“Noah… I came out for some air. My room was stifling.” Another step closer didn’t clear up whether he believed me or if he’d even heard me. I dropped my hand from my face either way. With him around, I had the need to have both hands free.
“And him?” he asked pointing at Orin.
“He… ” Because I’d never caused any trouble in my life, I’d never learned to think on my feet. Not when it counted. I had no lie to tell Noah yet telling him the truth wouldn’t be smart either.
“I didn’t feel a young lady should be unaccompanied at night.” Orin’s hands dropped to his sides as mine had.
I’d been around enough boys at school that I recognized the precursors of a fight. Tension rolled off Orin.
“Better alone than with a stranger.” Noah grabbed my left wrist squeezing so tightly my veins pushed against the skin. My pulse pounded in my fingertips under the pressure. “I’ll take it from here.” He yanked me toward him so violently my arm may have come out of the socket as my feet stumbled against the ground.
I hadn’t been ready for that.
“No, you’re drunk,” I said trying to pull my arm out of his grasp. “And hurting me.” My teeth ground together to keep the tears pooling in my eyes from falling. He really was hurting me and the smug look on his face said he was enjoying the power he had over me. No matter what I did, he wouldn’t let go.
A knot formed in my chest as I got a glimpse of my future. A future I didn’t want.
Orin’s hand slapped loudly over Noah’s wrist, much the way Noah’s was around mine. The pressure of Orin’s massive, muscular hand must’ve been immense. Noah released me though it wasn’t voluntary.
“I suggest you find somewhere to sleep it off.” Orin’s words came through clenched teeth.
Noah stumbled back after seeing something in Orin’s eyes that I hadn’t. Sizing the both of them up put Orin on the winning end if a fight actually broke out. Noah had been pampered his entire life, not strong. He was soft, entitled, and drunk.
Orin was none of those things.
His whole life, Noah only fought someone smaller, weaker. Someone he’d easily beat.
“Sure,” Noah said. “You’ll be mine soon enough.” It sounded much more like a warning than anything else. “Then I’ll take my time with you. But you better come to me untouched.” He stumbled awkwardly back out the way he came.
I wanted to throw up.
I swallowed hard and stood there rubbing my already bruising forearm. I was like a ripe peach that way.
Bruised easily.
“Who was that?” Orin stared down at me with obvious anger at a moment I wish I could hide.
Unfortunately, the moon was bright enough I didn’t even have the cover of darkness on my side. He’d watched the moisture form in my eyes, the pain in my face as I rubbed the area that had been squeezed so brutally. Nor would I be able to hide the humiliation running through me at the fact that Noah had put something so private out in the world for Orin to hear.
“Noah Underwood. The son of one of my father’s friends.”
“What did he mean?” he asked softly.
This man I didn’t know treated me with a kindness that made keeping my tears from falling impossible.
Exactly what every man wanted to see.
After plopping down on the stone bench sitting nearby, Orin followed but still kept the appropriate distance.
For a moment, I really wished someone wanted to be inappropriate with me for more than their own gratification like Noah. To experience some sort of pleasure for once in my life. If anyone heard those thoughts… I didn’t want to think about what would’ve happened.
“About what?” I asked hoping that I was wrong about what he asked.
“I think you know.”
Sighing, I saw no reason not to answer him. It was inevitable. My entire life was inevitable. “My father and his have been negotiating. I’m pretty sure I’ll soon be told that I’m marrying Noah in the near future.”
“I see.” He straightened his back so he was sitting at his absolute tallest.
“I don’t want it. I don’t want to marry Noah Underwood.” I sobbed once before reigning it back in. “He is not… a nice man or a suitable husband. I can’t say that to my father, of course.”
“How so?”
“He’s horrible to women but knows no one will say anything because of who his father is. And… there is at least one woman he sees already. I don’t think that will change once he’s actually married.” I didn’t care about what Noah did or didn’t do except for I’d soon be part of what he did. It made me sick to my stomach. I wasn’t an object to be used. However, I happened to be the only one who thought that way.
“Sees?”
I caught his eye while drawing out the word. “Sees.”
“Oh, I see.”
My brows shot up playfully.
“I don’t mean see… I… understand,” he said sounding a little flustered.
Giggling under my breath, I wiped the moisture from my cheeks.
Those few moments in the garden with Orin before Noah’s interruption were some of the most carefree I’d ever had. They didn’t mean anything and I’d likely never speak to him alone again, but it was something to me.
A memory that for me and him that no one could take away.
“I can make sure he doesn’t hurt you.” He glanced at me then to the entrance like he wanted to ensure no one would overhear. “If that’s what you want.”
Chapter Three
I smiled up at Orin and his offer. If only I really could escape Noah, my father, and everything else in my world.
“If you made him disappear completely, that would be great,” I finally said.
We stared at each other. He wouldn’t be able to actually get Noah out of my life but the offer meant everything. It was crazy. Orin didn’t know me yet had already treated me better than anyone in my life and I hated to see it end.
