Veronica was busy setting the table for dinner when she heard the elevator begin its ascent. She was glad Byron went after Marguerite. No one was feeling their best today, but Marguerite was the worst off. It was dangerous for her to be out by herself and distracted, but Veronica also understood the need to be alone with an old hurt that still had the ability to cut like a knife.
Three years . . .Her throat tightened with unshed tears as she too remembered the pain of losing Roxton. There was a brief time after then maddening search for him that she truly wondered if she was cursed. First my parents and then Roxton . . . vanished without a trace.
Malone came from his room when he heard the elevator coming up. He had been worried about Marguerite . . . it wasn't safe to be out alone so close to dark. He had wanted to go after her but had listened to Veronica when she insisted that they give her some time alone. After a few moments, Byron quietly rose and went after her. He had given Malone a small smile. Malone knew Byron understood what was going on. Three years and we still aren't over losing Roxton . . .
The elevator came into view and Malone sucked in a breath. Marguerite and Byron appeared to be okay but Byron was carrying an unconscious man. He started to move towards them and then he saw Marguerite's face . . . happiness, confusion, sadness, and hope all warred for supremacy of her expressive face.
Expressive face . . . he remembered a time when Marguerite hid her emotions so well that he wondered if she was even human. Roxton had brought about a change in her but when he disappeared . . . Who am I kidding . . .when he died . . . Roxton is dead . . . Marguerite had blocked herself off. If not for Byron, they would have lost Marguerite forever.
As Byron slowly lowered the man to the couch, Veronica and Malone got their first look at the man's face . . .
The sound of plates crashing to the floor slowly eased Roxton back to consciousness. He looked around and realized he was in the treehouse. His eyes quickly focused on Marguerite as she slowly brushed his hair back off his forehead. How could I have lost her! I was only gone a day . . . and not even an entire one!
"Veronica, you better get Challenger, I have a feeling he won't mind being disturbed." Byron lightly put his hand on her shoulder to break the trance she was under. He gave her a half smile and said, "Don't worry, he's not going anywhere."
Then he turned back to see his love, his Marguerite, tenderly touching Lord John Roxton's face. It hurt him like nothing else ever had. He had heard about Lord Roxton during the late night conversations he had with Marguerite shortly after he arrived. Being feverish, he needed something to keep his mind off the pain and so she had shared her story with him. The suffering she was feeling was evident in every word, every syllable, she spoke. He remembered praying that she would one day feel that intensely for him.
He had fallen in love with her at first sight. He smiled a little at that . . . Lord Byron O'Connell falling in love at first sight. Just a few years ago he would have thought it not only ridiculous but absolutely impossible. That was before he had met Marguerite though. The haunted look in her eyes as she had tended to him night after night made him want to take her in his arms and kiss away her pain. As time went on he began to catch glimpses of the woman she had been before Roxton disappeared. She was so independent! She certainly had led him on a merry little chase . . .
Oh but she was worth it! His patience had finally paid off and she was showing signs of falling in love with him. But it wasn't until just the past few weeks ago that he truly began to feel she had buried her past and could move on. That's when he had purposed. One night he came upon her by the pond and blurted the words out like a nervous child instead of the worldly man he fashioned himself to be. She had softly smiled and brushed her lips lightly against his before murmuring yes.
But reality hit him like a punch in the stomach when he saw that same soft smile touch her lips . . . but this time it wasn't for him. He had to look away to hide his anguish.
Luckily the commotion Malone, Challenger, and Veronica were causing ensured no one saw his distress. He quickly masked his emotions. Marguerite had enough on her mind right now without having to worry about hurting him.
They all took turns gushing over him. Hugging him, kissing him (in Veronica's case), and slapping him heartily on the back. Roxton wondered what all the fuss was about. Obviously there was more to this situation than he had first realized. How long was I unconscious?, he silently wondered.
