The Princess and the Marquess

by Aliyah Burke

  Ciara quirked a brow. “Those two will do anything I say.”

  He huffed with false indignation. “I know, I know you have them bewitched.” He shoved Kosse off and rose. Lucien stopped in front of her. Skin flush with cold, he added, “You have me bewitched as well.” He gave her a light kiss on the lips and, with a jaunty whistle, struck out for the shovel and got back to work.

  Ciara had a smile on her face until a breeze turned her attention from the dark-haired man shoveling snow. Faolan came to stand beside her. She spoke in a language, one she knew Lucien wouldn’t understand, to the wolf in case he overheard. “I know. I feel it too. A warm spell comes. We will take him down today and be back within the week.”

  She turned toward the hut where she did her tanning. She checked her rations of grain. There was enough for her to take the trip down and back. Her heart heavy in her chest, she observed Lucien as he entered the building behind her.

  “What’s wrong? You seem sad.” He reached out to brush some grain off her cheek.

  “Nothing is wrong. There is a warm spell coming. I will be able to take you back to town. You will be there in a few days. We leave today.” She strode past him into the sunlight.

  He grabbed her arm and spun her toward him. “What are you talking about? I thought you said all winter.”

  “Maybe I did. I was wrong. This good weather will hold. I can get you to town in three days. It is unusual for January but it does happen. I will pack some things. You should gather your things. Not that you have much.” She entered the cabin, which left him to follow. He did.

  “I’m confused. Why are we leaving today?”

  “You need to go. You were supposed to be headed for England now. This warm weather is a surprise to me as well, but we will put it to good use.”

  “Now? You want to leave now? Will you stay in one place and talk to me?”

  Ciara had gone to the bedroom. No, she didn’t want him to leave. He had to leave. As she turned to him, she questioned, “What do you want to know? My guess is that since there is a warm spell the winter will come back in full force and stay longer. This is the perfect time for me to get you down the mountain.” She stripped off her clothes and stretched for her thick buckskins.

  Lucien grabbed her before she could reach the clothes.

  “Wolf, please. Your hands are cold and we have to go.”

  “If you are sending me away, I want you once more. Please.”

  Her hands as they ripped away his clothes were his answer. They fell back on the bed in a tangle of blankets. They coupled with ferocity and yet tenderness. She almost wept as he came deep within her.

  They separated and acted like strangers as they dressed. Ciara took a bag and put his papers in there along with the statue. She flicked a glance at him as she gamely tried for a smile.

  “The first son of Nyama and Epona will be yours. You have my word.”

  “Good. Um, you have my address in England so you know where to send the horse.”

  “Aye. I put the statue and your stable plans in the bag.”

  She packed food and put out the fire in the fireplace. Ciara faced him by the door. “Is there anything else you think you will need?”

  “No. I think that will do. I still have my things in Paradise Cove. What about payment for the horse?”

  “Leave it with Marie and I will get it from her later. I would also appreciate it if you would give her this quilt for me.”

  “Yes, sure. I can do that.”

  She nodded. “Right, well, we should go. It will be a long trip.” She took the rolled-up furs and gave him the pouch with his things in it.

  They stepped out on the porch and Ciara let loose a whistle that pierced across the snow-covered mountain. Moments later, Epona, followed by his stallion, trotted into the copse. They mounted in silence and headed off, accompanied by Kosse and Faolan.

  After their two nights in the woods, part of her wished that he’d never shown up in her life while another part never wanted to let him go.

  When they started off the final morning, Ciara was nervous. She wove in and out of trees and backtracked. When she stopped she was at the end of a glade, but they were still hidden. It was late afternoon. She dismounted and Lucien did the same.

  “This is where I leave you. Paradise Cove is across this clearing. You should be there by dark.” Her eyes welled up with tears as she looked at him.

  Lucien reached for her and she went without hesitation into his arms. “Come with me.”

  “Safe journey, Wolf. Good luck with your stable. I hope you find what you are looking for.”

