Tender Torment

by Jane Archer

  He nodded, thinking that women never traveled light even when they thought they did.

  "You can unload, men," Lieutenant Blake said, eyeing Lamar Jarmon uneasily. Turning toward Alexandra, he said, "You realize there won't be any women here, except a Mexican or Indian perhaps. Are you sure you want to stay?"

  She glanced at him, her eyes darkening. "Yes, I'm sure."

  She was more determined than ever since these men were so sure she couldn't survive. After what she'd been through and what she'd learned, she could do just as well as any man. Texas, a place for men only! She'd show them!

  Alexandra watched silently as the soldiers dismounted. There were only two large valises and one smaller one, but all three men assisted. They carried the bags up to the hacienda. There they waited, unsure if they should enter. They'd not been welcome in the Rebels' homes before and they doubted if this man would want them to go inside. Lieutenant Blake noticed their hesitancy and cursed to himself. The damn Rebels were so proud, as if they were better than the Northerners. Well, the North had won the war and proved just who was supreme, but the South couldn't seem to understand, or accept that fact.

  "Take them in, men, out of the sun," Lieutenant Blake commanded sharply as he looked straight at Lamar Jarmon, daring him to object.

  But the man simply smiled insolently. "Surely you and your men would like a cool drink before continuing," he offered.

  Lieutenant Blake would liked to have refused, but he knew that the day would be long, hot and thirsty. For his men's sake, he couldn't turn down the invitation. "Indeed, yes. Thank you."

  Alexandra preceded the two men, noticing the difference between this country and the plantation she'd left behind. It was clean here and the heat seemed to sanitize everything so that it was continually fresh. She liked the dry air much better than the humid, sweltering heat of Louisiana. She passed under the high arch that formed a gate in the long adobe fence surrounding the hacienda.

  Inside, Alexandra was surprised to find that it was quite cool. The adobe seemed to keep out the heat, as well as the intense sunlight. The main room they entered was large and furnished sparsely with dark, massive furniture, elaborately carved in the Spanish style. There were brightly colored rugs and wall hangings on the floors and walls which she decided must be Mexican and Indian. She was fascinated as she looked about for it was all in such great contrast to her New York mansion, or the plantation. Everything that filled the room was utilitarian and a part of Texas culture. It was a man's home, a man's world. But she felt like it.

  "Please sit down, Alexandra, and gentlemen," Lamar Jarmon said graciously, waving in the direction of the chairs. His use of her first name startled Alexandra but she did not object; it made her feel more welcome.

  "No, thank you. We don't have the time," Lieutenant Blake said stiffly. "We must rejoin our company immediately."

  "Of course. I understand. One moment, please."

  Presently Lamar Jarmon was back, carrying a tray with glasses and bottles. "Help yourselves, gentlemen," he said as he set the tray down on a table. "I'll see that your horses are watered while you're drinking."

  Lieutenant Blake brought Alexandra a glass of water; she quickly drained the glass, feeling much refreshed. The lieutenant returned to her side, drinking thoughtfully as he watched her. If only he could be alone with her before leaving.

  He turned abruptly to his soldiers. "Men, if you're through, go see to your horses. We must be on our way."

  The surprised soldiers looked up quickly, downed their drinks and left.

  Turning to Alexandra, Lieutenant Blake said, "Stand up, Miss Alexandra."

  She looked at him in wonder, then did as he bid, suddenly not understanding the young lieutenant at all.

  "You won't forget me, will you, Alexandra?" he asked softly, taking her hands in his.

  "Of course not, Lieutenant Blake," she said.

  "Good. I could never forget you—Alexandra, never," he whispered as he drew her to him.

  Alexandra blanched, then turned red with anger. He was actually thinking of kissing her. Did he want payment for his escort?

  "Alexandra, will you give a soldier who adores you a goodbye kiss?" he asked, his eyes beseeching as he pulled her into the circle of his arms.

  She calmed her anger, as she once would not have been able to do, and smiled sweetly at him, letting herself go limp in his arms. Fighting would only make him more determined, she knew, as it had with the others. His kiss wouldn't last long, then he'd be gone from her life.

