Kessen opened her eyes. “You’re reading to me.”
Christian was against the only tree in the garden, with a lazy smile plastered across his face “That I am.”
“Why?”
“Because I promised.”
Kessen moved to lean against him. “You promised you would read one line if I behaved. You just read two paragraphs at least.”
Christian put his arm around her. “What can I say? I’m a man full of surprises, and I have it on good authority this one’s your favorite.”
She chuckled. “Nick being the good authority?”
“Naturally.”
She made the mistake of looking into Christian’s eyes. “Thank you.”
He kissed her chastely on the forehead. “It’s always my pleasure to serve my lady. Shall we continue?”
She nodded and closed her eyes, allowing the sweet melody of his voice to drown out any nerves and fears she had been feeling that night.
For once it was just him and her.
They were together, beneath the moonlight. The night was absolutely perfect; what could go wrong?
It’s not that she was superstitious, but something had to give. The second she closed her eyes and thought those dangerous thoughts, a shrill laugh rang through the garden.
“So,” the high-pitched voice said. “Let me guess. He took you to the garden, seduced you with his words. Next he’s going to take you in the cottage and tell you there’s no one he’d rather have but you … or wait. Has he already said that?”
The voice was coming closer. Christian had gone still as a statue behind Kessen. She looked from left to right to try to locate the source of the voice but found nothing.
Then a flashlight waved in front of her face and she turned around. The person, or lady, was dressed in all black and leaning against the tree as well.
“I don’t think we’ve met, Kessen. I’m Jenifer Hanford.”
“Go away,” Christian barked.
“Oh, not when we’re having such a fun little chat.” Her voice went all pouty as she leaned closer to Kessen. Her face was perfect. In fact, it was more than perfect. It didn’t seem real. Plastic surgery must have been kind to this woman. Kessen had no idea if she was in her twenties or forties.
“You do know how Christian works, don’t you? He wines and dines his women, teases them with witty banter and then leaves them … just like he left me.”
Christian muttered a curse word, then pushed up from the ground. “How dare you come into my house and say that! We weren’t a good match, Jenifer. I liked you well enough, but I could never love you. You knew that! I told you it was over. Why can’t you just leave well enough alone?”
“I’m pregnant.” Jenifer’s voice was like a knife through Kessen’s heart. It was too much. She felt paralyzed in shock, as if making any sudden movement would make that statement more real than it already was.
“That’s impossible,” Christian snarled.
“Oh, is it?”
“Yes, yes it is, because we never slept together!”
Kessen wasn’t sure if he was lying, or if Jenifer was lying. She looked at the two of them and waited.
Jenifer spoke first. “Who do you think the media’s going to believe, Christian? Me or you? After all, your reputation and that of your family precedes you. All I need to do is go tell Daddy you took advantage of me, and we’re as good as married.”
“Why?” His voice cracked. “Why, Jenifer? Why would you do that to me?”
Her eyes turned red with fury. “Because you’re mine! You’ve always been mine! I almost had you until she came along!” Jenifer pointed in Kessen’s direction. “You would never have broken up with me if it hadn’t been for her!”
“Jenifer, it was over before she even came here.”
“It wasn’t!” she screamed. “It isn’t over until I say it’s over … I’m going to Daddy.”
“Jenifer!” Christian yelled then grabbed at her hands. “You can’t do this. Don’t do this, please. I beg you.”
She stopped in her tracks. “What will you give me in return?”
Christian suddenly sounded old. “What do you want?”
“Marry me,” she said quickly. “I truly am pregnant. My family can’t handle any more scandal. We have no money. You were to be the saving grace. Marry me instead of her.”
“I don’t love you,” he said icily.
Everything went still in the garden. “But you love her?”
It was the moment Kessen and Christian had been avoiding for days. The moment where everything would change for both of them.
Kessen closed her eyes in anticipation.
But Christian didn’t say anything. He said nothing.
All Kessen heard was the sound of her own breathing as Jenifer said bitterly, “That’s what I thought. Make arrangements, Christian. I’m breaking my silence if you go through with the ceremony. Your family and her father’s company would never survive it.”
Kessen sat dumbstruck on the blanket for several minutes before she felt Christian’s arms around her. She twisted in them as hard as she could and even landed a couple fists on his face before silently sobbing into his chest. “I hate you!” She shook with fury. “Leave me alone; just leave me alone.”
“What do you need? Tell me what you need.” His voice cracked with emotion. “What do you want? I can’t … I don’t know—”
“Nick, get Nick,” Kessen said, still crying.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Christian ran into the ballroom to grab Nick.
Nick wasn’t happy, considering he had been getting friendly with some of the duchess’s cousins, but that didn’t matter to Christian. All that mattered was Kessen.
How could he have done that to her?
He was given the perfect opportunity to tell her how he felt; instead, he froze like a statue. The words were on the tip of his tongue—why couldn’t he bring himself to say them? And why did Jenifer have to show up and ruin everything?
He would rather die than marry her, but would Kessen even have him now? And what would it do to Kessen’s reputation and her father’s company? He couldn’t do that to her. She didn’t deserve it.
