Again (28 page)

Brandi moved in closer.
 
“She has some guy on the side, you know.”

He spun around, eyeing her dangerously.
 
To his disgust, it seemed to excite her.
 

Brandi licked her lower lip seductively.

Bryce grabbed her arm, half in rage, half in fear that her words held some truth.
 
Eryn has been pulling away from him, but he thought it was because she was stressed about tonight’s gallery showing.
 

“There isn’t anyone else.
 
I’d know about it.”
 
He let go of Brandi’s arm, pushing her away.

Brandi only smiled.
 
“She said there isn’t, but I’ve seen her journal and she writes about him in every page.”

He was sickened by the way Brandi seemed to enjoy the turmoil she was inflicting.
 
He could see her thrill at every emotion he knew he couldn’t hide:
 
Suspicion, anger, pain, disbelief.
 

“You lie.”
 
Bryce hissed.
 
Eryn was his.
 
There
was
no one else.

“Do I now?”
 
Brandi’s voice was smooth.
 
“Think about it.”
 
She moved closer and hooked her finger on his towel and stood on tip-toe.
 
“Just think about it,” she whispered in his ear.
 
She tugged hard and the towel fell around his feet.

It didn’t immediately register in his mind the sensations running through his body as his mind fought to make sense of what Brandi said.
 
He’d once accused Eryn of meeting someone at the beach, but he had just been baiting her.
 
Could she really be having an affair?
 
Was that the real reason why she was pulling away from him?
 
He was suddenly filled with fire, lit by an all-consuming jealously.
 
And from that fire a need was taking root, spreading out of control.
 
A need to strike back.

He looked down, then quickly glanced away, unable to hold back a groan.

Brandi trailed her tongue down his muscled stomach, her fingers down his back and over his hard buttocks.
 
He was disgusted by how aroused he was, but his anger drove him on.

He watched, mesmerized, as she flicked her tongue on him before finally taking him in her mouth.
 
The tension rose until it released a growl deep in his chest.
 
He grabbed Brandi’s arms and dragged her up the length of his body.
 

“No.”
 
His voice was strained, but years of resentment that he hadn’t even realized was there, was now pouring out of him.

Crushing her against his chest, he assaulted her mouth with his, shoving his tongue through her parted lips.
 
His hands found the hem of her dress and lifted it up over her head and tossed it aside, hardly surprised she wore nothing underneath.
 
He shoved her in the direction of the bed.

Brandi, only too willing to comply, jumped on the bed and rolled on her back with her legs spread wide.
 
A wicked grin dominated her face as she waited.
 
The wait was short and her triumphant laugh saturated the air as Bryce covered her body with his.
 

Chapter 28

Galen’s stone-gray stallion pawed the ground impatiently, sensing his master’s mood.  Galen had urged him at break-neck speed, setting his hooves thundering down the path leading to the port, flattening grasses and snapping branches, before coming to a skidding halt a short distance from where
La Helena
was docked.
 
So intent had Galen been to confront the merchant, that as soon as Catherine had retired after the festivities, he had set out.
 

The stallion’s sides now heaved beneath his master’s knees.  Galen leaned forward to stroke the beast’s neck, murmuring praise, but his attention was on the ship before him.  The darkness under the trees provided him a shield as he studied the merchant ship.
 

The glow of lanterns dotted the deck, reflecting the movement of shadows.  An occasional shout crossed the distance between them, but none belonged to the man Galen sought. 

He swung his leg over the saddle and landed on the ground without a sound.  Stepping out from the cover of the shadows, the moonlight illuminated his way as he walked resolutely to the vessel.  The high-pitched whistle that signaled his approach did not slow Galen’s stride, for he had expected it.  A ship such as this would be carefully guarded.  The shadows on the deck stopped and turned in his direction.

Galen stopped and called out, “I seek the captain of this ship.”

The point of a blade bit sharply into his back.
 

“And what might you be wanting with Master Jonathan?”

With blinding speed, Galen unsheathed his sword and swung around, his blade clashing against Cedric’s.

“What I have to say is for him alone,” Galen’s voice was low, seething with his rage.

Then around him came the glint of swords and knives, held by six men of varying height and girth, all wearing the same menacing smirks, eager for foul play.

Galen’s stance did not falter.  “Where is he?”

“He has business dealings and is not to be disturbed.”
 
Cedric held his sword firm against Galen’s.
 
“And we will ensure his wishes are carried out,” he paused, pushing against Galen’s sword ever so slightly, “by whatever means necessary.”

Galen’s anger boiled beneath a stony gaze.  The air around Galen seemed to press against him as the others took a step closer.

“Then you will tell your Master Jonathan,” Galen said, grinding the name through his teeth, “that his presence at the castle will no longer be tolerated.”

Cedric considered his words.
 
“Might I tell Master Jonathan if that is Lady Catherine’s desire, or simply your own?”
 
Laughter rippled through the men.

“I speak for all at Elderidge,” Galen hissed.
 
“Tell him to abandon his ambitions.  A man of his station could never hope to win a high-born lady.”

Cedric was taken aback.
 
“A man of his station?
 
And what station might that be?”

Disgruntled mumblings began to swell around Galen.
 
“He insults him, he insults us all!
 
Let us just run him through.”
 
