Moonlight Lover

by Ferrarella, Marie

  Like Vanessa's. Rachel turned her back on him. "Well, you can show them all to Vanessa. I've no curiosity about them."

  He caught Rachel by the wrist before she had a chance to get any further away from him. He was in no mood to pursue her down the dark halls, playing a perverse game of blind man's bluff.

  "I'd much rather show them to you." Pulling her closer, he backed her against the wall and blocked her escape with his body. He laid his hand on her shoulders and she managed to jerk aside, though not very far.

  "Let go of me, you Bluebeard—" Rachel raised her knee, but he managed to prevent a very painful fleeting contact between them.

  Sin-Jin clenched his teeth. "Bluebeard married and killed them," he pointed out. "I never married Vanessa, though after tonight, I am tempted to kill her."

  Still angry, not knowing whether to believe her eyes or her heart, Rachel tried to wrench herself free again. Sin-Jin only held her tighter.

  Exasperated, he grasped her face in his hand and forcing her to look at him.

  "Do you think so little of me as to actually believe what you are accusing me of?" he demanded. He saw the hesitation, the wavering enter her eyes. He had her. His voice softened. "Do you think so little of yourself to believe that I would have a tumble with her, jeopardizing what it is we have together?"

  Rachel stopped struggling. Almost against her will, she looked into his eyes. Eyes that teased, but never lied to her.

  "I saw her stumbling from your room. Stumbling because you made love to her so much, she couldn't be walking right any more. And she was as naked as the day her mother had the misfortune of giving birth to her." But the anger, the indignant conviction was gone from her voice.

  He threaded his fingers through her hair. Like silk, he thought, beautiful red silk. "You saw her there because I threw her out of my room. She came to me in the dark. I thought it was you."

  Rachel's heart stopped as she looked up at him, her eyes wide. "And you—?"

  He shook his head slowly as he brushed a kiss across her lips. He knew exactly what she was thinking. "No, I didn't."

  With a deep sigh, he brought her to him, cupping her neck as he kissed her again, his lips lingering on hers, feeding like a humming bird draining nectar from a daffodil. "The moment I touched her, smelled her, I knew it wasn't you."

  He inhaled deeply now as he buried his face in her hair. Every part of him throbbed, every part ached for her. If he couldn't have her tonight, he'd surely explode.

  He smiled into her eyes. "You smell of wild flowers. She smelled of heat and desperation."

  Rachel almost felt sorry for the other woman. Almost. Having loved him, she knew how intoxicating that was, how tempting. How addicting. Even when she had slammed the door on him, a part of Rachel had wanted to open it again despite everything she had thought was true.

  Rachel feathered her fingers along his face. A strong face. An honorable face. The face she would someday see stamped on her children, God willing.

  "I—I shouldn't be believing you." Her voice faltered, though she had already made up her mind. It wouldn't do to let him win too easily.

  Still, the man had come sailing through the air to land at her feet. That did count for something.

  Sin-Jin grazed her throat lightly with his lips and felt her heartbeat rush up to meet him.

  "Since when don't you believe the truth?" he murmured against her throat. He picked her up and carried her to her bed.

  There was no more need for words that night. They had far more important ways to occupy themselves.

  Chapter Thirty-seven

  Rachel and Sin-Jin were ready to depart early the next morning. There was nothing to pack and only themselves to prepare. It had only been an hour since the purple rays of the dawn had melded into the blue of the sky and then faded. A bright new sun was warming the land. Sin-Jin had made arrangements regarding his brother's care, speaking to both Burns and the cook, as well as several others of the household staff.

  Now the carriage was in the courtyard, awaiting their pleasure. All that remained, Sin-Jin thought was to take their leave.

  As Rachel waited in the hall beside the bedroom door, Sin-Jin slipped quietly into his brother's room. He had made up his mind not to wake him if Alfred was asleep.

  But Alfred was awake and waiting for him, as if he knew that Sin-Jin was going to take his final leave of him so soon.

  Sin-Jin took Alfred's hand in his. "How are you feeling?"

