He flashed her that wide grin that caused her blood to flutter wildly in her veins and her bones to melt with desire as he returned to her side. “What need do you have of that, when you havemefor the rest of your days?”
“But how is that even possible?” she whispered. “Travell already tried to free me from the betrothal, and Prinny refused his request.”
He traced a delicate finger along her jaw. “You seem to forget that I am a duke, and not only does my rank outweigh that of Eastbury and Travell, I was able to convince the Regent that our marriage would be atrue…love match.” With a shrug born of arrogance, he added on a grin, “Plus, I gave him the name of our French spy.”
Her eyes widened. “You know who it is?”
“I do,” he concurred. “But I don’t want to discuss politics and intrigue right now.”
His eyes turned to liquid silver, their molten depths filled with all manner of delicious emotions. “Marry me?” he asked huskily.
A sob escaped. “Did you really have to ask? My answer has always been yes when it comes to you,” she whispered, to which Gabriel once again claimed her mouth in a kiss that left them both breathless.
When he pulled away, he took her hand in his. “Come.”
As they entered the foyer, she was taken aback to find a red faced Eastbury, who was held on either side by two red-coated soldiers.
When Triana glanced at Gabriel in shock, he merely shrugged. “Reinforcements the Regent sent along in case things got messy.”
The moment the earl spotted them, he began to struggle. He glared at them both hotly, spittle flying out of his mouth in his rage. “Chiltern! You vile cur! How dare you have the nerve to come here and kidnap my future wife!”
“I don’t believe it’s kidnapping if the lady goes willingly,” Gabriel interjected smoothly. “And the lady in question will soon be my duchess.”
“I will meet you at dawn for this!” Eastbury continued to rant, to which Gabriel calmly removed a sealed document from his inner jacket pocket.
He held up the paper and walked toward the earl, where he spoke quietly,deadly. “We can do this one of two ways. You can admit that you have lost and leave quietly, preferring a life of solitude in Scotland. Or, you shall cause an even larger scandal for yourself by resisting and being thrown in the Tower for the murder of a local harlot who died from injuries sustained by you, to which I have more than one witness to attest to the fact. It’s your choice.”
Eastbury spluttered, although his fury had appeared to abate somewhat as his eyes fixated on the document in the duke’s hand. “You dare to try and exile me?”
“Look at it as a time to reflect on your poor choices.” Gabriel returned with a dangerous glitter to his eyes.
The earl seemed to weigh his options, but with his face twisted in mottled fury, he pulled a knife from his belt and lunged for Gabriel. “I’ll kill you for this!”
The stunned soldiers didn’t even have time to react, before Gabriel had Eastbury pinned down on the floor, with a knee to his back and an arm twisted behind him so fast that the earl barely had time to howl in pain. “You’re going to break my arm!”
“I’ll do more than that if you ever threaten me again,” Gabriel growled ruthlessly. He lifted the earl to his feet, and tossed him to the guards. “Remove him from my sight and make sure he never sets foot on English soil again. After the Regent hears of his attempt to harm a fellow member of the peerage, I’m rather sure he will be more than happy to extend his exile.Permanently.”
With a pitiful whimper, Eastbury was led away.
Travell walked up to Gabriel and they shook hands. “It will be an honor to call you my brother-in-law.”
“And I, you.” Gabriel returned in all seriousness.
With a glance at his sister, the viscount added, “Take care of her.”
Gabriel looked at the woman who had stolen his heart and made it possible for him to breathe life again, and nodded solemnly. “Forever.”
A noise behind them made the trio turn to see Lady Trenton standing with the vicar. Her voice was full of remorse when she said, “I honestly thought Eastbury was a gentleman worthy of your affections, but after this, I can see how wrong I’ve been.” Her gaze softened a fraction. “I apologize for being so blind to the truth, Triana. Can you ever forgive me?”
“Oh, Mama.” Triana walked over to embrace her. “Of course I will.”
“It seems to me that this is a new occasion to celebrate,” Travell announced.
“Indeed.” Gabriel concurred.
Lady Trenton took that moment to step forward. “I’m looking forward to having you in the family, Your Grace.”
Gabriel bowed reverently. “Thank you, Lady Trenton.” With a loving glance at Triana, he added, “I’m just grateful your daughter was able to save my dark heart.”
