One Night of Sin (Mansforth Chronicles Book 1)

Braxton’s heartbeat thudded in unison with his steps as he shouted down to the carriage driver below. Either the man was positively deaf or he was willingly ignoring him. But either way, it would not do. They had a carriage to board.

And there was simply no time to waste.

“I said wait, good sir!”

The carriage driver stared down at Braxton suspiciously as he and the lady scampered down the theater’s steps. He’d seen that deranged look before; far too many times for his liking, when men had either had a few too many spirits or they were in trouble.

Neither of which he wanted any part of this evening.

“Do not leave yet!” Braxton yelled. “We will need conveyance at once!”

The driver glowered down at him. “I’m afraid I am waiting for another passenger and will not be able to assist you.”

Braxton’s eyes flared with fire as he shouted up at him. “I do not care what plans you had, you must take me and the lady away at once!” he roared. “I do not have time to waste!”

The man eyed him carefully, still feeling a tinge of apprehension thrumming through his veins. “Well, I suppose that all depends,” he said coolly. “How much coin do you have on you?”

“I’ll give you every last coin I have if you will take us away immediately!”

The driver pondered for a moment, letting the beat of silence drag out for far longer than Braxton would have preferred. Time was of the essence.

And presently, it was absolutely not on his side.

“Thirty coins,” he said haughtily. “If it means that much to you and if you must make such a haste, that is what I will require of you.”

Braxton’s smile faded as he fished in his pocket. This was highway robbery if he ever saw it!

But none of that mattered now. Not when their lives were at stake.

His eyes darted to Vivienne, still petrified from the night’s earlier events. It was a damn shame a woman so lovely should have to run away into the night like a scared rabbit.

And for some reason unbeknownst to him, he wanted to help her. The poor woman had been out of her mind with terror.

And by God, he was going to put an end to this madness one way or another.

He retrieved a large pile of coins, placing them hastily into the driver’s outstretched hand. “Here,” he said gruffly. “Now, for pity’s sake, can we be on with it, now?”

“As you wish, sir.”

Braxton wrenched the door open, ushering Vivienne inside with a level of impatience he’d never quite experienced before. Had it been so long since he’d had a lady in his life that he’d forgotten how exceptionally long one took to settle themselves inside a carriage? Or was this infuriating woman the glaring exception to the rule?

“To Mansforth!” he shouted, then stormed into the carriage impatiently, nearly pushing Vivienne to the side as he climbed inside.

“Good heavens,” she gasped. “Do you possess any manners at all?” she glared at him. “Or is it only with me that you act like such a heathen?”

Well, she certainly had quite the lovely disposition, he thought. So much so that she appeared to be a woman without any claim to her.

Or at least, that had been his assumption when he’d looked at her hand. No ring, though he suspected she had received numerous proposals over the years. Only a foolish man would not want to lay claim to her. She was a striking beauty, really, despite all the feelings he had been trying to suppress deep inside. One with as lovely of features as she possessed had well-earned her place on the stage. Perhaps she would be a welcome, useful substitute for Vivienne, given he had never been afforded the opportunity to speak to Vivienne on the matter.

But, he wasn’t entirely displeased by it. She certainly looked similar Vivienne, albeit her hair color was not the same. But she had the same heart-shaped face and sapphire blue eyes. And though he had not seen her perpetual frown disappear from her face, he’d venture to say her smile would be just as beautiful as the rest of her.

She’d been something of a dream, something almost ethereal, as though she’d been the perfect love child of an angel and a mortal. It seemed criminal to hold such beauty.

And now that he’d had a less tempestuous moment with her, he could fully enjoy her.

“I had your best interest in mind,” he said. “Any longer, and the two of us would’ve suffered the consequences of your… actions, this evening.”

The woman scowled, staring straight ahead as she avoided making eye contact with him. He had some nerve to critique her actions! What about that damn brute that had been after her?

Not that he knew about the incident that had started it all, anyway. She hadn’t had the slightest chance of explaining as much.

But still, he had been right. Had she dawdled any longer, all hell on Earth would’ve been unleashed.

And there was no telling what would’ve happened from there.

