Deceived (21 page)

Evan flinched. “Don’t say that.”

“I must say it. It is the image that runs through my mind every moment of every day!” Gabriel shouted, his face suddenly red and his eyes wild. “Our sister dead at the hands of that bastard who took her. And we did nothing. We did nothing to save her.”

“I’m not doing nothing,” Evan whispered.

Gabriel barked out a laugh that was harsh in the quiet room. “We’ll keep telling ourselves that, shall we? Congratulations on your engagement, brother. Good night.”

With that Gabriel stormed from the room, leaving Evan to ponder all the ugly things he had said. And all the fears he had never allowed himself to face.

In the end, it took over a week, but as Josie stood before the mirror in Audrey’s old chamber at the Woodley home, she saw the reflection of a wife. She was married.

“Here, let us remove the veil,” Juliet offered as she gently slipped the pins from the piece. “You will be more comfortable in just the gown during the gathering.”

“Thank you,” Josie whispered to her new friend, and saw Juliet smile warmly at her in the mirror reflection.

Behind Josie stood her own mother alongside Lady Woodley, Mrs. Samson, Jude’s mother, Mary and Mary’s sister Gemma. All of them beamed without hesitation.

And though Josie was now married to the man she loved,
she
felt hesitation. Oh, Evan had been attentive since their engagement and even passionate if they could steal a kiss in a corridor, but she had also felt a change in him. A wariness she couldn’t explain and didn’t like.

What if he regretted this choice? Right now he might be able to hide it, but as his passion for her faded, she feared he would begin to resent her.

“You are gorgeous, Josie,” Gemma said with a happy smile that drew her from her worries.

Though Josie had only met the wife of the notorious Crispin Flynn a few days ago, she already liked her immensely. She had the same kindness that her younger sister did. And her husband, though very dashing, was not quite the rogue rumor had implied he would be.

Mary nodded. “Gemma is right. You practically glow. Evan couldn’t keep his eyes off of you all through the ceremony!”

Josie blushed at the compliments that actually eased her fears a little. “Thank you, Mary, Gemma. I must admit, in this dress, I actually feel…
pretty
.”

She looked at herself again and how the creamy fabric of her gown fell over her often-hated curves. But the seamstress who had made the gown was not her usual choice, but one Lady Woodley hired from town, and the young woman had a flair for making the fashions of the day look wonderful even on a body that did not fit them.

“You
are
very pretty,” Lady Woodley said, rising from the chair where she had been ordered by Juliet to rest and coming through the group to stand beside Josie.

Josie smiled at her. Her new mother-in-law put her so to mind of the Woodley children. They all shared her eyes and the brightness of their smiles. And now Josie was one of them, a Woodley.

“My son seems very happy today, Josie,” Lady Woodley continued as she smoothed an errant curl away from Josie’s forehead. “And Claire…”

She trailed off and for a moment the room became silent, heavy. Josie reached out to grasp Lady Woodley’s hand and her new mother-in-law squeezed it gently.

“Oh, Claire would have loved this!” Lady Woodley finally whispered with only a slight crack to her voice.

“I miss her too,” Josie said softly, and they stood together for a few seconds, pondering their loss on this day of happiness.

Then Lady Woodley shook her head. “Oh, and Audrey! I know she is very sorry to miss this day.”

“I don’t begrudge her this wedding trip, I assure you,” Josie said with a smile. Now that she had experienced passion, she actually was jealous of the secluded cabin by the sea that Audrey was currently sharing with her handsome husband, Jude Samson. “I got a letter from her this morning, a lovely letter. Though she said you must each promise to write to her and tell her all the details of today so she can live vicariously through you.”

Lady Woodley laughed. “And I’m sure as soon as you are all back in London next week, my daughter will call on you and demand to hear them again.”

“I hope so,” Josie said with a smile. “I look forward to seeing her.”

“We have been up here for a while,” Juliet said softly. “Perhaps we should return to the party?”

Josie cast a glance at herself in the mirror once more. “Yes. I am ready to face the world and my husband once more.”

But as the rest moved toward the door, Josie stayed in her spot for a moment and drew a long breath. Downstairs Evan awaited her and she could only hope she would see only good things in his stare when she came into view.

Evan looked up the stairs as the gaggle of women came giggling and chatting downward. His heart leapt for he knew that meant Josie would be close behind. As the women scattered at the bottom of the stairs, they no longer blocked her descent—and there
she
was.

All day he had been taken aback by her presence, her beauty, and this moment was no different. He sucked in a breath, his knees going weak at the sight of her. And when she met his gaze and smiled…he was lost.

He moved toward her almost like he was in a dream and reached out a hand. She took it as she finished her descent, her fingers tightening against his, and looked up at him with a smile.

“Hello.”

He almost laughed at that one little word. So simple, so benign, and yet her voice hit him in the gut, wound up in him, tightened around his heart.

“You took far too long,” he murmured as he lifted her hand to his lips and felt the cool metal band on her finger that signified she was his for all time.

“Did I?” she asked with a gasp of panic. “Oh, were people asking about me, did—”

“Not people,” he interrupted. “
Me
. I swear it felt like you were gone an eternity.”

She blushed at his words, but she didn’t dip her head or look away. “Oh,” she said softly. “Well, how can I make it up to you?”

