by Kitty Margo
His husky voice floating through the open doorway caused Lynna's pulse to throb. “Good morning, ladies. Silas and I are riding into town. Silas was coming to see if he could bring you anything, but I volunteered to come in his stead.”
“How very kind of you. As a matter of fact, we do need a few provisions. “Please come —” The loud clanging of a pot being dropped stopped Judith short, she had almost invited him in. “Please, have a seat… on the porch. I will be right back with my list.”
Lynna stood motionless as she waited to hear the porch swing creak and signal he had sat down. It did not come. Evidently, he was still standing at the door, watching her. What was wrong with her aunt? Why hadn’t she sent him away posthaste? Nothing from town could be this important. Besides, obviously her aunt had forgotten Tobias had stolen all their money last night and she had never once known her aunt to purchase on credit.
Good morning, Lynna.” When she did not respond, he breathed a deep sigh and continued. “I realize perhaps I got a bit overzealous last evening, however I will not apologize. I am not sorry for what happened, as I enjoyed the kiss most thoroughly. I am only sorry you ran off when you did. We could have made another enchanted memory.” She failed to see the light dancing in his sea green eyes.
When she still did not respond, he lost his temper. “Lynna, why are you behaving like a spoiled child?” When no answer was forthcoming, he strode uninvited into the house and paused behind her only a second before spinning her around to face him. “You wanted me to kiss —” He halted abruptly as every ounce of blood seemed to drain from his face. “Who did this?”
She attempted to shrug off his concern, “Clumsy me, I was in such a rush to get away from you last night that I ran into a door. I should have brought a candle outside with me.” Where was her aunt and what was taking her so long?
“Are you sure that is what happened, Lynna? That is a nasty bruise. I heard you bolt the door last night, but I did not hear you cry out in pain. Taking a blow that hard had to hurt.” He angled her face to get a better look. “I fail to see how colliding with a door could cause the entire side of your face to turn an unsightly shade of black and purple, and your eye to be almost swollen shut.
Turning away, she mumbled, “Of course, I am sure. It looks much worse than it actually is.” Of all the times for him to show up, why she must look like one of the voodoo zombies the slaves were always whispering about. What could possibly be worse? She knew he was still behind her when she felt the heat from his warm breath caressing her neck.
“Try walking with your eyes open in the future. It works amazingly well. I do it all the time. And my dear, that should teach you never to run away from me again,” he whispered against her hair, intoxicated by the smell.
She jerked around with a sharp retort that died in her throat when her aunt walked into the room. “On second thought, we do not need anything from town, but thank you for the generous offer, Joshua.”
“My pleasure, Madame.” He smiled, although his cheerful mood had deserted him on first sight of Lynna's bruised and swollen face. Something was off kilter here.
After he departed, Lynna sat at the kitchen table, truly bereft. “Oh, why did he have to show up this morning? Look at my face! And he thinks I go around walking into doors!” She buried her head in her hands. “I have been in the company of handsome men before, but with Joshua...why?” She was truly baffled.
“Because you are attracted to him, darling. You have met a man who brings out the woman in you. You have never met a man like Joshua before.”
Believe me, Aunt Judith, I have.
Her aunt left the room, smiling, and called from her bedroom, “I will not deny it. I think your Captain Jordan is quite exceptional. There are few to equal to him.”
“My Captain Jordan?” she cried, astonished by her aunt’s choice of words.
“Had you rather I say Suzanne's Captain Jordan?”
The day was frightfully hot, but her aunt's words sent a chill down Lynna’s spine that caused her to shiver uncontrollably.
Joshua had totally charmed Jasmine during his brief stay at Magnolia House. Few women, young or old, could long stay immune to his masculine charms and Jasmine was no exception. She was lifting a heavy pot of sweet potatoes from the stove when he sauntered in. Taking the pot, he admonished, “Here, let me take that. Don’t you have any men working in the kitchen to aid you with the heavy lifting, Jasmine?”
