With This Ring (34 page)

The earl sipped his tea, still chortling.
“Lard-Arse!”
Snort!

Aaron frowned at his grandfather.
“He is in your stables.
You can meet him if you like.”

The earl shook a teasing finger at Aaron.
“Ha!”

Finally, the chuckles subsided and the earl put down his teacup.
He turned his bright gaze upon Aaron.
“So it was Wells all along, eh?”

Aaron didn’t speak.
Others might, and be quite within their rights to do so, but his own vow kept him silent.
The earl frowned.
Wrinkles folded on wrinkles.

“Oh, relax, boy!
You’ve got your place back!
You must disregard that Black Aaron nonsense—a man is who he is inside with no regard for the opinions of outsiders.
They used to call me Wild William in the day.
I was a lad bent on sin and indulgence!”

Aaron blinked at that.
“My lord, my imagination fails me completely.”

The earl snickered.
“It was a good woman who settled me down.
Your grandmother took a rolling pin to my head once!
Crack!
Knocked the sense right back into me!”

He became quiet for a moment, gazing into the fire.
“She would have done it again, you know, the day I sent you off.
She would have reminded me to listen to my own opinions—not to let gossip rule my actions.”

He turned his gaze on Aaron, who was stunned at the sadness he saw there.
“Do you know why Serena never told me the truth until today?”

Aaron shook his head, although he had a fairly good notion.

The earl went on.
“She said she feared I would send her and her boys away as well.
Why would she think a thing like that of me, eh?
Because she’d seen me be a stiff-necked fool already, that’s why!”

Aaron suddenly realized what his grandfather meant by having his “place” back.
“Are you saying—will I inherit everything after all?”

“Hmph!”
The old man glared at him.
“Yes!
Did you take too much sun on those islands?
You used to be quicker than that!”
He waved a hand imperiously.
“Now fetch Serena.
I’m tired.”

Aaron stood and delivered an admittedly automatic bow.
His thoughts whirled in a hurricane.
It was over?
He would have the means to care for Arbodean?
For Serena and her children?

He felt his “place” settle back upon him, like a suit of armor—heavy, but strong.
It fit better now than it ever had.

As he left the room, his grandfather called him back.

Aaron turned.
“Yes, my lord?”

“That Worthington girl?
She must be madly in love with you, if she would tell a great porky-pie to my face like that.
She reminds me of your grandmother, you know.
If I were your age, I wouldn’t let that one get away.”

“Yes, my lord.”

Unfortunately, Aaron was honor-bound to do exactly that.

*   *   *

Aaron found Elektra on the terrace, gazing out upon the vast starlit gardens.
Although her mint-green gown had seen its share of adventure, it remained as elegant as the beauty who wore it.

Elegant and sad.
He could see it in the arch of her proud neck and in the sad slope of her graceful shoulders.
I have cost her so much. I cannot take any more from her.

He couldn’t bear to think of her spending her life regretting the day she’d seen him in the inn-yard, regretting that she’d had her dreams stolen by a highwayman in the dark.

He opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out.
He cleared his throat and tried again.
“It is not too late, you know.”

She turned to smile sadly at him over her shoulder.
“I was just thinking the very same thing.”

Her expression was so full of melancholy that it broke his heart.
“Neville’s a good sort.”
Something twisted tight and hot in his chest, but he forced himself to go on.
“I always liked him.”

She turned fully to face him, leaning her hands behind her on the balustrade.
“I like him, too.”

That was like an arrow through his already aching heart.
He swallowed, fighting himself, battling the urge to sweep her away again, to gallop off into the night on a horse named Lard-Arse.

She watched him, waiting.

He drew in a tight, painful breath.
“No one need know about…” He had to clear his throat.
“Your family wouldn’t breathe a word, of course.
And Carter is so embarrassed about getting it all so wrong—he just wants it to go away.”

She leaned her head back to gaze up at the stars.
“I suppose I will have to explain to Neville why I am not a virgin.
Do you think he’ll mind?”

How could he tell her that a man would forgive her anything for a smile, a laugh, a flash of love in her aquamarine eyes?
“I think he’ll be reasonable about it, if he truly loves you.”

She pointed upward.
“There’s Orion.”
She smiled slightly.
“See?
My family will always be with me.
Do you think Neville will like the Worthingtons?”

“Ah.”
Only if he never actually meets them.
He cleared his throat.
“When he protests, you could simply pour him some of Philpott’s tea.”

That got a smile.
She turned her gaze to him at last.
“Now, there’s a plan.”

“You can still have everything you want.
Neville can help you rebuild your manor.
His wealth and standing will make your family simply eccentric, instead of notorious.”

She nodded slowly, but her smile faded.
Her gaze never left his.
“Yes, that would be good for Attie.”

Aaron cleared his throat again, but he couldn’t disperse the choking knot that fought his next words.
“Marry Neville, Elektra.”

“I suppose I have to marry someone, eventually.”
She walked slowly toward him, her hands clasped behind her back.
Each step brought her closer, until her bodice nearly touched his weskit front.
“May I have a kiss good-bye, my lord?”
Her whisper danced across the skin below his ear.

Even though her agreement proved that she had never truly loved him, even though his heart felt as if it were bound in white-hot wire, he had to.
Just one last taste …

He closed his eyes in grief and bent his head to hers.

