by Imogene Nix
The woman laughed, a tinkle. “You go to Lakshmipur then? There are weavers of exceptional skill there. Will you return this way?”
With a shrug, Elspeth explained, “I’m not quite sure. My husband has the route organized.”
“If you do, memsahib, it would be my pleasure to host you in the harem.”
Elspeth stiffened, but the woman touched her hand.
“No, you misunderstand me. My husband has taken no other wife, for he is Christian and educated in the European fashion. I mean only to extend a welcome to your husband and yourself.”
The words touched Elspeth. “Then I thank you and will discuss this with my husband. Yours indicated you were taken by—”
“I traveled with my family when I was young. Bandits killed my parents and their guard. Then they took me to the marketplace. It was there the princess found me and took me to be her daughter and friend to her son. Rajhendra was not much older than me, and his mother, the Princess Rani, had lost all her other children. They had already become Christians, so when the princess heard of me, they sent for the slaver. Brought me into their home and raised me as a suitable wife for him. On his return from Oxford, we were wed.”
There was a wealth of emotion in the words, and Elspeth felt the urge to hug the woman.
Instead, she reached out and patted her hand. “Do you remember your family?”
The woman blinked. “Only a little. Rajhendra found my family and made contact, but they didn’t want to know. So, the princess and prince became my family and cared for me. Now I’m proudly Rajhendra’s wife. But you? My husband wrote that you were a woman of trade? Is that not unusual?”
Elspeth laughed. “A little, yes.”
She’d just settled in to talk about her life when Aeddan caught her eye and the prince beckoned his wife. As she moved to join her husband, the princess whirled to face her. “Please, if you can, come visit with me on your journey home.”
The hunger she heard in the woman’s tone pushed her to accept. “I will.”
Aeddan strode over, followed by Grundy. Aeddan helped her up after handing Sana’s reins to Grundy. “You were deep in conversation.”
“We have been asked to visit at the harem of ah…”
“Indeed?” Aeddan’s eyebrows shot up. “Then you are privileged.”
Chapter 17
It took a week for them to arrive at their destination in Maijdee. Torrential rain, muddy roads, and difficult conditions had slowed them down. The small village appeared to be in reasonable condition, and the housing Aeddan had procured for them was adequate, though not palatial.
The night of their arrival, they were exhausted and filthy, along with soaked to the skin as a cloudburst had opened half a mile from their destination. Grundy had taken care of Sana and Devil’s Chaos, and all Elspeth could wish for was a warm bath, some food, and sleep.
“Come up. The landlord assures me the rooms are ready.”
Aeddan ushered her into the apartment, deep furrows of white bracketing his mouth and eyes as she cradled her arm, deeply bruised from a fall the day before when a snarling dog had spooked Sana.
“Once Grundy has the horses settled he and the cook will begin preparing a meal. I’ve asked for water to be drawn for you. If you’ll excuse me for a moment, I’ll return to assist you.”
Aeddan retreated from the room, leaving her alone. He didn’t shut the door fully as they’d filled the entire hotel with their men and Aeddan had set guards on the stairs, ensuring their privacy.
“Thank you,” she muttered to herself as she settled onto the bed, frustrated and keen to help herself, although well aware he’d pulled out a chair for her to sit in. Elspeth lifted one leg then the other, attempting to divest herself of the boots. They didn’t budge, and her arm hampered her attempts.
Elspeth sighed and slumped back on the mattress. This journey had been more arduous than she’d expected or could have imagined. At least Isabelle wasn’t there. Given her frailty, it would certainly have been too much.
The sound of feet was followed Aeddan’s mutter of “let me help you.” He carefully stripped the leather shoes from her feet, and she sighed with relief, wiggling her toes a little.
Her eyes fluttered closed as she inhaled deeply, thankful that for the first time in weeks, she’d have a bed to sleep in. Her body felt pummeled and abused by the privations of weeks of sleeping in tents, no matter how good the pallet Grundy had devised.