Jasmine's plump body shook with laughter. “Mist’ Joshua, you sho is sumphin. I lifts dis heah pot evah day of my life. Why, I spec I could lift bout much as any man on dis heah plan’ation. Now you just sit down rite chere and have some of my blackberry cobbler with fresh cream.”
Joshua laughed with her. “I am sure you could, Jasmine, but you should not have to.”
Never one to be accused of being gullible, she placed a steaming dish of cobbler before him and asked, “Whut is you in heah tryin’ to sweet talk old Jasmine fo, Mist’ Joshua?”
“Why Jasmine, I am sorely disappointed in you. I thought we had become friends.”
“And we is. We sho nuff is. But you done got sumphin troublin’ you, so you mite jus’ as well spit it on out.”
After a long silence, Joshua asked quietly, “Have you perchance seen Lynna’s face today?”
“Whut ‘bout her face?” Jasmine snapped, fearing the worst as the cup of milk she was pouring for Joshua overflowed the rim.
Joshua observed her plump face closely for her reaction. “It is badly bruised. She claims to have ran into a door.”
“Ran into a do, my big behind!” she spat as her huge body fairly shook with anger. “Dat chile gwine run out of scuses one of dese days.”
Instantly on his feet, Joshua grabbed her by the shoulders, forcing her to meet his eyes. “Are you saying that is not what happened, Jasmine?”
Jasmine was thoughtful for a long time before speaking. “I wont der, so I cain say fo sho whut done happen.”
“But you have an opinion,” he ground out, urging her to continue.
“If you had seed as many bruises on dat chile as I done seed,” she stopped suddenly, wondering if she should be voicing her opinion against a white man. “But I done said too much a’ready.”
Joshua wanted to shake her and force her to tell him everything she knew, but there were easier ways. “I suppose it is just as she said. She impresses me as being the clumsy sort.”
“Whut you mean, clumsy?” Jasmine stormed with her hands on her hips and her dark eye blazing. Joshua knew his gambit had worked beautifully. “Dat chile ain't run into no do. Dat man done hit dat baby agin.”
“What man?” The depth of rage Joshua felt at that moment was surprising even to him. Knowing that someone had deliberately struck Lynna, with enough force to leave her badly bruised, caused his body to tremble with rage. “Who was it, Jasmine?”
Jasmine knew she had been duped, but that was no longer important. What was important was Lynna. Why should she go on protecting that po white trash, Tobias Mathison, when next time it might be too late to help Lynna or Judith? Next time he might kill them both. “Her own uncle! He da one whut beats dat baby. He comes home lookin’ fo dey money in a flyin’ rage and always findin’ a reason to hit dat baby.” Hot tears coursed down Jasmine's plump cheeks.
“How I knows is dat po chile done broke down one day and tol’ me so. She said she jus’ had to talk to somebody. I jus’ held her while she talked and cried, axkin me why her own uncle hate her so much. Querstions dat I ain't got no answers fo. Den when she finish, she made me give my word dat I would keep it to myself, an here I done tol you. Forgive me, Lawd!” she cried, stretching out her arms and beseeching the heavens. Then she dried her eyes and blew her nose loudly. “But I cain keep it to myself no mo. Dat man gwine kill dat chile one day.”
“Where is he now, Jasmine? I promise you, the bastard will never get another chance to harm her if you tell me where to find him!”
“He ain't heah,”
she sniffled. “Dey ain’t be knowin’ where he gwine or when he comin’ back.”
“I will find him, Jasmine. I give you my word.” Joshua strode determinedly out the door, without a thought for the mouthwatering pie.
Jasmine knew Tobias Mathison was surely about to pay for his multitude of sins. It was about time. As for her precious Lynna, Jasmine mumbled, “Whut don’t kill will fatten.”
Chapter Thirteen
In town, Joshua made inquiries as to Tobias Mathison’s whereabouts at the local taverns. He learned from a barkeep that Tobias had come into town the night before, purchased a bottle of whiskey, and went upstairs with one of the girls who was known for leaving a man with empty pockets. Joshua was halfway up the stairs, already imagining the feel of his hands tightening around Tobias’s neck, before the barkeep stopped him.
