His Abducted Bride (13 page)

Whirling around, she saw the old man as he lumbered out of the room. “I thought I heard someone in here. Are you here to pick up something I fixed?”

Glancing at the shelves, she wondered what he had actually fixed. Everything looked broken.

“What item are you here for, my lady?” he asked, hobbling closer to her.

“I’m not here for anything,” she slowly replied. “I saw you outside and…” And what? Followed him? And he’d wonder why she followed him. With a laugh, she said, “It’s silly. I thought there was something familiar about you. I thought I’d talk to you and try to figure it out. I’m the author of this story.”

“Yes, I know who you are. We all do and we’ve all sworn allegiance that no harm will come to you while you’re here.”

She nodded. “Well, that’s good. I like that allegiance.”

“Understandably.”

“So, who are you?”

“I told you. I fix things that are broken.”

“I know that, but do you have a name?” she asked, wondering why he didn’t introduce himself like the other characters had.

He reached her and smiled. “Does it matter? The point is, I have something you want.”

She wasn’t sure she liked the direction this conversation was going. Though he remained pleasant and couldn’t harm her since he was in a weakened condition, she sensed something wasn’t right. Clearing her throat, she returned his smile and stepped back. The door wasn’t too far behind her. Just three more steps and she’d be outside. “I don’t need anything.”

“Ah, but you do.” He grasped her hand and stopped her before she could take another step back.

Her eyes grew wide. He was stronger than he looked. Much stronger. She studied his eyes. They were dark, so dark they almost seemed black, but they weren’t. They were a blue with a trace of green swirling around them. She struggled to remember which character she’d given such a unique trait to.

“You want to go home,” the man said. “You have family and friends there who miss you.”

She paused and thought of all the people who loved her. “Can you see into that world?”

“Yes. Their hearts are broken. I’m here to help fix that. As I said, I fix broken things. I can help you get home.”

She stared at him for a long moment. Should she accept his offer? Up to now, she’d wanted nothing more than to go home, but now things were complicated.

The door to the shop opened and she saw Gavin, and the old man let go of her hand.

“Why are you in here?” Gavin asked.

For a moment, she thought he was talking to the old man but then realized the man had disappeared. She waved her hand through the air where the man had been standing in front of her just a second ago. Okay. Now that was definitely freaky. Where did he go?

“Sandy?” Gavin asked.

She opened her mouth to answer but didn’t know what to say. Did she tell him she was talking to someone? Someone who vanished as soon as he came into the shop? Finally, she shrugged. “I thought I’d check this place out.”

“I don’t recall this shop being here before,” he replied as he inspected it. “There’s nothing here but a bunch of old junk no one wants. What purpose could this place have?”

“I don’t know. I don’t remember writing anything like this into the story, but then there are many things that I never specifically mentioned that are in this kingdom. I didn’t write lutes and fiddles into the story and yet I heard them outside.”

“Your subconscious mind probably filled in the blanks.”

“Probably.”

“It’s nearing the dinner hour. Do you want to go back to the castle?”

She nodded. She’d seen enough of the village to satisfy her curiosity. He took her by the arm and led her to the carriage.

After the banquet, Sandy accepted Gavin’s offer to take her for a walk through the gardens. There was a slight chill in the air, but her dress had so many petticoats, she barely noticed.

“Have you been through these gardens?” Gavin asked as they strolled down a path lined with trees and bushes with flowers that sparkled in the moonlight.

“I’ve been everywhere the guards permitted me to go,” she replied, wondering if there was any secret place she hadn’t seen. Perhaps there was a secret passage that would take her out of the castle and to her world. But as she studied his handsome profile, she had the sinking sensation that she’d miss him if she returned home. Turning her attention to the trees, she continued, “I’ve been here during the day but not at night. I think the gardens look better this way.”

“Do you recognize the flowers?”

Her gaze lowered to the bushes. “Should I recognize them?”

“Those are the flowers you used to decorate the castle in your kingdom. I thought you might enjoy them if I put them here.”

