

Still, she almost felt like a siren right now, for it did indeed feel as though he had trouble pulling away – of adding the expected distance that should have followed the first and especially the second chaste kiss. Instead, he pulled her closer, which was slightly awkward since her hands still clutched the throw tightly around her shoulders. He took another breath before covering her mouth with his once more, this time drawing her bottom lip between his in a way that carefully coaxed her open.

She heard him make a deep rumbling sound from somewhere inside his chest and could feel her heart respond with a rapid beat that echoed through every part of her body. Dear God, this had to be a dream of some sort. It couldn’t possibly be real. And yet she felt him as keenly as she felt herself. His fingertips dug against her back, and his thumb scraped against her jaw while his mouth…oh yes, that glorious mouth was doing the most incredible things – so incredible she could feel the effect of it all the way to her toes.

He was like the rich champagne they’d enjoyed in the ballroom, except better, and she wanted nothing more than to keep on drinking and tasting until she was thoroughly drunk on his flavor. Pushing her arms out from under the throw, she grasped at his shoulders, flattening her chest against his while he in turn deepened the kiss on a masculine groan that heated her blood. Evidently, he needed to taste her as much as she needed to taste him, and that wondrous thought made her want to both laugh and dance and hug him tight all at the same time.

Yes, it was real. Chadwick was actually kissing her now as though he was starving and she was a bountiful feast. His fingers were in her hair, his lips moving hungrily over hers as he licked his way forward, not only tasting her mouth but encouraging her to follow. And follow she did, pushing up close enough for her hips to make contact with his. She wanted to climb inside him and live there, if that made any sense at all.

“Fee.” His voice was breathless when he broke off to trail a series of kisses along her cheek, and she couldn’t help but smile with the knowledge that she had made him so. What a notion! “Christ, Fee…” He licked a moist path along the curve of her neck. “Please tell me you want this. Tell me this isn’t a dream.”

She grinned then, loving how stunned and befuddled he sounded. “It isn’t a dream, Edward. You’re kissing me and I’m kissing you. Because this is what I want more than anything else in the world.”

“Oh God.” The words came out raspy. He held her tight, his chest rising and falling so rapidly against her own, she feared he might suddenly burst. “Do you have any idea how much I’ve wanted…how I’ve longed…for this?”

“Hopefully, as much as I have,” she whispered, a little surprised by the shyness she heard in her own voice. “I’m beginning to think we’ve both been quite foolish.”

He pressed his forehead to hers while his hands worked to secure her throw more firmly around her shoulders, shielding her from the cold. “I was afraid you wouldn’t reciprocate.”

“So was I.”

A light chuckle rumbled through him. “I see.” His mouth found hers once again with more certainty this time, the scrape of his teeth against her lips producing a hot concoction of dizzying sensations somewhere deep in the pit of her belly. It prompted her to arch against him as though surrendering herself like a decadent offering most willing to be devoured.

“We should probably start back,” he said, distancing himself a little. “If we don’t…” She felt him shudder beneath her touch, as though he lacked control of his body.

“If we don’t?” she prompted, not wanting the moment to end.

“I’ve wanted you for too damn long, Fiona, but I won’t be a selfish cad out here in the freezing cold. You deserve better than that – we both do, truth is. But my restraint now that I know what you taste like is wearing dangerously thin. So I suggest we return to the ballroom and congratulate your sisters on their engagements.”

“Oh. I see.” She couldn’t keep from smiling as she loosened her hold on his jacket. “So then…what you’re saying, if I understand you correctly, is if we were to stay here another minute or two, you’d have my skirts up around my waist on one of those benches while—”

“Fiona.” His voice was dangerously low, the note of warning clear.

Giggling, she pushed her way past him and started making her way back as he had suggested while he followed behind. “You’re lucky I’m in no mood to get sick, which I likely would if I were to bare myself to this unforgiving cold.”

“Fiona.” He sounded a bit more strangled now.

“Had we done this during the summer, however…well, that would have been an entirely different story.”

“Bloody hell!”

“Can you imagine anything more perfect than making love beneath the stars?”

His arm swept around her waist, pulling her back so roughly she instinctively squeaked. The next thing she heard was his voice against her ear, his breath hot upon her skin while he whispered closely, “This isn’t a game, Fiona. Have a care or I might not be able to stop myself from taking more than you ought to be willing to give me at this moment.”

Stunned by his uncharacteristic gruffness and the elemental masculinity with which he spoke – as though he was tempted to toss her over his shoulder and carry her off to a cave for a wicked round of debauchery – she hesitated on the precipice where she now stood. He was right. They deserved better than a quick tumble on the frosty ground, which meant she would have to help him do the gentlemanly thing – the right thing for both of them.

“Promise me you will still want me tomorrow?”

He sighed against the back of her head. “It would be impossible for me not to, Fiona.”

With that assurance, she blew out a breath of her own, her chest a little lighter and her hopes for the future a great deal brighter than they’d been half an hour earlier. “I still cannot believe this is real,” she said as they stepped out from the maze and began following the path that would take them back to Thorncliff. “It seems like a dream.”

“It isn’t,” he promised. Taking her hand, he set it upon his arm. “Now that I know you feel the same way, there’ll be no going back. My feelings for you are as true as the North Star up there in the distance. See how it shines?”

“The North Star.” She stared up at it for a moment. An idea began to emerge from the back of her mind. “Let’s walk this way, Chadwick. I want to take a look at something.” They continued until they’d reached a point that placed them halfway between Thorncliff’s leftmost and rightmost wall. Stopping there, Fiona looked back at the grand estate and smiled. “It’s a compass, Chadwick. I cannot believe I didn’t think of it before.”

“Good lord. You’re right!”

“And with the Cardinals taken into account – their choice of code names being the North, South, East and West Wind…” She fell silent, dumbfounded by her own ignorance. “I think the most important clue to the treasure has been staring us in the face all along.”

“The wind rose inlay in the foyer floor?”

Nodding, she glanced up at him. “Not once did I look at it as anything other than a pretty design, but I’m beginning to think there has to be more to it than that.”

“It is supposed to indicate the direction from which the wind blows on a map.” Tugging her arm, he began leading her back up toward the terrace. “In any case, you will have to wait for the guests to leave before going ahead with this new part of your investigation.”

“I told you earlier, I have no intention of continuing after what happened to Emily.”

A snort was his immediate response, and then he said, “I know you did, but this is the sort of breakthrough that’s going to nag at you until you agree to take a closer look at it. Just as long as you let me help you and promise me you’ll be careful.”

“Of course.” She could scarcely contain the excitement that bubbled inside her. It made her want to race up the steps to the terrace and hurry toward the foyer. Instead, she forced herself to maintain a more ladylike stride. Her sisters required her attention first, as did the ball, while the wind rose would easily wait for another few hours, even if her fingers were itching to explore it with immediate haste.