by Bobbi Smith
"I know she'd like that," he told him firmly.
"She would?"
"Oh, yes. See, Lianne's talked to me about getting married. She told me she was going to wait until she found just the right man to love so she could be as happy as our mama and papa were."
Adam's cynical side found it hard to reconcile the Lianne he knew with the one Alex was describing.
"She told me when I got old enough to get married that I should wait for just the right girl, too," he went on.
"That's very good advice," Adam agreed solemnly as the memory of his engagement to Elise besieged him.
"And that's what you did, huh? You waited for Lianne." Alex sounded as if Adam was the wisest man in the whole wide world.
"Yes," he replied, trying to keep all the bitterness he was suddenly feeling out of his voice.
"She's pretty nice as sisters go, I guess," he concluded. "I'm just real glad that she married you, Adam."
Adam looked over at the boy and saw the love shining in his eyes. Unable to hurt him, not wanting him to know even the smallest unsavory detail about their marriage, he managed a warm smile.
"I am, too, Alex." He reached over and tousled his dark hair. "Real glad."
The moment was a poignant one for the both of them. They fell silent then as they finished the ride to the stables.
Adam was lost deep in thought as he considered all that Alex had told him. He found it vaguely disturbing that the youngster's view of his sister's actions would be so out of line with his own. He wondered at the change in character that must have occurred for Lianne to become the calculating shrew he believed her to be. Adam considered all that had happened to Lianne and attributed the change in her to that.
For just a moment, the thought occurred to him that Alex had been telling the truth and that he was the one who was wrong in his assessment of her motives. Out of the mouths of babes . . . As soon as the doubt entered his mind, Adam dismissed it. Lianne was no sweet innocent. Sure, she might have been a virgin the first time they'd made love, but it was all part of her scheme. When her plan to buy back her home had failed, she'd simply decided to use her body as a bargaining tool. She had planned and executed a plot to keep her home in her family. The bonus of double-crossing Suzanne had just been a casual stroke of luck for Lianne. She might not have known that would happen in the beginning, but Adam didn't doubt for a moment that she was enjoying the thought of having stolen Suzanne's fiancé.
By the time they reached the stable, Adam's anger with Lianne had returned, and his mood grew black. He sent Alex on up to the house, for he was in no hurry to see his bride again. It was some time later before he headed up the path.
Lianne had had a miserable day. She'd awakened early only to find that Adam had already gone. The discovery left her feeling oddly bereft. As usual, her morning sickness made its wretched appearance, but with the help of Sarah's knowledgeable nursing, she was soon up and around. When she'd come downstairs, Adam was in the study with Beau, and he had the door closed against intrusions. When Beau had departed for New Orleans immediately after their meeting, Adam had announced that he would be out working the plantation for the rest of the day and had left the house without even saying good-bye. Lianne had hoped that things would improve when Becky came down, but Becky had seemed somewhat distracted after discovering that Beau had already left. She had eventually pleaded the need to go up to her room to rest for a while, leaving Lianne alone once again.
Idleness did not sit well with Lianne. She had been carrying the entire load of running Belle Arbor for so long now that she felt foolish just sitting around doing nothing. Lianne knew she should be thankful that Adam was so proficient at taking care of the plantation, but actually she felt more than a little jealous.
Restless and determined not to sit around like an invalid just because of her pregnancy, Lianne went back upstairs to change into one of her plainer gowns and then went outside to work in the flower garden. It was hard work, but something she enjoyed doing. She got a great feeling of accomplishment from working with the soil and then watching the plants she'd nurtured grow and blossom.
The balance of the afternoon passed quickly for her as she worked. She lost track of the time and paid no attention at all to how she looked. She weeded and planted on her knees in the dirt. As the sun grew warm, she began to perspire. Lianne unbuttoned the top buttons of her bodice to help cool off a bit and wiped her brow with a slightly muddy forearm. Lost in the reverie of her task, she was oblivious to the lateness of the hour.
