"Hello, Samuel," she said, having regained most of her composure.
"Perhaps you recall," Aaron said, putting his arm possessively around her, "Samuel is our contact here at Crane's Nest."
"Oh, yes―and I also recall I know little else of this affair―a fact that should be remedied. Soon!" she said resolutely.
"The less you know, the better."
"Is that so?" she countered, her annoyance obvious, "I can be trusted with your precious secrets," she snapped.
"It's not a matter of trust," Aaron replied, his voice edged with the beginnings of impatience. "It's simply the less you know, the less danger you'll be in. Murder is not beyond them, if you'll remember," he reminded her sternly.
Louisa blanched at his warning, then raised her head defiantly, her eyes narrowing. "I'd rather be informed," she said coldly. "I can't behave very intelligently, procure information of any use if―or am I only to be an ornament?"
"That role would suit you well," Aaron replied lightly, turning immediately to Samuel. "We'll establish a routine for riding, and insist on your aid, perhaps, your personal attention to errands, whatever suits us―the prerogative of the class," he said sarcastically.
Samuel addressed both of them. "Easton rarely surfaces before ten o'clock. I imagine you'll have no difficulty choosing your pleasures at least till then. I'm about from sunup, sometimes before―at night, you can find me in the servants' quarters, behind the summer kitchen." He turned his eyes on Louisa. "My duties are varied―whatever suits Easton―bodyguard, manservant, groom, gardener," raising an arm to gesture to the greenery surrounding them. "Not my exclusive responsibility, fortunately. You should see this place at night. Sometimes it's lit, but just enough to compete with your worst nightmares."
That Louisa doubted, but said nothing as the threesome left the hot, sultry enclosure, all relieved to be in the bright, crisp air once again. Aaron wrapped her cloak gently around her.
"Good day, Mrs. Hudson," Samuel said, nodding in her direction. "If I can ever assist you, it will be my pleasure." Then, nodding to Aaron, he left them quickly, disappearing with great strides into the thickly wooded grounds.
Louisa stepped back from Aaron slightly. "Now, tell me what you can. I can't go on like some nitwit―something I'm not and will never pretend to be."
"You're here mainly to warm my bed, Mrs. Hudson," he said lightly, closing the distance between them, reaching into her cloak, his hands drifting familiarly over the soft curves of her body.
Quickly Louisa withdrew from him. "Is that right? Well, you just snuggle up to something else for a while―perhaps one of William's alabaster statues will warm up for you―if not, then maybe your tongue will loosen―that is, if your teeth aren't chattering too wildly." Her retort was teasing, but not completely meant to amuse.
"A wife must honor her vows, madam," he said, approaching her again.
She caught his hands and held him off. "What vows―I was delirious, as I recall."
"Nonetheless, the union is legal," he smiled.
"But not with you!"
"A mere technicality, Mrs. Hudson," he said, scooping her forcefully into his arms again. "And I'll hold you to your promises."
"Damn you," she said softly, meeting his hungry mouth eagerly, despite her threats of only moments before.
Chapter Forty-four
By the time they reached the house, there were a number of servants unobtrusively engaged in the myriad tasks required to maintain the splendor of the place. They seemed all to be Orientals, but Loo Kim was not in evidence. A stately manservant, seeming to Louisa like he should know all the secrets of life, inquired of their needs. Aaron asked about Easton, to be told he would not rise for hours. Then they were ushered politely into Easton's impressive library.
The room was cool, and, despite its size, it had a close, intimate feeling. There were several large windows, but that side of the house, like the others, was so shrouded in trees, the only real light came from ornate lamps positioned strategically around the room. The walls were perhaps twenty feet high, covered with books and collections of porcelain or bronze miniatures. Aaron seemed ill at ease, but Louisa began poring over the shelves, handling volumes as they caught her eye. "If my existence as an ornament gets too dull," she smiled at Aaron, "I can at least amuse myself reading. I wonder if anyone's even looked at some of these books." Many were richly bound ill leather, the pages edged in gold; some were obviously rare, beautifully illuminated manuscripts.
