Fire and Ice

by Hart, Catherine

  “Ye should see yer face, lass!” she laughed. “No matter what ye say, ye love him still.”

  “I never said I didn’t,” Kathleen said softly.

  Gerard Ainsley claimed her attention for a good portion of the afternoon, and it was mainly to avoid his ardent advances that after lunch Kathleen allowed Reed to talk her into a ride on the river. He placed her gently in the bow of the rowboat, and rolling up his sleeves, took up the oars.

  Neither of them spoke until Reed finally asked, “Are you getting tired, Kat? You really must rest and not overdo, darling.”

  “I’m tired of resting,” Kathleen complained. “I want to ride and run and play. I’m sick of being coddled. Just now there is nothing I would like more than to take off all my clothes and go swimming.”

  Reed chuckled at her petulant look. “I’m sure I wouldn’t mind, but Barbara would probably faint dead away.”

  Kathleen grinned at the thought of her aunt’s reaction. “Yes, I really must behave in a ladylike manner, I suppose, but sometimes it is so hard!”

  “I still remember how you looked standing on the beach at Grande Terre with your hair all wet and streaming down your back, wearing nothing but my shirt clinging to you as if it were painted on.” His tone was wistful, and his eyes had darkened to the hue that Kathleen recognized instantly. He wanted her in his arms with her lips moist and clinging to his.

  Kathleen felt a familiar tug at her insides, and a warmth that traveled through her with shocking intensity. She turned her face from his with a shaky sigh. “Don’t, Reed, please. Just row us back now.”

  He had read the look on her face, and for a moment felt hope. He shrugged at her words and thought, “Well, at least she’s speaking to me, and I know now that she’s not entirely immune to me. I’ve plenty of time to wear down her defenses. I’ll just keep trying.”

  Talking to Susan on the way home, Kathleen was surprised to find that the young girl had never been on a ship. “Do you mean to tell me that as long as Reed has been sailing he has never taken you aboard?”

  Susan shook her head mutely.

  “Reed Taylor! You should be ashamed of yourself!” Kathleen wagged an accusing finger at him.

  “He’s never invited me, either,” Amy whined, tossing her blonde curls. “He hasn’t even extended the offer to his own mother!”

  “This is an oversight that should be rectified immediately. Surely now that you have your own vessel you could see to it, Reed.”

  “Kat! You make me feel like a naughty boy in knee breeches caught sneaking cookies from the kitchen.”

  Her laughter bubbled. “You should feel naughty!”

  “All right. You are all invited to come aboard the Kat-Ann before I sail next, but you must give me a few days to ready her for your tour.”

  “Tour!” Kathleen reproached. “Why not be magnanimous and give us a short cruise?”

  “Next you’ll want me to have champagne and finger cakes on board,” he laughed.

  “But, of course!” she nodded brightly. “Now you are getting the right idea!”

  “Precisely,” Amy concurred, for once in agreement with her cousin.

  “Oh, yes, Reed. Please!” Susan begged prettily.

  Mary smiled at Barbara and nodded.

  “I’m outnumbered, it seems. All right, you win. Let’s make it Thursday. We’ll start out bright and early and I’ll take you downriver to the ocean. We’ll follow the coast for a short way and then return.” Turning to Kathleen, he smiled. “Are you satisfied now?”

  “Quite,” she answered smugly.

  The cruise was pleasant enough at the outset. The river was calm and the morning was mostly sunny, though a few clouds were gathered here and there.

  “What an ungodly hour to be up and about!” Amy complained loudly.

  Kathleen settled herself in a chair on deck and enjoyed the scenery and sun. Reed was busy at the helm, with Amy shadowing his every move. Ainsley, seeing his golden opportunity, glued himself to Kathleen’s side. Most of the other young gentlemen eyed him ruefully and went on in pursuit of other game. Even Ted deserted her, courting Susan as if this were his last chance. Uncle William and Barbara were standing off to themselves and behaving like newlyweds, and Kate was busy convincing Mary that she was not seasick.

