A Reluctant Bride

by Michaels, Jess

  His eyes widened. “What you discovered? What does that mean?”

  She wrinkled her brow at his sharper tone. “Juliana and I spoke to her maid, that is all. We thought Nora might know something about this man Anne has linked herself to.”

  He took a long step toward her, his eyes wild for a moment. “And what did she say? What do you know about him and his motives?”

  She caught her breath. This reaction was not what she had expected, given how little he had seemed to care for Anne. He’d made no attempt to find her that Thomasina knew about. And yet this topic was obviously upsetting to him.

  “Nothing,” she said slowly. “Nora said he met her at the assembly we all attended at the beginning of our time in Harcourt, but little else.”

  His jaw relaxed a fraction and he nodded. “I see. Don’t you think, though, that it would have been better to leave talking to the maid to your father? Or even me?”

  “Why?” she asked. “Nora is terrified of my father, and for good reason since he would sack her without reference. And she doesn’t know you. Nora knows Juliana and me. We were the best ones to open the door.”

  Jasper was silent for what felt like forever. “I suppose you’re right. And I shouldn’t have expected that you would simply forget Anne’s troubles. You couldn’t. I know how deeply you care for her.”

  “But it was for naught anyway. There seems to be nothing to tell.” She shook her head. “And I cannot stop thinking that my sister could be in true danger. I-I feel it.”

  He was frustrated by this subject, that was clear. But he also seemed less angry than he had when she first entered the room.

  “I think I understand that,” he said slowly. “I was not as close to my brother as you are to your sisters. Perhaps because we did not share a mother, perhaps because our temperaments were so diametrically opposed. Perhaps a dozen other hurts and reasons over the decades kept us from such a strong relationship.”

  He sighed and her lips parted. This was a glimpse of answers to the questions she’d had in the gallery not half an hour before.

  “I’m sorry you weren’t close. It is one of the great joys of my life to be so bonded with Anne and Juliana,” she said.

  “I can see that. Feel it.” He shrugged. “Either way, I still worried about Solomon even though we weren’t always brotherly. Your attachment to Anne is far greater, so I must think your emotions about her disappearance are also more intense.”

  She nodded. “We’re triplets and the whispers about a stronger connection are, I think, true. Once when she fell off the rail of a roof and badly hurt her ankle, my own ankle hurt for days.”

  His eyes widened. “I have many questions about that, including why your sister was walking the rail of a roof.”

  “Our reckless Anne,” she answered with a smile. “Your scandal was not her first, I assure you.”

  There was a ghost of a smile on his face, but then he waved his hand. “Do you think you feel this physical connection to her still?”

  “Not as strongly since we’ve gotten older,” she admitted, trying to ignore the sadness that came along with that loss. “I know she is alive, though.”

  He drew back with a sharp intake of breath. “Of course she is alive, Thomasina!”

  She bent her head. “You could not be sure of that. We don’t know anything about the kind of man who would take her when her engagement was so public. I wish I could understand what kind of villain wouldn’t press his case in a more gentlemanly way. But I cannot fathom his motives or what she is enduring. Neither of us can because neither of us have laid eyes on the man to see what kind of person he is.”

  Jasper’s lips tightened. “I suppose that is correct.”

  She shivered. “I may be naïve, but the fact that my sister is in danger is no mystery. But I would know if she were dead. I know I would.”

  Her voice broke, and she reached back to support herself on the arm of the nearest chair as all her fear mobbed her for the first time. She bent her head, trying to control her breath, trying to tame that terror once more.

  He stepped forward and his arms folded around her. The fear dissipated with his touch and she sank into him, taking the strength he silently offered. The connection and the bond that she desired so greatly. She needed those things now, perhaps more than was prudent given the circumstances of their marriage.

  But that didn’t change the facts. Nor her feelings.

  “I’m sorry,” he whispered into her hair as he stroked his hands along her back. “I’m so sorry.”

  She lifted her gaze to his. “You needn’t be sorry. Anne’s foolish decisions have nothing to do with you. You were their victim, more even than me. It could make you unkind, but here you are…and you are more than generous to me.”

  His body tensed and he released her, pacing away as he ran a hand through his hair. “I doubt many others would accuse me of generosity.”

  There was a harshness to his tone now. Not directed at her, but himself. As if he needed punishment for something.

  “Well, perhaps they do not know you,” she said. “If they did, they couldn’t say anything less.”

  “You ought not see me so highly, Thomasina,” he muttered.

  She felt him pulling away, easing back toward his desk. If he reached it, she believed he would put her off and the conversation would end. She couldn’t let it happen. Not yet. “I must say that I fear what will happen when we go to London. It will be harder to track Anne from so far away.”

  He shook his head. “We are not going to London.”

  Relief flooded her, along with confusion. “No? But that was your plan when you were to marry my sister. You had not told me it changed.”

  He blinked. “I-I suppose I should have. Again, I apologize, I am not accustomed to another person’s life being so entangled with my own. My decisions impact more than just myself. I’m certain I will remember it eventually.”