“I think you should rest tomorrow.” Aeddan settled onto the mattress beside her.
“No. I’m here to meet with the weavers, and my man here locally will be expecting me.” She cracked open an eyelid and stared at him. “Forster Shipping is reliable and on time. I’m not going to compromise that because I’ve been traveling.”
He opened his mouth to respond, but the knock on the door stopped the words—whatever they may have been.
“Come in.”
She sat up and swung her legs to the side of the bed as two young women dragged in pails of steaming water. “For bathing, memsahib.”
Aeddan also rose, moved to the far wall, and watched as they continued their task in silence.
She waited until the women finished their work then left. Aeddan rested against the jamb, and she allowed her gaze to roam over him. “Sir, are you waiting for something?”
His eyes gleamed. “Perhaps.”
Elspeth considered his answer, at a loss to understand what he might possibly require—given she was sore and more than just mentally exhausted. “Uh, perhaps we could discuss this later?” she suggested, her need to wash the mud and muck from her body reaching epic proportions.
“In Calcutta you’d have a lady’s maid to attend to your needs.”
Understanding flashed, and while her body heated, she wasn’t sure that his advances would be welcome. “Well, I’m sure tomorrow—”
Aeddan’s gaze clouded. “Elspeth—”
“I just want to bathe, Aeddan.” She did, that was true. If she were totally honest with herself, she would also accept that the coolness that had grown between them wasn’t encouraging, and she didn’t have a clue how to bridge it.
“Damn it, Elspeth, don’t be hard-headed.” He jerked away from the wall and stomped over to her. “I’m not going to attack you. Let me help you with your clothes, then I’ll leave you in peace.”
Pinpricks of stinging emotion battered her senses. She’d read him wrong, and he didn’t want her. Damn you, Lord Lytton! The mess of her life she could lay wholly and solely at his door. Now her husband was more than happy to act the lady’s maid and leave her to it.
He started unfastening and sliding the cloth from her body, the careful touch setting off sparks of excitement. Ones that would be unfulfilled.
With a deep breath, she stepped away from him. “I’ll be fine, husband. If you’ll excuse me?” Gathering the tattered threads of her dignity, she shuffled to the bathing room and shut the door.
On a sigh, she dropped her grimy shirt to the floor. The light corset and chemise puddled with the trousers and pantaloons he’d somehow arranged before they’d begun the journey. Bare, except for the stockings on her feet, she gazed upon herself in the mirror.
Her hands slid over her breasts, the bounty heavy and tipped with pink nipples. He’d sucked at them, like a babe would, and declared them beautiful.
She slid her hands down her body and over her belly, toward the dark red thatch of hair that hid what she now knew as a place of sexual delight. He’d spread her legs, held them open, and feasted upon her. Memories of the sensual actions heated her blood.
A tiny tear dripped down her face.
He hadn’t wanted her these last few days. Had slept beside her and yet not once reached for her. She’d hoped that side of their marriage would be repaired once they’d settled here, only to be dashed again.
Tearing her gaze away from her reflection, Elspeth stumbled toward the small hip bath, stripped off the stockings, and slid gratefully within the w
ater.
* * * *
Aeddan gazed at the heavy wood that separated him from his wife, his hands bunched into fists as he attempted to consider what he’d said or done that had forced them so far from the happy couple they’d begun this journey as. She’d banished him, and on that thought, he headed downstairs, toward the common eating area, needing some space to consider what had changed Elspeth.
A rap on the main door splintered his concentration, and when Grundy called out, he opened it to admit his man. Grundy had been with him for over ten years. For all that, he didn’t even know if Alfred Grundy had a wife or sweetheart somewhere.
He waited until Grundy settled a pile of food in front of himself and lowered into a chair.
“You’re not married, are you, Grundy?”
The man stopped abruptly. “Married? Me, Major? No. Tried it once, and it didn’t stick.”
Surprise sparked. “You were married?”
