by Dawn Brower
"I don't care what you think. I know what needs to be done. Now quit your babbling and don't move. I am going to kill your husband and then the two of us are going to leave this place as quietly as possible. We leave for France tonight."
Gemma saw a movement in the distance. Liam had started to wake up. She had to find a way to distract Alfie to allow him time to regain all of his faculties. What should she do? He told her to be quiet, but she suspected if she kept talking it would work as a good distraction.
"I don't see why I should go along with you. If you want to kill Liam I don't have a problem with that. You would be doing me a favor actually. I just hadn't thought that through." Gemma shrugged her shoulders, trying to give off the impression she didn't care. A bundle of energy burst through her giving her the strength of will to move forward with her plan. She prayed if Liam heard her words he didn't believe them. All she wanted to do was distract her evil cousin. "My intention had been to get an annulment, but by all means you should make me a widow instead. I won't be going to France with you though."
"You think what you want, Gemma dear, but soon you will realize that fighting the inevitable will prove futile."
Gemma circled around to the other side of the room as they talked. What could she do now? Talking wasn't working as a good enough distraction. A plan—she needed one. Gemma took slow concise steps until she stood near the fireplace and looked down at the nearby toolset. A quick action was needed. Alfie needed to be incapacitated. He'd never leave her and Liam alone if she just let him leave the room. A reasonable discussion was out as a means of getting through to him. Her cousin was insane and beyond reason.
Gemma moved to stand in front of the fireplace toolset and placed her arms behind her back. She reached down and, as slow as she could, grabbed one of the irons. Once she had a firm grasp on it she pulled it up as quietly as possible so that Alfie would be unaware that she had a weapon to use against him. The heavy statue he had used to knock Liam out still lay on the floor where he had dropped it. Gemma hoped he had no other weapon available. She started to move toward him with her hands behind her back while Liam still struggled in the background to get to his feet. He had made a little bit of progress as she gained access to one of the fireplace irons.
"I disagree. I would never willingly go with you anywhere. I would always fight until I had no breath left within me. You sicken me, and it disgusts me that you think I would ever allow you to put your filthy hands on me. You are insane and should be in Bedlam."
"I sicken you?" Alfie laughed. "Well, it’s a good thing I don't give a damn how you feel. Women are only good for one thing, and once I have it from you it won’t matter anyway."
Alfie reached into his pocket, pulled out a pistol and raised it in Gemma's general direction. She stopped with barely two feet between them. She still had the iron firmly in her hands, but the pistol changed her plan.
"Are you going to shoot me now?" Gemma giggled manically. She couldn't seem to help herself. The panic welling inside her made her react in an odd way. "When you haven't gotten everything you wanted out of me yet? Like I said before you're an idiot."
"Oh, I'm not going to shoot you—yet. If I wanted you dead you would be already. I couldn't very well shoot Liam when he had his hands all over you. I might have accidentally missed and killed you instead." His smile made goosebumps spread all over her. The malicious gleam in his eyes sent shivers down her spine. "No, I had to knock him out first and kill him once I separated the two of you. Enough talking, it is time to say your final goodbye to your husband."
Alfie turned to see Liam had already risen to his feet. He was still a bit unsteady as he stared into Gemma's eyes. She took advantage of Alfie's back being turned to her and pulled the iron in front of her and raised it up high. Just as she reached it up to swing at him, Alfie raised his pistol toward Liam, ready to shoot.
"Well look who decided to join the party. Are you ready to die, Liam? I owe you for that beating you gave me the other day. Did you really think I'd let that go?"
"I had hoped you wouldn't be so foolish as to try to kill me. Apparently my hope was a bit misplaced."
"Don't worry, you won't live long enough to stress over your own follies."