While waiting for a breakfast tray for Aaron, Louisa lifted an obviously unread volume of Nathaniel Hawthorne's short stories from a shelf. She seated herself comfortably close to Aaron and began to read expressively. He listened to her soft, pleasing voice, watching her intently as she gradually relaxed into the enormous leather couch, but not paying as close attention to her words, as to the sound of her voice, very aware of its natural seductiveness. Soon they were interrupted by a servant with an amply filled tray, and when they were left alone, Louisa continued to read, intermittently stopping to sip from a cup of strong fragrant tea or to steal something from Aaron's plate.
"If you're hungry, I'm sure they'll let you have a tray of your own," he said, condescendingly offering her a bite from his fork.
"No, I'm fine," she said, reaching for a croissant he'd just buttered, continuing to read between nibbles. "You seem to have settled in comfortably," he said, interrupting her storytelling again.
"Have I? Well, it is a magnificent setting, but so eerie," she said, closing the book, putting it on the table in front of them. "At times the place seems deserted; then, just as suddenly, crawling with people who appear from nowhere―and the oddest apparition is Easton himself. Did you see the way he looked at me last night?"
"I saw," Aaron remarked casually, shoving the silver tray aside, leaning again into the enveloping cushions of the soft couch. "You can't tell me you aren't used to being stared at―you're very aware just how remarkably beautiful you are. You attract attention, if not outright leers, from even ordinarily polite men."
"How nice to hear you say so," she mocked, stroking Aaron's arm, moving her fingers to the front of his shirt, touching the buttons one by one, at last stroking his chest in a slow circular motion.
"Elegant speeches aren't in my nature, Louisa. I'm not here to seduce you―that's already been accomplished." His voice was full of comfortable selfsatisfaction, as was his countenance.
"And she jumps whenever he calls her name," she snapped her fingers in his face. "The little hussy!" Louisa huffed in matronly disdain, beginning slowly to undo the buttons of his shirt. "Tell me, Aaron, how shall we spend the morning waiting for Easton to emerge into daylight?" Louisa teased, her tone revealing she had at least one idea of how to while away the remaining hours. "I can't think of a thing to do, can you?"
Aaron's eyes flashed as she moved quickly into his arms, and he met her kisses with a passion that amazed him. Surely, he thought, she would one day cease to arouse him with such intensity, even as she now moved with him, each hungry for the other. In other circumstances, he would have made love to her then and there, so careless did she seem, so wanton was she in her caressing of his body. But he willfully controlled himself, lifting her into his arms, rising to cross the room, the door opening before he could touch it.
The motion startled them both, as did the man who was ushered into their presence. Neither had seen Franklin Carson for nearly a year, the time it had been since they were last in New Orleans. And he found them engaged in what he imagined to be their natural and favorite inclination―pursuing each other romantically. A stern, yet indulgent look greeted them. His journey had obviously been long and arduous, and he longed to rest comfortably. He was in no mood for anything but polite confrontations.
"Well," he said to the obviously startled and embarrassed couple, "I can't say that I'm surprised to find you embraced in this fashion―considering what has come to pass. But isn't it a little early in the day?" he questioned, entering the ro
om casually.
Louisa blushed furiously as Aaron lowered her gently to the floor where she met the open, knowing stare of the father of the woman Marshall had disgraced in polite New Orleans society. Aaron interrupted Carson's frank gaze by extending his hand to the man, and he was greeted with a warm handshake.
"Your father and mother send their love," he said to both of them. "The storm seems to have settled―in your house, at least. Can't say the same for mine―oh, Janna has recovered well enough―ice water being what it is―but Mrs. Carson will, doubtless, never recover. I'm quite happy to find myself in California―alone."
Louisa watched as faint lines of tension were erased from Aaron's face and he moved into his role as Marshall with confidence. "I'm relieved to find you bear no hard feelings, sir."
