by Dee Jones
The carriage pulled to a halt in front of the Leonard house in the new high end district of town and Daniel climbed down from the seat. He secured the horses to the hitching post before helping Julia out from beneath the covered interior.
Margie opened the front door calling to them with the most annoying yo-hoo Julia had ever heard before. Daniel growled under his breath, certain she made that caterwauling sound for his benefit and waved as Julia turned to leave. She found herself spinning back around; the arms of her husband encircled her waist as his lips fell to hers in a kiss so searing and passionate, she felt as though her feet had grown wings and she was floating up to heaven.
"Stay out of trouble," he insisted, lifting his mouth off hers, but just an inch. "I shouldn't be long, and then we'll go back to my flat. I want to get some of my stuff to take back to the ranch with me and then we’ll take up where we left off this morning."
"I'm going to miss you," she whispered, arching her body into him just enough to brush her breasts against his chest.
"God don't do that," he warned, pulling her against him tighter. "Just the thought of what lies under that tight little riding habit, makes me horny."
"What's that mean?" Daniel chuckled at his wife's innocence and pressed the evidence of his desire against her thigh.
"Remind me to show you sometime. Right now, I have to get to work. You stay with Margie and keep your little mouth shut."
"And if I don't?" Julia knew she was playing with fire, but she never realized getting burned could feel so good.
"I'll have that pretty little neck of yours."
"Again?"
"Again and again and again," he whispered, taking her mouth as his willing prisoner once more. Julia could feel Margie's stunned eyes on them, but the feeling of Daniel's body pressing against her, his lips tormenting her with secret promises of what was yet to come, made her forget all else.
"I've got to go," he growled softly. "I'll be back around supper time." Julia walked up to the concrete sidewalk in front of the Leonard’s three story house and watched him jump back into the carriage. He waved good-bye to Margie and glanced to Julia who stood a few feet away from the Dearborn.
"I love you," he told her, watching the soft color rise in her cheeks.
"I love you, too." Daniel winked at her and pulled the horses around, heading them toward his office. Julia stood there for several minutes until he was gone from sight. Her heart ached and her stomach jerked when she considered the many hours they'd be apart. It just wasn't possible to think she would someday have to get used to Daniel being gone all day, every day.
"Come inside," Margie insisted, drawing Julia's attention away from the empty street. "I have to know everything." Julia walked with the woman into the spacious Victorian style home and smiled; it reminded her of its owner.
The sitting room was well furnished and comfortable with a large cobblestone fireplace that filled half of west end of the room. The walls were covered in neck high bookcases and large old portraits while two picture sized windows looked out to the street beyond. Everything was plain, yet pleasant and Julia began to compare this room with those of her own home, making her's look drab and dreary.
"Well?" Margie insisted, waving the maid away with her hand as they sat down on one of the two sofas.
"I think I'm going to redecorate the ranch house," she said, her attention still on the room's decor. "After all, it is mine now; I think a few new drapes, a new carpet, some new furniture, perhaps a portrait or two might look nice."
"Yes, yes, but what about Daniel?" Margie was beginning to grow irritated with the woman and her vagueness and it showed in her edgy tone.
"Oh, I think Daniel would approve. I wonder what it would take to have a picture of the two of us made."
"Forget the blasted pictures!" Margie snapped, leaning back against the sofa's back. "What happened last night?"
"Oh that," Julia answered, her naturally pink cheeks took on a shade deeper color. "I can't say."
"You what?"
"Daniel threatened everything short of scalping me if I told you." Margie grumbled for several seconds, stomping her foot against the floor as she crossed her arms over her chest.
"That's not fair. How am I supposed to know if you two got together as lovers if you're not allowed to talk about it?"
"I never said I couldn't talk about it. I merely said, Daniel wouldn't permit me telling you. He never said I couldn't answer your questions."
"Oh!" the redhead's attention grew as she eyed the blushing woman next to her. "I think I'm going to like having you as a friend," she giggled, sitting upright on the sofa again.
The dressmaker’s shop was bypassed as Julia and Margie spent their afternoon playing twenty-one questions with Julia saying nothing more than yes or no. A message was sent to the dressmaker's shop to deliver the gowns to the Leonard house, and by supper time Julia was convinced her face would be tinted red for a week. The promise of a repeat of the previous night’s activities brought several new ideas from Margie she said would prove, interesting and intoxicating; the suggestions however caused Julia's growing embarrassment to turn into eager anticipation. She only hoped she didn't look guilty when Daniel returned for her.
“Do you know if Daniel ever had a serious girlfriend?” Julia asked as she played with Maggie while Harrison nursed at his mother’s breast.
“He never mentioned anyone, neither did Harold. I do know the two of them liked to play in England, as Daniel puts it. Harold told me of several occasions where they would find women willing to enjoy perverted evenings, though he has never elaborated on what those evenings entailed. I think it’s disgusting, but I suppose that’s how the Europeans are. They have a far different opinion on sex than we Americans do.” Margie watched Julia’s expression as she frowned in thought.
“Why do you ask? Anything happen you want to tell me…or answer?” Julia smiled as she looked up to the red-haired woman. She did love having a friend and Margie was such an open, loving woman, it was difficult not to confide in her.
