Page 10 of A Dark and Stormy Knight (A Knight’s Tale #3)

W allace looked down at Cara and his stomach tightened. He almost felt nauseous.

He was not a man who generally equivocated. He knew his mind, and he spoke it so others did as well.

It seemed the spell she’d cast over him the last few days remained in full force.

He drew a breath and hesitated as he gazed into her face, so beautiful, so trusting. Pieces of her blonde hair lay around her shoulders, the rest of the thick mass tied back, her hazel eyes bright and expectant.

As a boy he’d once captured a butterfly in his hands, and when he’d opened them it had not flown as expected. He’d studied its delicate beauty for long moments, as it walked from palm to fingers, until it finally drifted away, leaving him desolate enough that he remembered the emotion years later.

Cara was like that butterfly. Exquisite, enchanting, and if her earlier words were any indication, ready to fly away, unfettered by his wishes.

His mother cleared her throat and brought him back to reality.

They’d lost their fortune once to treachery.

Now they’d lost the chance to regain it, and though he did not believe she’d conspired against him, ultimately the fault lay with her.

The wealth she wore around her neck would go a long way toward helping him establish security for his family and his people.

He liked her well enough, and, after his heroics, she seemed to favor him, or at least feel safe with him.

“Lady Cara,” his mother started when he did not. “Can you tell us of your family? I understand you were a lady-in-waiting, was it to the queen?”

Cara laughed. “Actually, it was to the princess.”

“Ah,” his mother said, not giving much away, but he knew she was well pleased.

“And your family?”

“Mark and Lori Jones. They live in Huntington Beach, California. They bought the house before they had me, and have lived there ever since.”

Cara’s smile widened. “Dad is a bit of the hippie, and Mom loves that about him, but she’s a lawyer, so she can get frustrated sometimes about how laid-back he can be.”

She chuckled. “Truth to tell, he’s been known to smoke a bit of weed, which drives Mom up the wall, so he doesn’t do it as much as he used to.”

Her smile turned impish. “At least it’s legal now, right?”

They both stared as she spoke of things beyond their understanding.

“I guess my father mostly raised me. He’s sort of a Mr. Mom type, if you know what I mean. They own some rentals, and sometimes he works construction, but when I was young, he just took care of me. He plants a huge garden every year and keeps a few goats.”

She glanced at each of them in turn, but his mother seemed as dumbstruck as himself.

“Mom is the total opposite,” she finally continued. “She loves Prada, and she’s sort of a shark. But don’t get me wrong, they’re totally in love. It’s definitely a case of opposites attract. They’re the first who would say they’re lucky to have found each other.”

“Uh …” Lady Helena glanced at Wallace. “Where exactly did you say they lived again?”

“California.”

At their blank expressions, she added, “In the United States.”

They looked at her, and then at each other, and then they both shook their heads.

“She is Welsh,” Wallace told his mother.

“Ahh, that explains it then.”

Cara’s mouth parted. “Oh, come on. Am I being punk’d here?”

She glanced around the room and gestured up at the ceiling. “I can see you don’t have electricity, or, even windows,” she glanced toward the window even as she said it. “So, I can tell you guys are a little on the whoo, whoo side, but still, I’m not going to believe you’ve never heard of America,” she pointed at Wallace. “Especially since you were on the movie set of a Hollywood film.”

Her eyes narrowed. “By the way, are they going to miss you? Or were you finished filming?”

Wallace was overwhelmed by her gibberish, and was starting to get angry. “Lady Cara, I brought you in here to ask for your hand in marriage.”

She smiled and batted her eyelashes prettily. “You are a sweetheart. You really are. And believe me, I appreciate the offer. After what you did for me the other day, well, I know I owe you a lot. And I’m not denying I’m having some pretty strong feelings for you because of it.”

She glanced at Lady Helena. “He literally saved my life. Once when he controlled his horse in the most amazing way possible, and the second time when I was attacked by three men. You should have seen him, he came out of nowhere, and …”

She placed a hand to her chest and seemed to look inward. “Well, there’s no way to get around this, he killed all three of them, but no one’s ever going to hear about it from me. Those guys got what they deserved, and then some. He was magnificent.”

She shook her head, as if to dispel the images, and then smiled up at Wallace once again. “Anyway, I’ve never said this before, I’ve never had to, but I owe him my life.”

“Then marry him,” Lady Helena said firmly.

Cara looked between the two of them, her expression startled. “I’m going to be honest here, I’d love to date him, and I’d enjoy getting to know him better, but to just jump into marriage with someone seems a bit foolish, doesn’t it?”

“Is that so? By your own telling, you would not be here if not for my son.”

“Um ... this is getting just a tiny bit too weird for me,” she glanced at Wallace. “Don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t kidding about hoping to see you again. But I thought, you know, phone calls, text messages, maybe we could get together like,” she shot a glance at Lady Helena, “without your mother?”

“You will marry my son.”

“No, I won’t. Deal with it.” Cara’s voice hardened, similar to his mother’s.

Both women stared each other down.

Lady Helena broke the silence. “Perhaps some time in thy room on a diet of bread and water will improve your disposition.”

Cara’s mouth dropped and she turned a scathing look on Wallace. “Really?”

That look pierced him to his core. “Mother.”

Cara stood. “Look, this conversation has gotten a little too weird for me. If you’ll simply point me to the nearest phone, I will just get a ride out of here and that will be the end of it.”

“Mother,” Wallace said, his gaze upon Cara. “Leave us alone, if you please.”

Lady Helena hesitated, made a scoffing noise, then left the room, shutting the door behind her.