  Lieutenant Blake couldn't believe his luck. He grew bold, pulling her body close to his so that he could feel her firm breasts against his chest. God, she was an absolute angel. He touched her lips softly, found them yielding, then unable to control himself any longer, crushed her to him, his mouth hard on hers, his tongue plunging deep inside to taste her sweetness. He forgot everything in his complete absorption with the tantalizing woman—he'd never held a woman he wanted so much. And she wanted him. He could feel it.

  "Lieutenant!" a sharp, authoritative voice ripped through the silence of the room. "If you're through pawing the young lady, I suggest you leave. Your men are ready and Yankees aren't welcome on the Bar J."

  Lieutenant Blake jerked away from Alexandra. He turned around, frowning, and was surprised to hear the gasp that came from Alexandra and see the stunned look on the man facing them.

  "No! Oh, no," Alexandra cried, her eyes caught by two hard blue ones. "Jake!"

  "Indeed, Alex," he said, his face hard, his blue eyes turning slightly gray as they flicked over her quickly, then back to the lieutenant. "I must beg your pardon, sir. I didn't realize you were getting paid for escorting the woman here. I'll return when you're finished," Jake said coldly as he turned his back and began to walk from the room.

  "Oh, no, Jake," Alexandra cried, starting to run after him, but the lieutenant caught her just as Jake turned around.

  "You wanted something, Alex?"

  "I, I, you don't understand."

  "I understand what I saw. What I don't understand is what you're doing here at the Bar J."

  "I'm here to see Jacob Jarmon. What are you doing here?"

  The lieutenant looked from one to the other, confused. They seemed to know each other, but there was no liking between them, that was obvious. His hand tightened on Alexandra's waist possessively.

  Jake threw back his head and laughed, a harsh, mocking sound, then looked at Alexandra again, his eyes raking her body insolently.

  "See here, sir," Lieutenant Blake said, "You can't treat a lady like Miss Alexandra this way."

  "Lady! You call her a lady?" Jake asked, laughing derisively. "You two seem to be under a great delusion, but I've no intention of enlightening either one of you."

  "Well, I'm not staying here if you work here," Alexandra said sharply. "I'll just leave with the lieutenant now."

  "Oh?" Jake asked, his eyes turning opaque so that she could not read their expression. "But I thought you'd come to meet Jacob Jarmon?"

  She frowned in concentration. "Well, yes I did, but I never dreamed that you'd be here. What are you doing here anyway?" she asked angrily, hating the smug, cold way he regarded her.

  He grinned again, his eyes crinkling at the corners. "I live here, my dear Alexandra. I work here."

  "I don't believe it. Where's Lamar Jarmon? He'll straighten this out. You'll just have to leave!"

  "Me?" Jake laughed again.

  "Did someone ask for me?" Lamar Jarmon asked, stepping into the room. "I could hear your voices clear outside. What's going on? Your men are waiting, lieutenant."

  "I know, but there seems to be some sort of confusion here. Alexandra may return with me."

  "Oh?" Lamar asked. "What's the matter, Alexandra, the ranch too much already?"

  She flushed angrily. "What's that man doing here?" she asked, pointing to Jake.

  "Why, Alexandra, he lives here, of course."

  "Well, I won't stay here with him. You'll just d
ismiss him. There must be plenty of good hands. And a sea captain can't be much good on a ranch, anyway," she stated.

  "Dismiss Jake? Why?" Lamar asked quickly, looking at Jake's inscrutable face, then back at Alexandra. "What's going on here? You came all this way to see him and now you want him sent away. I don't understand, Alexandra." Women were always trouble, but this one was worse than most.

  "I didn't come all the way to see him. I came to see Jacob Jarmon, Eleanor's son," Alexandra said angrily.

  "But didn't he tell you? He is Jacob Jarmon."

  Alexandra stood there stunned, the silence almost overwhelming as her eyes locked with Jake's hard, unrelenting blue ones. She felt suddenly weak. Jake was Jacob Jarmon. He'd been in New Orleans. He'd been to the plantation just before her. He'd been going to Texas. Of course, it all made sense now. How could she have been so blind, so stupid?

  "I, I'll go," Alexandra said weakly. "I cannot stay here, not with him."

