An Exotic Heir

by Meredith Bond

  It was then that Cassandra completely lost any good humor that she had harbored that day. Gisela had been wrong—Mr. Ritchie was exactly like all other men. Why else would he bring her to see this?

  Her quick temper flared and she turned to Mr. Ritchie to give him the dressing down of his life.

  Gisela was too quick for her, however. Before Cassandra could even open her mouth to give him one of the scathing remarks that had immediately sprung to her mind, she was abruptly and a little violently pulled away.

  “Cassandra, may I speak to you for a moment?” she said as she dragged Cassandra off toward the path.

  “Do not say a word!” her friend said, as soon as they were out of earshot of Mr. Ritchie.

  “Gisela!”

  “Not one word.”

  Cassandra ground her teeth together, but kept her mouth shut.

  “Now I know what you are thinking, and you are wrong. I do not believe that Mr. Ritchie has any ulterior motives in bringing you here. If he did, he certainly would not have brought me as well. Would he?”

  Cassandra did not say anything, but it was difficult to hear what Gisela was saying for the pounding anger ringing in her ears.

  “I am certain that there is a very reasonable explanation for this, and I am willing to hear it from Mr. Ritchie.” She paused and looked sternly at Cassandra. “And so will you.”

  “Gisela, I do not honestly know if I can stand there and listen with any equanimity to whatever excuse he is going to make up,” Cassandra said hotly.

  “You must. Remember, you are the one who told him that you wanted to learn more about Indian culture. Well, he is showing it to you. You cannot now turn your back on him and his culture just because it offends your delicate English sensibilities.”

  Cassandra took a deep breath to calm her anger. Gisela was right. Surely he had a reasonable explanation for bringing them here.

  Cassandra nodded. “All right, Gisela. Let us hear what Mr. Ritchie has to say.”

  They walked back to him. He was standing by the side of the temple, looking very upset.

  He approached them as they walked toward him. “Miss Renwick, Mrs. Brown, please accept my most profuse apologies. I did not mean to shock you, or upset you with this.”

  “No need, Mr. Ritchie,” Gisela said. “We would like to learn more about the temple and the sculptures that adorn it.”

  “You are very forgiving. I appreciate that.” He paused, carefully choosing his words. “The art that you see here is somewhat unusual, even in Indian art, although the style of the figures is not. The ancient Indians were very free about…”

  He paused once again, then took a deep breath and plunged on, “…about love and the relationship between men and women.”

  Cassandra watched Mr. Ritchie as he gave what seemed to be a well-practiced speech. Had he thought about this before he brought them here? Had he done this on purpose? Or had he practiced his speech in anticipation of teaching them something new and interesting? Cassandra just could not make up her mind.

  “The people of those times felt that the joy of the… the intimate relationship between men and women was so special, so elevating, that it was one of the many approximations of joy that one feels when communing with God,” he continued.

  “They felt no shame in displaying the beauty of the human body—after all, to them, the beauty of the gods is revealed through the human form created by the gods in their own image.”

  “So what we are seeing here is a form of worship?”

  “Yes, precisely! The depictions show people worshiping Shiva even as they worship and have, er, relations with each other.”

  He paused and looked back at the temple and then down to the ground in front of them. “It was, however, entirely inappropriate for me to bring you here. I sincerely hope that I have not offended you by doing so. There are so many other things, innocent and interesting things, that I could show you—like the Kali Temple just south of Calcutta, but I was afraid you would find it too gruesome. Kali is a goddess who wears a necklace of human skulls.”

  Cassandra felt her heart soften at Mr. Ritchie’s dilemma as he stood looking both confused and chagrined. “I have to admit to preferring this to something bloody and gruesome,” she admitted.

  He perked up a little at this and even managed a little smile, but Gisela said, “I am not entirely sure that I agree. However, I believe it is time that we went to the guesthouse, if that is all right, Mr. Ritchie?”

  “Oh yes, of course! Please excuse my thoughtlessness. You must be very tired after the long journey.” He lead the way back into the jungle and to his phaeton.

