The Heiress Bride - Catherine Coulter [50]
Surprisingly, Sinjun closed her eyes and did just that. She slept long and deep. It was Colin who woke her up the next morning as he turned her on her back. She shivered at the sudden cool air on her skin and opened her eyes. He was standing over her, holding a damp cloth.
“Hold still and let me bathe you.”
“Oh no.” She jerked away from him, rolling over until she was on the far side of the mammoth bed. “No, Colin, I will see to myself. Please, go away now.”
He stood there, frowning at her, holding the cloth in his outstretched hand, feeling like a fool. “Very well,” he said at last. He tossed the cloth to her, hearing it slap against her wrist. “Angus is bringing up buckets of hot water for your bath. Get it done quickly, for I, too, wish to bathe, and you don’t seem at all interested in sharing the tub with me, more’s the pity, though I am now your husband, something you wanted more than anything, if you would be honest with yourself, marriage and my man’s body, but not in that order, not at first.”
“You’re angry,” she said as she pulled the covers to her nose. She was utterly confused. “This is very odd, Colin, since it is you who hurt me. How can you dare be angry?”
“I’m angry at this damnable situation.” There was a knock on the door. “Don’t move,” he said over his shoulder. “Keep yourself wrapped in the covers.”
It was Angus, not her brothers brandishing swords, and he was carrying two steaming buckets of water.
Once they were poured into the porcelain tub, he looked up and said, “Do you fancy walking naked over here and climbing in?”
She didn’t fancy it at all. She shook her head. “You may go first.”
He stripped off his dressing gown, climbed into the tub, leaned back, and let his knees stick up. Sinjun would have laughed if she hadn’t felt so miserable. She didn’t want to get out of the bed. She didn’t want to face her brothers.
They said not a word. Both Douglas and Ryder seemed determined that there be no more fights, no more arguments with Colin. They actually seemed to understand that they’d embarrassed her to her very toes. It embarrassed her even more to know that they must have discussed the situation and had decided upon a course of behavior. To be talked about, even by her brothers, was almost more than she could bear.
After a second cup of coffee, Ryder said, “Douglas and I are leaving this morning, Sinjun. We’re both sorry that we’ve intruded and made you uncomfortable. However, should you ever need us, you need but write or send a messenger to Douglas or to me. We will come to you immediately. We will do anything you wish us to do.”
“Thank you,” she said. Suddenly she wished they wouldn’t leave her, wouldn’t promise not to interfere again. They always had. They loved her. Even last night—it was because they loved her.
When they took their leave an hour later, she felt hollow inside. She felt utterly alone and, for the first time, truly afraid of what she’d done. She threw herself into Douglas’s arms, hugging him tight. “Please take care. Give my love to Alex.”
“I will.”
“And to the twins. They are destroying Ryder’s home with their exuberance, he told me. It must be wonderful. I miss all the children so much.”
“Yes, I know, love. I miss them, too. It’s fortunate both Ryder and Sophie adore children, even those who are destructive little heathens. I’ve closed up the London house. Alex and the boys will be at Northcliffe Hall when I return. Don’t worry about Mother. I will see to it that when she writes you, it will be pleasant, and not