An enormous grin spread over his friend's face. "That's great! I know you'll be a gentleman, of course."
"Of course," Douglas agreed. "I want to speak to you about it first and get your blessing, but I also wanted to know if you had any plans for us this Friday night? If not, I'll ask her out for then."
"Free and clear, my friend." Even if it hadn't been, he would have cancelled dinner with Ike and Mamie so that his friend could go on a date with his sister. He thought they'd be a great match—if Ia would just straighten up and fly right. She was never outright discourteous to their guest, but even he'd noticed that she was far from her usual friendly self toward Douglas, and not knowing any different, he could only attribute some of that to her residual anger at him.
Having gotten the answers that he wanted, Douglas left then, and Daniel didn't waste time in calling Taffy to let her know.
Her reaction was less than overwhelming.
"How do you know that?"
"Because he was just in here, asking my permission to do so, which I gave him, of course."
"Oh."
"Oh? A rich, English aristocrat wants to date her, and that's a bad thing?"
Taffy sounded surprised. "He's an aristocrat?"
"Aren't they all over there?" Daniel replied glibly, hoping she wouldn't push the point any further.
He heard her sigh. "I don't know, Daniel. I don't think she likes him."
"No, she doesn't like me. What could she possibly have against Douglas? They just met! And he didn't spank her." Yet he acknowledged to himself, although that was a done deal if they got married, which Daniel thought would be the best thing for his little sister. She needed someone who would keep her in line.
"Well, all he can do is ask, I guess."
She sounded so doubtful, so unenthusiastic, that, as much as he didn't like doing it, Daniel pushed her a bit in a way he never had before about any man in regards to his sister. "Maybe you could tell her that you think it would be a great idea? You know I'd say it to her myself, but she isn't speaking to me even more now than she wasn't speaking to me before. And if I tell her that I like the idea of her dating him, she's going to do the exact opposite just to spite me."
"Maybe you should tell her that you don't think it would be a good idea at all—reverse psychology, you know."
"And that would be the one time she took my advice. The bald fact of the matter is that she trusts you more than she trusts me. So, will you please encourage her toward Douglas?"
"Yeah, I guess so."
"That's my girl," he praised in the tone he reserved for when they were alone in their bedroom.
"Stop! We're on the phone! You can't say things like that to me on the phone, Daniel!" She giggled.
"What? That's perfectly innocent. I didn't say anything dirty; I gave you a compliment. Can't a man compliment his wife?"
"Not like that, no," she demurred coyly.
"I love you, Mrs. Baldwin."
"I love you, Mr. Baldwin."
"We won't be late tonight."
"Good, 'cause I made your favorite."
"I knew you would." He chuckled. Everything she made was his favorite. "See you later."
"Bye!"
Taffy sat there in front of the phone for a long moment, biting her lip, trying to decide what to do. Should she call Ia at work—where she wasn't supposed to be receiving phone calls, since she was on the teller line—or should she wait until she got home, at which point it was likely that Taffy would have to tell her when Mr. Martin—Douglas, he'd insisted they call him—was not twenty feet away from them.
"Hello? May I speak to Miss Baldwin, please? Miss Ia Baldwin. It's her sister-in-law."
"I'll have to see whether or not she's with a customer. Please hold."
It took a few minutes, but Taffy was patient.
"Taffy! Oh, my word, is everything all right? Did something happen to you or Daniel?" Even though it was years ago now, Ia didn't think she could take it if another person she loved died.
"No, no, I'm sorry. I know I'm only supposed to call you in an emergency situation, and this is, sort of—but not that kind."
Ia's heart left her throat at the news that everyone was okay. What kind of emergency could she possibly be referring to? Taffy had a tendency to ramble, and she didn't have time for that. Her sister-in-law had never held a job in her life, so she had no concept of bosses and customers. "What is it?"
"I just wanted to give you a heads-up."
Ia frowned. "About what?" she asked, eyes flickering to the head teller, Peggy Johnson, who was frowning at her, for being on the phone when there were customers in line.
"Daniel told me that Douglas—"
Now Peggy was headed her way, no doubt to hurry her off the phone.
"I'm sorry, Taffy, but as long as no one is bleeding, on fire, dead, or dying, I've got to go."
The dial tone buzzed loudly in Taffy's ear.
"That went well," she commented sarcastically to herself out loud while she stood alone in her kitchen. Now she had to hope that Ia got home earlier than the men, so that she could let her know what to expect.
Of course, the one time she actually cared when everyone got home, hoping that she might get some time before everyone else got home to talk to her, Ia arrived at the same time the men did. Dinner was pretty much ready, so Taffy got the men drinks, then she intended to catch Ia in her room before she put it on the table. But the other woman was on the phone to a friend who was a coworker, who seemed to be having a problem at the bank, and Ia was in the midst of consoling her about it.
Taffy made motions like she needed to talk to her, but Ia kept brushing her off, and Taffy finally gave up. Whatever happened, happened. If she was a betting person, she'd lay odds that Ia was going to turn him down flat, but she could be wrong. After all, she didn't think that Ia had ever been out on a date. She knew the other woman hadn't, at least not since she'd married into the family. Maybe Ia would feel that she shouldn't look a gift Englishman in the mouth.
