Claiming His Bride (6 page)

A long, hard ride might not banish her from his thoughts,
but at least it would serve as a temporary distraction from the aches in his
body and his heart.

****

Victoria
returned in time for dinner,
but she had it sent up to her parlor, which was across from her and Bastian’s
bedroom. Upon her return, she’d been told he was in his study, so she’d told
the staff to serve him in there, if he preferred. She didn’t mean it as a snub,
but she thought making him sit in the dining room alone might be worse. She was
still angry, and she had no idea what to say to him. She considered writing him
a note, but she knew a second round of apologies from him would only make all
of her anger melt away.

What she truly wanted, more than anything, more than any
apology, was to understand
why
. A
strange man sent her flowers on her wedding day, and yet her husband said
nothing? She considered it laughable, though laughing was the last thing she
desired to do at the moment. Part of her wanted to fully accept jealousy as a
valid excuse—and perhaps to men it was a very valid one—but she couldn’t accept
that excuse without stronger backing. That same part of her traitorously
remembered that he had claimed she was the one subduing him every time they
touched, and replaying those words in her mind made her long for him to show
her exactly how much power she did have over him.
But the
rest of her rebelled against that.
He’d lied to her with great ease, and
that frightened her.

She couldn’t make herself say so the night before, but she’d
had fallen in love with him, too. He’d begun the claiming of her heart on their
wedding night when he’d so tenderly shown her how happy a man and woman could
make each other. Even with his strange behavior—which she now understood, for
better or worse—and all of his flaws, he’d won her heart. But because they’d
never exchanged any words of love, she’d kept silent. If she’d told him she
loved him, would he have questioned her? Confronted her about William? When had
he planned on telling her about his own feelings? The ease of his other deception
made her worry, for if she found out he did not truly love her, her heart would
surely break.

She moaned in frustration. He’d seemed so incredulous when
she’d delineated all the reasons she couldn’t believe or trust him. What would
he have to say to her tonight? Since she hadn’t made him sleep in his study the
night before, she had no reason to believe he would sleep elsewhere tonight.

She put down the book she’d been holding but not reading and
extinguished all the candles. Glancing up and down the hallway, she hurried
across to the bedroom. She wasn’t exactly scared of this William, whoever he
was, but she still felt a little apprehensive. It truly could all be one big
misunderstanding, but every time she settled her mind on that, she had doubts.
A month was a very long time for a misunderstanding to go on. She thought of
Liam. It couldn’t be him. He’d been infatuated with one of the maids who worked
at Lady Winterbourne’s townhouse, and he’d been very happy to return home
despite the sad circumstances. He was a straightforward young man, and even if
he’d believe his suit were hopeless, he would have revealed his feelings before
he left. The letter she’d received implied a relationship that both parties
knew about.

Unless this person were in fact unstable
in some way.
She hurried to the dressing room, trying not to dwell on that while she
changed. As she sat brushing her hair, she heard the door to the bedroom open
and then
close
. She put her brush down and debated
what to do. But before she could come to any conclusion, Bastian came into the
room. He hesitated as their eyes met, but then he moved forward, brushed his
fingers over her hair very lightly, and kissed the top of her head. He moved
away quickly and began to undress.

“Did you have a pleasant visit at the vicarage?”

“Yes, I did.”

“Good.” He went into the bathroom without saying anything
else.

While she appreciated the absence of any pressure to talk
about the day before, she wished he’d made some kind of effort. She shook her
head, feeling like a hypocrite. He’d said he could wait until she was ready, so
she couldn’t fault him for keeping his promise.

She went to bed and got under the covers. Ten minutes later,
he emerged and began extinguishing the few candles she’d left burning. He
didn’t look at her, so she lay down and pulled the covers up to just below her
breasts. He sat on the bed, but he made no move to extinguish the final candle
or get under the covers.

Did he expect her to say something? Was he trying to work up
to something? The longer he sat there, the more she wanted him to slip under
the covers and take her into his arms. Finally, he turned and inched closer. He
put one arm on the other side of her body, bracing himself to lean over her.
She couldn’t break their eye contact. Again, he stroked her hair lightly and
kissed the top of her head.

“Good night.”

Her breath came out shakily. She hadn’t even realized she’d
been holding her breath. His eyes darkened, and he leaned close again.

She turned her head so his lips met her cheek. “Good night,
Bastian.”

He drew away, and she squeezed her eyes shut, turning away
and clutching the blankets to her chest. She heard him sigh, but he made no
further move. He blew out the candle and got into bed. If he wanted to hold her
as much as she wanted to be held, they were both in for another restless night.

Chapter Five

Victoria
shouldn’t have been surprised
when she woke in Bastian’s arms, as he’d filled her dreams all night. His warm
breath caressed her neck, his lips almost touching her flesh. The hard length
of his body pressed against her back. She stirred, realizing they were on his
side of the bed. Even though she’d been determined to resist, she’d still gone
into his arms in her sleep. He moaned and tightened his grip as she turned over
and tried to free herself from his embrace.

“Please don’t go,
Victoria
,”
he whispered against her ear as he pulled her back against his chest.

“
Bastian,
let me go.”

He didn’t release her. “Please stay and listen.”

“All right.”
She didn’t turn to look at
him though.

“I thought about what you said. You’re right. My actions
were the wrong ones. I honestly hoped this man would simply go away. Then I
wouldn’t have to think about him. I wouldn’t have to hear you tell me you loved
another. I wouldn’t have to know that you would have preferred marrying him.”

