Lady Guinevere and the Rogue with a Brogue - Julie Johnstone Page 0,103
request ye meet her?” he heard himself mutter.
“Not that I know of,” Kilgore bit out. “I ran into her by happenstance, and I know nothing of her lady’s maid coming to see me. I have been out of Town. His gaze darted away, but not before Asher saw a guilty look upon Kilgore’s face.
“Start from the part where ye said I wed Guinevere for money. And leave nothing out, or I vow it, no number of men will stop me from coming for ye. And just to be clear, I did not wed my wife to gain anything but her.”
“No?” Kilgore looked and sounded incredulous.
“Nay,” Asher bit out.
“Then it was not a requirement of your father’s will for you to wed one of three acceptable women, and your wife was not the last person on that list of candidates that you asked to wed you? Do you really intend to stand here and claim that you did not intentionally compromise your wife so that she would be forced to wed you?”
Yes, he’d intentionally kissed Guinevere but not to force her to wed him. He could not resist her. But that was none of Kilgore’s damn business. So instead of answering the man’s posed questions, he asked, “How is it ye have personal knowledge of my father’s will?”
“I’ll have an answer to my question before you get one to yours.” He leaned close so that they were almost nose to nose. “Did you wed your wife to gain land and money?”
Asher stepped back and sent his fist into Kilgore’s face again.
“Damn it, man!” Kilgore growled and raised his cravat to his nose to stop the blood once more. “Should I take that as a no?”
“I can make the answer louder if ye wish it,” Asher seethed.
Kilgore held up a hand. “No, that will do nicely. I thought you cared for her, but this afternoon, she was so certain you didn’t that she had me questioning myself—something I’ve been in the annoying position of doing a great deal lately.”
Kilgore’s revelation was crushing. Guinevere had learned about the will, and she was certain that he did not care for her. Damn it all. That could explain a great deal. But before he got distracted by that point, he still needed Kilgore to answer his question. “Now, how do ye know about my father’s will?”
Kilgore lowered his cravat and motioned to the table where the chairs were turned over. “Do you mind if we have a drink and I sit first? It’s been the longest bloody day of my life.”
Asher looked to Beckford because it meant keeping the gaming room empty a bit longer, and he nodded. The three of them turned up the chairs, sat, and before Asher even found a comfortable position, a drink was set before him. Drinks were also set before Beckford and Kilgore. They each took a long swig, and then Kilgore spoke.
“I want to preface what I say with this: everything I’ve done, I’ve done to protect Lady Constantine, and I will still do all in my power to protect her when needed. Though I did vow to myself after I ran into your wife on Rotten Row today that I would not be your brother’s puppet any longer—”
“My brother?” Asher asked, confusion and suspicion slamming into him at once.
“Yes,” Kilgore said, his tone full of fury. “Your brother, the devil.”
Asher’s hands curled into fists. “Tell me,” he bit out.
“It started when my father died and left me, much to my shock, a penniless title.” Kilgore offered a self-deprecating laugh. “Mind you, had I taken any interest at all whatsoever in my title or the running of our lands, I would have known my father was in a dire position.”
“If yer father was like mine, he probably gave ye reason not to want to be involved with him.”
“That he did,” Kilgore agreed, “but I cannot lay all the blame at his feet. I should have been more of a man and set my feelings aside in the interest of family and self-preservation.” Kilgore shrugged. “If only we could see the future and know the best course of action in every moment. But I digress. Instead of immediately rolling up my proverbial sleeves and digging into the work of making my lands profitable, I wagered them away to your brother one night when I was deep in my cups like the fool I am.”
More unease pressed down on Asher. He nodded for Kilgore to continue.