Page 16 of War King's Treasure

“I’m outside the door,” Duncan told Serena, then he followed the others, pulling the door to the solar closed behind him.

“You’re going to be fine,” Jo told her as she wrapped her arm around Nori and led her to a chair. “You have family now. In fact, we’re sisters. I’ve gone from having no sisters to having two very quickly.”

“And we’re cousins of some distance,” Rory reminded her.

“I’d say as queens of the Dread Lands, we’re all sisters of sorts,” Genevieve stated firmly. “We have to stick together.”

“Agreed,” Serena put in.

“I get how overwhelmed you must be,” Jo told Nori. “I remember how I felt when Theo kidnapped me. My emotions were all over the place.”

“Theo kidnapped you?” Nori asked with disbelief.

Jo merely laughed. “And I’m thankful he did. I wouldn’t be as happy as I am now, if he hadn’t.”

“What?” Nori shook her head.

“Rory was kidnapped to,” Jo offered with a shrug.

“More like taken as a bounty when Jamie attacked our keep in retaliation for my father’s…well, for Lord Montrose’s actions.”

“I had no idea. You all seem so happy.” Kidnapped? Taken as a bounty? Nori couldn’t believe what she was hearing.

“I am happy,” Rory assured her. “Jamie is the kindest, sweetest man I’ve ever known.”

Nori worried her eyes must be so wide they’d appeared absurdly large in her face.

“It’s true. He may seem like a ruthless brute to those who don’t know him, but he loves me. He’d never hurt me.”

“What about you and Serena?” Nori asked Genevieve.

“Marcus saved me from bandits and married me before he even got me to his castle. I fell for him instantly. He loves as fiercely as he rules the Dread Lands.”

“Geoffrey came to my rescue when my father went missing. He married me the day he arrived and has spent every moment since reminding me that I’m his queen. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for him,” Serena told her.

“It seems you all had instant marriages,” Nori noted.

“War King’s take what they want without question,” Jo told her. She should know, since she’d grown up the sister to one king then married another. Plus, from what Nori had learned, Jamie, Geoffrey, and Marcus spent a lot of time together.

“Gavin didn’t marry me, though. Well, I mean he did, but it was Lord Armstrong who was there for the ceremony.” Nori wasn’t sure why that bothered her so much, but it did. She’d learned long ago not to expect to come first with the people in her life. Why would her wedding be any different?

“Please, don’t think that’s because you don’t mean anything to him.” Jo leaned close and clasped her hands with hers. “I’ve seen the way Gavin looks at you, the way he acts. He’s never looked at another woman the way he does you.”

“Our father did a number on all three of us,” Rory said. “I have scars, but I suspect Theo and Gavin’s wounds go even deeper. They were bastard sons, after all. Montrose had no love for any of us.”

“I understand my grandfather played a part in you ending up with Lord Montrose,” Nori whispered and watched Rory’s face redden with anger.

“My mother died because of his lack of care when it came to his favorite niece. She got pregnant out of wedlock, and he punished her by marrying her to a man who made her life absolute hell.” Rory clenched her fists on the table. “I know you love your grandfather, Nori, but I will never forgive him for what he allowed my mother to be subjected to.”

“I’m sorry,” Nori whispered.

“Don’t apologize for him. He’s unworthy of it. In fact, from what Jamie has shared, Phillp did the same thing to you. He placed you somewhere out of sight and trusted you’d be fine and happy to see him whenever he decided to grace you with his presence.”

Rori wasn’t wrong, so it was hard for Nori to find fault with her cousin’s words.

“Apparently, he agreed to wed me to Robert Buckingham.” She couldn’t control the shudder that ran through her at the mere thought of being under Robert’s thumb for the rest of her life. He would have made sure it was pure hell.

“More than likely, he made the agreement for the older Buckingham brother,” Genevieve said. “That’s the way those things usually work. Phillip tried to coerce my grandfather into arranging a marriage for me to a man of his choice. My grandfather refused.”

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