Page 127 of Enemies with an Earl
Felix maneuvered them to the terrace and strode swiftly past the revelers taking air, forcing Sam to quicken his pace to catch up. As soon as they were beyond hearing distance, Felix spun around and thrust a finger at Sam.
“What in the bloody hell are you doing?”
Sam’s mouth moved, but no words surfaced. What was he doing? What in God’s name did Felix mean,what was he doing?He was playing his bloody part in this charade!
“You are supposed to be looking for awife. You haven’t danced with one woman on the list I provided. You haven’tspokento one. You have spent nearly your entire time with Lady Camoys.A. Married. Woman.”
Sharp, hot anger flew through Sam. “Or maybe,Bentley,” he snapped. “It’s actually beneficial for me to be speaking with her.Because of her reputation. But you’re so bloody set on marrying me off, you seem to be blind to that obvious fact.”
Felix’s nostrils flared in the moonlight. They stared each other down, huffing small thunderclouds of vapor into the cool April night.
Finally, Felix broke the charged silence. “Consorting with married women will do your reputation no favors,” he said tightly. “Perhaps it will squash…certain rumors, but it will make the mothers of the ton wary to push their daughters toward you, and enrage the men you are cuckolding. Give themreasonto bring certain things to light. Right now, you are a dual titled man. If you carry yourself accordingly, you will have your choice of bride.”
“I don’t want a fucking bride,” Sam exploded with a whispered hiss. “I want—” He cut off on a growl and turned to the balustrade, slamming his hands down on the cold stone.
“You are being foolish,” Felix said.
The words were so empty. So void ofanything. It destroyed Sam. He was backed into a corner, being caged. And he lashed out.
Sam scoffed and turned a disgusted glare at Felix. “Your imperiousness is showing,my lord. Perhaps my first impression of you wasn’t too far off.”
Felix’s lips pressed tight. But the man was being just as arrogant, just as much of an arse as when Sam had first met him. Sam had to say, he really didn’t bloody like the facade of the Earl of Bentley.
“You’re not thinking,” Felix growled nearly inaudibly. “You’re thinking with your prick and not your brain.”
Sam’s jaw went slack, the words a metaphorical slap across his face.His prick?His gaze shuttered, all emotion draining from his face. He wasn’t thinking with his fucking prick. He was thinking with his bloody heart.
“You have everything at your fingertips, Sam. You can have it all. Don’t you see that? You’re a free man now. A man who enjoys the company ofwomen,” Felix gritted out. “That family you always wanted? That life of acceptance and love you want to give to a child or children? That is possible for you now.” Disbelief shined back at Sam and what he thought might be pain, too. “Do not be a bloody imbecile and throw something like that away. You have the chance to have everything.Everything.”
Felix stepped back, his face eerily composed again. “Now, if you’ll excuse me. I have a dance with Lady Yardley shortly.”
“Do what you must,” Sam spat.
A muscle ticked in Felix’s jaw. “I will. As should you.” He turned on his heel and strode back toward the ballroom.
Sam watched Felix’s retreating figure slowly shrink into the distance.God fucking damn it!How did everything get so fucked? How had life gone from a dream…to a waking nightmare?
His delirious laugh echoed into the silent night. A few people turned his way. Great. Just what he needed. People thinking he was a madman. Better that than a sodomite, he thought bitterly.
Felix thought Sam had the chance to have everything? No, he wouldn’t have everything, because he was watching everything stride back into the ballroom. Away from him.
Felix didn’t understand. Children, a family—yes, Sam would love that, but that wasn’t his dream. That was Felix’s dream.
Sam’s only dream was Felix.
63
Sam
Samhurriedupthefront steps of Ash’s London townhouse. A few curious eyes from onlookers turned his way, but he ignored them. Last night had gone a long way in cultivating his reputation as a mysterious rogue in society’s eyes. He knew there had been whispers, though he wasn’t certain what they consisted of yet. Time would only tell what would surface. And unfortunately, that meant he could do nothing but wait.
While he hadn’t had any interest in the unmarried misses, after his and Felix’s argument, Sam had danced with his fair share of them. Felix had been correct; the mamas of the ton were quick to shove their daughters in Sam’s path. It didn’t appear many cared about a long-lost son resurfacing when he had dual titles. If one more woman had tittered over his castle in Scotland last night, Sam might’ve thrown himself into the Thames.
But at two-and-forty, Sam felt a step from the bloody grave turning those young ladies around the dance floor. He wanted a partner who was mature, seasoned in life. Sam had seen and experienced too much to marry such innocence. He wanted someone who would meet him as an equal, who could share control and responsibility. God bloody damn it—he wanted Felix. There was no female version of Felix.
“Sam!” Felicity’s exclamation rang through the large home’s entry as she bounded down one set of the twin staircases. Well, he supposed he was looking at a fairly close female version of Felix. “It’s so lovely to see you. What are you doing here? How are you fairing after last night? Ash is…” She frowned. “Somewhere around here.”
“I’m here,” Ash’s deep voice boomed from down the long hall that led to the back of the home. “I was visiting with the horses. I hate keeping them cooped up here.”