Cursing, he kicked the ground. He and Jenifer hadn’t even liked each other, or at least he hadn’t liked her. They went on a series of dates because his father pressured him to be seen in society. Jenifer was the type of girl who needed to be seen at all times; therefore, he always had a date, not that she ever paid him much attention. She was always much too busy flirting with other men. He never cared, because he never liked her. He assumed she felt the same way. Jenifer didn’t actually care for him; she was just using him for his title and his money—something he swore he would never marry for.
He took a deep, soothing breath. Clearly the woman was insane.
Pain slammed into his chest as he made eye contact with Kessen, fighting to think of what to say, a way to explain that Jenifer was lying or that she was mistaken. The man in him felt the need to calm all females around him down, yet the part of him that knew he loved Kessen wanted to scream at the injustice. As much as it pained him to admit it, he needed to follow through and marry Jenifer; it was the only way to protect Kessen and her father.
The idea made bile rise in his throat. He silently led Nick to Kessen. She was still sprawled out across the blanket, sobbing. He wasn’t sure if it was from shock or anger or both.
The only words that came to mind at that specific moment were not appropriate for Kessen’s ears. How could he screw up so royally bad? He cursed aloud. To think that Jenifer had come up with such a scheme. Furious, all he wanted to do was chase after Jenifer and knock some sense into her. Unfortunately it would make him look like a worse cad, considering he needed to be helping Kessen. She would never forgive him.
Before Nick reached Kessen, Christian tried to explain what happened.
Nick’s reaction wasn’t what he expected. Instead of telling him he understood and would take car
e of it, he pushed him with all the force of an American bulldog and swore.
“You blew it!”
Kessen scrutinized the exchange with curiosity.
Nick pushed Christian again. “How could you? What’s wrong with you? You complete and utter prick, I should kill you!” Nick lunged at Christian again. This time Christian didn’t move. Instead he welcomed the pain from Nick’s fist as it connected with his jaw.
Christian fell to the ground in a heap and wanted nothing more than to lie there and wallow in self-pity. It was done. He and Kessen were finished.
He only had one chance to make things right for her, and he was going to take it.
Without saying a word, he got up, dusted himself off, and went to find a strong drink. He would tell his father in the morning.
The wedding was off.
As he walked away the last thing he heard from Nick’s mouth was, “Don’t worry, sweetie. I’ll fix it, just leave it to me. I’ll make it better. I love you … I love you so much.” He heard Kessen’s choked sobs and knew this was his fault.
The words should have been his—the comfort from him, not Nick.
He swallowed the giant lump in his throat and excused himself to his chambers.
****
“Ouch!” Nick growled.
“Sorry.” Duncan shifted his weight uncomfortably as he carried the body over his shoulder. “She’s heavier than I thought!”
“I would like to take this opportunity to inform you that your brilliant plan completely backfired,” Nick grumbled.
Duncan swore. “How was I supposed to know Christian would respond that way? All I wanted to do was push him over the edge. Have you seen him lately? He’s like a caged tiger! The man loves her; he’s more stubborn than I gave him credit for. Jenifer was merely doing what we paid her for.”
“And exactly what currency did you use, Duncan?”
“What is it in your country? Oh yes, I plead the Fifth.”
“Only works in America. I will have you know that in the past two days I’ve lied to my best friend, tricked a British lord, and kidnapped someone. If I go to prison after this, I’m throwing you under the bus.”
“Brilliant,” Duncan mused. “Now would you please lift her higher. I don’t want her back to hit a rock or anything. She has to get to the tree house without any damages.”
“Right, because my goal at this point is to cause injury to my best friend, whom I’ve also just helped you drug and kidnap.” Nick had been feeling angry ever since Christian told him what happened in the garden. After talking with Duncan, they decided this was the only way to deal with the situation, especially since it was their fault in the first place. But how were they supposed to know that the little push they thought Christian needed would backfire? It took a lot of careful planning and strategy, but Nick and Duncan had a lot to gain. After all, their friends’ future was in their hands.
Duncan groaned. “The tree house is just past the garden. Do you think it’s far enough to do the trick?”
“It will have to be. I can’t carry her much longer,” Nick grunted.
Duncan and he moved the body carefully into the tree house cottage and lit a lamp. She would be waking up soon. They had only meant to drug her for a few hours, but heartbroken girls had a way of sleeping off the pain just like Kessen was doing.
She probably never wanted to wake up.
“Stupid Christian!” Nick said loudly.
Duncan looked at him and took a shaky breath. “He’s trying to protect her. He loves her, you know.”
“I know that, you know that, and Kessen probably knows that. It’s Christian who doesn’t know, and I’m pretty sure his participation is required, don’t you think?”
Duncan started pulling out the blankets they’d brought. “The news station should be arriving to film the wedding. No contact was made outside that the wedding would be off. We’re going to have to make something up to stall.”
“You think so?” Nick’s voice had grown tired.
“If I know Christian, and I do, he’ll go into panic mode. He won’t stop until he finds her. We get him to confess his love for her on the news, so everyone knows how important she is to him. He wouldn’t dare back out after confessing it in front of the world.
