Chapter 9 #2
His gaze took in her tiny upturned nose, her full mouth, the low-cut bodice of her dress and the small breasts thrusting up against the corset she wore.
He stretched out his long legs beneath the table, trying to ignore the simmering pressure in his groin.
Only he knew how passionate she was, how fiery and hot, how easily ignited.
I have never been kissed before, Devlin.
The pressure felt explosive, just like that.
He shifted in his seat as Sean said something and she laughed.
Her bedroom was at the other end of the manor, which he considered fortunate.
Because in spite of his determination not to repeat last night, he was very tempted.
One touch and she would not be thinking about his brother.
He grimaced. They’d been regaling each other with stories of Sweet Briar and Askeaton all night.
However, he did admit that her stories were somehow interesting and even refreshing.
Knowing her now, even the little that he did, not a single story of her life in Virginia surprised him.
But what father raised a woman to shoot, ride and swim, allowed her to roam a hundred acres freely, allowed her to wear britches, work beside the slaves, forgo teas and dances—in total, what father raised such a little hellion?
Randall Hughes had probably been an interesting man. He had surely been unconventional.
“I still can’t believe your father taught you to shoot a musket when you were seven,” Sean remarked.
Virginia laughed for the hundredth time that night, the sound as bright as bells. “Mama was furious when she found out. Papa had to bring her trinkets and gifts for a month afterward, to return to her good graces.”
Sean laughed as well.
Virginia sobered. “I do miss them,” she said.
Devlin started as Sean reached across the table to cover her hand. He stiffened as Sean said, “This is a terrible cliché, but it will get easier with time.”
She smiled slightly now. “It has gotten easier, but I think I will miss them until I die. Sweet Briar will never be the same, not without them.”
Sean withdrew his hand. “Do you miss the plantation very badly?”
She nodded. “Sometimes—usually in the middle of the night. But—” she brightened “—I do like Ireland! There’s something about it that reminds me of home, even though the climate is so different. Maybe it’s the green. Everything is so rich with life here—it’s that way at home, too.”
“I should like to visit Sweet Briar someday,” Sean said suddenly.
“I should love for you to come,” Virginia cried, clearly delighted.
That was it—he’d had enough. And did his little hostage find his brother attractive?
Only last night she had been in his bed, in his arms. Was a new romance unfolding before his very eyes?
He stood abruptly, shoving back his chair.
“I am going to smoke,” he announced, trying not to glare at either of them.
“I do hope your tobacco is Virginian,” Virginia said sweetly.
He stiffened. And from the corner of his eyes he saw Sean sputter with laughter and the two of them share a glance.
He turned. “It’s not. It’s Cuban. Good night.
” He was pleased to see her face fall as he uttered his last words, then, having no intention of leaving them alone, he looked darkly at his brother.
“Join me,” he said, and it was a command.
As he strode out, he heard Sean say, “And his lordship doth speak.”
Virginia giggled. “He is so dour tonight.”
“He is always dour,” Sean remarked.
He debated walking back to them and defending himself, but decided to pretend he hadn’t heard their insipid insults. Besides, they’d both drank enough champagne to sink a ship. Still, Sean was far too interested and it was simply not acceptable.
In the study, rebuilt to exactly replicate the study his father had used up until his death, he found a cigar and poured a brandy, then lit up.
Exhaling deeply did not ease the tension.
And if he brooded further, analyzing the evening in order to decide if the camaraderie he had just witnessed was romantic or not, the pressure would increase.
He knew it, as surely as he knew the sky would be clear that morning.
“Captain, sir,” a woman breathed.
His annoyance faded as he turned and faced Fiona.
She smiled at him, clad in a tight white blouse and dark skirts, the blouse showing off the full shape of her bosom and hinting at the large areolas beneath.
He carefully looked her over now, for the first time since he had returned home.
She was actually pretty, and she had the kind of body most men would die to bed.
He vaguely recalled a few torrid nights spent in bed with her, many years ago.
And while he didn’t lust after her, she certainly presented a solution to the problem of avoiding Virginia in the long, dark shadowy hours of the night.
“Kitchen’s done and your room’s ready,” she said softly, her gaze on his. “Is there anything else I can do for you, sir, before I go to my bed?”
