Chapter 319: Test [2]
"Must we truly do the older-brother-to-suitor talk? You’ll tell me not to hurt her, follow it with some threat I’m bound to ignore anyway. Allow me to save you the trouble with saying that I never intend to hurt her," Zayne suggested.
"Save me the trouble? Why not save yourself as well?" Reece asked, looking Zayne up and down. "You might stand taller than me, but that means little."
"I’ve also got more muscle than you, and I’ve been made to train for most of my life. It would place me in rather a poor position if I injured my future wife’s brother, and I’ve no wish to create awkwardness, seeing as I do intend to marry her. So," Zayne said, hoping Reece moved on.
"Don’t spoil what I planned to say. Iris has no father to speak for her, so it falls to me to handle this in his place," Reece said, clearing his throat in an attempt to deepen his voice. "It’s good you’re a friend of Lord Hawthorne’s, but that hardly proves you’re a good man."
"I welcome you to spend time getting to know me properly, then," Zayne replied, unbothered.
"Unfortunately, my sister is rushing me out of town, and I’ve a pregnant wife waiting for me. I wish I’d known of you sooner, but this is the position I find myself in," Reece explained.
He continued, "If Iris is happy, I won’t stand in her way. It’s clearly worked out for Eloise, so perhaps Iris can find her own happiness in this world too. I only worry how your family will take to her."
"The relatives who matter to me will accept her without question," Zayne promised, and meant it.
"I hope so. Once I’m out of town, Eloise will be the only relative here who truly cares for her. Iris isn’t one to write or speak of her troubles, so I do hope you’re a man of your word. Or," Reece added, a threat surfacing, "I’ll be forced to return and kill you myself."
Zayne’s brow lifted, and before he could stop it, a chuckle slipped free. "Forgive me," he said, struggling to smother the laughter. "I didn’t mean to."
"You shouldn’t, since it’s hardly a laughing matter," Reece said, visibly upset.
"I’m sorry. It’s always rather amusing when someone threatens me, since usually it’s those unfamiliar with my family background. But I shall heed the warning all the same," Zayne said, straightening his coat.
Reece looked him over once more from head to toe. "What exactly is your family background? I don’t know the first thing about you."
"Well, my father’s side serves in the king’s army, with my uncle acting as warden of the prison, and my mother’s side carries a touch of nobility, though I don’t care to boast," Zayne answered.
"Warden?" Reece muttered, the word catching in his throat.
Zayne stepped forward, closing the distance between them. "So should you linger in town too long and worry your sister, I could have you dragged off. I’m only toying with you," he said, resting a hand casually on Reece’s shoulder.
"I don’t believe you are," Reece said, wary of the man before him. "You’re a strange one, but then I always expected Iris to attract strange men. So long as she’s happy, you won’t hear another word from me. There’s something I haven’t told her yet," he added, glancing back to check where his sister had wandered off to. "About our mother."
"Whatever happens, you mustn’t ever welcome our mother into your home. No matter how deeply you come to love Iris, no matter how much you want family close for her sake, don’t fall for it. She’s been meaning to leave town for good, but the moment she hears of you, she won’t," said Reece.
"You’ve spoken with your mother, then? Iris seemed genuinely troubled about her whereabouts. She’s made it clear she wants nothing to do with her mother, but you might at least tell her where she’s ended up," Zayne suggested.
"I will, but let her enjoy herself a little longer before I leave the estate. I’ve been quietly repairing her old room at our childhood home as a surprise before I go. I wanted to share the news with her today," Reece said, wanting only to share positive news.
"Where is your childhood home-"
"I don’t need your help," Reece cut in sharply. "This is the least I can do for my sister before I leave. I know you’ve likely the money and means to fix the whole home up in a day, but this is my task to do for her."
Reece looked up at Zayne due to their slight height difference. "Besides, it wouldn’t do to have it look as though you’re buying our affection."
"Our? If I ever stooped so low as to buy affection, it would only be to win your sister’s attention, not yours. As pleasant as this chat has been, I’d rather get back to speaking with Iris," Zayne said, already glancing around for where she walked off to.
"I may have accepted you courting her, but I don’t care for the two of you sitting so openly alone. Rumours have a way of starting, and we both know it’s never the lady who escapes them unscathed. Think of what she might have to face because of it," Reece said, thinking only of Iris.
"That was a fault on my part," Zayne admitted, realising his mistake. "I’ll be more careful going forward. Nothing improper has ever passed between us, even during her time as my maid."
"Your maid? You’re the one she worked for, in secret?" Reece asked, the memory of it all coming back.
"Yes. I kept her safe while she was in my household. Once I learned she was Eloise’s cousin, I made her my personal maid instead. Again, nothing occurred," Zayne said, watching the shift in Reece’s expression. "You mustn’t go inventing tales where none exist."
"Then you’re well accustomed to being alone with her," Reece realised, his jaw tightening. "That ends now. I’ll speak with Eloise about having someone nearby whenever the two of you meet from now on."
Zayne’s brow furrowed.
"I won’t have the two of you meeting privately only for rumours to spoil her name, should you change your mind about marrying her. Don’t look so wounded since it’s the nor.. Unless," Reece said, eyeing Zayne with fresh suspicion. "You had other plans in mind that would make you a bastard."
"Not at all. Iris should have someone near to guard her name properly. What time do you leave town?" Zayne asked.
"I’ll tell you nothing. I will not give you the chance to have me thrown somewhere foul the moment my back’s turned. Iris adores me so if you harm me, she’ll never forgive you for it."
Zayne hadn’t the slightest intention of harming Reece. If anything, he privately thought that Reece should be far more concerned about his own sister’s plans to knock him unconscious.