When she passed the tavern where he’d left Hades tied up, he quickly retrieved the stallion and mounted. He had no idea if Dom and Gaspar were still inside but he didn’t have the time to enter and see.
He caught up to her and reined the horse to a walk. “Good evening, Miss Kingston.”
Faith startled and looked over with surprise to see Nicholas Grey. “Mr. Grey. What are you doing here?” She pulled in a breath to calm herself. His unexpected appearance had been frightening.
“I could ask you the same question. You didn’t mention coming into town.”
Her wits now in hand, she tossed back, “Neither did you.”
“Are you on your way home?”
Faith wondered if he’d seen her leave the inn and had been following her the entire time. She prayed she’d not have to explain herself. “I am. My mare is just up the street.”
“Then let me ride you there. It isn’t safe for a woman to be out this late.”
“That isn’t necessary.”
“I insist.”
Faith could tell by his tone that he wouldn’t be taking no for an answer, and the longer she stood here debating the matter with him, the longer it would take her to return home. “Then I will avail myself of your generosity.”
He leaned down and before she could blink, his hands were around her waist and she was being lifted into the air. She came to rest in front of him. The warmth of his hands and the heat of his body pressing against her were enough to make her swoon.
“Hold on to me, so that you don’t fall.”
Faith looked up into his strong face. She’d never ridden with a man this way. It was both intimate and overwhelming. However, she didn’t want to fall, so she complied but attempted to keep their bodies separated.
“You’ll have to lean back a bit so that I can see ahead.”
She got the sense that he was amused by her plight, but she had no choice but to comply and hoped he would be a gentleman. When his arm circled her and eased her closer to make certain she was secure, she was startled by it, but before she could react further, he urged the horse forward and set it on a slow pace.
“What are you doing out so late?”
“I had bread to deliver. And you?” she added quickly to keep him from quizzing her further.
“I was at a tavern with friends when I saw you walk past the window.”
Faith would have preferred the horse move faster so that this unsettling encounter might end sooner, but Grey seemed intent upon this slow pace. “I really need to get to my mare and home, Mr. Grey.”
“I think we’ve known each other long enough for you to refrain from calling me Mr. Grey, don’t you?”
Faith had no response for that. She was too befuddled by the close positioning of their bodies, the gentle strength in the arm encircling her, and how she felt being held against the soft wool of his coat.
He peered down at her face in the darkness. “No?”
“I—I don’t know.” It was hard to think. She’d already acknowledged how much he affected her. Addressing him by his given name would remove one of the barriers she needed to keep herself aloof when he was near, not that any barriers seemed to have worked thus far.
“How about this? In public you may be formal, but when it is just you and I, I’d like you to call me Nick.”
She couldn’t think of a reason to deny the request so she agreed. “I suppose that would be all right.”
“Thank you.”
Faith was glad for the late hour. More than likely anyone who knew her wouldn’t be out and about and report the sighting of her and Nicholas to her father. Had she happened on to an acquaintance while on the way to Hancock, the bread delivery would have offered a sufficient explanation. However, no explanation would be sufficient enough to cover her present situation.
She was been ridden through the dark streets of Boston by a man so totally out of her sphere, she was shaking with nervous reaction because she couldn’t turn her mind or her senses away from how close she was being held against him. Every inch of her body could feel every inch of his and the pleasure it gave her wasn’t anything a good woman should admit, even as she imagined what it might be like if he were her intended. Were that the case, she could savor their closeness and the faint spicy scent of his cologne and melt against his hard but comforting chest and not be expected to maintain her distance as she was unsuccessfully attempting to do now. What would his kisses be like? she wondered. The breezy, starry night seemed perfect for a lovers’ tryst. Appalled by the direction her thoughts had taken, she dragged her mind back to saner realms, and again hoped they’d reach her horse soon.
They finally came upon the church, and as he brought the horse to a halt, she tried to straighten up but his arm kept her in place.
“I’ll ride beside you to make certain you arrive home safe.”
“But—”
He reached down and tenderly raised her chin. “No buts.”
And then he kissed her.
Faith felt the sweetness pour into her with so much force that she would have melted down the horse’s flanks had his arm not been holding her secure. The kiss was so wonderful and so unlike anything she’d ever experienced that all she could do was surrender to the tantalizing lure of his masterful lips against her untutored own. Her virgin mouth answered him hesitantly at first; enjoying the tastes and textures, letting herself be swept away by the swell of pleasure until her shyness took flight and was replaced by an age-old knowing of the woman awakening inside. His lips brushed against her cheek and she shimmered in response as they traveled up her jaw before settling possessively against her mouth once more. She couldn’t breathe or think. The sensations sparked by this interlude were creating a storm.
“Nick,” she rasped in a strangled voice. “We must stop,” but she didn’t want him to. He was gifting her with short, heated presses of his lips, punctuating them with lazy strokes of his flame-tipped tongue against her mouth’s parted corners and she had to stop this or die.
