He didn’t answer, just screwed his eyes shut. Alarmed, Adeline lay down next to him. He reached for her hand, weaving their gloved fingers together.
She tried again. “Do you wish to tell me what has upset you?”
“I used to come here, to the edge of cliffs, as a boy and lay in grass where I knew I would be hidden. I would watch the clouds and breathe in the peace and quiet.”
He was quiet for a few minutes, and Adeline waited patiently for him to continue.
“I had four siblings, three sisters and my brother, Paul. He was the eldest, four years older than me. Then came my sister Emily, who was two years older, and the little ones, Margery and Sophia, were three and five years younger than me. So, you can imagine that the house was always raucous and full of life. I always had sisters plaguing me to play with them. They forever made me dress up and be the villain or, worse, the husband in their pretend games.”
Adeline turned on her side, propping her head up to stare at his profile. “Sounds like fun.”
He nodded. “I did miss them when I went off to school.” He swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing behind the linen of his cravat. “The year I was twelve, the entire household fell ill with typhus. It killed my whole family and most of the servants. Paul and I were both at school for spring semester.”
She couldn’t hold back her gasp. His entire family had perished? Dear Lord. She laid a hand on his heart. “Malcolm, that is horrifying.”
“At first, we weren’t allowed to even come into the house for fear of contagion. The Earl of Tenwhestle, our closest neighbor north of here, took us into his home. They were all laid to rest here in the family cemetery. After the funeral, Paul and I couldn’t stand to be in the house when it felt so empty, so Paul rented us a house in London.”
“I can understand that.”
“Paul never went back to Oxford. He stayed in London and began to run around with a fast crowd. Drinking and gambling, carriage racing. He wrecked two phaetons rather dramatically but always came out unscathed. It was the gambling that turned out to be his downfall. Of course, I learned all this later from the gossips. Paul wagered away all his assets. The holdings my father had in Poole. The dowries that would never get used by my sisters. It took him three years to gamble away everything but the entitled estate. He still owed money, and with no way to pay it back, he took his own life.”
Malcolm sat, pulling up his knees and setting his arms atop them. He stared out at the horizon. Adeline scrambled up onto her knees. She wrapped her arms around him and placed her chin on his shoulder. She had no words in response to his tragic tale, so she simply hugged him. Her hair blew around them, enveloping them both.
“That is the real reason I have never returned to the estate. Why I have not cared to use my title. People whispered that the Kingsbury name was cursed. That perhaps the whole line was being wiped out in retaliation for some wrong that had been done.”
“What poppycock!”
Malcolm turned his head to look at her, his lips twitched in an almost-smile. He shrugged. “Fifteen-year-old me was more inclined to believe all the rumors and innuendo.”
She scooted around so she could cup his jaw with both hands. “Your line is not cursed. What happened was a terrible tragedy. Malcolm, you are the best person I have ever met. How you still live with such joy is a testament to your resilience of spirit. I admire you even more now that I understand your past.” She leaned in and kissed him softly. Lord, she loved this amazing man. She vowed to herself she would make him hers and give him a family of his own again.
He kissed her back, his hand threading through her hair as his tongue dipped into her mouth. Slow and sensual, she poured her feelings into their kiss. Dare she tell him how she felt?
“Oy! What are you doing on Kingsbury land?” a loud voice called out.
They broke apart to turn toward it. Three figures approached along the cliffside. Two men and a woman. Malcolm rose and pulled her up to standing. He straightened his shoulders as the three stopped a short distance from them. “I am Lord Kingsbury. This is my land. Who are you?”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
“There’s been noKingsbury on this land in fifteen years. Why should I believe you?” the woman challenged.
Malcolm sighed. He supposed this was his fault. Why should they believe it? He held out his hand to show off his signet ring.
The woman stepped forward and peered up at him. “Suppose I can see it. You’ll have to come with us.”
One of her compatriots said, “Are you sure about this?”
“Yes, if Kingsbury is here, it’s time to move on. I don’t need to explain my decisions to you two.” She turned back to Malcolm and pointed a finger at him. “Why are you here?”
“I don’t need a reason to come to take possession of my own house, to walk around on my land,” Malcolm replied. “Who the hell are you? Why should we go anywhere with you?”
She shook her head impatiently like she didn’t have time for questions. Then she pulled a pistol with a long, slim barrel from the pocket of her skirt. “Come with me,” she repeated as she cocked it, pointing it at Adeline.
Malcolm pulled Adeline behind him with one arm. “What the hell? Who are you?” he repeated.
The woman nodded. “That’s what I thought, a man who protects what’s his. Je suis Marielle. Come with me, Lord Kingsbury.” She waved the pistol and began walking toward the cliff’s edge. The two men crossed their arms over their chests and waited for him and Adeline to follow.
Malcolm glanced down at Adeline.
