Emerald's Rogue (Part 3)

Chapter Five

"Oh Rogue, my poor boy." Lady Hawkington carried on. Rogue looked at his father for help. His mother was making him feel worse than his injuries did.

"Come my dear let the children have a moment." He said softly as he pulled his wife away. She had always been more fearful for Rogue.

"Are you well my lord?" Emerald asked with distance.

"I am healing well thank you." Rogue said. "Won’t you sit down?" He noted a great change in her in the past two years. Her hair was to the top of her thighs and her breasts were fuller and she had more curve to her figure.

"I shan’t stay long. I know you need your rest." She looked out the window.

"Emerald the wounds are not as bad as they seem, but they insist I stay abed a bit longer. Please sit and tell me of your school. What have you been doing to keep busy? You haven’t written to me."

"You should know." She spat. "You wrote your uncle and took Justin from me all because of your masculine jealousy. You couldn’t handle the fact that I have feelings for Justin and not you!" She spat. He was suddenly up and out of the bed grabbing her. She was shocked, because he was naked. He didn’t care.

"We are betrothed. Good as married. Maybe I should take you now and make it impossible for him to take you. If I plant my seed in you now he will not want you!" He growled out, bruising her arms.

"Let me go." She cried out then raked her nails down his face. He slapped her and she fell to the floor. He froze then. He had never hit a woman not even the few that had deserved it and Emerald was not one of them. He bent down to her.

"Get away. Cover yourself, have you no shame?" She cried holding onto her cheek. It was at that moment that he realized he was naked. He quickly pulled on a pair of breeches. He tried to help her up but she smacked his hand away.

She stood up holding onto a table for a moment then tossed her hair back over her shoulder. The bold move made him long for her.

"You are a beast and you are the true bastard. This is all I need to be released from the betrothal. Now you will be my cousin and Justin my husband."

"I’ll be damned first." He went to the door and bellowed for his father.

"What’s amiss son?" He asked then saw Emerald.

"Wed us now. This hour. I will not let that bastard cousin of mine take her. I am breaking all traditions. This night we will be wed and she shall be bed." Alex heard this and stepped in.

"Hold." He stated.

"Nay sir. Your daughter thinks herself in love with a bastard and would shame us all. I take my rights in hand now. I will take her as wife in ever sense of the word so that he cannot take her. She will return home to my small manor and begin her life as MY wife." Alex looked at his daughter, who stood there glaring daggers at Rogue. He saw her red cheek and the claw marks on Rogue’s face and knew they had had their first lover’s quarrel.

"Emerald go to your mother at once." He held up his hand as she tried to speak. "Go now child or I will warm your backside." She bit her lower lip, knowing that in a room full of men she was lost.