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“And go out for outings every fortnight.”

“I don’t care about the outings. I would prefer we stayed at home instead.”

“What in the world are we to do at home every evening?”

He raised a brow suggestively.

She licked her lips, collecting her bearings. “Two months. We both stay here with my uncle. We go out twice a week and alternate making decisions about where we go.”

William stood and approached her, stopping only a foot away. “Three months. You live with me. We go out once a week to wherever you please.” He stretched his hand for a handshake, and with a deep breath, she placed her small, soft hand in his. William’s fingers enveloped her hand, and he squeezed her fingers lightly. Add a pearl necklace around their wrists, and it reminded him of their wedding day.

She raised her face to his, her eyes wide, her mouth slightly open.

Did she remember their wedding as well? Or did she feel the tingle in her skin, the desire coursing through her veins just like William did?

William caressed her wrist, where her pulse beat rapidly beneath his thumb.

She didn’t move to snatch her hand away, and William took this chance to plant a brief but heated kiss on her mouth. “Collect your belongings. We are leaving first thing tomorrow.”

Chapter 7

Victoria didn’t know exactly what to expect when she loaded her trunks onto the waiting carriage. It was coal-black, a reflection of William’s soul, no doubt, and had no identifying markings, no ducal crest, nor any other symbol.

Of course, it wouldn’t. It’s not like he needed to parade around the fact that he was a criminal. But what she saw when she stepped out of the carriage an hour and a half after their departure caught her off guard.

There was no grand palace with gilded gates, no towering mansion with an imposing facade, not even a modern townhouse or fashionable suite.

What stood before her was a round, red-bricked tower of Tudor times, with only a handful of tiny windows and a heavy, iron door. Victoria glanced this way and that, wondering if this was some kind of joke. Were they stopping here for a brief respite before reaching their final destination? Just moments ago, they had passed a large manor house; surely, they could have stayed there.

William unlocked the iron door and gestured for the footman to proceed with Victoria’s trunks. She doubted her clothes alone would fit inside, let alone herself.

“You must be jesting,” she scoffed. “Is this a repository where we’re leaving my trunks?”

One side of William’s mouth curled into a smile. “It’s not a repository. It’s a tower where I keep all my prized possessions. You included. Get inside.”

Victoria took a step back. “I will not!”

William offered his gloved hand. “You can come inside with me now or stay outside and freeze to death.”

“Then I choose death,” she said confidently, raising her chin for good measure.

William crossed his arms. “There is nothing around for miles except the forest to the south and a lake to the east. When I say you’ll die from exposure to the natural elements, I’m not jesting.”

“We passed a mansion a few minutes ago; I saw it!”

He shrugged. “It’s empty.”

“Why can’t we live there, then?” she whined.

“Because it’s empty, aside from rats. Do you want to live there? You can. But I’m staying here.”

Victoria shuffled from one foot to the next, rubbing her arms from the cold as the footman disappeared with the last piece of luggage. He returned no more than two minutes later, and William waved for the carriage to leave them behind. Now it was just the two of them standing by the strange, round tower with no vehicle, no means of escape.

“How far are we from the nearest village?” Victoria asked, her lip protruding childishly.

“On foot, hours away. By carriage…? Nobody is allowed to drive you anywhere without my permission.”

“That’s not fair,” she breathed.