The Perfect Temptation

by Leslie LaFoy

  ''Then I gather that a torrid affair with the stable master is

  out of the question?" he teased.

  She laughed outright and put the lamp on the desk in the

  front store. "Judging by your appearance, I'd guess that you

  managed to acquire the horses you wanted."

  Change of subject. He wasn't surprised. A bit disappointed,

  yes, but not surprised. "Yes, and then we went to

  take delivery of the carriage," Aiden explained, noting that

  while the wooden crates remained where the delivery crew

  had left them that morning, they were now surrounded by a

  shallow sea of packing straw.

  "It's been cleaned and polished and the horses are happily

  munching on sweet oats, all settled into their new

  home," he continued as she leaned into one of the boxes and

  he tried not to stare at the attractive curve of her backside.

  ''Tomorrow we' ll saddle the horse we bought you and start

  your riding lessons."

  ''We'll see. I'm sure Mohan made you start with his today:'

  She straightened with a wad of straw in her hands. Wiggling

  her fingers, she let the golden bits fall slowly away. "How did

  he do?"

  "He's very good. Not at all afraid or put off by their size.

  He's going to be one of those riders who looks as though he

  was born in the saddle."

  She stopped and looked over at him. "You will make an

  effort to keep him from taking unnecessary chances, won't

  you?"

  It was a momentous step for a confirmed mother hen.

  "He's on a palfrey and a lead rope until he proves himself

  competent several times over."

  "Thank you, Aiden. That makes me feel better."

  And the appreciation of her smile was making him feel

  decidedly too warm. He nodded his acceptance of her gratitude.

  "Well, I'd best be getting those clothes and back to the

  kitchen," he said, backing toward the stairs and beyond the

  persistent whisper of temptation.

  Alex watched him leave and then went back to work,

  thinking that he was a far more fascinating man than was

  good for her. Thankfully, he didn't seem to be a callous predator

  like so many of the British Army officers her mother

  had taken pains to see that she encountered. And while Aiden

  obviously wasn't opposed to taking opportunities that presented

  themselves, he didn't strike her as the sort that went

  out of his way to deliberately create them. Placing an otherwise

  virtuous woman in a compromising situation just so that

  he could take advantage of her ... No, Aiden was decent and

  honorable. He'd never do such a dastardly thing.

  But, by the same token, he clearly wasn't opposed to

  accepting an offer freely made. And if the woman of the

  hour expected a payment of sorts in exchange for her favors,

  he'd pay it. If one man had given Charlotte Tyndale a set

  of Roberts and Belk's latest and most expensive flatware,

  then what had Aiden given her? Horses and carriages?

  Not that he would have had to give so extravagantly; he

  was a handsome, charming man and no doubt the sort of

  lover women like Lady Tyndale preferred. But he didn't

  seem like the sort to stint on quality or value just because he

  could. For Aiden, providing a special, memorable gift would

  probably be a point of pride.

  And, she admonished herself, to spend so much as a second

  of her time thinking about such things was beyond foolish.

  It was unseemly. Ladies didn't entertain such musings.

  If they even occurred to them in the first place.

  "A pair of sapphire rings."

  She looked up to find Aiden standing at the base of the

  stairs, clothing draped over his arm and his smile wicked.

  How long had he been standing there? she wondered. And

  had she been thinking aloud? Lord, she hoped not. She knitted

  her brows, trying to fathom what sapphire rings had to

  do with anything.

  "You were wondering what I gave Charlotte."

  Of course he'd known what she'd been thinking. He always

  did. At least it didn't overly surprise her anymore.

  "Rings are a very expensive, personal gift," she observed.

  ''Weren't you afraid her husband would notice them at the

  breakfast table?"

  The devil danced in his eyes and his smile broadened.

  ''They weren't for her fingers. Charlotte has certain intimate-

  parts of herself pierced for jewelry."

  Alex stared at him, stunned and slack-jawed mute. She'd

  heard of such scandalous practices, but to actually know of

  someone who engaged in them ...

  "It was interesting," he admitted, nodding appreciatively.

  Apparently feeling as though he'd sufficiently shocked her,

  he turned to leave, adding, "But I'm certainly glad I'm not

  the one who married her."

  She couldn't resist the impulse. "Aiden?"

  He stopped and turned back, his brow cocked in silent

  question. And to her dismay, her wits and courage picked

  that very moment to desert her. One really didn't ask such

  things, her conscience virtuously intoned. It was truly none

  of her business or concern.