It had to but that didn’t make it easy.
“I better get back to my room before my father checks in on me,” I told him quietly. “Will I see you again?”
“If you wish to.”
I smiled over at him. Those were the words I wanted to hear.
Of course, I wanted to see him again.
I raced back inside, taking a few more chances than I normally would. I had no idea how much time passed out in the garden or how much trouble I was already in. once safely back in my room, I Yanked my dress off quickly, hoping Father hadn’t noticed I ever left my room. Then I hopped into bed as if I’d been there the entire night.
My heart thumped erratically against my chest as I tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep. Sneaking out to meet a stranger may not be an adventure for most people, Olivia included, but for me… it was everything. The most excitement I’d ever had and the only thing I’d ever done just for myself.
After what seemed like hours, I tossed my blanket off and quietly walked to the window for another look at the garden. To remember my limited time with Orin.
As I stood there, the shadows moved or rather someone in the shadows moved.
With the party still in full swing, it could’ve been anyone but somehow I knew it was Orin. With looking up at me, he couldn’t know I saw him and wanted to keep watching but he stopped and turned my way.
I pushed the window open and leaned on my elbows on the sill, locking my eyes with him, wishing he was still close enough to touch.
The next several days passed without any sign of Orin.
My father continued his negotiation with Noah’s father to see how many goats he’d have to exchange for me to marry his son. I’d guess not many but marriage to them was more about the financial burdens than anything else.
Noah would agree without question because he’d do whatever made his life easiest. Going against his father’s money wouldn’t do that but having me to manage his house and spread my legs whenever he chose would. That last part made my stomach roll.
>
I didn’t want to be Noah Underwood’s wife.
I had to make sure my father’s house ran smoothly. I probably should’ve been grateful that he bothered keeping me in the first place since to him I was nothing more than what killed my mother.
I’d just finished up our plans for our dinner that night when Father come through the front door.
My footsteps quickened instinctively.
I wanted to get to my room before he saw me.
I pushed my bedroom door open to find a small, beautiful bouquet of wildflowers with bursts of red, yellow and purple, lying on my bed.
I checked behind the drapes and anywhere else I could think of, I was alone.
But the windows were open.
I supposed the possibility existed that someone climbed through. But how? I was on the second floor with nothing to use as a makeshift ladder anywhere close by. Orin was the only person who’d be so nice but without some sort of special ability, he couldn’t scale the side of my house.
Mystery or not, they smelled wonderful.
“Elizabeth!” My name echoed through the halls jerking me back to my reality.
He was headed up the stairs toward me. Years of experience afforded me the ability to determine his exact location using the echo of his voice.
I spun around my room, looking for a place to hide the bouquet. Everywhere was too obvious.
As I ran out of time, I tossed them into the bathroom then scurried out of the room hoping he’d never make it inside in the first place.
“Yes, Father,” I said, out of breath as I skidded to a stop at the bottom of the stairs willing my heart to slow down.
“We’re leaving in one hour,” he said without looking my way.
His instructions were absolute, giving me no choice by to obey. I hated asking follow-up questions yet he hadn’t said where we were going.
“Where are we going?” I asked quickly. He scowled. “So I know how to dress,” I added quickly.
“The Franklin house.”
I nodded then moved quickly all while maintaining what he called my ‘ladylike manners’ back up the stairs. All the while I barked instructions at two of our housekeepers.
The Franklin’s perfectly manicured lawn was being trampled by a wave of guests with croquet mallets that smacked against balls while laughter filled the afternoon air. I loved these events because, at the very least, I’d get to spend time with Olivia, a luxury we were afforded less and less often.
I stood in a group of girls sipping lemonade in the summer heat as we watched over a group of younger children, jealousy as the young men were allowed to loosen their collars while we women had to sit and suffer under the stifling heat.
It wasn’t fair.
As I scanned the crowd, I found all the same, familiar faces until coming to an abrupt stop on his long, lean frame casually leaning against a tree in the shade.
Orin stared right back as if he didn’t care who saw, his eyes so intense that my face flushed from more than the heat. I had to look away.
The feeling of butterflies in my stomach was new and exciting.
I liked it.
“What is it about him?” Olivia asked beside me.
“Nothing.”
She tried to hold back a smile and said, “He’s quite handsome.”
“I hadn’t noticed,” I lied then pried my eyes from him just to have them snap right back.
“That’s why the two of you are staring at each other like you’re the only two people left in the world.” The trio of girls around us giggled. We weren’t alone and gossip would cause problems.
“Liv, she’s practically promised to Noah Underwood,” our friend, Ellie, said.
I groaned not because she was wrong but because she was right. I needed to remember that and act like it before I caused myself even more trouble.
I walked away from the group to end the conversation.
The crowd of people acted like I was invisible as I made my way through the crowd. It took extra planning to make it seem like I didn’t have a destination already planned.
I did. And it was a terrible idea.
