Page 50 of The Thorn and the Rose

He hesitated, wondering what to say. “Marie, if I got a woman with child, no matter who she was, what background she came from, I would do right by her.”

“You’d marry her?” she asked in shock.

Thorn nodded.

“B-But your father—”

“My father would hunt me down and wring my blasted neck if I didn’t. He takes such responsibilities very seriously, Marie. He would never allow a child I had sired to grow up without its father. No matter who its mother was. Which is why he has always taken pains to ensure we would not go about leaving bastards in our wake.”

Accidents happened, though, he thought to himself with a sigh. As his brother knew to his cost.

“You really mean that,” she said, surprise in her voice.

“I do.” Tentatively, he reached a hand out to her. She stared at it with something like longing but did not move. “Marie, if you wish to return to Gillmont, you can speak to the women who live there and ask for their stories. None of the Sons of Hades are responsible for the children they have, or for the difficulties they found themselves in. We only gave them a safe place to be.”

“Even Elmira?” she asked dubiously.

“Elmira was the woman Mr Weston found. She was alone with her baby, with no money and no place to go. We gave her a place, Marie. I’m not pretending we’re angels, or that we don’t make mistakes or do things we’re not proud of occasionally, but we’re not the kind of men to abandon our responsibilities. We’re not the enemy here, I promise you.”

“Oh,” she said, and then gave a muffled sob, pressing a hand to her mouth. Her shoulders shook as she put her head in her hands.

“Marie!” he said in horror, not having wanted to make her feel guilty, only that she see the truth of Gillmont and what it meant to them all. “Oh, no, don’t… don’t cry, for pity’s sake. It’s all right.”

She shook her head. “N-No, it’s n-not,” she sobbed, the sound tearing at his heart. “Not at a-all. I’ve been thinking ill of you for so long, but… but Everett said… Oh, and he’s spoiled everything. He’s ruined us with his ridiculous vendetta, used me to further his wretched plans, and all for what? A misunderstanding? How could he have been so wrong?”

Thorn stared at her. The poor girl had endured so much, and now he’d only succeeded in making her more miserable. Not that he wasn’t glad she knew, but… oh, damnation!

He moved closer to her, pulling her into his embrace. “There, there, love. None of that now. There’s no need for it.”

“I’m s-so very sorry, but Everett said… he s-said you seduced Miss Nichols a-and…”

“Miss Nichols?” Thorn repeated, bemused. “Me?”

Marie wiped her eyes on the corner of the blanket and shook her head, trying her best to compose herself. “Not you specifically, I don’t think. He seemed to blame all the sons, but I don’t know if he knew who her lover was. He never explained what happened to her, only that The Sons of Hades were to blame for her fall from grace.”

Thorn frowned, wracking his brain for a Miss Nichols, but he came up empty. “I’ve never heard of a Miss Nichols, Marie, I swear it. I would tell you if I had.”

She stared up at him, blinking. Her eyelashes were spiky with tears, her cheeks wet. “I believe you,” she whispered.

Thorn let out a breath of relief. “Does that mean you’ll stop running away from me now?”

She nodded, and then a cloud crossed her features, and she hung her head again, as if the weight of shame made it too heavy to lift. “I am truly sorry, my lord. Everett gave me no choice in the things I did, but if I had not played my part—”

“If you had not played your part, I might have been left for dead in the street, or he might have hurt you too, and I would never have met you. I cannot regret that.”

She glanced up at him, a delicate pink tinge colouring her fair skin. “I find that hard to believe. I have been a sore trial to you, Lord Thomas.”

“You have,” he agreed cheerfully. “And if you make me chase you again, I’ll wash my hands of you.”

Anxiety lit her eyes, and he laughed, reaching out to stroke her cheek. “You must learn to recognise when I’m teasing you, Marie.”

Her lips quirked, and she reached up, covering his hand with her own. “I should like the chance to do so,” she said, a little shyly.

Thorn let out an uneven breath and nodded. “Yes.”

He waited, aware of tension in her, that she wished to say something, but was afraid to do so. “It did… mean something,” she whispered. “When I kissed you. It felt like the only real thing when I was lost in some waking nightmare. I never wanted it to end, never wanted to leave your arms, not for a moment.”

Thorn let out a ragged breath. Until that moment, he had not realised how badly he’d needed to hear her say that.