“Nothing has happened,” she said at last. “It’s just that Daniel mentioned some things to me that made me wonder if he ever had anyone of importance.”
“What kind of things?”
“I don’t know that I should say. It may make you worry and there’s no need.”
“Now you have to tell me,” Margie said with wide eyes.
“He just said he wanted to…oh, Lord, I don’t even know how to tell you.”
“Just say it! For heaven’s sake, you’re going to drive me crazy.”
“He said he wanted to spank me and then make love to me.” Julia could feel the heat burning all the way up the top of her chest that the riding habit didn’t cover.
“Oh that,” Margie snorted. “That’s nothing. Harold really likes to spank too, and he loves to tie me up.”
“What?” Julia nearly dropped the doll Maggie handed her.
“Nothing horrible,” Margie said with a soft blush to her freckled cheeks. “He ties me to the bed and makes love to me. It’s really very erotic and I love how I can’t resist him. It makes orgasms much harder not being able to touch him.”
Julia thought about last night and frowned; Daniel held her hands above her head as he made love to her; did that mean he wanted to tie her up as well?
“Stop worrying,” Margie said, laying Harrison across her shoulder to pat his back. “It’s fun and I know Daniel won’t hurt you; it’s not his nature. But he does have an overwhelming sexual appetite.”
“How would you know?” Julia frowned again, causing the woman to laugh.
“We’ve been friends for five years; I’ve seen him with more women than I can count.” Seeing the expression of horror, shock and jealously cross her friend’s face, made Margie laugh.
“You didn’t think he was a virgin, did you? He had to learn how to do all those wonderful, wicked things to you from someplace. Just think of his past as a time for learning. Because of
those women, he knows what excites you and how to please you.”
“But am I enough for him?” Julia asked, more to herself than the woman across from her.
“Of course you are,” Margie insisted. “That’s one reason men like Daniel and Harold take virgins as wives; they can teach us to satisfy them the way they like and in exchange, we get to have fun.”
“Isn’t it illegal to have sex the way they want?”
“Who’s to tell? Besides, I didn’t invite anyone into our bed to witness our love making and neither did Harold. What goes on between a husband and wife in the privacy of their own room, should stay between them…except for best friends. We have to support each other and suggest new ideas to keep our men interested.”
“Do you like playing?” Julia asked as she slipped her bottom lip between her teeth.
“I love it, and you will too, just give the man a chance. He’ll teach you all sorts of perverted ideas to keep you coming.” Julia’s blush returned as Margie laughed. Somehow, Daniel’s wicked ideas didn’t seem so bad after discussing them with her friend and she was eager to see what it was Daniel wanted to do and how far she would go to please him.
Chapter Twenty
Daniel found his office pretty much as he had left it, except for Anna straightening his desk. He sat down in the large leather chair behind the massive oak desk and sighed. He hadn't realized just how much he'd missed this place. The window looking out on the world, the three plants hanging in the corners, the book shelves filled with years of facts and advice, all added up to a part of his heart he'd never be able to surrender completely. He smiled, realizing just how small a part this side of his life had become since he met and married Julia.
He thought about the anxiety he had felt about meeting her, about all Victor had told him about her. He even thought about how stubborn he felt about the land Victor swore his children would never want. Then the vision of emerald eyes and long flowing hair came to his mind and he smiled; three years ago when Victor told him about Julia, he found a craving that no other woman could satisfy; though he did try. He wanted to meet her, to explore her and to see if he could make her want to share the land with him, but once he met her the urgency became all the more real.
By God, she was the most beautiful woman he had ever met. He hadn't realized the first time he held her in his arms, just how endearing she would become to him or just how much he would come to treasure her. He wanted to make her his lover longer than he even knew her, but as his wife he’d found her a larger part of his world than just he ever imagined. She was his heart, his life, she was the reason he was living.
The door to his office opened and the stalky frame of his longtime friend and partner walked in. Harold didn't say anything as he slowly stalked the length of the room. He stared at the man behind the desk, frowning slightly. Daniel knew that look and he braced himself for one hell of a ribbing. Harold leaned his hands on the top of the desk, his face straight and stern. Daniel leaned back in the chair, hands across his chest, just staring at the man. They paired off, looking as though they had met head on in the field of battle.
"Browning, isn't it?" Harold said in a serious quiet drawl, echoing like symphonic music in the quiet room.
"You want the office down the hall," Daniel replied, his tone level and serious. "My name's Lincoln, but you may call me Abe."
"Okay Abe, be honest; is she worth avoiding the White House for?"
"I'd walk back to Illinois in ten feet of snow for her."
"Then I guess asking how you've been doing isn't necessary, huh?"
"Only if you really want to know?" Daniel chuckled.
"Naw, I'll just accept that content glow on your face as exhibit A." Harold straightened up from his partner's desk and smiled. "It's been awful boring around here without you pal."
"I wish I could say the same, but as it happens I've barely had two minutes to sit on the pot."
"Sounds like the little wife's been keeping you busy?"