Adam started to enter the house through the front door, but decided against it. He was in no frame of mind to run into Lianne, so he skirted the house, intending to enter through the rear. It was then that he came across her as she labored in the flower garden.
Adam had expected to find his conniving wife playing lady of the manor and taking advantage of her newly secured position. He had not expected to find her working in the dirt like a common field hand. He was at once both stunned and outraged — stunned because he hadn't thought she would to continue to work so hard, and outraged because she was endangering the welfare of his child. The complex emotions bewildered him, so in typical male fashion, he reacted with blustering anger.
"What the hell do you think you're doing, madam?" he demanded as he stood glowering at her.
Lianne had been so absorbed in her work that she hadn't heard his approach. She looked up quickly and was disconcerted to find him standing over her, glaring at her imperiously.
"I am working with my flowers," she responded haughtily as she met his gaze without flinching.
Adam's condemning gaze was drawn irresistibly to her bodice where it was gaping open. He could see the beginning of her cleavage and one droplet of sweat trickling down into that dark, inviting crevice. He felt his loins tighten in response to the thought of kissing the dampness from that creamy flesh, and he quickly banished the thought. Damn! Why was it that just looking at her could ignite his senses? What the hell was it about her that affected him so?
"We have plenty of help. There's no need for you to be out here groveling around in the mud." He tried to focus on her face, but the smudge of dirt on her cheek made her look so appealing that he found himself wishing he could wash it away for her and then kiss the clean spot. Again he jerked his thoughts away from the sensuous and back to the matter at hand.
"I am not 'groveling around in the mud,' Adam!" Lianne was furious that he was ordering her around. She got to her feet and stood glaring up at him, her hands on her hips, looking much as she had the very first time they'd met.
"Just what would you call it, then?"
"I'd call it working in my garden! It's a little honest labor, something you obviously know nothing about," she threw at him accusingly, thinking of how he won the plantation so effortlessly in the card game and not of how he'd worked at improving Belle Arbor since taking over.
Adam wanted to take her by the shoulders and shake her. "You are now my wife and the mistress of my home. I will expect you to behave in a manner suitable to your position."
"Behave!" Lianne's tone was deadly. "Do you think I'm a dog you can order about or train to stay or go as you please? I'm a woman and I have a mind of my own!"
"Oh, yes, I know all about your devious little mind, Lianne. I've experienced its workings firsthand." His cut was cruel, and she gasped at the pain it caused. Adam smiled grimly at her reaction. He thought he would be glad to hurt her, but he'd gotten no satisfaction from throwing her scheming ways up to her. If anything, he found he was suddenly tired of the whole subject. What was done was done. "At least, madam, if you won't consider my wishes in the matter, think of the health of our child."
"The baby?" His sudden change of mood left her puzzled. What did the baby have to do with any of this?
"I'm sure it can't be doing the baby any good for you to be out here working in the hot sun, especially when there's no need for it. Please, if not for me, at least for the sake of our son, try not to
exert yourself this way."
Our son? Lianne was staring at him in total confusion, not trusting him one bit. "I shall continue to do as I please, sir," she stated firmly, defiantly, "as you obviously are. You made it quite clear to me that this marriage of ours was a farce. I see no reason to respect the 'obey' part of our vows when we're ignoring the rest of them." Lifting her nose in the air in a regal demeanor, she started to move past him toward the house. "Now if you'll excuse me, I do believe it's almost time for dinner."
Adam watched her go feeling more frustration than he'd ever known in his life. The woman was maddening! Absolutely maddening!
It was nearly an hour later before they were ready to sit down to dinner together. Adam had avoided their bedroom until he'd been certain that Lianne had finished her toilette. As demanding as his desire for her had become, the last thing he wanted right now was to see her less than fully dressed. Sleeping in the same bed with her again tonight was going to be bad enough. He definitely didn't want to put himself at risk of losing control before he absolutely had to. He was going to resist the urge to take her if it was the last thing he did, and Adam was beginning to believe that it just might be.