Looking around the room, the answer came thundering into his head. Long enough for Marguerite to fall in love with O'Connell. He had immediately felt Marguerite's withdrawal as the others greeted him with such fierce affection that he was staggered. After he recovered, his eyes shifted from Marguerite to O'Connell.
He imagined the look on O'Connell's face mirrored what his expression had been a few short minutes ago at the pond. The man looked positively ill. But he had to give him credit, he was doing a damn good job of hiding it. He just stared at Marguerite. Roxton knew O'Connell was willing her to look at him. He almost laughed when the thought raced across his mind, Obviously he hasn't been around her long enough to know that Marguerite rarely does what anyone wants her to do.
His focus then shifted to Marguerite. What was going on in that beautiful head of hers? She wasn't looking at him or at O'Connell. He didn't know whether to be pleased or scared. She seemed to have retreated behind a wall. He forced his attention back to Challenger who was talking to him.
"My boy, what happened to you? We searched everywhere for you. You disappeared without a trace."
"I was hit from behind and woke up a few hours ago beneath the Ydan trees about 7 miles from here."
"Impossible! We searched that area at least 50 times over the years!" Malone said in a frustrated voice. What if he had been there? Surely they would have found him. It was crazy to think he could have survived out in the open for 3 years anyway! Yet that was his story, and Roxton was not given to telling tales.
"YEARS?" Roxton jumped up at Malone's words and moaned as his head started pounding and he fell back against the couch.
"Roxton, you've been gone for 3 years today." Veronica said slowly while studying him for his reaction.
He immediately looked at Marguerite. He felt a wave of nausea hit him as he thought of what she must have gone through. He could only imagine how horrible it would be if he were the one left behind and she had vanished into thin air. Her eyes briefly met his and they were shimmering with unshed tears. How long had she waited for him before getting engaged to O'Connell?
O'Connell cleared his throat, effectively breaking the moment and Roxton shot him a sharp look. "Perhaps Lord Roxton should get some rest now –"
"I'm not tired." Roxton cut in abruptly.
Only then did the implication of what Roxton's return meant dawn on the others in the room. Challenger looked thoughtfully at both men and then glanced at Marguerite while Malone and Veronica exchanged a troubled look.
Seeing the distressed look on Marguerite's face, Challenger prudently stepped in between the two glaring men. "Perhaps we should all get some sleep. We'll have the rest of our lives to catch up."
Marguerite wondered what the rest of her life would be like now. She had gradually gotten used to the dull ache that was her constant companion since Roxton vanished. She had begun to rebuild her life with Byron and she had been determined to make him a good wife, just as she should have been to Roxton. Tears started streaming down her face unheeded. Byron saw them and he rushed to her side. He took his callused thumb and softly wiped them away with a sad smile as he brought her in for a hug. Roxton looked away. How can this be happening? Surely I'll wake up in a few minutes, walk out to the breakfast table and tell Malone about this crazy dream so he can record it in his journal.
Marguerite stepped away from Byron and looked at him like he was a stranger. It had been a long time since she had given him a look like that and it didn't sit well with him. Perhaps seeing his thoughts flash across his face, she gave him a small smile and brushed her lips across his cheek. Then she walked across to Roxton and offered her hand to help him up. He grasped it and something much like an electric shock traveled through her entire body. It had always been that way with him and it probably always would be.
"Come along Roxton, you can sleep in my bed."
He almost started to smirk and make a comment like everything was just the same as it had been. But then he realized it wasn't. It might never be that way again.
"Where are you going to sleep Marguerite?" He suddenly had an urgent need to know. If she says with O'Connell, they may as well shoot me now and put me out of my misery.
She gave him a sharp look and said "That is none of your concern Lord Roxton!"
Roxton laughed out loud. This was his Marguerite, spitting fire while a becoming flush swept over her features . . . not the sad beautiful shell of a woman he had witnessed a few moments ago.
Marguerite just stared at his smile . . . the smile she thought she would never be fortunate enough to see again . . . the smile that had been the subject of so many of her dreams over the years. She reached up to touch is face and then remembered Byron standing just across the room and quickly dropped her arm.
