“I’m sorry. I wronged you. William told me of all you did to help him. I owed you my thanks, and instead, I punished you.” Even to him, his words sounded hollow.
She nodded, acknowledging his apology, then pulled away and resumed her packing, her hands graceful even in this.
Hopelessness filled him, for he could see he hadn’t reached her. How could he make things right? “I’d be honored to escort you home,” he offered, for he could see that was where she was going. Staverton was not her home, just as the tapestry design had shown. He wished things were different – that he could offer her comfort, and she’d accept it. But, nay, that would be a mistake. Her departure was for the best. Her best.
She looked up in surprise, pausing in her quick, efficient movements. “You will?” Her voice trembled, and at last he could see the emotion she’d buried, rising to the surface.
“’Tis the least I can do, is it not?” he asked, his tone low.
“Damn you.”
Nicholas frowned, not certain he’d heard her. “What?”
Elizabeth’s anger pushed back her tears. She’d hoped so long for this moment when Nicholas would at last realize she’d meant William no harm and apologize. But never had she pictured it like this. “You heard me. Damn you!”
“I don’t understand – ”
“Well, by all means, let me explain.” Elizabeth gestured broadly with her hand, allowing her rage to roll out. “You offer me an apology, but nothing more.”
The puzzled expression on Nicholas’s face would’ve been comical under different circumstances. “If there is something more I could do – ”
“There is, but you refuse to do it!” She waited a long moment, but it was clear that what she wanted had not crossed his mind. “Nicholas, we are married, whether you like it or not. Why can’t we have a marriage in truth?”
He stepped back, his blue eyes chilling her to the bone. “That is not possible.”
She laughed, but it was not a merry sound. “William made all sorts of excuses for you, but I told him you wouldn’t explain anything to me.”
“There is nothing to explain.”
The last crumb of hope that she’d sworn she didn’t have fell away, leaving an empty void. “As you wish, my lord.” She turned away for she could no longer bear to look at him. “I would appreciate some sort of escort home.”
“I’ll ready some men and horses.” Nicholas shut the door quietly behind him, apparently eager to be rid of her.
Hurt beyond words, Elizabeth sank down onto the bed. Sobs escaped though she thought she had no more tears to shed. She was leaving, going home, and he’d offered her nothing other than to escort her there.
Damn him!
Chapter Twenty-Five
Elizabeth hurried down the stairs, her cloak fluttering behind her, determined to discover why they were not yet ready to depart. The sooner they left, the better. She knew preparations had to be made, horses readied, food gathered, and orders given for Nicholas’s absence, but mid-day had passed and still they hadn’t proceeded toward Amberley.
Her steps faltered as she entered the hall, surprised to see they had visitors.
An attractive, older couple greeted Nicholas. The absolute delight on Nicholas’s face made her heart twist. His blue eyes lit with laughter as he hugged the woman tightly, then did the same with the man along with a few slaps on the back. Never had she seen him look so happy with none of the somber reserve he wore like a cloak.
Reluctant to interrupt the joyful reunion, Elizabeth halted, wondering if she should return to her chamber. Before she could retreat, the woman caught sight of her.
“Oh,” she said to Nicholas, her hand on his arm. “I didn’t realize you had a guest.” The slender woman was lovely with dark hair and amber eyes that examined Elizabeth with interest. Her deep red kirtle turned her skin alabaster while fine lines marked her eyes.
The man turned to look at Elizabeth as well, his gaze openly curious. His dark blue tunic set off his gray-blue eyes and sandy brown hair sprinkled with white. He cut a fine figure for a man his age.
Elizabeth looked at Nicholas, unsure how to respond at being called a guest. Would he introduce her as his wife at last?
Nicholas cleared his throat. “Ah...as I mentioned, much has happened in your absence. May I introduce Lady Elizabeth, my wife.”
The woman froze with a gasp. She studied Elizabeth from head to foot, but her face revealed nothing of what she found.
A lift of a brow was the only reaction from the man. “Wife, you say?” he asked, as though Nicholas had announced nothing more than the addition of a new horse to his stables.
