Brides & Bargains

When Sebastian did not afford her a glance, Nasira tied the gelding to the stall’s railing and faced him. “I know you are upset with me, but—”

“Upset?” He loosened the girth strap, pulled the saddled off and turned toward her. “Why would I be upset when my wife seems bent on rejecting my attempts to recapture some intimacy?”

She bristled at his hypocrisy. “Now you understand how I have felt the past six months.”

He set the saddle on the nearby stand a bit harder than necessary. “I see. Your actions and words are based on retribution.”

Something about his observation rang true. “As I have said several times, I refuse to have my libido cloud my judgment.”

He released a cynical laugh. “I do not recall any refusal when I had my hand down your pants earlier.”

The comment brought about a searing heat between her thighs, causing her to shift from one leg to the other. Before she could retort, Cappy came down the stairs and when he reached the aisle, gave them both a long once-over. “Did you two not understand the nekkid swimming part?”

The heat shifted to Nasira’s face. “Actually, we were wading in the water and I slipped.”

“I had to rescue her from the creek’s clutches,” Sebastian added. “My wife can be quite clumsy at times.”

Cappy sported a skeptical look as he loosened the girth strap on Gus’s saddle. “In case you’re hungry, the missus put a roast in the oven for the two of you. She said it should be ready in about an hour and she’ll be back later to clean up.”

“I can do the dishes,” Nasira began, “although I would like to meet her and tell her thank you.”

“Annie’s a stickler for giving people their privacy, and I’m thinkin’ that’s exactly what you two need, so I’ll tell her you’ll handle the cleanup.”

Nasira didn’t want the man getting the wrong idea. “We truly do not require privacy, Cappy. She is welcome anytime.”

“If you say so.” He pulled the saddle off Gus’s back and grinned. “By the way, ma’am, you missed a couple of buttons.”

Too mortified to offer an explanation, Nasira turned to retreat to the house without looking back, the sound of the men’s laughter following her for the next few meters.

She was so angry, she practically stomped up the path. If her husband thought he would escape her ire, he was sorely mistaken. As soon as she took a shower, she planned to confront Sebastian over his amusement at her expense. Until that point, she would simply avoid him.

“Sira, wait up.”

Nasira quickened her gait in response to the directive. “I am not speaking to you.”

“Actually, darling, you just did.”

Infuriating man. “Go away, Sebastian.”

“Not until you give me the opportunity to apologize.”

“I am not in a benevolent mood.”

The comment seemed to encourage Sebastian’s silence, or that was what she thought until she heard, “Damn my leg.”

Only then did she turn around to discover her husband bent at the waist, both palms resting on his thighs. She could leave him standing on the path in pain, or she could see about his injury.

Nasira turned around, strode to him and hovered above him. “Did you suffer a wound?”

“Only to my pride.”

Then he raised his gaze to her, grinned, grabbed her around the waist and tossed her over his shoulder caveman-style. “Let me down, you brute!” she said, to no avail.

“Not until we arrive at our destination.”

“I cannot believe you lied to me about your leg.”

“Actually, I did have a slight twitch of momentary pain.”

“I have trouble believing that. Granted, you will have several pains if you continue to carry me like a bag of grain.”

“Sira, you are many things. Weighty is not one of them.”

She supposed she should consider that a compliment.

Once they reached the deck, Sebastian climbed the stairs and put Nasira down, yet kept her hand clasped in his. “I beg your forgiveness for my inconsiderate laughter in the stable. However, I did defend your honor after your departure.”

She folded her arms around her middle. “Was that before or after you morphed into a Neanderthal?”

“I believe that was after I beat my chest and declared you my woman.”

“You are such a comedian, Sebastian.”

“I am a man quite enamored of his gorgeous wife, and I do hope she will forgive me.”

She wanted so badly to remain angry at him, but he possessed the power of persuasion usually reserved for practiced barristers. “You are forgiven. Can I please bathe now?”

He winked. “Do you require assistance?”

“No, I do not.”

