Devoted to the Spanish Duke

by Sasha Cottman

  Taking Maria’s hand in his, Lisandro shifted and turned to face her. “What is this really about, Maria? You know you can trust me.”

  I don’t want our time together to end.

  Maria shrugged, unwilling to give voice to her private thoughts. She put her cup of wine to her lips and took a long, deep drink. Hopefully the alcohol would soon have its usual effect and dull her senses. “I’m sorry. I am just unsettled at this time of night. Sleeping below is always a test of my nerves.”

  Lisandro studied her for the longest time before finally turning away. The expression on his face told Maria everything she needed to know about what he really thought of her last comment. He didn’t believe her in the slightest.

  She paused, summoning up her courage. “No, that is not all. I just find myself valuing these moments when we are together.”

  When their gazes met once more, there was a sparkle in Lisandro’s eyes. The soft, playful smile on his lips had her heart skipping a beat. “I like spending time with you, Maria. I like it very much.”

  “But you barely know me,” she replied.

  He nodded. “Then tell me more about yourself. For instance, what was happening in your life just before you were kidnapped? Diego mentioned the Count of Bera.”

  Maria sighed; she had done her best not to think about the arranged marriage her father had been trying to negotiate with the Count. It was an odd thing for Lisandro to bring up, but it sparked hope in her heart. Lisandro had been thinking about her and who she was going to marry.

  “When we were in Zarautz, my father and Don Delgado Grandes were in discussion about a possible betrothal between him and me. That’s where they were when I went for my ill-fated walk on the beach.”

  “And are you looking forward to this union? I mean, Don Delgado is someone with influence in Spain. He is a close confidante of King Ferdinand. I expect that in the years to come he will become a powerful man,” he replied.

  I don’t want to marry for power. I want to marry for love.

  “I am not particularly interested in marrying Don Delgado. To my mind, he is a lesser man than my father . . . and yourself. You are both concerned with your estates and your people, while he seems only motivated by money and influence,” she said.

  The longer the negotiations over the betrothal dragged on, the happier she was. The Count of Bera’s stipulations for Maria’s dowry were outrageous—almost tantamount to what the kidnappers had asked for in their demands for her release.

  Her father might wish his daughter to marry well, but he would most certainly not bankrupt himself in the process.

  Especially now that he has already paid a goodly sum of money to see me released, only to have it fail.

  “So, what will happen when you return home to Castle Villabona? Do you think the marriage will go ahead?” he asked.

  If she had not been stolen away from her family and country, then perhaps in time Maria might have reconciled herself to a life of being the Countess of Bera. But the past six or so weeks had changed the way she viewed many things and what she wanted for her future.

  If there was a chance that she and Lisandro might be together; if she could win his heart, she would take it.

  “Considering that the betrothal negotiations have been going on for months with no sign of agreement in sight, I think the chances of me ever marrying Don Delgado are now slim,” she replied.

  “And if your father continues to remain out of favor with the king, I expect you will soon become less of an attractive prospect in the Count’s mind,” he said.

  Maria narrowed her eyes at him. No woman liked to be told she wasn’t attractive, no matter the context under which it was noted. Lisandro had the good grace, or sense, to flinch.

  “I don’t mean you are unattractive, Maria—far from it. You are a stunningly beautiful woman. Why else would I have tried to make your acquaintance at the wedding celebrations?”

  She let him stew in his discomfort for just a moment before offering a forgiving nod.

  “Could Don Delgado possibly have been behind the kidnapping? He was dragging the betrothal negotiations out.” If he was seeking to curry favor with the king, punishing the Duke of Villabona might be a good way.

  “No. Don Delgado is not that sort of man. He would think such a thing beneath him. I do, however, think that hurting your family was the reason for your abduction. If you disappear, then it serves as a potent warning to others who may seek to take a stand against King Ferdinand,” he replied.

  Lisandro had promised to speak about her father once they were on the boat. Maria was keen to know what information he had in his possession. “Why has the king shut the door on my father?”

  A long and uncomfortable silence followed.

  “Maria, we are still not safe; and I won’t tell you all that I know just in case you fall into the hands of men who might seek to interrogate you. What I can say is that your father has been working with others to restore the constitution that Ferdinand rejected and took away when he came back to power. The king doesn’t wish to publicly denounce him for fear of stoking the fires of resistance.”

  “Which is why he seeks to strike at his enemies through surreptitious means, such as having their daughters abducted,” she replied.

  Unmasking the people who had stolen her was the only way to show the king that he couldn’t strike out at his subjects with impunity and not run the risk of it coming back to hurt him.

  “Men such as the Count of Bera will seek to step into the void created by your father’s removal from the royal court.”

  Perhaps that’s the real reason why Juan Delgado Grandes was dragging his heels at settling on the terms of our betrothal.

  “I expect when I get home all discussions about me becoming the Countess of Bera will be off the table. Not only am I now the daughter of a man in royal disgrace, but Juan Delgado won’t want to marry me after I have spent so many weeks away from home in the company of other men,” she said.