  Alfred had to draw breath twice before attempting an answer. "Not up for swordplay yet, but by and by, who knows?"

  Sin-Jin laughed softly. There was still a miracle or two left in the world. After all, he had found Rachel. "Aye, who knows?"

  Sin-Jin embraced his brother warmly. True, they had never been close as brothers when they were children. But the young were known for missed opportunities, he mused, and blood was blood after all. Sin-Jin wished Alfred nothing but the best and a long life to enjoy it in.

  He could feel his emotion growing dangerously vulnerable. Slowly, he released the thin, frail body and eased Alfred against his pillows.

  "Take care, Brother. I've spoken to your wife about it, but mind that she doesn't let them come at you with leeches again." Sin-Jin couldn't bring himself to even call Vanessa by name. The very thought of her and her treachery had bile rising to his mouth.

  "I'll remember," Alfred said weakly. His smile was almost skeletal as it slowly inched along across his bony face until it went from ear to ear. "Don't worry. I'll be fine. Burns and Cook'll take care of me, the way they always have."

  Sin-Jin nodded. Yes, they could be relied on.

  "I've already spoken to them as well," Sin-Jin assured Alfred.

  One last touch of hands and then Sin-Jin left the room, his heart far from light.

  Rachel read his mood in his eyes as soon as he entered the hall. She fell into step beside him, taking his hand.

  "Perhaps you should stay a little longer," she suggested, though it cost her dearly. She knew she had to return. Her purpose in being half way around the world from her home was to bear witness to the goings-on in Paris. But there was no real reason that he could not linger here a while longer if he felt a need to.

  No reason but the she-devil, Rachel thought as bitterness gnawed at her.

  But Sin-Jin shook his head. There wasn't much that he could do beyond what he had already done. They took the stairs and made their way to the first floor.

  "He's made of strong stuff. As children, it was I who was always falling ill. Not Alfred. Never Alfred," he said quietly, then brightened as he looked at Rachel. "He'll be just fine, you'll see."

  Rachel turned before they reached the front door and squeezed Sin-Jin's hand. There was more bravado in his tone than was warranted. She thought it rang a little hollow to both of them. He was desperately trying to make himself believe the words he was saying.

  "He'll be fine," she echoed.

  Sin-Jin looked down at her, the threads of a hundred memories tangling in his mind. "Have I told you that I love you, Rachel O'Roarke?"

  Rachel's mouth fell open. The words stunned her, robbing her of her very-breath. But being Rachel, it was only for the slightest of moments.

  "No, but you may."

  She laced her arms around his neck and brought her body close to his. She wanted to feel the heat of his body, wanted to feel his arousing need of her. Sometimes, she thought, frustrated, all this material could be so cumbersome.

  "You may tell me as many times as you like." She laughed, her eyes crinkling as he trailed his hands along her back, pressing her even closer. "As long as you don't use that as an excuse just to talk your way into my bed."

  He smiled confidently, knowing it provoked her. "For that, I don't need talk." He nipped her lower lip quickly before she could say a word.

  The word melted into a single moan.

  "Very touching."

  Still locked in one another's arms, they turned to find Vanessa descending down
the stairs. She was resplendent in a morning gown, her hands clasped before her. She faced them easily. There wasn't a single telltale trace in her expression of what had transpired between them the night before.

  You are a piece of goods, Vanessa, Sin-Jin thought, but there was no admiration in the appraisal. He blessed the Providence that had saved him from her clutches all these many years ago.

  In response to her comment, Sin-Jin tightened his arm around Rachel.

  "Then you are determined to take your leave of us after all?" There was just the slightest pout, a protrusion of her lower lip in a way she had practiced before her mirror.

  The gall of the woman astounded Sin-Jin. "It was never my intent to stay even as long as I did. Our ship sails at noon and we are to be on it."

  Vanessa sighed, seemingly resigned. "A pity." Her eyes narrowed as she looked at Sin-Jin, completely ignoring Rachel. There had to be a way. Vanessa was not one to be easily thwarted from her goal. When the prize became elusive, it became dearer.