  “What made you change your mind?” she asked. “My sister?”

  His lips thinned. “I won’t tell you that Anne’s disappearance doesn’t have something to do with it. As does some other unexpected business I discovered waiting for me here.”

  She wrinkled her brow. Although Jasper hadn’t written her sister off as their father had, he also didn’t seem driven to find Anne. But at least if they were here, she could continue to press her case.

  “My mother will return to London tomorrow as planned, though,” he said.

  She sucked in a breath. She would not be sorry to see the dowager go, though she wouldn’t say that to this man. “Apparently my father also intends to leave on the original schedule.”

  He jerked his face toward her. “What? He isn’t staying here to seek information on his daughter?”

  His shock was comforting at least. And humiliating since the answer wasn’t one she could pretend away. “No. I suppose he could do so in London.”

  “But you don’t think he will.”

  “No,” she admitted after a pause that seemed to last forever. “My sister has lost her value to him after this fiasco. If she has married this man, this stranger, he won’t gain anything until he knows the worth of him at some future point. And if she hasn’t—”

  She broke off with a shudder.

  He nodded. “Then she is ruined.”

  The words hung in the air between them.

  “Yes,” she whispered. “She is ruined whether by act or by implication. He won’t be able to match her well. That is all that matters to him. He may be forced to settle with his earl and call it a day.”

  His lips parted. “His lack of concern is sickening.” He pushed to his feet and paced the length of the room. “Have you spoken to him about staying?”

  She shook her head. “Juliana is doing that today. She has always been the one to manage him. Manage everyone, really.”

  “I will add my voice to that chorus,” he said. “At least he should be here, close by in case—”

  He cut himself off and s
he flinched, for the potential outcomes were clear. Painfully so.

  “In case she is found or returns of her own volition,” she said, filling in the space with the scenario that pained her least.

  “Of course,” he said. “But I cannot guarantee I will be able to keep him here. At any rate, we will remain in Harcourt Heights. Unless…”

  He trailed off and his dark gaze held hers a moment, seeking and analyzing in a way that made her feel utterly vulnerable to him.

  “Unless?” she whispered.

  “Unless you don’t want to stay,” he said softly. “Unless you want to return to London with your family. Do you want that?”

  Chapter 14

  Jasper held his breath as his question made its impact on his new bride. If Thomasina left, in some ways it would be easier. Her questions about Anne only caused him guilt. He had directly lied to her more than once. Every time, it felt like a weight in his chest, though he had his reasons. Protecting her was paramount. But he hated to see her utter terror about her sister’s safety. Terror he could not assuage, for she was right about the facts of the situation.

  But the idea of not having her here with him…it was physically painful. He wanted her at his side. He wanted to be at her side, just in case. Just in case the worst happened. She would need someone then. He knew what it was like not to have anyone in that horrible moment.

  She moved toward him, her hands shaking at her sides. “Whatever the past, Jasper, whatever the future, I am your wife now. I’m not leaving here until you do.”

  He stared at her, taken in and taken aback by her enormous strength. And by the support and connection she offered so effortlessly. She was suggesting she would be his partner. He hadn’t had one of those in…ever.

  He’d never had a partner, not truly.

  She drew in a long breath and reached for him. Her fingers threaded into his own and she lifted his hand to her chest as she gazed up at him. “I would share your troubles, my lord. If you let me.”

  In that moment he wanted just that. To share his troubles. To take hers. And if he did that, everything would change. Nothing could ever be the same after that. Would it be worth it? To dive headlong from this cliff and hope he would find wings before he dashed himself on dangerous rocks below?

  “Or ease them, at least,” she whispered, and lifted up on her tiptoes.

  He bent his head and met her halfway, their lips touching. He cupped her chin, tilting her face slightly to grant better access. She opened then, sighing into his mouth as he claimed her with his tongue.

  He knew what would happen next. It was obvious what would happen next, right here in his study, on his desk. But before he could have her in such a wanton, wicked way, there was a knock on the door.

  He blinked as he pulled away from her and stared toward the entrance. For a moment, his mind could not completely register what he should do next. Right now crossing to the door and locking it seemed the best course.

  But she didn’t allow that. With a smile up at him, she backed away, smoothing her skirts.

  “Come in,” she called out, with an almost wicked tone.

  The door opened and Reynolds stepped inside. Jasper jolted, for he had been expecting his man after the letter he received the prior night—and another very early that morning, but he’d somehow forgotten.

  Thomasina made him forget.

  Reynolds came to a halt at the entryway. “My lady, I didn’t know you were here. Many felicitations on your wedding.”

  Thomasina was blushing, but Jasper watched as she wiped from her face any embarrassment she might have felt at the interruption. She moved toward Reynolds with a pleasing smile and an outstretched hand.

  “Thank you, Mr. Reynolds. We were sorry you missed the ceremony, but I have it on good authority that Mrs. Jennings has saved a piece of the cake for you. Now it seems as though you may have some business with the earl, so I will leave you. Welcome home.” She turned toward Jasper. “And I hope you and I may…may continue with our conversation later today.”