  Cassandra wanted to believe Mr. Ritchie had planned this trip in all innocence. He is different from other men, she told herself again.

  The thought that she was not interested in men came back into her mind. But somehow, she just didn’t seem to have the same strength of conviction anymore.

  Chapter Ten

  Miss Renwick, I must apologize again. I am rather ashamed, actually, to have brought you to see this temple. It was… well, inappropriate.”

  “Oh no, Mr. Ritchie, think no more about it.”

  Julian was sitting with Miss Renwick on a bench in the shade of a tree behind the guesthouse. The garden around them was filled with large colorful flowers artistically arranged into formal beds.

  Julian had been rather loath to break the gentle silence that surrounded them. But he still felt uncertain about the wisdom of this outing. It was true that he was trying to make her fall in love with him, but he would never do anything to hurt her.

  Miss Renwick suddenly began to giggle. It was soft at first, but then it grew until her shoulders were shaking with it.

  Julian couldn’t imagine what she’d found so amusing in this garden, or, in fact, any of the events of the day so far.

  He turned to ask her, when she said, “I’m sorry, I was just thinking how ridiculous I have been.”

  “Ridiculous? How?”

  “Just my reaction to the sculptures on the temple walls. I was so embarrassed by…” She searched for a modest way of saying it. “…by the realism in the human forms that I failed to even look at the sculptures in their entirety or indeed at the temple itself. It really was quite wrong and very silly of me, I am afraid.”

  “Oh no, I completely understand your reluctance to truly look at it. Indeed, it was not silly at all–as I said, I should not have brought you here. It was most inappropriate of me, but I had forgotten how explicit the sculptures are. I have not been here in a very long time.”

  He continued softly, “I do hope you will accept my apologies, Miss Renwick.”

  “But it is I who owe you one for not appreciating the art, which is clearly an important part of the culture. I asked to learn more about India, and you held up your end of the bargain. But I have not.”

  Miss Renwick’s eyes suddenly opened wider and she turned her open face toward Julian once again. “But perhaps it is not too late! Do you think we could go back to the temple so that I may truly look at it again?”

  Julian thought of her first reaction to the temple and his own when he saw it while standing beside her. The heat that had suddenly suffused him. No, going back to the temple would not be a good idea.

  “I am sorry, Miss Renwick...”

  “Oh, please?”

  “But Mrs. Brown is still resting.”

  “Yes, that is why just now would be a perfect time to go. Wouldn’t it be a nice way to pass the time while she rests?”

  “It is really not proper…” he began.

  Miss Renwick stood up, looking at him beseechingly. She gave him the sweetest, most pleading expression. He nearly laughed at how adorable she looked.

  “Very well, but we will have to hurry, so that we can return with no one the wiser,” he finally relented.

  Immediately upon reaching the site of the temple, Julian knew for certain that it had been a mistake.

  Despite the fact that she had j
ust seen it only one hour earlier, Miss Renwick’s face had a look of amazement as they came closer to the intricate carvings which decorated the outside of the temple. Her cheeks, once again, flamed with embarrassment.

  But this time, she was clearly determined to actually look carefully at the sculptures, instead of turning away in shame as she had done before.

  Julian, on the other hand, found that his mind and body were in a riot of desire conflicting with the restraint he knew was demanded. His palms were sweating as he fought to control his wayward thoughts.

  It would have been so much easier if Mrs. Brown had been with them. Her presence would have cooled his ardor with no problem.

  But now, there was nothing, no distractions.

  There was only Miss Renwick’s determined face, her sweet lips, her lovely figure… Julian abruptly pulled his mind away. Control was the watchword of the day.

  As they circled the temple looking at the intricate carvings, the wind began to pick up. And without further warning, they were suddenly deluged with rain.

  Miss Renwick stopped in her tracks and looked to Julian with surprise and chagrin, as if asking him to stop the storm.