“Please,” she pleaded, and drew away. She was breathless. Trying to find herself in the haze around her, she looked up into his handsome face and saw the glitter of his eyes in the moonlight.
Nick was totally enthralled. Back at the tavern, Dominic had termed him doomed and Nick thought maybe his old friend was right. He wanted to hold her against him this way until the oceans went dry. He didn’t care about the feud between their fathers, their difference in class, or what she’d really been doing tonight, all he wanted to do was to ride away with her and never let her go, but because reality dictated otherwise, the fulfillment of his fantasies would have to be set aside, for now. He slowly traced her trembling mouth one last time, kissed her passionately, and set her back down on the ground. The slight wobble she showed as she walked over to her old mare made him smile. Apparently he wasn’t the only one enthralled, and the male in him was pleased at that. He’d tasted passion in the mysterious Miss Kingston, and he planned to taste much more.
On the ride out of Boston, Faith did her best to act as if his kisses hadn’t sent her over the moon but it was difficult. Each and every time she glanced at him riding beside her, the memories returned and her senses sent him a silent call that begged response. Her mind pointed out how disastrous being attracted to him could be. After all, he was set upon discovering Lady Midnight, and who knew what his plans for her might be. On the other hand, revealing herself might offer the closure he was after, but at what price to her? Again, she didn’t really know anything about him. As she mused earlier, even though he appeared to be supporting the rebels, there was the distinct possibility that he could be a British double agent, and she had no desire to be so befuddled by his kisses that she wound up with a noose around her neck. Lady Midnight was relieved that he hadn’t attempted to kiss her again, while Faith wished he would. Both of her personas were facing a double-edged sword with blades capable of inflicting a life-altering cut.
Nicholas glanced over at the ploddin
g sorry excuse for a horse she was riding and was pleased she didn’t have a horse of Hades’ caliber, otherwise the journey would have ended sooner than he wanted. Although she’d yet to utter a word, he was enjoying her company just the same. The sweetness of her continued to resonate within, and as he noted earlier, he craved more. “Do you often make late night deliveries?”
“Only when necessary.”
“Does your father know you’re out?”
“No, because he wouldn’t approve of me trying to accumulate a bit of extra income.” And that was the truth, even if it was told within the context of a lie.
“It isn’t safe.”
She didn’t respond.
“The next time you need to do this, will you let me know so that I may accompany you?”
“I’m not in need of a keeper, Mr.— I mean, Nicholas.”
“I believe you are.”
“Not every woman needs a man about in order to conduct her business.”
“True, however I am not talking about every woman. It’s you I’m concerned with.”
“I appreciate that, but I can assure you I will not be asking for your escort when none is necessary.”
“You’re a very stubborn woman.”
“On that we can agree.”
Nick took a chance. “So, what else was in that sack?”
“Sack?”
“The one you had the bread in.”
She halted the horse and spun on him accusingly. “You followed me?”
“And watched you with the soldiers.”
“Your spying is becoming quite tiresome.”
“No more tiresome than chasing around after you in the dark.”
“You are no gentleman.”
“Agreed.”
She kicked her mount into motion again and he and Hades matched the pace.
After a few moments of silence, she stated, “If you must know, there was nothing in the sack but loaves of bread, and I’d appreciate you staying out of my business.”
“But you liked my kisses.”
“We are not talking about that.”
“Did you?”
“Are you truly that conceited? In truth, I’ve had better.”
“Faith Kingston, you are such a liar,” he countered, laughing.
“You don’t know anything about my life.”
“I know it hasn’t included much kissing, if any at all.”
“Now you are an authority on me?”
He smiled. “You’re being awfully defensive.”
“Your questioning is offensive.”
“My apology.” Nick wasn’t put off by her show of claws. Her temper just made him want to drag her back onto his lap and kiss her until she melted again. “Who lives in that house?”
“What house?”
“Where you delivered the bread.”
“Why are you being so nosey?”
He met her eyes. “I’m a nosey man.”
“On that we agree.”
“All right. I’ll cease my questions.”
“Thank the heavens.”
He grinned.
Faith drew in a mental sigh of relief and hoped he was being truthful. She was floored knowing he had followed her and seen her interacting with the soldiers. She also felt as if he were toying with her. Did he already know she was Lady Midnight? She couldn’t wait for her home to come into view so she could escape his questioning and her body’s desire for more of his kisses. Susie was old and slow, however, so it took some time.
Arriving at the inn filled her with great relief.
He asked, “I suppose you plan to enter via the window?”
“Yes.”
They were astride their mounts and hidden by the stand of trees that ran alongside the inn.
“Good night, Nicholas.”
Nick decided he liked having her address him by his full name. “Good night, Faith. No more running around in the dark.”
“I will see you Saturday.”
