Earl of Destiny

by K. J. Jackson

Luhaunt halted, turning fully to her. “I do not have to do anything, Brianna. I work with the duke on the herd because I am good at it. I am good at discovering the best horses. Good at convincing people to part with them. Good at breeding matches.” His left hand went up, fingers running through his hair and then scratching the back of his neck. “I do all of it because it is worth my time. Something I can contribute to the world. Something more than sitting in London and gambling and drinking.”

  He pointed back in the direction of the stables. “What Rowen and I started here—what we are creating is something truly special. These horses—we are creating new breeds—new lines that are nothing but a gift to the world.”

  Following to where his finger pointed, Brianna stared at the trees that now blocked the stables from view.

  She suddenly realized she knew absolutely nothing about this man. She had been fighting so hard to extract herself from marrying him, that she hadn’t even considered learning anything about him.

  She looked up at him, meeting his brown eyes that were squarely on her. “It is just not usual, an earl that has more to do with his time than gambling and hunting and politics.”

  Luhaunt shrugged and turned, resuming the walk. “Yes, well, I was a spare—a second son—for most of my life. My purpose had never been the earldom, and I should not be vilified for having aspirations outside of it.”

  Brianna followed, falling into step beside him. “I apologize. I did not intend to disparage your work. I made assumptions.”

  “Do not give it another thought.”

  “Are you cursed, Lord Luhaunt?” Brianna glanced at his profile, the question flying out of her mouth before she could control it. Annoyed with herself, the fingernail of her ring finger jabbed into the pad of her thumb—her control over her own tongue seemed to particularly lack around Luhaunt.

  A few steps passed without him looking her way, and then he chuckled, his eyes on a low branch in front of them. “Cursed? That is the latest the tongues wag about me?”

  “The Newdale sisters, yes. The elder mentioned that you are cursed and that you practice the dark arts. Especially with the horses. It is how you are able to see things with them that others do not.” Brianna cleared her throat. As the words escaped, she realized how utterly silly they sounded. “I am, of course, keenly aware she is not the most credible of sources. So I thought to ask you on the matter.”

  “Do I see things that others do not?”

  “Is that the curse?”

  “I do not know if one would call it a curse, but yes, I do recognize nuances with the horses that others do not. I did not understand how different, or useful, the skill was until we were immersed in the wars on the continent.”

  “The duke has mentioned time and again how crucial you were to saving some of the very best horses to ever walk the earth.”

  “He is too kind.”

  “He is also honest and not given to exaggeration.”

  Luhaunt shrugged.

  They continued in silence for several more steps. Her boots crunching on twigs, Brianna’s eyes fell to the forest floor.

  She was moving in the exact opposite direction she had intended. She hadn’t waited for hours just to speak to Luhaunt to get to know him better—no, she was supposed to be trying to convince him to call off the wedding. She had hoped reminding him of the money he would not have access to would be enough. That he would realize there would be no benefit to marrying her.

  She had been a fool to pin her hopes on that.

  Swallowing the lump in her throat, her fingernails started to, one by one and back and forth, dig into the pads of her thumbs.

  She would have to tell him. It was the last thing she could think of. The last chance for escape.

  “There is one more thing I need to tell you, Lord Luhaunt, and again, I give you free rein to put a stop to this marriage when you hear it. In fact, I encourage it.”

  He gave her a sideways glance, sudden smirk on his face. “Yes, I imagine you do encourage it. There is nothing that will change my mind on the matter, Brianna.”

  “I am not a virgin.”

  His stride froze instantly, and it took Brianna another two steps to stop. By then, he already had her elbow in his hand, pulling her backward. She turned to look at him, finding his smirk had vanished and his eyes had turned deadly serious.

  Brianna’s throat constricted, cutting her breath as her body went stiff. She hadn’t thought Luhaunt a violent man, but then, she had been wrong before. Very wrong.

  Trying to wedge her arm from his grasp, her head swiveled around, looking for escape into the trees.