  Julian, too, was completely taken by surprise by the sudden squall, but he reacted quickly. Grabbing Miss Renwick’s hand, he ran with her to the banyan tree where they had had their luncheon. All traces of their picnic were now gone.

  The branches reaching out and then gracefully dropping down to the ground to formed leafy pillars protected them from the tempest.

  Panting slightly from their run, they stood under the shelter of the tree, staring out at the storm. Miss Renwick was shivering in her thin white dress, which had become completely transparent now that it was wet.

  Julian swallowed hard, willing his body not to react. He needed to behave himself. He removed his coat and wrapped it gently around Cassandra’s shoulders, hoping that if he didn’t see her it would be easier to control himself.

  Large blue eyes looked gratefully up at him–and he was lost.

  Much as she tried, Cassandra could not keep her eyes from roving over the fine white cotton of Julian’s shirt. His brown, muscled arms showed clearly through the thin, damp material. If it were not for his waistcoat, she imagined that there would be much more of Julian’s body exposed for her pleasure–much like the powerful torsos of the sculpted men on the temple walls.

  She shivered, although this time it was not due to the cold. Her eyes moved slowly up from his chest, over his now-wilted neckcloth, to his face. His deep pink lips looked incredibly enticing, but she did not stop there. She let her gaze drift upward to look into his eyes, which were now deep pools of blue.

  The unmasked passion revealed there made Cassandra feel as if a flow of hot lava was running down into the pit of her stomach. The heat slid further down her body.

  Cassandra could not move. Slowly, he reached for her, ever so gently cradling her face in his large, warm brown hands. He kissed her, gently at first and then with an ever-growing passion.

  She felt as if he were completely encompassing her, and it felt so good!

  A tremor of delight coursed through her body. She moved ever so slightly, just enough to mold her body to his. The sensations as she felt his hard body against hers nearly caused her to swoon.

  He gently teased her tongue, intertwining it with his own when she opened her mouth to him. Then his hands slowly moved down from her face to her shoulders.

  Cassandra gasped at the fire that had begun burning within her—a fire that grew more insistent as Julian’s mouth moved and began to slowly make its way down her neck, continuing down to the pounding at the base of her throat.

  His hands moved further down her body as well, following her curves until they rested, one at her waist, the other on her breast. His thumb moved gently over her nipple. She arched her back, wanting more, sure that he was prepared to give it.

  His lips had just closed around her sensitive flesh when she heard a faint voice calling out her name. The last drips of rain plopped loudly on to the leaves around them.

  The voice called again, this time coming closer.

  Julian looked up, and Cassandra jumped away from him as if he had suddenly turned into a raging fire. Their eyes locked in shocked surprise.

  Someone was looking for them!

  In a shaky voice, Cassandra called out a response. She adjusted her dress and then wrapped Julian’s jacket around herself so that she was as decently covered as possible in her soaking wet dress.

  Julian had turned his back to her to lean with one hand against the trunk of the tree. She could hear him taking deep cooling breaths of air.

  Gisela came around a bend in the path. She was holding a black umbrella and looking very worried. Sudden relief flooded her face as she approached the tree.

  “Oh, thank God you are safe!”

  “Why, of course we are safe, Gisela,” Cassandra forced a little laugh. “As you can see, we only suffer from a thorough wetting.”

  “I was so worried when I woke up at the sound of the storm and found you both gone! I borrowed a cart and forced the innkeeper to bring me here to look for you!” It was clear that Gisela was still upset.

  Cassandra ran and put her arms around her dear friend. “Oh, I am so sorry, Gisela. We did not mean to alarm you. In fact, we were hoping to return before you awoke, but the storm caught us by surprise.”

  Gisela looked down at Cassandra wrapped in Julian’s coat. “So I see.”

  Cassandra self-consciously drew it tighter.

  “Let us return to the guest house and see if they can do anything to dry your dress quickly and give you something more decent to wear.”

  “Oh, yes, do let us. I am afraid I am not very comfortable this way,” Cassandra said, happy to pull Gisela’s attention away from Julian and what she had been doing there with him.

