Page 32 of A Second Chance for Carys
Carys knew he had done no such thing. He would have been grieving a wife he had loved deeply and too scared of fathering children to even think of going to a woman but she kept her comments to herself. She was finally getting to the heart of the matter, now was not the time to scare Margaret away.
“So I could not believe my luck when he actually visited me after being told about my children’s death. I had feared never to see him again. I tried to entice him into staying for good while he helped my son Henry build the barn, but he didn’t seem tonotice my interest, or if he did, he pretended he did not.” A snort, betraying her displeasure. “Then finally, fate decided I deserved more than being ignored and made sure I got the opportunity to spend more time with him.”
“You mean, by striking him down with a fever that nearly killed him?”
The sarcasm was utterly lost on Margaret, who smiled a beatific smile. “Yes. It was the perfect opportunity to ensure I had unlimited access to his body.” Her eyes became dreamy and Carys could not repress a shudder. What had the depraved woman done? She disentangled her arm from Margaret’s, finding it unbearable to touch someone who thought nothing of preying on vulnerable men. “After I nursed him back to health, I thought he would see that I could make him happy but he left as soon as he was able to, with barely a thank you. So, in the end, I had no choice but to come up with a plan. I refuse to wait another thirty years for him, do you hear? I don’t see why I should have to.”
Carys wanted to flee before she heard sordid details that might push her over the edge but she could not give up now, not when she was too close to finding out the truth.
“What plan did you come up with?” she forced herself to ask. “It must have been a clever one.”
The flattery worked. Margaret simpered and took her arm again. “It was. James will marry me if he thinks I am carrying his child. He’s too honorable to refuse me and the babe his protection. He’s not to know he was unable to actually reach his release while ill with the fever, only hard enough to allow me to reach mine.”
Carys’ heart skipped a beat when hope surged through her. Had she heard right? Pushing the image of a naked Margaret riding an unsuspecting James to the back of her mind, sheasked, desperate to make sure she had not misunderstood. “You mean you’re not really with child?”
There was another of Margaret’s awful squeaky giggles. Why the woman thought the situation was funny in any way was beyond her.
“Not at the moment, no. But once we are married, I suspect it won’t be long before I give him a son. I’m still young enough and I will make sure he fills me up with his seed time and time again. With a man so virile in my bed, it shouldn’t take long for my womb to quicken.”
“No, it should not.” Carys had no idea how she had not retched yet. “But how are you going to explain to him that your body is not changing in the next few weeks? Won’t he get suspicious?”
It had already been more than four months since James had left her house. Next month she would be halfway through her supposed pregnancy. It would not be long before he started asking questions. As he already had doubts, he might decide to wait until he could see with his own eyes he was going to be a father.
Margaret shrugged, as if that were of no importance whatsoever rather than the crux of the matter. “I will just tell him once we are married that I lost the babe. It happens. It won’t matter anyway, as by then I will be his wife. It will be too late for him to change his mind.”
Carys was now not simply disgusted, she was horrified. The deception was awful to play on any man. On James, who was mortally afraid of losing another child, it was just plain cruel. Forget the lies, the trick played on him and Joanne that night all those years ago, the taking advantage of him in a vulnerable state, the anguish she had cost him with her lie.
Thiswas what he would never forgive Margaret. With reason.
Having heard all she wanted to hear, Carys led Margaret to a bench and forced her to sit down before she hurried back toward the gate. She had to see James now, and put an end to his agony, tell him that he didn’t have anything to fear. He was not going to be a father.
And he would never have to marry Margaret.
Chapter Nine
“You were right. She’s not with child.”
James was in the weapon room by the barbican, sharpening an axe when Carys finally located him. He dropped everything when she said the words he would have been hoping to hear and turned to face her. His eyes were two glittering gems, and the heat burning in them reached, just like that wretched Margaret had said earlier, all the way to her core. For a moment she wondered if, in his relief, he would kiss her. He did not, instead taking her by the arm.
“Come.”
He led her to a small room at the back of the stables. His personal room, she realized when she saw the three black tunics that had been placed to dry on the chest in the corner and the blanket they had used that day on the beach.
At any other time she might have found herself both unnerved and aroused by the memory—and the proximity of his bed. But right now she just wanted to share what she had learned during her conversation with his conniving sister-in-law.
He closed the door behind them and lifted his chin. “Tell me all.”
Carys bit her lip. No, not all. She would not reveal the full extent of the woman’s treachery, as it would cause him unnecessary pain and humiliation. He would not be told that Margaret had tricked him into sleeping with her all those years ago. He only needed to know that he didn’t have to marry a woman he didn’t want because she was not with child. Would she be strong enough to hide anything from him? She wasn’t sure, as she had never been able to dissemble, and a man like him would be able to wiggle information out of anyone, but she had to try.
His attitude did not help her hold on to her composure. He had never looked more forbidding. With his back ramrod straight, his nostrils flaring, his eyes flashing in anger, he was truly formidable.
“Luck was with me,” she started without further ado. The important thing was to put an end to his agony. “She was full of mead when I found her and all too ready to talk to a stranger. I think she relished the chance to expose what she saw as a clever plan and quickly confirmed what you suspected. She is not with child.”
The spark of ire in James’ eyes was instantly doused. His whole body finally relaxed, as if he’d not dared to hope until he’d heard her repeat the words.
“So she lied about us sharing a bed? About us…” He stopped and made what would have been a grimace in another man.
“N-not exactly,” Carys murmured. Oh, this was excruciating. Why did she have to be the one announcing such news to him? “I’m afraid she did share your bed, in more ways than one. Don’t you have any memories of her coming to lie next to you, of touching you?”
