Chapter 144 - The Ride Home

Vincent rode in the carriage with Delaney while Ian remained on horseback. Delaney knew they would need some time to recover after the argument the evening before, but for now, she was just happy they were together again.

They sat side by side and she rested her head on his shoulder. He held her hand in his occasionally wincing when they hit a bump. For the most part however, the sandy roads along the beach were smooth.

"I know it was my fault you did it," he said quietly after a while, "But please don't run away like this again. I couldn't live without you or with the guilt if something happened to you."

"I know," she agreed quietly, "I really didn't mean to run away. I was upset and just sort of left. I never considered staying gone though. I was going to come home."

"Good," he lifted her hand and lightly kissed it, "And I promise I will always come home to you no matter how angry I may be. I will never leave you like that."

Delaney felt relief in hearing his words. She sat up now to turn to look at his bruised face. Gently she reached out to hold it in her hands and look into his deep green eyes. He stared right back and after a moment leaned forward to kiss her.

"Will you tell me what happened to your eye now?" she asked curiously once they had stopped their kisses.

Vincent sighed and rubbed the back of his neck with an embarrassed smile.

"It really isn't important," he answered, "But Miles punched me."

"What?" she asked in shock, "Miles hit you? Why?"

"He heard us last night and then we'd just discovered you'd left. He was angry with me for how I'd behaved and he just hit me."

"Oh Vincent I'm so sorry," she whispered with a hand lightly over her mouth to cover her own little smile, "I'm sorry I made him so upset."

Vincent chuckled and shook his head, "You have nothing to be sorry for. Miles was right. I let the things our mother said get into my head."

"Well running away from our home wasn't exactly smart either," Delaney smiled.

"After how I acted I don't blame you," he sighed, "This was my fault. I'm lucky I just have a bruised eye instead of having lost you to bandits or something."

"I blame your mother," Delaney rolled her eyes, "You shouldn't listen to her... Should we talk about any of the things you said when you were upset?"

Vincent sat back in his seat and looked up at the roof of the carriage, "I believe most of what I said was true but I'm sorry for the way I said it. I'm sorry it hurt you."

"Most of it wasn't true," she shook her head, "I want you to know that. Any child we have will be happy and lucky to have you as a father."

"I suppose we can worry about that if we have a child."

"When we have a child," Delaney corrected, leaning over to kiss his scarred cheek, "I don't want you to give up on that yet. Promise me you won't?"

Vincent turned and met her gaze. He didn't reply at first and it began to make her nervous. At last, though he moved and gave her a sweet kiss.

"I won't give up. I promise."

"I love you."

"And I love you."

-

Back at the ocean house, everyone was anxiously waiting up for their arrival. It was very late but no one could sleep until they knew the others had made it home safe.

Delaney thanked the men from her carriage before walking inside on Vincent's arm. He was limping from his time in the carriage and on horseback and she felt guilty that all of their friends would now see this because of her.

Everyone was waiting in the sitting room but when they heard the doors open and the sound of Vincent's voice talking to the butler they rushed out into the entry. Delaney blushed and felt foolish now about everything that had happened that day as her friends stared at her in surprise and relief.

Cora and Constance were the first to rush forward and hug her tightly.

"You should have told us you were upset," Constance scolded her.

"Yes, Delaney we would have come with you," Cora insisted.

"I know," she said quietly, "I'm sorry for worrying you all."

"Ah that's quite alright," Mason said with a grin, "It was worth it to see Miles give Vince a good clock in the face."

Miles frowned at his cousin and rolled his eyes before stepping forward to give Delaney a quick one-armed hug.

"Well we'd better get to bed then," Miles announced, "We need to get some sleep so we can have a good last day tomorrow."

"Last day?" Delaney asked in confusion, "What do you mean?"

"Well, Mace decided he needs to return to court and this afternoon the rest of us decided it's as good of a time as any for us to go home as well."

"We've probably been away too long already," Bernard grinned sheepishly, "My family will be cross with me when they see how much Benjamin has grown without them seeing him."

"Alright," Delaney sighed sadly, "If you're sure."

-

Later on, once everyone went to bed, Delaney curled up in Vincent's arms, and only then did she feel safe and at home again. With the warmth of his skin against hers, it should have been easy to drift off to sleep. He had fallen asleep quickly but her mind kept turning. She remained wide awake more than an hour later.

She decided to get up instead of tossing and turning all night and waking Vincent up. She slipped from their bed and pulled on her robe. Lighting a candle, she left their room and stepped out into the hallway.

With no particular destination in mind, she wandered through the ocean house looking at the paintings and tapestries on the walls, trying to quiet her thoughts. She went to the small library which was now the room that was housing all the pets until everyone went home. In a metal cage in the corner two pairs of big eyes watched her when she walked in.

Smiling, Delaney took out her pair of sugar gliders and let them climb over her. They were much more active at night as Ian had warned her so she had to be quick to get them when they started exploring too far. She had discovered their special trick a couple of weeks ago when all of the friends were up late playing cards and now she held her hands up with one of the little boys in each.

The animals jumped from her hands and went gliding through the air, coming to land on top of the table that sat in the middle of the room. Delaney went and got them, giving them gentle praise before returning them to their home.

Even as she watched them scurry about their cage she couldn't stop herself from thinking of other things, mainly some of the things Vincent had said the night before. She knew she needed to put it from her mind because it was only upsetting her but she couldn't manage to.

Leaving her candle on a table just inside the door, Delaney went outside, hoping the fresh air might clear her mind. She passed by the guards who each smiled at her and told her good evening. Walking amongst the citrus trees first, she then decided to stroll out to the cliff edge.

Passing by the guards she went very close to the edge and stood with her arms folded over her chest, holding her robe tightly about her against the crisp breeze coming off the ocean. The moon wasn't full but it was bright enough to illuminate the beach below. Delaney watched as the white foam capped waves rolled in and crashed against the sand and stone.

The sound of the ocean waves were mesmerizing so she didn't notice when another person crossed the yard behind her. The figure turned and noticed her and began heading towards Delaney and the cliff.

Closing her eyes, Delaney felt the breeze sweep over her face and ruffle her hair, the dampness causing it to curl. A little smile formed on her lips as she wondered if this is what Ian and the other pirates felt like at night on the sea aboard their ships.

Behind her, the figure walked through the grass in the moonlight, slipping between the guards. Even if Delaney hadn't been distracted by her thoughts, the sound of the ocean was drowning out any sounds the person made while approaching her.

Clad in a dark cloak, the person hovered behind the duchess, studying her. Delaney opened her eyes again and sighed. She was feeling a bit better so she decided to go to try to sleep again. She didn't want Vincent to wake up and wonder where she'd gone either.

Delaney turned toward the house and her eyes landed on the person behind her. She gasped in surprise and stepped quickly backward.

The figure lunged towards her as she stumbled on the edge of the cliff.