Page 40 of How to Seduce a Viscount
For Luce it was too reminiscent of first meeting her—Wren, bleeding and lifeless in his arms. He’d been drawn to her even then and that attraction had only grown.
‘Wren,’ he whispered her name in desperation as he laid her down. ‘Don’t you dare die on me.’
‘Look.’ Stepan nudged him. ‘It’s just a graze here at her hairline. She’ll be fine.’
Luce wasn’t surehe’dbe fine. The bullet had comethatclose to her. Her manoeuvre had nearly gotten her killed. If she’d been a bit slower, her aim less sure…it didn’t bear thinking on. What did bear thinking on was everything he wanted to say to herwhen she awoke, starting with how dare she pull such a foolish stunt and ending with I love you.
Chapter Twenty-One
She loved him. She wasnotgoing to lose him, not this way—in the heat of battle to a foe dedicated to cutting down the most noble of men she’d ever encountered. A man noble enough to love her, to want to marry her. Wren stirred, fighting with herself to wake up. Luce was likely to have a few things to say about this afternoon. But so did she. Best to get it over with so they could move on to more important things, things this afternoon had thrown into sharp relief for her. Besides, there were worse things than opening one’s eyes and finding Luce Parkhurst hovering over them, every emotion he felt unleashed at last and reflected in his dark eyes.
‘Wren!’ She felt the weight of the bed take him as she looked into those dark eyes, a new sense of relief swamping her. The man had tried to die for her today. If she’d hesitated a second longer he might have been successful. ‘How do you feel?’ He held a mug of tea for her. ‘Ellen put willow bark in it.’ Wren shook her head. She was not interested in sipping.
‘I am fine. A little sore, my head hurts a bit.’ The gun had gone off close to her ear and the sound had been literally quite deafening. ‘Are you well?’ She looked him over, seeking any sign of injury and finding none.
‘Yes.’ Luce gripped her hand. ‘You had me so worried—’
She interrupted before he could get a full head of steam worked on. ‘Youhadmeworried. What fool notion was going through your head? You are never to do such a thing again, not for me.’ She harangued. ‘You could have been killed and where would that have left me? I wouldn’t have anyone to marry.’ The quickest way to end an argument was to take away the conflict. There was nothing to fight against and it had completely disarmed Luce for the moment.
‘Marry me? Do you mean that?’ A ghost of a smile took his mouth but she did not believe for a moment that he would not extract his own scold for her actions today. ‘Love may be unconditional, but I am not. There are conditions I need to impose for my own personal sanity. You are never to try such a stunt again. Second, you are never to risk your life for mine. If you can abide by those conditions then I can abide by yours. This is not a jest, Wren. Today, when I saw that pistol at your temple…’ His voice broke and she levered herself up, instinct compelling her to reach for him.
‘Luce, it worked, I am fine. You are fine. Nothing bad happened,’ she soothed. He should not be in agony when she was near.
‘But it could have.’ He had her face between his hands, his eyes two dark pools of intention and emotion.
‘But it didn’t. You have to trust me, Luce, or this is never going to work. We live in a dangerous world and that isn’t going to change. Marriage means there will be no retirement for either of us. We will have to find a way to balance life and the game. To balance Luce and Wren with the Falcon and the Horseman. Minute by minute, moment by moment. Those are my conditions. Can you meet them?’ she asked softly. This too was not said in jest nor as a mere romantic gesture. There must be this between them. Her breath caught and held. This was the point of no return for them. A real test of their ability to committo each other beyond words. If he could not do this, she would have no choice but to leave.
Luce gave a low laugh. ‘I knew early on when you arrived that life with you would be a series of compromises and I was not wrong.’
‘Did you really think that?’ She smiled. ‘And what do you think now? Is it worth it?’ She hoped it would be.
Luce nodded, touching his forehead to hers. ‘If a man says he’ll do anything for love—and Idolove you, Wren Audley—he’d best demonstrate that when the need arises.’ He whispered wickedly, ‘I am sure you are aware that my need arises quite often when you’re around.’