Just as Alfie pulled the trigger, Gemma swung the iron around hard and hit him in the shoulder. It jerked the pistol to the side forcing the bullet to graze past Liam and lodge in the wall. Liam leaned forward and knocked Alfie to the ground. He wrestled the gun away from him and bashed Alfie unconscious. Gemma raced into his arms and shook visibly. Tears flowed down her cheeks as she sobbed uncontrollably.
"You were so brave. It's okay. Let it all out. I'm here for you." Liam assured her, "If not for your quick thinking he would have hurt us both."
"I couldn't let him hurt you. We need to get out of here. I can't be in the same room as him. Take me home Liam."
"I want to take you home. I need to have you safe there, but first we need to make sure he’ll not hurt anyone else ever again. You understand that right?"
"I do. But I can't be in this room." Gemma's arm shook, and she rubbed her hands up and down trying to dispel the tingles. "I will leave and go get someone to help. Stay here and make sure he doesn't wake up and try to escape."
"Yes. That's a good idea. Go see if Noah is still here. He will know what to do."
Gemma nodded and raced out of the room. She entered the ballroom and found Noah talking to another gentleman she didn't know. She hurried over to his side and tapped him anxiously on the shoulder.
"Oh Gemma, there you are. I wondered where you and Liam disappeared to."
"I need your help. Liam, he is in a room." Gemma spoke rapidly and in short bursts. "The library I think. My cousin attacked us."
"Say no more. Show me where to go."
"No, you need to get the constable. Alfie is subdued for now, but if we let him go this could happen again."
"I will send someone to get them and then we will go back and help Liam. Is that okay with you?" Noah asked.
"Yes, but please hurry."
Noah walked off in the opposite direction and spoke to one of the servants. Gemma watched as the servant nodded and then took off to follow his directions. Noah returned to her side after the servant left to do his bidding.
"All right, Gemma, take me to where your husband is waiting."
"Follow me."
She led him to the room and when they entered, she saw her cousin was still unconscious. Liam held the pistol in his hand and kept a close eye on the fallen man, a grim look on his face.
"Gemma tells me you two were in a spot of trouble and here I thought you were off to a more pleasurable evening."
"It started out that way" Liam smiled. "But then it went to hell pretty fast."
"I sent a servant to get the constable. They should be here shortly to arrest the man. Why did he attack the two of you?"
"He wanted to kill Liam so he could get his hands on my money," Gemma said.
"Greedy bastard," Noah said in a scathing tone.
"Broke. He is bleeding debt and needed it to get solvent again. Before I married Gemma, he planned on marrying her to get his hands on her money. I thwarted his plans, and he decided I needed to die because of it."
"I see. Well, it looks like money is going to be the least of his worries soon."
They sat in that room for almost an hour before the constable arrived. He asked a bunch of questions and determined that Alfie needed to be arrested. After a time, he would go on trial and most likely be sentenced to prison or sent to a penal colony to serve out his sentence. It didn't matter to Gemma as long as she never had to lay eyes on him again. This was one experience she never wanted to live again.
"Can we go home now, Liam?"
"Yes. I think it is time we went home where I know I can keep you safe. At least we know he won't be bothering us ever again."
"That is a small comfort right now. I haven't exactly stopped shaking from the whole experience."
"In time it will get easier. Don't expect it to happen overnight though. I need to go talk to Noah for a quick minute and then we will leave."
Gemma watched as Liam walked over and talked to his friend. Noah nodded and turned back to talk to the constable.
"What did you ask him?"
"If he could take over here so I can take my wife home."
"I take it he said yes."
She certainly hoped she'd read the situation correctly. Gemma didn't ever want to lay eyes on her cousin again. All she wanted was to curl up in Liam's arms and wrap up in his warmth. He made her feel so protected, almost loved. For now it was enough, it had to be. She wouldn't give Liam up without a fight.
"He did indeed. He also said I owed him and to expect to pay up at that dinner party you planned."
