The Viscount's Runaway Bride (Marriage by Bargain Book 1)

by Ruth Ann Nordin

  Damara used to spend days all by herself with only a maid to bring her something to eat and drink before her mother was finally ready to talk to her again.

  On its own accord, a sob rose up in her throat. Cupping her face in her hands, she let the tears fall. Celia reminded her so much of her mother.

  Growing up, Damara had longed for the day when she could leave her parents’ estate. She knew the way her mother treated her wasn’t healthy, and she knew her father’s indifference wasn’t much better. But without a way out, she was stuck. Then Lord Comwright came for her, and she took the opportunity to get out of there. When she’d realized Anthony was a kind gentleman, she thought all of her problems were over. How wrong she’d been. She was back to where she started. Trapped in her room and alone.

  The bedchamber door opened. Startled, she grabbed for a handkerchief that was by her brush. She missed it, and the brush fell to the floor. She hurried to pick it up before it even occurred to her to see who had entered the room. Object in hand, she saw Anthony and relaxed.

  Maybe she should have wanted it to be Celia. Then she could ask Celia what was wrong and learn how she could act better next time. No. That wasn’t the best way to handle Celia. If she gave Celia that kind of power, it would be like living with her mother all over again. She had to break the cycle.

  She put the brush back on the vanity then picked up the handkerchief. “Did you talk with your sister?” she asked as she wiped her cheeks.

  “Yes.” Closing the door behind him, he asked, “Did Celia tell you why she wanted to talk to me?”

  She shook her head. “I figured it had to do with Ladies of Grace.”

  “Ladies of Grace?”

  “I was invited to become a member. I don’t think Celia was very happy about it.”

  “No, it had nothing to do with the group.” He approached her and held his hand out to her. “Damara, we need to talk.”

  She studied his expression in an effort to figure out what he had on his mind, but it was hard to tell. All she knew was that if Celia wasn’t happy with her and Celia talked to him, then this was bound to be unpleasant. She’d been able to avoid unpleasant topics up to now, but maybe she couldn’t anymore. Maybe she had to face this.

  Swallowing the lump in her throat, she nodded and took his hand. He led her to the bed and sat beside her, his arm settling around her waist.

  “I know you don’t like to talk about your past,” he began, his voice soft, “and I can understand if it’s too painful to discuss your past with other people. But Damara, I’m your husband. If there’s anyone you should be able to confide in, it should be me.”

  She frowned. This didn’t have anything to do with Celia?

  With his free hand, he placed his finger under her chin and turned her head so she was looking at him. “Why were you on that road the day we met? And why did you have a valise full of money?”

  She wanted to look away from him, but she couldn’t. Not when his gaze was so tender it made her heart hurt. Up to now, she’d been able to avoid the issue by changing the topic or encouraging him to make love to her, but she couldn’t keep avoiding this forever.

  And today, with all the stress she’d been under to make a good impression with Lady Eloise for Celia’s sake and Celia’s strange reaction, the fight just wasn’t in her to try to sidestep the issue one more time.

  “Fine,” she relented. “I’ll tell you.”

  Finally looking away from him, she took a long pause as she searched for the right words to use. After careful debate, she realized there was nothing she could say to soften the impact, so she would just have to come out and say it.

  “I despise my parents,” she said. “I probably shouldn’t despise my father since he ignored me, but his indifference makes me hate him as much as I hate my mother. My mother wasn’t pleased with anything I ever did. No matter how much I tried to do what she wanted, she was never satisfied. There was always something I didn’t do right, and no matter how small it was, she couldn’t forgive me for it.

  “So when they arranged a marriage between me and Lord Comwright, I knew it was the only way I was going to get away from them. I didn’t like him any more than I liked them. He was cold and full of his self-importance. I was willing to marry him because my parents were the same way.

  “But when he hit a maid for spilling tea on his lap by accident, I was shocked. My parents were cruel in their own way, but they never once raised their hand to hurt me. It was then I knew I couldn’t go through with the marriage. I had to find a way out of it.”

