“No,” he replied, and offered no further explanation.
Jayce’s scowl deepened. “Then why the sudden change of mind?” she inquired, refusing to budge her animal until he gave her a reason.
Reese’s eyes narrowed slightly before he turned his face toward the breeze.
Anger flared in Jayce. He was toying with her, playing some sort of game. “Are you convinced I’m not a part of my father’s plot to gain a husband?”
The soft ripples of air weaved their way through his dark hair like fingers. His stubborn jaw was set.
“Or have you suddenly developed an unselfish streak?” she asked spitefully.
He slowly turned his ice-blue eyes to her. “Your father is dead,” he answered. “Wanted or not, you are my responsibility.”
Dead? For a moment she thought he was lying to her. Then, Reese held out a piece of crumpled parchment to her. With numb fingers she took the paper, her dazed eyes drawn to the scroll. It was a missive from her father’s doctor. Her fingers trembled as she read its contents. Her father had been sick for months, and had finally succumbed to death.
Jayce read the note three times. Why hadn’t she known?
Her father had kept his distance from her during the past months, but she had no idea he was harboring a deadly illness. Distantly, she heard Reese instructing the guards to head back to Castle Harrington.
Father is dead.
A numbness slowly crept through her body. Father is dead, her groggy mind repeated. How can this be? She heard her name called and numbly turned her head toward the voice. Reese was staring at her, but she could read nothing in his expression.
“Are you all right?” Reese was asking.
Jayce felt herself trembling and fought to keep her composure. Alone. The word exploded in her mind. “Yes,” she whispered, and didn’t know if she succeeded in controlling her weak voice.
She watched Reese turn his back on her. The shaking in her body grew until she could barely hold the reins.
Father is dead, her mind repeated. She found she still held the parchment in her hands. The words blurred together, and Jayce swiped at her eyes. I can’t let Reese see my weakness, she told herself firmly. And even as she said this to herself, a lump rose in her throat.
An overwhelming urge to get away filled her. But where could she go? Who would take her in? She lifted her gaze to search the landscape, as if someone would materialize there and offer her refuge. Instead, her gaze was drawn to Reese, who wavered before her tearing eyes. He sat stoically in his saddle, staring at her.
I can’t let him see my pain, she thought. I don’t want to see his scorn. She spurred the horse forward, past him, desperately blinking back her tears. If she could just ride in front of him, she was sure she could keep a straight back. She was sure that when the tears came she could keep her shoulders from shaking.
The horse walked forward, jarring loose a tear. It slid over her cheek and down her chin. With any luck, he had missed it. Jayce’s horse moved past his, and she knew she had made it.
But then Reese’s hand shot forward to capture the reins of her horse, halting her animal’s progress. Jayce didn’t turn her gaze to him; she didn’t move, willing her tears to stop, willing him to release her.
“Jayce,” he said, and his voice was full of compassion.
It was agony. She bowed her head, squeezing her eyes closed on the tears now flowing freely over her cheeks. She couldn’t turn to him. She couldn’t be fooled by his gentle tone when she knew so well he wanted nothing to do with her.
Then, his arm was beneath her shoulders, drawing her from her horse, pulling her onto his lap. She resisted at first, fighting the comfort his arms offered. Reese pulled her tight against his chest, her weak struggles no match for his strong arms.
“It’s all right,” he whispered, his words spoken into the hair at the top of her head.
Jayce buried her face in his strong chest, sobbing. His arms around her were warm and soothing. She sobbed most of the way back to his castle, and when there was nothing left but exhaustion, she succumbed to a deep sleep.
Chapter Ten
Her head pounded and Jayce eased her eyes open from the dark comfort of sleep. Her gaze swept her surroundings and she recognized where she was immediately. Reese’s room. Slowly, she sat up. She was in his bed, tucked beneath luxuriously warm blankets.
She was alone. She swung her feet from the bed and had no sooner set them on the cold floor when the door opened and Nicole entered the room, a basin of water in her hands.
Nicole’s eyes alighted on Jayce, and a smile lit her face. “Welcome back,” she greeted.
Jayce winced and rubbed her head.
Nicole sat on the bed beside Jayce. “I’m sorry about your father,” she said earnestly. “Truly I am.”