Chapter 19
Chapter Nineteen
Damn Hugh! Damn his greed and his arrogance; damn his cruelty! Alexander chanted in his mind as Starburst raced under him. Above him, the sky was still dark. After a sleepless night at Throckmorton Castle, he was heading home, fury, determination and hope burning in his heart.
Colin’s visit the year before had been bad, but Hugh’s had been a hundred times worse and had spelled the end of the life he had worked so hard to build. Not only that, but the wretched man had also put an end to the dream that could have come true.
It had been so close… For a short but precious moment, Alexander had truly thought that Christopher’s generous offer would solve everything and allow him a future with Gwenllian, a future he desperately wanted.
He should have known it would not be so easy and that Hugh would never let him win.
Somehow, his brother had understood that what mattered to him the most was not keeping his estate but keeping his woman, and he had forced him to make the choice that would ruin him.
A night with Gwenllian in exchange for the signature that would solve his lifelong problem, ensure his and his children’s future. A simple bargain.
An impossible bargain.
Because Alexander would never agree to having a woman taken against her will, least of all for his own profit, least of all the woman he loved. Because he did love Gwenllian. It had taken this tragedy to make him see it.
And he refused to give her up.
He would be brave; he would find a solution.
He was a knight, after all, that could not be taken away from him.
He was not yet in his doting age, as Christopher had pointed out last night.
Indeed, he was still relatively young, and resourceful and more skilled with a sword than most. He would compete in tourneys and win, make a name for himself, earn enough money and prestige to buy another small domain.
He didn’t need much. As long as he had the woman who made his days brighter and his life joyous, he would be fine.
Audley was just a place. Gwenllian was where his heart really was.
He trusted that, just like Sian, she would not let his reversal of fortune stand in the way of their happiness. If the night they’d spent in each other’s arms without making love had taught him something, it was that she loved him—and would fight for him.
Sleep well, my love.
He wanted to hear those words every night, wherever they were spoken.
All his life, he had concentrated his efforts on the wrong thing, it seemed.
He’d thrown himself into the administration of his domain because he thought that it was the only thing he could achieve, and he’d refused to build a family or even simply find a wife for fear he would one day lose it all.
And now that what he had feared had come to pass, and he had lost it all, he was seeing that it was not the catastrophe he’d imagined.
With a woman like Gwenllian, who had been raised in a loving environment, he had nothing to fear.
Their children would not end up like he and his siblings, indifferent at best, hostile at worst. They would be as close as she was to Sian and Jane; they would love one another as she loved Rhys and Seren.
She was the woman made for him; it was as simple as that. She had wanted an adventure, and she had found him. He had been desperate to avoid a wife, and yet he had found her. He would not let her go.
They would find a way to be together and live a happy life.
Hell, they could even go to Wales for a while and prove Old Myfanwy right, even choose a place to live that was close to Esgyrn Castle, like Christopher and Sian had done, and then see what it was like to be “surrounded by bones.” Anything rather than lose her.
That would be the only irreparable loss.
He urged Starburst on. Having decided that Gwenllian was the only woman he would ever love, he could not wait another moment to ask her to be his wife. It was still early, dawn had barely broken, but it did not matter, he knew where to find her.
First, he would go see Hugh and tell him the two of them would never see each other again once he was gone.
Then he would go to Gwenllian and do everything he could to convince her to have him.
He would slip into her bed, take her into his arms, ask her to marry him, make love to her, not necessarily in that order.
He climbed the steps to the gallery two by two. There, the fifth door, the room that had once been his. He flung the door open—and froze.
In the bed in front of him, naked and draped all over Hugh like a sated lover, was the woman he had tried to spare from this fate. The woman he loved and had just decided to marry.
Gwenllian.
She raised her head lazily, a smile on her lips, turned her face to him—and let out a shriek when she recognized him. She tried to scramble away from Hugh, but he drew her back to him with an iron arm.