  While Cassandra’s dress was being ironed dry, she borrowed a light wrapper from the innkeeper’s wife. Clutching a shawl around her, Cassandra sat with Gisela in the upstairs bedroom.

  Gisela took a deep breath. “Cassandra…”

  “Yes?” Cassandra replied nervously.

  “What made you go back to the temple alone with Mr. Ritchie? Did you not realize that that was a highly improper thing to do?”

  Cassandra looked down at her hands, suddenly ashamed at her boldness. What had, only a short time ago, seemed like a wonderful idea now seemed very wrong indeed.

  “I am sorry, Gisela. I… I did not stop to think about that.”

  “You are so young, my dear.” Gisela shook her head sadly. “And so inexperienced in the ways of the world. Indeed, I do not know what they taught you at that school you attended.”

  Cassandra sat in silence. She had learned not to go off alone with men, but in her excitement, she had forgotten, or deliberately ignored, what she’d learned.

  Gisela went on firmly. “I suppose your mother assumed, as did I, that you’d learned proper rules of behavior.”

  “I have! I… I just did not follow them.” Cassandra felt close to tears. This quiet rebuke from her friend touched her much more deeply than any of her mother’s loud scolds about her lack of proper decorum.

  Gisela sighed audibly, but stopped suddenly and asked, “Cassandra, did Mr. Ritchie…” she paused for the right words. “Did Mr. Ritchie behave improperly toward you while you were waiting for the rain to stop?”

  Cassandra’s tear-filled eyes flew up to Gisela. “No!” she said, a little too quickly and vehemently.

  Then, hearing the shrillness in her voice, she moderated her tone. “No, he behaved with all the propriety in the world.”

  “I did not mean to imply anything, Cassandra. It was just such a suggestive atmosphere. But I know that Mr. Ritchie is a very correct young man who is fully aware of society’s rules even if you are not”

  Then Gisela smiled and put her hand on her shoulder. “I’m happy to hear that nothing happened. If anything had, I would have been responsible. A
s it is, I’m very grateful for Mr. Ritchie’s obvious self-restraint, as, I am sure, are you.”

  Gisela paused to gather her thoughts. “I need not remind you, Cassandra, not to say anything about this to your mother, or indeed, to anybody. If your parents or anybody in society found out… well, let us just say that it would not be good.”

  Cassandra wondered at Gisela’s lightly veiled message. She had heard of one girl who had been alone with a young man and was then forced to marry him. Surely such a thing would not happen to her and Julian? Still, it was better to be careful and follow Gisela’s advice.

  “No, Gisela. I do not believe that this entire outing need be mentioned to anyone.”

  She then gave Gisela her best attempt at a smile. Gisela said no more, but reached out to warmly clasp her friend’s hand, just as the maid appeared with Cassandra’s dress.

  At the same time that Gisela was thinking he was a complete gentleman, Julian, waiting in a private parlor on the ground floor, was kicking himself for his obvious lack of self-control.

  How could he have taken such advantage of the situation?

  He dearly hoped that he had not destroyed his rapport with Cassandra. She had every right to be furious with him. She had every right not to speak to him ever again.

  And then all of his plans would be at an end. Of course, he would deserve whatever it was he had coming to him. He’d behaved like a cad.

  He wondered just how much she would tell Mrs. Brown. Surely she would say something to her about what had happened between them.

  But as the two ladies entered the room, he was surprised to see that they were both smiling with obvious good will toward each other, and him. He forced a smile to his own lips and pushed his thoughts and worries to the back of his mind until he could find out what Cassandra had told her chaperone.

  “Shall we partake of some tea before we attempt the long drive back?” he offered, in as lighthearted a voice as he could muster.

  “That sounds wonderful,” Mrs. Brown responded, likewise, with slightly forced cheer.

  Julian was eager to get Cassandra alone to ask if she had told Mrs. Brown anything. But after their previous lapse, it was certain that Mrs. Brown was not going to let Cassandra out of her sight for a moment.