Cara turned back to Wallace. “This is nuts, huh?”

He blew out a breath, and then took one of her hands in his, and pressed her fingers to his lips. “I’ve not done this in the best of ways, I can see that. But, Lady Cara, I believe we can help each other. You are far from home, correct?”

She nodded.

“In need of protection?”

“Well, if I’m wandering about the countryside, then, yes. But if I can make my way home, I’ll be fine.”

He knew her situation was precarious, wished to offer his strength, but her lack of understanding was frustrating to say the least.

She had obviously been sheltered at home, and mayhap at court as well, but she no longer held that position.

And it was not just that they could help one another. He wanted her to stay. He’d once been prepared to do his duty for his family, and king, and never once had he thought upon his own preference in the matter.

But Cara was a new proposition altogether.

His chance to marry for money and position was in his past.

No family of stature would wish to be associated with him as things stood.

Cara’s family was unknown to both he and his mother, so he doubted they had much to offer either. She’d not been spoken for, else the king would not have handed her over, so she was no heiress.

Her family had no doubt sent her to court, put what wealth they had about her throat, hoping to attract a suitor.

So, that wealth, for his strength and protection. He thought they could do very well together.

But she did not seem to comprehend any of it.

He pulled her to the bench, and sat beside her, taking both of her hands in his.

Mayhap she was exactly the same as the butterfly he’d likened her to. If he pressed too hard, he’d damage the very thing he yearned for.

Perhaps there was a different way to go about it.

“I will admit, events did not start well between us.”

She chuckled. “That’s an understatement. And I’m sorry, again, for ruining your joust.”

He nodded, and the feel of her soft hands in his convinced him all the more that marrying her was exactly what he wanted to do.

He swallowed, wishing he’d the talent of seducing women with words that other men seemed to possess so easily. “I think we could do very well together.”

“But —”

“That is to say, I’ve ... feelings for you, most unexpected, but real. I ... think asking you to be my wife so quickly is ill thought out, as we’ve not had the time to know each other better.” He thought using her own argument was a good idea, and it seemed to be, as she immediately softened.

“You said thyself, you lost your position and needed a chance to rethink your life.”

She nodded.

“Why not do that here? Near me? I think perhaps I am not the only one to have caught feelings after so short a time.”

She glanced down and a very pretty blush dusted her cheeks.

It encouraged him.

“What say you? Will you stay?”

She glanced up again, searched his gaze, and her fingers clenched on his. After a long moment, she gave him a soft smile. “I guess there’s no hurry. And you know what? I’d like to get to know you better, too.”

The jubilation rising within him seemed out of context to the situation, but mayhap she was his fate and it was destiny he felt.

Looking into her pretty hazel eyes, her soft hands in his, he found he would not mind if that were the case.

* * *

“That’s settled then. Will you allow me to act as thy guide?”

Settled was it? Apparently, she just couldn’t resist tall, dark, and damaged.

Cara was starting to think the guy was casting spells on her or something. Or perhaps she’d finally found a weakness where men were concerned. A chink in her armor, as it were, (haha).

Him sweetly asking her to stay, that fabulous accent, it was irresistible. She’d seen him raging, cold-as-ice, polite, chill, protective. But sweet? She had no defense against it.

Part of it was he was just so good-looking. All that brawn, green-eyed sincerity, and that masculine face, he just made her breath hitch.

And, part of it was, she still didn’t want to be separated from him. If she ditched him and went back to America, she’d forever wonder; what if she’d stayed, gotten to know the man better, what if they could have fallen in love and made a go of it?

A permanent go, the real deal, something similar to what her mother and father had.

She didn’t want to miss out on that and, if she stayed, either way, she’d never have to wonder.

Even a week or two might give them the chance to see if what blossomed between them was real, or, if she was just having some sort of savior complex.

She’d know soon enough, and now that she was unemployed, why not take the chance to get to know him up close and personal.

If they fell for each other, if they ended up together, eventually married, she thought her dad would get a pretty good laugh out of it.

He’d told her that when she finally fell in love, she’d be gobsmacked with the unexpectedness of it, just like he’d been with her mom.

“I would love for you to show me around, thank you.”

He extended an arm, and she took it, and he escorted her into the hallway once more.

They found his mother waiting on the other side of the door. “’Tis settled then?”

“We’ve decided to get to know each other first,” Wallace announced. “Afterward, we shall decide about marriage.”

Lady Helena opened her mouth as if to argue, but after a long look at her son, gave a slight nod instead. “Excellent.”

Without another word, she disappeared down the hall.

They walked at a more leisurely pace. “What are your plans for the day?” she asked.

He drew in a deep breath, then released it. “In my absence, we’ve had a few more servants arrive from our former estates. It still happens upon occasion. We must have shelter for everyone, and that means more buildings raised, and more occupations found.”

Huh. It sounded as if romance wasn’t going to consist of handholding and strolls through the nearby woods.

“All right,” she grinned up at him. That sort of inactivity would drive her batty, anyway. “I’m in. Let’s do this.”

“You are to help, then?” He sounded amused.

“I’ll do what I can.”

He patted her hand. “I will be glad to have you near.”

She chuckled. “And that, is the entire point.”

Her spirits rose as she followed him down the stairs, and out the front door.

The marriage proposal had turned into, hey, let’s date, and that was perfectly fine by her.

It left her feeling wanted by the man she was crushing on, yet cautious and smart for not jumping in with both feet.

Her dad might scoff about her lack of spontaneity, but her mom would be proud.