  "No," he said, chuckling softly, "I had nothing to do-directly-

  with the fact that Lord and Lady Tyndale have

  been living separately. The responsibility for that one belongs

  to Barrett. And it was absolutely spectacular."

  Oh, God. She most definitely didn't need that information.

  Wanting it was nothing more than a sign of prurient interest

  and low moral character. Which, of course, meant that

  she was a really, really terrible person.

  "We'll be in shortly," he said, still grinning as he walked

  off again. She let him go, grateful that he'd had the decency

  to save her from herself.

  Aiden toweled his hair, decided there was nothing to be lost

  in asking a few questions, and stepped from behind the

  bathing screen. Preeya was by the stove, stirring something

  steaming and aromatic. The boy was perched like a long legged

  bird on a stool beside her, "Mohan," Aiden began,

  what do you know about how Miss Radford and her mother

  came to your father's court?"

  ''They arrived when I was just a baby," he replied with a

  shrug. "I do not remember then or the time before."

  That was an odd statement, but he wasn't going to be

  sidetracked by pondering it "Would Preeya know?"

  Again he shrugged but he chattered away in Hindi for a

  moment and then looked back at him to smile and say

  "Preeya wants to know why you ask." '

  "Tell her because I want to understand Alex, why she is

  the way she is, why she does the things she does."

  Again Mohan spoke to Preeya in their native tongue. The

  older woman looked over her shoulder at Aiden, smiling

  broadly and then began answering. Mohan nodded throughout

  and only when she'd finished did he translate.

  "Preeya says that my father saw Miss Alex in one of the

  temples. She was a child then and stealing the offering food.

  He had his men follow her to bring her and her mother to the

  court for justice.
Once my father heard their story, he took

  pity on them and brought them under his protection. Preeya

  says that if you seek the story of her life before and after

  that, you must ask Miss Alex for it yourself. It is her story to

  tell."

  "I don't think she's likely to share it with me," Aiden admitted.

  ''No matter how nicely I ask."

  Again Mohan and Preeya conversed and Aiden watched

  the spirited exchange, relieved that Preeya didn't seem the

  least put off or hesitant to discuss what were in his mind,

  anyway-rather personal questions.

  "Preeya says that Miss Alex tries very hard to make people

  believe that she needs no one, that she prefers to move

  through the world alone. Preeya says Miss Alex would be

  happier if she were to abandon her illusions. Preeya says that

  she believes this must be done and thinks you are a most capable

  man in this regard."

  "Thank her for her confidence in me," Aiden instructed

  while thinking that Preeya had no real reason for such certitude

  "Preeya wants you to know that Miss Alex was raised in

  the women's quarters after she came to the court."

  Aiden knitted his brows. ''And that's important because... ?"

  Another exchange transpired, this one far shorter than the

  others. ''I think that you must ask Miss Alex that question. I

  do not know the answer and Preeya says she cannot tell you

  any more without betraying her friendship with Miss Alex."

  Which was fair enough, he knew. She'd already told him

  a great deal. ''Thank Preeya for her help, Mohan. I appreciate

  what she was able to give."

  But only in certain respects. The mental image of Alex.

  young. barefoot, dressed in rags, and stealing food to live

  bothered him deeply. No wonder she didn't trust easily; her

  life until the raja had taken them in had been one hard,

  painful lesson after another. Actually, it was a miracle that

  if she was able to trust at all. For that the raja had to be respected

  and commended.

  Alex angled her needlework to better catch the light from

  the fire. From the other side of the salon came the gentle

  clicking sounds of the chessboard being arranged. She cast a

  quick glance at Preeya, who rolled her eyes and smiled. Yes,

  Alex thought, this is going to be interesting. Best of luck to

  you, Aiden.

  ''All right," Aiden began. "We'll start with the fundamentals.

  You always move to protect your king, Mohan."

  Just as Alex expected, her ward crisply said, ''The king is

  most important. He is all that matters."

  "Not in chess. When the queen's captured the game's

  fairly well over."

  "Why?" Mohan demanded. "Men are more important

  than women."

  "What would men do without women?"

  "Whatever they wanted."

  "Which would rarely be intelligent, thoughtful, or appropriate."

  Aiden pointed out. ''There would be no such thing as

  civilization without the influence of women, Mohan."

