by Dawn Brower
Rosanna bit her lip and nodded. “Let me know when it’s done.” She turned on her heels and exited James’s chambers.
Dominic strolled into the room. “What do you need me to do?”
“I may need you to hold him down if he awakens. I don’t have any anesthesia.” She paused to consider how to explain what she meant. “There is no way to guarantee he won’t feel any pain. He might awaken while I try to help him.”
His face paled slightly, but he nodded.
“Now wash your hands and then join me next to James.”
He looked puzzled at her request, but did as she asked. Alys walked over to the bedside. The valet stood by the bed. “Can you unzip that for me?”
“Unzip?”
Alys rolled her eyes. “Pull the metal side until it opens all the way and lay it on the bed next to him.”
Once it was done Alys examined the contents. It wasn’t ever meant to be used. The items were a gift upon graduation—a token really—but all fully functional. It was a first-class medical kit any surgeon would want by their side—if they operated with solid gold instruments. Not very practical, but her mother had meant well. Alys grabbed an alcohol pad and cleaned her scalpel. If only she’d had gloves, but she’d make do.
Alys turned and looked at everyone. “Out, all of you, except Dominic. I don’t want the distraction.”
They all scurried to leave the room. Alys let out a sigh of relief. Time to save James.
Then she examined the wound on James’s abdomen. The blood had stopped seeping out, making it easier to examine. She felt along the edge to see where the bullet was lodged, planning to cut only if necessary. She skimmed the wound with her fingers. Nothing. A small incision would be necessary to locate the bullet. Alys bit her lip and picked up her scalpel. With quick precision, she opened it wide. With the extra space she could locate the bullet. Blood pooled around her hands as she searched. After what seemed like forever she located it and pulled it out. It had hit his spleen, but the damage—thank God—wasn’t extensive. Alys wouldn’t have to remove it, she could sew the wound and let it heal.
When she was done she took a step back. James had not awakened the entire time. It concerned her a little bit, but she’d worry about it later. She turned toward Dominic. “Can you pull the sheet up farther? I’m going to wash everything, and well…myself too.”
He nodded. “Of course. Can I say I seriously misjudged you? I don’t do that very often.”
“Most people do. I don’t hold it against you.” She picked up her black case and walked off. Her whole body shook with relief. Her instincts had kicked in, but now that she was done, it all hit her. What if James died?
No, he will not die.
She washed as quickly as she could and returned to his side. Alys planned on staying with him until he woke. It was for the best. She could also monitor for possible infection and give him something for the pain. Ibuprofen would only go so far, but as he’d never had it, it might be enough to alleviate the discomfort he was guaranteed to feel. She put all the items back into her purple bag, swung it over her shoulder and returned to James.
“I’m going to stay with him. Do me a favor and go check on Rosanna and give her an update.”
The marquess stood near the bed staring down at James. He had a serious expression on his face. As many times as she’d performed surgery, it never got easier to deal with their friends and family. With James, it was even more difficult to separate herself. The words to comfort Dominic failed her. She never knew what should be said. James should make it through this ordeal. At least she didn’t have to deliver any bad news to anyone.
He lifted his gaze to hers and nodded. “Let me know if you need anything. James is lucky to have you.”
“No, I’m lucky to have him,” she corrected him.
Dominic left the room. Alys lay down on the bed beside James. Hopefully she wouldn’t have to wait long for him to awaken. They had a lot to discuss…she never had given him her answer.
SEARCHING FOR MY ROGUE
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
A burn ran up his left side, but warmth spread through to his right. James turned his head and saw Alys asleep next to him. She was fully clothed—but he was not. So they hadn’t done anything improper—or had they? The night before was rather fuzzy in his head.
Alys’s eyelids fluttered open. “Oh good, you’re awake.”
“Is this some kind of strange dream?” he asked.
“If only,” she shook her head, “I’m afraid you went and got yourself shot. Though from the looks of it, this isn’t the first time you’ve been wounded.”
James’s gaze flew down his abdomen. “I was in the war. Wounds tend to happen when you’re fighting against an enemy.”
“Of course,” her voice was devoid of emotion.
“I take it I’m going to be fine,” he said.
“That remains to be seen,” she replied. “I might kill you and put you out of your misery.”
He held back a smile. “I didn’t worry you overly much, did I?”
Alys leaned in closer to him and then pinched him in his uninjured side, hard. “You’re lucky to be alive. Don’t even attempt to make a joke of this.”
He nodded. “I wouldn’t.”
If it had been her lying injured…he repressed a shudder. It wasn’t, she was fine.
“Good, now we can discuss your stupidity.” She sat up and stared down at him. “What were you thinking?’
“That I couldn’t lose you.” He frowned as he remembered what happened on the beach. “That man meant to murder you. I’d just found you, and he wasn’t going to take you away from me.”
“James,” Alys shook her head, “I don’t need you to protect me. I am capable of taking care of myself. I appreciate it, but you took years off of my life. I thought I was going to be forced to watch you die. I can’t ever go through anything like that again. Please tell me you won’t be so careless with your life in the future.”