Without awaiting a reply, Nasira turned and entered the house to wash away the remnants of murky river water—and the mistake she had made by believing she could distance herself from her husband, physically and emotionally. The more she was with him, the more she realized how good the majority of their marriage had been. Worse still, she recognized how much she truly loved him.

And as she walked into the bedroom and spotted the bracelet on the bureau, the reminder of their loss, she questioned whether he would be willing to give her the one thing she wanted most from him.

Only time would tell.

* * *

Sebastian sat alone at the dining room table, staring at the familiar number splashed across his cell phone screen. He needed to answer the call but dreaded it all the same.

After one more ring, Sebastian swiped the screen and said, “Hello, Stella.”

“For pity’s sake, Sebastian, where are you?”

His stepmother was nothing if not direct. “Texas.”

“You went after her even after I advised against it.”

“Yes, but before you go off on the virtue of patience, she is my wife and I have every right to seek her out.”

“Yes, you do, yet it could make matters much worse.”

“We’re getting along famously.”

“I hope that is the case,” she said skeptically.

“It is. How is Father?”

The slight hesitation had him bracing for bad news. “Actually, he’s had a cheery day. He played chess with the butler this morning.”

Odd that his patriarch could remember how to play a board game yet at times forgot his own son’s name. “That’s good. He’s a tough old guy.”

“Yes, but might I remind you, the last time you spoke to the physician, he told you he’s going to continue to fade away, little by little, until we won’t recognize the man he used to be, and he quite possibly will not recognize us.”

Sebastian didn’t need to be reminded of that. “I know, Stella. That’s why it’s imperative I work out my problems with Nasira and return to London as soon as feasible.”

“And that is why you must consider having a child as soon as possible. I would like your father to go to the hereafter knowing he has an heir.”

As if Sebastian needed more pressure in the procreation department. After all, his father had been partially responsible for his reluctance to try again with Nasira and wholly responsible for Sebastian’s mother’s death. “There is no guarantee that will happen before his demise.”

“The doctor believes he still has a few years left in him.”

But would they be good years?

Sebastian looked up to see Nasira standing in the open doorway, giving him a good excuse to cut the conversation short. “I will take your request under advisement. In the meantime, I’m going to have dinner with my wife. Tell Father hello from both of us.”

Stella barely had time to say goodbye before Sebastian ended the call. He pushed the phone aside and studied Nasira. Her long, silky black hair cascaded over her shoulders. She wore a pink sleeveless blouse that complemented her golden skin and white loose-fitting slacks that hid her best attributes. Not an issue. He knew exactly what the cotton fabric concealed.

“You look very pretty tonight.”

She pulled back the chair across from him and sat. “Thank you. I see you’ve gone from cowboy to corporate billionaire. If I had known you were going to wear a suit and tie I would have donned an evening gown.”

“Force of habit,” he said as he shrugged out of his jacket and laid it on the seat next to him. “Better?”

“A bit more casual.” She bent her elbow on the table and supported her cheek with her palm. “Did you do all this?”

“Will I score a few points if I said yes?”

“You will score points if you tell me the truth.”

“Actually, the table was already set. I did remove the food from the oven.”

“It smells wonderful,” she said as she unfolded the white napkin and laid it in her lap, prompting Sebastian to follow suit.

“That it does.”

When he reached for her plate, she waved him away. “I am quite capable of helping myself.”

“Far be it for me to tread on your independence.”

She took a less-than-generous helping of the roast beef and vegetables. “You have a habit of doing that.”

“I do?”

“Yes, you do. I suppose I cannot fault you considering I was rather helpless when we married.”

She had been the picture of innocence. “You’ve grown quite a bit, Sira.”

“I would hope so after ten years.” She took a bite then a drink of water from the cut-crystal glass. “Evidently Annie is fond of salt.”

Sebastian took a much bigger bite of the fare and found it to his liking. But he thought it best to be as agreeable as possible. “Perhaps a bit. I just spoke with Stella. She told me to give you her regards.”

“How is James?”

