Free Eternal Destiny by Chrissy Peebles Page B

today.”
    “They’re safe, caught by my knights, to make good on the deal we made. I’ll return them home to their world. Also, as you asked, I ordered that food and clothing be sent to the village of Lato.”
    A wave of relief spread over Sarah. Her friends were safe, and he had helped the starving village. She regarded him intently, still unsure what to think. Slowly, her perception of him was changing. Maybe Victor isn’t as awful as everyone makes him out to be. Maybe he’s kinder and more concerned about what’s happening around him than I thought. Maybe he’s not such a bad guy after all. Maybe he’s even a guy I could… She moistened her lips. “Thank you, but why didn’t you tell me or let me see them?” She could feel the answer burning inside of her: Frank . For a brief moment, she felt guilty sitting there with Victor, Frank all forgotten, but that feeling dissipated more quickly than she ever thought it would.
    He raised a brow but didn’t comment.
    “I bet you can’t wait to get one of them home.” She winked. “You know, to get rid of the competition?”
    He laughed. “I have nothing to fear from your suitor.”
    “What? You think you’re hotter?” Okay, maybe he is…and a much better kisser.
    “When I went to question him, he was kissing the blonde maiden passionately. She is with child, and she has declared him the father.”
    Sarah’s mouth dropped. Wait…is Beth trying to save Frank’s life by making up such a ridiculous story? Maybe she feared Victor would kill Frank because he saw him as a threat, another suitor he needed to dispose of immediately. She pondered it for a moment, and it did make perfect sense. Frank could’ve easily been the guy in the bar that Beth had gone home with that night. Anger bubbled up inside. How dare my best friend sleep with my ex-boyfriend and not tell me about it? Even Frank kept their secret romp in the hay a secret from me, the liar! She blew out a breath. “That’s my crappy luck. I couldn’t find love if my life depended on it. See why I’ve never gotten married before?”
    “But you are married now.” He gazed into her eyes. “To me.”
    “It’s not real. It was a sham of a marriage, based on a lie.”
    “A lie? The passion we feel when our lips touch isn’t a lie.”
    Her cheeks burned. She needed to get his mind off the kiss. If he dwelled on it too long, he might be tempted to take what he thought he possessed. But would that really be such a bad thing? “Why did you wait so long to get married? I mean, William has grown children.”
    “I loved a woman once.”
    “Della,” Sarah whispered. “I’m sorry.”
    “After I lost her, I swore I’d never marry anyone for love, but then you came along. I knew you were beautiful the moment I laid eyes on you, but the moment we kissed, a part of me sparked back to life. This passion I never knew existed overtook me—something I haven’t experienced in hundreds of years. I was taken by surprise and could barely control myself.”
    “But you were so mean to me the first time I met you.”
    “I’m sorry about that, truly sorry. I was so caught up in the war and getting revenge that I didn’t even give you a thought…at first. You were just a pawn in my game. I only said the things I said to you because I was having fun taunting the king’s daughter. I don’t desire ten little ones.” He winked. “But two or three would certainly bring life to the castle.”
    Sarah giggled. “That’s good to know.” It was, and not just the part about Victor wanting a normal-sized family instead of a whole soccer team. It was also the fact that he felt something for her, something he had felt for Della. Sarah had never figured she’d want him, so she had never really cared, but deep inside, something awakened in her, and she couldn’t help herself.
    “I hope you didn’t believe a word I said in that dungeon. On the day of our wedding, if you wouldn’t have kissed me back—or slapped