No. Oh, no.
Without thinking, she took a step away from him—would’ve backed off even further but he still had hold of her hands.
‘Jenna,’ James said quietly from behind her. ‘Remember what we talked about.’
She shouldn’t be shocked by David’s expression. He’d made it clear he still desired her.
Hell!
Today was her wedding day.
Tonight was her wedding night.
David would expect to be her lover again in a matter of hours.
Jenna’s molars ground together. Somehow, she’d convince him to wait a little longer. She had no desire to be this man’s lover—couldn’t even contemplate they’d ever been lovers.
He was good-looking enough—a head taller than she was, athletically built, good teeth … Oh dear God, she was looking at him as though she was about to buy a stallion. Any moment now she’d be sizing up his leg confirmation and seeing if he had a good, deep girth!
A giggle bubbled up from her throat and she raised her hand to her mouth as she fought to suppress inappropriate hilarity born of near hysteria. In the end she had to cover the giggle with a cough.
Fancy comparing her future husband to a horse!
A jolt of awareness flashed through her mind.
Where had those comparisons come from?
What did she know about a horse’s leg confirmation?
Something important teased at the edges of her brain and she shook her head slightly as she tried to unravel the tangle. Horses … leg confirmation … deep girth …
‘Are you okay, Jenna?’ A slight frown marred David’s forehead.
His words brought her back to the present. Her groom’s concern for her well-being was written clearly in his expression.
‘Fine,’ she whispered.
He seemed to genuinely care for her.
Why didn’t she feel anything for him?
‘Sorry about the delay,’ the rector announced as he came in with his glasses perched at the end of his nose and the service book in his hand. ‘Now …’
I can do this, Jenna told herself. I have to do this for the baby.
‘David and Jenna have come here today to be joined in Holy Matrimony,’ the rector announced to the congregation. ‘If any one of you can show just cause why they may not lawfully be married, you must now declare it.’
David’s hands tightened fractionally around hers.
Dread weighed down on her. Her ears strained in the hope she’d hear a protest. She looked half-expectantly and even half-hopefully at the sea of unfamiliar faces filling the church pews.
All eyes were trained on her.
Somebody save me.
Not a sound was uttered.
Her heart slowed, pumping the blood around her body sluggishly as everything in her deflated. She may as well have been heading to the gallows with no last minute reprieve.
Clearing his throat, the rector continued. ‘David, will you give yourself to Jenna to be her husband, to live with her according to God’s word? Will you love her, comfort her, honour and protect her, and forsaking all others, be faithful to her so long as you both shall live?’
‘I will.’
Dampness pricked at her upper lip.
Despair leached into every cell.
‘Jenna, will you give yourself to James, to be his wife …’
No! she screamed silently. But, what option did she have?
‘… to live with him according to God’s word?’
I can’t! Don’t ask it of me!
‘Stop!’ The word ricocheted around the small church, echoing off the stone walls. It killed the proceedings with the deadly effectiveness of an assassin’s bullet.
There was a collective gasp from all those present, including the rector.
David’s hands fell away from hers.
‘This wedding is not taking place!’
Chapter 2
The protest and declaration should’ve come from Jenna’s lips, but they hadn’t moved. In fact, dreading the moment when she’d have to say ‘I do’, her whole vocal tract had seized up.
Like everyone else in the church, Jenna turned towards the source of the commanding, masculine voice. Her heart gave a thundering jolt before slamming against her ribcage. Frozen to the spot, she was riveted by the incredibly handsome man who strode purposefully down the aisle towards them.
The impressive stranger glared at James and David like an angry, avenging, all-powerful god. His dominating presence was so consuming, she only vaguely noted that he was flanked by two men in police uniforms, and that a professional-looking middle-aged man and woman completed the group of five who hurried forward.
James cursed.
David let out a small inarticulate sound.
From the corner of her eye, Jenna saw Sally jump up from the front pew.