“I can’t promise you that.”
He wished he could, but her safety would always come first for him.
“Why the hell not?” she asked. Her mouth hung open in shock.
James smiled at her and grabbed her hand. He placed a kiss on her palm. “If you’re in danger, I will never ever let you die in my stead. So as long as you’re safe, so will I be. If you can promise not to court danger, only then can I.”
Alys chewed on her bottom lip. “Very well. I can understand that. Why don’t we make a mutual pact then? I will do everything in my power not to find danger, and in return you’ll do the same.”
“Alys, love.” He brushed his fingers through her hair. “Don’t you know there isn’t anything I wouldn’t do for you?”
Maybe after they were together for many years to come she’d come to accept that. He would go to the ends of the Earth for her. Nothing—absolutely nothing—was more important to him.
She nodded. “I’m beginning to see that.”
“Good. Now that we’ve settled that, perhaps you can send for the surgeon so I can see when I’ll be healthy enough to leave my bed.”
He had plans, and they required him to get up and move around. This lying around like a week invalid would not get any of it accomplished. As soon as he could, he planned on utilizing the special license and making sure she was his forever. He couldn’t wait to make her his in truth.
“Why ever would you want to leave your bed now?” Alys asked.
“I can’t very well stay in here forever.” James gestured toward the door. “Now go fetch him. I assume he stayed to check in on me. I have questions that need answers.”
Alys was silent. She seemed to be contemplating how to respond. What could be so bad?
“There is no surgeon to fetch, James.”
What? The blasted man had left without knowing if he’d need further care. They would never again use his services. “Are you sure?” It didn’t seem feasible they’d leave the care of a duke on a whim.
Her tone told him that he wasn’t fully understanding something. Her entire attitude was rather puzzling. What could be so dreadful? The surgeon appeared to do a fair job of patching him up. “Why not?” he asked, slowly.
“Because I’m the one who removed the bullet and stitched you up. If you want to know when you can leave this bed, you need to be speaking to me.” She scanned his entire body. “And I’m thinking that you should stay here for a very long time.”
Alys had performed surgery on him? Wait, she wanted to stay in bed with him if he understood her correctly. He’d oblige once he had her agreement to be his wife. He could compromise under certain circumstances. First, she had some explaining to do. Why would she perform surgery on him instead of calling for a doctor?
“You didn’t have one of the servants fetch the surgeon? Why would you handle this on your own?”
Alys rolled her eyes. “James, that was my job in the future. I trained to be a doctor—a heart surgeon to be more precise, but I can do any emergency surgery.”
“You can?”
The future must be very progressive to allow her to train as a doctor. It must be a fascinating place to live. How could he convince her to stay with him when she had so much to offer her in her own time?
She nodded. “Yes, and, um, I’m afraid your normal surgeon won’t ever return to the manor no matter what you offer him as payment.”
“What?” he asked. “Why not?”
“I may have...” She hesitated a moment. “…Threatened to stab him in his carotid artery with a letter opener.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Now that would have been interesting to see. What was he going to do to elicit such a response?”
“It doesn’t matter.” She waved her hand. “His skills were inferior. I’m better trained.”
James laughed. He had no doubts that she was. She had the benefit of having lived in a time that knew in length how to minister proper medical care. They’d have an advantage under her supervision. James would probably heal much faster with her as his doctor. It also wouldn’t hurt if she kept up her bedside nursing.
“I’m sure you’re correct. So are you ready to answer my questions?”
She raised an eyebrow. “About your care and when you can leave this bed?” She nodded. “Yes, ask away, Your Grace. I’m at your command.”
Was she now? He’d have to test that a bit. He trailed his fingers across her arm and cupped one of her breasts in his palm. She gasped at his touch. “When can I leave this bed, Alys?”
“Are you sure you really want to leave it?” Her voice was husky as she posed the question.
“Depends on if you’re going to stay with me, but yes, at some point I do.”
“Have big plans, do you?”
He pulled her on top of him. Her body fully filling his with the warmth he craved. “I know you haven’t made up your mind yet, but I promise I’d never do you wrong.”
“I know that.”
He hoped she did. James wanted her to promise to be with him always. The answer he wanted to hear—he’d been denied it. Now he was aching to demand it. “Good. Now I need to know when I can schedule our wedding.”
Alys sat up and straddled his hips. She stared down into his eyes. “I never said I’d marry you.”
“Don’t you know by now that I’d make every one of your dreams come true? I told you there wasn’t anything I wouldn’t do for you. You own my heart, Alys. I only hope in time that you will entrust me with yours.”
“Oh, James...”
Tears fell from the corners of her eyes. He reached up and wiped them from her cheeks. “Don’t cry. I can’t stand to see your tears. I want to dry them and hold you close. Please, marry me, Alys. I need you.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“I’ve known from the start where you belong. From the moment I saw you, my heart opened up and filled with happiness. I didn’t understand what it all meant,” James explained. “Stay with me forever. You don’t need to look any further to know your place in this world. It’s right here by my side. I love you so much I’m bursting with it. Take the leap with me.”