“Why didn’t you explain when I said I didn’t know anyone
named William?”

“We had only been married two days. I thought you would be
angry about what I’d done.”

She sighed. “So you kept doing it for a whole month? You didn’t
think that would make it even worse?”

“I’m sorry. I was only thinking of myself. It never occurred
to me this would hurt you.”

She finally rolled over to look at him. “You truly thought
it would all simply go away?”

“No. I kept asking myself that yesterday. You had every
right to be upset. I’m sorry I lost my temper, sorry I didn’t consider your
feelings.”

“We have to get ready soon. The Winterbourne’s party is this
afternoon.”

He groaned. “I don’t want to go to a party. I want to stay
right here and convince you I’ve learned my lesson.”

“I think you have. You said I should always ask for anything
I want. I want my husband to trust me. I want him to talk to me. Ask me
anything, talk to me about everything.” She touched his cheek, and he
immediately turned his head to kiss her palm. “You apologized for not thinking
of my feelings. That’s what I truly wanted. I still don’t completely understand
your reasoning, but our situation is somewhat unusual, so I can see why you
were worried about a confrontation. Your motivations make a little more sense
now.”

“Only a little?” he teased.

She smiled. “It’s a start.”

“What do you want me to do to find out who this man is?
We’ll solve this problem together, as we should have.”

She considered this. They couldn’t just go around asking
their friends about a man named William. “I don’t know. Anyone we ask will
expect us to explain if we aren’t subtle.” She sat up and pulled her legs
against her chest.

“Are you frightened now? We’ll be safe at Lord
Winterbourne’s house, I promise.”

“I am a little, but more than that I’m still just baffled.”

“I know, darling.” He got out of bed and pulled her into his
arms, carrying her across the room.

“What are you doing? We need to get ready.”

“I thought we could save time by sharing a bath. My dreams
were full of you, but that still wasn’t enough.”

When he set her back on her feet, she put her arms around
his neck and smiled. “I dreamt of you, too,” she confessed.

As he drew her into a kiss, she knew they were going to
arrive at the party more than fashionably late.

****

Bastian watched
Victoria
talking with her mother. They had compared notes twice, but thus far they had
come up with nothing. She had uncovered two Williams who were old enough to be
her grandfather, and he had discovered one who was only seven years old. He
would have preferred spending the party with her, especially as she had
forgiven him so much more readily than he had anticipated. It gave him hope
that, though she hadn’t said anything about his declaration, she was pleased by
it. Thinking about her moving against him in the tub that morning distracted
him momentarily. Lady Winterbourne had to tap him a second time to get his
attention.

“Yes, Lady Winterbourne? I’m so sorry. I was distracted.”

She smiled and swatted him with her fan. “I don’t blame you
for being distracted by your pretty wife. She’s glowing, my boy.”

He smiled back at her. “Yes, she is. How is your husband?”

She scanned the room. “Well enough. He’s flitting about
somewhere with one of the grandchildren. He does love these daytime functions,
showing off the little ones. But I came to say there is someone at the
tradesman’s entrance looking for your wife. I happened to be talking to one of
the maids when he came up. I told him I would find her, but I thought it best
to tell you. He looks vaguely familiar, but he would not give his name. That
bothered me. I told Emily not to leave him alone.”

“Lady Winterbourne, you may have just made my day.” He took
her hand and kissed it, making her laugh, and then he dashed off toward the
back of the house. When he rounded the corner, he saw a redheaded maid talking
to a handsome young man. He was well dressed, but not well enough to put him in
Victoria
’s
circle of acquaintances.

“Thank you, Emily,” Bastian said. He waited until she had
nodded and gone back to the kitchen before turning to the man. “How can I help
you?”

He nodded, but only slightly, and adjusted his collar,
looking nervous yet determined. “I actually needed to speak with your wife,
Lord
Aslet
.”

“What could concern my wife that I cannot know?”

He maintained eye contact with Bastian, but he kept
clenching his hands in obvious agitation. “It’s a private matter, my lord.”

“My wife should not have any private matters with other
men.”

The man’s face grew red. “Well, my lord, she does.”

Bastian narrowed his eyes. “I think we need to step outside,
William.”

William narrowed his eyes, too. “If you know my name, then
you know exactly what this is about.”

Bastian grasped the man by the collar and dragged him to the
door. Once they were outside, William pulled free.

“So because your family is titled, you think you can treat
people however you please?”

“I can treat a man harassing my wife any way I like. She was
quite baffled by your letter. She claims she doesn’t know a man named William.”

The man hesitated, looking confused for a moment. “She’s
probably trying to protect me. I’ve been away, and we didn’t write so as not to
arouse suspicion. I had to settle some matters before we could be together.
Business delayed me, so I couldn’t stop the wedding, but I didn’t give up.”

“My wife says she does not know you. I will not let you
speak to her.”

William looked ready to punch him, so Bastian braced
himself. He didn’t want to cause a scene, but he was not letting this insolent
man near his wife.

“Very well.
We are positioned in your
milieu, in your high and exalted world, so I suppose I have to back down. If I
can’t speak with Isabella now, I’ll find another way.”

Bastian stared for a moment, and then he laughed out loud.
Where had this man been that he didn’t know what had happened? His eyes widened
as he realized William must be the father of Isabella’s child.