Afterthought by M J Marlow (red white royal blue .txt) 📖

man as he saw Evangeline’s smile slip. Why should it matter if he had a title, for God’s sake? She hadn’t struck him as someone who that mattered to. “We were never formally introduced, Your Highess,” he said as he brought her hand to his lips. “Gregory Dumont, the Marquis de Tourville.” He glared at Luc and the other man wondered what he’d said. “You know my aunt and uncle, the Count and Countess Grimaldi.” “Well, if we’re going,” Luc’s voice broke into the silence. “Let’s go.” Gregory offered Evangeline his arm and she laid her hand on it with a shy smile on her face. At least she was smiling now, he thought as they left the house and got into Luc’s convertible. He took a scarf out of his pocket and handed it to her so she could cover her hair. He did not stop to ask himself why he had a scarf in the tuxedo pocket. He was just glad he had the opportunity to do something that made her smile again. He bit his lip to keep from falling all over himself to compliment her on that lovely smile and saw Luc watching him closely. Was everybody her sworn protector? They arrived at the Fashion Show and he was lost in the swirl of color that formed around his charge. He could not think of her as a date, he was here at her father’s command. He stayed close to her to keep the wolves at bay and the bitches at distance and she actually squeezed his hand and looked up at him gratefully. The afternoon passed quite pleasantly until a pair of bookends walked up to her and bowed. Her face went pale and she began to shudder. “Excuse me, gentlemen,” Gregory said coldly; “but you are distressing Her Highness. I’ll thank you to step off and find someone else to bother.” He met their bored looks coldly and the men appeared to have some sense. They turned without a word and left Evangeline alone. He turned towards her to see such a look of gratitude on her lovely face that it broke his heart. Don’t fall in love with me, he willed her. “I assume you’ve had the displeasure of meeting the bookends before, Your Highness?” “Bookends?” Evangeline was momentarily puzzled and then she began to laugh. Not a hesitant, shy laugh, but one filled with such amusement that it turned heads. She laid her hand on his arm and her eyes glowed with happiness. “You, sir, are my savior.” She looked for the twins and saw them glaring at her. Suddenly they were no longer frightening. “Bookends!” she giggled and turned to find her cousin looking at her in amazement. “Daria,” she asked as he hooked her arm in her cousin’s and walked away a bit; “what did you think of that last collection?” Gregory started after them and Luc stopped him and shook his head. He handed Gregory a beer and a glass of water with a lemon and lime slice in it. Gregory saw that the young nobleman had a beer and a glass of white wine. “Wine is far too pretentious and I’ve never liked the taste of grain alcohol,” Luc explained. He sipped at his beer a moment and then nodded. “I am prepared to like you, Gregory,” he said simply as he met Gregory’s eyes. He saw Daria turn and his eyes glowed with happiness as she beckoned to him. “Our goddesses summon us, Gregory. Shall we go worship them as they deserve?” “Luc,” Daria smiled as her beau handed her the white wine, “you are a darling.” She saw the beer and sighed. “Am I never going to get you to drink something a bit more civilized, my love?” “Consider it part of my imperfections,” Luc smiled at her. “For how can this mere mortal be anything but imperfect around a goddess such as yourself?” “You are a silly man, Luc,” Evangeline laughed as Gregory handed her the water. She blushed as their fingers touched briefly. “Thank you, Gregory. You are very thoughtful.” “Luc was the thoughtful one,” Gregory shrugged. “I was just being used as a waiter.” “How refreshing!” Countess Grimaldi laughed as she came up behind them. “A young man who knows the value of honesty. They all turned as she saw who she was complimenting. “Why Gregory Dumont! I should have known it was you. Only a Dumont male can fill out a suit that way.” She turned to her daughters. “Look who is here, my cheres.” “Cousin!” Elizabeth giggled and threw her arms around Gregory’s neck. “It’s been ages since we saw you last.” “It’s been twelve months, Bit!” Gregory corrected her. “I have written faithfully every month I was gone.” He kissed her cheek and turned to Veronica. “You are looking very colorful tonight, Vera.” “Don’t call me that, you brute!” Veronica laughed and kissed his cheek. She turned to Evangeline and smiled. “I didn’t know you knew our cousin, Eva…” “I didn’t,” Evangeline spoke up absently. Her attention had been drawn away and she had gone quite stiff. “How does she dare?” She turned to Daria and said something to her. The lady looked and her eyes blazed. She was ready to do battle, Gregory realized. “No, Daria,” Evangeline shook her head. “Let’s just leave? I don’t feel up to that confrontation just yet.” She bit her lip. “If she’s here, and the twins are here…” She suddenly felt quite faint and Gregory caught her as she lost her balance. “Please take me home?” she cried softly as she gripped his arm. “Please.” “Of course, Princess,” Gregory nodded. He looked over to see Luc and Daria already heading off towards the parking lot. “Are you well enough to walk…” He looked up as Evangeline’s eyes went wild with panic and saw a dark-haired man standing in