Nicholas gestured toward the couple. “My mother, Lady Alyna, and my father, Lord Royce de Bremont.”
His parents? Oh, dear. Uncertain what else to do, Elizabeth curtsied. “How lovely to meet you,” she murmured.
Lady Alyna frowned as she drew near Elizabeth. “A wife, but I thought – ” She spun to face Nicholas. “You always insisted you would never – ”
“Wonderful news.” Lord Royce patted Nicholas on the shoulder before his wife could say anything more. “Isn’t it wonderful, my dear?”
“Indeed.” Lady Alyna turned back to stare at Elizabeth again, her brow creased. “Truly...wonderful.”
Decidedly uncomfortable, Elizabeth looked at Nicholas, wondering if he would tell them that she was soon leaving. Perhaps that would put their mind at ease.
As Elizabeth opened her mouth to explain, Lady Alyna stepped forward and took her hand. “Please forgive me.” Her unusual amber eyes held Elizabeth’s with a sincerity that could not be doubted. Her frown eased as a smile graced her lips, warming the depths of those eyes. “We are thrilled to meet you. Absolutely delighted.”
Feeling a fraud, Elizabeth glared at Nicholas. Why didn’t he tell them? Explain that their marriage was a farce? That he’d married her out of revenge and nothing more?
Lady Alyna hugged her, much to Elizabeth’s surprise. Her smile brightened as she drew back to study Elizabeth again.
“Welcome to our family.” Lord Royce took her hand and bowed.
“Thank you,” Elizabeth said.
“We’ve just received word that Elizabeth’s father is ill, so we are traveling to her home to visit him,” Nicholas said.
“I’m terribly sorry to hear that,” Lady Alyna said. “I hope it’s nothing serious.”
“I’ll feel better once I see him for myself. Would you prefer I go to Amberley without you?” she asked Nicholas.
“Nay. I will accompany you,” Nicholas insisted.
“Very well.” Anxious to divert the conversation from herself, she offered, “William will be delighted you’re here. I’m certain your presence will speed his recovery.”
Lady Alyna chuckled and shared a warm look with her husband. “I’m sure he’ll do all he can to mend if only to escape our attentions.”
Lord Royce grasped his wife’s hand and tucked it under his elbow with a smile. “A few days with us at his bedside will have him up and around soon.”
The warm, loving look they shared put an unexpected lump in Elizabeth’s throat. The couple obviously shared a deep love for each other despite the many years they’d been married. Their affection was a sharp contrast to her and Nicholas’s relationship, if it could be called that.
“I’m very anxious to see William,” Lady Alyna said. “We’ve been so worried since we received your message. Might I visit with him?”
“Of course,” Elizabeth answered, then glanced at Nicholas in askance. It wasn’t really her place to act as lady of this keep. He nodded, so she asked, “May I show you to his chamber?”
“Please,” Lady Alyna agreed. “Royce, are you coming?”
“I’ll be along in a moment, after I have a word with Nicholas.”
A muscle twitched in Nicholas’s jaw. Elizabeth almost wished she could stay to hear what his father had to say to him. But with a smile at Lady Alyna, she gestured toward the stair
s. “Shall we?”
Nicholas’s heart pounded as he watched Elizabeth walk away with his mother. The scene was one he’d never imagined. His mother looped her arm through Elizabeth’s as they mounted the stairs, chatting as though old friends.
He swallowed hard, wishing with all his heart it was true. That their marriage was real. That Elizabeth and his mother were friends.
“Would you care to explain what the hell is going on?” Royce asked.
“Which part?” Nicholas asked, unable to hide his sarcasm. “The part where I almost killed William again or the part where I married the woman who I thought was his enemy?”
His father looked nonplussed for a moment. “I would hear both.”
With a sigh, Nicholas sat at one of the long tables in the hall. Royce sat beside him, listening intently to the entire tale.
When Nicholas fell silent at last, Royce said, “You of all people must know that vengeance is a two-edged sword. I have shared my story with you and your brother on many occasions.”
