Ashes and Ecstasy

by Catherine Hart

  It was marvelous to watch her in action, her eyes flashing; and it was a unique treat to see her temper directed at someone else for a change! If he didn’t know how deeply Kat had been hurt, Reed could almost pity Ellerby. As it was, Reed suspected if she broke down at all, it would be tonight in the privacy of their bedchamber, and he intended to be ready and able to comfort her. He wanted to lend her his strength; to hold her, cradle her in his arms and kiss away all the pain and tears; to make her world shine again.

  Chapter 3

  Reed awoke in the middle of the night, wondering sleepily what small noise had awakened him. Automatically, his arm reached out for Kat and found her gone. Just as his searching gaze saw her shadowed outline at the window, he heard a stifled sob.

  Silently he slid from the bed and went to stand behind her. His arms curled protectively about her waist, and he pulled her back to rest against his solid form. Though the night was warm, she was trembling violently. Reed rubbed his chin soothingly across the top of her head, ruffling her hair. Hot salty tears fell from her lowered face like raindrops onto his forearms.

  “Oh, Kat," he groaned, hating the pain he knew she was feeling. He kissed her head and the side of her neck. "I’m here, kitten.”

  “It . . . hurts like the devil!” she stammered between sobs.

  “I know,” he murmured, tightening his grip as he felt another tremor seize her. It dismayed him to realize how useless he was to her just now. Kathleen was given more to flashes of rage than to tears. Rarely did anyone see her cry. She was always so strong, so vibrant. Now, when she was feeling defeated and weak, all he could offer was his strength and understanding.

  Instinctively, Reed knew she would reject anyone’s pity, his included. Kathleen detested weak, weeping, self-pitying women. Relying as she did on her own strength, she rarely displayed a need for his, though he knew how deeply she loved him. At times, it irritated him that she was not more dependent on him, but her stubbornness was one of the first things about her that had caught his attention, and he admired her self-reliance.

  “It always hurts to lose something you love, sugar,” he said softly, his breath ruffling her soft hair. “I know how deeply you care about this place. All your roots are here. A lot of memories were born here.”

  “I was born here. So were Mama and Kate,” she added mournfully. “I wanted Katlin to inherit the estate, to carry on the heritage that has been passed down for generations.”

  “Katlin will still have Chimera as his birthright,” Reed pointed out gently. “I’m not saying he would not appreciate an added inheritance, but I doubt he would make it his home, Kat. And it is not easy to manage property so distant from your home.”

  “I’ve managed so far,” she argued.

  Reed shook his head. “With the aid of Mr. Kirby. Even so, you see how some things have been sadly neglected; the roof for instance.”

  Kathleen nodded reluctantly. “That doesn’t ease the pain of losing it, though. Especially when it is going to be in the hands of someone like Ellerby. I feel as if I am placing one of my children into the care of a rapist! He’ll strip the land of its prosperity and beauty, and leave it bereft and lifeless! It isn’t fair!”

  “Few things in this life are, kitten. You must concentrate on your blessings. You are hurting now, but you still have Chimera to return to, and people who care about you there; Kate, Barbara, Mother, Susan and Ted.” He turned her slowly in his arms to face him. “And you have the children—and me, love.”

  His hand lifted her trembling chin until tender blue eyes met those of shimmering green. “Kat, my darling, you’ll always have me,” he reminded her gently. “Doesn’t that help at all?”

  He watched as her eyes overflowed with tears that coursed down her flushed cheeks. “Oh, Reed!” she choked. “Of course it helps, my love. I could lose everything else, and if I had you. I’d still be rich! I’m just being a silly, sentimental female, and I hate it when I act this way!”

  Reed smiled tenderly. “You are not being silly, Kat,” he corrected. “You are merely human. When cut, you bleed; when hurt, you cry.”

  He brushed a lingering tear from her cheek, and bent to taste her trembling lips with his. “Mmm, salty,” he commented in low tones.

  With a quivering sigh, Kathleen leaned against him. Her hands slid up his warm, furry chest to lock at the back of his neck. “Hold me, Reed. Love me,” she implored softly, her shaky voice conveying her need of his comfort and strength.

