Page 82 of A Game with the Rakish Duke
“Get your hands off my wife!”
Catherine gasped, trying to pull away from Patrick again at the sound of Thomas’s strident command. Her heart leaped with gratitude. She had been losing the strength to fight the gentleman.
He came. He came for me.
Patrick jumped violently, swiveling around, startled by the voice. At the same moment, Thomas lunged, pulling Catherine away from the man. She staggered a little before balancing herself, just in time to see Thomas punch Patrick hard in the jaw, sending him sprawling on the ground.
Thomas was on him in a flash, punching him again square in the nose. Patrick groaned as blood started gushing out of his nose and running down his face. Catherine flinched, turning away, feeling sick.
Her husband kicked Patrick hard in the shin, causing the man to double over in pain again.
“How dare you!” Thomas yelled at the prone man on the ground, his face livid with rage. “How dare you touch her!”
He turned around, cursing loudly, his eyes wild. He rushed to Catherine’s side, embracing her fiercely.
“Are you all right?” he whispered, his hands on the sides of her face, staring at her intently. “Did he hurt you?”
Catherine shuddered, clinging to him. Tears were streaming down her face. She couldn’t stop them. All the energy in her body was draining away now that the fight was over, and she felt like she might collapse.
She managed to shake her head. “No,” she whispered.
At that moment, Oliver rushed into the maze, his face contorted. Catherine watched her brother assess the scene with a quick look—Patrick, writhing on the ground, covered in blood, and Thomas consoling her. Her brother’s eyes flicked to the front of her gown. She looked down, suddenly realizing it had been ripped in the struggle.
“You bastard,” Oliver snarled, glaring at Patrick. “Ineverliked you! How dare you lay a hand on my sister?”
To Catherine’s shock, her brother lunged at Patrick, punching him hard over and over again. When Oliver halted for a second to catch his breath, Patrick whimpered, crying out, managing to escape her brother’s punches. He staggered to his feet and fled the maze, limping.
Thomas was removing his jacket and placing it gently around her shoulders. She realized that she couldn’t stop shivering. Her teeth were clattering.
“Are you certain you are well?” he whispered, staring into her face, his eyes filled with concern.
She nodded. “Yes,” she mumbled. Her heart clenched. “I am so sorry. I am so sorry I doubted you.” She took a deep, shuddering breath. “I should never have listened to him…”
Thomas squeezed her shoulder, but he didn’t say a word. He didn’t need to. Just his presence was all the comfort she needed in this world.
She turned to Oliver, who was standing there, shaking as well in the aftermath of the fight.
She ran to him and hugged him fiercely, overcome with emotion. Her brother returned her embrace before pulling away, looking a bit embarrassed. He looked at Thomas.
“I was wrong about you,” Oliver said, his voice filled with emotion. “I apologize for doubting you as well. You are well able to look after my sister, Your Grace.”
Thomas smiled faintly. “Thank you, Lord Whitley.”
Catherine gulped, looking from her brother to her husband and then back again.
“My husband paid off the majority of your debts, Oliver,” she confessed, her heart giving a painful thump. “If it were not for him, it would never have happened. I did not win enough money that night to cover it.” She took a deep breath, turning to look at Thomas. “And he actually beat me that night. He could have taken my winnings… but he did not.”
She stared at Thomas, overcome with emotion. Her heart swelled. She had doubted him, distrusted him, tried desperately to keep her distance from him. She had let Patrick pour poison into her ears.
She had been wrong about her husband right from the start. He was a good man. A loyal, brave, fierce man with a heart as soft as a dove’s wing. A man worth giving her heart to. She would never doubt him again.
Thomas shifted on his feet, looking embarrassed. It took all her effort not to throw her arms around him.
Oliver looked stunned. “It seems I have more to thank you for than I thought,” he said, slowly walking up to Thomas and holding out his hand. His eyes looked troubled. “I vow to you that I will pay you back everything I owe you.”
“You owe me nothing,” Thomas reassured him in a low voice, shaking his hand slowly. “We are family. And that is what family does for one another.”
Oliver gulped. Catherine turned her face away, scared she was going to burst into tears again.