  By lunchtime, Kathleen was considering tossing the persistently pesky Gerard overboard. But Mother Nature relieved her of the necessity.

  Once they cleared the mouth of the river and entered the open ocean, the waves were much choppier. The sky was becoming increasingly overcast, and the Kat-Ann was rocking more with the waves.

  Kathleen, of course, was undeterred, and left a pale Ainsley in the dining area. On her way back on deck, she passed Amy, who was grumbling to herself about the wind ruining her coiffure. Kathleen grinned impishly. Amy did indeed look a sight! Beyond being windblown, she had a peculiar greenish cast to her face, and was clutching her arms about her waist.

  A few of the guests suffered mal de mer, but most were gamely traversing the deck, determined to enjoy their outing despite a few inconveniences. Kathleen stood by the rail and enjoyed the feel of wind on her face. A few of her hairpins pulled loose. She removed the rest and let her hair tumble down her back in a coppery cascade.

  Reed slipped up behind her. His arms snaked around her waist before she realized he was there. Placing his lips near her ear, he said softly, “Does this bring back pleasant memories, Kat?”

  “Not all the memories are pleasant, Reed. By the way, I passed Amy and she looked miserable.”

  “Not much of a sailor,” Reed agreed. “Where is your shadow?”

  “Ainsley?”

  “Who else?”

  “He’s below turning green about the gills.” She giggled.

  “Lord, I love it when you laugh,” Reed vowed as he pulled her closer and pressed his face into her tumbled tresses. “Mmm, your hair smells good; just like lemons. It’s been so long since I’ve seen you with your hair down. I love it!”

  Kathleen squirmed in his arms. “Reed, please! People are starting to stare!”

  “Let them,” came the husky reply.

  “I’m warning you, Reed Taylor!”

  He dropped his arms and stepped back but a pace. “I’m sorry, but there is just so much a man can stand. Maybe you’d better go below and pin up your hair. You are much too tempting as it is.”

  “You and your obsession with my hair,” she grumbled half to herself.

  Reed’s good behavior finally wore thin two days later. He’d gone up to Kathleen’s room to ask if she would like for him to exercise Zeus for her. As he neared her veranda door, he heard voices. At the doorway he stopped to let his eyes adjust from the bright sunlight.

  “Now, Nell, quit fussing about and let’s get this done.” Kathleen’s voice floated out to him.

  “But, ma’am, yoah haih be so purty! Ah doan know why yoah wants ta cut it. ’Sides, ah ain’t nevah cut haih lak yoahs befo’.”

  “For heaven’s sake, Nell! Just pick up those scissors and get started. I’d do it myself if I could reach the back, but I can’t.”

  Reed had heard all the needed to. He stepped over the threshold, and in three long strides reached Nell just as she held the scissors toward the first of Kathleen’s curls. He knocked the scissors out of Nell’s hands.

  “Pick up those shears and get out of here, Nell! Don’t ever let me catch you even thinking of assisting Miss Kathleen in cutting her hair, or so help me I’ll whip your black hide!” he roared.

  Nell had never seen her master so furious, and it frightened her so that her hand shook as she reached for the scissors. Her eyes were enormous with fear.

  Kathleen whirled on Reed. “How dare you barge into my room and order people around! I asked her to help me, and she’s going to. It’s none of your business what I do, Captain Taylor. You don’t own me!”

  “You think not?”

  “I know not!”

  “That’s debatable. At any ra
te, I do own Nell and I am ordering her not to assist you.” He regarded her stormy face. “Furthermore, I’ll make sure no one else comes to your aid.”

  Nell scurried from the room.

  “Damn you, Reed! Who do you think you are?” Kathleen screamed.

  “I know who I am. It is you who seems to find it convenient to forget your place. I’m here to remind you that, like it or not, I am still your husband. I still have some say in your life, and I’m ordering you not to cut your hair.”

  “It’s my hair!”

  “True, but you are my wife and I am warning you, if you cut so much as one lock of it I’ll turn you over my knee and give you a spanking you’ll never forget.”