“He ain't here now. He rode out before sun up.”
Joshua slammed his fist into the wall, making the barkeep jump. “Can you tell me which direction he traveled?”
“Naw, he slipped out without even paying what he owed for the room, the thieving low-life.” The barkeep swished a filthy rag across the bar and mumbled. “I should have learnt the lying beggar by now. But, you know, I can’t figure him out. One day his pockets are overflowing with coin, and the next he can’t afford a cup of ale.”
Ignoring the barkeep, Joshua swore, “You got away this time, but I will find you if it is my last mission on this earth!”
Lynna remained indoors for the next four days, only venturing outside to stroll through her garden late in the evening when the big house was quiet. Daniel came by each morning and her aunt reported that she was feeling under the weather and resting in bed. Jasmine arrived with Lynna's favorite sugar cookies. Ignoring Judith's excuses, she went straightaway to Lynna's room to find her sitting up in bed, stitching a row of ruffles on Suzanne’s much ballyhooed ball gown.
“Good morning, Jasmine.” Lynna averted her face, ashamed for Jasmine to see that her uncle had once again used it as a punching bag.
“It ain’t seem like sech a good mawnin’ to me, wit you in bed all bruised and swoll up like you is,” she muttered angrily. “Why you ain’t gone out in dem woods and got a big stick and next time he come at you lay it side his thick skull, I ain’t knowin’!”
Lynna attempted a laugh, but it failed miserably. “I may heed your advice and do just that, Jasmine.”
Judith entered with a fresh pot of aromatic coffee. “Please sit down, Jasmine and we will sample those cookies. They smell simply delicious.” She glanced over at Lynna, whose cheeks stung with shame and humiliation. “Lynna has been confined to this room for days. We are so glad you stopped by.”
“This will be my last day of confinement, the bruises have almost faded. Anyway, at least we completed Suzanne's gown.”
“If dat gal was to take up sewin’ and spend as much time at it as she do primpin’ and paradin’ in front of dat mirror, it would put you two out of binness.”
“Truer words were never spoken,” Judith agreed, and all three women laughed.
The laughter left Jasmine’s eyes as she looked at Lynna with all seriousness. “Y’all needs to tell somebody ‘bout Tobias fo it’s too late. Dem bruises be gittin’ sturdily worse each time he pays a visit. He mean binness now, Lynna, and he seem to be takin’ mos’ of it out on you.”
That night as Lynna was preparing for bed, she heard a light peck on the front door. Who could it be at this hour? Hearing her aunt’s soft snores from the other room, she tiptoed through the quiet house. Pulling the curtain aside, her breath caught in her throat as she saw Joshua on the opposite side of the portal, smiling brightly. “I came to bid you goodnight, my sweet.”
“Goodnight, Joshua.”
“Could you be persuaded to take a walk with me tonight?”
The temptation was strong to rush headlong into his arms and remain there, blissfully content, until the morning sun climbed above the trees. But that dream could never become reality. She was silent as she sought to come up with a plausible excuse.
“Please, Lynna. Just take a walk with me. That is all I ask. Nothing more.”
She opened her mouth to speak, but instead opened the door and allowed him to take her hand.
“You will be safe with me, Lynna. I promise to be the consummate gentleman.”
“Did I not hear that line or one similar to it while I was an innocent and naïve passenger on your ship, Captain Jordan?”
“Let us not revisit the past. But rest assured, Lynna. I did not rescue you from Malcolm and Jess only to finish what they started. You have been through enough torment at the hands of men.”
“Which reminds me, Joshua, I never had the opportunity to thank you for rescuing me, yet again.”
“Ever the damsel in distress. I shall be your dragon slayer as longer as you need me, my sweet.” Interlacing his fingers with hers, they strolled under the luminescence of a full moon away from the garden, since Suzanne’s balcony overlooked it. They walked under a huge live oak, pushing wispy tendrils of moss from their path as dozens of fireflies lit the way. He was the first to break the silence. “Is Daniel still pressuring you to marry him?”
“I thought Samuel answered all your questions on that subject.”