  “Did your parents see him hit the maid?” Anthony asked.

  “No.”

  “Did you tell them?”

  She shook her head. “It wouldn’t have mattered. They wanted to get rid of me. They didn’t care who my husband was going to be as long as he was willing to take me away from them.”

  “That can’t be true,” he argued. “Even if they weren’t good parents, they must have wanted you to be safe in your marriage.”

  “We could argue about this, Anthony, but in my heart, I know you’re wrong. There’s nothing you can say to convince me otherwise.”

  She expected him to give his argument another try. It wouldn’t have done any good. She knew her parents. Often, she suspected her parents were so miserable that it actually gave them a sick sense of comfort in seeing her suffer.

  “Lord Comwright stayed with us for a week,” she continued. “My parents had the maid pack all of my things, and they gave him my dowry. I left with him because I didn’t know if I’d get another chance to escape. When we reached the first town that evening, I waited until we were in our room before I slipped laudanum into his drink to make him sleep.” Sure he wondered how she got laudanum in the middle of nowhere, she added, “One of the maids took pity on me and gave me some of the laudanum my mother used to help her sleep.”

  “Did you marry him before this?” he asked.

  “No. He told my parents he would marry me once I was at his estate.”

  “Are you telling me that he took you to the room at the inn with the intent of having you in his bed before you exchanged vows?”

  “Well…” Even now, thinking of her time with Lord Comwright made her sick to her stomach. All that groping he’d done to her in the carriage… She swallowed the lump in her throat and shook off the memory of his grimy hands and his slobbering tongue. “He would have had his way with me whether I wanted it or not. I wasn’t a person in his eyes. I was only a possession.”

  “But he wasn’t with you. Not all the way. You were a virgin when we married.”

  “He fell asleep before he could finish what he’d started. That was when I emptied my valise and filled it with my dowry. Then I used a little bit of that to pay an old woman for her horse. I rode it all through the night and found another town the next morning. That was the town where we met. I had to secure a husband, and I had to do it as soon as possible. Once I married, I knew Lord Comwright couldn’t get me.”

  “You went across the country on horseback all by yourself in the middle of the night?” Anthony blurted out, his eyes nearly popping out of his head. “Don’t you know what a risk you were taking? What if a band of thieves came upon you? They wouldn’t have stopped with stealing the money. They would have done worse.”

  “They would have done no worse than what Lord Comwright was trying to do.”

  He looked as if he was going to argue but then paused and let out a heavy sigh. “Was it that bad with him?”

  “I didn’t want him touching or kissing me, but he did it anyway. It made me feel unclean. I never feel that way with you. Even the first time we were together, it felt right.” She cleared her throat. “I know I made some hasty decisions that led me to where I was the day we met. It’s just that I was desperate to get away from him. I kept thinking no matter who I married, he couldn’t be as bad as Lord Comwright. Later, I realized I very well could have ended up with someone just as bad, if not worse. Thankfully, tha
t didn’t happen. I ended up with you instead.”

  She finally managed to peek at him, and when she noticed the soft expression on his face, tears filled her eyes. He drew her into his arms, and she leaned into him, grateful for his support. Never in her life had anyone cared for her the way he did.

  “You have nothing to worry about,” he whispered. “I won’t let anyone hurt you ever again.”

  “Thank you,” she replied.

  A few tears fell down her cheeks as she thought of how wonderful he was. He had accepted her. All of her. And better yet, he loved her. She wrapped her arms around his waist and clung to him, grateful their paths had crossed at the time she had needed him most.

  ***

  “Have you taken leave of your senses?” Celia asked Anthony later that day when they were alone in his den. She was pacing the floor in front of him while he stood at his desk and watched her.

  “No, I haven’t,” Anthony said. “Damara explained everything to me.”

  “Well, you haven’t explained it to me.” She went over to him and crossed her arms. “What is so horrible that you can’t tell me. Me. Your only sister.”