“I remember. But in the heat of the moment, I felt I had no choice.”
“You can’t change the past. The question is, what are you going to do about the future?”
“I don’t know.” Nicholas couldn’t bring himself to say that he feared he’d lost his wife.
“How did she take the news of your second sight?”
Nicholas dropped his gaze, unable to meet his father’s eyes. “I have not told her.”
“Nicholas, she’s your wife. Do you think to keep it from her forever?”
“Nay. Our marriage will not last that long. I’m taking her to Amberley. I don’t believe she’ll return here with me.”
Royce leaned forward and put his hand on Nicholas’s shoulder. “I’ve told you this before, but it seems that you need to hear it again. What you see in your visions is not your fault. What happens afterward is not your fault. You would never cause harm to William and I know that.”
Nicholas glanced around the hall, making certain no one would overhear them. “If I tell Elizabeth, she’ll think me a monster. She’ll think – ”
“You don’t know that. You use your visions to keep people at a distance, afraid to trust anyone for fear of being hurt. But if you never take risks, you might never find love. Take the second sight and make it yours, Nicholas. For better or worse, it’s a part of you, and once you come to terms with that I believe you’ll find peace.”
Nicholas weighed his father’s words, wishing he had the courage to do as he suggested.
“I may have only just met her,” Royce continued, “but Elizabeth seems like a lady worth fighting for.”
Doubt assailed Nicholas. In truth, he no longer knew what was the right thing to do. He wanted what was best for Elizabeth, but did that mean he set her free or did he find a way to keep her?
*
Darkness fell quicker than Nicholas would’ve liked as the small party made their way along the narrow road through the thick woods. Stephen and Marcus rode in front with Elizabeth and Douglas riding behind them. Nicholas and John took up the rear. Even with four men accompanying them, Nicholas was uneasy. Danger lurked around every bend, and now, with night upon them, the risk increased threefold.
His mother and father’s arrival had delayed their departure from Staverton, but he was pleased they’d come. Saying goodbye to them and William had been difficult though only a few days would pass while he escorted Elizabeth home, saw her settled, then returned.
Without her.
Nicholas tried to ignore the ache in his chest the thought brought. He refused to think of the long, empty days that stretched ahead of him.
The only thing that required his attention was getting them to their destination safely. Though they’d made the long trek to Staverton without rest, he would not be such a fool this time.
He kicked his horse forward to speak with Elizabeth. “We need to find shelter for the night. There’s an inn not far from here.”
“Can’t we continue?” Even as Elizabeth spoke, she drew her cloak closer about her, shivering in the cool night air.
“I know you’re worried about your father, but the horses need rest, and this is a dangerous road at night. I took a terrible risk on the journey to Staverton, and I’m not taking the chance again.” Surely that was his true reason for stopping for the night. He hated to think he’d succumbed to the temptation of spending more time with her before he set her free.
She said nothing further, but looked around uneasily as though searching for the threat of which he spoke.
They continued down the road, then veered east on a narrow track along a ridge. Soon they came across a small village that boasted an inn, just as he remembered.
The Boar’s Head Inn was a two-story, wattle and daub structure where welcoming light glowed in the lower windows. The wooden sign hanging high above the front door boasted a smiling boar’s head on a platter and made the name of the inn quite clear even to those who could not read.
Nicholas dismounted and turned to help Elizabeth down.
“I’ll see to the horses, my lord,” John offered. He gathered the reins and headed toward the stable. The rest of the men followed, except for Stephen who remained with Nicholas and Elizabeth.
Nicholas held open the door of the inn for Elizabeth and stepped inside after her. The interior was dim and smoky. The press of warm bodies mingled with the scent of freshly baked bread. Long wooden tables and benches filled the room with a narrow path between. A cavernous hearth held a roaring fire that chased away the chill and cast flickering shadows over the large space.
Stephen made his way toward one of the tables and sat, keeping a watchful eye over things.
The innkeeper hurried forward when he caught sight of Nicholas and Elizabeth. “Greetings, my lord, my lady. Are you in need of lodging for the night?”
