Red, Red Rose

by Marjorie Farrell

  “And probably nothing good, Miss Gordon?”

  Elspeth laughed. “You are right, Captain, your reputation has preceded you. Among other things, you are reported to be quite charming and an excellent dancer.”

  “I will admit to that, Miss Gordon,” said Belden.

  The four of them walked on together and before Val knew it, his place next to Elspeth had been usurped by the captain.

  “Not for nothing do they call him the Jack of Hearts, eh, Lieutenant?” Colonel Sanchez said admiringly as they watched the other two walk ahead.

  “Indeed,” Val replied curtly.

  “It means nothing to him, Lieutenant. The captain, he already has a beautiful senora.”

  “That doesn’t seem to be stopping him!”

  “No, well, he is an accomplished charmer, Captain Belden,” Sanchez admitted with a grin. “But Senorita Gordon seems like a sensible young woman and not one to be taken in by charm.”

  “I hope not…for her sake, you understand,” Val muttered.

  “Of course.”

  Chapter 16

  The largest house in the town was the mayor’s and Wellington had commandeered it for the evening. The front parlor and dining room had been set up as a combination receiving area and card room. Several tables of whist were already in progress by the time they arrived. The mayor’s “ballroom” was not very large, but it could accommodate two small sets for country dancing.

  Val found Charlie waiting for him. “Happy Christmas, Val,” said his brother. “It is good to be with family for the holiday.”

  “Happy Christmas to you, Charlie,” Val replied and, surprising both himself and his brother, pulled Charlie close for a warm hug. He let him go almost immediately and quickly asked, “What was dinner like at the general’s table?”

  “Roast beef,” groaned Charlie. “I’ll not be able to dance for hours.”

  “Not even with that pretty senorita who is giving you come-hither looks when her parents aren’t watching?” Val teased.

  “Is she really?” asked Charlie, blushing with pleasure. “Well, I suppose I might be recovered in time for the next set. But what about your dinner, Val? I heard roast suckling pig was to be on the menu,” he added sympathetically.

  “Actually, it was roast capon, Charlie. Miss Gordon grew fond of the piglet and couldn’t bear the thought of eating him.”

  “Miss Gordon, eh? And how much were you planning to eat?”

  “If you must know, I was ready to excuse myself from the meal,” Val admitted with a shamefaced grin. “I’d grown rather fond of the little runt myself!”

  “I think Miss Gordon is a delightful young woman, Val. And I am sure she is looking forward to dancing with you tonight.”

  “Are you trying to play matchmaker, little brother?”

  “Not at all,” replied Charlie with great dignity. “I was merely suggesting that you and she might enjoy one or two sets tonight.” Charlie watched as the next sets formed. “But I see you may already be too late for this one, Val,” he added with a grin. “Jack Belden has got her and I’ve never seen a young woman able to resist him. He had all the young ladies in London sighing after him last Season.”

  “I am sure Miss Gordon is sensible enough to recognize a rake, no matter how charming.”

  “He’s not really a rakehell, Val. He just possesses the deadly combination of that dark and brooding Spanish countenance, which is enough on its own to make women swoon, with unexpected humor and charm. And who could resist that dashing motley uniform?”

  “I hear he already has an inamorata,” Val replied stiffly. “A Spanish lady.”

  “Does he? Well, I am going to brave the senorita’s parents, Val. Wish me luck.”

  Val watched as Charlie made his way around the room and introduced himself to the young woman and her parents. Within a few minutes they were all smiling and chatting away in what Val assumed was a combination of Charlie’s meager Portuguese and their little English. Well, who could resist Charlie? He had his own charm, very different from Jack Belden’s, but powerful in its own right.

  Elspeth was smiling up into Belden’s face when he led her off the dance floor and for a few moments Val was filled with a fury so sudden and strong that it took him completely by surprise. How dare the man flirt with Miss Gordon like that? And why was she giving him that simpering look back? It took Val a moment to realize that Miss Gordon was merely smiling, not simpering. Belden had only had one dance with the lady, after all, and he was bowing and moving off. Without making a conscious decision, Val made his way to where Miss Gordon was chatting with the surgeon’s wife.