  “You despicable bully!” Kathleen faced him, hands on her hips. “You don’t scare me!”

  “You may not be scared now, but defy me on this, Kat, and you certainly will be. I promise you! I want your word that you will not cut your hair.”

  “I’ll think about it!”

  “That’s not good enough. I want your word on it.”

  “All right!” she relented with a sigh. She gave him a disgusted look. “You have my word, you ogre. Saints, but you can be a beast when you want to! I see you’ve dropped the ‘adoring suitor’ facade. I wondered how long it would last.”

  “I can see now that is not the way to handle you.” Reed glared down at her.

  “And this is?” she queried hatefully.

  “This, at least, has some effect,” he answered stiffly.

  “Don’t push your luck, dear.”

  “Don’t worry your pretty little head about it. After Sunday I won’t be here to pester you.”

  “Are you going in search of your lady pirate?”

  “As a matter of fact, yes. I have a score to settle with her.”

  “Well, she has my vote. I, for one, hope she skins you royally!”

  At breakfast Monday morning Kathleen told everyone that Kate wanted to teach her something of horse breeding, and that she would be spending a great deal of time there. Eleanore decided to go with her.

  After the meal, she had Mammy pack up some of their clothes and send them to Emerald Hill.

  Kate was waiting for them when they arrived. “I’ve been expecting ye,” she said with a rueful smile. “I heard Reed left his morning. I don’t suppose ye’ll be learning much about horses in the next few days.”

  “I’m sorry, Kate, really I am,” Kathleen apologized. “I’ll be sailing this evening. I’ve already sent word to Dan. We can’t disappoint Reed by having his pirate lady fail to show, can we?”

  Kate rolled her eyes and chuckled. “Heaven forbid!”

  They used their previous hiding spot between the two islands. Lady Luck was with them. They waited but six hours before they swooped down upon an English brigantine, confiscated her entire cargo of milled goods, and sent her to the ocean floor. They set her men adrift on the seagoing tide in dinghys.

  Two days passed and they hit upon a Spanish bark directly from Mexico. Chests of gold, silver, and jewels were brought aboard, and she too was sunk. The greeneyed Enchantress of the gulf was alive and well, and her reputation was spreading like wildfire.

  Going through the chests, Kathleen came across two beautifully worked, snake-shaped gold arm bands. An emerald was set in place for each eye. These Kathleen took for her own, along with a pair of good hoop earrings and a large gold medallion with an emerald center-stone. She added these to her pirate attire, and the effect was stunning.

  The following day passed uneventfully, but dawn the next day brought an alert from the eagle-eyed lookout. The Kat-Ann had been spotted. Kathleen manned the wheel, and they threaded their way in and out of the islands and slipped silently up behind the Kat-Ann before anyone realized it. When they boarded her, most of the crew was still below in their bunks. Reed was in a rage.

  Kathleen stood poised before him on the Kat-Ann's bridge, her rapier drawn. “It seems we meet again, Captain Taylor. I must say it was very rude of you to come along so early and disrupt my beauty rest.” She faked a delicate yawn.

  ”My apologies,” Reed remarked mockingly.

  “As retribution you might hand over your plunder. I see you ride low in the water this trip.”

  He glowered at her, his eyes glittering like cool blue diamonds. “You brazen sea-witch!”

  She laughed up at him, her eyes a perfect match to her emeralds. “I’m sure that is not what you would like to call me.”

  “How right you are! Where in Hades did you come from so suddenly?”

  “Why, Captain, surely you don’t expect me to answer that question. Let’s imagine that I materialized out of the mist. Just possibly I am but a spirit, a figment of your imagination.”

  “Somehow I doubt that. I can feel the heat of you from here.”

  “How perceptive of you! You must also realize you have no recourse but to surrender to me once again.”

  “You’ll forgive me if I do so with regret.”

  She nodded, and her earrings tinkled, their musical notes irritating him all the more.

  He called to his men, ordering the transfer of goods to her ship. “Reports of your pirating ventures are reaching a good many ears, yet no one knows a thing about you,” he stated.