With little fuss and a few coins, Nicholas arranged for a room, a table by the fire, and food.
“Shouldn’t you have gotten separate rooms for us?” Elizabeth asked after the ruddy-faced innkeeper had taken his leave.
Nicholas looked around the inn. The long tables were filled with all sorts of people, mostly men, young and old, noblemen and peasants, fat and thin, some good and others most definitely evil. “I would fear for your safety if you stayed alone.”
Elizabeth’s gaze followed his, catching on a couple of the more unruly patrons who’d raised their cups in song, and she seemed to accept the wisdom of his decision.
He gestured toward a place at one of the tables where the innkeeper poured them goblets of wine. They settled on the benches before the fire as the stout man hurried back and forth from the kitchen, bringing them bread, cheese, and meat tiles. A headache threatened Nicholas, and he rubbed his temple to ease the dull pain that plagued him. He could only hope a vision wouldn’t follow, not in front of Elizabeth. The chance of hiding another one from his intelligent wife was unlikely.
The rest of their party settled in nearby at Stephen’s table and kept a watchful eye on the patrons, some of whom were becoming boisterous as the night grew long.
Elizabeth nibbled and sipped as though she merely went through the motions. She stared at the fire, obviously tired. The tension around her eyes made Nicholas certain she worried about her father. She said little, making no effort to converse with him, her thoughts well hidden. Yet what had he expected after all that had passed?
“Your mother is very kind,” she said after a long silence.
“Yes, she is,” he agreed. He waited, but she said nothing more. “You should eat more,” he suggested.
She looked up, startled by his comment. “I’m not hungry.”
“Perhaps not now, but you’ll wake up in the middle of the night famished. Venturing to the kitchen here would not be wise.”
Now he had her full attention. “I don’t understand you.”
“You seem to have a habit of not eating at meal times.” He shrugged, irritated that he’d brought up the subjec
t.
“Why would you worry about my hunger when
you – ” She shook her head as though a discussion on the subject would be pointless. “You make no sense.”
He nearly snorted. If she only knew the full story – that a part of him wanted nothing more than to see to her every need and desire, while another part hid in disgrace and shame. She would find him crazed for certain.
They finished the meal in silence. Nicholas was in no hurry to retire to their room where he’d have nothing to look at or think of other than her. But when Elizabeth yawned, he knew he could wait no longer. He stood. “Shall we?”
She rose with her familiar grace and led the way up the stairs, her hips swaying before him. Nicholas directed her toward the room the innkeeper had described at the back of the building. The chamber was small, but clean, with a rather narrow bed against one wall. A fire burned low in the hearth with two chairs before it.
Elizabeth glanced at the bed, but said nothing as she walked through the room to look out the open window. Nicholas checked to make sure the door locked properly, then followed. From over her shoulder, he saw the torch-lit courtyard below with a well in the center and the stables nearby.
She took a step back and gasped as she bumped against him. He reached out to steady her, his hands resting on her arms. With a nervous glance over her shoulder at him, she moved to the fire, took off her cloak, and laid it in the chair.
As he watched her, he couldn’t help but wonder if she already thought him such a monster that she startled when he was near. The idea made him want to apologize all over again, to try harder to fix what he’d broken so terribly.
A knock sounded at the door and saved him from making any rash moves. He opened it with caution.
“Greetings, my lord.” A maid, carrying a pitcher of water and a basin with cloths, dipped a quick curtsey. “The innkeep sent me with some things for your lady.”
Nicholas opened the door wider so she could enter.
As the maid greeted Elizabeth and began to chat amiably, Nicholas knew it was time to take his leave so his wife could prepare for bed. The last thing he wanted to do was watch her disrobe. He scoffed at himself. In truth, he’d enjoy nothing more than just that. Watching her remove her clothes with the light of the fire turning her alabaster curves to – He drew back his rampant thoughts before the evidence of his arousal became too obvious. Thoroughly annoyed with himself, he decided to find some way to cool down both his thoughts and his body.
Vengeance 02 - Trust In Me Page 25