  Their gazes met. In the fading light, his dark brown eyes took on the appearance of two pools of inky blackness. Yet behind them she could still see the warmth of this man. And his honesty. He smiled at her and murmured, “I cannot begin to tell you how much it pleases me that you won’t be marrying Don Delgado.”

  Chapter Nineteen

  After they had finished the bottle of wine, the two of them sat on the weather deck and gazed at the stars. “There is the Estrella Polar. See? It never moves from being due north,” said Lisandro.

  Maria didn’t reply. She had been quiet for the best part of an hour, and it worried him. She was a woman not normally taciturn in nature.

  “Maria, we will make it. Try not to worry about Spain or what will happen once we make land,” he said.

  She gave him a tight smile, then pushed back on the cargo crate and got to her feet. Her small nod was accompanied by an, “I expect you are right.”

  He rose, picking up both the empty bottle and their cups. “Come on. I think you need a good night’s sleep. In the morning, things will look better.”

  They headed down to the main deck.

  At the door to her tiny cabin, Maria stopped. Her gaze dropped to the floor and she toyed nervously with her Santiago pendant. Lisandro itched to take hold of her hand. Please look at me.

  “Buenas noches, Lisandro. I hope you sleep well,” she said, not meeting his gaze.

  Maria turned and went into her cabin, leaving a frustrated Lisandro staring at the door long after it had closed.

  He had been hoping to move their friendship forward this evening, to see if the seed of affection which had begun to grow in his heart was possibly shared by Maria. Instead, the night’s conversation had revolved around her father, her possible impending marriage, and the secret identity of those who had kidnapped her.

  Of course, she is worried about her family. Don’t be selfish in thinking only of yourself.

  Maria was also clearly concerned with what might lie ahead on the road from
Bilbao to Tolosa.

  Her mostly silent mood this past hour added to his growing doubt about his ability to win her heart. He had come to view Maria as more than just the woman he had helped rescue. She affected him on a deeper level than mere friendship. He wanted to take her to his home at Castle Tolosa—to make love to her, and for her to never want to leave.

  Listen to your own advice and try and get some sleep. See what the morning brings.

  After retrieving his blanket from the hammock, Lisandro sat and removed his boots. He hung them from a hook on a nearby upright post before swinging his legs over the side of the bed and lying down. The canvas sides gently wrapped around him, creating a makeshift cocoon. He was safe from tumbling out, but that was where his love affair with the hammock began and ended.

  All that swinging did not make for a comfortable sleep. His head didn’t particularly enjoy the constant rocking and rolling motion of the boat, and the hammock did little to settle him.

  He would much rather be back in his giant ancestral bed in Castle Tolosa. A bed which was ten feet across by nine feet deep. It was smaller than the famous Bed of Ware in England, but it was still magnificent. The only thing it currently lacked was a permanent female occupant, something he wished badly to address.

  I want her sleeping safely in my arms every night.

  During the nights on the sea thus far, Maria had displayed a habit for wandering out from her tiny space and pacing the floor for a time before going back to bed. She never spoke to him during those nocturnal journeys—she simply hummed softly to herself, muttered a few things under her breath and then retired to her cabin, not to be seen again until morning.

  I wonder if she will sleepwalk again tonight.

  Lisandro was on the verge of drifting off when the screaming began.

  “Nooooooo! Let go of me. Let go. Please!”

  He attempted to sit in a hurry, which only resulted in the hammock flipping and tossing him onto the floor. Lisandro landed with a heavy thud. “Oof.”

  “No. No. I want to go home. Get off me!”

  Lisandro scrambled to his feet. He yanked the cabin door open and dashed inside.

  Maria was sitting upright, her arms wrapped tightly around her body, her head bowed. All the while she was pleading with an invisible enemy to let her go.

  He raced over to the bed, and taking Maria by the shoulders, he tried to rouse her. “Maria. Wake up! Maria.”

  She whimpered. Her eyes opened as she lifted her head and stared at him, her gaze unfocused.

  “Maria, mi corazon, it’s me. Lisandro,” he said.

  Her hand gripped the side of his sleeve and she pulled him toward her. “I knew you would come, mi amor,” she whispered.

  He searched her eyes; a pang of disappointment speared his heart when it was clear she was not fully awake.

  Of course, she is still asleep. She is dreaming of her imaginary lover. Not me.

  For a second time, he gently shook Maria, trying to rouse her from her stupor.

  “Maria, wake up.” To his surprise, her grasp on his jacket tightened.

  “I am awake,” she replied.

  “Where are you?” he asked. It seemed the only sensible thing to ask, the one way he could be certain that she wasn’t simply answering him in her sleep.

  “I am on the Night Wind, sailing with you to Spain. I had a nightmare and you woke me with your words,” she replied.

  Taken aback, Lisandro sat on the edge of the bed. If Maria had been awake since he had spoken, then she would have heard him call her sweetheart. It also meant that she had been conscious when she used the words my love in answer to him.

  She lowered her head for a moment, but not quick enough to hide the blush which stained her cheeks.

  Lisandro was torn. He wanted her. The need to make her his had been slowly building over the past week. No. That’s not the truth. Be honest with yourself.

  The burning desire for her had flickered to life the first time he had set eyes on Maria at the wedding ball in Zarautz. And while the knowledge of who she was had forced him to take a step back, she had still been the woman who had haunted his dreams from that night on.

