Chapter 13
Thane did not like being chased away from his own hearth, but the idea of facing Cat while she had Effie on her side was too much to bear.
Not to mention that Cat’s gown left little to the imagination.
Yes, it was black. But it was also temptingly low-cut, with the bare hint of sleeves to keep it on, leaving an expanse of skin he couldn’t stop staring at.
And that soft thing she’d thrown around her shoulders only served to make her look more soft herself.
He’d never seen a color besides black next to her skin.
The pink brightened her complexion and made those snapping eyes stand out even more.
The longer he remained near Cat, the more he wanted to reach out and touch her.
He should thank her for chasing him off.
He retired to the small room down the hall from his bedroom that served as a study.
He was sitting at the desk, preparing to write to his comrades to let them know of their safe arrival (not referring to his home by name, just in case) and to share a few scraps of information he learned during the journey.
But before he could dip a pen in the inkwell, Andra strolled in without knocking.
“Why’d you bring that woman here?” she asked, frowning.
“I don’t recall having to explain myself to you,” he said in his coldest tone.
Christ, Andra going to be a worse problem than he anticipated.
He certainly hadn’t thought about renewing their affair, which was years gone by this point.
It had been a fun and harmless dalliance that any young man would have been fully up for—in more ways than one.
But Andra was part of his life before the war.
He didn’t picture her being part of his life now that he was back.
She evidently thought otherwise. She put on a pouting expression that somehow conveyed Come here rather than Go away. “Thane, I’m only asking a question that’s on everyone’s minds. She’s a stranger, and not even from the Highlands. What’s she doing here?”
Thane sighed, and picked up his glass of whisky.
“During the war, just late last year, actually, I lost one of my closest comrades. Brodie Ross. She’s his sister.
I met her in Edinburgh and learned that she’s in some difficulty.
So I brought her here for a while, until she’s able to go back.
” He kept all details out of his explanation, since Andra had no right to learn Catriona’s private struggles.
“So she’s breeding?”
Thane almost choked on the whisky. “What?”
“Isn’t that what people mean when they say a woman’s in some difficulty?” Andra blinked, apparently completely sincere.
“She’s not! Or, if she is, that’s not the difficulty I mean. Christ, woman, why are you giving me more to worry about?” Because now Thane was picturing Cat pregnant, and the picture was both troubling and strangely appealing…which was troubling on its own.
“How long will she be here?” Andra pressed, moving to where he sat.
“God willing, not for more than a few weeks, a month at the outside. Then she can go back to the city and her own life and I don’t have to ever think about her again.”
Andra smiled, quite pleased with that answer. So pleased, in fact, that she leaned in to kiss him. “I’ll give you something to think about.”
Before he’d fully registered what she was doing, she straddled his lap, her hand reaching down to his falls. “I missed you, Thane,” she purred. “I dreamed of the night you came back, and how we’d celebrate it on that big bed in your room.”
“Keep dreaming,” he said, pushing her hand away, though not before her eager strokes created a reaction. “I’ll not be going to bed anytime soon.”
“We don’t have to go to bed,” she said, not deterred.
She began to kiss him more seriously, her plush lips seeking his.
“Thane, I want you. And I can feel that you want me. Lord, it’s been so long since we’ve been able to be together.
” As she spoke, she skillfully worked him to a state of arousal.
It had been a long time, and she was clearly very willing to do whatever might please him.
Thane closed his eyes and momentarily gave in to the game Andra was playing, feeling the pulse of pleasure she was stirring up in his cock, and the heaviness in his balls.
A night with Andra promised to be very enjoyable indeed, just what he needed after the exasperating, tension-filled journey with Cat.
Cat. At the thought of her name, her face and figure immediately followed. Thane groaned as he imagined Cat’s hand working him so eagerly, Cat’s sweet pink lips open and ready for a kiss…
“Enough,” Thane said to Andra, more sharply than he intended. He pushed her off him, and she stood up, eyes stony.
“What’s the matter?”
“I told you that I couldn’t dally tonight. I’ve work to do and it can’t wait.”
“I’ve not displeased you?” she asked, her eyebrows knitting together.
“No, of course not,” he said, shaking his head. “It’s nothing to do with you. I’ve got a lot on my mind.”
She smiled, back to her usual charming self. “I’d never want to make you angry. I’ll tell Cook to send up some food for you later, so that you can work uninterrupted.”
“Aye, thank you,” he said, grateful that this would not turn into a scene. “I’d appreciate that.”
“And whenever you are ready for bed…” She sucked on her lower lip for a moment, and he felt the twinge in his cock as he remembered the many times she’d pleasured him with her mouth. “…do tell me so I can join you.”
Thane said nothing, but she took his silence as a wordless promise and sashayed to the door, her hips moving in a way that didn’t help calm his arousal at all. He swept his hand over his front, trying to restore the alignment of his clothing and to get his body back to a state of normalcy.
At the door, she turned for one moment, flashed him a wicked smile, and yanked her bodice to expose nearly all of her breasts to him. Then she spun back and walked out, adjusting her gown as she did. Thane focused on the papers scattered over his desk, telling himself to get back to business.
A yelp from the hall suggested that Andra had startled someone else with her antics. Thane sighed, thinking that if a maid saw that, she’d instantly report to every other servant that the master had renewed his affair with his mistress that very night he got back.
Then Cat’s tart voice came from the doorway. “Excuse me. I didn’t realize you had…company.”
