The mountain of a man’s eyes narrowed and shifted to his fellow squatters and then back again. “The earl, is he? How do we know? Any dandy could ride in here and say he was a lord. If he’s the earl, then he’s fallen down on his duties. Even if he is the earl, I say we don’t clear out. I say we’ve earned the right to stay. Squatter’s rights. Haven’t we, men? Maybe we’ll just take your horses, your purses, and that fancy bit of goods with the big eyes. Maybe we’ll tar and feather ye and send ye packing back to the big house like a whipped cur while we amuse ourselves with the lady.” He motioned toward Diana with his knife and stepped forward, two of his friends closing ranks, the other two spreading to the sides in what must be a practiced maneuver. It was the way road agents would deploy when robbing a carriage.
Evan’s blood leapt, ready for battle. How he wished to answer their challenge, to take them on, to turf them out and settle the matter, just he and Shand, as they had done many times before.
But there was Diana to consider.
And he was a lord, who shouldn’t descend to fighting without exploring other options. If he let loose the soldier within, he would further alienate his sensitive bride. He would try diplomacy first. Force later, if need be.
Shand drew in a deep breath, but Evan nudged his horse forward before he could speak. “I have a proposition. And this is the only time I will make this offer. You are welcome to stay here, in these houses, as tenants of the Whitelock holdings under the condition that you will work and be profitable to the estate. The cottages will be repaired, tasks will be assigned, and you will be expected to fulfill them. Food will be supplied, and firing, and tools for the work. You will be amiable to others who work the estate, and you will not cause embarrassment to the Whitelock name. Mr. Shand here will be your supervisor, and you will answer to him and thus to me. Should you violate this agreement, you will be expelled from the property. Should you choose not to take up this offer, you will leave by this time two days hence. Stealing is prohibited, unlawful behavior will not be tolerated, and respect will be shown to those in authority over you—and you will never again refer to your mistress as a ‘pretty morsel’ or ‘a fancy bit of goods.’ Is that understood?”
Before the biggest man could speak, Evan whipped out his pistol and aimed it at the man on his right, who had been inching forward with his hand raised to grab Diana’s bridle. “One more step and I will perforate your head.”
The man froze, white showing around his eyes, stark in his dirty face.
Evan didn’t look back at the leader, trusting Shand to keep watch. “What say you, men? Stay and abide by my laws, or go?” He kept the pistol leveled on the nearer man.
“What if we want to think about it?” the big man asked.
“I require my answer now. I don’t have time to waste. It is a fair offer. By rights I could evict you all without notice. I’m willing to work with you if you’re willing to work with me. But I will not be taken advantage of. Choose your path.” Evan raised his voice. “That goes for everyone in these cottages.”
Heads poked out of doors and windows—men, women, children.
“How many of you are there?” Shand asked.
The big man scratched his cheek with the hilt of the knife again. “’Bout twenty.”
“How have you been living?” Evan noted the deerskin boots and the leather pants. He’d probably been poaching deer and fowl and fish and anything else he could hunt.
“We get by,” he evaded.
“Are you a hunter? I am in need of a gamekeeper. And an assistant gamekeeper.” Those positions were somewhere on the list of employees Diana had written up. “If you can manage the game on the estate without poaching, and see that no one else poaches, you can have the job and choose your assistant from your compatriots here.”
Light entered the man’s eyes, the light of hope, but it was a guarded hope.
“Why? You don’t even know me.”
“I’m willing to give a man a chance. You’ll report to Mr. Shand here, and he’ll report to me.” Evan lowered the gun, resting it on his thigh. “If you’re not up to the task, or if you steal from me, I’ll toss you off the place myself.”
“You’re really the earl?”
Lord help me, I am.
Evan forbade Diana from accompanying them to visit the other cottages. “Not until we know what we might encounter. I apologize for putting you in jeopardy, and I won’t run the risk of doing it again. We’ll head back now.”
She was still reeling from their encounter with the squatters and how quickly her husband had produced that gun. He’d leapt to protect her, and he’d done it without anger. He’d been more than fair with the squatters, offering employment in return for honest labor, but leaving no doubt that he would go to great lengths to protect what was his, be it land, buildings, or his wife.
Did that mean he was accepting his role as the earl and as her husband? His words in the stable yard the other day about having no choice in whom he married had cut deeply, and she’d held the hurt close, using it as a barrier for her growing feelings for him.
They returned to the inn, and Evan reached up for her, lifting her from the saddle, his hands spanning her waist, her palms braced on his shoulders. When her feet touched the cobbles, her hands slid down to rest on his chest, and he held her still, staring into her eyes. His own were the same pure blue as the sky over his head.
“I am sorry. It was a foolish mistake, not reconnoitering before taking you with me. Something I have done twice now. I took you to White Haven, where we were nearly shot, and now to the cottages, where we were nearly set upon by scoundrels. I have promised to protect you and been derelict in my duties again and again.”
His hands on her waist distracted her. They were firm, keeping her in place, but not harsh, and she felt no fear of him. Instead she relished their closeness, the breadth of his chest, the width of his shoulders, the strength of him, the maleness, so different from herself.
“I did not feel unprotected, my lord …” He quirked his eyebrow, and she corrected herself. “Evan. You have taken very good care of me, and today was no exception. I did not know you carried a pistol.”
“I didn’t think I would need it in the English countryside, but there you are. I learned my lesson when Greville and his blunderbuss entered the fray.”
Was he aware that he still held her? And that the courtyard of the inn was a very public place? If they had been alone, she might even dare to step closer, to rest her cheek against his chest and hope that his arms would come around her to hold her securely. His desire to protect her roused in her the desire to be protected by him. To shelter in his arms and know she was safe. Which was such an odd sensation, since she’d never felt safe with any man in her life before.
“My lord?” The innkeeper stood to the side, and Diana let her hands drop from Evan’s chest.
He released his hold on her, a frown darkening his face. “Yes?”
“You have visitors. I put the gentleman in your private parlor.”
Diana tensed. Was it her father? Or someone he had sent to fetch the baby? Where was Cian? Was he safe?
Evan’s expression smoothed, and he offered Diana his arm. “Perhaps Marcus has arrived. He said he would visit as soon as he could.”