Page 27 of Outrageous

“I thought not,” Godric said.

“I never said anything.”

“Yes, you did—just not with your mouth.”

She sat in silence, her jaw working from side to side. Godric was almost curious about what she would come up with next. He really did plan to give back her suit of men’s clothing when they were at Cross Hall. He had to admit he’d thought more than once of how fetching she would look wearing those top boots and nothing else while she rode the hell out of him.

“Why do you have that stupid smile on your face?”

He glanced up from his lascivious thoughts. “Do I?”

“I hate you.”

He opened his mouth to taunt her further but saw she was looking tired, unhappy, angry, and even a little scared. And also very, very young. Godric experienced a pang of shame for teasing her; she was a young woman barely out of the schoolroom and he was a man in his thirties. It was time he behaved like one.

He sat forward and took her hand—she jumped and tried to pull away but he held her fingers firmly in his grasp. “I shouldn’t have threatened to spank you. I would never lay a hand on you and I do not hold with beatings of any kind—not for anyone, child or adult.” Godric had loathed watching soldiers being whipped in the army and had never utilized that form of punishment for his own men. Physical violence was repugnant to him, as it should be to any decent man.

Her hand had gone limp in his and she swallowed audibly before giving a jerky nod.

“I think you understand this marriage is a foregone conclusion.”

Again he paused and again she nodded.

“The only decision we have to make now is how we shall go on with each other. When I said earlier that you may live where you choose, I meant we would spend the bulk of our time in the country. You will live with me at Cross Hall until such time as I come into the dukedom. At that point you will move to Tyndale Park and we shall spend as much time as we are able in the country. But my grandfather will not live forever, my lady. And when I assume the dukedom, I will have to shoulder the responsibilities that go with it. Your father is an important man in government and you must know a duke cannot secret himself in the country. I will have to go to London at least for the sessions. I don’t plan to entertain in town and shan’t need you with me.” He paused. “As for now, I do not have a large stable at Cross Hall because I have not been back long enough to acquire bloodstock. But when I do, I would be pleased to consult with you about my cattle if that is an area of interest. I have a great-aunt on my mother’s side—Lady Lavinia Price—who is rather well-known for her skill with horses, and even bred them some years ago. You might enjoy meeting her. She is an old lady now and not as active as she once was, but she still maintains an impressive stable.” He gave her hand a gentle squeeze. “What say you—will we be able to get along without fighting every day?”

She frowned, her eyes wary and the set of her jaw pugnacious. “If I say I’ll go along with you—and promise not to give you the bag—will you leave my brother alone?”

At the mention of her brother his hand tightened and she winced.

He immediately released her. “Did I hurt you?”

She shook her head, but her eyes were dark with suspicion.

“You will be my wife; your family will be my family.” It was all Godric could do to force the next words out. “I will not threaten or harm your brother. You have my word.”

Her shoulders sagged. “Very well. I shall try not to argue.” She cut him a sideways look he would have suspected of being flirtation from any other woman. “Although my father says I argue more than—er, well, probably most—other people.”

Godric could well believe it.

Chapter 6

It was true the town of Cocklesham had two inns. But it was also true they were both very small and neither one was entirely appropriate for a woman of his betrothed’s status.

Godric chose the better of the two options—although not better by much—but it was not the sort of place where he could leave her unattended in her room and spend his evening in the taproom.

He registered them as plain Mr. and Mrs. Fleming, and was able to convey to the rather slovenly innkeeper that he would not be easy to deal with should any of the louts who were loitering around the premises find their way to the third floor of the inn, where he and Eva had taken the only two adjoining rooms, but no private parlor.

Godric had briefly thought to ask for a local lass to act as Eva’s maid, as he’d done the night before, but he could see there was little chance of finding anyone respectable in the establishment. Instead, he waited until the innkeeper led them to their rooms, pressed a coin in his none-too-clean hand, and closed the door firmly after ordering hot wash water and two covers to be laid for them on the table in the larger of the two rooms. Once the man was gone, Godric checked the door and found the lock was broken. When he went to investigate the other chamber, he found the same condition there.

“This is not what I would have liked,” Godric began when he came back to find Eva standing exactly where he’d left her. “I’d planned to give you privacy, but I fear I must keep the door open between us tonight. I will, of course, close it when you wash, but it would be unsafe to sleep in here without—”

“I understand,” she said, her easy capitulation surprising him. He could see by the smudges beneath her eyes that she was more tired than she let on. “I’m not sure I can stay awake until the meal arrives.”

They both glanced at the bed and Godric strode toward it and flicked back the sheet, grimacing. There were no vermin that he could see, but the bedding was stained and felt damp to the touch. He went to his room and took the well-worn blanket from the bed. It was faded but it smelled clean enough and was not musty.

He returned to her. “Why don’t you lie down on top of the blanket and I’ll cover you with this—it is dry and clean.”

She complied, as docile as a child in her exhaustion. Godric covered her with the blanket as she regarded him through sleepy eyes. “Now you don’t have a blanket.” A huge yawn distorted the last word.