He laughed at the innocence and wickedness that combined in that question. “I will show you later. For now, you may start by sharing this dance with me, wife.”

She shifted and he saw her gaze slip through the ballroom doors. “I-I am not a very good dancer,” she whispered, as if that admission were the most embarrassing in the world.

He smiled as he slid her hand into the crook of his arm and guided her into the ballroom. All eyes turned to look at them, and dancers stepped back as they made their way onto the floor. He saw Josie’s panic flare and squeezed her hand.

“Don’t worry,” he whispered. “I will lead and you follow. In this, at least, I know what I’m doing.”

She smiled at the quip, and as the music swelled, he guided her into the steps of their first dance together. At first she moved a little awkwardly, as if she knew the steps but hadn’t performed them for a very long time. He supposed that was true, for she had admitted as much to him before. But he kept his gaze on her, adjusted her gently if she went astray, and soon she swung to the music as if she had been made for dancing. Or at least dancing with him.

Everything else around them faded. The wedding guests, their families, the orchestra, the ballroom…all that was left was the two of them, her in his arms, together at last.

He could have remained that way forever, but the music faded and the sounds of those around them clapping broke the spell between them. They stopped moving and she blushed as she ducked her head. Around them the crowd tittered, and he thought he heard someone whisper loudly, “Perhaps it is a love match after all.”

He ignored it all except to nod to the crowd and then guide his bride away. Soon more couples flooded the space they had left and everyone went back to their drinks and gossip.

He guided Josie away through the room and out onto the terrace where they could have a moment alone. Their first since declared husband and wife that afternoon.

She smiled up at him as he came to a stop at the edge of the terrace. “We seem to have a habit of ending up alone on terraces.”

He lifted his eyebrows suggestively. “I arrange for that, you know.”

Her laughter seemed to lighten the tension in her and when she stopped she said, “Thank you for the dance.”

“You are most welcome,” he responded. “But you were not truthful with me earlier. You said you were not a good dancer.”

She blushed. “It seems I only needed the right partner.”

Evan took a slight step away from her and looked out into the night. Josie meant she had the right partner on the floor, but in his mind he had begun to wonder if he had indeed found the right partner in life. Despite their odd beginning.

“Have I done something wrong?” Josie asked softly.

He jerked his gaze to find her looking up at him, green eyes wide and wild, her jaw set as if she assumed she would hear bad news and wanted to be ready for it.

“Wrong? No, why?” he asked.

She swallowed hard. “It is only that over the past few days, since we announced our engagement to our families, I have felt your…distance. Sometimes you seem very pensive.” He opened his mouth to speak, but she held up a hand. “Evan, I realize that our marriage is not exactly how you would have chosen your future. I accept that. But I don’t want your resentments to fester over time and destroy any happiness or comfort we could find together. So I hope you’ll be honest with me.”

Her words, meant to make him open up, only made his frown deeper.

Be honest with her?

If only she knew that was exactly why he had been holding back. He knew he had started their connection with a lie. Just one, but one that would hurt her deeply. That lie was that he had meant to use her.

And one day he would tell her that. But not now. Not when she was so raw about it. Not when it might make her turn away.

He took her hand. “The night we announced the engagement, I had a row with Gabriel.”

She blinked. “Another argument? What was it over?”

“It’s not important,” he said, again not wanting to broach a subject that might cause her pain on a day when she should be happy. “But my discord with my brother is likely what you picked up on since.”

She nodded slowly and he breathed a sigh of relief. At least he didn’t have to lie completely. His argument with his brother
had
been a source of discomfort. Only it was because Evan was torn between Gabriel’s desire for him to find out more from Josie and Evan’s true feelings for her. He was tormented by their original plan to use her attraction against her.

He didn’t feel good about those actions.

“It isn’t you,” he promised.

“Good,” she whispered. “I was worried. I couldn’t tell what you were thinking.”

“You needn’t,” he said. “And right now I am thinking about our wedding night.”

She let out a light, nervous laugh. “It
is
our wedding night.”

“No, this is our wedding party,” he corrected as he took her hand again and drew her a bit closer. “In a few hours, when we go back to your mother’s house and are almost entirely alone—”

“Actually,” she interrupted. “We will be entirely alone. While we were upstairs, your mother invited my mother to stay here for the night so that we could have privacy.”

“Oh, that is even better,” he murmured, unable to keep his mind from spinning wicked, wicked scenarios. “All right, then tonight when we are alone, I plan to do such things to you, wife.”

She swallowed hard, but he could see desire in her eyes. It brightened her expression and dilated her pupils.

“Like what?” she whispered, her voice rough.

“If you make me say it, then I’ll have to show you.” His tone was suddenly low and rough, even though he laughed.

Her breath hitched in primal response. “What’s wrong with that?”

“You are a minx, do you know that? A temptress.”

She joined in his laughter even though her eyes went wide. “I don’t think anyone has ever called me that before. Shall I take it as a compliment or a curse?”

“A bit of both,” he said, drawing her closer yet again. “You make me wild with wanting you, all I can think of is you. But if I tell you all the ways I want to touch you and taste you and claim you, I will be forced to either have you against that wall right there.” He pointed to a shadowy portion of the terrace. “Or I will have to walk around for the remainder of the party with a very obvious, er, show of my desire for you.”