  He didn’t let her go. “You are not a virgin?”

  She shook her head, leaning into his arm, trying to use her weight to break his hold.

  “Brianna, stop. Did something happen to you? Did some man—”

  “No. No. It is not what you are thinking. I was willing.”

  He dropped her elbow, staring at her. She didn’t move from her spot, accepting his stare. Accepting his judgement. If it got her out of the marriage, then she would take it—anything he had to dole out.

  It took him a long moment to form words. “You loved this man, then?”

  Brianna sucked in a gasp, blood draining from her face.

  “You loved him?”

  She fought the dizziness setting in.

  But what did it matter now, the truth?

  “I…I did. I thought I did.”

  “When?”

  “Years ago.”

  “What happened?”

  Her head whipped to the side and she turned to walk away from Luhaunt. She had to move or she was going to faint. She had thought it would be easy, speaking these words, speaking of the past. But it wasn’t—far from it. Chin at her chest, words mumbled out. “I loved the wrong person.”

  His hand went to her elbow again, halting her steps. Luhaunt planted himself in front of her. “Your face is ashen, Brianna. And your eyes tell me it was not as simple as that—that it was traumatic. Did he die? Did he abandon you?”

  She glanced up at his face for the smallest moment, and then her head dropped and she stared at the dust on his black boots.

  Seconds ticked by before she gained enough control to lift her head and force her eyes to meet and stay on his. “Lord Luhaunt, I have told you what you were owed to know before you married me. I am a fallen woman. Beyond that, I do not wish to speak of that time.”

  She inhaled a deep breath, her left hand flat on her stomach. “Will you talk to the duke about the broken engagement by yourself, or do you wish me to accompany you?”

  His answer was instant, his brow furrowed at her. “This does not change a thing, Brianna. I still want you.”

  “But…but you cannot. I am a fallen woman.”

  “I can, and I do. I want you as my wife.”

  Brianna swallowed a frustrated growl. This man was impossible to escape. “Lord Luhaunt, I do understand that you came here for my sister, and that I am—”

  “Why is it, Brianna, that you continue to insist I came to Notlund for your sister?”

  “The first day we met, you said you were here for a wife.”

  “Yes.” Luhaunt’s grip on her elbow tightened, and he leaned in, heat in his brown eyes. Unmistakable heat. Heat that was directed, full force, at her. “A wife is exactly why I came here.”

  Dumbstruck, unable to deny what he insinuated, Brianna leaned slightly away from him. His heat was too much.

  “But why me? I am not interesting, not a painter like Wynne, not light and bubbly and charming like Lily. I have offered you nothing but frowns, and yet you still insist on saying you want me.” She wedged a foot backward to gain some space. “Why? I do not understand it.”

  His intentions sufficiently expressed, Luhaunt dropped his grip on her arm, letting her escape him. She pounced on the opportunity and continued walking up the path. He stayed right next to her, his arm brushing hers.

  “Honestly, Brianna, I do not f
ully understand it either. But it is true. I want you. It is just like with the horses—I see something in you that others do not.”

  “What could you possibly see in me?”

  “Aside from your beauty you try so hard to hide? Maybe I see that there is more to you than you are willing to let the world see. Maybe that is what I am marrying.”

  “Then you are the most optimistic dreamer that I have ever encountered.” She looked at him out of the corner of her eye. “Are you truly willing to chance your whole life on something you do not understand?”

  Luhaunt looked at her, watching her closely. His voice went low. “Just because I do not understand it, Brianna, does not mean I do not trust it.”

  “And if you are disappointed with what you have married—with what you uncover of me? What then? You will be shackled to a woman you do not care for.”

