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awake?”
    The door began to open, and Cain quickly edged behind it. Elspeth poked her head around and looked at Madeline’s still form for a moment before closing the door again. Madeline turned over and stared at him, her eyes wide with receding lust and horror.
    “We nearly got caught!” she whispered angrily.
    “It was just bad timing.” He shrugged, pulling his jumper over his head.
    “Really bad.”
    “Woman, you flashed your nipples at me.”
    She folded her arms across her chest, tucking the duvet over her body. “You could have a little more self control.”
    “God, am I trying to.” He sighed, opening the connecting door and stepping through. It took several laps around the perimeter of the house for his body to calm down. Even then, semi-arousal was turning into a permanent fixture around Madeline.
    After the rest of the house was “officially” awake and Madeline had called into the shop to find out that Caz had turned up and opened on time, Cain announced over breakfast that they were leaving.
    “So soon?” His mother gave a pout of disappointment. “I thought you could stay for lunch.”
    “We have plans,” Cain said.
    Madeline raised her eyebrows. “Really?”
    “Yes, really. They don’t involve my folks.”
    His father choked on his toast. “Nathaniel, it’s far too early for such talk.”
    “I agree,” Madeline muttered.
    “We’re off to the theatre,” Cain interrupted. “I don’t have tickets for you, and it’s sold out. I’m sure Madeline wants to go home and get changed.”
    She sent him a “ What are you talking about ” look.
    “Well, at least finish your food first,” Elspeth insisted, “then you can carry on with your exotic social life. I can’t remember the last time your father took me to the theatre.”
    “Damned uncomfortable,” Major Goldsmith dismissed. “Who wants to be boxed into a small place like cattle to be bored out of one’s mind for three hours? And pay for the privilege!”
    “And on that note…” Cain trailed off and got to his feet. “Come on, pretty lady. Let’s go.”
    Madeline also got to her feet and exchanged warm goodbyes with his parents. Major Goldsmith’s embrace was longer than Cain felt comfortable with.
    “Stay in touch. I use email these days.”
    “Me too. And I will,” Madeline promised. “Thank you for everything.”
    “Go on, now.” His father shooed them away. “Make a grown man weep for nothing.”
    As soon as they were in the car and heading for the motorway, Madeline gave a sigh. “They’re lovely. And they put up with a lot from you.”
    He laughed. “What? I’m a model child.”
    She shook her head. “Are we really going to the theatre?”
    “Only if you feel like it. I just felt I’d shared you enough with my parents.”
    A huge yawn took her over. “Okay, then. It’s so early. What are we going to do?”
    “Nap?” he offered.
    “Okay. But no funny business after.”

Chapter Nine
     
     
    “This is the first time I’ve had a man in my home,” Madeline admitted, closing the door behind him. “A man who isn’t my dad.”
    “I’d hope so,” Cain said with typical arrogance, swaggering into her living room and collapsing into the sofa. Madeline didn’t quite know what to do with herself until Cain held out a hand to her. “Over here,” he ordered. She sat beside him and snuggled against his chest. It was far too comfortable where she was.
    “Cain,” she started, “I’m thinking we should talk.”
    Looking up, she saw he was fast asleep. Grief. She supposed it gave her more time to think. He hadn’t said anything about it, but he’d already been on R&R for almost eight weeks, most of which he’d spent with her, so his time off would be up soon. It had to be. Then he’d go. Disappear. Maybe look for someone who wasn’t afraid of sex like she was.
    The sum of her previous sexual experiences was, in a word, “meh”. Each time, she’d let the possibility that it could be so much