  “Mrs. Clitheroe. Miss Gordon.”

  “Lieutenant Aston, how lovely to see you here tonight,” said Mrs. Clitheroe. “I do think His Lordship was inspired, don’t you? A dance was just what we all needed to lift our spirits.”

  Val smiled. “Lord Wellington is an incomparable commander. He knows just how to encourage his men, whether in battle or ballrooms.”

  The three of them chatted for a while and then Mrs. Clitheroe excused herself as she heard the musicians tuning up for the next set. “I am shameless, I admit, but I am going to drag my husband away from his cronies and make him dance with me. I hope you will not disappoint Miss Gordon, Lieutenant?” she added.

  “Oh, dear, she didn’t leave you much choice, did she?” Elspeth said with an apologetic smile.

  “She only made it easier to do what I came over here to do, which was to ask you for the next dance,” replied Val with a bow. “Will you join me in this next set?”

  “I would be happy to, Lieutenant Aston,” replied Elspeth.

  * * * *

  The music was lively and the musicians went immediately into another tune, so Val and Elspeth had two dances together. When the music finally stopped, they looked at each other and laughed. “Thank you, Miss Gordon, that was delightful, but I am ashamed to confess I am out of breath,” said Val with a smile.

  “I too, Lieutenant. Oh, dear, and it is quite warm in here.”

  “Do you have a shawl with you?”

  “A shawl! I would faint from the heat then, Lieutenant!”

  “I was going to suggest that we step outside for a little fresh air, but I wouldn’t want you to take a chill.”

  “A breath of air is just what I need,” agreed Elspeth, “but if it is only for a moment, I won’t need my shawl.”

  “You are sure?”

  “I am,” said Elspeth, placing her hand on top of his arm. “I don’t believe we will make it out the front door, there is such a crush now, but there is a side entrance.”

  Elspeth’s arm rested lightly on his, but Val was acutely aware of the slight pressure of her fingers as he led her out.

  There was a small herb garden on the side of the house and the faded plants shone silver in the moonlight.

  “It is too cold a night to stay long, Miss Gordon,” he warned.

  “I know, but it is so good to be able to breathe, and to look at the stars, Lieutenant. The Christmas star must have been very bright to stand out from all these and lead the Magi all the way to Bethlehem,” she whispered.

  Val could see her beginning to shiver. “Miss Gordon, I think I should take you back in.”

  “Oh, just another minute,” she pleaded. “On such a Christmas night, one can almost hear the angels singing.”

  Val quickly unbuttoned his tunic. “Here, at least put this on, Miss Gordon,” he said. As he draped it over her shoulders, Elspeth reached up to grasp the jacket and instead her hand touched his. He expected her to draw hers back, but she let it rest. He was surprised to realize that despite the cold, her hand warmed his, and when he brushed his thumb against hers, her fingers tightened around his.

  “Glory be to God in the highest and on earth, peace….” she whispered. “Will we ever see peace, Lieutenant?”

  “Peace to men of good will is what they sang, Miss Gordon. I suppose we will have peace when men will each other good rather than h
arm.” Val felt her shiver again and pulled his tunic a little tighter around her.

  “You are freezing, Miss Gordon,” he said, standing there, his hands resting gently on her shoulders. “We must go in.”

  “Yes, I know,” Elspeth whispered. But she only turned her face up to his, and without thinking, he let go of the jacket and caressed her cheek with his hand.

  “Your lips are turning blue, Miss Gordon,” he said softly.

  “I am sure you exaggerate, but perhaps you can warm them,” she said as she turned her face slightly and pressed her lips into the palm of his hand. The intimacy of the moment gave Val such pleasure that he wanted it to last forever. But then he wanted more, and turning her face gently, he leaned down and pressed his lips against hers. “Is this better?”

  “Oh, yes.”

