Chapter 21
He thought that perhaps she was nearly asleep when he left. It was hard to be sure. She had been so unhappy and preoccupied, it seemed unlikely she could possibly doze off. He had loosened her gown, rubbed her hands and her temples, gently removed the pins from her hair. He marvelled at the complexities of women’s dress. He had never undressed a woman before, never taken down one’s hair – they usually arrived in his bed already undressed. And one could not compare the girls that loitered about the port towns of the Continent to an English lady.
It was tempting to make love to her, but he could not be certain that his attentions would be welcome. And, despite his own preoccupation with escape from England, he knew it would demoralise him terribly to find her a reluctant lover.