  He smiled, but did not break stride. “I am willing to take that chance.”

  ~~~

  Sebastian walked slowly down the long stone hallway. He had just parted ways with Rowen and Lord Newdale in the study, and hadn’t bothered to bring a candle with him.

  He knew the path to his rooms well enough, even if they were set far back in the castle away from all the other guest chambers. He liked the silence in this part of the keep, and Rowen had offered to outfit Sebastian with his own suite of rooms a year ago when the castle was being renovated.

  “Wait, Lord Luhaunt, please, a moment.”

  Sebastian turned, only to see Brianna’s sister scampering toward him, the lantern in her hand sending swaying shadows on the grey stone.

  Of all things, this was one he hadn’t expected. Brianna’s sister had been so enamored with Lord Newdale during the past week—and quite often, foxed—that Sebastian had questioned if she even remembered her sister was getting married the next day.

  “Miss Lily, what can I do for you?”

  “Forgive the intrusion.” Slightly out of breath, she stopped in front of him, holding the lantern up so she could illuminate his face. She still wore the pretty peach silk dress she had dined in earlier, though the back half of her brown hair had been let down. “I just wanted to ask you a question.”

  He offered a nod. “Feel free.”

  “It is about Brianna—after you two are wed, you will treat her well?”

  Sebastian’s eyebrow arched. “That is what you have come to ask me? Do you not think it a bit too late to be putting forth that question?”

  She shook her head, his barb not giving her pause. “No. I do not think so. I think I could go to Brianna right now and tell her she does not have to marry you, and she would be perfectly happy to cry off. It is why I am even here talking to you. I had thought once she got accustomed to the idea, she might grow to like it—even be excited about marrying you. But she is not.”

  Sebastian’s head tilted, perplexed. Brianna’s sister was much cannier than he had given her credit for. Apparently, just because Brianna controlled so much of her sister’s life, he had begun to think of Lily as somewhat of a simpleton. Not so.

  “I do not think your sister would allow herself to get excited about anything, much less a forced marriage.”

  “Maybe not. Not now. But there was a time when she would have.” The shadows played on Lily’s face. “A time when she would have looked upon marriage with happiness and plans of babes.”

  “But not now?”

  “Not since our father died. Not since then. Not since she has been working to find me a proper match. It has consumed her.” Lily paused, her eyes dropping. “You do not know what she has gone through.”

  “So tell me. It has something to do with the man she loved, does it not?”

  Lily’s eyes snapped sharply to him. “She told you of him?”

  “Only that a past love existed for her. That was all. What happened to him?”

  She shook her head, her eyes darting around. “Brianna is the only one that can tell you. I swore to her long ago that I would never speak of that time. It is not my place.”

  “She had been treated poorly?”

  “I will not answer that. But it is the reason I need to be assured you will treat her well.” Her jaw hard, Lily stepped closer to him, lifting her lantern even higher. “Make no mistake, Lord Luhaunt, if it means my sister’s happiness, I will happily accept the scandal that would ensue were you two not to marry. While I do not wish to lose the possibility of Lord Newdale as a husband—or the other two—I will accept it if my sister’s ultimate happiness is on the line.”

  She went to her toes, leaning in even closer, her voice sharp. “So I am asking you, Lord Luhaunt, on your honor, will you treat my sister well?”

  Sebastian didn’t think it possible, but he was suddenly the tiniest bit afraid of Brianna’s sprite of a sister. He nodded. “Yes. On that, you do not have to worry.”

  “Excellent.” She dropped to flat feet, apparently taking him at his word. “Then I will tell you this. There are those of us that will live with lies—live with not knowing things that might hurt us. But Brianna is not one of them. She needs honesty. Brutal honesty in her life. But she also needs kindness—she needs that more than anyone I know.”

  “Thank you. I will remember that.”

  “Good. Do not disappoint me, Lord Luhaunt.”

  With that, Lily spun from him, her silk slippers silent on the stone as she disappeared down the long dark hallway.

  Sebastian stood as still as a rock, watching the light of the lantern until it whittled down to nothingness.

  Imagine that. Lily was fiercely loyal to Brianna.