“Nah. Courting. She were a vicar’s daughter and the prettiest thing you ever saw. Thought she was the one. Went to see her father, and she’d been courting another at the same time. I were too slow, and he snapped her up. Left Putney that day, ain’t never been back since.” Grundy started to eat without glancing at Aeddan. “Your missus ain’t like that, sir, begging your pardon. She’s a looker and all, but she’s straight, like a bullet.”
Aeddan waited for the man, sure there would be more said. Grundy finished his food.
“She’s not like the other ladies though. Jacinthe told me she never expected to wed ’cause she’s too old. Her and her sister came here looking to make a difference after her younger sister married.”
The words Grundy spoke made no sense. No expectation? She was gorgeous, courageous, and caring. How could she see herself as on the shelf?
It was true that most men of his station married pretty, young things they’d met at balls and routs without two pennies worth of brains to spare, but the few young women he’d met had been downright vacuous. He’d not followed any generally accepted conventions, instead choosing to forge his own path before settling down to his family’s estates.
He left Grundy in the common room and headed up the stairs, where he waited, listening for sounds from within the bathing chamber. There was only silence, and he frowned. Three steps had him at the doorway. He knocked. Knocked again.
Silence.
His gut churned, and he turned the knob, peered within.
Elspeth slept, slumped in the bath, her hair a tumbled and damp mass, while the sight of her breasts, pink-tipped and delicious, made his groin ache. The arousal was damped through by the bruising he caught sight of. Angry red marred the perfect skin of her left arm, from elbow almost to shoulder.
He’d pushed her too hard to make it here. In that moment it didn’t matter that he’d been concerned that they’d be waylaid. He’d wanted her safe so they’d marched on.
Aeddan reached down, and she stirred as he lifted her.
“Wha…” she said, her voice slurred.
He gathered her close, seeking the bath towel to wrap around her before carrying her to the bed where he laid her down.
“Aeddan. I fell asleep.” Her voice was thick.
“You did, Elspeth. Come, dress and eat some supper. Then you should rest.”
While Elspeth obeyed in silence he castigated himself again. He watched to ensure she had settled into the chair then perched on the side of the bed beside her. They ate in silence, and the intimacy wound itself into the air, spicy scents and long moments of quiet interspersed here and there by gay chatter from outside the building.
When they’d finished, he tugged her close, while the thud of her heart settled and slowed. She didn’t argue when, wordlessly, he lifted the covers and she slid within. He adjusted the net curtain over the bed, and she rolled to her side, her eyes closed.
Her breathing evened out, and Aeddan strode to the shuttered window, tugged at the wood, and peered out.
Quiet.
He could rest. He should sleep. Glancing at his wife who lay peacefully in the bed, he vacillated. She would welcome him, his advances. The passion between them was hot, and yet, his emotions were tangled. He wanted more than he had, but his mind refused to settle on love as the dominant mental state.
Was it right? Had he done the right thing? Too many questions formed in his mind without answers. He tugged the shutters closed. There’d be no answers tonight.
He shrugged out of his clothes and retreated to the bathing area.
* * * *
Elspeth stretched, a feeling of comfort and well-being flooding her body as she sat up in the bed. It wasn’t home. It wasn’t the Zephyr, and she wasn’t at North Point.
Memories crowded; entering the town last night, her weariness, bathing. “I fell asleep.”
The room echoed, and she looked around and down. Her night-rail was in place. The bed beside her was untouched, and the sting of tears battered at her as did the sense of loneliness.
She flung the covers aside and rose, refusing to allow herself to fall into despair. If her marriage was a sham, then so be it. She’d wanted the passion and had gotten it.
She’d make the best of the situation, and perhaps on her return, she might find a suitable partner for Isabelle. Someone who would make her sister happy.
Snatching off her clothes and climbing into the fresh shirt and pants took little time. Elspeth crossed the room and tugged on the door.
Outside sat a guard, rumpled and obviously weary. “Begging your pardon, Mrs. Fitzsimmons, but the major stepped out earlier to make arrangements. He asked that you remain in the room.”