Murmurs of approval echoed.
 
They stepped closer still.

Cedric looked around at the men.  “Nay, there will be no fighting tonight, gentlemen.  We will deliver his message, such that it is.”  Cedric looked at Galen with bored amusement.

Galen tightened his grip on the hilt of his sword, incensed at the disrespect.

Cedric lowered his sword and signaled for the others to follow.

Galen stared at their retreating backs, anger hardening every muscle in his body.  He dropped the tip of his sword and sheathed it, then whistled low.
 
In an instant his stallion trotted to his side, snorting and tossing his head.  Galen leaped on its back and at his barked command, his horse bolted back toward the castle at blinding speed, eating up the ground beneath them.

≈

“It sounds so beautiful and sad, like many souls crying out at the same time.
 
Or maybe they are singing.
 
I cannot say which.”
 
Catherine had never known the ocean to put forth such a melody as she heard tonight.
 
Away from the castle and the endless chattering and noise of the ball tonight, she was discovering music that caressed her ears.

The full moon cast a glow on the breaking waves that whispered as they melted into the sand.  The onshore breeze was warm as it blew her hair softly around her face.

“Aye,” agreed Jonathan.
 
“She sings a sad song when the sun has fallen.
 
Perhaps she is lonely.”

The sound of the waves rolling over and over was broken only by the sounds of laughter.  Merriment and ale flowed freely among Jonathan’s crew, who sat with a few women from the village farther down the beach
, around a blazing fire.

“Tell me, Jonathan, what is it about the sea that keeps you out there?  What makes you return to her time after time?”

Jonathan sat next to her, legs crossed, contemplating the waters.  “She sings the sweet sound of freedom.  Out there, she may be the queen, but she will let you have your freedom if you respect her.”  Turning to Catherine, he went on.  “There is power in freedom, Catherine.  Freedom is living for yourself, not for others.”

Freedom.  Catherine thought about he word.  She was free to come and go as she pleased.
 
So why did she feel like a captive in her own home?  What was it that bound her in chains she could not see?  She accepted her responsibilities and what was expected of her.
 
But out here, away from her father, her sister, and Galen, sitting with Jonathan, she felt free.  Free to love, free to dream, free to live.
 
What would all of this be without Jonathan?
 
Wrapping her arms around her legs, she put her forehead on her knees.

Jonathan gently traced the line of her arm.  “What troubles you?”

She turned her face to rest her cheek on her knees, smiling in response to his touch.  Even in the darkness, his face illuminated only by the light of the moon, she could see his concern.

“I know I cannot ask you to stay, but you must know I shall miss you.
 
Already I feel an emptiness that threatens to consume my entire soul.”

He brushed away a lock of her hair that had strayed onto her face.  “Such beauty should never know sadness. ‘Tis a crime.”

The way he looked at her, the way he caressed her face with his eyes, made her breath quicken.

He leaned close. “I wish that I could stay, but others are expecting my arrival.”

She nodded, speechless.
 
She would not make it difficult for him.

He sighed and his gaze searched her face.
 
“I ask that you believe that I will return, for you have my heart, fair lady.”

His lips were painfully close to hers.
 
She leaned in ever so slightly, just to feel his sweet breath dance upon her lips.

Jonathan hesitated only a moment before he softly kissed her cheek.
 
His fingers traced the softness of her lips, lingering on their fullness. “May I?”

She would not deny herself.
 
“I pray that you wait no longer,” she whispered.  Her belly tightened with the anticipation.  She reached out and held his arms, feeling the hard muscles respond to her touch.  His kiss sent her into a sweet darkness, which then exploded with heat that demanded more.
 
His kiss was slow, deliberate, tasting her upper lip, then her bottom lip.
 
She pulled him to her, craving more, anxious to feed this awakened hunger.
  
A sigh of his name escaped her lips.

Jonathan suddenly pulled away, his own breath coming in short bursts, smiling as Catherine whimpered in protest.  “I will escort you home, milady, before I can no longer call myself a gentleman.”

“But...”

He placed a silencing finger to her lips.  “It must be so.  You will be missed if we dally much longer.”  He helped her to her feet.
 
As they stood with just a feather of space between them, he slid her hands under the folds of his shirt, against the bare skin of his chest and held them there.
 
“Take care of my heart, Catherine, for I give it to you for safe keeping.”

The rapid beating pounded against his warm, smooth skin, covered firmly by her hands.
 
As his eyes penetrated her own, she tried to commit to memory every line of his face, the lush lashes that adorned his amber eyes, the curve of his lips, the straight line of his nose, the way he tucked his hair behind his ears.
 
This is the way she would remember him.
 
This is how she would dream of him.

They walked the short distance to her horse in silence, fingers entwined, savoring the last few moments before he would once again bid her farewell. 

Chapter 29

“There’s no excuse.
 
It was a big, fucking mistake.”
 

Bryce’s usually composed features had given way to lines of worry, his brows drawn together tightly over his steel blue eyes.
 
Two days had passed since Eryn’s gallery showing.
 
Two days that Bryce relived his betrayal over and over, with Brandi’s presence a constant reminder.
 
The sun bore down from straight above, causing beads of sweat to form on his upper lip.
 
He leaned forward, his elbows on his knees, staring into the pool.