"Glad to see after all these years you can still laugh incessantly at me for no reason, Roxton," she said bitingly while leading him into her room.
It was just as he remembered it. Well, almost. He noticed his battered hat on the nightstand next to her bed and realized for the first time that he was without it. The idea of her keeping his hat so close to her touched a place in his heart that had not been reached for many years.
Seeing where his eyes had landed, she walked over and tossed the hat at him, practically daring him to make a comment about it's former resting place by her bed. "I found it in a field about a week after you disappeared. I was just holding on to it in case mine wore out."
Some things never change. Marguerite is still afraid to admit she cares for me. But things had changed. An unpleasant thought crossed his mind, Maybe she really doesn't care about me . . . she certainly has no problem admitting her feelings for Byron. The uncomfortable image of the man's arm around Marguerite's waist caused Roxton to bark out harshly, "Still looking out for your own best interests I see. Nice to know you could profit from my disappearance, no matter how trivially."
This was not the way either of them had pictured their reunion. Marguerite took a deep, calming breath and said, "I've changed Roxton . . ." and then whispered so quietly that he strained to hear, "A lot of things have changed."
Roxton heard the finality in her words and a touch of something else. Could it have been regret? He looked at her and tried to figure out what she was thinking. I might as well be trying to wrestle a T-Rex . . .
Marguerite was slipping further and further out of his reach without ever physically making a move to leave. He thought over her words and realized that there was indeed something very different about her. A fragility that hadn't been apparent before. Was his disappearance the reason for it or had Byron made her softer emotions surface? He wished that the passing years had made her less attractive or her pull on him less strong, but no such luck. He still wanted her, loved her, as if the passing years had only been a few hours . . . which to him was exactly what it felt like. Where the hell have I been for the past 3 years?
"Get some rest Roxton. You'll need all your strength for tomorrow . . ." she said as she walked past him to the door.
He reached out and laid his hand on her arm. "And why is that?" he asked with an arched look.
She grinned and said, "Because it's my turn to cook breakfast."
And then she was gone, leaving him with an amused look on his face despite his conflicting emotions.
Three years . . .Her throat tightened with unshed tears as she too remembered the pain of losing Roxton. There was a brief time after then maddening search for him that she truly wondered if she was cursed. First my parents and then Roxton . . . vanished without a trace.
Malone came from his room when he heard the elevator coming up. He had been worried about Marguerite . . . it wasn't safe to be out alone so close to dark. He had wanted to go after her but had listened to Veronica when she insisted that they give her some time alone. After a few moments, Byron quietly rose and went after her. He had given Malone a small smile. Malone knew Byron understood what was going on. Three years and we still aren't over losing Roxton . . .
The elevator came into view and Malone sucked in a breath. Marguerite and Byron appeared to be okay but Byron was carrying an unconscious man. He started to move towards them and then he saw Marguerite's face . . . happiness, confusion, sadness, and hope all warred for supremacy of her expressive face.
Expressive face . . . he remembered a time when Marguerite hid her emotions so well that he wondered if she was even human. Roxton had brought about a change in her but when he disappeared . . . Who am I kidding . . .when he died . . . Roxton is dead . . . Marguerite had blocked herself off. If not for Byron, they would have lost Marguerite forever.
As Byron slowly lowered the man to the couch, Veronica and Malone got their first look at the man's face . . .
The sound of plates crashing to the floor slowly eased Roxton back to consciousness. He looked around and realized he was in the treehouse. His eyes quickly focused on Marguerite as she slowly brushed his hair back off his forehead. How could I have lost her! I was only gone a day . . . and not even an entire one!
"Veronica, you better get Challenger, I have a feeling he won't mind being disturbed." Byron lightly put his hand on her shoulder to break the trance she was under. He gave her a half smile and said, "Don't worry, he's not going anywhere."