“Well, I thank you kindly,” she said softly, locking her gaze with his. “I would’ve preferred a little less… abrasiveness, but still, I do thank you.”

“Are you always this combative with those who are trying to save your life?”

A look of shock colored the woman’s face. “I would hardly say I am being combative. I’m merely pointing out the deficiencies of your personality.”

“My deficiencies? I tried to save your life and mine, and yet you have the appalling nerve to say that I am with deficiency?”

“Perhaps that was a bit too strong of a word,” she admitted.

Braxton nearly bit out his own retort, then reminded himself that sparring with her in such tight quarters would make for an excruciatingly long ride if he did not bite his tongue. “Well, if that is truly what you believe of me,” he said dryly, “then I shall not utter a single word for the rest of this trip.”

That would show her, he thought. She may have believed she could speak to him in such a manner, but he would not be swayed by her glimmering blue eyes. Nor would he be swayed by her full, sensual lips, or her radiant, fiery hair. He would not allow himself to be swayed by anything about her at all.

But the more he resisted it, the harder it became to smolder the pangs of intrigue burning inside him.

And it was becoming even harder the longer he stayed cooped up in this damn carriage with her.

“I take it you live in Mansforth?” she asked, eying him as he kept his gaze out the window. He said nothing, flaring her irritation further. Clearly, he was nothing more than a simpleton incapable of answering a simple question!

And she simply had no use for that.

“If you really must know,” he said slowly, “it’s where my theater is located.”

Her brows lifted in surprise. “Your theater? Well, I certainly would not have guessed such a thing would interest you.”

Braxton fidgeted with his hands. “Well, my lady, there are a great many things you have yet to discover about me. I’m certain the same could be said for you.”

She remained silent. There were, of course, many truths she could reveal to this man. But she did not know him.

Yes, she had known men like him before, men who wielded their power and accomplishments like a mighty sword. And she had been wounded before.

Something of which she would not soon forget.

“You can stay with me for the evening,” Braxton said, finally breaking the silence. “I have a few extra rooms upstairs.”

She eyed him peculiarly. “It is your residence, too?” It was more of a statement than a question, but she remained curious all the same.

“I’ve lived there for the last several years of my life. Candidly, it’s the only place that ever truly felt like home.” Which wasn’t a lie, really. Life had been quite chaotic and tumultuous until he’d started his own theater company.

Then, one by one, all the little pieces began to fall into place. First, there were crowds of, perhaps, twenty or so, and soon the entire theater was filled to the brim. What started out as a simple, minuscule idea ended up flourishing into something bigger than life.

At least, before it had been nearly taken away from him. Truly the brightest stars burnt out the quickest, and when his lead actress ran away, so had the public interest. Though, he supposed it had been better that way. Much better for her to leave than to entertain her lying, scheming ways.

It had been a cold, hard lesson to realize that, sometimes in life, the brightest of smiles held the most sinister of intentions. And waking up to find a man holding a knife to his neck had been enough for Braxton to realize the circle around him had to tighten. He could ill afford to let the wrong people into his life again.

Yes, he had been too trusting of that wretched actress. So much so, he’d ignored the warning signs blazing brightly in front of his face, pretending as though she were anything other than what she truly was. A liar. And a filthy, rotten liar, at that. She was due to be married the following month, yet she had lied to him, lied about every single aspect of her life.

Including the fact she’d told Braxton she loved him.

It had all been a cruel, bitter lie.

And even though she had fled from his life without a second glance, he would not allow himself to be lied to by her again.

Or any woman, for that matter.

The carriage bumbled along, bouncing with every rut the carriage wheels hit, and Lilliana’s mood darkened with every jolting sensation that coursed through her body. Dear Lord, would this night ever end? Apparently not, for the odds were stacked against her.

Much as they had been for quite some time, she thought grimly.

Still, she had much to owe this man, this man who had helped her escape from such peril, and as they sat in companionable silence, it was then she realized she had not truly seen him until now. She’d been far too busy to notice the angular cut of his jaw, seemingly shaped as though he’d been sculpted by God himself. And she had been far too consumed to notice the faint scar trailing down the side of his right cheek. How could a man so brutally attractive make such an enemy?

