Secrets of a Viscount Read Free Page B

leaving.”
    “Leaving?” she echoed.
    “ We’re going home.”
    “ You mean to Cross Pointe?”
    He shook his head. “No. Well, yes. I’ll be going home to Cross Pointe. You’ll be going back to your parents’ estate.”
    Belle crossed her arms under her bare breasts in defiance, causing her towel to drop to the floor. “Absolutely not. I am your wife. I will not be living with my parents any longer.”
    Snorting, Sebastian took his hands out of his pockets and crossed his arms. “You’re not my wife.”
    “ I beg to differ,” she said sternly, her eyes not straying from his. “I just said vows, and I do believe you repeated them, too.”
    “ No. I said my vows to Rachel, not you.”
    Belle blanched and for a brief second Sebastian felt remorse for what he’d just said. But her next words washed all those feelings away and allowed irritation to take its place, making him harden his resolve not to keep her as his wife.
    “Odd that, I don’t seem to remember her being there,” she countered, her tone full of typical Belle sarcasm. She cocked her head to the side and tapped one long, slender finger against her chin. “No. I was the one you said those vows to. Therefore, you are my husband, not hers. Which means I shall be spending my nights at Cross Pointe from now on.”
    “ I wouldn’t wager on it, were I you,” he said harshly. “Get dressed.”
    “ No,” she said, not moving an inch.
    Sebastian stepped forward. “Belle,” he began with a calm he didn’t feel, “we need to go. It’s barely seven now. I can have you back to your estate before your parents even find out you were missing. Now let’s go.”
    She knit her brows. “Why would we do that?”
    Blowing out a deep breath, Sebastian scooped up her nightrail and held it out for her. “Surely you know we’re not really married.”
    “Yes, we are,” she countered, refusing to take her nightrail from him.
    A bitter laugh passed his lips. “No, we’re not. As I told you earlier, I said those vows to Rachel. You’re not Rachel. Therefore, we’re not married.”
    “ What are you talking about? I was there. You said the vows to me . You kissed me . I was your bride!” she burst out.
    “ I may have kissed you,” he conceded softly. “And I may have said, ‘I do,’ in front of you. But not to you. Actually, now that I think about it, I’m not married to her, either.” Relief flooded through him. Blessedly, he still had his freedom.
    “ No, you’re not married to her,” Belle agreed. “But you are married to me.”
    He shook his head, trying not to smile. “No, I’m not. I went into that ceremony with who I thought was Rachel and came out with you. I don’t know what kind of scheme you two are devising, but it didn’t work.”
    “How so?”
    “ Because I said my vows to who I thought was her, and turned out to be you. But you forget, even a proxy bride doesn’t sign the register. Either her male representative does, or she does at another time. That’s where you made your mistake. You signed the register in her stead and legally you can’t.”
    A grin as big as the English Channel spread across Belle’s face. “It is you who is mistaken, my lord.”
    “What are you talking about?” he asked, an eerie chill settling over him.
    She shrugged. “Perhaps you were right. I should get dressed.” She snatched her nightrail from his limp fingers and pulled it over her head then she walked to the other side of the screen and came back with her slippers and stockings. “I’m ready to go now, Sebastian.” She grabbed her discarded cloak and tossed it over her arms. “However, while we’re still here, I think we should run over to the smithy’s together.”
    “Capital idea,” he agreed, ignoring the dangerous gleam in her eyes. She was up to something, he could tell. Her eyes always told on her when she was up to mischief. They’d sparkle and the edges would crinkle ever-so-slightly.
    Settling their bill and