Page 34 of Devoted to the Spanish Duke
“And are you looking forward to this union? I mean, Don Delgado is someone with influence in Spain. He is a close confidante of King Ferdinand. I expect that in the years to come he will become a powerful man,” he replied.
I don’t want to marry for power. I want to marry for love.
“I am not particularly interested in marrying Don Delgado. To my mind, he is a lesser man than my father . . . and yourself. You are both concerned with your estates and your people, while he seems only motivated by money and influence,” she said.
The longer the negotiations over the betrothal dragged on, the happier she was. The Count of Bera’s stipulations for Maria’s dowry were outrageous—almost tantamount to what the kidnappers had asked for in their demands for her release.
Her father might wish his daughter to marry well, but he would most certainly not bankrupt himself in the process.
Especially now that he has already paid a goodly sum of money to see me released, only to have it fail.
“So, what will happen when you return home to Castle Villabona? Do you think the marriage will go ahead?” he asked.
If she had not been stolen away from her family and country, then perhaps in time Maria might have reconciled herself to a life of being the Countess of Bera. But the past six or so weeks had changed the way she viewed many things and what she wanted for her future.
If there was a chance that she and Lisandro might be together; if she could win his heart, she would take it.
“Considering that the betrothal negotiations have been going on for months with no sign of agreement in sight, I think the chances of me ever marrying Don Delgado are now slim,” she replied.
“And if your father continues to remain out of favor with the king, I expect you will soon become less of an attractive prospect in the Count’s mind,” he said.
Maria narrowed her eyes at him. No woman liked to be told she wasn’t attractive, no matter the context under which it was noted. Lisandro had the good grace, or sense, to flinch.
“I don’t mean you are unattractive, Maria—far from it. You are a stunningly beautiful woman. Why else would I have tried to make your acquaintance at the wedding celebrations?”
She let him stew in his discomfort for just a moment before offering a forgiving nod.
“Could Don Delgado possibly have been behind the kidnapping? He was dragging the betrothal negotiations out.” If he was seeking to curry favor with the king, punishing the Duke of Villabona might be a good way.
“No. Don Delgado is not that sort of man. He would think such a thing beneath him. I do, however, think that hurting your family was the reason for your abduction. If you disappear, then it serves as a potent warning to others who may seek to take a stand against King Ferdinand,” he replied.
Lisandro had promised to speak about her father once they were on the boat. Maria was keen to know what information he had in his possession. “Why has the king shut the door on my father?”
A long and uncomfortable silence followed.
“Maria, we are still not safe; and I won’t tell you all that I know just in case you fall into the hands of men who might seek to interrogate you. What I can say is that your father has been working with others to restore the constitution that Ferdinand rejected and took away when he came back to power. The king doesn’t wish to publicly denounce him for fear of stoking the fires of resistance.”
“Which is why he seeks to strike at his enemies through surreptitious means, such as having their daughters abducted,” she replied.
Unmasking the people who had stolen her was the only way to show the king that he couldn’t strike out at his subjects with impunity and not run the risk of it coming back to hurt him.
“Men such as the Count of Bera will seek to step into the void created by your father’s removal from the royal court.”
Perhaps that’s the real reason why Juan Delgado Grandes was dragging his heels at settling on the terms of our betrothal.
“I expect when I get home all discussions about me becoming the Countess of Bera will be off the table. Not only am I now the daughter of a man in royal disgrace, but Juan Delgado won’t want to marry me after I have spent so many weeks away from home in the company of other men,” she said.
Their gazes met. In the fading light, his dark brown eyes took on the appearance of two pools of inky blackness. Yet behind them she could still see the warmth of this man. And his honesty. He smiled at her and murmured, “I cannot begin to tell you how much it pleases me that you won’t be marrying Don Delgado.”
Chapter Nineteen
After they had finished the bottle of wine, the two of them sat on the weather deck and gazed at the stars. “There is the Estrella Polar. See? It never moves from being due north,” said Lisandro.
Maria didn’t reply. She had been quiet for the best part of an hour, and it worried him. She was a woman not normally taciturn in nature.
“Maria, we will make it. Try not to worry about Spain or what will happen once we make land,” he said.
She gave him a tight smile, then pushed back on the cargo crate and got to her feet. Her small nod was accompanied by an, “I expect you are right.”
