The Bride and the Brute(21)

“You were in trouble,” she replied. “I---”

“I didn’t need your help,” he answered. Reese pushed himself from the ground and held a hand out to her.

Jayce sat up. Reese could see the same agony etched over her features as he had seen on the field of honor. She ignored his hand and stood, dusting her palms on her dress.

“Looks like your horse will have to go cold tonight,” Reese said.

Jayce headed for the fence. “No he won’t,” she answered.

Confused, Reese glanced toward Satan. The blanket was draped over his back. Astonished, Reese turned back to Jayce to see her climbing over the fence.

“You dropped the blanket when he shoved you,” she said. She eased her feet to the ground and headed toward the castle, leaving Reese standing alone in Satan’s pen.

“I don’t believe this,” Reese muttered, absently rubbing his sore stomach.





*****





Unable to sleep that night because of deep blue eyes hovering in his mind and red parted lips that called to him and spoke his name, Reese went to the study to bury his mind in work, to try to exorcise his demons.

He stood and strode to the window to gaze out at the chilly evening sky. The sun had fled beneath the invading blackness, and the evening was peppered with small glistening stars. Reese felt an anxiousness stir his soul. Tendrils of cold blew in from the open window to wrap icy fingers around his strong form.

Suddenly, the door swung open on softly creaking hinges and he turned to see the woman who haunted his dreams enter the room. Jayce paused in the middle of the open doorway, her hands folded before her, her small frame dwarfed by the wide entranceway. Reese’s breath caught in his throat, and his gaze traveled slowly over her; her hair was hidden beneath a sheer blue fabric, her figure curvaceous and regal, her shapely hips accented by a belt of rich velvet fabric that hung to the floor.

Reese stepped closer, thinking he must be imagining such beauty. But the closer he got, the lovelier she looked. Her blue eyes shone like beacons; her full lips were as red as cherries. He might just want to taste those cherries. He stopped immediately, realizing what the little nymph was doing to his senses.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” she apologized. “I didn’t know anyone was here. I saw the light and I was coming in to douse the candle.” With her hands folded demurely, Jayce looked as innocent and pure and righteous as a damned saint.

Reese approached her, but moved around to the back of the table before he came too near her.

She stepped up to the table, her eyes scanning the parchment that lay scattered across it. “What are you doing?”

“There is a problem in the fields. Some of the men have been stricken with a fever and are unable to work.”

“Is it serious?” Jayce wondered.

He shook his head. “The ones who have had the fever have recovered fully in about a week. If the fields are not fully seeded in two weeks’ time, it will be too late.”

“How many men are still ill?”

“Ten.” His gaze swept her unwillingly. “But that’s my concern.” She was quite comely. Her petite figure was curvy, alluring and inviting. Her brown hair was neatly tucked under the coif, but Reese remembered the rebellious curls that had framed her face. And her face! God’s blood! Her deep blue eyes reminded him of the ocean, the deepest part of it. The part you had to be careful you didn’t drown in. He forced his gaze from her and his jaw clenched. He was angry for being forced to marry a woman he didn’t love. He was angry with her for being so damned beautiful. “Had you no suitors?” he inquired suddenly.

“Suitors?”

“Men asking for your hand in marriage,” he clarified dryly.

One dainty eyebrow rose. “Many,” she replied defiantly.

Of course she did. How could she not have had men lining up to wed and bed her? Then, another thought occurred to him, and he clenched his fists. “Does a babe grow in your belly?”

Jayce straightened indignantly. Heat suffused her cheeks. “No,” she retorted stiffly.

“Then why would your father go to such extremes to have me wed you?” he demanded. “It makes no sense.”

“I don’t know,” she admitted, turning to glance at the parchment.

Reese swore he heard agony in her tone. “Jayce,” he called. When she lifted those blue eyes to him, he forgot his words. He stood with his mouth open for a moment before shaking himself. “I cannot help but think I would never do this to a daughter of mine. She would be happy in her life, with her husband.”

“Are you so sure I am not happy?” Jayce wondered.

Reese studied the simple dignity of her face. The honesty that shone from her eyes touched his heart. He shook his head. “You cannot be. You know nothing of me.”