  "Of course you'll go," Lieutenant Blake said comfortingly, both his arms supporting Alexandra now. "This is no place for a lady like you."

  "Get your hands off her, lieutenant," Jake said in a deadly quiet voice, drawing his gun.

  He wouldn't let another man touch her. He couldn't, no matter how much he hated her. He wanted revenge and what better opportunity than now, with her here on his ranch? She wouldn't be used to this type of work, the little whore. And she'd even pawned herself off as a fine lady to this idiot lieutenant. But if the lieutenant touched her one second longer, he'd kill the man, Jake thought irrationally. Where this girl was concerned, he always lost his head and he was doing it once more. He was a fool and knew he was a fool, but still he wouldn't let another man touch her. He wouldn't let her go! No matter what she'd done, he wanted her just as badly as he had before. Damn her cheating little soul, he still wanted her.

  "Get out of here quickly, lieutenant, and don't ever come back. The lady came to us and she'll stay."

  Lieutenant Blake hesitated. He wanted Alexandra, but life was dear. He could read the deadly cold look on Jake's face; he knew the man would kill him if he didn't go. He would leave Alexandra now, but he'd not forget her, or this Jarmon quickly. Brownsville wasn't that faraway.

  The lieutenant stepped away from Alexandra, disentangling the hands that now clutched at him. He looked down into her desperate eyes and said, "The man's got a gun on me, Miss Alexandra. I can't take you with me."

  "But I don't want to stay. You can't just leave me."

  "I can't take you and the others can't come back for you. The men will never leave their wives for one girl who's changed her mind."

  "I'm going back with you. I won't stay!"

  "Step back, lieutenant," Jake said dangerously, keeping his gun trained on Lieutenant Blake as he walked over to Alexandra. Slipping his arm around her, he jerked her to his side. He hurt her and he knew it. He intended to hurt her and it wasn't the last pain she would feel from him either, he thought grimly. Her nearness brought back the familiar tightening in his loins. How could she have such a strong effect on him? He cursed his weakness.

  "Let me go, Jake," Alexandra hissed at the man who held her so tightly to him, so possessively. "I'll leave. I won't ever come back. Just let me go."

  "No," Jake said firmly, looking at the lieutenant as he motioned toward the door with his head, the gun steady in his hand.

  Alexandra struggled against his hard body, trying to break free. She had to escape! She couldn't stay here with this man—in the same house. "Let me go!" she hissed.

  Jake laughed shortly. "Be still, Alex, or I'll shoot the lieutenant now. Would you like that?"

  She stopped squirming instantly and looked up at his face in alarm. He meant what he said. She could feel it in his taut body. He wanted to shoot Lieutenant Blake. No, she couldn't be the cause of the luckless lieutenant's death. She became limp against him, determined to do nothing to anger Jake.

  "Now, get on your horse and ride out of here, lieutenant, and don't even think of returning for Alexandra. She belongs to me and I'll kill any man who tries to take her away."

  "All right, Jarmon, you've got me now, but don't think this is over."

  "No. It's all right, Lieutenant Blake. Don't return for me, or try to help. I don't want to see you killed. He'd do it. I know," Alexandra said softly.

  "I can take care of myself, Miss Alexandra, don't you worry," Lieutenant Blake said, thinking that she really did care for him if she was willing to brave Jarmon to keep him alive. What really was the story with these people? He'd give a lot to know.

  "Lieutenant," Lamar finally said, "please believe me that the lady will be all right. She is a relative of ours and Jake has always considered it his right to protect her. They've had frequent quarrels. But it's all in the family, you see. Please, believe me."

  Lieutenant Blake looked from one face to the other. He didn't know what to believe now. Alexandra had originally said that she'd come to see Jacob Jarmon, but she'd not known him as this Jake and she'd not known this so-called uncle. They didn't look like gentlemen and the story was too confusing for his mind. He'd never encountered such a volatile family before. Well, he'd better get out of it now while he could.

  "I don't know what to believe, but I'm going. I've got no choice. But remember what I told you, Miss Alexandra," he said as he turned to leave.

  "Lieutenant," Jake said, his voice even softer, "remember what I told you."

