“There’s just a book in there that I didn’t know about and well…”
Michael opened to where some pages were slightly bent from her rush to hide what she read. He skimmed the pages. “Whoa. I didn’t realize this was in here either.” He glanced up from the words to his bride who avoided his eyes. “Did this disturb you? Nothing in here is out of place within the bonds of marriage.”
“No. It’s just that, well, it seems so explicit. I never heard about the Song of Solomon before.”
“No, but now that you have, we should possibly make use of this.”
Katrina stood, covered shoulder to toe in virginal white muslin with her long dark hair flowing around her. She reached up for his cravat and began to untie it. “My beloved is mine and I am his.” The cravat came loose and was dropped to the floor.
Michael glanced at the Bible in his hands while Katrina was unbuttoning his shirt. “Thou hast ravaged my heart.” He set the book down and stilled Katrina’s hands and placed them on his bare chest. “I love you.”
“And I, you.”
They left any further biblical instructions to be discovered for a later time.
~*~
“Marcus, I assure you, there is nothing to fear. Rushing to Rose Hill will not undo any damage to Katrina’s reputation.” Josie tried to calm her agitated spouse as he strode across the bedroom, throwing a few items into a bag for travel by horseback to his country estate.
“She is my relative. I must have a care for her. He will marry her now. There can be no more delays. The wedding must be planned forthwith. Will you assist with that?”
“Of course. But you need to remain calm. Katrina’s letter says that Michael was injured and that they’d been kidnapped and escaped. This was not a run for the border. There was no intention on their part of doing anything that would even appear wrong.”
“No intention? They were avoiding each other. Theo said Michael had drunk himself into a stupor over her and then all of a sudden, they are together at Rose Hill with no one but a handful of servants in residence? Doesn’t that seem suspicious to you?”
“I agree that it doesn’t make sense, but suspicious? Come on, Marcus, be reasonable. You cannot force love.” She stopped him in his tracks and placed a hand up alongside his strong jaw. “Wait till morning to ride out, when it is safer. We can travel by carriage together.”
Marcus put his arms around his wife’s waist. “Normally I would be swayed to stay here and spend the night with you, but I am compelled to go.”
“You like to meddle in the lives of others.” Josie stepped out of his embrace and walked around the bed.
“Like you thought I had interfered with Phillip and Beth?”
Josie sat on the edge of the bed but nodded her head.
“Well, that didn’t turn out so bad, did it?”
“No, I will admit…”
“Josie, the proprieties are there to protect innocent women from predatory men.”
“You certainly don’t place Michael in that category. Plus, she said he’d been injured. I would be very surprised if he were to attempt to ravage her under your roof. He has too much respect for you and cares too deeply for Katrina.”
Marcus ran his open palm down his face in weariness. “I understand all that. But the sooner I get there the sooner they can be married with no hint of scandal.”
“Is reputation everything?”
“It certainly makes a difference. I almost lost you due to a misunderstanding over my conduct.”
“True. I was so foolish not to have trusted in your integrity.”
“You were human, my love.”
“And the rest of the beau monde will not be so easily swayed to another opinion.”
“Exactly.”
“Ride on then, Marcus. I will journey out tomorrow and join you by evening.”
Marcus strode over to his wife and gave her a lingering kiss. “I do adore you.”
“And I you.”
With that, Marcus grabbed his bag and left the room.
~*~
Katrina reveled in the warmth of the body she was tangled up with under the covers. The night before had been a revelation. Pain, yes, but the wonder and passion left her wanting more. Michael slept beneath her as she rested her head on his shoulder with his arm around her. Her husband. She smiled and wondered what other treasures the Song of Solomon would add to this aspect of their married life.
She snuggled in deeper and dozed off. She was startled awake an hour later upon hearing a horse galloping up the driveway. The shout sounded familiar. Someone had arrived but that needn’t concern them for now. The servants were instructed to stay away unless summoned. However, the pounding of boots on the stairs made her aware that someone was in a rush. Had the Black Diamond tracked them here? Much to her surprise, the bedroom door swung open.
It was not the Black Diamond or any of his thugs, but her cousin Marcus, in full riding attire, his crop still in his hand tapping nervously against his thigh.
“Marcus? What are you doing here?”
“I thought I owned the place.” His chest heaved as he tried to catch his breath.
Katrina wrapped the blankets more tightly around her. “You do, but why are you barging into our room at this hour of the morning? It’s barely dawn.”
“I got your note and posted here as quickly as I could to avoid the hint of scandal. I see I’m too late.”
“No. If you would let me explain.”
Michael’s eyes opened with the exchange going on around him and he glanced to the door. “Darling wife, who is that man standing in the door looking as though he’s about to challenge me to a duel?”
“Don’t play with me, Michael,” Marcus growled. “I’m in no mood for any of your teasing today. I’m tired and hungry.”
“Michael, the man at the door is one of your dearest friends, Viscount Remington, also known by you all as Marcus or Remy. You went to school together and he has welcomed you as family for many years.”
