Total pages in book: 173
Estimated words: 163328 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 817(@200wpm)___ 653(@250wpm)___ 544(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 163328 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 817(@200wpm)___ 653(@250wpm)___ 544(@300wpm)
Through parlors and great rooms, I trailed undetected. When I found them in the kitchen, I slipped into a shadowed alcove across the hall.
“While I was in London, they hanged another couple for sodomy.” Ashley stood at the long wooden table, his hands braced on the scarred surface. “The conviction of the two men rested entirely on the hearsay of a landlord and his wife, who claimed to have witnessed the crime through the keyhole of a door. Their testimony described anatomically impossible acts, and there were no other witnesses or evidence.” With his eyes starkly staring before him, he seemed to be unconsciously fascinated by the scratches on the table. “The gaoler escorted the alleged lovers to the gallows with twelve other men.”
“Stop this.” Priest leaned in and got in his face. “That won’t be us.”
“They were hanged alongside thieves, rapists, and murderers. I read the newspaper report. The crowd of spectators hissed and jeered. Not at the other criminals. No, their loathing disapproval was directed at the two men who committed a crime where there was no injury done to anyone.” He straightened and stepped away from Priest, his expression empty. “I’m returning to London on the morrow. I have my wedding and obligations to attend—”
“You fell in love with two pirates.” I charged into the kitchen, my hands fisting at my sides. “I know that comes with a slew of concerns and difficulties, so we’re going to hash it out right now.”
Neither man looked surprised by my abrupt presence. They must have known I was eavesdropping. Ashley moved to put distance between us. But Priest grabbed him and slammed him face-down on the table.
“Concern number one.” I stood beside them and bent down to meet Ashley’s angry eyes. “Neither Priest nor I can give you children. No heir means your father, the first Viscount Warshire, will be the last viscount.”
“I don’t care about that.” With his cheek pressed on the table and held in place by Priest’s hand, the candlelight flickered upon him and communicated to his hard, tense features and rumpled hair. It was the appearance of a man desperately trying to control that which could not be tamed.
I’d already gleaned his indifference about children. He never mentioned a desire to be a father. Never showed interest in the matter.
Reaching down, I cupped his crotch, where he stooped over the table, pinned beneath Priest’s immovable body. He wasn’t hard, but the intimate touch seemed to calm his thrashing. I needed his attention.
“Two.” I stroked him with my thumb, making him groan. “You love your career, and to be with us, you must give it up, along with your esteemed position in the beau monde. You will become a Royal Navy deserter, a lowly status so far removed from your stalwart character. I understand the quandary, and I’m not making light of it.”
“It’s a difficult decision,” Priest said, his voice a low growl. “But not an impossible one.”
Ashley slid his arm onto the table and sank his head upon it. “You’re wasting your time.”
Priest watched me steadily, his eyes burning with the same ire I felt. But there was something else there. Beneath the anger lay years of disappointment. A man could only be rejected so many times before parts of him started chipping away. He’d lost this fight with Ashley again and again, and he didn’t expect this time to be any different.
But it was two against one now. Priest wasn’t alone.
“The third concern,” I said to Ashley, “is the one that troubles you the most. Choosing us comes with grave danger. Priest and I are wanted for many crimes, sodomy being the least of our offenses.”
“Your concern about the gallows doesn’t go away if you leave us.” Priest shored up his hold on Ashley’s flexing arms, driving his point home with the intensity of his breaths. “Bennett and I will be hunted for the rest of our lives.”
Ashley stopped struggling and stared at nothing, his eyes unfocused as he absorbed our words.
“I told you my parents’ story.” I removed my hand from his groin and bent over the table beside him, mirroring his pose. “In my mother’s stubborn sense of duty, she forsook my father and left him desolate and forlorn. She thought she was protecting him, that if he stayed with her, she would make him weak and distracted. She believed their relationship would lead to his ultimate execution.” My voice broke on a pained whorl of breath. “In the end, my father hanged anyway, and she followed him.”
“We’re not your parents.” With his face inches from mine, his blue eyes pierced, sharp and unyielding. “This manor is isolated, secure, and the staff is loyal. Priest and I have been meeting here for fourteen years without discovery.”
“So that’s your plan?” I pushed away from the table, my shoulders quaking with rage. “You intend to marry the virgin and keep your immoral lovers on the side?”