“I would hear your answers.”
“There are none. Daniel has asked me to marry him, but I am not ready for… matrimony. I intend to travel someday, hopefully, back to France to see my father again. Oh, Joshua, you will never know how much I miss him!” Her eyes welled with tears at the thought of her beloved father. “Three years without a single word.”
“I understand your feelings, Lynna. But your father insisted you wait for him to contact you, and I urge you to abide by his wishes. No father ever loved a daughter more than Nathan Rhodes loves you. As soon as the danger has passed and he feels it is safe for you to return, he will contact you. I have no doubt on this. And when he does, the Windjammer will set sail for France and return you to your father’s side without delay. I hope I have eased your mind about that worry.” He tilted her face toward his. “Now answer a question for me, if you will.”
“If I can.”
“Only you can, my sweet. Do you refuse to marry Daniel because you are afraid a husband would hinder your travels?”
His logic was too much for her. “I am only creating excuses, I suppose. Daniel isn’t the man I wish to spend the remainder of my life with.” There, she had admitted it.
“I am thankful that you realized the truth before it was too late, Lynna. Do not allow yourself to be encumbered for the rest of your days with a man you feel no passion for. To go through life without passion is a wasted life.” To prove his point, he drew her into his arms as his soft lips lowered to hers and his tongue gently explored her mouth, making her knees go weak. With one hand on the small of her back and the other on the back of her head, he molded her firm young body to his.
When his lips left hers to travel down her neck, she unconsciously whispered his name as memories of their night on his ship assaulted her. His kisses were leaving a searing trail of fire in their wake. Her entire body cried for his touch as he slipped her nightgown from her shoulder and his warm hand closed over her breast. Then suddenly her body stiffened as she remembered the many conversations with Suzanne, as she recalled these exact same feelings of bliss, with this exact same man.
“Joshua, please stop!” she cried, flinging his hand away. Another second and she would be lost. “This cannot happen again. It is not decent.”
“It is decent, Lynna. I want you more than any woman before you or since, and you cannot deny that you desire me.”
“Are those words the same words you used to seduce Suzanne?”
“I will not lie and tell you that Suzanne and I did not enjoy a brief interlude. And I am not lying when I tell you that she meant nothing to me. She was very willing and very eager, and I accepted for a time what she offered. Now, it is over.”
“It is ove
r? And how soon will you be ready to cast me aside? Is that what you told the other willing and eager females who you so carelessly used and then tossed by the wayside?
“I do not use women, Lynna, quite the contrary. I give as well as I get. You should not have to be prompted to remember that fact. Now, if you will but permit me, I will be delighted to refresh your memory.”
She knew she should put the arrogant man in his place, but her strength was rapidly dwindling. In fact, it had all but abandoned her. Even if his hands were not holding her head, she would be unable to move, that was the last thing her betraying body sought to do. She felt the now familiar tightening in the pit of her belly and questioned how much longer she could withstand her body’s demand to respond to this man.
But she must not acquiesce to him again! Make the same mistake twice? She wrenched from his arms, thinking she was no better than a common harlot, behaving as she was. Rubbing her fingers over lips that ached for the touch of his, she admonished, “Captain Jordan, I warned you once before about your effrontery.”
“So you did. Ah, my love, but you are such a tempting morsel that I sometimes fail to remember.”
“And I am not your love! Please, remember that!”
“Me thinks the lady doth protest too much,” he quoted and grinned rakishly. “You are a rare blossom, Lynna, my sweet. And since I have already explored your bounty once before, it leaves me with an insatiable craving for more. Believe me when I say you are a unique flower, and one that I intend to pluck and explore to the fullest.” Joshua struggled with the impulse to take her in his arms and make her dismiss from mind all else save him, and he had no doubt he could. “Now, could we continue where we left off?”
“Certainly not!” she retorted with an impertinent tilt of her head. “Joshua, as I have expressed to you on numerous occasions, I do not anticipate a repeat performance of my previous error in judgment. Unlike Suzanne, I do not drool at the mere prospect of a few hours spent in your arms. Do not confuse us.”