“You be good,” he ordered teasingly.
She grinned. “I’m very good.”
He nuzzled near her ear. “That you are, my love.”
“Tanin and I will wait here for you to return. The others will spread out around the manor house in case you should need assistance. Remember someone is close by at all times.”
“I am grateful and I am confident,” he said and gave her a hug before climbing into the single horse-drawn carriage.
She reached out and took hold of his hand that held the reins. “Take no chances. I don’t want anything to happen to you.”
He leaned down close and whispered, “Love me, do you?”
She laughed softly. “How can I help it?”
Her words reverberated in his head as the carriage bounced down the rutted road. In her own way, she had admitted she loved him, and the joy of it overwhelmed him. He was going to make everything work—from freeing his brother, to reuniting Cullen with Lady Alaina, to marrying Storm, to taking them all back to America with him.
They’d be family, all of them, and his father and mother would have been pleased knowing that the ranch they had worked so hard to build would see family grow and prosper on it.
Burke entered the Earl of Balford’s manor house with strength and determination, ready to do what he had to, to protect the people he loved.
He had expected Lady Alaina to greet him, but a manservant escorted him to an ornately decorated parlor, where he was told the earl would be with him shortly.
The room’s garish furnishings shouted wealth and gave Burke hope. Since the earl favored money, he just might favor releasing Cullen for a goodly amount that would fatten his coffers considerably.
“Mr. Longton.”
Burke turned from admiring a painting of a young lass with a small dog on her lap to greet the Earl of Balford.
“My lord,” he said with a respectful bow of his head. He had no idea if he was addressing him correctly but instinct told him it wouldn’t hurt. And the way the tall, slim man held himself so rigid and with his garments matching the style of the room, he could tell the earl was a man who deemed himself important.
The earl walked over to a white, ornately designed chair trimmed in gold and sat, then pointed to a less garish chair and with a careless wave ordered Burke to sit.
Burke sat on the edge of the chair.
“My daughter mentioned something about a business proposition,” the earl said as if not at all interested.
Burke couldn’t help but notice that there was no resemblance between the earl and his daughter, not even the slightest. Their natures even seemed opposite since Lady Alaina appeared a caring soul and the earl…
Burke took a good look at him and knew right away he was a cold-hearted bastard.
“I have a proposition that would award you substantial financial gain,” Burke said.
“I’m listening.”
Burke didn’t waste a minute; he did as Storm had advised. He got right to the point. “You hold my brother prisoner and I wish to pay for his release.”
The earl’s posture grew even more rigid and his face brightened with interest. And why not? Releasing a prisoner was an easy way for him to make money and an easy way for Burke to gain his brother’s freedom.
“Your brother’s name?” the earl asked casually.
“Cullen.”
The earl’s demeanor changed in a flash, his eyes narrowed, his lips pinched tight, and his slim hands gripped the arms of the chair. “That man is charged with a grievous crime and must suffer his punishment.”
“What was my brother’s crime?” Burke asked, knowing full well it was forbidden love that had imprisoned Cullen, but knowing he could never acknowledge that to the irate man.
“Treason!”
Burke tensed. Treason wasn’t dealt with lightly in any country, but money had opened prison doors before and he hoped it would now.
“I can promise you more than sufficient restitution for my brother’s bad judgment.”
“Nothing, absolutely nothing, could redeem your brother’s foolish actions.”
Burke remained calm. “True, foolishness can brand a man forever, but why let him rot in a jail cell when you can exchange him for a sizable amount of money and a guarantee that the man will never set foot in Scotland again.”
“Money cannot make right the horrendous wrong that this man did.”
Burke could have sworn the man hissed like a snake getting ready to attack, and he knew he had to tread very lightly. If he wasn’t able to secure Cullen’s release, what alternative was there?
Storm’s capture.
He didn’t want to give it thought. He had to make this work.
“Of course not,” Burke agreed. “But exiling him from his homeland is a death sentence in itself.”