Jenna looked quickly from her step-brother’s expression of shock and anger, to her groom’s sudden pallor, and back to the stunning, dark-haired intruder.
What on earth was going on?
‘James!’ Sally cried out. ‘Stop him!’
James sent his wife a withering look. ‘Be quiet.’
The stranger stopped directly in front of Jenna, a mere arm’s length away. Her eyes were ensnared in the possessiveness of his steel-blue gaze. No longer were his eyes angry but they still burned beneath his dark brows with a fierce, unidentifiable emotion.
Jenna was held captive by the current passing between them. It was potent in its charge, burning through her and searing all the way to the juncture of her thighs. Small charged particles tingled through her, creating the most unusual sensations in places hidden from view.
Unusual or familiar sensations?
There was no time to delve into the thought and she tried to squash the violent tug of attraction which threatened to throw her off balance.
Growing increasingly discomforted, she tore her gaze from his, only to find her attention caught by sensually carved lips that were set in a grim line of determination yet promised to deliver heaven to any woman he kissed.
What are you thinking? her conscience demanded. You’re about to marry the father of your child and you’re lusting after a stranger.
‘Sergeant Williams, Constable Norris. What is the meaning of this?’ the rector demanded in a tone of baffled outrage.
‘Our apologies, Rector,’ the more senior ranked officer said. ‘We’re here on official police business.’
‘You’re interrupting a wedding!’ James protested.
‘Jenna.’
Her heart kicked hard against her ribs the second the stranger uttered her name. The way he said it was deeply intimate, the warmth in his eyes possessive.
Had she heard his voice before?
Her eyes focused on his lips as he spoke again. ‘You can’t marry him, Jen.’
Something compelled her to take a step towards him.
‘I can’t?’ she asked breathily as she fell under his spell.
His features softened and so did his voice. ‘You know you can’t.’
He was right.
In those seconds, she was drawn to him as though he was her saviour. She found she wanted to yield completely to his magnetism—to move ever closer into the protective aura he projected.
‘Don’t listen to him, Jenna,’ James burst out.
Jenna frowned. The stranger’s eyes held a promise she didn’t understand and doubt struck.
Who was he to tell her she couldn’t marry the father of the baby she carried when this marriage would secure the baby’s future?
The steel-blue eyes zeroed in on hers and telegraphed an unfathomable message with such utter force of will, her diaphragm seized for several seconds.
‘Who are you, sir?’ The rector’s demand weakened the potency of the current.
Who are you, why are you here, and what other option do I have? Jenna begged to ask.
As the commanding man turned to the rector, some of the tension left Jenna’s shoulders.
/> ‘Max Bennett.’
The name meant nothing to her.
‘Mr Bennett, why are you bursting into God’s house and interrupting this ceremony of Holy Matrimony?’ Indignation in every syllable, the rector’s words were more admonishment than question. Without waiting for a reply, the elderly man turned to the police officers and he chastened them as though he’d known them since they were altar boys. ‘Why are you two allowing this intrusion?’
‘Constable Norris and I need to take Mr and Mrs Mendles, and Mr Curtain to the station for questioning.’ The burly sergeant’s announcement was met by a ripple of shock through the assembled guests before a burst of conversation buzzed throughout the church.
‘No,’ James grated. ‘Whatever he’s told you is all lies.’
The blood pooled in Jenna’s calves making her legs heavy and her head light. ‘I don’t understand.’
‘Right now?’ the rector asked pointedly. ‘Can’t this wait?’
‘I’m afraid not, Rector,’ the sergeant replied. ‘This involves matters of fraud, collusion and deception which impact directly on this wedding ceremony.’ Turning to Jenna he said, ‘Miss Sinclair, we’ll also need to speak to you at some point.’
‘Utter fabricated rubbish!’ James exploded.
Fraud?
Deception?
What was the officer talking about?
The fog of confusion assumed pea-soup proportions as it settled over Jenna’s thought processes.
