A leg shackle never looked so good
.
A tree branch snapped outside and Elise rushed to the balcony. A lone figure stood at the base of the old oak tree underneath a bright, waxing moon.
Luc was frozen. He couldn’t have moved if he wanted to. She stood at the railing with the shadows of her room silhouetted against her back and a silky, white gown flowing around her figure. Her innocent beauty stole his breath and the alcoholic haze of his mind cleared for one minute.
He might have asked her to marry him because of his grandfather’s ultimatum, but he was marrying her because he wanted to. Because Elise Hamilton was the woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. His strategy for plying her with romantic gestures in order to win his way into her bed faded into distance with the cool night’s breeze.
Luc smiled as she touched the rose to her throat and her shoulders moved with a great, romantic sigh. So maybe the romantic gestures hadn’t been for naught?
He saluted her and turned, then walked back to where the cab waited for them.
“Ben, you’re drunk.”
“Yep. And if I’d met her first, Elise would be mine.”
Luc finished off his drink. “You can’t have her, Ben. She’s mine.”
Or she would be by this time tomorrow
, he added silently.
Raven laughed and motioned for the waitress to bring them another round.
Ben leaned back in his chair and his gold eyes stared at Luc over the rim of his bourbon and Coke. “You could share her.”
“Forget it, Obi-Wan,” Raven said. “Only a man in love would drag us from a good pool game to leave a present on his woman’s bed.”
“You’ve got that right, Brother Raven.” Luc cocked his head to the side and met Ben’s gaze head on. “And even if that weren’t the case… if Elise were yours, would you share her?”
“Hell, no.” Ben smirked. “But she’s not mine. She’s yours. Which means that you should share her. With me.”
Luc shook his head. “Ben, you’re drunk. Find your own woman.”
“Rave, do you have any more sisters?”
Raven shook his head. “Nope and if you’re looking for a chick like my sister…? Then forget it. She’s one of a dying breed.”
Ben frowned. “What breed?”
The waitress set the next round on the table along with the nachos Raven had ordered. He waited for the waitress to leave then said, “My sister is a gentile lady.”
“A beautiful gentile lady,” Ben amended.
“True that,” Raven said, dipping a nacho in salsa. “She’s got morals. And virtue.” He munched on the nacho, then wiped his hand on a napkin. “She’s the opposite of Moonbeam in some respect.”
“Your mother is a very beautiful lady, too,” Ben commented.
Raven smirked. “Yeah. She wants you.”
Ben choked on a nacho. “What?”
Luc snickered and reached for a nacho. “I thought you knew. Especially after the engagement party.”
“Knew what,” Ben demanded.
“True. I thought she was gonna jump him in the buffet line.” Raven shook his head. “Mmm, these are pretty good. Ben, you gotta understand something about my mother. She collects men.”
Luc choked on his nacho. “Collects men?”
Raven looked as surprised as Luc felt. “Elise didn’t tell you?” He chuckled and dipped another nacho in salsa. “Moonbeam—the New Age Princess formerly known as Ingrid Hamilton—likes men. Let me put it to you this way.” He pointed to Luc. “You are ordering Elise as the main course while Moonbeam orders the sampler platter. No, even better. Moonbeam likes the buffet. It’s all about variety.” He pointed to Ben. “And she wants you because your name is weird.”
Ben’s shoulders stiffened. “My name is not weird. Elise called it unusual.”
“No, not only because of his name,” Luc said. “I heard her mention that Ben reminds her of Apollo.”
Raven tilted his head to the side and looked at Ben. “Yeah, he does kind of look like my father. With a name as weird as Benajah I wouldn’t be surprised if Apollo was his father.”
“My name is not weird and Apollo is not my father.”
“Name one other person alive named Benajah,” Raven dared.
“What kind of name is Raven,” Ben countered.
Raven shrugged. “I was named after my grandfather.”
“What was his name? Crow?”
“No. His name was Crazy Zeke Hamilton.” Raven reached for a nacho.
“Your name is Raven Zeke Hamilton?”
“You got it, Obi-Wan.”
“As in Raven… I mean, raving mad?” Ben snickered.
“Yep.”
“And you call my name weird,” Ben muttered.
“My name isn’t weird. It’s unusual and rare,” Raven said.
“In other words, it’s weird.”
“Is not.”
“Is, too.”
“Wait.” Luc held up a hand. “Go back to the part about Elise being Moonbeam’s opposite.”
Raven picked up another nacho. “You—of all people—should know just how different Elise is from Moonbeam.”
Luc ran a hand through his hair. “I know the obvious stuff, but not the… you know, other things.”
Raven’s cornflower blue eyes widened incredulously then he chuckled. “Brother Luc, you really don’t know, do you?”
“No. That’s why I’m asking you.”
Raven put down the nacho and clicked his tongue. “She’s drawing out her fairy tale a little too much, but it is her fairy tale. Okay. You know she’s old-fashioned, right?”
Luc nodded.