  Wordlessly, he complied. Gathering her close to him, he kissed her deeply. There was no urgent demand as his lips covered hers; only tenderness. The moment was timeless as his mouth warmed hers, his tongue gently tracing the salty contours of her lips.

  As he held her, Reed ran his hands over the muscles of her back, gently kneading the tension away. From shoulders to waist, the soothing circles repeated until he felt her relax with a shuddering sigh of contentment.

  It was like stroking a kitten. Her hair, her skin were as warm and sleek as satin. And like a cat, she stretched and snuggled at his touch, wriggling her body provocatively against his. A sound very much like a purr escaped her lips, and a primitive flush of desire surged through him, sorely testing his waning control.

  With swift strides, he carried her to the bed. As he laid her upon it, Kathleen reached out for him, but he captured her wrists gently and put them aside. “No, kitten. Tonight let me love you.” His blue eyes blazed even in the darkness of the room. “I want to touch every inch of you, caress every curve, kiss every crevice, excite every nerve. I want to love you as never before; as no one ever will again.”

  Time held no meaning; the darkened room became their only existing world as Reed’s hands and lips slowly traversed her body from head to toe. His knowing fingers found every sensitive area, every erotic spot on her skin. Not one inch was neglected as his hot, moist kisses covered her body.

  He took her small feet, cool now from standing on the stone floor, and warmed them in his palms. His strong fingers massaged her arches, and she sighed in blissful contentment. Feeling almost drugged by his ministerings, Kathleen jerked back to full awareness as Reed’s teeth nipped at her toes.

  “Reed! For heaven’s sake, the floor was dusty” she objected, trying to pull her foot away.

  Anticipating her move, his hand held her ankle firmly. “Hush! Relax!” he ordered, laughing huskily.

  “Relax!” she nearly shrieked as his tongue slid across her ticklish sole. “This borders on torture!”

  His chuckle was decidedly devilish as he administered the same treatment to her other foot. His fingers blazed a path for his silken tongue to follow; curling about her ankles and tracing intricate patterns up her legs, pausing momentarily at the sensitive hollows of her knees, and alternating slowly up the insides of each thigh.

  While Kathleen felt her bones melting at his leisurely traversal, she felt her muscles tightening in delightful anticipation of his next move. Her skin had come alive in his sensual touch, every nerve awakened and more sensitive than she could ever recall. The blood seemed to boil in her veins, rushing through her body at a startling rate, and her heart was racing. Her breath came in irregular gasps, and her mind seemed to focus only on the pleasures he was evoking.

  Before she knew what he intended, Reed had flipped her onto her stomach, and began tracing lazy circles on her back with his wet tongue. He lingered at the nape of her neck and along the delicate cords of her shoulders, biting gently and laughing softly at her predictably spasmodic responses. How deftly he teased the hollows along her shoulder blades, and the pleasure points all down her spine. He deliberately disregarded her instinctive tensing as his attentions wandered lower, his hands cupping and fondling her round buttocks, his mouth delivering nipping kisses here and there on its way to the tender flesh of her inner thighs.

  When he finally turned her onto her back once more, Kathleen was trembling with the force of her arousal. Once more she reached out for him, but Reed was far from
finished. Gently he captured her hands, nipping and licking at the delicate pads of her fingertips, running his tongue tantalizingly across each palm in turn, and up the inner curve of each outstretched arm. His lips caressed the curve of her neck, teasing the sensitive flesh and nibbling their way up to each ear.

  Kathleen was nearly mindless, her senses awash with sensual delight. She drifted in a fog, where only the glorious sensations Reed was creating made any impression. She shivered in wondrous bliss as his tongue playfully traced the inner shell of her ears, his strong white teeth nipping at her lobes as he whispered endearments. She felt treasured and tormented at the same time.

  His warm lips feathered lazily across her face, as if memorizing each feature they encountered. The attack on her senses was doubled as his hands trailed seductively along the contours of her body.