“How much did you give her?” Nick was suddenly curious.
“Jenifer’s hot. We’ve been dating since she and Christian broke up. At this point she would do anything for me. It may or may not have something to do with my ability to charm any woman over the age of eighteen.”
Nick laughed. “When Kessen finds out Christian rescued her from dangerous kidnappers, she’ll be all goo-goo-eyed over how romantic it was. Didn’t you say one of the books had a similar story? She’ll go nuts over it.”
Duncan smiled proudly. “That is where I got my idea. It will be right out of her favorite novels. She’ll swoon at his feet.”
Nick tied her hands. “I sure hope so, because she’ll kill us if she ever finds out.”
“She won’t.”
“But she could,” Nick couldn’t help but say.
“She won’t! Now hurry up!” Duncan snapped.
Within minutes they were gone, leaving Kessen alone — blindfolded, hungry, and scared. It was enough to make Nick want to turn back, but he knew it was for the best. If they were too stubborn to forgive each other and see what everyone else did, then it was up to him and Duncan to take matters into their own hands.
****
Crash! A loud noise woke Christian from his champagne-induced sleep. Naturally last night was easily the worst night of his life. He couldn’t say the three little words Kessen needed to hear, he found out his ex was blackmailing him, and he was now being forced into a marriage for the second time in the past two weeks.
Either God was angry with him or someone was trying to play a cruel joke with his life. He pinched the bridge of his nose and scanned the room.
Nothing had fallen. But he could have sworn he heard something hit the floor. He slowly rose from his bed, careful to take shallow breaths so the sharp aches in his head would feel less painful. He padded across the floor to his door and opened it to see a crazed Duncan staring at him.
“Is there a reason for your noise, Duncan?”
“She’s gone,” he said in panic.
Christian felt his chest tighten. He didn’t even want to ask, but knew he had to. “Who is gone?”
Duncan paused before answering, “Kessen.”
“Did she leave a note?” Christian felt stupid for asking, but he was hoping for a sign that would prove she cared for him, that she would forgive him for what had happened.
Duncan shifted uncomfortably. “Yes, but it doesn’t contain what you’re hoping.”
“Meaning?”
“It’s a ransom note, Christian.”
He felt his knees go weak as he stared at Duncan. “Please, tell me you’re joking.”
“I wish I were. Nick went in to see how she was earlier this morning, and she was gone. Things were thrown helter-skelter as if there had been a struggle. We telephoned the police; they are investigating now. We tried to wake you earlier, but you were so out of it. The authorities want your family to release a statement to the press. You may want to clean up a bit beforehand.
“A statement?” Christian echoed.
Duncan nodded. He looked like he hadn’t slept in days. “They’ll be here in an hour.”
Christian had never been so angry and afraid in his life.
It felt as if the whole world was crumbling around him. Unable to walk or even utter a word, he fell to the ground in a heap and leaned his suddenly heavy head against the wall.
“What did it say?” His voice was thick with emotion as he looked into Duncan’s worried eyes.
Duncan sat next to him on the floor and pulled a note out of his pocket. “I wasn’t supposed to grab it. Evidence and all, but I thought you might want to see it.”
Christian, hand shaking, reached for the note
and slowly unfolded it. Anxiety mounted as if the note itself was a bomb ready to explode.
His heart couldn’t take it if something were to happen to Kessen.
The note said, “I warned you this would happen.”
Christian read it again and again. “That’s it?” He turned the note over to look at the back “That’s the only thing the kidnapper left?”
Duncan shrugged.
Christian pushed himself off of the ground and began pacing in front of Duncan like a wild beast. “We have to do something. What are the police doing?”
“Their jobs.” Duncan’s voice was stern, but still laced with concern. Christian threw the note to the ground.
“Where’s Nick?”
Duncan also rose from the ground. “He’s talking with the police. After all, he was the last person to see Kessen.”
At that news, Christian bolted down the hall to Nick’s room. Nick was inside talking with police. Christian pushed himself through as two oddly-dressed cops exited the room.
“Why weren’t you watching her?” He shoved Nick against the nearest wall and put his arm underneath his neck in a chokehold. “How could you let this happen? What’s wrong with you!” He was losing control fast. He barely felt the frantic hands pull him away from Nick.
Nick, always the gentlemen, didn’t fight back. Once he caught his breath he answered, “She was upset. I left her alone.” He straightened his shirt and glared at Christian. “I’m guessing it’s probably something you said or did, or maybe it was something you didn’t say or do, my lord.” He bowed mockingly and exited the room, leaving Christian red in the face and torn between chasing after him and punching himself in the face for his treatment of her last night.
“The statement,” Duncan said. He was now standing next to Christian, a little too calm for Christian’s nerves.
Christian nodded numbly and went into his room to change. By the time he was decent, the press had assembled downstairs.
Each step he took down the stairs felt like lead. His whole body felt dragged under the weight of his guilt. What if something happened to her? What if someone was taking advantage of her? Did Kessen have any enemies? The only person who had threatened her had been…