Then he turned back to see his love, his Marguerite, tenderly touching Lord John Roxton's face. It hurt him like nothing else ever had. He had heard about Lord Roxton during the late night conversations he had with Marguerite shortly after he arrived. Being feverish, he needed something to keep his mind off the pain and so she had shared her story with him. The suffering she was feeling was evident in every word, every syllable, she spoke. He remembered praying that she would one day feel that intensely for him.
He had fallen in love with her at first sight. He smiled a little at that . . . Lord Byron O'Connell falling in love at first sight. Just a few years ago he would have thought it not only ridiculous but absolutely impossible. That was before he had met Marguerite though. The haunted look in her eyes as she had tended to him night after night made him want to take her in his arms and kiss away her pain. As time went on he began to catch glimpses of the woman she had been before Roxton disappeared. She was so independent! She certainly had led him on a merry little chase . . .
Oh but she was worth it! His patience had finally paid off and she was showing signs of falling in love with him. But it wasn't until just the past few weeks ago that he truly began to feel she had buried her past and could move on. That's when he had purposed. One night he came upon her by the pond and blurted the words out like a nervous child instead of the worldly man he fashioned himself to be. She had softly smiled and brushed her lips lightly against his before murmuring yes.
But reality hit him like a punch in the stomach when he saw that same soft smile touch her lips . . . but this time it wasn't for him. He had to look away to hide his anguish.
Luckily the commotion Malone, Challenger, and Veronica were causing ensured no one saw his distress. He quickly masked his emotions. Marguerite had enough on her mind right now without having to worry about hurting him.
They all took turns gushing over him. Hugging him, kissing him (in Veronica's case), and slapping him heartily on the back. Roxton wondered what all the fuss was about. Obviously there was more to this situation than he had first realized. How long was I unconscious?, he silently wondered.
Looking around the room, the answer came thundering into his head. Long enough for Marguerite to fall in love with O'Connell. He had immediately felt Marguerite's withdrawal as the others greeted him with such fierce affection that he was staggered. After he recovered, his eyes shifted from Marguerite to O'Connell.
He imagined the look on O'Connell's face mirrored what his expression had been a few short minutes ago at the pond. The man looked positively ill. But he had to give him credit, he was doing a damn good job of hiding it. He just stared at Marguerite. Roxton knew O'Connell was willing her to look at him. He almost laughed when the thought raced across his mind, Obviously he hasn't been around her long enough to know that Marguerite rarely does what anyone wants her to do.
His focus then shifted to Marguerite. What was going on in that beautiful head of hers? She wasn't looking at him or at O'Connell. He didn't know whether to be pleased or scared. She seemed to have retreated behind a wall. He forced his attention back to Challenger who was talking to him.
"My boy, what happened to you? We searched everywhere for you. You disappeared without a trace."
"I was hit from behind and woke up a few hours ago beneath the Ydan trees about 7 miles from here."
"Impossible! We searched that area at least 50 times over the years!" Malone said in a frustrated voice. What if he had been there? Surely they would have found him. It was crazy to think he could have survived out in the open for 3 years anyway! Yet that was his story, and Roxton was not given to telling tales.
"YEARS?" Roxton jumped up at Malone's words and moaned as his head started pounding and he fell back against the couch.
"Roxton, you've been gone for 3 years today." Veronica said slowly while studying him for his reaction.
He immediately looked at Marguerite. He felt a wave of nausea hit him as he thought of what she must have gone through. He could only imagine how horrible it would be if he were the one left behind and she had vanished into thin air. Her eyes briefly met his and they were shimmering with unshed tears. How long had she waited for him before getting engaged to O'Connell?
O'Connell cleared his throat, effectively breaking the moment and Roxton shot him a sharp look. "Perhaps Lord Roxton should get some rest now –"
"I'm not tired." Roxton cut in abruptly.
Only then did the implication of what Roxton's return meant dawn on the others in the room. Challenger looked thoughtfully at both men and then glanced at Marguerite while Malone and Veronica exchanged a troubled look.