“She said he had a good day, right after she lectured me on leaving without giving her notice.”

Nasira’s brown eyes widened. “You didn’t tell her you were coming here?”

“I left word through the servants. It was very much a spontaneous decision.”

“I am certain she was worried.”

“Possibly, but she was more concerned about other issues.”

“What issues?”

He was hoping she wouldn’t ask. “You know Stella. She is a broken record when it comes to producing an heir.”

“That is understandable, Sebastian. She knows how badly your father would like to see that happen.”

He had suddenly lost his appetite. “My father has no right to dictate my future after what he did...” He refused to go there for if he did, he would have to offer an explanation.

“What did he do, Sebastian?”

He took another bite that now tasted bitter as brine. “I’d prefer not to discuss it.”

Nasira wadded the napkin and tossed it on the table. “This is exactly the reason we are having problems. Your inability to communicate drives me batty.”

“It’s complicated, Sira. I see no point in dredging up the past.”

“Perhaps you should since it’s apparently affecting our future.”

He shoved back from the table and began to pace. “You are asking too much of me.”

“I am only asking for honesty, Sebastian. My intent is not to cause you pain. Does this have something to do with your mother?”

He turned midstride and faced her. “It has everything do with her.”

“Please, come sit and tell me about her. Surely you have good memories.”

More than she would ever know, unless he finally told her. Then he could gradually move into the bad, if he dared.

He reclaimed his seat and stared at the food now growing cold on his plate. “I have no idea how to begin to tell you about Martha Ella Edwards.”

Nasira set her plate aside and folded her arms atop the table. “I know you were ten when she passed, so I suppose you can begin by telling me what you do remember.”

He smiled at the recollections, the special moments that he had never shared. The painful times he couldn’t share, at least not now. “She was extremely devoted to my father and to me. She used to call me her little drummer boy because I had a penchant for stealing wooden spoons from the kitchen and banging them on anything stationary.”

“Clearly you were destined to be in a rock band.”

“I thought that too after Mother bought me a real set of drums on my eighth birthday. But of course James could not endure the noise and had the servants toss them two days later.”

Nasira laid her palm on his hand, which was now resting on the tabletop. “I am so sorry, Sebastian. I know you and your father have always seemed to be at odds, but I assumed that had to do with the two of you butting horns over business like two battering rams.”

If she only knew the reason behind Sebastian’s well-hidden resentment. If he let down his guard, she would. “I never approved of the way he treated my mother, as if she were no more than a concubine put on this earth for his pleasure.”

“How could you believe that at such a young age? Was he inappropriate in your presence?”

“No. I only learned some facts later and drew my own conclusions.”

“You are going to have to be less vague in order for me to help you move past this.”

“I don’t need your help, Sira, or your pity.”

“I would never pity you, Sebastian, but I do believe you need to have someone as a sounding board. And I would hope after ten years together you could trust me enough to fill that role.”

He pondered her words a moment and realized she was probably right. He also knew that by being totally transparent, he would be inviting a measure of pain. Yet he couldn’t think of one soul he trusted more than his wife, and he had done her a disservice by not revealing his secrets. Only after doing so would she understand why he could not in good conscience go forward with their plans to have a child.

“I will tell you what you believe you want to know, but I assure you it’s not pretty.”

“I am stronger than you think, Sebastian.”

He would not debate that. At times he wondered if she possessed more strength than him. “This secret, the one no one speaks of, has to do with my mother’s demise.”

Nasira leaned forward and sent him a concerned look. “Please tell me and end this suspense.”

He drew in a deep breath and prepared to lower the boom. “My father killed her.”

Six

Nasira placed a hand over her mouth to stifle a gasp. Myriad questions whirled through her mind like a crazed carousel. “Why? How?”

Sebastian disappeared into the kitchen and returned with a tumbler half full of his favorite scotch. “Why? Because he’s a selfish bastard who only cares about his desires. How involves... “

When he hesitated, Nasira’s anxiety escalated. “Go on.”