  "I really hoped that if you stayed, we could get reacquainted again." She touched his arm, then allowed her fingers to flutter away. "At leisure."

  Rachel envisioned Vanessa plucked clean of her luxurious hair. It made her smile. "There'll be no more reacquainting going on. Sin-Jin is as acquainted with you, Countess," she said the title as if it was an obscenity, "as he intends on being." Rachel saw the angry flash in the other woman's eyes and felt triumphant.

  There was a window facing the courtyard behind them. Rachel nodded carelessly toward the carriage that was standing there. "Our chariot awaits, Sin-Jin." She presented her hand to Vanessa. "Such a pleasure meeting you, Countess."

  Vanessa merely glared at her and Rachel didn't trouble herself to hide the smug smile that rose to her lips.

  The older woman turned to look at Sin-Jin, hardly able to believe that he was actually leaving after she had all but bidden him to stay.

  He took her hand formally. His loathing was barely concealed. "Good-bye, Vanessa. Mind what I told you about the leeches. Take care of my brother or there will be accounts to pay." He said the words genially, but there was a warning look in his eyes that neither woman missed.

  Slipping his hand around Rachel's shoulders, he guided her out the door and closed it firmly behind them. Vanessa remained inside.

  Burns painfully approached from the side of the manor. Spying the carriage, he had been patiently waiting to see them off. He attempted to keep out of sight of the window. The Countess's wrath was feared by one and all.

  "Godspeed, Master Sin-Jin." His expression was mournful, for he knew that he would never see the young man again. Not in this lifetime.

  "Here." Sin-Jin handed the old man a pouch. "I forgot to give you this earlier."

  Burns and Rachel looked at Sin-Jin quizzically. "What's this?"

  "A little something for you and Cook."

  "Oh no, sir, I can't." Burns attempted to hand the envelope back to Sin-Jin.

  "You can." Sin-Jin pushed the envelope into the gnarled hands. "It's for your trouble. I meant what I said about watching over Alfred."

  "Oh that I shall. And gladly." The old head bobbed up and down like a white egg floating freely in a pond.

  Sin-Jin squeezed the old man's hand, then turned to help Rachel into the carriage. He climbed on behind her. "Get us to town, boy," he instructed the young driver.

  A whip cracked and they were off.

  Sin-Jin and Rachel waved at the lone figure in the courtyard until the old man had diminished to the size of a doll, then faded from view completely.

  Rachel settled against Sin-Jin and sighed as he slipped his arm around her. The sound of the horse's hooves beat rhythmically against the road as they drew closer to town. "Are you sorry you came?"

  Sin-Jin took only a moment to consider. "No, glad of it, actually."

  She sat up to look at him curious. "Oh?"

  He nodded. It was hard to see things end. But there was a cleansing about it as well. "It gave me an opportunity to see Vanessa as she really is." He sighed. "And I did want to see Alfred again. This will undoubtedly be our last meeting on this earth."

  She tried to fathom his meaning. "Then you are thinking that he'll be dying soon?"

  "No." Sin-Jin watched as the countryside sped by them. All this belonged to Alfred, he mused. There was no envy in the thought. "With any luck, Alfred will recover, especially with Burns watching over him, and live to a ripe old age. Now that Vanessa knows her only chance to keep the title that's so precious to her is to keep Alfred alive, I'm certain she'll take good care of him." He silently bid a last farewell to the manor. "It's just that I have no plans to return."

  Rachel entwined her arms through his and leaned against him, contentment filtering down to her very toes.

  "And glad of it I am." She saw Sin-Jin raise a brow in silent query. Rachel frowned slightly as she thought of Vanessa. "That she-devil might have eventually enchanted you again the way she had once. Though you'd be a fool if she did," she added.

  Sin-Jin couldn't resist baiting her just a little. He leaned back and nodded thoughtfully, as if considering her words. "She is beautiful."

  Rachel sat up, her back as straight as poker. There was a warning flash in her eyes. She hit his shoulder with the flat of her hand.

  Sin-Jin laughed, delighted with her reaction. He pulled her into his arms. When the driver looked over his shoulder, Sin-Jin waved his attention back to the road.

