"There's nothing you can do, Royce." She turned her head, not bearing to look him in the eyes and lie.
"The scoundrel! He's abandoned you, hasn't he?" Elis's head whipped around, and stared at Royce. She was about to deny it, but could she? There was no other man, and that much would be soon clear. Yes, it was better for everyone if they thought she'd been ruined and abandoned. Elis was sure her parents wouldn't be too harsh on her. She supposed they might send her off somewhere to have her child.
She lowered her gaze. "Yes." She whispered and heard Royce start cursing.
"Damnation, Elis!" He started pacing in front of her. "Why couldn't you tell me? I would have helped you! I would have brought that fool to the altar at gunpoint, and I would have made sure he married you. Tell me." He stopped in front of her once more. "Tell me his name, and I swear to you he will respond for his actions."
Instantly, Elis regretted her decision. She could see that Royce was not taking this lightly and would not drop the subject. What was she to do? She wracked her brains, trying to find a more believable excuse.
"He's left the country already." The words slipped out of her mouth before she could think it through.
"Where?"
"France." The lies kept on piling up.
"God's teeth!" Royce brought his hand to his forehead in exasperation.
"You're ruined, Elis... no, we can't have that. I'll marry you." He declared, and her mouth fell open in shock. Indeed he hadn't said what she thought he said... Marry her? But of course, Royce with his honorable disposition and his loyalty. Of course, he'd think something like that.
"You can't!" She exclaimed. She couldn't do this to him. Not when she'd found out she was carrying and not when he was just trying to be his honorable self. No, Royce deserved better. He deserved to marry for love, not to save her from a decision that she'd made herself.
"Of course, I can. That way, no one will know. I'll claim the child as mine. Yes, that would work." He said, more to himself.
"But Royce! We can't. You don't love me! We don't love each other. You deserve to marry someone for love."
Just as Elis was about to continue making her case, noises coming from the house alerted them to another person's presence. She didn't even manage to turn her head towards the source of the noise as Royce swooped her in his arms.
"Royce?"
"I'm not letting you ruin yourself, Elis." He said a second before his mouth came crashing down on hers. Her hands, previously hanging in the air, now wrapped themselves around his strong arms. This was Royce, her Royce. And he was kissing her. Suddenly, she forgot about the source of the noise; she forgot about everything but the man embracing her. Elis went soft in his arms, and her mouth opened under his, allowing him to deepen the kiss. He growled in response, bringing her closer in contact with his body. Time stopped. Reality stopped. Oh, how she wished she could stay like that forever. In an ideal world, where she would have been more in tune with her own feelings and less of a spoiled brat, she could have slowly turned their friendship into romance. But she'd missed the mark. How she'd bungled everything up.
The sound of a throat being cleared tore them apart, and breathing hard, Elis turned to face the disappointed expression on her father's face.
"Papa," She started, but before she could explain further, Royce stepped in.
"My lord, it's entirely my fault. I've been meaning to come call on you to ask for Elis's hand in marriage, but it's been an entirely hectic period with my new title."
"From what I can see, you two have already done enough. There's no need for permission anymore." The marquis closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "I don't know how long this has been going on with you two, but I won't have that in my house and under my roof. You, boy," He turned towards Royce. "I expect you to marry her as soon as possible."
"Yes, my lord. I'll procure a special license. We'll be wed by the end of the week." Royce promised.
The Marquis seemed satisfied with this pronouncement, and he nodded. "And you, young lady, go to your room now. You'll have enough time for that when you're married."
"But papa. This is..." Royce interrupted her again.
"We are extremely pleased that you're not opposed to our match."
"You've always been close." The Marquis grunted. "I know that my little girl will be in safe hands with you. That's not to say that I forgive you for going behind my back like that." He admonished, and Royce lowered his head in respect.
"Yes, my lord. I know we should not have sneaked around like this. It's entirely my fault."
"Good, good. Now off you go, the both of you."
Elis was so stunned she could only let herself be led inside the house. What had just happened? Royce had just backed her into a corner.
Once she was in her room, she sat down on her bed and tried to understand everything that had happened. She would get married to Royce.
Lord, but it was a dream come true. And yet, she could not be happy about it. Not when she knew Royce was sacrificing his own happiness for hers.
CHAPTER 15
Not a week later, they were married by special license. As the new Countess of Nottingfield, Elis was forced to move into her new husband's house and away from her family.
She was still seething at Royce's behavior. How dare he make the decision for her? On the one hand, she was quite happy with the turn of events, her selfish heart rejoicing in having Royce all for herself. But her other half, the one that wanted more for Royce,