  Kathleen was aflame with the most basic, primeval need she’d ever felt. Deep, agonized moans seemed to be wrenched from the depth of her being, and her body arched toward his as she writhed beneath his wizard’s touch. His hot mouth at last enclosed a swollen, pouting nipple. Cradled in his warm palm, she could almost feel her breast swell to fill his hand. As he sucked and teased first at one breast, then the other, she felt fires race through her body. His hand found the throbbing center of her femininity, and he teased her mercilessly until she was delirious with desire.

  By now she was calling out his name repeatedly, clutching at him, pleading with him to take her. With practiced ease, he eluded her grasping hands, his lips trailing tiny kisses across her stomach, until they at last replaced his hand between her thighs.

  Kathleen writhed against the sheets, her fingers clenching at his shoulders, her nails digging crescents into his flesh. Her cries seemed to echo from the stone walls‚ resembling those of some demented creature. A swirling mist seemed to surround her; she was mindless with desire and need of him.

  Trembling on the edge of ecstasy, she at last felt Reed’s body cover hers. As he came into her, she cried out, receiving him eagerly as if long denied this ultimate fulfillment. Rapture coursed through her in swell after endless swell, until the leaping flames engulfed them both with devastating force, burning into their very souls, hurtling them toward the heavens like glowing embers in a gale; and they floated slowly back to earth as if on lazy puffs of cloud, the last remnants of their blazing flight still warming their sated spirits.

  Reed continued to hold her as Kathleen drifted off to sleep, her head pillowed on his shoulder. Profoundly glad he had succeeded in taking her mind off her loss, he realized that the respite was only temporary. As if his thoughts had touched some semi-conscious corner of her mind, he heard her mutter, “Damn, bloody English!” Her terse cursing creased an amused smile across his handsome face, and he stifled a chuckle. One thing, at least, was evident. The worst of her grieving was past. If Reed was correct, the morning light would revitalize her anger and need for revenge; and he’d rather see her angry any day, her green eyes flashing defiantly, than weeping. Content that his goal had been achieved, he joined his wife in deep, reviving slumber . . .

  As Reed had predicted, Kathleen awoke in a rare rage the next day. After a few sweet moments of reflection over the previous night’s loving, a few lingering kisses and caresses beneath the bedcovers, she was ready to do battle. Time was of the essence now, and Kathleen’s mind was spinning off ideas faster than anyone could follow. Orders were flying right and left. Everyone but Reed seemed stunned by her energy and outrageous plans.

  “Mr. Kirby, have you sent in the bi-annual income report to London yet?” she asked the attorney that morning.

  “No,” he answered hesitantly. “What do you have in mind?”

  Instead of answering, she posed another question. “What sort of winter did you have here last year?”

  “Colder than normal,” came the reply. “Much more harsh than usual.”

  “Good!” she said, making them all wonder if she’d lost her mind. “I want every bit of livestock cleared off the property. The books can be altered to the effect that several disasters struck the estate. I’ll be blistered if I leave that moronic fop so much as a chicken to roast!"

  “What will you do with the animals?” Isabel asked, wide-eyed.

  Kathleen waved a hand in the air. “Give them to the cottagers,” she suggested magnanimously. “While I wish to leave nothing for Ellerby, I do not wish to cause hunger or oppression to the tenants.”

  “And how should I word the report, lass?” Kirby wanted to know.

  Kathleen chewed a fingernail thoughtfully, then smiled wickedly. “I’m afraid, Mr. Kirby, that the harsh winter caused a great loss of cattle, sheep, and goats. The remainder had to be used for food, in addition to all the chickens, ducks, and geese.”

  “And the hogs?”

  “A mysterious swine disease killed them all.”

  Kirby’s eyebrows shot upward at this. He could hardly bring himself to ask the next question. “What of the horses?”

  Kathleen shook her head in mock dismay, as Reed silently applauded her cunning. “ ’Tis a pity we’ll have to burn the stables to cover my tales, but I fear all the horses were lost when the stables caught fire earlier this spring,” she invented.