Sebastian streaked a hand over his shadowed jaw. “He knew she was ill and didn’t lift a finger to help her.”

She sat back, her shoulders sagging from mild relief. “I truly thought you were going to mention knives or guns or perhaps poison.”

He settled back into the chair and took a sip of the drink. “He might as well have put a gun to her head by not seeking medical attention when she clearly needed it. I knew something was wrong that morning.”

Nasira realized he was perched on the precipice of deep emotional pain. “The morning she passed away?”

He shook his head. “No. The last morning I saw her alive.” He stared at some unknown focal point, as if he had mentally returned to that day, before he spoke again. “I had been on summer break from boarding school and it was time for me to return. Of course, I happened to be running late when Mother summoned me into her quarters. She was propped up in bed and she looked very pale. She told me she loved me and hugged me as if she didn’t want to let me go. As if she knew it would be the final time. And I wrenched out of her grasp because I knew if I didn’t leave at that moment, I would earn my father’s wrath for making the driver wait. I never expressed my love for her, and I have lived with that regret for almost three decades.”

Her heart ached for him. “You were only a child, Sebastian. You could not have foreseen the future.”

He released a weary sigh. “Perhaps, and I would not have predicted what I would learn when I was called into the headmaster’s office two days later. My father did not bother to personally retrieve me. He sent one of the bloody staff members to tell me my mother was dead. He did not shed one tear at the wake. Worse still, he admonished me for crying.”

Nasira had always been fond of her father-in-law, who seemed nothing at all like the tyrant Sebastian had described. “I am stunned at his behavior. James has always treated me with kindness and affection.”

Sebastian leveled his gaze on her. “You’ve never disappointed him, and I have never lived up to his standards.”

“You are a brilliant businessman. I cannot imagine he would hand over the company to you if he did not truly believe that.”

“He did so because he had no choice since I failed to produce an heir. I refuse to relinquish that control to him.”

Had this been the reason behind his reluctance to have another child? A vendetta against an unfeeling patriarch?

She would not know the reason behind his resistance unless she asked, yet she sensed this might not be the time or place to do so. She did have another important question. “I understand James treated you poorly, but do you truly believe he neglected your mother’s health issues? I’ve heard the staff speaking highly of their relationship.”

Sebastian tightened his grip on the glass in his hand. “I heard the servants discussing a few details when they didn’t realize I was eavesdropping. As we both know, they are the eyes and ears of the household.”

“And did you confront your father over this idle chitchat?”

He pushed the scotch aside as if it held no appeal. “At ten years old, I didn’t dare try. Since that time, he has never been one to discuss personal affairs. Had I inquired, he would have dismissed me, as he did whenever I asked anything about my mother.”

Her husband had based his conclusions on rumors, not fact, and that bothered Nasira. “Have you considered talking to Stella to verify what you heard all those years ago?”

“Yes, and she stated she wasn’t at liberty to provide the details. Then she advised me to stop living in the past.”

Stella’s reluctance to clear the air was unacceptable as far as Nasira was concerned, albeit an indication of her devotion to James. But she did not feel she had the right to intervene...yet. Right now, she was thankful Sebastian had begun to open up for the first time during their union. She did not want to push her luck by applying too much pressure. “I am really very sorry about what you’ve endured, Sebastian. I wish there was more I could do or say to ease your distress.”

“I’m not distressed,” he said as he pushed back from the table and stood. “But there is something you could do.”

She could only imagine what he had in mind. “Yes?”

“Accompany me to the festival downtown.”

The request totally took her by surprise. “What festival?”

“I’m not certain. I believe it involves street vendors and a carnival. I thought it might be a good way to soak in the culture.”

Quite possibly a good way to temporarily erase the past, Nasira thought. Understandable he would want to do that, and this time she would allow it. Still, she certainly would not refuse the opportunity to spend some quality time with her husband. She came to her feet and attempted a smile. “That sounds wonderful. I suppose I should change.”

He stood, rounded the table and then touched her face. “You’re a beautiful, remarkable woman, Sira. Never think you should change for me.”