The conversation from the guests reached a crescendo and she raised one hand to her temple, yearning for silence so she could process the drama unfolding around her.
Above the chatter, James’ voice rang out as he pointed to Max Bennett. ‘This man is not to be trusted.’
Sudden hush fell again in the church.
Uncertainty made Jenna edge closer to her trusted family members.
‘That’s right,’ Sally put in. ‘Max Bennett isn’t to be believed.’
‘He’s a fortune hunter who’s been pursuing my sister for years with the intention of securing her inheritance.’
‘Inheritance?’ The word stopped Jenna in her tracks and she swung towards her step-brother. ‘What are you talking about, James?’
A ruddy hue stained James’ cheeks and he looked at her aghast as though he regretted his outburst.
‘You’re an heiress, Jenna,’ the man named Max told her. ‘You inherited a fortune.’
‘What?’ A searing pain tore through her brain like a bolt of lightning and she raised one hand to press at her forehead as she tried to make sense of his claim. The man was mistaken. Jenna was currently unemployed and stone-broke. If not for her step-brother, she’d be homeless.
But it made no sense for James to accuse Max Bennett of being a fortune hunter.
‘Careful, Mr Bennett. Remember what we discussed.’ It was the tall, blonde woman in the group of newcomers who gave the warning.
Jenna’s forehead pinched as her confusion magnified. ‘James? Why would he think I’m wealthy?’
‘Your step-brother has been acting as your power of attorney without your knowledge. Recently, he had you sign papers transferring your trust fund into his name so he could live off your inheritance,’ Max Bennett claimed.
‘No!’ It couldn’t be true. The room spun around her as her world as she knew it tilted on its axis and was in danger of veering out of orbit. ‘You’re wrong,’ Jenna told the man shakily.
He had to be wrong. James and Sally were her family. As far as she knew, they were the only family she had.
But even as she made the denial, the skin across her chest pricked and the muscles in her neck and shoulders strained. James had insisted she sign some papers the day after she’d awakened in the hospital bed. It’d been right at a time when her head had been thumping and she could barely see straight.
He’d nagged and hassled her telling her they were discharge papers. He’d said he wanted to get her out of the hospital as quickly as possible to aid in her recovery. Caring about very little at that point, she’d ended up signing the papers so he’d let her go back to sleep.
Doubt stretched every nerve as she pinned her gaze on the one who was so eager for her to marry. ‘Tell him he’s wrong, James.’
‘Yes, why don’t you tell us all, James,’ Max Bennett ordered as he sent her step-brother a deathly stare. ‘I suggest you tell the truth because I have all the evidence to prove you’ve been siphoning the funds and not acting in Jenna’s interests.’
James drew himself up to his full six feet two inches, but still didn’t match the height of the man who made the incredible allegations. ‘The truth,’ he said with emphasis, ‘is that I’ve been protecting Jenna from fortune hunters like you, Bennett.’
Fortune hunters? The reference slammed into her once more. Dear God, did it mean she really was an heiress?
The pressure in her temples tightened and she wished she could tap into her buried memories.
‘No more lies, James.’ Even though he didn’t raise his voice, Max’s every word carried authority and challenge. He reached out and placed his hands on Jenna’s bare shoulders while David stood motionless and unprotesting, his complexion bleached of all colour.
The heat of Max’s palms seared her skin. His hands gave her shoulders a quick, reassuring squeeze and his touch delivered the security she’d searched for—a sense she’d reached a safe harbour and was anchored to something solid after being tossed about on treacherous, stormy seas for as long as she could remember. She was almost afraid to breathe in case the link was broken and she was cast adrift once more.
Instinct urged her to step even closer into his embrace—to take shelter from everyone and everything in the protectiveness of his arms. It was perplexing to have such a strong sense of rightness in a world where she’d been in unnavigable waters.