Alys remained silent and studied him. He prayed her answer was yes. He’d played all his cards, and if she said no, he didn’t know what he would do. She was his everything. Without her…he didn’t even want to consider it a possibility.
She tilted her head. “What if I told you I made up my mind the moment I met you too?”
“I’d want to know why you left me waiting for over a week. We could have been doing much more pleasant things than dancing around each other like two fools.”
“Love isn’t for fools, James.”
“I know that. You already explained it to me. Why don’t you tell me what this has all been for?”
“I was trying to make you see what love is.”
It all became clear in that moment. She’d loved him from the start too, but they’d both been foolish and hadn’t wanted to face it. So instead, she’d tested him and he’d pursued her. That is what she meant when she said love wasn’t for fools. When you couldn’t or wouldn’t admit you loved someone, you gave up on one of the greatest gifts you could have in your life.
“I’m still waiting for an answer.” He stared up into her beautiful green eyes. “Will you be my wife, my duchess, and the mother of my children? More importantly will you promise to love me for the rest of our days together?”
“I can do you one better. I will make you feel my love in this life and beyond. I too have known from the moment we met where I belong. If you’ll have me, I will hold you forever and wrap you in the warmth of my love.”
“It took you far too long to tell me that.”
“Ditto,” Alys said.
He raised an eyebrow. “Sweetheart, you do realize you say the strangest things.”
“It will keep you on your toes for many years to come.” Alys laughed, leaned down, and kissed him.
James wrapped his arms around her and whispered in her ear, “I look forward to it.”
“I love you.” Alys stared deeply into his eyes. “More than words can say. It shouldn’t have taken this long for me to tell you. I’ve always wanted someone to love me as much as I loved them. This all seems impossible somehow.”
“Promise me you won’t stop saying it. Words may seem inadequate, but they are best not left unsaid.” James placed a soft kiss on her lips. “Sometimes even the impossible happens. I never believed in love until you.”
“I promise.” Alys smiled. “At no time in our life together will you ever doubt how much I love and adore you.”
SEARCHING FOR MY ROGUE
EPILOGUE
Alys strolled into the sitting room. A toddler trailed behind her. Blonde curls bobbed around her tiny shoulders. Her deep blue eyes matched her father’s. Elizabeth had a little of each of them in her features. She was the sweetest, most beautiful daughter—and soon she’d have a brother or sister to follow her around.
Alys couldn’t wait to tell James he was going to be a father again. But first she had to ask him to do her a favor. He’d hired someone to paint her and Elizabeth’s portrait. When she found out she understood why Bradford had mentioned the family gallery. It was her portrait that hung there, but she had to let her family know in some way she was all right. They had to be worried about her.
“Ah, there my two favorite ladies are.” James leaned down and pressed a quick kiss on her lips. “A late start again this morning?”
Morning sickness had been hitting her rather hard during the early hours of the day—much harder than it had been with Elizabeth. James was usually gone well before she became disposed with it. He didn’t know how bad it was. She suspected that it would pass soon, but she couldn’t help wondering why it was worse this time.
“I have news.” She smiled. “But first, I have to ask something of you.”
“Anythin
g,” he promised. “You know that.”
“I need to write a letter and leave it for Bradford.”
James scowled. “Why would you want to do that?”
Alys bit back a smile. James didn’t like to hear about her past—or rather future— depending on how one looked at it. Bradford was her great-great-great-grandson or something. It hurt her brain to think about it. Thank God, they’d never done anything together. Alys shuddered at the thought. Though she did worry about him—he was so very cynical. She wanted him to find happiness.
“The last time I spoke to him, he mentioned the painting—the one you commissioned. I want to put a letter behind it for him to find. I’m not sure how to get him to look for it and make sure it stays there until he’s meant to find it.”
“Oh, I bet he didn’t realize it was you.” James seemed lost in thought. “I have an idea.”
“By all means tell me. I’m open to suggestions.”
“Go ahead and write your letter. I will take care of the rest. To be on the safe side, write two copies of it.”
“Two? You think that’s necessary?”
Alys wanted to make sure someone knew she was all right. Maybe her letter would convince Branford to at least let her sister know. They might not be blood sisters, because Alys had been adopted, but they had bonded growing up. Regina only acted the way she did because their parents indulged her every whim. No doubt, Alys’s disappearance had soured her wedding day.
“Yes. I am going to leave one with my solicitor and you can put one behind the painting. I’m going to leave strict instructions with them to give a letter upon each Duke’s inheritance. They will receive a letter explaining everything and where to find your letter—with one exception.”
“What?” Alys asked.
“Bradford is not to receive his until the day after you disappear. I can’t risk you being warned and not coming to me.”
Alys smiled. “Greedy, aren’t you.”