  Chapter 18

  "Have them followed. I want them off Bar J land," Jake said.

  Lamar nodded at him, then strode quickly from the room. Alexandra wished Lamar had not left her alone with Jake.

  "Do you always pay in kind for what you get, Alex?"

  "I don't know what you mean."

  "You don't need to carry money with you, do you, sweet?"

  "I have money, Jake."

  "Sure you do—now. The money you got from the cat houses in New Orleans. You must have made a nice sum there."

  Alexandra bit her lip. He had believed what

  Captain Sully had said about her. "You don't know that, Jake. You've jumped to the wrong conclusions. I was with Eleanor Jarmon."

  "Don't bring my mother into this," Jake said angrily.

  "But Jake, that's why I came here. She sent me.

  "You lying bitch," he said hoarsely as he threw Alexandra from him.

  She couldn't stop herself as she was hurled across the room to the hard wall on the other side. She crashed into it, then slid down to the floor. She was slightly stunned and watched him apprehensively as he approached, then stopped, his feet wide apart. In her daze she studied him. He looked different. He was dressed like a cowboy now and he looked the part—rough, mean, tough. Could he be as cruel as he looked? He hadn't been, on the ship, but this hard man she didn't know. And she was afraid of him.

  "Don't mention my mother again. I don't want her name to cross your lips. Do you hear me?" Jake spat at her as one hand came down toward her, the other reholstering his gun. She shrank back, expecting him to hit her, but instead he jerked her up.

  She fell against him heavily, unable to stand on her own. She could smell the masculine odor of him, feel the heat from his body. She remembered, though she tried hard to forget, that he had always made her weak and willing in his arms. She looked up at him, their faces close.

  Jake's arms came about her slowly, almost hesitantly, pulling her closer. His blue eyes were still hard, but there was almost doubt in them now. His face moved closer to hers, and she forgot all that had come before as his mouth touched hers in a fiery, demanding kiss. She could not help herself. Her arms moved up around his neck, feeling his hair, his hard muscles, as his tongue plunged deeply into her mouth. He instantly awakened all the sleeping fires in her and she responded, kissing him back with all the denied passion that had built up since she had run away from his ship.

  Suddenly he stopped, pushing her back from him, his brows drawn together in an angry scowl.

  "Jake?" she b
reathed, feeling as if she would fall if he made her stand alone.

  "You damn whore. You know all the tricks, don't you?"

  Alexandra's eyes widened in alarm.

  "You think I won't hurt you if you give me what I want from you, what I've always wanted from you. It's the way you've always worked, isn't it?"

  Alexandra shook her head in silent, sad denial.

  "You've used me from the first, haven't you? The cute story about a man raping you to make you marry him so I wouldn't be angry when I discovered you weren't a virgin. And Sully, you paid him for the trip with your body, didn't you? And me, you paid me, too, for the trip to New Orleans, didn't you? But you didn't want to come with me here to Texas, not then. You wanted to make money in New Orleans, selling your body to men, and you did!"

  "No! No, Jake, it's not true!"

  "Sure it's true. I just want to know why you prefer all the others. Even that kid lieutenant was going to get his for bringing you safely here. But me, when it comes to me, you fight, you always fight. Why, Alex, why?"

  "No, Jake. You don't understand," she cried desperately as his frown deepened and his fists clenched. "I never did any of that. I'm not a whore!"

  "Hell if you aren't. I saw you myself at Bella's in bed with my brother. Christ, you let my brother have you, begged him to take you. I saw you. Do you hear me? I saw you in bed with my brother," Jake hissed, his voice low and insistent.

  "Oh, no," Alexandra groaned, covering her ears with her hands. He'd never believe her now. That was it. That's what Madame LeBlanc had wanted. It was all too horrible. Jake hated her. She knew it now, and why. She wanted to faint, anything to make his burning, accusing eyes go away.

  Suddenly he grabbed her, pulling her roughly against his chest.

  "This is one time you're going to share your charms with me, Alexandra, and you're not going to fight me, you're not going to turn away from me. I know you for what you are and you Can't pretend innocence and shyness any longer. I'm a man and I want you. You know what that means. A whore knows only too well what that means."