But I needed closer. Wanted to look into his dark eyes and listen to his deep voice.
He moved as I did, pausing when I paused until I hit the edge of the pond where I slipped off my shoes. I only intended to cool off a little. No one should fault me that. Southern summers came early and with a vengeance of heat that unparalleled everything else. The cool water brought with it the relief I’d been searching for.
The water gave me such wonderful relief that I pressed my hands against my neck and slid my feet into the pond. Then I unbuttoned the top two buttons on my blouse.
“It’s warm today.” His voice jolted me even though I’d known it was coming.
I expected to be blinded by the sun when I looked up to him. Instead, he blocked it out completely and made it so I couldn’t clearly see his face.
“Yes, it is.”
Orin dropped down beside me as close as he possible without looking suspicious should anyone see us together. “Are you having a good time?”
“Not really,” I answered honestly. “You?”
“Better now,” he said with equal honesty.
I smiled but his words made me blush.
“Where are you from? No one knows anything about you.” I wanted the focus off me and that was the first question that came to mind.
“Have you been asking?” He smiled when I didn’t answer. “Here, my family originally but I was born in Boston.”
“I’ve never been there. My father doesn’t take me with him when he goes away.”
Orin looked out over the water watching the long grass across from us sway back and forth as if playing pat-a-cake.
“Where’s your mother?” he asked.
The question surprised me. He hadn’t yet asked about my family situation and I wasn’t sure I wanted him to.
“She died.” He waited patiently for an explanation. “Childbirth. With me.” I sighed. “I don’t know why I’m telling you this. It really isn’t proper.”
Orin’s laughter filled the air. It was the first time such a deep vibration erupt from him. He’d smiled a lot but there hadn’t been a real laugh until right then. “Are you worried about what is proper?”
“No, but I should be.”
We continued to talk, mostly about nothing important at all until my father called my name.
Damn.
I hadn’t meant to stay away long enough for anyone to notice.
Hopping up, I pulled my stockings and shoes on. If Father came to the top of the small hill that gave Orin and me a small amount of privacy and saw us together… I couldn’t chance that.
“I have to go,” I said quickly. He stood up beside me. “We’re having a dinner tonight, nothing formal. You should come.”
He didn’t have the chance to answer before I ran off in the direction of my father. He couldn’t see me. Not if I still wanted to spend any more time with Orin.
I didn’t enjoy playing hostess. It made Father happy so I did it without complaining but I hated everyone watching me like they were waiting for me to mess up or drop something.
But Orin showed up to dinner and that fact alone made it a better night.
We glanced at each other with shy smiles every chance we got over dinner, something Olivia called flirting. I’d never done it before and even if I wasn’t very good at it, I enjoyed these tiny moments with Orin so much.
Orin approached me after dinner as if he didn’t care that so many pairs of eyes would be on us.
“Miss Davis, that was lovely.” He said sounding very formal as if he were any other guest.
“I didn’t do any of it.”
“I was speaking more of the view than the meal.”
I couldn’t not grin like an utter fool at that. His words caressed me as much as a hand would. However, my smile fell when I saw my father over Orin’s shoulder.
“My father
’s coming with Mr. Underwood.”
I sighed and took two large steps away from the security of Orin’s bubble. Orin turned toward them then backed away so he’d still be able to hear what they said but not look like he was part of the suddenly forming group.
“Elizabeth, it’s been decided.”
I knew what he was talking about and my stomach turned, my mouth watered. I was going to vomit. A combination of fear and resignation of what my life would soon become turned my stomach sour.
“What has?” I asked anyway in a desperate attempt to deny reality, praying he meant anything else.
“Mr. Underwood and I have come to an agreement. Noah and you will be married at the end of the season.”
Applause erupted from all around us as my eyes filled with tears that I absolutely couldn’t let fall. That would be embarrassing to my father but it’s not like I could totally control it either.
What pathetic life I had. The masters of my universe slapped each other on the back with large grins on their faces like they’d just discovered the cure for polio.
I swallowed hard. Knowing it was the wrong decision, I still couldn’t let my only opportunity pass me by. My hands shook as I tried to steel myself against his reaction.
“Father.” My words came out weak. I needed to sound stronger. “I don’t want to marry Noah Underwood.”
The world stopped.
His smile fell as he turned toward me slowly.
It was the slow that was terrifying.
If I could’ve shoved those words back in my mouth, I would have.
In that moment, I didn’t feel brave. I felt very, very small.
Chapter Four
“The decision has been made.” There was an unspoken warning in Father’s words.
I’d keep my mouth shut and not embarrass him.
Or else.
Working on being brave, I swallowed hard then took a deep breath, steeling myself to do something I’d never done before.
Stand up for myself.
“I don’t love him. I won’t ever love him,” I said.
He snorted at me as if to say that love had no place in a marriage. He’d said it before. “Elizabeth, you will marry him at the end of the season.”
Moonstruck Page 2