  Val’s tunic slipped off completely as they both let go of it at the same time. Elspeth put her hands on his shoulders and Val lowered his head again, but this time he urged her mouth open.

  It was a kiss that shook both of them to the core and when Val finally pulled away, they stood speechless. Then Elspeth lowered her eyes in confusion and saw Val’s tunic. “Oh, dear, your tunic will be ruined,” she said nervously as she leaned down to pick it up.

  “Please don’t concern yourself, Miss Gordon. The ground is frozen and I doubt it could get very dirty,” he reassured her as she brushed it off and handed it back to him.

  He shrugged himself into it and buttoned it as quickly as he could with cold-stiffened fingers while she stood there, her arms wrapped around herself for warmth.

  “I must get you inside,” Val told her as he pushed the last button through. “Before you freeze.” He didn’t add what they were both thinking: “Before anyone notices our absence.”

  They managed to slip back in quietly and before Elspeth could say anything, Val led her over to a small group of officers and ladies, bowed formally, and thanked her for the dance. He was gone before she realized it, and it took her a minute until she could join the conversation with her usual enthusiasm.

  * * * *

  Val wanted to excuse himself from the rest of the evening. He wanted never to have to face her again. He wanted…damn it, he wanted to be kissing her again. He wanted everyone else to disappear so he could walk over to her and take her in his arms and not have to worry about cold or scandal.

  He had wanted to kiss her before, of course. Perhaps he had been wanting to kiss her since he’d met her. But wanting was one thing; acting on it was quite another.

  It was that damned pig, he told himself. If she hadn’t been so understanding, so attentive to his feelings about the little animal, maybe nothing would have happened. But she had shown both kindness and humor, which had completely disarmed him. His defenses might have been able to withstand one or the other, but with both, she had breached them. And then leveled them completely with her kiss.

  He could still feel the imprint of her lips on the palm of his hand. It had not been a stolen kiss, but one freely given. And that’s what made it so damnably difficult. He and Elspeth Gordon had begun a friendship. Now, clearly, their companionship was revealing some complications. And the attraction was mutual, since she had asked him to warm her lips. Were she any other woman, he would be happy. But where could these feeling lead them? Perhaps to a few more stolen kisses, but nothing more. Certainly not marriage.

  Val had never pictured himself married. In the army, you lived from day to day, and he hadn’t spent much time thinking of the future. If anyone had asked what he planned to do after the war, he wouldn’t have known what to answer. He had never thought of his future, he realized, not since his mother died. He had lived in the present: He had had to survive George Burton, Queen’s Hall, and the British army. Well, thank God, he had enough practice at it, for that was the way he would have to go on. Only now he didn’t just have to survive a war, but his encounters with Elspeth Gordon.

  * * * *

  By the time they returned home in the wee hours of the morning, Elspeth was dizzy from her efforts to focus on her dance partners, the social chatter, even a brief conversation with Lord Wellington, who jokingly warned her about Jack Belden and recommended she beware of all his exploring officers. “They are a special breed, ma’am, and adept at disguise and deceit. Eh, Colquhoun?” he added humorously.

  “I think some of us can tell the difference between deceiving the enemy and toying with the heart, my lord. But I must agree with you about Captain Belden. He is one to guard your heart against, Miss Gordon,” Captain Grant added with a teasing smile.

  “You need not worry, my lord, Captain Grant. I have been in the army long enough to tell the difference between true and Spanish coin,” Elspeth assured them dryly.

  “Indeed you have,” Wellington said to her approvingly.

  It was true, Elspeth thought later, sitting in bed, her back against her pillows, her knees drawn up, her hands clasped around them as she gazed into the darkness. She had dealt with everything from flirting to outright seduction over the years. She had easily dismissed the intermittent attention paid to her as misguided efforts on the part of young officers to gain her father’s attention. And as for someone like Jack Belden, well, charming women came as naturally to him as breathing. He was amusing company and a wonderful dancer and she only wished she had gone outside with him, for then his kiss would have been stolen, not given…and meaningless.