The sheer emotion in his eyes, the absolute sincerity in his voice, sent Nasira’s spirits soaring. Perhaps they had reached a turning point, the prospect of a new beginning. Yet she acknowledged they would not obtain that goal until her husband was willing to tell her the unabridged truth.

* * *

Sebastian had avoided the whole truth like a practiced coward. He hadn’t told his wife that rejecting parenthood had more to do with his fear for her safety and not his determination to avoid his father’s interference. Someday he would reveal the bitter details behind his mother’s death, but right now he wanted to leave the past behind and concentrate on the present.

With that in mind, he took Nasira’s hand into his as they strolled the streets of Royal crowded with cowboys and kids, two of whom sprinted past them on the sidewalk.

“This place is certainly full of children,” he said. “I’d expect to see the Pied Piper coming around the corner at any moment.”

Nasira sent him a frown. “This is a festival, Sebastian. What else would you expect?”

Better manners. “True. The town appears to treat procreation as a sport as revered as their Friday night Texas football.”

As they continued on, one particular display caught his curiosity and caused him to pause. “What in the bloody hell is cow patty bingo?”

Nasira’s gaze traveled to the group gathered around the exhibition. “Well, it clearly involves a cow and some sort of game board and... I believe it is best we keep walking.”

He couldn’t contain his laughter. “I could not agree more.”

They continued on past several artisans with tables full of their wares. As they approached one fresh-faced young woman with baskets of multicolored flowers, Sebastian halted, released his wife’s hand and selected a single red rose. “How much is this?”

“Two dollars,” the blonde replied. “Or six for ten dollars.”

“One will do.” He withdrew his wallet from his rear pocket and pulled out a twenty-dollar bill. “Here you go. Keep the proceeds.”

The teen appeared awestruck. “Thanks bunches. It’s for a good cause.”

“What cause would that be?”

“A new football stadium.”

He started to argue that an orphanage would constitute a better cause, but thought better of it. “Best of luck on your venture,” he said, then turned to Nasira. “For my lovely bride.”

She took the rose and smiled as if he had offered the moon and stars, not a simple posy. “To what do I owe this wonderful gift?”

He kissed her cheek. “For agreeing to wed the likes of me.”

“Most of the time, I happen to like being wed to the likes of you.”

She might rescind her half compliment if she knew of the lies he still harbored. “Shall we take our chances on the games up ahead?”

“As long as they do not involve cow patties.”

“I believe they are games of skill involving tossing rings.”

She hooked her arm through his. “Then by all means, let us test your skills.”

Unable to help himself, Sebastian leaned over and whispered, “I’m definitely up for testing all my skills when we return to the ranch.”

He expected his spouse to deliver a derisive glare over the innuendo. Instead, he received a surprisingly sultry look. “That is altogether possible if you are a good boy tonight.”

Perhaps Rafe had been correct—simple gestures could pay off in spades.

When they traveled on toward the brightly-lit gaming booths, Sebastian spotted a young boy dressed in jeans and miniature cowboy boots, turning in circles in the middle of the sidewalk, swiping the tears furiously from his face. A group of boisterous teens approached him, seemingly oblivious to the distressed child.

Sensing disaster, Sebastian immediately removed Nasira’s hand from his arm, swept the boy up and away from the danger of getting run over by unconcerned adolescents, then set him down near a street light, away from the crowd. “Are you lost, young man?”

He turned his misty brown eyes on him and sniffed. “My dad told me not to talk to strangers.”

Sebastian took a step back so the boy wouldn’t feel threatened. “That is banner advice under normal circumstances. I only want to help you locate your parents and return you safely to them.”

The child seemed to mull that over a minute before he spoke again. “A girl was chasing me and I lost my dad.”

“What does your father look like?” Nasira asked from behind Sebastian.

When the boy turned his gaze on Nasira, he seemed to relax and smiled as if he were quite smitten. “He’s got on a cowboy hat and boots and jeans and I think a blue shirt. Where’d you get it?” he asked, looking at the rose.