Elspeth’s lips tightened. “Thank you, Hitchens, but I need to organize my business. If there’s another guard? I have an appointment with my man this morning, and I won’t be late.”
The guard blinked, clearly unsure what to do. “Uh, ma’am, if I allow you to do that, he’ll have my head. I’ll send for the major though.”
She gave him the glare most at home would recognize as her do-it-now look and watched as he scurried off. Retreating back to the room wasn’t satisfactory, but at least she’d begun to reassert the Elspeth she had always been. Settling herself on the bed, she prepared to wait.
When the door swung open several minutes later, she looked up and her husband entered the room, a scowl on his face. “My dear, this is not Falmouth where one can simply saunter down the street.”
“Of course not. But I have a shipping line to run, weavers to meet, and orders to place. Too many people rely on me for me to become a shrinking violet. So husband, if you wish to attend me, do so, otherwise find me someone you trust.”
“Elspeth—”
“No, Aeddan. I have people relying on me to complete my tasks.” She curled her hands into fists. “Don’t ask me to change, as I haven’t asked you to.”
He exhaled, shoulders slumping. “Take Grundy. I have a meeting with the head of the local regiment.”
“Thank you. Is Grundy ready now?”
Aeddan gave a bark of laughter. “I forgot how strong-willed you can be, Elspeth.” His grin melted away. “Yes. Take a guardsman with you too though, please.”
“Of course.” She went to the door, her hand settling on the knob, then looked back. “Your meeting...will it be long?”
“I don’t know. It all depends on what he’s heard or seen.”
He’d evaded answering fully, the way his gaze slid over her shoulder, but she wouldn’t push him to explain further. She knew her role as wife to a spy and had her own tasks to accomplish.
Without another word, she hurried into the hallway.
Chapter 18
Sana sidestepped as they retreated from the Meghna River, discomforted by the rough journey on the barge back to this side of the river. Elspeth carefully rubbed her neck and spoke soothingly to the fractious mount in the hopes that she’d settle soon.
They’d spent a week in Maijdee while Elspeth had arranged her orders, met with the weavers, a
nd inspected the factory, which turned out to be a cleared section of ground. Elspeth wasn’t sure what she’d expected. Maybe some kind of building with large machines, not the rows of loinclothed men. Her mind was still overwhelmed by her experiences in India.
She turned in the direction she remembered they’d come when Aeddan grabbed her reins. “We’re heading this way.”
“What?” Surprise colored her tone.
“You have a meeting.” He spoke quietly to her, and his words filled her with pleasure.
“Amber?”
“Yes.”
The party formed up, with Elspeth riding next to Aeddan, Grundy a little ahead of them along with several men, and the others behind them. The terrain once more stable and dry, Sana settled into a comfortable walk.
“We cannot stay more than tonight.”
Elspeth bit her lip at Aeddan’s careful tone—the one he’d taken to using with her. It hurt, but she refused to allow the chasm between them to wound her anymore. If he was unable to be honest with her, that was his choice, but she wouldn’t grant him any more chances to cut her with his omissions that were more like untruths.
One hour passed, the heat of the sun beating down on the party, before they spied a building before them. It wasn’t as ornate as some of the palaces they’d passed. The gray stone building looked to only have two storeys, but Elspeth knew it was likely much bigger on the inside than her view could take in, hidden as it was beneath large, established trees.
As they drew closer, a company of soldiers appeared. Aeddan indicated they should stop while he conversed with those waiting for them. Grundy moved closer to Elspeth, and she waited until Aeddan returned.
“We’re to follow this man. He will escort us to the entrance where we will be met by His Excellency.”
Excitement quivered through Elspeth. She’d been looking forward to meeting with Amber again, the Caucasian woman who’d married this Indian Prince.
At the entrance, they dismounted and filed up the steps, Grundy just behind Elspeth while Aeddan took the front. Once the formalities of greeting passed, Elspeth was ushered to the women’s quarters where Amber reclined on a bed set up beside a pond.