  “What is there to know?”

  “Such things as where you hail from, why we’ve not heard of you before, your name,” he pressed.

  She gave him an amused look. “That is my private business. Next you will be asking that I send engraved announcements of my next attack. I come from home. I had parents like everyone else did, and if you must call me by some name, let it be simply Captain or Emerald.”

  “We’ll meet again you know, Emerald,” he grated from between clenched teeth.

  “You repeat yourself, Captain,” she chuckled softly. “Now I must say adieu. It has been very lucrative running into you.”

  She swung herself aboard her own ship. “Say hello to your friend Lafitte for me and tender my apologies for cutting into his profits.” She shouted her parting remark to him as they sailed swiftly away.

  Her hold full, the Emerald Enchantress headed for home.

  Once in Savannah, Kathleen decided to appease Kate by spending a few days actually studying breeding. On her fourth day back she, Kate, and Eleanore were sitting on the veranda enjoying the sunset when Reed rode up on Titan.

  “My, you’re back soon!” Kathleen remarked.

  “Yes, I just couldn’t stay gone from your radiant face and loving ways,” he grumbled churlishly. He plopped himself into a wicker porch chair.

  Kate chuckled. “Ye two really should try to be nicer to one another.”

  “Reed, what really brings you back so quickly?” Eleanore inquired. “Did you run into your pirate lady again? Kathleen and I went into Savannah the other day for fittings. The town is buzzing with talk of her.”

  Reed gave Eleanore a look that clearly stated he wished she would mind her own business. “If you must know, yes, I did encounter her again.”

  “And?” Kathleen prompted, her eyes glowing with mischief.

  “She was lucky once again. She was on us before we were aware of it. I could swear she appeared from nowhere!” He gave Kathleen a disgusted look. “Yes, my love, she took my entire cargo. Does that make you happy?”

  “Satisfied would be a more appropriate term.” She held his gaze unwaveringly. “Did she sink your ship as she has the others we’ve heard about?”

  “No, and I am quite mystified over it. I cannot understand it at all. I think the vixen wants us to meet again. It is as if she takes personal satisfaction in harassing me time and again. Once is not enough in my case.”

  “Perhaps she is enamored of you, darling,” Kathleen purred.

  “Would that be so amazing?” Reed asked sourly.

  “No. Not until she got to know you, love.”

  Reed glared at her. “I’ve come to take you home. Mother says you’ve been here since I left.”

  “I
don’t need a keeper, Reed.”

  He ignored her comment. “I’ll only be home for a few days. Surely you can stand my presence that long.”

  Kathleen heaved a sigh and pushed herself from her chair. “I suppose I can try. Come, Eleanore. We return to the lion’s lair.”

  In the few days that he was home, Reed escorted her to several functions and around Savannah. Kathleen would almost have enjoyed seeing him try to dodge Amy’s blatant flirtations, were she not so busy trying to fend off the ever-ardent Ainsley.

  As it had done the first Sunday in October every year, the church held its annual bazaar. Eleanore worked a booth for the children, and Mary and Barbara held court in the quilt booth. Amy lost her usual position to Kathleen and wound up with Susan in the embroidery booth, while Kathleen reigned supreme in the kissing booth. She was having the time of her life and collecting a good deal of money for the church, knowing full well that each kiss she bestowed upon some besotted man was driving Reed mad with jealousy.

  “You really don’t have to be so generous with your favors, Mrs. Taylor,” he complained.

  Ainsley, through some fluke, won Kathleen’s hamper in the lottery drawing, and she was compelled to dine with him at supper. He found a quiet spot at one of the more secluded tables that were set up in a grove next to the church. The evening was balmy and starlit, and Gerard was determined to make the most of it.

  When they had eaten their fill, he led her a short distance away, out of the lantern light. Without warning she found herself drawn into his arms, locked in a tight embrace. He brought his lips down on hers in a possessive kiss that left her cold, but obviously had the reverse effect on him. As his moist, full lips pressed down on hers, she felt the swelling in his breeches against her thigh.