The steel-blue of his eyes grew a deeper blue and for a second a tremor passed through his hands. She watched in fascination as the strong column of his neck worked up and down in a hard swallow. Even not knowing him, she sensed his struggle to hold himself together. His internal battle struck her as totally alien to the confidence he’d displayed until now.
‘Jenna, prior to your accident you agreed to become my wife. I know you don’t remember, but I’m telling you the truth. We were engaged to be married.’
An involuntary little whimper escaped her dry throat. Light flashed behind her eyes.
Acute pain speared once more through her head.
Frustration bit deep and uncertainty slithered down her spine.
Damping down her physical responses to him, she forced herself to master her reactions and summoned every bit of strength she could find to build up a self-protective barrier as she faced the second man in weeks who’d claimed to be her fiancé.
Judging from her undeniably strong and positive reaction to Max Bennett, it was much more likely he was telling the truth than David had been, but how could she know for sure?
Over the growing commotion all around the church, she spoke only loudly enough for him to hear. ‘I don’t recognise you.’
His head jerked back like she’d slapped him with her words. His hands fell away from her shoulders and she immediately knew a sense of loss at the removal of his touch. Strangely, his pain lanced through her as though their souls were truly joined.
‘Don’t believe anything he says,’ came Sally’s strident voice. ‘He’s always been after the Sinclair fortune.’
Jenna’s jaw sagged as Sally confirmed there was wealth. Swinging away from Max to confront her sister-in-law, all the resentment she’d suppressed at Sally’s ridiculous wedding preparations came hurtling to the fore. ‘You told me I was penniless.’
‘I’m sure they had every intention of making you so,’ Max Bennett put in.
Jenna looked at the sergeant. ‘Is this true?’ Surely a member of the police force could be trusted. ‘Am I wealthy and has he—’ she pointed to James, ‘—been lying to me and ripping me off?
’
‘It’s public knowledge that you inherited a fortune, Miss Sinclair,’ the sergeant replied. ‘Mr Bennett has presented us with some evidence regarding your finances and Mr Mendles’ use of them. That’s why we’re here to ask questions. That and the allegation that you’ve been coerced into this marriage.’
She squeezed her eyelids shut. What was the truth and what had been lies?
Max Bennett claimed they were to be married yet the day after she’d opened her eyes in the hospital bed and failed to recognise James or Sally, James told her she’d been engaged to be married to David. Sally had said she’d loved David for years.
Never for a second had she suspected James and Sally had reason to lie to her.
‘James is my step-brother?’ Was that much even true?
‘Yes,’ Max confirmed.
The reality of what was taking place hit her hard.
I was told I was broke, now I’m being told I’m an heiress and the one person I thought I could trust has been stealing from me.
How her heart managed to keep pumping the blood around her body she’d never know, because the vital organ cramped so hard she’d swear it would never beat again.
The only three people in her life—the three people she’d trusted—had lied to her.
God, she’d almost married a man she didn’t want to marry!
‘You’re telling me … It can’t be true.’ Her stomach lurched.
James, Sally and her supposed fiancé had been the only truth she’d known. If she couldn’t believe what they’d told her where did it leave her?
‘It’s true.’ There was a mixture of sorrow and desperation etched into Max’s features. ‘These last five weeks I’ve been searching for you and they hid you here in Stow-on-the-Wold, hoping I’d never find you.’ There was despair and heartache in the way his shoulders suddenly rounded. ‘Please, Jen—’
‘Don’t listen to him, Jenna,’ James ordered as Max’s voice broke under the weight of obvious strain.
‘Be quiet!’ Jenna snapped at her step-brother. She was tired of being ordered around by him—tired of being told about her past and having to accept whatever she was told as gospel fact even when nothing James and Sally said resonated as the truth. She was tired of being made feel as if she was a whingeing child who didn’t know her own mind and wasn’t capable of making her own decisions.
Seduced by the Stranger (Billionaires & Babies, #2) Page 2