‘As does mine.’ She kissed him then, this wondrous man who would be her husband, but more importantly would be her partner.
That partnership would begin the balancing of work and pleasure immediately. There was the issue of Stepan to resolve and there was the earl to inform about their impending marriage. Both were considerations of the heart and considerations of the practical as well.
Wren watched Luce walk outside into the yard with his brother to clean up the carnage; three dead men to bury and one unconscious man who would need to be transported to the local jail. Amid the work, the brothers would have a chance to talk one last time. Luce would not waste the opportunity to press his case. Surely, today’s events proved the need to return with them along with the necessity of Stepan actively acknowledging who he was and doing all he could to retrieve his memories. But when Luce returned two hours later, she knew from a single glance his arguments had been unsuccessful. Her heart went out to him. This would be a difficult blow for Luce who both loved his brother and was not used to failure.
He’d failed. Luce returned to the cottage with his brother, the long shadows presaging evening starting to fall. His time was up. He needed to get Wren back to the inn and travelling in the dark was less than ideal. They’d done it yesterday but she’d not been hurt yesterday. Inside the cottage, Luce looked at Ellen and then at his brother. Those two were in accord on this and he could not penetrate either of their obstinance. Still, he had to try one last time.
‘Ellen, are you certain you will not come? After today, you can see the danger is real.’ Luce offered his plea. ‘The violence is real.’ Quakers did not hold with violence and yet Ellen held with his brother. ‘There is no guarantee Gerlitz’s men won’t come again.’ And he wouldn’t be here to protect them, to warn them.
Stepan stepped up beside him. ‘Then you’ll send the earl’s men as we discussed,’ he said firmly. ‘You will not sway Ellen. We are together on this.’ Luce felt his hand on his shoulder, offering a brotherly squeeze. ‘I know this is not the resolution you wanted, but I am not prepared to give it. Not at this time.’
‘Gerlitz, all of it, is a hydra,’ Luce argued with his brother. ‘Caine brought down Cabot Roan, systematically dismantled his arms empire. It has positively impacted the sale of arms to British enemies, but it still isn’t enough to stop them from coming for revenge. Roan’s business partners lost money and lost family members, and they will have their own private vendettas to wage long into the future. We chop off one head only to have two more grow.’
‘I know,’ Stepan said patiently. ‘I can do very little about that, but I can do a lot here and this is where I want to be. For now.’ Ellen moved to stand beside him and took his hand in a gesture of undivided loyalty and unity. Luce glanced at Wren. He understood a little something about those things.
‘Very well. Wren and I will leave for Sandmore in the morning. Our grandfather will post a discreet company of men to patrol the area so that you are as safe as we can make you until this particular threat has passed.’ He reached into his coat pocket, withdrawing several pound notes and placed them on the table. ‘Use this for whatever you need and when you are ready, use some of it for passage to London. Parkhurst House is your home and it’s always open to you. Or come to Sandmore if you prefer the country. Grandfather would love to see you.’ He let his gaze offer the imperative behind that.Grandfather would love to see you once more before he passes.Don’t wait too long.
Business completed. Luce drew a steadying breath. There was nothing left to say now except goodbye. ‘I don’t want to leave you here,’ he confessed to Stepan as he drew his brother into an embrace. ‘I lost you once already.’
Stepan hugged him in return although Luce knew it didn’t mean the same to him, this man who was his brother in fact but who felt no emotional connection to him, hardly knew him beyond the acquaintance of a few days. This man would be glad to see him gone. He’d disrupted this man’s life. For him, order could now be restored. But for Luce the upheaval would continue.
Outside, Luce helped Wren mount before swinging up on Vercingetorix. Overhead early evening stars made their faint appearance. Wren leaned between their horses and took his hand. ‘Think of the good, Luce. All is not lost,’ she said quietly.
And he did. All the way back to the inn and in the days of travel that lay ahead two thoughts sustained him. Wren Audley was going to marry him and his brother was alive, which ought to be miracles enough for any man in a single lifetime.