He smiled at her formal and distant tone. The way he’d been questioning her, he supposed he deserved no less. She would probably box his ears if he attempted to kiss her again, so he dampened the urge. “I assume you don’t need me to help stable the mare.”
“No, I don’t, but thank you for the offer.”
He nodded. “Saturday it is then, but let me know if your father proves difficult.”
“I will.”
That said, she turned the mare and headed off to the barn in the back of the inn. She could feel Nicholas’s amused gaze follow her departure, but she forced herself not to look back at him.
Chapter 8
In the days that followed, tensions increased in Boston and the surrounding countryside. Rumors were rife. The number of daily skirmishes and rock-throwing confrontations between the troops and the citizens escalated. In the taverns and pubs favored by rebel supporters, word was that arms were being amassed and stored under direction of the Committees of Correspondence, the official governing body of the colonies in revolt, and that if the British wanted a fight, they’d get one. The air was fraught with anticipation, and everywhere one went there were whispers.
The rising tension showed itself in the increased British patrols. They were on the road day and night. Faith watched them from the front porch on the inn whenever she was outside. As always, they were looking for weapons caches. According to her father and his Tory friends, the soldiers did find a few, but for every one discovered another three or four went undetected, hidden in the lofts of barns, the bell towers of churches, and underground in cellars and holes dug in the middle of mud-filled fields. From Boston to Concord, to Lexington, Cambridge and back, the Massachusetts Bay Colony prepared for war.
During Friday’s supper, Faith looked over at her father and asked, “Do you think there will be war?”
“Rebels are making it hard for the crown not to do something with all this civil disobedience and storing weapons. When Gage acts, there’ll be many dead colonists simply because men like Hancock, Jefferson, and that hothead Patrick Henry refuse to accept the policies of the King. I’m thinking of moving us to New York. The crown is strong there.”
It was the first time she’d heard mention of this and it took her as much by surprise as had his courting claim. “And what will become of the inn? I thought you planned to pass it on to your sons?”
“Will Case has expressed an interest if I decide to go.”
Case’s name made her snarl inwardly.
“All this upheaval has hurt business,” he said.
“It’s true business has been slow for months, but we are still above water.”
“Barely,” he noted. “Just barely.”
Faith had never lived anywhere else. She’d been born here; taken her first breath in her parents’ bedroom upstairs. It had never occurred to her that she might have to spend the rest of her days somewhere new. She wasn’t sure how she felt about such a possibility.
Her father looked up from his plate. “Enough about war and such for now. What do you know about this reception Widow Lawson is giving tomorrow?”
“It’s a gathering for Nicholas Grey. She asked if I would assist her with the food and he is going to pay me for my service.”
“How much?”
When she told him, his eyes grew large. “Where’s all this money of his come from?”
“I’ve no idea.”
“Well, since he’s paying you, I’ll give you my approval. Just make sure you serve the food and nothing else. Man like him, who knows what else he may expect for such a grand sum. And make sure you bring the money right home and place it in the safe.”
“Yes, Father. Are you planning to attend?”
“No, but Will Case said he may.”
“Why? I didn’t know he was a friend of the Grey family.”
“He isn’t. He’s hoping to interest Grey in a business proposition.”
“I see.” Nicholas Grey didn’t impress her as being partial to blowhards. “The
widow asked if I could arrive as early as possible, so I’ll leave here at sunrise.”
“Keep to the main road where the patrols are.”
“I will.”
He met her eyes for a long moment as if he had something else he wanted to say, so she asked, “Yes?”
“You need a husband, Faith.”
“Father, must we keep beating this horse? I’m way past the age of being desirable or submissive.”
“You have to secure your future.”
“My future is here, at this inn.”
“Not if I sell.”
“It can be, if you sell it to me.”
He sighed and shook his head. “No.”
“There are women business owners.”
“True, but you can’t match or top what Case has offered.”
She went still. “You’ve already discussed price with him?”
He nodded.
“I understand that you didn’t have to consult me, but you might have.”
“To what end? You have no money or collateral.”
“I have Mother’s funds.”
He looked away.
Holding on to her rising alarm she asked, “The funds are still in the bank in London, aren’t they?”
He shook his head and said quietly, “No. It’s what we’ve been living on for the past year.”
“But what about the money you’ve had me putting in the safe each month?”
“That’s where it comes from. I had the full amount transferred here to Boston and have been doling it out a bit at a time.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because there was no need.”
Faith wanted to scream at him about the unfairness of his actions. That was how she’d planned to secure her future once he passed on. “And how much is left? If it’s not being disrespectful to ask.”
“It is,” he replied pointedly. “However, so that you’ll know, only a small portion remains, but thanks to the general’s recent generosity, we’ve enough to get by until late spring.”
Faith was stunned. Late spring would be here soon. “And this is why you want to sell to Case?”
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