Seeing the distressed look on Marguerite's face, Challenger prudently stepped in between the two glaring men. "Perhaps we should all get some sleep. We'll have the rest of our lives to catch up."
Marguerite wondered what the rest of her life would be like now. She had gradually gotten used to the dull ache that was her constant companion since Roxton vanished. She had begun to rebuild her life with Byron and she had been determined to make him a good wife, just as she should have been to Roxton. Tears started streaming down her face unheeded. Byron saw them and he rushed to her side. He took his callused thumb and softly wiped them away with a sad smile as he brought her in for a hug. Roxton looked away. How can this be happening? Surely I'll wake up in a few minutes, walk out to the breakfast table and tell Malone about this crazy dream so he can record it in his journal.
Marguerite stepped away from Byron and looked at him like he was a stranger. It had been a long time since she had given him a look like that and it didn't sit well with him. Perhaps seeing his thoughts flash across his face, she gave him a small smile and brushed her lips across his cheek. Then she walked across to Roxton and offered her hand to help him up. He grasped it and something much like an electric shock traveled through her entire body. It had always been that way with him and it probably always would be.
"Come along Roxton, you can sleep in my bed."
He almost started to smirk and make a comment like everything was just the same as it had been. But then he realized it wasn't. It might never be that way again.
"Where are you going to sleep Marguerite?" He suddenly had an urgent need to know. If she says with O'Connell, they may as well shoot me now and put me out of my misery.
She gave him a sharp look and said "That is none of your concern Lord Roxton!"
Roxton laughed out loud. This was his Marguerite, spitting fire while a becoming flush swept over her features . . . not the sad beautiful shell of a woman he had witnessed a few moments ago.
Marguerite just stared at his smile . . . the smile she thought she would never be fortunate enough to see again . . . the smile that had been the subject of so many of her dreams over the years. She reached up to touch is face and then remembered Byron standing just across the room and quickly dropped her arm.
"Glad to see after all these years you can still laugh incessantly at me for no reason, Roxton," she said bitingly while leading him into her room.
It was just as he remembered it. Well, almost. He noticed his battered hat on the nightstand next to her bed and realized for the first time that he was without it. The idea of her keeping his hat so close to her touched a place in his heart that had not been reached for many years.
Seeing where his eyes had landed, she walked over and tossed the hat at him, practically daring him to make a comment about it's former resting place by her bed. "I found it in a field about a week after you disappeared. I was just holding on to it in case mine wore out."
Some things never change. Marguerite is still afraid to admit she cares for me. But things had changed. An unpleasant thought crossed his mind, Maybe she really doesn't care about me . . . she certainly has no problem admitting her feelings for Byron. The uncomfortable image of the man's arm around Marguerite's waist caused Roxton to bark out harshly, "Still looking out for your own best interests I see. Nice to know you could profit from my disappearance, no matter how trivially."
This was not the way either of them had pictured their reunion. Marguerite took a deep, calming breath and said, "I've changed Roxton . . ." and then whispered so quietly that he strained to hear, "A lot of things have changed."
Roxton heard the finality in her words and a touch of something else. Could it have been regret? He looked at her and tried to figure out what she was thinking. I might as well be trying to wrestle a T-Rex . . .
Marguerite was slipping further and further out of his reach without ever physically making a move to leave. He thought over her words and realized that there was indeed something very different about her. A fragility that hadn't been apparent before. Was his disappearance the reason for it or had Byron made her softer emotions surface? He wished that the passing years had made her less attractive or her pull on him less strong, but no such luck. He still wanted her, loved her, as if the passing years had only been a few hours . . . which to him was exactly what it felt like. Where the hell have I been for the past 3 years?
"Get some rest Roxton. You'll need all your strength for tomorrow . . ." she said as she walked past him to the door.
He reached out and laid his hand on her arm. "And why is that?" he asked with an arched look.
She grinned and said, "Because it's my turn to cook breakfast."
And then she was gone, leaving him with an amused look on his face despite his conflicting emotions.