The Black Knight of Ashfern

Chapter 34

Turning to Nan, William lightly took hold of her chin, examining the shallow cut along her cheek. "I leave you with her for not even an hour, and this happens." William frowned, the muscles in his jaw jumping with his anger as his finger traced just below the cut.

"As much as I appreciate your rescue." Nan began, pulling his hand from her face. "If you'd given me but a few moments more, I'm sure I would have won," Nan stated with a confident nod.

William smiled a small, halfhearted smile. He was still angry but knew Nan was trying to change his mood with her offhand humor. "She shouldn't have touched you," he said, his gaze lingering on the cut and the failure he felt because of it.

"You cannot protect me from everything, William," Nan admitted, then stepped away from him as she tried fruitlessly to right her wrecked hair.

For a silent moment, William watched before stepping in and waving her hands away. With practiced ease, he pulled the pins and ribbon from the locks, setting the items on the small table, which was still miraculously standing, though its contents were tipped and scattered across its surface and the floor.

Smoothing her dark waves into a less disarrayed state, he placed his hands on her shoulders and turned her to face the wall; gathering up her hair, he tied it back with her ribbon, then turned her back to face him. Studying her appearance a moment longer as he surveyed his work before his eyes returned to the cut, the last reminder of his wife's assault. "I will always try to protect you," William confessed, gripping her hands tightly within his a moment before releasing them and turning to leave her.

"William," Nan called in a warning tone, as she thought he still meant to go after his wife. And while perhaps not kill her, there were a great many other things he could that did not result in death.

"I'm not going after her," William stated, returning to her with a steady scowl of annoyance. However, Hoss has yet to receive such an order. One would think if you did not want her end to be by my hands, you would not want it to be by his either." He added with a quirked frown, daring her to say otherwise.

"You think Hoss would...?"

"You think he would not?" William queried in response. Aware of Nan's thoughts, he hid none of his darker dealings from her. Why should he, when she's known of his darker nature from the beginning? He enjoyed that she knew what he could do, if only to gauge how much she would accept. She had no difficulty with his appearance and temper but with other matters, such as his less-than-legal affairs. How far would she go? How willingly would she accept such knowledge if she did not already know?

Nan was a sensible woman; William knew this. She did not see the world as strictly black and white as most were taught to. She saw the shades of gray. She lived in them, just as he did. Why it seemed so startling and at the same time so fitting that she would not blanch at such knowledge he hardly knew, yet that was what he felt—that and a sort of pride that she was strong enough to handle such things.

"Yes, I realize the foolishness of my question. You need not continue to point it out." Nan admonished with an un-amused nod, her remark pulling William from his thoughts. "I merely mean to say—"

"Do I think Hoss is so loyal to me that he would rid me of my wife so I might have you instead?" William concluded, and aside from the arched angle of his brow, there was little else to decipher his thoughts or feelings on his man's dedication and devotion to him.

"Yes," She nodded.

"If Hoss was that fanatically loyal to me, he'd have had done with Sophia when the knowledge of my love for you had become unquestionable to him," William stated matter-of-factly. "As it is, Hoss does nothing without my express order. However, he does have a way of translating my words to his benefit. I think most likely he's already moved his path in Sophia's direction." William added, shaking his head as though there was no reason to think Hoss hadn't and no point in trying to stop it if he had. His words caused Nan's brow to crease as she gazed up at him, utterly confused by his meaning, but remained silent.