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CHAPTER ONE

The deed was done. It was a perfect day for a wedding, with sunshine and soft breezes and a sky full of birdsong in this warmest part of Great Britain. Cade Tremayne had performed his duties as witness as he stood up with his brother Bran, who was marrying the enchanting Merryn Penrose. The newlyweds glowed with happiness and a sense of rightness.

After the ceremony and wedding breakfast, everyone flowed from the house onto the lawn of Penrose Hall, sipping drinks and chatting with friends old and new. The house and gardens were on a bluff that commanded a striking view of the ocean. Cade found a quiet corner of the lawn where he could watch the guests and look down to the beach below the bluff.

He smiled when he saw that Bran and Merryn had slipped away from the gathering and were descending on the slanted path that led down to the sand. Both of them were very good at avoiding notice when they chose to. At the bottom of the path, both peeled off shoes and stockings before moving to the water's edge, holding hands as small waves rolled over their bare feet.

Cade felt bittersweet pleasure at the sight of them together. He was profoundly happy for Bran, who deserved the love he'd found. Cade tried to suppress the unworthy envy that he felt because he wouldn't find the same. This wedding day was a watershed for Cade as well as Bran because the marriage would change his relationship with his brother forever. Though they weren't blood kin, they'd been as close as two boys could be ever since they'd met at a baby farm where unwanted children were sent to die. Even as small children, they'd worked together well. Bran had planned their escape and was calmly certain they would find a better life, while Cade had figured out how to make it happen.

In the depths of winter, they'd spent days clinging to the backs of northbound carriages and mail coaches, sometimes for only a few miles, other times for hours until the coach stopped and guards chased them away, often with kicks and curses. The journey had been so nightmarish that even now Cade preferred not to think about it.

They'd arrived in London on a bitter cold night. Bran's intuition had brought them to Lord and Lady Tremayne, aristocrats who were gifted with the mysterious abilities that some people envied, and others feared and despised. The Tremaynes had both been fortunate to come from families that valued such talents.

But it wasn't uncommon for gifted children to be thrown out of their homes when their abilities appeared, as had happened to Cade and Bran. They would have died of neglect and abuse if they hadn't found their way to Rhys and Gwyn, who rescued gifted children in dire straits.

As a quartet of musicians began playing a bright, celebratory tune, Cade let his gaze travel over the guests, who were taking full advantage of the beautiful grounds and the sunny day. His foster father, Rhys, was ambling toward him, two glasses in hand. "I suspected that you'd prefer some good French brandy to more champagne."

"You figured correctly." Cade accepted a glass and took a sip. Merryn's father had a well-stocked cellar, though no one was mentioning that one of Cornwall's most profitable industries was smuggling and this brandy had probably never seen a customs agent.

Cade gestured at the beach below, where Bran and Merryn were laughing together as they walked along the waterline, holding hands. "Is this what a happy ending looks like?"

"Marrying the right person isn't an end, but a beginning." Rhys glanced across the lawn to Gwyn, who was chatting with several of the younger women, including bright blond Tamsyn, the eldest female of the Tribe of Tremayne and a legitimate daughter of the couple. She looked very like her beautiful mother.

Rhys's eyes lit with warmth as he watched them. "Gwyn and I knew we'd found our true loves as soon as we met, but we had no idea of how splendid the future would be. Bran is the first of the Tribe of Tremayne to marry, but there will be more marriages soon. We look forward to being grandparents."

"Don't look at me like that!" Cade ordered. "I might be the eldest male in your tribe, but I intend to be the eccentric bachelor uncle to all the nephews and nieces."

"God laughs when mortals make plans," Rhys said with amusement. Ignoring the comment, Cade said, "Saving gifted children in desperate straits has been a vital mission for you and Gwyn, and no one knows that better than I. You placed most of your rescues with other loving, accepting families—how did you decide which of us to keep?"

His foster father grinned. "Gwyn wanted to keep Bran, and since it would have taken an ax to separate the two of you, I resigned myself to the inevitable."

Cade laughed. "Still another reason to be grateful to Bran."