One Night With You (The Derrings #3)(65)

Betrayal flayed his heart as he recalled all he and Knightly had endured together over the years. Certainly enough for the bastard to refrain from taking advantage of his sister. Her innocence, to say nothing of her disability, should have stayed his animal desires. Julianne shook her head wildly, auburn hair tumbling over her shoulders, the very picture of wanton abandon.

"S—Seth," she began, panic tightening her expression. "Please. Don't be angry. It's not what it looks like. I love Gregory."

He glared at Knightly, suddenly convinced he had never seen the man before, until now. The libertine held himself stoically, solemn and unflinching beneath Seth's glare.

"How far has this gone?" he demanded, forcing a cool gust of wind through him, freezing his rage, his impulse to tear Knightly apart. "Have you compromised her?"

"Seth!" Julianne cried, her voice high with indignation as she gathered her hair and pulled it over one shoulder.

Knightly squared his shoulders. "I would not dishonor Julianne… or you for—"

"Speak not of honor," he cut in, fuming at Knightly's familiar use of his sister's name.

"Considering what I've witnessed, I don't put much faith in your honor."

"I hold your sister in the greatest esteem," Knightly said evenly. Swinging his gaze back to Julianne, he added in a softer voice, "I love her."

"Gregory," Julianne gasped, groping for his arm, her rapturous expression turning Seth's stomach. Knightly's hand clasped hers.

"Julianne, go to your room," Seth ordered, feeling as if his world were rapidly unraveling. Julianne's chin shot up. "I'm not a child, Seth."

"Seth," Jane spoke beside him, but he silenced her with a wave of his hand, too focused on his sister, on shattering whatever spell Knightly had woven over her.

Knightly tucked Julianne's hand in the crook of his arm. "My intentions are honorable." Inclining his head, he added, "I wish to marry her. With your blessing."

"Marry her?" A rough, broken laugh rose from his throat. "And how will you manage that? You cannot support her with the care that she requires. Can you hire a companion to see to her needs?

A housekeeper? A cook? A maid? How exactly will you afford to keep her in the manner she requires?"

A shadow fell over Knightly's face and doubt flickered in his once steady gaze. Splotches of color broke out over Julianne's face. "I'm not helpless!"

"You can't," Seth ground out, as if she had not spoken. "And you shall never have my blessing." Tears pooled in Julianne's eyes. "Seth… don't do this," she whispered, lips trembling. He shook his head, forcing her sad plea out of his head. Staring only at Knightly, the one to blame in this mess, the one to have so foolishly and selfishly given Julianne romantic notions, he continued, "Consider yourself dismissed. Pack your things." He wouldn't have Knightly remain another moment to toy further with his sister's affections.

"Seth," Jane broke in, her voice more insistent.

He swung his gaze on his wife, his anger mounting at the look of disappointment on her face—as if be had somehow failed her.

"See, Jane," Julianne cut in, her voice hard and hostile in a way he had never heard. "I told you he would not understand."

He stared hard at Jane, watching as guilty color swept high on her cheeks. Something ugly twisted inside of him.

"You knew?" he demanded, feeling as he did the day he learned she was Aurora. Again, she had withheld the truth from him. Only this time, pain accompanied the betrayal.

"Why don't we all sit down and discuss this calmly," Jane suggested, her eyes bright with appeal.

"No, Jane." The sound of her name fell like a stone from his lips as hard as the bitterness encasing his heart. "This is a family matter. It's none of your concern." The color drained from her face, and his heart squeezed. His hand twitched at his side. Weak fool he was, he felt inclined to smooth the wounded look from her face, to offer words of apology. Before he could succumb to the impulse, she gave a jerky nod and quickly stepped back. Turning, she exited the room, her skirts barely stirring at her ankles. He watched her leave, saying nothing even as the urge to stop her coursed thickly in his veins.

"I'll pack my things," Knightly's voice pulled him back.

"Gregory, no!" Julianne cried, her fingers white where they clung to his arm. "I'm of age. We don't need Seth's blessing."

He flinched at his sister's words, never realizing how much her good opinion mattered, unprepared for the pain of losing it, losing her. The ache in his chest deepened as he realized Julianne would never understand, never see that he only sought to protect her. To have lost the love of his one remaining family member filled him with impotent fury. Not a day passed that he did not blame himself for his sister's accident, for stealing her life, but he had been able to live with himself knowing that she never blamed him, that she loved him and respected him.

Now Knightly had robbed him of that.

"Get out," he growled.

"Seth, no!" She took a sudden step in his direction, lifting a fist as if she intended to attack him.

"I love Gregory."

"What do you know of love?" he asked, gentling his voice in an attempt to soften the severity of the question. "You've spent your life sheltered, protected, devoid of male attention." Julianne drew a deep breath, her chest rising with the effort. "I know a good deal more of love than you. I'm not the one so afraid of being hurt that I can't see what's staring me in the face." She released a pent-up breath, the sound harsh and angry. Words rushed from her lips in a torrent. "The only one blind here is you."