The sound of horse's hooves drew their attention before they could even begin the first course. Adam frowned and then quickly got up from the head of the table to go see who was coming. Lianne, Becky, and Alex exchanged curious glances as they heard him greet another man, and though they tried to listen to the muted conversation, they were unable to discern anything that was said. After a moment, they heard the rider leave again, but Adam did not return to the dining room. Instead, he went into the study and locked the door.
Adam's hand was trembling as he stared down at the note from Dr. Williams. Never before had the physician sent him a note by special messenger, and he was almost afraid to open it. His chest felt tight and his eyes felt dry and burning. Then almost as if he couldn't stand not knowing, he quickly tore the missive open and began to read.
Dear Mr. Trent,
Please come to New Orleans. It is imperative that I see you at once. I will await your arrival at my office.
Sincerely,
Dr. David Williams
"Dear God . . ." was all Adam could say as he stared at the massage. Something had happened to Elise . . . He didn't even stop to tell the others that he was leaving. He simply left the study by way of the french doors and disappeared into the night without a word, taking the note with him.
Lianne, Becky, and Alex waited a considerable length of time before coming to the conclusion that something important must have happened to keep him away from the meal that long. Becky left the table to seek him out and find out what was wrong. It puzzled her when he didn't answer the study door, and, worried, she went around the house to the french doors to find the study deserted. She sought out one of the kitchen servants who told her that Mr. Adam had gone out to the stable and had ridden off a short time ago, and he had not told them where he was going.
Becky returned to the dining room, wondering what to tell Lianne. She suspected that Adam's abrupt departure might have something to do with Shark, but she could not discuss it with Lianne. She had to maintain Adam's secrecy.
"Did Adam say what was wrong, Becky?" Lianne asked when her friend returned, trying not to sound too interested.
"No . . . I — " Becky hesitated.
"What is it?" Lianne gave her a curious look.
"Adam's gone," she finally explained.
"Gone?" Lianne stiffened in her chair and went pale at her words.
Becky nodded. "Evidently whatever was in the note was very important. He rode out just a few minutes ago, and he didn't tell anyone at the stable where he was going."
In her heart, Lianne knew where he was going. "I see," she said tersely as she folded her napkin in a precise motion and laid it back on the tabletop. "If you'll excuse me, I think I'll go on up for the night."
Becky realized instantly that Lianne was thinking. She ached to tell her the truth about Adam's feelings for Suzanne, but she remained silent, respecting Adam's need for subterfuge. "I thought you were hungry?"
"I suddenly seem to have lost my appetite," Lianne told her as she pictured Adam with Suzanne . . . making love. The other woman had only to send him a message, and he flew to her side. Damn him! He'd spent most of yesterday with her, and now he'd gone to her again.
"Lianne . . ."
"Good night, Becky. Good night, Alex." She left the room with as much dignity as she could muster.
When she reached her bedroom, Lianne was very near tears. It annoyed her that Adam's behavior affected her so greatly. She had always prided herself on being able to control her emotions, but ever since he had come into her life that had changed.
Perhaps, Lianne rationalized, perhaps it was just the pregnancy that was causing her to react to everything with such wild mood swings. The thought gave her some relief from the turmoil that was twisting and churning inside her like a living thing. She didn't care what Adam did or who he did it with! she told herself. She didn't! But as she curled up on her bed, she still couldn't stop the hurt that tore at her over the thought of him at Suzanne's, making love to her.
It was late when Adam finally reached Dr. Williams's office, and he was relieved to see that a light was still burning inside. He tied his horse to the hitching post and hurried up the steps to knock on the door. The doctor answered almost immediately.
"Mr. Trent . . . Thank you so much for coming so quickly. Please come in." David held the door wide to allow him to enter.
Adam was apprehensive as he came inside. "What's happened? Is Elise all right?"
David led the way into his private office and gestured for him to take a seat as he resumed sitting behind his desk.
"I think I may have hopeful news for you," he began, giving him a friendly smile.
"What?" Adam stared at him in disbelief.