Michael propped himself up on one elbow and the sheet slid down exposing more of his bare chest while at the same time hiding more of his wife. “Glad to meet you, Marcus. I wish I could remember more but, well, there it is.”
“There what is? Will you get out of that bed and tell me why you are sleeping with my cousin?”
“I would rise, but well, I’m in the altogether, having just enjoyed my wedding night with my bride. Your cousin, you say? Yes, well it seems that we got married yesterday so all is proper and you can leave us in peace.”
“There has rarely been peace where you are concerned lately, Michael. Married? You wed Katrina, is this true?”
“Go to the church and check the registry. We married yesterday,” Katrina said.
Marcus let out a sigh and closed his eyes. Shaking his head, his eyes opened again and the crop stopped dancing at his side. “Then congratulations are in order and my humble apologies for interrupting you on your first day of wedded bliss. Welcome to the family, Michael. Again, I’m sorry for this intrusion. I’m glad you made things right.”
“Before you had to force us to?” Katrina asked.
Marcus blushed. “Mouse, you know me too well.”
“Please, let’s not call my beautiful wife Mouse anymore?”
“Excuse me?” Both Katrina and Marcus spoke.
“I don’t want her called Mouse anymore.”
“You came up with the moniker,” Marcus defended.
“Then I can ban it. Katrina is a much more fitting name for my wife.” Michael looked at his bride. “She deserves a name that describes her beauty, not one that would diminish it.”
Marcus cleared his throat and backed out of the door. “Well, then. I’ll be leaving.”
The door shut and Katrina pushed her husband back onto the pillow. “I don’t mind being called Mouse.”
“I do.”
“Have I told you today that I love you, husband?”
“I think you just did.”
<
br /> “Let me show you as well.”
“I could get to liking this marriage business,” Michael said as he submitted to his wife’s ministrations.
20
Marcus slept until late afternoon. He discovered from the staff that Michael and Katrina had indeed married after arriving in a disreputable state. He was glad for them and longed for his own wife to be by his side. He paced in his study awaiting her arrival.
When she finally did arrive, it was in the company of Lord Harrow.
He sent a note up to the newlyweds begging their presence at the evening meal. He was surprised to see them appearing as the dinner bell rang. They were walking holding hands. Marcus shook his head. Would wonders never cease?
Josie rushed forward to greet the new bride. “Marcus told me the news. Congratulations, Katrina. Michael.” She looked at Michael. “What happened to you?”
Katrina spoke first. “Michael, this is Lady Remington, you call her Josie as you are good friends.”
Michael nodded and turned to Josie. “Josie, thank you for your kind hospitality. I was injured somehow in an attack two days past.”
“He lost his memory, which is frustrating for him.”
Josie stepped back, her brows knitted together. “Lost his memory? Yet he remembered you?”
“I didn’t remember her, only that she was important to me. I fell instantly in love and asked her to marry me. She told me a little about our past. Obviously, I wasn’t opposed to marrying her before the accident as I posted the banns and already purchased her ring, so we decided not to delay.”
“I see,” Josie said slowly indicating she was still struggling to grasp what had happened.
“Don’t worry, Lady Remington, I don’t understand half of it myself. The only thing that makes sense to me is the woman by my side.” Michael drew Katrina closer and kissed her hair.
Josie smiled. “Well, we’ve seen challenges befall our friends before and God work out beautiful things from those tangles. I’m sure He will do likewise for you.”
Theo stepped forward after hovering on the edge of the conversation. “Michael, glad to see you sober and happy for a change.”
“Michael, this is Lord Harrow, also known as Theodore or Theo. Another member of your merry band of friends.”
“Nice to meet you, Lord Harrow,” Michael said with all propriety.
Theo stood there momentarily stunned at the reply. “You really have forgotten, haven’t you? This is not some kind of practical joke.”
Michael frowned. “I wish it were. Attempts to remember only make my head pound more.”
Theo looked at Katrina. “Have you consulted with Dr. Miller?”
She shook her head. “We’ve been a bit busy.” A flush of heat rose in her cheeks at this and she averted her gaze.
“I’ll send a message to him to see if he can come in the morning.” Marcus nodded to Michael. “If that’s all right with you, of course.”
Michael shrugged. “Couldn’t hurt more than it already does. Let him come.”
~*~
Conversation at dinner was difficult. Michael couldn’t remember any of the events that the others referred to and he didn’t even recall ever knowing these people. They were strangers. He felt very much the outsider and it gnawed at him. He wanted to head back to his room to the comfort of Katrina’s arms and her soft voice and assurances that he was loved. Beyond that, the world was a blank and he grew increasingly frustrated.
“I will beg you to forgive me the after-dinner drink.”
“Michael, please stay for a little, there are some things I don’t understand.” Marcus smiled as he motioned for the footman to fill Michael’s glass.
“It will be fine,” Katrina whispered in his ear. “I won’t be far away and these are your friends. They care about you. You are safe with them.”
Michael nodded to his wife and sank back in his chair, tugging at his cravat to loosen it. He grew warm. His heart rate sped up and it took all of his willpower to stay seated with these two strangers. He trusted Katrina. She wouldn’t steer him wrong. He sipped the port and waited as the women left and the door closed. The interrogation would begin.