  Lucien looked down at her and tried for a smile. “Thank you. For everything.”

  “My pleasure.” She glanced at the sky. “You should get going. Take care of him. And yourself.”

  “You too.”

  “Aye, I will.” She made a motion and Faolan came up. “Say goodbye, Faolan.” The wolf took his hand in its mouth. Jaws that could kill with ease caressed him like silk. He was released after a brief spot of pressure. It was the wolf’s way of saying goodbye.

  Lucien patted the wolf on the head. “Take care of her, boy. Take care of her.” He turned and pulled Kosse’s ears with affection. He rose to look back at Ciara.

  He strode over to her and swept her up in his arms. He almost crushed her. Lucien lowered her as he kissed her forehead then pressed his mouth to hers. He devoured her, she devoured him. After a long, heated exchange, they both stepped back.

  Ciara licked her lips and touched her fingers to his bearded jaw. “Goodbye, Wolf.”

  He stepped close again and spoke so hushed she almost missed it. “Why don’t you call me Lucien? You did once. No one but you ever has.”

  She raised her eyes to his as she memorized the face. “Go. It grows late. Stay to the middle of the field.” Her jaw trembled in an effort not to cry. She reached out and pulled him in for one last kiss.

  “Goodbye, princess.” His eyes kissed her just as much as his lips did. Then he spun and swung up on Colonial Star and rode off without looking back.

  “Goodbye, Lucien,” came the whispered response that she knew would not be heard. She swung up on Epona’s back, motioned for her to leave as well. She headed off as Faolan and Kosse followed in her silent wake.

  Chapter Sixteen

  England

  “What the hell do you mean you are starting your own racing stable? What happened to you over in those bloody colonies? I had hoped that you would come back a man, but I guess I was wrong.” Spittle flew from the mouth of the man in the chair. Lucien stood at attention in front of his father as he was yelled at.

  “Just what I said. I am leaving Stokley and going home to Heartstone. I will build my stables there. I am also taking Devonna with me.” His pronouncements made his stepmother gasp with shock.

  “Why would you wish to go there? The ladies are in London. If you leave, then you will not find a bride.” Her high-pitched, whiney voice grated on his nerves.

  “That’s it? That is all you have to say? Don’t go so I can find a bride. What about your daughter?”

  “She stays,” yelled his stepmother.

  “Take the stupid bitch. All she does is stare out of the window. It is embarrassing. Take her with my blessing.” The venom in his father’s voice was a punch to the gut. His stepmother backed down under the glare of her husband.

  “We will be gone within the hour.”

  He walked out of the room as he swore under his breath. It had been like this ever since he had returned from America. His father had more nice words for the horse than for his own son. He had at least been pleased with the horse.

  Lucien climbed the stairs to his sister’s room and knocked on the door. He opened it a little and stuck his head in. “Devonna? Are you in here?” He heard movement by the window and entered the room.

  His sister sat in silence by the window dressed in a drab black gown. Her hair was lifeless and dull. He sat on a cushion by her and tried no
t to show how her cringing away from him hurt.

  “Devonna. I am going to take you with me to Heartstone. It’s in the country. I think that you will like it there. Wide open spaces, woods, lakes. What do you think? Would you like to go with me?”

  Although her face remained impassive and still, Lucien told himself that he caught a flicker of hope in those eyes. Something had happened to his sister. She used to be so full of life and laughter.

  He reached out to pat her on the arm and she visibly flinched away from him. Careful to keep his face straight, he pulled his hand back and smiled at her.

  “We leave in an hour. I will have your things packed.”

  He exited and, as the door shut, the caring brother was gone, leaving in his place a marquess that whipped out orders as fast as his mouth would work.

  They were headed to Heartstone in just under an hour. He was shocked at how little clothing his sister had. They rode together in the carriage for a six-hour ride. He would have preferred to be on horseback but he thought he should spend some time with his sister.