He looked bleary-eyed, but there was no mistaking the satisfaction on his face at having bested him.
“Good morning, little brother. Thank you for my gift. Be sure that it was appreciated.”
Alexander turned on his heel and fled.
No, no, no!
Gwenllian almost swore out loud. This could not be happening.
Alexander was supposed to be at Throckmorton.
He was supposed to be told later today what she had done; he was not supposed to see her and his brother naked and entwined in bed before she had time to warn him that it was not what it looked like!
When the door had opened, she had been certain it was the squire, back with the food he’d been asked to get a moment ago.
Loath as she was to touch Hugh, she had thought it best to act the part of the sated, willing conquest. Hugh would not be able to doubt they had spent the night together if his squire saw what looked like damning evidence.
He would not want to lose face and admit he didn’t remember his performance.
Alas, it hadn’t been Richard standing in the door frame, but Alexander.
Her heart had exploded in shock and horror. The way he had looked at her… There had been no fury, no contempt even. Instead, unfathomable pain. She had not angered him; she had hurt him, which was far, far worse.
What had he been doing here so early? She had not thought he would be back before mid-morning at the earliest, by which point she would be up and ready to explain what she had done.
Because the evening before had gone exactly as she’d planned. Hugh had not even thought to question her announcement that she was here with Alexander’s agreement.
“You’re here to see to my pleasure, then?”
Trust him to think only of his pleasure. She should have guessed this would be all he cared about. “Yes. Alexander sent me to you before going to Throckmorton. He said you two had come to an agreement, and I was to come to you for the night.”
“And you didn’t object?”
Mm. At least he seemed aware that she had an opinion to give. She had not expected that. Still, that he had asked the question did not change the fact that he was ready to use her to establish his superiority over his brother.
“No, I didn’t object. Why would I? You’re a very handsome man, my lord, which I noticed the moment you arrived, and well-favored, as I can see now.
” She forced herself to look at his groin and swallowed when she saw that his member had already started to lengthen.
“And I will admit that the idea of bedding two brothers who look so similar is very…stirring.”
Sickening, rather. But Hugh did not argue, accepting her answer with nauseating ease, as if he had not doubted his victory for a moment.
It was just like it had been with Old John’s son. As long as you pretended you wanted what they also wanted, some men didn’t stop to think that something was odd. Either they were so aroused that they could not function normally, or they were just plain stupid. Or both.
“If you must know, I find the idea of taking what belongs to my little brother very stirring as well,” Hugh said in a low growl.
Yes. In his mind, she was no different than Audley Castle, and he would enjoy taking what he saw as a property, only existing for men’s enjoyment.
He nodded to his shaft, which had gone fully erect, and smiled.
“I’m sure you will find me more vigorous than Alexander and able to see to your needs. ”
It was impossible to imagine a man doing that better than her dashing knight, so Gwenllian didn’t answer.
Her heart was beating impossibly hard in her chest, and she was sure anyone who knew her would have spotted her unease at first glance.
Fortunately, Hugh didn’t know her and so was unaware of the real feelings agitating her mind.
But there was no denying that she was finding this much more taxing than she had anticipated.
She had not stopped to think about how she would feel when she had elaborated her plan to save Audley. It had to be done; that was all she knew, and she was the only one who could do it. She hadn’t wanted to start thinking too much, at the risk of losing her nerve.
But now she was here, and it was happening.
Hugh looked eager, and he was already naked, something she had not taken into consideration.
To add to her discomfort, he truly did look a lot like Alexander.
Not as much as a twin, but eerily close.
The differences between them were not physical, as they shared the same thick, beautiful hair, the same advantageous physique, the same sensual mouth. The difference was in their attitudes.
Alexander was a majestic hound, whereas Hugh was a sly fox.
The hard glint in his eye was in complete contrast to their velvety color.
The satisfied curl of his lip was enough to ruin the perfection of his mouth.
And the way he was looking at her made shivers run down her spine rather than blood race down her veins.