  This caused even Reed to roll his eyes. “Kat, are you sure about burning the stables?”

  She frowned, but then nodded. “I’m sure. I’d burn the barns and the fields, too, but it would only cause hardship to the tenants. Some crops are already in, and others are near harvest. I would not cause hunger for the families so loyal to us all these years just to vent anger on Ellerby.

  “However, I will not leave so much as a crumb in the pantry! The larders will be cleaned out, and what food there is distributed among the crofters. And the devil take Sir Lawrence!” Kathleen nearly spat the last words.

  “Too bad you cannot burn the house,” Isabel added.

  “Oh, no! No!” Kirby exclaimed. “Kathleen wouldn’t want to do that, even were it possible!” As Kathleen narrowed her eyes, he went on, “Perhaps someday, after this war between England and America is over, the King will return the property and the title to you.”

  Kathleen gave him a doubtful look. “Is that likely?”

  Kirby shrugged. “It is not probable, but it has happened. If Sir Lawrence becomes a bankrupt, the King may return it to you after a time, should you petition him.”

  Kathleen considered this possibility briefly. “Well, short of tearing the place down to stone, I cannot destroy it. However, I intend to strip it bare! What I cannot take with me, or do not want, the crofters may have. I’ll set what is left aflame with the stables. Let Ellerby supply his own furnishings. When I’ve finished, he’ll even have to buy his own candles and candlesticks!”

  True to her word, Kathleen set the servants to the task of stripping the house of its contents. In addition to the items she’d already selected and had loaded aboard the Kat-Ann, she now added everything else of value, whether sentimental or monetary. Besides the portraits she’d already selected, she now added those remaining ancestors she’d originally decided to leave behind. Tapestries and paintings were carefully packed, as were stacks of books and Irish linens. Silverware, china, and crystal found their way aboard ship. Room was made for vases, knickknacks, figurines, mirrors, and clocks.

  A few choice pieces of furniture were carried aboard, but most of it, by necessity, had to be left behind, and Kathleen stoically set about distributing it to her tenants. The crofters were delighted to have her cast-offs, down to the crockery, pots and pans and even the fireplace screens.

  Like a whirlwind, Kathleen went through the house from attic to cellar, clearing out treasures. One afternoon, Reed found her standing in the center of the empty dining room, staring toward the ceiling with great concentration. He knew it was a mistake before he even opened his mouth, but he asked anyway. “What is the problem, Kat?”

  She threw him a sheepish look from the corner of her eye. “I was trying to decide what to do wit
h the chandelier. I’d nearly overlooked it,” she admitted.

  “God forbid!” he chided, tongue-in-cheek.

  “Well, I certainly don’t intend to leave it for Ellerby!” she huffed. “Nor the one in the main hall.”

  “Your crofters will love them,” he teased. “Just what every cottage needs!”

  In the end, he found himself directing the workers as they dismanded and packed the great crystal and silver monstrosities. After this, Reed thought surely there was little else Kathleen could do to stun him. The empty rooms threw back echoes as he strolled through them. Not a matchstick was left that he could see. Kathleen had given away everything, including the kitchen broom, stating that Ellerby could provide his own to clear away the cobwebs and spiders, which she benevolently bequeathed to him.

  But, Reed thought she was going a bit far when she ordered the wallmounted sconces taken down and the door knocker removed. “Are you sure you don’t want to dismantle the entire mansion and rebuild it stone by stone in Savannah, Kat?” he inquired mockingly.

  “If it were at all possible, I would, indeed,” she retorted, her emerald eyes snapping.

  As a parting shot, she watched as dozens of workers scaled the steep roofs, dragging huge rocks up with them. These they wedged into the chimney openings, where they could not easily be seen or removed.

  “There!” she chuckled slyly. “Let Ellerby try to get a decent draught now! I hope he chokes on the first fire he lights! May all his toes turn blue and drop off!”

  Reed laughed helplessly. “Oh, Kat! What a devious, conniving female mind lies behind that delicate form and angelic face of yours! Remind me never to underestimate you!”