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baron sat back down heavily.

      “Why?” Griffydd demanded, eyeing him sternly. “You claim you did not dishonor her.”

      Finally, a spark of mirth appeared in Dylan’s dark eyes. “Maybe it is because I am of an age to be married.”

      “Are you certain this is a wise decision?” the baron asked. “Lord Perronet didn’t force—?”

      “Him? Force me to do anything?” Dylan scoffed. “That would be something to see.”

      “What about Lady Genevieve?” Trystan demanded.

      “It was her idea, wasn’t it, although she went about letting me know that she wanted to be my wife in a rather unusual way,” he replied.

      He turned to the baron. “You yourself heard her confess that she loved me, Uncle. Obviously, she is an intelligent woman and no one can deny her beauty.”

      “You are absolutely certain about this?” the baron asked.

      “Uncle, do you honestly believe I could be forced by any man—or woman, either—to marry against my will?”

      “No,” the baron admitted.

      “Griffydd?”

      “No,” he agreed.

      “Trystan?”

      “No,” the youngest knight grudgingly concurred. His gaze mirrored the intensity of his father’s. “Do you love her?”

      “Not yet, but I shall, beginning this very night. Now if you will all excuse me, I had better start arranging my wedding.”

      He marched from the hall, whistling a jaunty tune as if he got married every day, leaving the other three feeling like men who had been expecting a pitched battle, only to find themselves sent home without so much as a glimpse of the enemy.

      Below the table, Trystan’s hands balled into fists.

      

      Genevieve stared at her uncle in disbelief. “My what?”

      “Your wedding dress. Get it out and get it ready. You are going to be married today.”

      “Married? To whom?”

      He gave her a sour look. “To whom do you think? Sir Dylan DeLanyea, lord of Beaufort, that’s who.”

      “But what of my betrothal to Lord Kirkheathe?”

      “That is obviously at an end, thanks to you. I shall find some means to make amends. Maybe your cousin Elizabeth can be persuaded to marry him in your stead.”

      “Uncle!”

      Genevieve rose from her chair and faced him resolutely. “I admit I made a grievous error, but I will not compound it by marrying that man.”

      “Oh, yes, you will!” her uncle replied harshly. “How dare you refuse? After what you did, you should be glad we’ve got a way out of it before your reputation is totally sullied. There will be rumors and gossip enough as it is. As for what Lord Kirkheathe might think, I don’t want to even consider. You should thank God I’m not sending you off without a shift to your name.”

      “I would prefer that fate to marriage to Dylan DeLanyea.”

      Her uncle looked at her as if she had gone mad. and clearly he thought she had. “You were in his bed naked, Genevieve!”

      “To my everlasting regret. I would rather marry Lord Kirkheathe.”

      “That’s impossible, and you know it! Marry DeLanyea, or so help me, I’ll send you to the most remote convent I can find and leave you there to rot!”

      As she looked at his angry visage, she knew he would do exactly that. She would be exiled to an existence little better than a living death, with no husband and no possibility of children.

      “Lord Petronet?”

      Genevieve started and looked at the door, where the baron’s wife stood.

      Lady Roanna was tall and slim, dressed in a simple gown of fine red wool girdled with a belt of soft beige leather. Her hair was covered by a red cap and white scarf.

      She regarded them placidly, her pale, patient face showing signs of weariness, yet her voice, while soft, was as commanding as the baron’s.

      Genevieve quickly curtsied. As she did so, she glanced at her proud and pompous uncle. He looked as humble and contrite as an errant child.

      “Lord Perronet, I have been informed of my nephew’s impending marriage and would like to speak to your niece alone, if I may. One woman to another, as it were.”

      When she spoke, her voice and expression were such that Genevieve doubted anyone would deny whatever request she cared to make, even including the king.

      And as if to prove Genevieve’s observation, her uncle nodded, meek as a lamb.

      “Of course, my lady,” he said. He went to the door, then hesitated, glancing back at Genevieve. “The ceremony will be at noon.”

      After he was gone, Lady Roanna glided into the room.

      “May I sit?” she asked, and Genevieve couldn’t help but be relieved by the change in her tone. She sounded much more sympathetic.

      “Of course, my lady,” Genevieve replied.

      Lady Roanna took a chair and then gestured at the other. “Please.”

      Genevieve did as she was bid.

      Lady Roanna turned her vibrant green eyes onto Genevieve, eyes that seemed to demand truthfulness. “So, you are going to marry my nephew, not Lord Kirkheathe.”

      “I have been told I must,” Genevieve replied, and not without a hint of bitterness.

      “You do not sound pleased.”

      Genevieve didn’t answer. She couldn’t, not with Lady Roanna’s steadfast gaze on her.

      “I gather your uncle has good reason for demanding this change.”

      “I was in your nephew’s bed.”

      Lady Roanna’s expression altered ever so slightly and in a manner that made Genevieve flush. “Dylan denies seducing you.”

      All Genevieve could do was stare at the floor and blush like a child caught in an outrageous lie.

      “Did he seduce you?” Lady Roanna asked gently.

      Compelled by the older woman’s sympathy, Genevieve raised her eyes and shook her head. “No, my lady. And so I told my uncle.”

      Lady Roanna smiled a little. “I see. I gather this was a plan on your part to avoid marriage to Lord Kirkheathe?”

      Genevieve felt her eyes welling with hot tears as she nodded. Suddenly, she felt silly and stupid and ashamed.

      “Then I would say you have succeeded admirably. But tell me, were you not consulted about the betrothal to Lord Kirkheathe? Did you not agree?”

      “No, my lady. That is,” Genevieve amended, “I did not openly disagree. I thought I had no other choice, until I met Dylan.” Her voice quivered. “I suppose you think I have behaved disgracefully.”

      The older woman reached out and pressed her hand warmly. “I think you have acted like a desperate young woman who believes herself in love. However, I must say I am surprised you are not happier at the prospect of marrying my nephew, since you must have suspected this would be the ultimate result of your scheme. Perhaps you have heard things about his family that have upset you?”

      Although they had not been uppermost in her mind, Genevieve remembered the epithets her uncle had hurled at Dylan and his hostile reaction. “I know my uncle thinks very poorly of his father and grandfather, but I do not know why.”

      Lady

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