Wedding Captives

“Watch your step,” Spence advised. “These stairs are worn unevenly.”

“Apparently,” she said, trying to focus her attentions elsewhere, and not on the fact that she was quite alone with Spence, “the lord of the castle didn’t believe in spending much money on servants.”

He looked upward. “I don’t see how they carried trays up this staircase.”

“Dumbwaiter,” she said. Her voice echoed in the vertical passageway. “There has to be a dumbwaiter.”

Their conversation seemed innocent enough, but Thea felt a growing sense of apprehension partially caused by her sudden seclusion with Spence and partially because Jenny’s failure to appear felt ominous.

“I can’t imagine Jenny wasn’t waiting for us. She knew when we’d be gathered below, when we’d get here. Do you think there’s something wrong? Something…” she hesitated without warning on the stair and swallowed hard. “I don’t know…not quite right about all this?”

Spence had to step back down to avoid overtaking her. “Travis must have found his sister, don’t you think? Otherwise, he’d be yelling his head off.”

Thea straightened. “I’m sure you’re right.” She was worrying needlessly, still trembling with aftershocks from her panic attack in the gondola car.

They paused on a small landing outside a closed door.

“This is only the second floor,” Spence said. “I think we need to go one higher.”

Enclosed by solid stone walls, they were completely isolated from the others. Spence was surely right that Travis had found Jenny, and there wasn’t going to be a better time than this for a private conversation.

She faced Spence. Until now, she hadn’t noticed that he’d shed his parka. His teal-blue turtleneck emphasized the blue in his eyes and outlined the breadth of his shoulders. “Spence, we need to talk.”

Even in the dim light, she saw his frown. Like most men, Spence had never been fond of relationship discussions—not that they had a relationship anymore. She opened her mouth and took a bite out of the silence. “This is probably the most important weekend of Jenny’s life—”

“Agreed,” he said. His eyes bore into hers.

Her chin went up. “I don’t want to do anything to make it unpleasant for her.”

“Of course not. So?”

“So, you and I need to set some boundaries with each other.”

“Such as?”

“Let’s start with the basic premise that I’m not prepared to forgive and forget, Spence. There is absolutely no way we’ll ever again be involved. Not ever.” Though she’d kept her voice quiet, a resonating echo stirred the air, underscoring the finality of her words. “Is that understood?”

“I understand. Perfectly,” he added. “I just don’t believe you.”

She scowled. “Do you think I can’t resist you?”

“No,” he responded quickly. “But I don’t accept the concept of ‘never.’ It’s simple biology, Thea. All living things are constantly changing, transforming. We get better or we get worse, but we seldom stay the same.”

If he’d been anyone else, she would have applauded his observation. As a teacher of adolescents, she had to believe in the potential of human development. But the man who stood before her wasn’t one of her difficult students. He was her former fiancé, the individual who had humiliated her and single-handedly shattered important professional goals. Vital goals. She drew on a vast reservoir of bitterness for lost opportunities before speaking. “Trust me, Spence. My attitude toward you is rock-solid, and—”

“But,” he interrupted, “in an hour, you might feel different.”

“Differently.”

“Yes.” As if she had agreed she might, he nodded.

She wanted to stamp her foot. She crossed her arms over her breasts. “I’m serious, Spence.”

He planted a hand on the stone-and-mortar wall high above her. “I know you are, Thea.”

“I’m not going to debate life science with you—”

“That’s a start.”

“—or philosophy or anything else. In fact—”

He gave her a lazy grin.

“Will you stop it, Spence!” This discussion wasn’t going the way she’d hoped. He was so near to her in this cold vault of a stone staircase that she could feel his heat. She tossed her chin-length bob and tried another tactic. “Let’s just agree on two things. We won’t squabble. And there will be no unnecessary touching. No kissing. Nothing.”

“Well, that’s hardly fair, Thea, after you spent the gondola ride groping me. You know—”

“I was not groping! I—”

“Okay, grabbing.” The corner of his mouth lifted in a half smile. His arrogance was devastating. “Okay,” he relented, “call it holding on. I just think I ought to have the chance to return that favor.”

His blue eyes warmed as he gazed confidently into her face, and she felt herself responding involuntarily, wanting to smile back at him. For an instant, she was tempted to open her arms wide and invite him to come closer. But no! Common sense prevailed. “Don’t even think about it, Spence.”

“I’ve got a few conditions of my own,” he said.

“So long as we don’t squabble and you—”

“Number one—we stay in the present and not dwell on the past.”

She gave him a look. “I don’t know what you mean.”

“Yes, you do. I can see the wheels turning in that sweet, stubborn little head of yours, dredging up every unhappy memory, every accusation we ever threw at each other, every—”

“All right,” she cut him off. “We’ll stick to the present.” Did he think that somehow altered her conditions?

“And not dwell in the past. That’s the important part, Thea.”

Grudgingly, she nodded. “Fair enough.”

“Number two—we both keep our minds open.”

Thea said, “I’ve never been close-minded. How could you even accuse me of—”

“Number three…”

He obliterated the distance between them in a single step. His unexpected approach threw her off-balance. The surrounding walls seemed to shrink tightly around her. She felt trapped as much by the intensity of her suppressed emotions as by him—but there should be no mistake. She was trapped in his arms.

When his hands glided around her shoulders, she should have pushed him away. Hadn’t he listened to a word she’d been saying?