Page 59 of Enlightened

“I’m fine,” she said, taking Euan’s face in her hands and pressing kisses all over it. “I’m fine. Don’t look at the bruises, love, they don’t matter. I’m here now.”

“I’ll kill him,” Euan muttered, even as his arms came tightly about her.

“Don’t think about him.” She brushed his fair hair off his forehead in a tender gesture, as though he was the one that needed to be protected.

“How can I not?” Euan asked. “What if he does it again?”

The carriage lurched forward.

“That won’t happen,” Murdo assured him.

Euan sent him a bleak look. “How can you be so sure?”

David drew the agreement out of his coat pocket and held it out. “Read it.”

(Second) The First Party will pay to the Second Party the sum of two hundred and fifty pounds Sterling within seven days of the date of execution hereof; the Second Party accepts that sum in full and final settlement of all claims he may have against the First Party howsoever arising.

Euan and Elizabeth bent their heads over the paper together. When they looked up, Elizabeth’s eyes glistened with tears.

“I can’t believe what you’ve done for me,” she whispered. She looked at Murdo. “Your reputation’s ruined and over something you didn’t even do.”

Murdo smiled gently. “I am not entirely selfless. I gained something for myself from my actions.”

“But two hundred and fifty pounds?” Euan said. “It’ll take us forever to repay that.”

Murdo looked at David, even as he answered Euan. “I don’t want repaying. Two hundred and fifty pounds was nothing to what I’ve gained from this. Nothing at all.”

Euan opened his mouth to argue, but before he could speak, David said, “Don’t, Euan. Just accept it. For Elizabeth.”

Euan fell silent.

“Will it work, David?” Elizabeth asked. “Is Kinnell bound by this?”

“It would be nigh on impossible to enforce,” David replied. “But the point of it isn’t to win a battle in court. It’s a different sort of insurance.”

“Because he admits to treating his wife cruelly?” Euan said. “Do you really think his reputation would be damaged by that?” He sounded sceptical.

“I think it would, a little,” David said. “But that sort of dishonour pales in comparison to the damage that would be done to his reputation if it got out that he had failed to honour an agreement between gentlemen in order to avoid a duel.”

Euan snorted his disgust, but the corners of his mouth turned up as he did so.

Murdo turned to Elizabeth. “In short, you are free—as am I. Time to make the best of our lives, don’t you think?”

Murdo prevailed upon Euan and Elizabeth to stay at the townhouse.

After he’d informed Liddle about their unexpected guests, the butler smoothly moved into action, dispatching a footman to have a bath readied for the lady and leading the tired, battered couple upstairs.

Within a few minutes of their return, David and Murdo were alone, hovering in the empty hallway, smiling at one another.

“You look exhausted,” Murdo said.

“I feel like I could sleep for a week,” David admitted. “I barely closed my eyes last night for worry.”

“Let’s go upstairs, then. I’m done in too.”

Despite his eagerness to be fully alone with Murdo, David took the stairs slowly, not pushing himself too hard. Murdo noticed, of course.

“How’s the leg?” he asked when they finally reached the top.