She nearly laughed aloud at her own thoughts. Of course, someone with brooding, wicked looks as he would make enemies, for one could presume he’d made many enemies with the husbands of the town, as he stole their pretty wives away. It was a graven assumption on her part. But nonetheless, he was sinfully handsome.

Which was all the more reason to stay as far away from him as possible.

She needed to keep her wits about her. Thinking foolishly was precisely the reason why she was on the run now, determined to leave Giovanni—and his theater—thoroughly behind her for good.

She would not allow herself to fall victim to such a man’s charms. She was an actress, and a highly respected one at that. There was simply no reason to intertwine business with pleasures of the flesh.

But it was hard not to notice this handsome stranger and his commanding presence. He’d stood a whole foot taller than she, towering over her like a tall oak tree. A man his size could hoist her up in no time.

Though she supposed that wasn’t entirely a bad thing.

A flush crept across her cheeks at the thought of him hauling her into his arms. A part of her—a very traitorous part of her—secretly longed for such a happening. It had been years since she’d felt the warmth of another man’s loving embrace.

And she feared it would be years to come before she would feel that magic again.

It was hardly fair to think she should live such a loveless, passionless life. But it was the hand she had been dealt.

Now she had to make the most of it.

Lilliana stared out the window, her eyes growing heavy as she tried to make sense of the direction they’d been heading in. One could assume the carriage driver had traversed this route countless times over. But as they traveled the long, winding country roads, an unsettling feeling began to form in the pit of her stomach. Did this man truly know where he was going? Or had he misunderstood the instructions entirely?

Perhaps it was neither answer. Perhaps he had been nothing more than a cunning liar, swindling them out of their hard-earned money, only to leave them stranded along the way.

Panic seized hold of her, jolting her from the slumber she was on the verge of succumbing to. The intentions of men were wicked at times, sometimes more so than she could bear to think about.

And she would not let this despicable driver take advantage of her!

Nor any man, for that matter.

She pounded on the carriage ceiling to capture the driver’s attention. “Stop this carriage at once!”

Instantly, Braxton woke from his peaceful sleep, glowering at the woman beside him. “What the devil?” he barked. The carriage came to an abrupt stop, lurching both of them forward.

“What would possess you to think we should stop here, of all places? We are still a great distance from the theater!”

Lilliana eyed him suspiciously. “Well, I have enough sense to know that we are not traveling in the correct direction. Not that you would know, I suppose. You’ve been asleep for a good portion of this journey, while this mad man gallivants all around the countryside!”

Braxton’s jaw tensed as he silenced the thoughts that threatened to spill from his mouth. Had this woman gone completely mad? And why in the world must she inflict her ire upon him when he had only tried to help her?

“Forgive me, but it has been quite an eventful evening saving you from the clutches of that brute. Next time, I will not extend such a courtesy!”

That awful, vile man! Who was he to say such a profoundly cruel statement?

The driver shouted down at the pair, causing Lilliana to fling the door open and begin to exit when Braxton’s mighty hand wrapped around her arm.

“You are not going anywhere, I’m afraid,” he said, pulling her back in.

Lilliana heaved an abrupt, agitated sigh. “And pray tell, why must I be forced to travel any further in this carriage with you when our driver does not have his wits about him?”

“I am sure he has good reason,” Braxton argued. “Perhaps you wish to take his place since you so clearly know a great deal about country travel!”

Had the man been any more insufferable, she would’ve undoubtedly swatted at him. But she had already swatted one man for the evening.

Which was precisely why, at present, she was here with this insufferable fool in the first place, handsome as he was.

And damn it all, he was, indeed, quite handsome. So much so that even when riled, his features still appeared to her. It was striking, really, to see such a man as he.

But she should not like him.

Not one single bit.

And not even because he had saved her.

Lilliana pushed the carriage door open once more, exiting as fast as humanly possible. At this hour, she’d rather take her chances with highwaymen than entertain Braxton’s follies a single moment longer. The man had been ceaseless in his arguing, quarreling with her at every conceivable turn.

But she would not do so any longer. Not if she could help it.

And especially not if she abandoned him and this cursed carriage once and for all.