Her Lord's Desire (The Forbidden Saga #3) - Maggie Ryan Page 0,67
he obviously saw the same shudder run through her that Lucas did as he joined the two at the foot of the staircase.
“What is it, Lucy? Are you ill?” Lucas asked. When he saw Louisa and Edward approaching as well, he suggested they move away from the stairs. Lucy didn’t even seem aware when Charles pulled her into a small alcove.
Edward stepped forward and took Lucy’s other arm. Charles wisely released his hold and stepped back into Lucas. He apologized, but Lucas didn’t respond. He wished the man would leave him to attend to whatever was bothering Lucille. She had left the dance floor with a smile on her face, though it had disappeared upon her return.
“Lucy,” Edward said softly, drawing her close to him. “Louisa told me what happened. I’m sorry you had to witness Camilla’s chastisement tonight,” he said, as he lifted her chin to force her to look at him.
Even from a few steps away Lucas could see that her eyes were huge in her pale face, the violet depths showing a shimmer of unshed tears. His fingers clenched into a fist as the urge to hit something… or someone… who had caused Lucy pain flared within him. He listened as Edward, a man he’d known his entire life to be as hard and unyielding as a stone wall softened his tone, gently running his hand down Lucy’s back until the visible trembling eased.
Speaking even softer, he said, “It’s unfortunate, but little one, you do know that misbehavior is simply not tolerated. It is a treat to be allowed to attend a party and Camilla knew the consequences of being naughty. I wish she had made different choices but instead she chose to test her fiancé’s tolerance and discovered it definitely did not include allowing her to be disobedient and disrespectful to those around her. We both know she deserves to have her bottom heated don’t we?”
Lucas wanted nothing more than to take Lucy into his arms and offer her protection from her obvious distress. He forced himself to remain still, despite wanting to suggest to Charles that it would be best he disappear from what Lucas considered a matter best served by family members—and himself, of course. Seeing that Louisa was also looking distressed, Lucas extended his arm and she stepped closer to him so that he could draw her to his side. Lucas was relieved when Lucy finally spoke.
“No,” Lucy said as she looked up at her guardian.
“Lucille, I thought you’d come to understand that there are consequences to—”
“Oh, yes,” Lucy said, not even seeming to realize she’d just interrupted her guardian.
Lucas was rather amazed that Edward let the rudeness go and then was shocked when Lucy stomped her foot before shaking her head. Not wishing her to receive the same fate as whoever this Camilla was, Lucas said, “Breathe, Lucy. Take some deep breaths and then tell us what had you looking as if you were going to faint.”
For the first time since she’d returned, Lucy seemed to actually see him. Nodding and giving him a very shaky smile, she did as he suggested, taking a moment to simply breathe and compose herself.
“Better?” Edward asked.
“Yes… I-I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be so… so—”
“It’s fine, little one. Nothing is going to hurt you here,” Edward assured her.
“Thank you, sir,” she said, looking around, her face flushing. “I wasn’t disagreeing with you about, is just that Camilla didn’t sheath her claws like Lucas said.”
Edward lifted his gaze to his friend’s. “Does that make any sense to you because I’m at a total loss here.”
Lucas grinned and nodded. “I believe Lucy is saying that Camilla didn’t make the right choices tonight. Is that correct, Lucy?”
“Sort of… what I mean is that I’m not really upset because Camilla is being spanked. If she was naughty, well then, she only has herself to blame, right, sir?”
If Edward was still at a loss, he definitely wasn’t the only one… although it appeared that Louisa wasn’t surprised at all. When both Edward and Charles looked over at him and Lucas could only quirk an eyebrow as he wasn’t able to decipher exactly what Lucy was attempting to convey.
A soft sigh drew the men’s glances back to Lucy. “I know I’m making a mess of this, but when Louisa told me that you… that Pastor Reed asked you…” she stopped and this time it seemed Edward’s confusion cleared as he looked over at his wife.