"Your decision shows you have good sense," Carson remarked absently, sinking gratefully into a less than comfortable, but artistically perfect chair. Franklin Carson was ordinarily an energetic, vigorous man, but the long trip he had just experienced was telling on him. He seemed hunched with weariness, his usually distinguished white head and carefully trimmed beard now only making him seem old. He was some "ten years older than Simon Hudson, a fact that was never before in evidence, but the Isthmus passage which disabled or killed multitudes of travelers hoping to reach California more quickly than by the Cape or overland routes had proved an unfortunate itinerary.
"We didn't know we were to have the pleasure of seeing you here," remarked Aaron, ushering Louisa to the couch again, but, in fact, he was expecting Carson's appearance at any time.
"Doubt you were thinking of anything but getting yourself out here. Yet, Simon seems to think you've a mind to involve yourself in our enterprise. But I wonder if you've the inclination to immerse yourself in the project," he said with a thoughtful look in Louisa's direction.
"There's time enough for both," Aaron said coolly.
Louisa gave Aaron a look of sweet acquiescence, which belied her feelings of embarrassment and fury. Yet she could not deny it was a response entirely in keeping with her adoring, and, now that she thought of it, almost simple-minded relationship with Marshall. My God, she thought to herself, I've forgotten what soft clay I was.
"You seem quite tired, sir. Did you have a difficult trip?"
"The Panama jungle is merciless, and I wasn't lucky enough to escape the rigors of it. It would've taken me less time, with fever and all, to have come around the Horn! I just hope to get my full strength back―and soon. I need to rest even now. How long will I have to wait for Easton to appear?"
"Another few hours."
''Mmm―so you were going to occupy yourselves pleasantly for the time―this is, before I arrived," he chuckled then frowned slightly. "William will soon have to give up his self-indulgent ways if he's to be head of state. . . ." he remarked as if taking notes for the future. "How's the food around here? I've been promised a light repast."
"You'll find everything―the accommodations, the food―surpassing anything available at home," answered Louisa respectfully, finding the man's demeanor more accepting than insulting. Reflecting on the past, Louisa recalled that Franklin Carson was a realist, more practical than ruthless, perhaps more crude socially, but more humane in many respects than Simon Hudson, and, certainly, more so than her father ever dreamed of being. Where Simon offered flamboyance and ambitious thinking to the triumvirate's scheming, Carson gave cautious balance and thoughtful, calculated consideration to the workability of plans which were forthcoming from Simon's and Melville's, as well as Easton's fertile brains. He provided the sorely needed temperance amid the occasionally capricious dreamers, and his worth was acknowledged by his fellows.
"California may espouse a free-state position, but it makes full use of these Chinese devils," he remarked in passing, devouring the plates of filling, delicious food, which were set graciously before him in the dining room by Easton's Oriental servants.
Aaron and Louisa sat with him, listening to tales of his recent, unpleasant travels by boat across the steaming jungles of the Central American country. But the time passed quickly enough, and soon they were joined by the master of the house, whose needs were ministered to by the breathtaking Loo Kim. Louisa watched in fascination as she devotedly hovered over William, and she amusedly watched Aaron and Franklin Carson, both of whom saw her for the first time. The two men devoured the graceful young woman with their eyes, and Louisa acknowledged the jealousy that surged in her blood in the face of Aaron's obvious enchantment. He failed to even give her the opportunity to cast him a reproachful look, so engrossed was he in the attractive and submissive servant.
Carson repeated his tales for Easton's benefit, and when William was finished with his light meal, Loo Kim escorted Carson to his quarters to rest until he would be summoned for tea later in the afternoon. Then William turned his attention to the handsome couple who remained in his presence, and with whom he preferred to occupy himself in the first place. Over the next week, travelers would be arriving periodically, disturbing the careful routine he had established, and he reluctantly anticipated its permanent disruption. But this was the future he'd been waiting for: his future was now his present, and he was beginning to find its arrival was tinged with aspects of self-doubt and terror, as much as with a sense of fulfillment for dreams long harbored.