  He was also very much aware that she was a vulnerable young woman, far from home and in his care. To take advantage of her under the current circumstances went against all that he had been raised to accept as being honorable.

  And yet, even as he pulled back, she would not release him from her hold.

  The nightmare of being trapped in a tight space had gripped Maria with its icy fingers yet again. Since she was a child, she had suffered from these sleep terrors.

  Their roots went deep, firm in the memories of an accident that she couldn’t bring herself to ever forget. The only saving grace of them being that at the end, someone had always come to rescue her. Until now, that person had been Señor Perez, the man who had actually hauled her out of the bottom of the well on the Elizondo family estate.

  His place in her dream had now been taken by another—Lisandro. He had risked so much to free her from the kidnappers that of course it made sense that he should be the one to feature in her mind’s eye as her life’s hero.

  But even as she tore her gaze away from him, her cheeks burning, Maria knew her emotions were so very different when it came to Lisandro. She had fallen for him. The words “mi amor” had been spoken from her heart.

  “Maria. Look at me,” he said.

  She braced herself for the inevitable kind brush-off. For Lisandro to give her a speech about them being just traveling companions; and anything else that might grow between them would have to wait.

  I don’t want to hear that I am pushing things too fast. I know my heart.

  As she lifted her gaze to meet his, Maria offered Lisandro a gentle, forgiving smile. Whichever way he chose to let her down, she would understand.

  “You called me ‘my love.’ Did you realize that?” he said.

  “Yes. And I meant it. Though it’s alright, I—”

  Lisandro’s mouth slammed down on hers, silencing her. He swept her up into a deep kiss which spoke of longing and need. His lips worked over hers in their heated embrace.

  Oh, heaven. I never thought a kiss could be like this.

  Maria gripped the front of Lisandro’s jacket and pulled him closer, determined that he was not going to be holding the reins completely by himself. His tongue touched hers, then retreated. When he came seeking once more, she met him halfway and their tongues began a long, luxurious dance. She never wanted this to end.

  A sudden lurch of the ship had them drawing apart. Panting heavily, they sat staring into one another’s eyes. Maria was certain that the expression of surprised delight on Lisandro’s face was matched by her own.

  “Tell me if I have gone too far,” he said.

  “Not far enough,” she replied.

  Their lips met once more, and time simply drifted away. Maria held nothing back and her heart rejoiced as Lisandro wrapped her up in his arms and deepened the kiss.

  I want this, I want you.

  Whatever the future held for them; she would hold onto the memory of tonight.

  As the kiss ended, Lisandro whispered, “Te quiero siempre.”

  Maria nodded. If she had her way, his words would become reality. She would be his always.

  “Will you hold me until I fall asleep?” she asked.

  “Yes.”

  Under the blankets Lisandro wrapped Maria up in his arms. They snuggled together, and for the first time in many weeks, Maria finally enjoyed a deep and restful sleep.

  Chapter Twenty

  The Port of Bilbao, Northern Spain

  Ten days after leaving England.

  * * *

  Maria shivered. She wrapped her arms around herself, but she wasn’t cold. Her body thrummed with eagerness to be off the boat and on dry land.

  From the moment the Night Wind had sailed past Cape Higuer on the border of France and Spain, she had been unable to do anything but stand
on deck and stare across the water to the Spanish coast.

  Just after dawn, she had caught a glimpse of the conical, towering peak of Mount Serantes. They were nearly home.

  It was almost midday, and as the yacht sailed through the Port of Bilbao and into the estuary of the River Nervión, a hint of worry crept into her mind. It was some sixty miles from Bilbao to Tolosa. A lot could happen on the road in between the two cities.

  Lisandro came to stand alongside her, the wind whipping through his long hair. He normally tied it back with a leather thong but this morning he had not.

  Maria grinned up at him. “You are a fine, handsome specimen of Spanish nobility.” She put a hand to her mouth. She hadn’t intended to say those words aloud.

  “Thank you,” he said. He chuckled knowingly. “Never let it be said that you are not an open book, Maria de Elizondo.”

  His fingers touched hers and they locked hands. Whatever did happen to them over the next few days and afterwards, they were in this adventure together.

  “Where do you plan for us to stay in Bilbao?” she asked.

  “I know a place not far from Santiago Cathedral. I want to speak to the head priest as soon as possible about the men he dealt with for your ransom. Once I have done that, we will need to hire a coach and make preparations to leave tomorrow.”

  The plan was for them to leave Bilbao at first light and make for Eibar, some thirty miles away. It would take a huge effort on their part and a number of changes of horses, but the further away from Bilbao they could make it in one day the better. Talking to the priest was the only way they could get a clue as to who was behind Maria’s kidnapping, and if they still posed a threat to her here in Spain.

  “As soon as the boat docks, we will head to the inn. It is not the best accommodation that you might ever have had but it’s clean and out of the way. We should be safe there,” said Lisandro.

  “If they can manage a bath for me, I don’t mind where I sleep,” she replied. Days at sea had left her hair dry with salt and her skin badly in need of a good scrub.