Gemma smiled, in all of the chaos she had forgotten about her dinner party. She also made a decision when she saw Liam lying on the floor bleeding from the head wound Alfie had inflicted him. She would tell him she loved him and never stopped. It was time for her heart and mind to quit fighting.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Liam helped Gemma into their carriage. The entire way out of the Silverton Ball Gemma didn’t utter a word. Her face was devoid of all color but her green eyes held the luminosity of a dull jewel. Liam didn’t know what to do to shake her out of this state of numbness.
When he had regained consciousness and saw Alfie brandishing a pistol in her general direction his heart had stopped beating for a second. It had taken him longer than he would have liked to regain his equilibrium. If not for her quick thinking, he might not have made it out of the situation alive. The bullet had grazed him, leaving a streak of blood on his arm as it passed by and embedded itself into the wall behind him. Gemma had saved his life by striking her cousin with the fireplace iron.
"Everything will be all right. We just need to get you home." Liam tried to reassure her.
Gemma leaned her head against the side of the carriage and closed her eyes. Liam hoped she wasn't closing herself off to him. He needed her now more than ever. This fight for control they battled over, since they married a couple days ago, must end tonight. Gemma didn't trust that he could love her. He saw that now. She believed that he only married her to protect her from her cousin’s nefarious intentions. Now that Alfie would never be a problem again she could very well find a reason to bolt. Lily would always welcome her in South Carolina. Liam had to stop her before a plan formulated in her mind. Gemma couldn't leave him—he wouldn't allow it.
If she left, his heart would not recover from the loss. He was such a bloody fool. How could he have not realized sooner how much he loved her? Why had he been so damned stubborn? Gemma was his everything. Without her, his reason for being would be obliterated. He had to fix this mess once and for all. The path that must be taken was clear to him. It had always been obvious what must be done. He had only put off the inevitable. Tonight, once he had her safely in their home, he would make sure he’d tell her he loved her. When she was ready to accept him, he would show her exactly how much.
Once he spilled out all of the emotions welling up inside him, and if then she still wanted to leave him, he’d have to find a way to let her go—wait hell no, he wouldn't let her leave him. Liam couldn't believe he'd even considered giving in and stepping aside. He'd just keep pushing until she admitted she never stopped loving him. Liam refused to believe her love for him didn't still fill her heart. When you truly love a person, it doesn’t go away.
The carriage came to a complete stop. Liam looked out the windows and saw the outline of his townhouse directly in front of him. They had finally arrived home. The footman opened the door, and Liam stepped out. He reached his arms back in and picked Gemma up into his arms. She slumped her head on his shoulder and wrapped her arms around his neck. Her skirts dragged on the grown as he carried her up the steps and inside their home. He nodded at Pemberly as he walked inside.
Gemma was way too complacent. Why didn't she argue more? She wasn’t acting like her normal self. He had to get her to snap out of whatever world she'd retreated too. He needed his fiery Gemma with him.
"I don't want to be disturbed the rest of the night."
"I will see to it sir," Pemberly replied.
Still carrying his wife in his arms he walked up the stairs to his bedroom. He refused to be separated from her another night. From this night forward they would never be parted again. He pushed open his door and strolled over to his bed. He set her down on top of the bed and with extreme gentleness caressed her cheek.
"Please say something. I need to make sure you are okay," Liam pleaded with her.
Gemma looked into his eyes, and he noticed that at last the glassiness had started to abate and a little life had started to show in their depths. She raised her hands to cup his cheek inside her palm. Green eyes surveyed him while her other hand reached up and skimmed over his superficial wound.
"You could have died," she whispered. Her hands shook as she studied the blood staining his shirt. "Because of me. My cousin was going to murder you to get to me..."
"But I didn't. This is not your fault." Liam touched her cheeks with the palm of his hand, making her focus her eyes on his. "I'm here. I'm safe. Because of you. You're the bravest person I know. You fought him every step of the way."