Aaron and Louisa spoke politely of what they had discovered in their brief explorations on the estate, and arranged for Samuel Davis's assistance whenever his aid was required. "He is at your beck and call," William announced in Samuel's presence. "Consider him to be in your employ," he said graciously. "Also, Loo Kim will see to whatever needs you might have, Louisa. She is most solicitous, and I cannot imagine that she would disappoint you."
"I'm sure she'll be a great help to me," Louisa replied, hoping Aaron's smirk was not as obvious to their host as it was to her, wishing he was sitting close enough for her to give him an unobserved but effective kick in the shins for the prospects that she suspected had crossed his mind. "If you gentlemen will excuse me now," she added, smiling sweetly at Aaron, "I'd like a short rest myself. I find the long journey we've just made leaves me more fatigued than I expected.
Both men rose as she did. "If an hour is sufficient time for you to catch your breath, I would like to show the two of you some of the more spectacular sights on the property."
Louisa seemed to revive before their eyes. "Actually, I find the idea of an excursion very refreshing. I'll rest when we return."
"Excellent," William smiled broadly, his usually inanimate face lighting up enthusiastically. "I suggest a cape to protect you from the wind. The horses will be waiting whenever you're ready."
Aaron and Louisa retreated to their room, where he caught her fiercely as soon as the door was closed behind them. "No time but to say I expect you to live up to your earlier promises," he said, drawing her even closer to him.
"What promises?" she inquired, trying to wriggle from his grasp. "I made no promises."
"The hell you didn't!" He caressed her full breasts, then pulled her more tightly to him, moving urgently against her compliant body as she laughed and squirmed against him.
"I'm sure if you make your needs known to our so very gracious host, he'll be excessively polite, and grant you whatever time you think you'll need to satisfy your every demand."
"And perhaps he'd provide me with a more willing servant―he seems to have an abundant supply, and they all seem very agreeable," he said, releasing her, bowing in exaggeration. "For instance, I think Loo Kim might be easier to handle than you."
"I knew I read that look on your face!" she said, her voice hardening, her teasing manner disappearing in a jealous huff that amused Aaron and shocked and infuriated Louisa. She turned her back on him abruptly, seeking her cloak which had been carefully replaced in the wardrobe. When she faced him again, Louisa found she hadn't yet shrugged off her sudden, deeply possessive feelings, or her longing for Aaron's exclusive interest in her. She recalled those
same feelings from Marshall's association with Janna Carson, but, then she reasoned, she'd had the right of possession. Now, Louisa realized she had no rights, not even those formalized in their legal union, but she could not deny how she felt, nor the strength of her emotion. And when he approached her again as they were leaving the room, caressing, teasing, tormenting, Louisa briefly yielded to him with a fierceness neither could believe, and both were resentful of the events that kept them from each other's arms.
Chapter Forty-five
THE countryside William showed them was exhilarating, the contrasts of forest, meadow, streams, soaring cliffs, and sheltered beaches easing the disappointments of the day. Louisa even joyfully planned excursions of her own into these wondrous regions, soon expecting to have more time to herself than she would really like. With Franklin Carson's arrival, she focused on the politics of their journey to Monterey, and she could foresee many solitary hours. She glanced frequently at Aaron, who, as often as not, met her stares filled with anticipation for the evening before them. His eyes wandered over her, lingering at her breasts which, with her cape thrown back in the temperate air, her soft challis gown pleasingly accentuated. She watched his open gaze drift to her hips and down her belly to her thighs, and she knew, well enough, his thoughts were of the promising warmth sheltered there.
Easton rambled endlessly on, providing them, in spite of himself, with interesting information about the flora and fauna, knowledge which Louisa never suspected he would have, until she recalled the impressive greenhouse she had browsed in early that morning. When they returned to the house, another feast awaited them, and this time even Louisa's appetite did justice to the lavish fare. Franklin Carson joined them, emerging earlier than expected, hands full of documents and letters to which he insisted William give his immediate attention.
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