When she finally got off the phone, she saw that everything was already done and that Taffy had been waiting for her call to end before she told the men to come to dinner. Ia apologized to Taffy for not helping, but Sally Longmire was a ditz, and her drawer hadn't come out right that evening for the third time this month. Chances were, she wasn't long for that job. Management didn't look kindly at the idea of its tellers coming up short or over, and as sympathetic as she tried to be, there wasn't much that Ia could say to her besides pay more attention, and don't do that again.
It was an uneventful meal, and soon enough, she and Taffy were clearing the table and washing the dishes.
"You don't have to do this, Taffy. I didn't help at all getting dinner ready. If you want to get off your feet and go sit in the living room, you're welcome to."
"I'm fine helping get these done," she replied, looking around them a bit furtively, hoping to find a time to tell Ia what Daniel wanted her to know.
But just as the last dish was dried and she was reaching up to put it into the cabinet, figuring it was now or never, Taffy opened her mouth to talk to Ia, and Douglas came into the kitchen, making her close it again.
He walked right up to the younger woman, who was taking off her apron, and said, "I have something I'd like to ask you, Ia."
Taffy, who was standing behind Douglas, immediately began acting as if they were playing Charades, obviously trying to signal something to her with hand gestures and by exaggeratedly mouthing words.
Ia had no idea what she was trying to say.
Douglas turned suddenly to look somewhat pointedly at Taffy, and she had to put her arms down and close her mouth quickly, hoping he hadn't seen her looking like an idiot.
Finally getting the hint after a moment of awkward silence, Taffy announced, "I think I'll go see what Daniel's doing in the living room." Darn! She'd missed her chance!
She walked slowly, reluctantly from the room, leaving the two of them alone.
&nbs
p; Douglas turned back to Ia, wearing a pleasant smile, and plunged right in, "I hope you don't think I'm too forward in doing this, Ia, since we've really just met. But I've heard so much about you from your brother that I really feel as if I already know you. So, I wanted to ask you if you'd like to go out to dinner with me Friday evening?"
The sincere surprise in her eyes disappointed him, letting him know that she hadn't even considered the possibility that he might ask, whereas he'd been thinking about her and how much he wanted to get to know her better a lot of the time since he'd met her.
While she stood there in no small amount of shock, Ia realized that this was what Taffy had called her about, and very probably what her impromptu—if somewhat bizarre—motions were when he'd first come into the kitchen. She was trying to let her know that Douglas was going to ask her out.
Darn. She wished she'd gotten that warning—then she wouldn't have been standing there like an idiot in front of him, wondering what to say. Her first impulse was to turn him down, but perhaps what Taffy hadn't gotten to say was something about not making waves with him, in regards to his business dealings with her brother. She didn't want her not going out with him to have a negative effect on Daniel's company, although she wasn't at all sure that was the situation.
And none of that was taking into consideration the fact that her body was doing those strange things it seemed to do around him again. Her nipples were peaked and aching within the confines of her bullet bra, she was suddenly sweaty and clammy, and her heart was racing. What was going on with her? She'd never reacted this way to anyone before! All of this was running through her head, helter-skelter, as she stood there silently for a long moment.
Douglas was quite sure that, since she was taking so long to answer him, she was going to say no.
"Would you mind if I took a day to think about that?" she asked, hoping she wasn't offending him by merely asking.
That response was neither what he expected, nor what he wanted, but it was better than an outright refusal, he supposed. "Certainly. Take all the time you like," he said, lifting her hand to his lips to kiss the back of it, she thought, but instead, he turned it over and kissed her palm, instead.
It might not have been the right move, but it was what he wanted to do. He wanted to shake her up a bit, out of her poutiness toward him—and her brother. But him first.
Her request was an unusual one for him. He couldn't remember a time when any woman had ever turned him down, and he knew that none had asked him for time to think about it. It was on the tip of his tongue to withdraw the offer, but he refrained from doing that. He wasn't a petty man, and that would have made him look insecure, when he wasn't. But he really wanted to date her. At least there was a chance that she'd say yes, and that was better than none. And he could be a patient man, certain that she would be well worth the wait.
He left before she could do what she wanted to and snatch her hand away from him as if he'd bitten it. If he hoped to impress her or entice her somehow by doing that, he was gravely mistaken. It wasn't offensive behavior, but it was borderline, as far as she was concerned
Ia rubbed the palm he kissed with the fingers of her other hand. For some reason, the spot his lips had touched—dead center—was tingling in an annoying fashion that she couldn't get to stop. And it was such an intimate thing to do, somehow, that it bothered her.
It was fresh. That was it. He was being fresh with her, and she didn't like it one bit. That was his second strike, in her book. Ia knew that the Brits didn't play baseball, but he'd better learn a bit about it because he was well on his way to striking out entirely with her.
She dawdled in the kitchen, half expecting Taffy to reappear to ask how it went, but she didn't. When she'd finished and the kitchen was put to rights, Ia said goodnight on her way to her bedroom. Not long after she'd gotten into her nightgown, she heard a knock at her door.
