The English king stood up. Thanks to the raised dais, he towered over the captain and even Yihui could see his irritated expression. “Why can’t people think?” He looked at her blue-eyed protector. “Thankfully, we have another solution. Max isn’t married. He already offered to help. Got a sword for it and everything. Max, you take the girl, and honor is satisfied. Then it’s your fault if the hippo isn’t satisfied.”
Yihui sorted through the people. The blue-eyed man was named Max. And his ruler had just commanded him to marry her?
“I can’t marry her!” Max snapped. “I’m going to marry Lady Kimberly of Tillgrave.”
The prince took a step down from the dais. “Have you offered for her yet?”
“No, not exactly, but—”
“It’s a royal command. She’ll understand.”
Like bloody hell she would. He’d already mistreated Kim, starting from when he’d been thirteen and bragging about things he had no business saying. And had never done either. There was no way she’d understand this!
“Besides,” continued Prinny, “you’ve always been interested in China. And someone in your family works with the East India Company, yes?”
Yes. And Max had peppered his uncle with a million questions over the years, but none of what he’d learned would help now. “That doesn’t mean—”
“Figure it out.” Prinny waved to the captain. “Tell him that his lordship, the Earl of Artanges, future Duke of Fernbury, will accept the girl on my behalf. Honor is satisfied.” The leader grinned, then burped. “So that’s done,” he said as he started to turn away.
“Your Highness!” Max called as the guards began to advance on him again. “This isn’t going to work.”
“It’s an excellent solution. Captain, tell them before Max gets skewered.”
Yihui heard the panicked back and forth between the ship captain and Lao Gu. They both realized that there would be no royal favor for either of them unless they could force it on the blue-eyed Max. She wanted to warn him of their plans, but she knew better than to speak up. Her only hope was to remain quiet and slip away while the men argued.
But where could she go? Ru and Yan—the captors she’d nicknamed Pervert and Weed—stood just beyond the circle of Max’s reach, each smacking his lips at the possibility of gutting the barbarian. She knew how cruel they were. If she made it totheir side, they wouldn’t help her. She, on the other hand, would be happy to kill them if she got hold of a weapon.
And then she ran out of time. Lao Gu called off his men while the captain smiled at Max.
“They’ve accepted your terms, my lord,” the captain said with clear relief in his voice. “Provided that they are able to see to the girl’s proper accommodations.”
The king stopped halfway out the door. “Well of course they’ll be proper. Max, you have enough room in your house, don’t you?”
“What? But—”
The English leader was losing patience. His voice was hard. “You don’t have to get a priest today. Look into the hippo thing. There’s no need to rush until you know it’s important.” He grinned as if he were a boy playing a mischievous prank. “No one will be upset. It’s a royal edict.
“To marry?” Max let his sword arm drop far enough to look less aggressive. Then he addressed the captain. “Is there any way to refuse this gift?”
The man shook his head. “You can, but they’ll kill her. It’s their way of showing that they mean business. She’s a bribe. And if you refuse their terms, they won’t think twice about murdering her and me.” Yihui knew his worry was about himself. Their whole scheme had been idiocy from the beginning. “It can be a lawless land, my lord. I wouldn’t want to make it more dangerous for us.”
The king shook his head. “Barbarians! Very well. Max will marry her.”
“But—”
The protest was left dangling as the prince departed with a wave, the onlookers chuckled with grand amusement, all while Max slowly lowered his sword. She could see the dawning realization on his face. Was his life a joke to them? Yes, it was.Did his wishes mean nothing? Correct. How would he live now that he knew he was insignificant? As she did, with fury and the sweet dream of revenge.
He looked to her, his eyes wide with shock, and she felt a connection with him. Women, at least, were accustomed to being used in men’s games. Obviously, this was new to him, and he seemed like a child whipped for the first time.
The impression didn’t last long. A moment later he gathered his dignity. He straightened his shoulders, tightened his jaw, and headed straight to her.
“Are you all right?” he asked. “Do you speak English?”
“Do not touch her!” Pervert barked in Chinese, but his meaning was clear, and Max stilled before reaching her. His blue gaze was shrewd as he took in Pervert’s measure. The guard might take great pleasure in harming a weak woman, but he would not fare so well beneath the white man’s withering glare. Better yet, if Max were a typical man, he would take out his anger on the guard, and Yihui could not wait to see it.
Except this white man was not typical. He dismissed Pervert with a disdainful curl of his lip as he addressed her. “I should like to take you to my home now,” he said, his words slow. “We can sort this whole thing out better there. Do you understand?”
She nodded. Her command of English was adequate before she’d left China. Then she’d spent every moment of the six-month trip learning the language, so now she could understand nearly everything.
