Page 44 of A Kiss Of Lies

A rage unlike any he’d ever felt before engulfed him. His body shook, his heart pounded in his chest, and black spots swarmed before his eyes.

His hands curled into fists. He’d kill him! Sebastian had promised not to seduce her. He’d given Christian his word.

And here Sarah was, after one session of pleasure, falling for a practiced rake’s seduction—even, he thought as he remembered her giggle, welcoming the seduction.

He went ice cold inside.

He stood struggling with the desire—no, rampant need—to storm the beach and pummel Sebastian until he could no longer move. Rage locked in Christian’s throat, and he realized he was shaking.

He’d never felt closer to becoming his father’s son than at this moment. The thought made him want to vomit.

He opened his mouth and gulped in deep breaths. He counted to a hundred and willed his all-consuming rage to dissipate. He stayed hidden in the bushes for what felt like hours but in reality was only until he saw Sebastian return from the beach, fully dressed. He was proud of the fact that he didn’t stab Sebastian in the back as he passed. You should always face your foe. Anything less spoke of cowardice.

The blackness was retreating, but instead his mind had filled with awful images of her in Sebastian’s arms. He pictured Sebastian’s hands and lips on her bare skin and her responding with the ecstatic little cries that made his blood burn.

Now all he felt was revulsion, a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach every time he thought of Sarah. Over and over again, he kept feeling the pain anew like a mighty blow to his face.

His imagination ran wild, visualizing what had occurred on the white sandy beach while he’d been racing eagerly back from Kingston.

Fool. You utter fool! Why had he ever thought a woman as beautiful as Sarah would settle for damaged goods? Women always found Sebastian desirable. Now that she knew how it could be with a man, how could he blame Sarah for falling victim to Sebastian’s charm?

No. He knew where the blame lay.

Sebastian.

He had to get Sarah away from Sebastian. Seeing them together each day would be torture. He thrust the disturbing images of the two of them from his mind and strode back to the stables. He found Gareth and beckoned him over.

“Can you ride to theDoreentonight? There has been a change in plans. We must sail on tomorrow’s tide. Can you let Captain Weatherspoon know?”

Gareth looked confused. “Tomorrow? I’m not sure the ship will be ready—”

“It will be ready. No excuses.”

Gareth lifted his hat and scratched his head. “The ship might be ready by late evening. It’s the men we will have to round up. They are on shore leave, as you’d said we would stay a few days.”

“Then you’d best get moving. I want to depart tomorrow.” With that final barked command he turned, ignoring Gareth’s confused look. Steeling himself, he made for the house.

He had no idea how he’d sit through dinner with his betrayer. With any provocation, he’d be likely to plunge a knife into Sebastian’s traitorous heart. The thought of food made him retch.

And then there was Sarah. He ran a tired hand over his face. He was tearing up in two. He couldn’t bear to watch her flirt with another man. He couldn’t bear to be near her knowing she’d been with his friend. Yet he couldn’t make himself give her up.

All he knew was he had to get her as far away from Sebastian as possible. Only then could he think.

ChapterEleven

Christian made his way to the dining room. He’d delayed going down for dinner as long as possible, drinking several tumblers of brandy to take the edge off the cold, remorseless anger twisting his guts.

He hesitated outside the door to the dining room and drew in a deep breath before entering. Upon entry, he flicked his eyes toward the table and saw that tonight Sarah had chosen to grace them with her presence. So all it took was Sebastian’s seduction to change her mind!

Now that she had Sebastian to look at and converse with, she’d deigned to join them. His chest tightened as he heard her laugh at some comment Sebastian had made. Just when he was sure he could not feel angrier, Sarah turned and noticed him. Her welcoming smile clawed deep into his chest. It appeared genuine, yet only hours earlier she’d been cavorting with his friend—or, rather, his ex-friend.

She looked ravishing this evening. Was that too for Sebastian’s benefit?

“Good evening.” He was proud of how normal his voice sounded. He relaxed his gait and smoothed his features. He maintained an easy, friendly expression.

Sebastian said, “A very sensible ploy, not arriving early for dinner. It’s given me ample time to fill Mrs. Cooper’s head with tales of your heroics.”

Christian doubted very much that their topic of conversation had been him. Or maybe it had. Maybe they both pitied him behind his back. Gut-wrenching anger tugged at his senses once more.

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