“I have a confession to make. Even though I created these flowers, I never did get a good image of them in my mind. They were there for the sake of setting the scene in the book.”

“Really?” His gaze met hers and he slowed his steps. “So when you created me, did you get a clear image of me?”

“Yes. I had a specific picture of what the main characters were like. Some secondary characters, too. But if there was a crowd of people, they weren’t distinct. I got overall impressions of rooms and gardens and other things that set the stage for where the scenes took place, but I didn’t examine every detail. It’s like glancing at something. You get the general idea but you don’t notice the subtle things, like the way these flowers sparkle different colors depending on which petal you look at. The colors in the flowers are a minor distinction, and since it does nothing to advance the plot, why would I spend any time on it?”

He nodded. “Do you know what King Petros looks like?”

Her eyebrows furrowed. “Why are you so concerned about him?”

“Well, you mentioned he might be the villain in a second book. Was he worse than I was supposed to be? Was he ugly? Or was he devastatingly handsome like I am?”

A chuckle escaped her throat and, in a bold move, she kissed his cheek. “You’ve convinced me that I was wrong about you. If nothing else, being here has shown me that you treat others very well. I should have listened to you instead of trying to make you the villain.”

“Would I be wrong to assume that I’ve now become the romantic hero?”

“I wouldn’t push your luck that far, pal. I was writing a fantasy, not a romance.”

“And what fun is having an adventure if you can’t throw some romance into the mix?” He brought her hand to his lips and kissed it. “I happen to think romance makes things a lot more interesting, especially if you throw in a love scene or two.”

“Spoken like a man,” she replied, unable to hide her amusement.

“Considering you’re a woman, that works in your favor. You need to spice up your life a bit. You’re much too attractive to live the life of a nun.”

“I’m rather disappointed in you.”

“Disappointed?”

“I made you out to be a warrior. Strong, brave, bold, fearless, intelligent, quick on your feet… And here you are worried about something as feminine as kissing and hugging.”

“Alright. That’s fair. I am interested in those things but that’s because they lead to the bedchamber. Who says warriors only have to spend their time on the battlefield?”

“Yeah.” She giggled and playfully shoved him away from her. “Like I said, spoken like a man.”

“I have a feeling you enjoy that most about me.”

“I’m not even going to justify that comment with a response.”

“That’s okay. I know it’s true.” He kissed her hand again and pulled her into his arms. “Don’t turn away from the chance to be loved, Sandy. Let romance be part of the story.”

She took a step away from him and glanced at the garden and the castle sitting majestically in front of her. “I’ll tell you what. I won’t kill you off in the story. I’ll rewrite it so that you and I form an alliance at the end. I’ll write it as if I believed you were the villain but realized my error by the end of the book. And when I get to the end, I’ll give you a queen.”

“I don’t want you to give me a queen. I want you to be my queen.”

She shook her head. “I can’t.”

“Why? Because you don’t belong here? Because you didn’t originate in this world?”

“No.” She paused. “Though you bring up a good point. I’m the author. You’re just a—”

He held up his hand. “I’m not ‘just a character’, Sandy. I was able to step into your world. I existed there like you exist here.”

“Okay. So you’re not confined to the words on a written document. But that doesn’t change anything about me. I’m willing to sit down and work with you on the story. We’ll figure out a way to make it work to your satisfaction.”

“And what if I no longer want that?”

“Isn’t that why you brought me here?”

“Yes,” he slowly replied, “but things changed. I want us to be together.” He closed the gap between them and kissed her hand. “I want to turn this fantasy into a romance, and there’s no one else I want to be my queen except you.”

She closed her eyes for a moment and pulled her hand away. As much as she didn’t want to tell him the truth, she had to. Once she did, he’d understand why it’d never work out. Then he would agree to send her back to her world, thereby annulling their marriage. “As the king, you will need an heir. I can’t give you one,” she finally said, her voice soft.

“Can’t or won’t?”