  “Are you excited, Devonna? I think it will be a grand adventure. Do you remember the adventures we took as children?”

  He watched her face for any sign of recognition and found none. If anything, she withdrew farther into herself.

  “I am going to start a stable for racers. Would you like to have a horse of your own? Or maybe a dog, or cat?” When she didn’t answer, he just plodded on with the one-sided conversation. “Well, let me know. Would you like to hear of my time in America?”

  That time he knew he caught a glimmer of excitement. “Well, you know,” he said even though she didn’t, “I had to go get a racer from America for Father. The town I had to go to was called Paradise Cove. Very small, very quaint. The people there were all different and yet they treated each one the same. I met an old woman, which is the one I got the horse from, and she reminded me of a grandmother that we used to hear about in stories. Always smiling and ready with hugs.

  “Well, I took the horse, the one I brought back—his name is Colonial Star—out for a ride. I was not as good a rider as I had thought for he got away from me and took me high into the mountains. Then a bear came and attacked us.”

  Devonna tried to pretend she wasn’t interested but he caught the look on her face. Lucien suppressed a smile as he continued.

  “When I woke up I was in a cabin. The whole thing was not much bigger than a receiving room at Stokley. I was alone and the first thing I saw was a woman. She had saved me. Her name is Ciara. She had found me and carried me back to her cabin.” At his sister’s look of disbelief he did smile, and nodded. “It’s true. She lived there all alone and we were stuck there together because the snows came and we couldn’t leave.”

  There was a panicked look in his sister’s eyes at the mention of him being alone with a woman. A clue perhaps why she was so withdrawn. “Well, I shouldn’t say alone. She had a wolf for a pet. And while I was there, she also got a mountain lion kitten. She also had horses. She wore pants and did things like a man.”

  She may have done things like a man, but there were some things that she did which were all woman. He brought his focus back on his sister and continued with his story. He noticed that she listened with wide eyes.

  “She taught me all about the woods, how to trap animals—which was really messy—and how to survive a winter in the mountains.”

  That wasn’t all she had taught him, but his sister didn’t need to know that.

  “I think you would like Ciara, Devonna. She is a very kind person. She loves life and smiles and laughs a lot.” He saw tears well up in his sister’s eyes. “She is supposed to send me a horse for my stable.” He broke off as tears began to stream down his sister’s face.

  He reached into his pocket, pulled out his handkerchief and handed it to her. She flinched back. That was getting old.

  “Devonna. You have to know that I am not going to hurt you. I would never hurt you.”

  Devonna wedged herself back into a corner of the carriage and watched him with scared eyes. When they stopped to rest the horses, he got out and rode on his gray gelding to leave her alone in the carriage. Damn, he wished he knew what was wrong.

  They arrived at Heartstone in the early evening. As he rode up the drive, his heart swelled. This was where he would make a name for himself. The servants were all lined up to wait for him. They waited for a chance to see the famed Black Marquess.

  He dismounted at the steps and issued orders to his man of affairs. He helped his sister down out of the carriage after steeling himself for her wince. He took her to her rooms, which were on the opposite wing of the home from his.

  As he opened the door to her suite of rooms, he peered at her. Her eyes skimmed over the room, going instead to the big window that had extra thick cushions placed in front of it. The room was done in a pale lilac with dark blue accents. There was a large bed and lots of space for her things, which he realized she didn’t have many of. Why not?

  “I will come for you at dinner.” Her eyes flew wide with fright and she stumbled backward. “Devonna? What’s wrong?”

  He reached out to her and she put her shaking hand in his. Lucien could see that she was mortified and scared beyond belief but she didn’t disobey his hand reaching for hers.

  “Maybe you would wish to take a walk or get some sleep. I will see you in a bit.”

  Lucien left the room and realized that he was shaking. From anger. He kept his counsel until he found his man of affairs getting ready to leave. Why is my sister so petrified of me? Although they couldn’t be classified as close, he had never done anything to hurt her.