Thane looked up in alarm. The lady’s face was expressionless, though her spine was held so straight and stiff that it was very clear she’d seen much of Andra’s assets, and had drawn the natural conclusion about why the woman would have been pulling up her bodice on the way out of Thane’s room.
“Nothing,” he said quickly.
Cat looked confused. “Nothing what?”
“Nothing happened,” he clarified, before remembering that he didn’t have to clarify a damn thing to Catriona Ross. “We weren’t doing anything.”
Cat merely rolled her eyes and let out a tiny sigh of irritation. “As if I care what you do or do not.”
She cared a little, to judge by the faint tightening of her jaw. Or maybe she was just offended by encountering a man’s mistress—presumed mistress—in the hallway. Thane doubted if finishing schools covered that potential social event.
“I thought you were chatting about revolutions with Effie.”
“I was, but she suddenly felt rather tired and we agreed to discuss it all tomorrow. She’s gone to bed.”
“And you came here. Is there something I can help you with?” Thane asked, keeping his tone cold…mostly to help cool his body.
“You said you had business. I thought it might have to do with my situation.”
“It does, actually.”
“Good. I thought it might save you some time if I was on hand, for who better to know my situation than myself?”
“Aye, that’s sense.”
“You seem surprised to find the quality of sense in a woman, Mr MacPhearson.”
“I’m surprised to find it in anybody, Miss Ross,” he said honestly.
His words earned him a slight smile, which he found gratifying.
“Too true,” she agreed. “The world would run a great deal more smoothly if people didn’t let their feelings rule their actions.
” Though the words were airy, Thane sensed something more serious behind them.
This was a woman who avoided feelings. Why?
But he had no time to ponder it, since she reached out and tapped the blank paper in front of him.
“You were about to start a letter, yes? To whom? What are you asking for, and why are you asking it of them? Do you have any new theories about why someone might want to kill me? Do you think it could be a mistake after all?”
He couldn’t answer any of her questions, for she plowed ahead.
“I confess I’ve racked my brains since you first announced your theory, and I’ve got a new idea: it was a mistake.
Surely whoever shot at me had another victim in mind, and I was simply wearing a similar outfit that evening, causing the person to fire at me instead of the woman they truly meant to kill. ”
“You forget the incident of the carriage. And the dog.”
She frowned, clearly upset. “I wish I could forget it. Who hurts an innocent animal, Mr MacPhearson?”
“Someone very dangerous, since, as you say, the animal is innocent. That lessens the chance that whoever it is feels that they are avenging some injustice. It suggests that they are motivated by anger, resentment, or even hate.”
“Feelings,” she said with clear distaste.
“You may not like feelings, but you shouldn’t doubt their power,” he said.
Catriona looked at him, her expression unreadable. “Is that something you learned during the war?”
“The war reinforced the lesson,” he allowed.
“How so? I should have thought that battle doesn’t allow for much other than instant physical reaction.”
“During battle, yes, that’s true,” Thane said, recalling too many times that a soldier beside him had turned too slowly, or simply failed to raise his weapon in time, and fell wounded or worse.
“It’s the times between the battles when men’s thoughts begin to weigh.
When there’s time to think, there’s time to think the worst.”
“Brodie was always careful to keep his letters full of cheer, but I could tell when he was worried, or thought the command had done something foolish, or when he was simply sick of fighting,” Catriona said quietly.
“I felt it my duty to relate only frivolous gossip, or confide good news and avoid the sad events that occurred at home. But perhaps I did him an injustice, to avoid the more melancholy side of life.”
Thane shook his head. “Never think that. Brodie lived for news from home, and it bolstered him. He read aloud a lot of what you wrote, especially the stories of life in Edinburgh. We didn’t have to know the people you mentioned to appreciate the tales. It lightened many a dull day, I promise you.”
“Brodie read my words to everyone?” she asked, cheeks coloring. God, she was so pretty when her natural tones came out. The black really didn’t suit her.
“Nothing untoward,” he assured her, then added in a teasing tone, “Why, did you confide anything in those letters?”
“Certainly not! As if I had anything untoward to confide. A woman’s life is bound on all sides, Mr MacPhearson. There is little hope for scandal.”
“Would you like some scandal?” Too late, he realized how that sounded.
Catriona’s eyes widened slightly, but all she said was “I suppose it’s already found me. Here I am, would-be gunshot victim twice over, now swept away to a strange place, imprisoned by a man I hardly know.”
“You are not a prisoner.”
“Oh, no? What would you do if I left this place?”
I’d drag you back and lock you up where you’re safe, he thought.
Aloud, he limited himself to, “You would not, Miss Ross. As you noted before, you’re a person of great sense, and therefore would never do something irrational or dangerous when you’ve got a better option.
And anyway, with luck we’ll find out who’s behind these incidents very soon. ”
“And if you don’t?” she asked. “Would I stay here indefinitely?”
Thane didn’t allow himself to examine his instant physical reaction to that bombshell. “We’d find a suitable solution.”
“Why should I believe you? You haven’t thus far.”
Thane stood up. “Cat, you’re beginning to irritate me.”
She gave him an arch look. “Just beginning to?”
“All right, then. You’re driving me mad.” In more ways than one.
“Sounds very much like you want me to leave.”
Don’t you dare. Thane moved around the desk and stepped up to her, chest to chest, using his bulk to block her way out the door. “You’ll be staying. Until I say otherwise.”