their way. “Monsieur? You will kindly step out of the way.” “And I will thank you to take your hands off of my stepdaughter,” Edward said stiffly. He turned to Evangeline. “Your mother and I were quite disturbed when you left us without a word of goodbye, child. We need to talk…” “I have nothing to say to either of you,” Evangeline broke in. “Gregory, please let’s go.” “You are not going anywhere,” Edward snapped at her, “except back to your Mother where you belong.” “I am living with my Father,” Evangeline said softly, her voice trembling with pain and anger. “If you don’t leave me alone, Mr. Lombard,” she said with as much bravery as she could muster, “I will have you arrested. It must be against the law for a stepfather to turn his stepdaughter over to know molesters?” She saw the man pale and she felt the stronger for it. “Gregory?” Gregory had never been prouder of anyone in his life. He saw her to the doors and frowned as the man she’d called Lombard cut them off again. He could see Luc and Daria coming back in their direction, but that would not help at the moment. He stepped in front of Evangeline and met the cold eyes of Edward easily, mustering up all the haughtiness generations of breeding allowed. “I will thank you not to speak to my fiancé again, Monsieur Lombard,” he said coldly as he put his arm around Evangeline. He had the satisfaction of seeing the man go deathly pale and step aside. He got Evangeline away from him and they went out to the car. He saw that Evangeline was not that far from pale herself. “I am sorry to tell such a horrendous lie, Your Highness. It seemed like the fastest way to get rid of that bastard.” “You don’t realize what you’ve done, Gregory!” Evangeline cried in dismay. She gripped his arm and her concern was quite plain. “He will hurt you!” She shook her head. “I could not bear it!” She turned to Luc. “Can we stop for dinner somewhere, Luc? I need some nourishment.” “There is a restaurant just two blocks over,” Gregory told them. “It is owned by a very dear friend of mine.” They parked and put up the top then walked to the restaurant. Evangeline watched as he approached a very pretty black woman and lifted her off her feet to kiss her on the forehead. She felt very uneasy about this. How dare he put his arms around another woman. Hadn’t he just declared himself her fiancé? “Is something wrong, Princess?” “No, I…” Evangeline blushed and turned to the woman. Her neck bore an ugly scar where it looked like someone had tried to slit her throat. She held out her hand and smiled. “Please excuse my fiancé’s poor manners. I am Evangeline Roza. This is my cousin, Lady Daria Sterling, and our friend Luc Dubois.” “You have a fiancé, my friend?” the woman looked at Gregory. “When did this occur? You have only been back in France a week.” She shook her head as Gregory stood there in shock. “Yes,” she smiled warmly at Evangeline; “the man has horrible manners; but as he saved my life I can excuse him that. I am Fumi and this humble establishment is open to friends of my tongue-tied champion.” She slapped him on the back and he blinked. “Gendu! Bring some champagne for our friends. We have a matter of great joy to celebrate!” Gregory pulled Evangeline aside as the others settled down to work out dinner. He looked down into her wariness and saw that she was ready for him to hurt her. He had no desire to cause her any harm. So he bowed his head and brought her hand to his lips. She blushed as she saw the concern and the affection in his eyes and knew he was not going to hurt her. It was a harmless little fiction that would keep her stepfather at bay and allow them a chance to spend some time getting to know each other. Engagements were broken all the time. She could imagine her father would call this one off by morning. She was only just sixteen, far too young to be contemplating matrimony. When they finally pulled in around three a.m., her father was more worried about her being out so late than the fact that she had acquired a fiancé while she was out. “It is a sound plan,” he nodded when they told him. “We will do it up properly,” he decided. “As I have no objections to my daughter contemplating matrimony with such a fine young man as the Marquis de Tourville, we shall post an announcement in the morning news.” He was on the phone. “Marcel! We need you here immediately!” He hung up and dialed. “Bernard, ask your lovely wife to come over later this morning to discuss arrangements for an Engagement Party.” He hung up the phone then and came around the desk to embrace his daughter who was looking quite stunned. “You, my darling child, shall be given a party such as this country has not seen since the days before the Revolution!” “I have a very uneasy feeling,” Evangeline said as she looked at her partner in crime, “that we should not have told him. He is far too eager to give substance to our fiction.” “What harm can it do for your father to have a little fun?” Gregory asked her. He took her hands in his and kissed them. “I will stand as your protector and friend until the day comes when you find the man you are meant to be with. Until then, we are both safe from fortune hunters, yes?” “I will only agree to go along with this,” Evangeline said to him; “if you tell me the truth, Gregory. Are you really here to teach my orphans to ride?” “Of course I am,” Gregory nodded. “I find the chance to pass on knowledge to less fortunate