  The boy snorted, and at the edge of her vision Alex could

  see that he'd punctuated the derisive sound with a dismissive

  wave of his hand. "My father does not ask my mother or

  his other wives or his mistresses for their opinions or advice

  on his actions. He is the raja and they are his subjects."

  Alex put in a stitch and waited.

  "Well, just guessing, Mohan," Aiden drawled, "but I'd

  say that your father's always aware that what he does is

  noted by the various females in his life and that he's going to

  have to answer for his actions one way or another."

  She smiled and laid in another stitch, thinking that, for an

  unmarried man, Aiden Terrell had a surprisingly fine grasp

  of domestic politics.

  "Ha!" Mohan scoffed with another wave of his hand.

  "Am I right, Miss Radford?"

  "Very much so," she offered.

  Aiden nodded in vindication and then went on. ''There's'

  something else you need to know about women, Mohan. They

  talk to each other. And in a way that's very different from the

  way men do among themselves. Women are masters of the

  coordinated action. Should they ever decide to create armies

  of their own, men are going to be in very serious trouble."

  "How do you know this'!' her ward asked, clearly skeptical.

  "I have a mother and six sisters. Thankfully, they're kind

  women because my father, my brothers, and I are completely

  at their mercy .. My father makes pronouncements, but

  unless my mother seconds them, they're largely empty in the

  end."

  ''Then your father lacks a spine."

  It was Aiden's turn to snort. "If he were here, you'd be

  pinned against the wall and sincerely regretting having suggested

  he was anything less than a force to be reckoned

  with."

  "Your mother would intervene and make him apologize

  for so roughly handling me."

  "No she wouldn't," he countered, every bit as firm in his

  convictions as Mohan was in his. "She'd let him go, figuring

  that you were getting what you deserved and learning a

  valuable lesson about keeping your mouth shut and your uninformed

  comments to yourself."

  ''Then she is the puppet."

  Alex wasn't at all surprised when Aiden heaved a sigh of

  frustration and turned to her. "Could you possibly have a go

  at explaining this? I'm not doing too terribly well with it on

  my own."

  Of course he wasn't. Mohan wasn't a child who accepted

  pronouncements; he had to reason his way to conclusions.

  Especially those that significantly challenged his view of the

  world's natural order. She smiled at Aiden and placed her

  needlework in her lap. "Mohan," she began. "Do you remember

  when your father brought Kali into his household?"

  "Yes."

  "What was it like in the palace while she was there?"

  He thought a moment. ''There was no laughter. The

  women did not smile and my father was ... " He paused another

  moment and then stridently finished, "He was most angry

  with the women for their treatment of Kali."

  She let the assertion go, holding to her course. ''And

  where is Kali now?"

  "She is the wife of one of my father's minor administrators."

  "And the consequences of her marriage were …?"

  "She left the palace and the women laughed again," Mohan

  said slowly, contemplatively. "My father stopped being

  angry and brought Chun into the household."

  "And did the laughter stop with Chun's arrival?" she

  pressed.

  "No."

  The groundwork successfully laid, Alex smiled at him

  and began the actual instruction. ''That's because the women

  approve of Chun and accept your father's choice of her.

  They didn't Kali. For a variety of reasons you're far too

  young to understand. It's sufficient for our purposes this

  evening to say that your father was made aware of the women's

  displeasure and took steps to see that harmony was restored.

  No one was the puppet of anyone else. The decisions were

  made
for the benefit of everyone's happiness." She gave him

  a moment to consider what she'd said and then asked, "Do

  you understand the lesson in all of that?"

  "I think so."

  No, he didn't, but he would in time. "Perhaps you could

  ponder on it some more as you drift off to sleep. It's time for

  bed."

  "But Mr. Terrell and I have yet to begin our game of

  chess," he protested, gesturing to the board.

  "We can begin it tomorrow night," Aiden assured him. "If

  Miss Radford says it's time for you to retire, it's time for you

  to retire. And you won't argue about it."

  Mohan cast a quick glance between the two of them and

  then rose to his feet with a disgruntled but resigned pout. At

  his wishes for their pleasant evening-in both English and

  Hindi-Preeya laid aside her embroidery and rose from her

  cushions beside the fire, announcing that she would retire, as

  well. Alex bade them both sweet dreams and watched them

  leave for their rooms. It was only in the silence afterward that

  she realized that she'd been left alone with Aiden Terrell.