  "But her thorns were far too deadly." It obviously wasn't what Rachel wanted to hear. "And what would I want with a rose when I have a wildflower blooming in my own garden?"

  She wasn't about to have him taking her for granted. "It's not your garden yet, buckoo."

  "We'll see. Driver, faster. We've a ship to catch." As the horse picked up speed and the carriage jolted, Sin-Jin

  turned his attention to Rachel. "And I've a shrew to tame."

  "Shrew, is it now?" she demanded.

  "Yes, but not forever." He covered her lips with his own and the argument melted away.

  The passage across the channel was rough, but mercifully short. And then they were in Paris again with Franklin welcoming them both with open arms.

  "The city," he told them when they arrived at the inn that night, "has been deadly dull without the spark of your young voices." He sighed wearily. "If the truth be told, I am nearly sick to distraction of those old men's tired arguments and heartily wish I had never set foot on this soil."

  "You cannot fool me with the likes of your complaining, Benjamin Franklin, Esquire." Rachel told him affectionately. "You're happier than a clam at high tide that you're here."

  Franklin leaned over the table toward Sin-Jin. "She's very picturesque."

  Sin-Jin exchanged looks with Rachel. "Among other things," Sin-Jin agreed.

  Negotiations on the treaty dragged. And then, one night nearly a month after their return, a letter arrived for Sin-Jin by special messenger. It was waiting for Sin-Jin when he arrived at the inn. Rachel had gone to bed early with a headache. Franklin had remained with Adams and Jay at the hall to iron out yet another fragment that was causing them trouble.

  So Sin-Jin was alone in his room when the innkeeper brought the letter.

  He sat down on his bed, silently regarding the sealed missive. Several minutes went by before he forced himself to break the familiar seal. He didn't have to read the words. He knew what the letter would say before he unfolded it.

  Vanessa's bold hand informed him that his brother had taken a turn for the worse the night after he and Rachel had left. He had died the following week. Sin-Jin was now the new Earl of Shallot and was needed home as quickly as possible to settle matters at the estate. She promised to be of any use that she could.

  The letter was signed: Your Humble Servant, Vanessa.

  Sin-Jin slowly refolded the letter. There had never been anything humble about Vanessa, he thought as a hollowness began to grow within him.

  He had not thought t
hat it would hurt, losing the last of his family. But he remembered the way his brother had looked, lost and alone, lying in that dark room and Sin-Jin's heart ached. A man shouldn't have to die that way. It didn't seem fair.

  He let the letter drop. It floated to the floor at his feet. Sin-Jin sat on his bed, staring unseeing into the candlelight.

  "Good bye, Alfred," he whispered, the tears thick in his throat. "If I'm any judge of things, you'll have more peace where you're going than you've had in the last ten years."

  Sin-Jin let out a slow breath. The candle flickered in the breeze he created. He watched it until the flame had dwindled down to less than half its size.

  Behind him, the blaze in the fireplace had almost completely died out. One or two embers still burned, reluctant to have done until they too finally gave up the ghost.

  He didn't realize any of that, or that the tears within his soul had pushed their way up and now slid along his cheeks.

  All he knew was that his family was no more.

  Chapter Thirty-eight

  The light from a single candle splintered the darkness that was as bleak as the inside of a tomb. Rachel lay perfectly still on her bed.

  It didn't help. The headache had gotten progressively worse instead of better. It felt as if a dozen leprechauns were madly digging in the center of her skull, ripping it apart in search of their crock of gold.

  Her throat dry, Rachel swallowed. Even that echoed through her temples. She had skipped dinner and had gone to bed early in hopes of falling asleep and vanquishing this annoyance that assailed her.

  Sleep had completely, wantonly eluded her. She was beginning to despair of ever being able to lift her head again.

  Rachel had no idea how long she had been laying there, feeling her entire body throb, echoing the pain in her head. Minutes, hours, they all seemed to run together. And then she heard the door to her room opening softly.

  She sighed, shading her eyes. Slivers of light from the lamp in the hallway momentarily shimmered into the room before the door was closed again.