She whispered something against his lips.
“Stand and deliver, my lord.”

The cold, steel barrel of a pistol pressed to his jaw.
He drew in a sharp breath as his eyes flew open to see her dangerous smile.

“What—”

“I’m kidnapping you, Lord Aaron Arbogast.
We will ride directly to Gretna Green.”
She smirked.
“I traded for a fresh horse.
I calculate we can be married by supper!”

“But—” He couldn’t believe he was protesting the fulfillment of his deepest dream, but he had to give her one last chance!
“What of my reputation?
It will not help your family to be associated with me!”

She shrugged carelessly.
“The Worthingtons have survived being odd for many years.
They’ll survive a little longer.”

He suppressed a smile at that.
“But—we do not have a ring!”

Elektra reached into her neckline and pulled out the ribbon that hung there.
Alongside the ornately worked key to Worthington Manor hung something else.
The gold of Aaron’s signet ring gleamed in the torchlight.

“How—?”

Her eyes narrowed slyly.
“I lifted it from the innkeeper’s pocket before we resumed our journey that morning.
You were so upset about parting with it.”

His heart freed itself from its last torturous binding with an almost audible snap.
Aaron raised one finger to carefully avert the pistol from his head.
“Well, there’s no need to be quite so forceful about it.”

She kept the pistol raised, but pointed slightly to one side.
“I am taking no chances this time.
I stole you away once and you managed to talk me out of it then.
Silly man.”
She smiled at him, a wild, wicked Worthington grin full of danger and laughter and love.
“Don’t you know?
Worthingtons always win in the end.”

My goddess Elektra.

Aaron pulled her close and swept her lightly into his arms, pistol and all.
He spun them both in a circle of joy as he laughed aloud.
“I must be a Worthington, then!”

Epilogue

“Ah, Mr.
Hastings!
Won’t you join us for a spot of tea?”

Iris Worthington was holding court in her drawing room—which was, quite literally, filled with drawings.
Shakespeare and Octopus. Shakespeare and Duckling. Shakespeare and Shakespeare
, the great man looking at himself in a mirror.
If one looked closely, one could count five ears.

Attie perked up at the name, but when a strange man entered, she went back to her own drawing.
Her mother had asked her to bring some color to the walls, so she was adding an undersea scene.

Hence the octopus.

The man sat down with Iris and poor brokenhearted Button.
Button was sad because Cabot had left.
Attie was a little bit mad at him for letting Cabot leave, but mostly she was sorry because he was so terribly sad.

Tea and sympathy, that’s what Iris had said.
Attie didn’t think the tea would help much.
It wasn’t even Philpott’s special tea.

“Are you going to join dear Aaron at Arbodean, Mr.
Hastings?
I’m sure he’ll expect you.”

“Only long enough to collect me back pay, missus.
’E don’t need me anymore.”

Attie began to make circles for the suction cups on the tentacles.
Lots and lots of circles.

“It must have been so romantic!
A midnight dash to Gretna Green.
Our Ellie is so impulsive!”

Ellie had married that other Hastings, run off with him in the night and everything.
Attie was a little bit mad about that, too.
Lots and lots of circles.

“I’m bound to do somethin’ like that meself.”

“Ah.
Romance!”
Button was trying to be his old bubbly self, but it wasn’t working very well.

“Aye.
There’s a girl I know, a little Cornish maid named Edith.
She won’t be expectin’ me to come back, but—”

“But you simply cannot stay away!”
Iris sighed.
“Isn’t love wondrous?”
She poured more tea for Mr.
Button, who was drinking rather a lot of it.
“I think it all worked out rather well, don’t you?”

Mr.
Hastings raised his teacup in salute.
“I couldn’t have planned it better myself, Lady Iris.”

Iris giggled.
“Shush.
We mustn’t upset the children.”

The three of them leaned close together.
“Now,” Iris whispered.
“About Orion—”

Attie listened so hard she stopped breathing, but she didn’t hear any more.

Mr.
Hastings finished his tea and went on his way.
A moment later Dade and Orion entered the drawing room.
Dade tugged on one of Attie’s braids.
“Nice tentacles, Attie.”

She grunted.
She was a little bit mad at Dade.
She forgot why.

Dade bent to kiss his mother on the cheek in greeting.
“Who was that fellow who just left?”

“That was Henry Hastings, dear.”

Dade made a noise.
“Not another one!”

Attie looked up.
“I liked him!”

Dade closed his eyes.
“Oh, God.”

Orion narrowed his eyes.
“I can see we will need to be more thorough next time.”

Attie gazed up at Orion.
He was one of her favorites, for he was nearly as intelligent as she was.
Should she warn him that Iris and Button had him in their matchmaking sights?

Or should she wait to see what happened next?
She smiled to herself as she went back to her drawing.

She had always been a most curious Worthington.

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Praise for

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“Bradley puts her unique touch on Beauty and the Beast when a devil’s bargain flings an innocent into a demon’s den.
Brimming with her signature depth of emotion, delightful characters, and perfect pacing, this sexy love story tugs on the heartstrings and makes you smile.”

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RT Book Reviews
(Top Pick!)

And Then Comes Marriage

“I am looking forward to reading the rest of the books in this series.
They will definitely be on my auto-buy list.”

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Night Owl Romance,
5 stars

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There’s passion, adventure, nonstop action, and secrets that make the pages fly by.”

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