  “I’ve told you all I feel at liberty to say. Her parents didn’t want her, so they got rid of her by sending her off with an unsavory gentleman. She took her dowry and escaped from him. She was there on the side of the road when my carriage happened to come by. That’s all you need to know.”

  “And you believe her? Anyone can come up with a ridiculous story like that.”

  “Damara didn’t lie to me.”

  Celia rolled her eyes.

  “I know she didn’t.” He pointed to his heart. “In here. Where it matters.”

  “You are so easy to fool, Anthony. I love you. Really, I do, but you are incredibly naïve to the ways of the world.”

  “You’re younger than me, and you dare to call me naïve?”

  “You bet I do. Because that is what you are. You refuse to see nothing but the best when it comes to Damara. It sickens me.”

  That was enough. Straightening up, he glared at her. “You’re only upset because I didn’t marry Loretta. This has nothing to do with Damara. This is all about the dreams you had of being Loretta’s sister-in-law.”

  “At least we knew who Loretta was. And despite what you believe, Loretta would have been a good wife for you. She loves you so much she’s been crying because you married another lady. Do you think it’s easy for me to watch her heart breaking?”

  “Loretta will be fine. We’ll find a gentleman in London for her to marry.”

  “She doesn’t want anyone else. She wants you.”

  “Well, she can’t have me.”

  She shook her head in agitation. “I can’t believe you. You keep bragging about your wise investments, and yet you married a lady who only brought you a valise full of money. Loretta could have brought in a lot more than that with her dowry.”

  Anthony was ready to tell her that there was more to a good marriage than money when something clicked in his mind. “Are you telling me Loretta’s family really isn’t financially destitute?”

  Celia gasped and put her hand over her mouth.

  He, in turn, also gasped. “I don’t believe it! You lied to me so I’d marry your friend?” When she didn’t answer, he added, “You’re right, Celia. I am naïve. All this time, I’ve been doing exactly what you want. All you had to do was shed a few tears or tell me a lie, and I kept giving into you. Well…Well…” He was so upset that he could hardly think straight. “It’s over. Your days of bending me to your will are done. I’m not going to do your bidding anymore. You’re on your own.”

  Throwing his hands up in the air, he headed for the door.

  “You’re not going to throw my things out of this townhouse, are you?” she asked, hurrying after him.

  He stopped and turned back to face her. No, he wouldn’t. Well, not without having a place for her to go first. But maybe the threat might get her to finally treat him with respect. “I should do that.”

  Her face went white. “But I’m your sister.”

  “Yes, you are my sister. More than that, you’re my younger sister, which is why I should be the one taking the lead around here. I know you wanted Loretta to be your sister-in-law, but she’s not. So now you have to decide whether you’re going to try to make things work with Damara or not. Damara is my wife, and I love her. If you don’t like her, fine. But you will show her the respect she deserves.”

  “You can’t blame me for being skeptical about her, Anthony. Not with the way she never talked about her past.”

  “I don’t blame you for that. But I just finished talking to her about it, so you have no grounds to be skeptical anymore.”

  “You’re only taking her word for it. How do we know they’re as bad as she says? Maybe she did something awful to them. Maybe she’s not as innocent as she seems.”

  He groaned. “You can never take things on faith. You always need proof. Well, I’m going to give it to you. I’m going to prove that my faith in Damara is not in vain.”

  “How are you going to do that?” she asked, not looking convinced.

  “You and I are going to take a trip to her parents’ estate. When you see how they are, you’re going to admit I was right and you’re going to accept Damara into our family. If you don’t, then you can live with Loretta.”

  Before she could throw in another argument, he left the room.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Dinner that evening was tense. Damara did her best to eat her meal. At one point, she dared a glance at Celia. It was apparent Celia didn’t care for her. Damara had no idea why Celia even pretended to have an interest in her to begin with. Why didn’t Celia just come out right away and say she resented her for marrying Anthony? Why did she act like she wanted to be her friend? As much as she wanted to come out and ask Celia those questions, she didn’t dare because she didn’t think she’d like the answers.