“Last I saw you, Michael, you were laid out on your furniture drunker than I have ever seen you,” Theo started.
“When was that?” Michael asked.
“Two days ago, apparently, the night you said you were kidnapped.” Theodore continued. “I asked you to come to a party with me. You refused and rudely told me to mind my own business. You were moaning about Katrina and a broken heart.”
“Really?”
Theo nodded.
“Where does your memory start?” Marcus asked as he leaned back in his own chair and swirled his wine in his glass, but kept his gaze on his friend.
“I remember my head pounding and a soft warm pillow. I opened my eyes to see a gorgeous blonde looking down at me. She smelled like vanilla. I thought I knew her.”
“A blonde?” Theo and Marcus exchanged glances.
“It was Katrina in a disguise. She took off the wig and, and I felt like I should know her. I couldn’t figure out who she was.”
“Did you know who kidnapped you?” Marcus asked.
“Some guy called the Black Diamond.”
Marcus stared. “Isn’t that your father?”
“My father would kidnap me, attempt to torture me by attacking Katrina, and then abandon me?”
“He pretty much did all of that to your mother—at least the last two parts,” Theo commented.
“Despicable. Who is he, really?”
“That’s just it,” Theo said. “We don’t know anything other than he is among the aristocracy and is suspected of being in league with Napoleon.”
“Who is Napoleon?”
“The Little Emperor of France, and England’s enemy.” Marcus took a sip of his wine.
“Who am I to him? To any of this?”
“That’s what we’d like to know,” Marcus said. “You disappear for weeks at a time and then resurface. You have an income, but you never share how you have earned it. You don’t talk about what you do to occupy yourself when you are not with us. We know you are not involved with women or gambling. You don’t spend your money on material things. You live simply. You gladly help out a friend when in need even at the risk of your own safety. You are an enigma, Michael. The only one who seems to fully understand you is the woman you married.”
Michael glanced at the door, longing to be with her. “She’s wonderful.”
Theo and Marcus grinned.
Michael caught their look. “What? Can’t a husband admire and long to be with the woman he loves?”
Marcus laughed. “Go to her, Michael. It’s nice to see you so happily in love with your wife. You both deserve that kind of joy after all you’ve been through.”
“The inquisition is over?” Michael started to rise.
“For now,” Marcus said with a grin.
Michael made good his escape. He found Katrina and managed to extricate her from Josie who was attempting a similar inquisition with equally frustrating results.
~*~
Marcus, Josie, and Theodore sat in the drawing room having tea and talking.
“I think that tomorrow I will send a notice to the papers announcing Michael and Katrina’s marriage.” Marcus held Josie’s hand lightly between them on the love seat.
“That will fend off any ugly rumors,” Theo riposted.
“How soon can we get them back in London? They need to be seen together, in love, and happy,” Josie asked.
Theo shook his head. “We need to find out what Dr. Miller says first. It might not be a good idea to be putting Michael in a situation where he doesn’t remember anything or anyone. He looked panicked when we wanted to talk to him. I’ve never seen him in such a state of anxiety before.”
Marcus nodded. “Michael has always been calm, collected, and in control. It has to be frightening to know someone is out to kill you but you
cannot remember who or why.”
“At least he’s safe with Katrina, and she would do anything to protect him,” Josie said.
“Should be the man protecting the woman,” responded Marcus. “He may chafe at his dependence on her after a time.”
“True,” said Theo. “And she may soon struggle with a man who cannot share with her the memories they have together.”
“Let’s pray his memory returns. Someone is out to kill our friend and we are at a loss to help him if he cannot give us more of the information that is needed here.” Marcus rubbed his jaw with this hand. “I think we need to summon Phillip.”
“The more the merrier?” Theo queried.
“Why not?” Josie said as she rose to pull her husband up beside her. “Good night, Theo. I’m going to steal my husband away from you now, but I promise you can spend time with him tomorrow without his wife interfering.”
Theo grinned. “Go on, then. I’ll be heading up soon too.”
~*~
Katrina tried to comfort Michael. He returned to their room only to cast up his accounts. He lay on the bed and moaned in pain. Katrina tried to massage his shoulders but he shoved her away. She fought tears. She had finally won the heart of the man she adored for years, but she didn’t have all of him because a large part of who he was continued to be locked away from them both. A fission of fear rippled through her that when he did remember it might not be to her benefit. She was determined to make his memories of their time together now make up for whatever had, on his part, kept him from marrying her before. She did not want him to regret having taken this step. If he rejected her, she didn’t know if she could bear it.
She walked into the marriage realizing a change in his memory could jeopardize her happiness, but her desire to have something of Michael, even for a short while, was so strong she’d decided to risk her heart. Now questions as to the wisdom of that assailed her. As her husband pushed her away in his pain and emotional agony at not remembering, she was shut out. Katrina didn’t know what to do. She offered him medicine and was declined. He didn’t want her touch or words.
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