"Come in, Taffy."
The older woman didn't comment on Ia's prescience as she closed the door behind her, then joined Ia on her twin bed.
"Well? Did he ask you?"
"So that was what you were trying to warn me about!"
"Definitely! Daniel called me just before I called you."
Ia frowned. "Why would Daniel call you about Douglas asking me out?"
Taffy tsked at her. "Because Douglas did the old fashioned—or maybe the British—thing and asked his permission to ask you out. I bet he made a lot of points with Daniel for doing it, too. And Daniel gave his permission."
"Huh." Ia didn't seem interested in saying much more, but Taffy was dying to know what happened.
"So? Did he ask?"
"Yes, he did."
"C'mon, Ia, this is like pulling teeth. What did you say?"
"I told him that I wanted to take a day to think about it."
Taffy craned her head back, giving Ia a sidelong glance. "You did? Why? Because you don't want to go out with him?"
"No, I don't."
"Why not, if you don't mind my asking?"
Ia shrugged. "He's…I don't know. He's looks at me like I'm—I don't know—a-a goddess or something, which is patently ridiculous."
Taffy ignored Ia's tendency to put herself down. "Well, that's good, isn't it?"
"It makes me feel very uncomfortable to be looked at that way." She could feel her face becoming hot. "And jeez, Taffy, the man saw me in my nightgown and not much more, and I know that he knows that I—that we both were—being spanked while he was sitting outside on the deck, just after we'd been introduced!"
Looking somewhat alarmed, as if that had never occurred to her when, indeed, it hadn't, Taffy asked, "How do you know that?"
Ia was not about to get into detail about that. "I just do, is all. Trust me." She stretched out horizontally across the bed. "And he's just so—I don't know—British, I guess. He's all reserved and ultra-courteous, but sometimes I've caught him looking at me like he wants to devour me or something. And when he asks me a question, it's like there's no one else in the world but me, for him, and he's just hanging on my every word. It's disconcerting and disturbing."
But Taffy was smiling. "Wow, I never noticed any of that. He's really hot for you!"
Ia rolled her eyes. "If that's what you want to call it."
"Daniel likes him a lot."
"Well, then let Daniel date him," she replied sarcastically.
Taffy giggled at that idea. "I don't think they'd be a very good match, but he thinks you two would be."
"Uh huh."
A thought came to Taffy at that moment. "Well, I'm sure Daniel doesn't want you to keep dating him if you really hate him, but one date isn't going to kill you, is it?"
Ia's "I suppose not" was entirely unenthusiastic.
"And it's going to get pretty awkward around here—to say nothing of at work for Daniel—if you turn him down."
"Argh!" Ia groaned, hugging her pillow and falling face forward onto the bed.
"If it helps, Daniel says that he's no slouch money-wise. Might even be Sir Douglas Martin or something like that."
"Well, bully for him."
Taffy's lips were pursed together. "That's what I thought you'd say." She got up and went to the door, turning around to say as she left, "But I'm sure you wouldn't want to be the cause of him reconsidering his partnership with Daniel just over one measly date, would you?"
"You are not helping me, Taffy."
"Yes, I am," she said, closing the door behind her.
Ia didn't sleep very well that night, for thinking about the problem of Douglas asking her out. She didn't want to go on a date with him. It was bad enough being around him when there were others there. She didn't want a repeat of what had happened in the middle of the night, where he definitely had overstepped his bounds.
And she didn't like how her body reacted to him at all—as if he knew it better than she did and it was following his commands! She would swear that her palm was still tingling! Apparently, her dislike of redheads didn't extend to
men with hair the color of a reddish mahogany, who had no discernable freckles and didn't seem to possess the famous redheaded temper, either, that she could tell.
She absolutely hated the idea that he knew she was still spanked by her brother. If she and Taffy hadn't had that party, and she had met Douglas without him having acquired such knowledge, she might well be attracted to him.
But he knew too much for her to feel at ease around him. He was a stranger who had been privy to very intimate, highly embarrassing details about her life, and she didn't like that at all. How could he possibly be interested in her when he knew that brother still treated her like a child?
Then there was the problem of Daniel and not wanting to be the cause of anything bad happening in that regard, if she should decide not to accept his offer.
Chapter 5
Ia felt like the weight of the world was on her, and she looked it the next morning.
"Oh, honey, you don't look at all well," were the first words anyone said to her. It was Taffy, of course. She immediately got all motherly, stopping her from going into the kitchen with a hand on her forehead. "Well, you don't seem to have a fever."
"No, I don't. I just didn't sleep well last night, and I woke up with a bad headache."
"Well, you should go take some—"
But before Taffy could finish her sentence, Douglas had come over and taken Ia by the hand, guiding her over to the dining room table. "You just sit right there, Ia. I'll bring your breakfast and a couple of aspirin."
He left before she could say yea or nay, so she sank down into the chair. Who was she to tell him that he couldn't wait on her?
When he reappeared, Douglas had her bacon and eggs, black coffee, as well as juice glasses of both orange juice—which she didn't usually have in the morning—and water, along with two aspirin.
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