"No, you're wrong because of me you were a target." Gemma shook her head. "Alfie never would have shot you otherwise. I had to do something to help. I kept him talking as long as I could. I said some things…"
"I know they were not true. You would never wish me dead," Liam reassured her.
"Do you? Really? I haven't exactly been nice to you the past couple of days. My heart hurt so much, and I reacted instead of stopping to think about what my words and actions might do to you. I'm so sorry."
"You have nothing to apologize for. Stop saying you are sorry. I'm not."
Tears fell from her eyes and trailed down her cheeks. Liam wiped them away with his fingertips. "Yes, I wish I could have avoided hurting you, but I wasn't ready for your love. I wish I had been, and we could have avoided this whole mess. If anyone should be sorry, it's me, but I can't be. Do you want to know why?"
"No. Yes. I don't know." Uncertainty shown through her eyes.
Liam laughed. "I will tell you anyway. I'm not sorry because as crazy as this path has been it led me to the exact place I was always meant to be. Right here with you. We will be stronger because of everything we have gone through. This means the rest should be easy or as easy as we make it. No matter what life throws in our path we can get through it as long as we stay together."
"How can you be so certain?"
Liam lifted her hand and placed a small kiss in her palm. He gazed into her eyes, attempting to pour all the emotion he felt into her. She needed to believe in his sincerity.
"Because I love you."
What he didn't say to her was that he believed she could still love him too. In that moment, it didn't matter if she didn’t say it back. He needed to let her know how much she meant to him. Her well-being and what she needed to get through this moment was his top priority. The time for them to stop and share how they each loved each other, and how much, could be saved for another day.
Liam cupped her face in both of his hands and placed a light kiss on her lips and stepped back from her. He held his hand out to her, and she looked up at him apprehensively. She appeared to be gauging his reactions and trying to determine if it was all real. Her head tilted to the side, and her lips opened as a small breath released from her lungs. She looked down to his hand and then back up to his face directly into his eyes. A small smile formed on her face as she placed her hand in his. He pulled her off the bed and into his embrace. He leaned down and captured her lips with his once again. Her arms slid up his chest and wrapped around his neck. The kiss deepened as they touched their tongues together, mimicking a dance. The beat of his heart thump faster inside his chest as he continued the kiss. Gemma's hands roamed to
his hair as she ran her fingers through them; pulling him closer as they each fought for control.
Liam pulled back and turned her around. With agile grace, he started to unpin her hair and pull it out of the braid so expertly weaved. Once every strand was loose he fanned out her sanguine curls over her back and shoulders. The silky strands were heaven on his fingertips. Pushing the strands aside, he placed small kisses along her shoulder to the base of her neck. With each kiss, he unlatched one of the hooks holding her dress together until it draped open revealing her corset. Liam pushed the dress down, and it pooled at her feet. He yanked at the laces of her corset until it loosened enough for him to remove it. He spun her back around to face him. She stood before him only wearing her chemise. Her face no longer pale, but flushed bright and rosy; her green eyes sparkled with desire and her pink tongue darted out and slid over her plump lips. She reached for him, and he wrapped his arms around her once more, needing to feel her in his arms.
Their lips met in mutual desire. Kissing and touching each other was the only thing that mattered to Liam at that moment. He had waited so long to have her in his arms. It had only been a short amount of time, but to him it had dragged on for an eternity. He lifted her up and her legs circled his waist. He walked them back over to the bed and sat her down on top of it. Gemma untied his cravat and yanked it off his neck, throwing it over his shoulder. With a wicked gleam in her eyes, she pulled his shirt up and ran her fingers across his chest. Liam groaned at the feel of her hands on his bare chest. He pushed her backward so that she lay on the bed and pulled his top over his head. The rest of his clothing followed soon afterward and he returned his attention back to his stunning wife. While he had been divesting himself of his clothing, she had removed hers as well. She lay on his bed in all her wondrous glory. For a brief moment, time stood still as his gaze took in the sight of his beautiful wife.