  His eyes went wide at the implications in that statement, given so casually in front of his friend. “Yes, I would like that,” he managed to choke out past a very dry throat.

  She exited the room, closing the door behind herself and leaving him alone with Reynolds. Reynolds, who stared at him with a knowing gaze that made Jasper shuffle as he retook his place behind the desk.

  “What do you look so smug about?” he muttered. “Sit down, won’t you, and stop giving me that look.”

  “I’m not giving you a look,” Reynolds said, and continued to do just that as he sat down on the other side of the desk. “I will just say that you and your bride seem happy enough. Perhaps you ought to lock your door a bit more often, but I suppose you’ll learn that with time.”

  “Do shut up,” Jasper said with a shake of his head. He straightened his shoulders and shoved teasing aside as he asked, “Any further news on Anne?”

  Reynolds’ expression grew serious. “No more than I what I wrote last night and this morning. She was in the company of Rook Maitland, no given name yet since I’m guessing the first is a nickname. No one in the area was completely clear, but he may be a cousin or a brother of Ellis Maitland.”

  “That is little comfort,” Jasper muttered.

  “This might be, though: when I spoke to the villagers about this Rook person, there was nothing negative said about him.” Reynolds leaned back. “He seems to have been unmemorable.”

  Jasper nodded slowly. “I suppose that is some comfort. Though I cannot imagine someone linked to Ellis Maitland isn’t a villain.” He drew a hand through his hair. “But Anne went with him of her own volition.”

  “Seemingly. They were seen getting onto a small craft—no one knew the captain—and sailing off toward Scotland. But my sources in any town they could have made landfall in have not reported their arrival.”

  Jasper jerked in dismay, and Reynolds held up a steadying hand. “It is likely they did not come to a town. There are dozens of small islands along that part of the coast and places along the mainland where they could have come in without notice.”

  Jasper let out his breath. “Still, to lose her…I cannot help but be concerned.”

  “I know.”

  “Were you able to find Ellis Maitland, or did he head after them to further claim his prize?” He shook his head. “I have to assume he has no real desire to marry her.”

  “I don’t think so, especially since I’m not certain he was headed to Scotland.” Reynolds got up and began to pace. “I lost him after your unpleasant encounter, but there has been no report of him since. Not along the roads north and not leaving out the port in Beckfoot. He has simply vanished.”

  Jasper clenched his fist on the desktop. “Then we are in no better position than we were to start with.”

  Reynolds shrugged. “Perhaps a bit better. We know Miss Anne is not with the worst villain of the two. We also know that Maitland wants something he believes you have. Enough that he would risk stealing your bride to get it.”

  “His damned treasure,” Jasper spat, “if there ever was such a thing. Honestly, Reynolds, I have been combing through my brother’s records for the year since his death, trying to detangle all his bad dealings, and I’ve never found anything about a treasure. Is there even such a thing or is Maitland crazy? Or did my brother double cross him?”

  “I have no idea. But the truth is, I doubt your brother would have thought to record such a thing in his ledgers.” Reynolds faced him. “Didn’t he have a diary of some kind?”

  Jasper nodded. “Really just a date book of sorts, to record his activities. There is little detail. I can find the old ones—I think they’re in the library. I know the names to look for, at least.”

  “You do that. I’m going to continue to pursue any information on Rook Maitland, including what his real name might be and his connections.” Reynolds arched a brow. “I assume your real goal is to find Miss Anne, after all. For both
the sake of your new wife and your former fiancée?”

  Jasper stiffened. Once he might have only been focused on Ellis Maitland. On protecting himself. But Reynolds was correct that his priorities had changed. Until he could bring Anne back to Thomasina and her sister, he would have to focus on that. Then he’d deal with the bastard who had orchestrated this.

  “Yes,” he said softly. “Thomasina is troubled beyond measure. She even tried to investigate herself, apparently. She and Juliana spoke again to Anne’s maid.”

  Reynolds drew back in surprise. “Enterprising of them. Any information of use?”

  “Only confirmation that this was a long plan of Maitland’s. Apparently he approached Anne weeks ago for his wooing.” He gritted his teeth at the thought. “But the maid didn’t seem to know about Maitland’s connection to my brother. So at least Thomasina doesn’t know my family’s part in her loss.”

  “And that concerns you?”

  “All of it concerns me.” Jasper sighed. “I’m hoping Thomasina will see this as a dead end and won’t try to continue her search. I don’t want her to make herself sick picturing Anne’s situation with not one villain, but potentially two. Especially when we have nothing real to tell her.” He shuddered. “So whatever you do, whatever you find, let’s be very careful it doesn’t get back to the family. Leave the telling to me when I feel it’s right.”

  “Of course.” Reynolds watched him closely, too closely. “You and I have known each other a long time, haven’t we?”

  “A decade, I suppose,” Jasper said with a nod. “Since just after you left the navy.”

  “And we were friends, I think, before you took the title and asked me to take over as man of affairs,” Reynolds continued.

  Jasper wrinkled his brow. “We are still friends.”