  Apparently, Brianna wasn’t the only Silverton sister with hidden layers.

  { Chapter 6 }

  Brianna stood naked, or nearly so, with what little bit of modesty the sheer, deep red nightdress draped over her shoulders afforded her. Sleeveless and long, almost to the wooden floorboards, the transparent fabric clasped together between her breasts and down her belly with a row of five thin ribbons.

  The wedding had come and gone, the whole day, really, without drama, without crying. Just flat acceptance. She wasn’t about to allow tears to fall over something she had no recourse to change.

  Two polite “I dos” and that was it. She was married.

  Lily, Wynne—even the duke—had tried to make the occasion as jovial as possible. But Brianna could not even pretend for their sakes.

  She had married—something she had promised herself she would never do. Never allow herself to be that vulnerable to a man. To what a man could do to her.

  So now she stood, waiting for her new husband to appear, painfully aware that she was now his property. She may have been able to secure the Silverton fortune away from the greedy hands of husbands—but that was all. If only she could have done that with her body as well.

  Brianna looked around Luhaunt’s bedroom. A large four-post bed with no canopy centered the room. The bed was set high with a silk grey coverlet draping over plushness. She would have to hop up just to get into the bed. Two matching walnut wardrobes sat on opposite sides of the bed, but Brianna hadn’t bothered to snoop in them. She had also discovered a dressing room through one of the side doors, and a sitting room lined with bookcases through the other.

  The drapes open, she looked out through the arched windows that lined the wall across from the fireplace. A long, skinny cloud slid in front of the half moon, tempering most of the light.

  The windows faced the forest that led to the stables, surprising, because Brianna’s general sense of direction had gotten twisted as she moved through the castle to Luhaunt’s rooms. They were set far into the keep through a maze of hallways, and Brianna had spent very little time in this area of the castle.

  It was quiet—achingly so—compared to the bustle of where her and Lily’s chambers were, and Brianna doubted anyone along these hallways could hear a sound from Luhaunt’s rooms.

  Palms rubbing her bare arms, Brianna’s eyes shifted from the moon to the fireplace. She had thought to app
roach this outright. Put on the nightdress that Wynne had produced for her and just be ready for Lord Luhaunt without preamble. Do what was necessary, and then she could escape back to the comfort of her own room.

  But the thought to approach this forthright had only stuck in Brianna’s head for so long before she began to waver.

  Walking over to the fireplace in her new husband’s room, she reached for the robe that she had set on the arm of the leather wing chair. Only a small fire blazed, just enough to fight off the chill that had crept in with the setting sun.

  Shrugging into the robe, she overlapped the fabric as far as she could across the front of her. Just as she tied the belt snuggly around her belly and pulled her loose hair free from the robe, the door opened behind her.

  Brianna spun, crossing her arms in front of her chest. “Lord Luhaunt.”

  He closed the door as his gaze ran from her toes peeking out from under the cloth of the simple tan robe, up her body until it rested on the point where the cloth ended, just below her chin.

  “I must be honest, Brianna, I had hoped for the slightest bit more skin.” He stepped into the room, stopping in front of her, his brown eyes scanning her face. “But if I only have your face to look at, that will do. I do appreciate the lines of it.”

  He took a step closer and his hand moved up, fingers entwining along a soft curl of her loose hair. “And this is welcome. I like your hair down. Free.”

  Brianna could not help the frown on her face from deepening. “I did dress appropriately. I merely caught a chill.”

  His eyebrow arched as his devil smile played on his lips. He continued to play with her hair, wrapping a strand around his forefinger. “Appropriately? Now I am entirely curious as to what is under that robe.”

  “As prickly as you may see me, Lord Luhaunt, I am very conscious of appropriate dress for this act.”

  His hand instantly dropped from her hair. “You do not need to remind me that you have been another’s, Brianna. I am well aware. And while I am choosing to overlook the fact that another has your heart, I do not wish to be reminded of it at every turn.”