  Her cheeks burned as she thought of how forward she had been with Lieutenant Aston. Not only had she pressed her lips into his hand, she had actually asked him to do more. What must he think?

  But it had been a lovely kiss, she thought with a little sigh of remembered pleasure. “No, my lord,” she whispered to an imaginary Lord Wellington, “you need not worry about me with Jack Belden. It is Lieutenant Valentine Aston who endangers my heart.” She feared it was true. Valentine Aston was different from any man she had ever met. He had little obvious surface charm. Indeed, she thought, smiling into the darkness, he seemed most of the time to be too grimly intent on carrying that damned chip on his shoulder to give much thought to pleasing a lady. But when one caught glimpses of the man he was underneath, as she had, well, then, he was hard to resist. For much of this evening she had felt she was in the presence of the real Val, a man of hidden warmth, who could share her humorous view of the world. He would not have eaten a morsel of that roast pork, yet he saw the irony in his tenderheartedness toward a small animal with all the devastation going on around them.

  He was a solid man, Lieutenant Aston, and she appreciated solidity. He had the capacity for love, for she could see what he tried to hide, his love and admiration for his brother. He was a lovable man too. Charlie admired him and, from what she knew, his former comrades held him in great affection. He was handsome, though not with the Byronic looks of Jack Belden or the sunnier handsomeness of his brother. Elspeth could see his face looking down at hers, and imagined herself tracing the thin scar that ran down his jaw. His lips were full and generous, and as she pictured them touching hers, she felt the same liquid warmth spreading through her as she had earlier this evening in the garden.

  “I have never felt that way before,” she whispered to herself. “Or perhaps I have never let myself feel that way.”

  She had come to realize, when she had looked around at the girls at school, that her appearance and her background made her very different from them. She was tall and, although her features were pleasant, she knew she could never lay a claim to beauty. There were other girls who were not beautiful, of course, but each had something else to recommend her: petite stature combined with a generous figure, or perhaps a graceful femininity. It was not only her appearance. It was who she was. Or perhaps who she wasn’t. She wasn’t sheltered. She wasn’t fluent in French, although she could speak fluent Hindi. She wasn’t soft; she was strong, independent, and said what she meant. Above all, she was not self-deceptive. It became clear, after a few visits to the homes of her classmates, and a few loc
al assemblies, that their brothers and friends considered her a great confidante. But to any of the men she found attractive, she remained invisible. So she had early on accepted what seemed to be her fate.

  Truly, she thought, it was not such a bad fate. She had been honest about not wanting a Season. She loved the freedom and adventure her life gave her, despite the lack of comforts that most young women took for granted. She knew she could not have tolerated the boredom and constraint that a life in Society would have forced upon her. In that respect, at least, she was her mother’s daughter.

  Of course, being her father’s daughter, she had a romantic and passionate side to her nature, but she had kept it hidden away from others, and almost from herself, until now. She gave a little gasp as the full realization hit her. And the pain. She wasn’t as happy as she had thought herself. She hadn’t resigned herself completely to her solitary state. She wanted love. How had she ever convinced herself otherwise? She wanted a strong man’s arms around her, making her feel cherished. She wanted his lips on hers, making her feel loved. She wanted his body pressed against hers, making her feel desired.

  She thought she might hate Val Aston for waking her up to herself. A little sob escaped her. And what was even worse, maybe she was beginning to love him.

  Chapter 17

  Charlie always enjoyed himself at a dance and last night was no exception. He had managed to partner almost every woman present, he thought with a smile as he dressed the next morning. Except for Elspeth Gordon, whom he couldn’t get near, between Jack Belden and Val.

  He had actually been a little concerned for her when he saw how Jack was monopolizing her, for very few women could resist him. I wonder what it is about a melancholy countenance that captures the ladies? he asked himself as he gazed at his own open, cheerful face in his shaving mirror. You would think they would be drawn to one who looked more acquainted with joy rather than sorrow. Perhaps it was the challenge. Perhaps each lady hoped to be the one woman who could lift that melancholy.