"I wish she was. Fact is, I've been learning all the interesting aspect of sawing, measuring, hammering and chopping; can't wait to get back to work." The two men laughed leaning across the desk, shaking hands before Harold took the seat opposite his partner. It seemed an eternity since they'd had the chance to just talk, much less tease each other. The last two times they had met it was brief and the discussion of work consumed their time.
"So, how's the little wife really doing? Recovering from the accident alright?"
"She's great thanks; as a matter of fact she's with your wife at the moment. Probably exchanging all sorts of nasty tails, which reminds me," Daniel leaned forward placing his elbows on the desk in front of him and leveling the other man one of his best serious lawyer looks, as Harold liked to call it. "Did you know your wife came by the ranch yesterday?"
"Yes she told me. Why?"
"Did she also tell you, she gave Julia some womanly advice?"
"Oh no, what did she say?"
"I don't know all the details, Julia's still considerably shy. But if walking into my bedroom to find my wife in a see-through nightgown, a bottle of imported wine and the smell of cologne don’t tell you, than I think you've been sleeping with the wrong woman."
"She didn't?"
"Oh yes she did and the best thing is...it worked."
"So the truce is off, huh?"
"You could say that. I found out just how recovered my wife really is."
"Doesn't sound as though Margie did all that much harm."
"Not really," Daniel admitted with a smile. "Fact is, I'm indebted to her. She helped Julia look past her fears and sent her running head long into my arms. I don't think I'm going to hold a grudge."
"So, what do you want me to do? Tie Margie to my bed and torture her until she’s too sore to ride a horse?"
"That's up to you, but just for the record, Councilor, your wife is alone with my wife and I’m quite certain she’s giving her more advice."
“Have you introduced her to your alter ego yet?” Harold smiled, thinking about what his wife really was talking to Julia about.
“She’s a naive, innocent virgin; at least she was until last night. I plan on weaning her into the deviance slowly.” The two men talked on for a little longer before settling down to business. Daniel finished reviewing the papers that had brought him into the office before sitting back to relax.
Four hours passed since he had dropped Julia off at Margie's and he still found himself thinking about her. The smell of her soap lingered on his jacket, making serious concentration impossible. With the papers out of the way and the postal boy dispatched with the forms for his client to sign, Daniel was free to work on other things. He went in search of Harold; finding him where he knew he would be; engrossed in a stack of files and papers of his own.
Harold hated paperwork and since Daniel was too busy at the ranch to offer aide and Anna had taken time off to get married, he was faced with the unpleasant task of managing the bills, correspondents and publications himself.
Daniel and Harold ran one of the more successful law firms in the western portion of the state. Their clientele went as far East as Lexington and as far south as Shelby Tennessee, which meant there was always a lot of work and papers to sort through every day. Daniel knew the look of frustration on his friend’s face and the headache that went along with doing the work alone. He, himself, had managed to struggle through when Maggie was born for nearly a full month without Harold, but at least Anna had been there to help. Daniel had, at one time, felt so acquainted with it the pain he even named it Sam, in honor of Samuel Freeman Miller; associate justice of the United States Supreme court and a personal idol of Daniel's.
"Hey, got a minute to talk?" he asked, heading over to the desk. The feeling of guilt for putting his partner through all of this was eating as his gut, but he couldn’t help it; it was impossible to be in two places at once.
"Hell, I could take a week off and never miss this shit. What's up?" Daniel chuckled
lightly, sitting down across from the man.
"I need your help."
“Well, that’s a first; usually it’s I who come to you for help. Please tell me it doesn’t have to do with papers?” Harold frowned. “I've got enough of my own, since I don't seem to have a partner to help out anymore."
"I’m sorry I’ve been so distant lately; I promise, once the sale is over, I’ll be back to work.”
“So what can I do for you?”
“I need you to tell me if I'm going crazy or not."
"What the hell's that supposed to mean?" Harold snorted in amusement.
"There have been some things bugging me since Julia returned to Kentucky. It started with the attack on her the day her father was buried, then the snake in her wash closet the next day."
"Snake, what snake? You never told me about a snake."
"The day after Victor's funeral, the day after she supposedly fell in the library, she found a garter snake under the tub in her wash closet. It wasn't dangerous and it couldn't have done more than scare the hell out of her, which it did, but I don't believe it got in the house by accident, especially up a flight of stairs. After that everything seemed to be quiet for a while until the night she nearly drowned. No sooner did she recover from that than the stables caught on fire.
“Rally Overton found several bottles with rags stuffed in them; a sort of homemade incendiary device. The fire was deliberate, Harold. She could have easily been killed and what's worse, I think it was intended to scare her off, at the very least."
"Why do you say that? I mean it could have been aimed at Victor Turner himself. Perhaps some family member or hired hand who felt he deserved more than he got."
"I considered that until the night of Julia's accident at the swimming hole. Overton introduced me to a man in need of a job. With the sales coming near, I didn’t object; we could use all the hands we can get. Problem is, I know I've seen him someplace before, I just can't figure out where and he goes by the name Dourn. The name isn't familiar in the least and Julia swears she knows him too. She also relates him to the swimming hole, which he seems to know quite a bit about. Neither of us can figure out where we know him from though."