"It’s over, Alicia. You are my wife and will be under my care from now on."
"Geoffrey, he’ll tell them everything," she sobbed. "He killed Charlotte, he killed your sister, and before he is through he will—"
"Hush, Alicia, it’s over. Before I came here I told the king the truth: I rode to Salisbury, where the court had moved from Hampton, to confess and accept punishment. Charles has fined me and given me documents to legitimate our marriage. My marriage to Alicia Tilden."
Her wide eyes watched him carefully as he spoke.
"It is over, Alicia. Culver Perry cannot hurt us and he will be punished in England for his crimes."
"Legitimated our marriage?" she asked quietly.
Geoffrey nodded and smiled. "I couldn’t let you go. I couldn’t live apart from you another day...and that decision was made long before I knew who you actually were."
"But Geoffrey," she said, "you didn’t ask me."
Geoffrey threw back his head and laughed loudly, sweeping her up in his arms and carrying her up the steps, across the veranda, and into the house.
When Wesley Tilden saw from a considerable distance his daughter being swept away a second time, he left the unconscious Perry where he lay and took long strides in the direction of the house.
"Father," Preston attempted, trying to halt him, but failing.
Wesley stomped on, cursing under his breath and still holding his large stick. When he reached the veranda, he found himself staring into Etta’s eyes, her arms folded across her chest and her expression commanding. "If you want to come inside this house, milord, you’ll have to come through me."
"What the hell’s going on here?" he demanded.
"From what they just said, plenty. And none of it your concern, milord."
Wesley turned and looked at Preston, who wore a look of frustration and confusion himself. All he could do was nod.
"But she won’t give him the time of day!" Wesley insisted.
Preston shrugged and gave his father a lame, apologetic smile. "In all actuality, Father, they are married and expecting a child."
He looked at his youngest son with a scowl on his face. "I want the story now, and it better be good!"
Preston laughed a bit uncomfortably, knowing he’d been left to do all the explaining. "It’s good, sir. Let’s go in the study and get a drink while Etta gets some men to tie and hold Perry."
Brick and timber were stacked on the land that had been given by grant to Geoffrey Seavers, but building in earnest would wait until the warmth of spring. In a house that seemed to expand to accommodate the family faster than ever, Seavers stacked his belongings beside his wife’s. It pained him not at all to live under another man’s roof for now, provided he could enjoy the luxury of holding his wife in his arms again.
When other members of the Tilden family spent their evenings in the study testing Wesley’s stock, or in the sitting room with the children, Geoffrey found his pleasure in closing the door to Alicia’s room and relishing the comfort of her presence.
"I will build you a house bigger than this," he told her often. "I regret that it will not be ready before the child arrives."
She laughed lightly and encircled his neck with her arms. "For a long time I searched for a way to tell you that a cabin in the wood was all I needed for eternal happiness, if I could only be there with you. Whatever you build, only promise you’ll share it with me."
His hand caressed her swelling middle. The child within her grew rapidly. It seemed as though the moment they could lay their troubled past aside, Alicia blossomed with their child. "I had hoped for a son, cherie, and now I think perhaps I would favor a daughter: one with your devil’s locks and bright eyes. Ah, but she’d be hell to protect from the men!"
She tilted her head to kiss him. "Even when I thought I hated you, Geoffrey, I longed to hold our child in my arms. I confess I was frightened of bearing a child without a husband, but in my heart I was glad our love proved fruitful."
"Whether it be a young lord or lady..." he soothed.
"And what name shall we choose?" she asked sleepily, basking in the warmth of his arms.
His lips brushed her brow, the question far from his mind. "I love you," he whispered.
"Whatever the name," she said softly, "let’s be very certain she needs only one for her lifetime."
"Only one," he promised her.
Robyn Carr is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Virgin River series. You can find out more on http://www.robyncarr.com.
Be sure to check out Robyn’s other historical novels, including THE BRAESWOOD TAPESTRY, now available in digital!
If you liked BELLEROSE BARGAIN, you’ll also love CHELYNNE, Robyn’s first historical novel.
And the book that started it all…
Robyn Carr, The Bellerose Bargain
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