“Like, she doesn’t wear white shoes until after Easter, while Moonbeam wears whatever, whenever, and however.”
Another nod.
“Her favorite book is
Pride and Prejudice
. Whereas Moonbeam’s favorite book is the
Kama Sutra
.”
“I did not know that,” Luc admitted.
“
Kama Sutra
,” Ben mumbled. “Maybe I was too hasty.”
“Then you probably don’t know the other thing.” Raven drew in a deep breath. “And it’s not my place to tell you the other thing. Elise should tell you. But she hasn’t.” He ran a hand through his shoulder length black hair. “Okay. I know that if I were in your shoes, then I’d like to know… ah, damn. I can’t tell you. She’ll kill me.”
“Raven, just say it.”
Ben held up his hands. “Rave, as far as I’m concerned whatever is said tonight is between us.”
Raven looked between Luc and Ben for a long minute. “Okay. Damn, I hate doing this, but it’s best if you know before rather than after.”
“Say it,” Luc and Ben chimed in unison.
Luc stood next to Ben in the shadows at the back of the church and watched as guest after guest was ushered in and strategically seated in the pews. In less than thirty minutes, he would be standing at the altar watching his life unfold before him as his perfectly coifed bride floated down the aisle on the wings of butterflies. Her face would be radiant and glowing with fairy tale expectations of marital bliss.
Oh God, he was doomed. Any minute now he fully expected Gaia to wake up and rattle the building with thunder then smote him down with a bolt of lightning.
He hadn’t told Elise about the second part to the deal he’d made with his grandfather more than five years ago. Hell, for that matter he hadn’t told her how the deal had come about or why he was so determined to see it through to the end.
If only she’d asked him why he’d made the deal in the first place. If she’d asked, he would have told her. But she hadn’t. Instead she’d looked up at him with those pretty baby blues and… he was screwed.
He should have told her. Days ago.
It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Elise with the family secret he carried. He did trust her. More than he ever thought possible. Hell, for that matter he respected her. Far more now that Raven had enlightened him to Elise’s…
condition
.
A virgin? How could he have not guessed that? Okay, so in hindsight, all the clues had been there. But in his defense—pitiful as it was—he’d always considered the idea of a virgin bride to be an urban myth. Something that only existed in fairy tales.
Fairy tales like the one Elise was preparing herself to live out by marrying him.
“I can’t do this,” Luc muttered to himself.
“You can and you will. Focus on the wedding night and ignore the cold feet. The ceremony will be over soon and then you’re golden.” Ben shifted beside him and motioned to where Luc’s mother was holding court at the entrance to the aisle. “Besides, try and escape this mad house and I guarantee your mother will tackle you before you hit the parking lot.”
Luc couldn’t argue that. But he also couldn’t keep denying his conscience. “But I didn’t tell her.”
“Luc, relax. You did the right thing by not telling your mother the identity of the other two groomsmen or that your father was invited to the wedding.” Ben chuckled. “Even your grandfather enjoyed watching her handle that one. It’s all good. Just relax and go with it.”
“That’s not what I meant.” True, it had been entertaining watching his mother welcome his father to the wedding with an invitation from the bride. Almost as enjoyable as seeing her stunned expression this morning when she’d discovered Luc’s
transgression
of calling in favors from two
former
acquaintances—namely two men he knew his eldest two sisters were still hung up on—to fill in as groomsmen. “I didn’t tell Elise.”
“So? I seriously doubt Elise will care that you used her wedding to play matchmaker for Lucy and Cindi. If what Raven said is true, then Elise will most likely heave a hopelessly romantic sigh and proclaim you the noblest of all the lucky bastards in the realm.”
Which is exactly why I should tell her the truth
, Luc thought to himself. Because he
was
the luckiest bastard in all of the realm to have her as his bride. She deserved better and, even more shocking, he wanted to give her the fairy tale she’d saved herself for.
Ah hell
. She wanted the fairy tale. She expected him to be a noble bastard who would do anything—anything at all—to spare her a moment of pain. Doomed didn’t begin to describe just how royally screwed he was. He couldn’t disappoint her and drop the truth bomb. Not now. Not ever.
“Ben, I need a favor.”
“Sure thing. I’ll step in and marry Elise for you.”
“Try it and I’ll tackle you before you reach the altar.” Luc pushed off from the wall and turned to his best friend. “Don’t mention anything to Elise about the second part to the deal with Gramps.”
Ben looked shocked. “She doesn’t know,” he stated more than asked.
Luc shook his head.
“And you’re not gonna tell her, are you?”
“Not tonight.”
Not ever
—if he could manage it.
Ben stared at him long and hard. “But you will tell her.”
“Not unless I have to.” From the corner of his eye, he saw the wedding planner motioning for him to take his place at the altar.
Ben muttered a curse under his breath that should have had him instantly excommunicated.
Luc motioned to the wedding planner that they’d be along in a minute then turned and looked Ben in the eye. “Only three of us know the truth. You, me, and Gramps.”