But she turned and—the epitome of kindness that she was—gave the man a brilliant smile. “Gerald. Have you eaten yet? I brought extras for you and Evan to snack on through the morning. You can eat it now and I’ll bring more.”
His grin deepened a little. Too self-confident by far. “That would please me a great deal.”
Audrey dipped her chin as shyness captured her features. Apparently, she was entirely charmed. Evan would’ve expected her to see through the man, but maybe she simply saw the good in everyone.
In less than a minute, Audrey and Philip had gone, with Audrey promising to return posthaste with more food.
Gerald marched around the room, examining each corner as though Evan might have hidden a weapon there. Every step grated more tightly on his nerves.
At last, the man settled himself against the wall, resting his plate in his lap. He gripped a meat pastry between grubby fingers and raised it to his nose. He closed his eyes as he inhaled. When he opened them again, he narrowed his eyes at Evan. “That wench does know how to please a man’s belly. I suspect she can please other parts, too. I plan to find that out soon.”
Anger pulsed through Evan, and he gripped his plate tight, so he didn’t lunge for the man. Was Gerald trying to bait him? He couldn’t sit here and not defend Audrey. He worked to keep his voice level. “She’s not a wench. She’s a woman worthy of respect. And if she’s as smart as I think she is, she won’t let you near her.”
The man’s face morphed back into a scowl. “You act so high-minded, but you’re only an English cad. I’ll bet you’ve even imagined yourself with her, too. Well, you won’t get her. But I plan to.”
That was the last straw. Evan lunged to his feet and closed the two strides between them. A swift blow in the man’s cocky jaw would silence him easily enough.
The crack of his fist against bone sent a satisfying shock up his arm.
13
Gerald cried out as his head knocked sideways, but he recovered quicker than Evan would’ve thought.
With a roar, he lunged to his feet, propelling himself toward Evan with a wild look in his eyes.
Evan was ready for the man, stepping to the side as he gripped Gerald’s shoulders and twisted him to land on his back. A quick foot in the blackguard’s midsection made him curl around himself.
“You touch her, or even speak of her again without respect, and you’ll meet with a great deal more than a fist and a boot.” He sucked in air to cool the rage still sluicing through him. Nothing angered him more than a woman or child injured, whether in body or in reputation. Especially when they couldn’t fight back.
A scream sounded from the doorway, jerking his attention upward. Audrey stood with the tray in her hands, jaw dropped, and eyes as round as the sausage she served.
Realization sank over him with awful clarity.
He raised his hands to show he had no weapon. “I’m not trying to run. I was only defending—”
“He attacked me.” Gerald still lay on the floor but seemed to be trying to uncurl himself. Blood dripped from his mouth, and his words were slurred. Evan had aimed his fist to land cleanly on the jaw, so it may be broken, but the heel in the man’s gut hadn’t been hard enough to do more than slow him down.
And give him something to help remember the lesson.
Footsteps pounded from the corridor, and Evan’s chest tightened enough that he had to work to draw breath. The beating had been foolish. Would they keep him tied again? Stop allowing him time outside? Just when he’d been earning their trust.
Yet he couldn’t regret defending Audrey’s honor. A few bruises and a broken jaw might not be enough to teach the man a permanent lesson, but at least he hadn’t sat and listened to the cad’s lecherous dross without defending her. That would’ve been the worst sin of all.
Audrey glanced behind herself and stepped to the side just as Brielle leapt into the room, hunting knife raised.
She halted abruptly and scanned the room to take in the scene.
Gerald had managed to sit up and was cradling his jaw with one hand. He used the other to point at Evan. “He attacked me.” Again, the words were so muddled they were barely understandable. The jaw must be either broken or knocked well out of place.
With another jolt of realization, he realized Audrey might be the one to attend the fiend’s injury. That was the last thing she should be forced to endure. This man should be the one held under guard.
“What goes on here?” Brielle directed the words to Evan,her knife still poised to slice into him, her eyes as hard as a warrior’s.
He met her stare, keeping his hands away from his body, palms forward. “He said unsuitable things about Audrey. Things no gentleman would voice, much less actually consider doing. I couldn’t sit by without acting.” He wouldn’t tell her the details unless he absolutely had to. Brielle shouldn’t be forced to hear such talk.
If she pushed for more, though, he would at least make sure he told her in private, without Audrey listening.
Brielle shifted her gaze between him and Gerald, then turned to Audrey. “Find the chief and Erik. Have them come here posthaste.”