  “Foley. A word.”

  “Yes, my lord?” Foley was a thin man. Very competent and loyal.

  “What the hell happened in that house when I was gone?”

  “My lord? To what are you referring?”

  “The treatment of my sister. What the hell did they do to her there?”

  “I am not sure. I know that when you were gone your brother was there a lot. Your family did not see fit to include me in many of the discussions.”

  “Find out.”

  “Yes, my lord.” He took his leave and rode away from Heartstone.

  * * * *

  America

  “Are you going to let him know?” Marie’s question invaded her thoughts.

  “No,” Ciara said with a very determined look at the woman who was questioning her.

  “He has a right to know. We both know that.”

  “Maybe someday. Not now.”

  “Child. You should tell him.” Her tone was unusually sharp for Marie, the woman she viewed as a surrogate mother.

  Ciara looked at the old woman and smiled. A smile full of serenity and calmness, one that belied the rolling of her insides at the mention of ‘the man.’

  “This child is mine. I am not ready to tell him.”

  Him. Lucien. The man who still invaded her dreams. The father of her unborn child.

  “Tell him.” Angelique spoke, which surprised them both.

  Ciara shook her head at Angelique. Marie clucked in disapproval and rose. “The quilt he sent from you was beautiful. Thank you.”

  “You know I like making things for you. It was my pleasure.” Ciara’s mind drifted to the time she had spent with Lucien. He had never been far from her mind.

  “He had nothing but good things to say about you and now I know why.” Marie gestured to her protruding belly.

  “Marie. Shame on you.” Ciara felt the heat of her blush rush across her face. “I brought you some honey. The first batch I had.”

  “You should not be riding around in those mountains. Not when you’re about to give birth.” The older woman respected her desire to change the subject.

  “I am fine. Besides, I never go anywhere without Faolan and Kosse. They would die before they let anything happen to me.”

  “How is that old wolf? And that little devil cat?”

 
“They are both fine. You know you could go open the door and let them in.”

  “And have animal fur in the house? Never.”

  “Don’t ever change, Marie. I couldn’t stand it. I have to get going.”

  Ciara rose, kissed both women on the cheeks and walked outside with them. She whistled and Nyama came from the thicket where he waited. He stood as she awkwardly mounted him. Her belly had already begun to get in the way.

  “Come before the birth. You shouldn’t be alone then.”

  Marie reached out and handed her a money pouch with a seal embroidered on the side that caused Ciara’s heart to skip a beat.

  As she traced the pattern on the money pouch, Ciara acknowledged them with a wave of her hand then she headed home, her mind focused on past memories. As soon as she entered the woods a glossy black wolf and a lustrous, albeit gangly mountain lion placed themselves on either side of the stallion.

  * * * *

  As the time of her impending birth grew closer, she fluctuated back and forth about going down to Marie’s. One day the decision was made for her. Marie and Angelique showed up at her cabin. How they knew where it was, she would never know. How the old ladies made the journey alone, she would also never know.

  They couldn’t have timed it better. Within the week she gave birth. She gave birth to a boy. She named him Brenden Kumi McKay. He was a beautiful boy. His skin had a golden tint to it, but he was still lighter than his mother. He had a head of thick black hair and his eyes were blue. Well, they were the shade identical to his father’s. A deep midnight blue that could penetrate your soul.

  Kosse and Faolan loved him and he became a member of the group. They took care of him when she had work to do. Later that same winter, she found that Epona had been successful with her breeding to Nyama and so she expected a foal late fall the next year.

  The years passed, and as Brenden grew, her heart ached each time she looked at him. He was a very bright child who grew up able to speak all the languages she did. One autumn five years after the birth of her son, Bryn, she found that Epona was carrying again. Her other foals had all been fillies. Still she waited for the first colt. The next fall came, and when Epona gave birth, she bore a colt. Black like his father with a white lightning-bolt pattern on his left haunch. She had no more excuses. It was time to go. She trembled at the thought.