David studied Adam's strained features and wondered at the cause. He had expected joy, not this despair he was reading so clearly in the other man's eyes.
"I think we've had a breakthrough of sorts," he told him.
Adam could not respond. He was stricken. In the beginning, he'd believed Elise would come back to him. Yet, as the months had passed, his hopes had all been dashed. In slow, painful resignation, he'd come to accept the prognosis. Adam knew that Dr. Williams had never stopped trying to reach her, but he had never really expected Elise to recover. Now, he was married to Lianne and had a child on the way . . .
"Sometime last night Miss Clayton got up from her bed and was moving about her room."
"Has she spoken yet?"
"No, not yet, but I'm sure it won't be much longer. Why, just the fact that she did get up on her own is very encouraging indeed," David finished.
"I see . . ." Adam's agony was clearly etched on his face as he met the doctor's gaze across his desk.
David saw the torment mirrored in his eyes. He wanted to help, but knew that it was up to Trent to take the initiative about discussing what was troubling him.
"Will you be staying in town tonight?"
"Yes. It's too late to head back now."
"That's good. Why don't you come by the house tomorrow to see her? A visit from you might be just the thing to speed up her recovery," David suggested.
"All right," he agreed soberly, thinking of how terribly he'd betrayed Elise and wondering how he would ever explain it all to her.
Chapter Twenty-four
Adam's mood was morose as he checked into the St. Louis Hotel, and it didn't improve when he was given the exact same room he'd had the last time he'd been in town. He almost protested and asked for another, but knew he would look ridiculous if he did. Memories or not, it was only a room, he told himself, nothing more.
Adam stopped in the bar for a stiff double shot of bourbon before retiring for the night. He was disconsolate as he sat alone at a secluded corner table in the saloon nursing his drink. Guilt weighed heavily upon him. He had no
doubt in his mind that he'd ruined Elise's life before, and now . . . now that she was about to recover from that trauma, he was going to deliver a second, even more devastating blow to her well-being. This time he was afraid he would completely destroy her.
Elise was a beautiful, fragile, trusting woman. Adam cared for her deeply, and it tore him apart to think about telling her of his marriage to Lianne, but there was nothing else he could do. The thought of hurting Elise was almost too much for him to bear, and he drained the remainder of his drink in one fierce move.
Adam stared at the empty glass in his hand and then set it aside. When the barmaid would have come and refilled it for him, he waved her away. He knew that getting drunk wouldn't solve any of the problems he faced tonight. Lost in a tormented haze of misery, he headed upstairs to his room.
Everything was the same, he thought as he looked around the barren hotel room, except, in reality, nothing was the same. It had been six weeks since he and Lianne had made love in this room . . . in that bed. Adam stared at the soft, inviting four-poster as vivid memories of their heated joining assailed him. Their coming together that night had been glorious . . . wildly erotic . . . incredibly beautiful. Since then his entire existence had been indelibly altered.
Lianne . . . The strength of what he was feeling for her was so different from anything he'd ever experienced before that it left him troubled and confused. He had thought himself in love with Elise, but that emotion paled in comparison to the attraction that drew him to Lianne.
Every time he was near Lianne, he found himself wanting her. It wasn't just the simple physical need of a man desiring an attractive woman. He had had a great deal of experience with that type of involvement, and he knew this wasn't the same. No, this was something far more primitive, far more disturbing, far more difficult for him to handle.
His movements were jerky as he took off his jacket and shirt and then stretched out on the bed to try to sleep. Even as weary as he was and with the aid of the potent liquor, sleep could not overcome the burden of his anguish. In his mind, visions of Elise before and after the pirate attack blended with images of Lianne . . . Lianne with her flashing green eyes and fearlessness as she defied him at every turn, Lianne surrendering to him in love's dance, Lianne giving herself fully to the ecstasy of his possession, Lianne his wife now and one day soon her lovely body heavy with his unborn child. Once he had longed for Elise to be that woman, but now he couldn't imagine anyone but Lianne bearing his children.