Page 61 of Royally Wed
Was she just looking for an excuse to get out of the marriage? If she was being honest with herself, the answer was yes. She would latchon to any reason she could find.
So she pressed the watch into the queen’s hand and hoped for the best.
“GET OUT. NOW!” HOLDEN’Svoice boomed throughout the tiny room, echoing off the stone walls and shaking Asher from his state of profound shock.
“Sorry,” he muttered.
God, was he sorry.
“I’ll just be going.” He averted his gaze and spun around as quickly as he could, but it was too late.He’d already gotten a royally awkward eyeful.
A woman was sitting on the bathroom counter with her skirt hiked above her knees and Holden positioned squarely between her legs. They were both fully clothed, but Asher got the distinct impression that if he’d interrupted them a few moments later, Holden’s trousers would have been pooled at his feet.
Didn’t anyone in England believe in locking doors?
Holden was thegroom, for crying out loud.
Asher practically tripped over himself in his haste to get out of the room. He slammed the door shut behind him, and a second later, he heard the unmistakable sound of a deadbolt sliding into place.
Nowthey locked the door. Perfect.
He stalked back inside the church. The orchestra was nearing the completion of the second hymn, with only two more selectionsto go before the recessional. Jeremy did a double take as Asher reentered the nave, but didn’t miss a beat with his baton.
Asher realized he probably seemed unhinged. His performance thus far had been a disaster, he’d left in the middle of rehearsal and now he was returning looking like he’d just been pulled out the Thames. But suddenly none of that mattered.
He’d just walked in on Amelia’sfiancé on the verge of having sex with another woman. What the hell was he supposed to do with that information?
“Asher? Are you okay?”
Someone was tugging at his sleeve. Asher turned to find Serena gazing up at him with wide eyes.
Not her. Not now. His mind reeled. He was operating on complete and total overload. Serena was the last person he wanted to talk to.
“I’m fine,” he lied.
Whatwas she doing, speaking to him, anyway? Shouldn’t she be playing her instrument?
“I’m worried about you,” she whispered. “Despite whatyou must think of me, I still care about you very much.”
Asher barely heard a word she said. He needed to get back in his seat. He needed to prepare for his featured piece in the recessional.I need to stop the wedding. “I can’t deal with you right now, Serena.”
She flinched. “I suppose I deserve that. But look at yourself, Asher. Something’s wrong. Let me help you.”
Something was definitely wrong. He wanted to stop the wedding of the century. On some level, he’d probably wanted to put a stop to it since the moment he’d met Amelia. But he’d only allowed himself to consider the possibility since he’d come so close to bedding her. It had been his firstthought upon waking this morning.
She can’t marry him.
And now it seemed as if stopping the wedding was a real possibility.
His thoughts whirled. He forced himself to focus on Serena. “You can’t help me, and I have music to play.”
He peeled her fingertips from his wet sleeve and made his way to his seat. With great care, he set his cello down on its endpin and positioned it so that it restedgently against his chest. When he took his bow in his hand and bent his head, a slow trickle of water dripped from his hair onto the polished wood of his instrument. He didn’t have time to wipe it away. His entrance was coming up, and he wasn’t going to miss it again.
He launched into his featured selection right on cue, and somehow managed to get through it without any noticeable errors. Hewas too distracted to let his nerves get to him, toowound up to imagine Amelia walking down the aisle in her wedding gown this time.
He had to get to her somehow and tell her what he’d seen. But how? She’d told him point blank that she never wanted to see him again.
I need to stop the wedding.
Was he seriously considering it?
No.
Maybe.
Yes.