  “I was thinking,” Anthony told Damara, finally breaking the uncomfortable silence, “it might be nice if you visited with Iris. Iris seemed to enjoy your company at the dinner party.”

  Celia rolled her eyes but didn’t say anything.

  Damara forced her gaze off of her, so she could look at him. “Iris invited me and Candace to see the menagerie. I’m not sure which day we’ll go.”

  Damara thought she heard Celia give a faint snort under her breath, but when she glanced back at Celia, Celia was eating her fish. Maybe she had imagined it.

  “Celia,” Anthony said, a hint of warning in his voice, which proved Damara hadn’t imagined it after all.

  Celia swallowed the food in her mouth then shot him a pointed gaze. “What?”

  Damara frowned. So Celia wasn’t only upset with her. She was upset with Anthony, too. But why?

  Anthony tapped his fork on his plate, staring back at Celia as if to challenge her. “Just because you can’t get along with Iris, it doesn’t mean others can’t.”

  “It’s hard to get along with someone who doesn’t want to spend time with you. Do you really want me to go through the misery of being trapped in a drawing room with her again?”

  “If that’s the case, then you should be thanking me for not dragging you to Warren’s the other evening.”

  “It wasn’t Iris I wanted to see, and you know it.” She placed her fork down and glared at him. “You’re trying to sabotage things for me. It’s not enough you didn’t marry Loretta. Now you’re trying to prevent me from marrying Corin.”

  So that was why Celia was mad. She resented Damara for marrying her brother. But if that was the case, then why didn’t Celia express her displeasure sooner? Why wait until now?

  “I hate to be the one to say this,” Anthony began, “but Corin doesn’t want to marry you.”

  Celia gritted her teeth. “You’re lying.”

  “No, I’m not.” His voice softening, he added, “I’m sorry, Celia, but he doesn’t return your feelings any more than I returne
d Loretta’s. The best thing you can do is find someone else.”

  Her eyes grew wide. “Is this all because I’m not singing Damara’s praises? Is that why you’re being so cruel to me?”

  Damara’s face warmed, and she slumped into her chair, wishing she could disappear so she didn’t have to be a part of this conversation.

  “No,” Anthony said. “Damara has nothing to do with this. I’m telling you the truth so you won’t waste your time pursuing someone who doesn’t want you. This is your second Season. After this, your desirability is going to greatly diminish.”

  “You hate me. You hate me, and it’s all because of her!” Celia rose to her feet and threw the napkin on the table. Then she directed her hard gaze to Damara. “This is all your fault. You turned him against me.”

  Damara opened her mouth to protest. But then, what would she say? What could she say that Celia would believe?

  “She did nothing of the sort,” Anthony replied. “You’re my sister. I love you. Nothing will ever change that. I just don’t want you to say no to potential suitors because of Corin. It’s not in your best interest.”

  “You have no right to tell me what is or what is not in my best interest. You went off and married the first lady you could find because you were desperate to get out of marrying Loretta. You made a decision that was in your best interest, and nothing I could have said would have changed your mind. If you wouldn’t listen to me, then why should I listen to you?”

  He got ready to answer, but she hurried out of the room before he could finish the sentence.

  Damara noted the poor butler, who was standing nearby in case they needed anything. Though he wasn’t looking their way, he heard everything. What must he think of the whole thing? Her cheeks warmed further with embarrassment.

  Anthony sat back in the chair then turned to face Damara. “When Celia and I meet your parents, she’ll stop moping because I married you instead of Loretta.”

  Forgetting all about the butler, Damara blurted out, “You want to meet my parents?”

  “I have to.” He lowered his voice then added, “It’s the only way to resolve everything. Celia has it in her mind that you’re lying about them. She has to see the situation for herself in order to understand what you’ve been through. I know Celia can be unpleasant at times, but she wouldn’t want someone to go through the things you did.”