Her gaze met his, a spark of bitterness in her eyes. “Can’t. I went through menopause when I was twenty-two.”

It irked her to no end that her fiancé’s reaction to the news still bothered her, even after twelve years. Maybe it was because once in a while she ran into him and saw him with his wife and children, children he’d wanted so much that he had to end their engagement so he could find a woman who was able to have them. For the first time since she told her fiancé the truth, she was telling someone else, and it wasn’t any easier. But it had to be done.

“I wasn’t being a…” She stopped before she said the word that came to mind. “What I mean is that when I was telling you I would never give you an heir, I was telling you the truth. It’s impossible. I know it seemed like I was being stubborn, but I wasn’t.”

“You were hurt,” he whispered. “Because you want to be able to but can’t.”

Surprised, she returned her gaze to him, ignoring the tears welling up in her eyes.

“I guess people take it for granted that a woman can have children, including me.” With a sigh, he added, “Now so much of what you’ve been doing makes sense. You were pushing me away so I’d give up and take a queen who’d be able to give me an heir. Sandy,” he drew her into his arms, “there’s more to a woman than whether or not she can have children. If all I wanted was someone to have an heir, I would have picked anyone to marry. But I didn’t pick just anyone. I picked you. There’s no reason to keep fighting your attraction for me.”

Despite her tears, she laughed. “You’re that certain I’m attracted to you?”

“There was no denying the fire blazing in your eyes when you saw me naked. You liked what you saw.” Brushing his lips against her ear, he added, “I’m more than willing to satisfy your desire to see me again.”

“Is your mind always on sex?”

“Only 99% of the time.” He kissed her neck, making shivers of delight race up and down her spine. “You smell nice.” His hands traced the curve of her back and cupped her behind. “You feel nice.”

Giggling, she swatted his hands away. “Not out here where anyone can see us,” she warned, glancing around to make sure they were alone. “Don’t you have guards watching over your castle?”

He brought his hands back up to the small of her back. “Yes. Thanks for reminding me.”

“Let me guess. You were thinking about sex and forgot everything else.” Though she shook her head, she couldn’t stop smiling. “You are definitely a man.”

“You saw me naked and you doubted that?”

She pulled away from him but took his hand and led him down the path, further into the garden where more trees would give them a better sense of privacy. “What will you do for an heir, Gavin?”

“What were you going to do for one? You had your own kingdom. Eventually, you were going to have to find someone to replace you.”

“No, I wasn’t. I’m the author. My plan was to stay the same age in this series.”

“Alright. I’ll grant you that, though it’s a weak answer.”

“Weak?”

“Yeah. Weak. If you were truly a queen of your own kingdom, you’d have to think about who would replace you in the event of your death, whether on the battlefield or in old age. Sooner or later, you’d have to deal with the inevitable.”

“Well, in that case, I guess I would find a baby stranded by her parents and raise her so that she would become queen when I’m gone.”

“Then why can’t we do the same thing? If we happen to find a child who’s been abandoned, we can take him, or her, and raise that child to rule over our kingdoms.”

She raised an eyebrow. “I can’t help but notice you’re talking as if I’m going to spend the rest of my life here.”

Shooting her a charming smile, he cupped her face in his hands and gave her a lingering kiss that made her heart beat in excitement. Thinking of how wonderful he was to want to be with her, even after learning her secret, she wrapped her arms around his shoulders and returned his kiss. And soon, the rest of the world slipped away, making her forget everything but him.

***

Sandy let out a contented sigh. She couldn’t recall the last time she felt so good. Her body tingled all over and there were parts of her that were eager to be touched again. Stretching, she smiled. What a great dream. What a vivid dream. Everything about it had seemed so real. The castle, the garden, the delightfully handsome man, the night spent in bed with him… She snuggled deeper into the covers.

But then she realized the smell of the covers wasn’t familiar. There was a masculine scent on them. She opened her eyes. It took her a moment before she realized where she was. She was in Gavin’s bedchamber.