He made the decision instantly. “Yes. You can go to my room. I’ll be up shortly.”
There was no look of surprise, she only smiled and purred, “Of course, Captain, sir.” She gave him a promising look and strolled out, her wide hips swinging.
He wanted to compare their width to one particular waif’s far too slim ones, but refused to do so. He would satisfy his lust tonight in the way lords of the manor had for centuries—with a willing, comely, insignificant maid.
Sean made a derisive sound, apparently having been standing in the doorway for some time. Devlin ignored it, handing him a cigar and lighting it for him. As Sean puffed, he poured his brother a brandy. He said, “You seem smitten with our little guest.”
Sean exhaled and said, “I am nearly so.”
“Don’t become too attached. She is going to lose her beloved Sweet Briar and blame me for it, I have no doubt.”
“That’s right. She will blame you, and rightly so, I think. But she certainly won’t blame me.”
Devlin sat down on the edge of the desk. Oddly, his father chose that moment to cast a presence in the room. “I am going to find you an heiress,” he warned.
“I don’t need an heiress. You would never stay home to run Askeaton. One day I need a wife who will partner me in all that I do here.”
“You mean, a wife who understands crops, markets and shipping, inside and out?” He became angry.
“Maybe.” Sean came closer. “Look, Dev, I find her intriguing, and unlike you, I am not using her for some terrible end—for some personal retribution. In fact, after getting to know her somewhat tonight, I think you should end your miserable scheme and help her get to Eastleigh. Who knows? She’s charming beyond words.
Maybe he’ll be smitten, too, and he’ll save her home. ”
Devlin was furious now, furious because if he read Sean right, his younger brother was falling in love with his captive.
“No. Nothing changes, and you keep your heart and guard it well. She is not for you—I will not allow it. She is a tool, a tool I am using even as we speak, she is only a tool. Do you understand me?”
Sean was furious, too. “I told you this afternoon—I don’t even know you, so how can I understand you? But I grow tired of your orders! I am not a sailor on your ship! If I choose to admire Miss Hughes, that is my concern, not yours.”
“You go very far.” Devlin stood, and the two men stood eye to eye and nose to nose, the exact same height.
“Since when do I order you? I haven’t been at home in six years—I see you perhaps once a year in London!
There have been no orders, little brother, until yesterday, and may I remind you that this manor is mine?
The land is mine? It is all mine until I die, heirless. Only then does it become yours.”
“Do you threaten to give me the boot?” Sean was incredulous.
“You may have bought Askeaton from Adare with your damned prize money, but Askeaton would be nothing but bogs and woods without me! I took this land and made it fertile, I took this land with my own bare hands and made it rich! You’d have nothing here without me, and you damn well know it! ”
Devlin inhaled hard, stunned at the intensity of Sean’s anger and his own answering rage.
How had they come to this terrible argument?
Virginia’s image seared his mind. “Sean.” He clasped his arm and Sean flinched but did not pull away.
“I know all that you have done. I agree with you. Without you, this house would be a burned-out hull, the fields would be barren and lifeless, bogs would abound. I know that. I appreciate every day you have spent here in my place, planting our crops and harvesting them, collecting our rents, breeding our livestock. I more than appreciate all you have done. You’re my brother.
We should not fight, not like this, not ever. ”
Sean nodded, pale now. “And I know how hard you have worked to be able to buy Askeaton, and the house in Greenwich, and all the treasures we now have both here and there. I know you are the lord of this manor, Dev. I don’t want to be lord here.
God, I want you to take a wonderful wife and have fine sons to inherit all that you have earned—and all that is your rightful due as Father’s eldest son. ”
“I know that, too,” Devlin said, relaxing only slightly. And he looked closely at his brother now.
Sean stared back. Very carefully, he said, “We will fight again, however, because I cannot ever approve of what you are doing and the way you are ruthlessly using Virginia.”
“Don’t fall in love with her,” Devlin heard himself say.
Sean hesitated. “Perhaps it is too late.”
Devlin reeled, as if physically struck with shot.
“I am going to bed,” Sean said, putting out his cigar. He smiled a little, but it was forced, and walked out of the room.