A Thin Line

by Tammy Jo Burns

  “You want to freeze off my extremities? Are you using that brain of yours, you silly chit?”

  “It’s so nice to have you back with us,” Kala replied sardonically.

  “What’s going on here,” Gabe asked from the doorway. He sounded tired beyond belief. They had all been so engrossed with Sarah that they had missed Gabe’s entrance.

  “Your wife is being snippy with me, son, that is the problem,” Kala could hear the pout in the older woman’s voice.

  “Kala,” she felt astounded to hear Gabe’s reprimand.

  “What?” She turned towards him hands on hips. The darkness of his body blocked the light behind him. Once again, she wished she could see his face and placement of his body. It would be so much easier to tell if she should well and truly be put out with him. She saw his shadow come towards her then simply brush past her.

  “Come, Mother, let me help you up to your room. We’ll get that ankle elevated and put some ice on it to help with the swelling.”

  “Gabriel, you are so wise. You know just the thing to do.”

  “Yes, Mother,” Kala heard the exhaustion in his voice.

  “But, I...” she paused as she felt a restraining hand on her arm.

  “Yes?” She heard the condescending tone in Gabe’s voice.

  “Nothing. Judith, would you guide me in the direction of the dining room? I would like to finish my dessert.”

  “Certainly, my dear.” Once she heard the sliding doors snick shut and Judith dismiss the footman for the time being, Kala began to rant.

  “Can you believe the nerve of her? And Gabe played right into her hands.”

  “She has manipulated the men in this family for years. I never should have approved my son marrying her. Gabriel is the only good thing that came out of that union.”

  “This woman isn’t going to put up with her manipulation,” Kala walked furiously back and forth.

  “Mikala, you are going to wear a hole in the carpet, if you don’t stop.”

  “I can’t help it. I’m furious. He chose to believe her over me.”

  “You don’t know that for sure Mikala. Perhaps he just chose to avoid a fight between the two of you.”

  “But therein lies the problem. She now thinks that she can control Gabe, and he will always side with her.”

  “From one incident?”

  “She has hated me since Andrew died. I don’t know what happened, but I think she somehow holds me responsible.” At that very moment the door slid open. The awareness that shot through her alerted her to the fact that Gabe stood there.

  “Kala, can’t you just try to be civil to her?”

  “Civil? You’re asking me to be civil to that...that...” she spluttered.

  “Mikala.” She felt Judith’s cool, slim hand on top of hers.

  “She is my mother, and you will show her the respect she deserves.”

  “I am your wife.”

  “Not by choice.” Kala felt the words like a slap in the face, but refused to let him see how much they hurt.

  “And that is what it all comes down to, isn’t it? I am not the woman you would have picked. If I remember correctly I begged you to let me out of this insanity. Judith, please excuse me, I find that I have a horrible headache,” she turned towards the door thanking God above that she had had the foresight to make this one of the two rooms she had memorized today.

  “I will escort you to your room, Your Grace.” She recognized the voice of the footman that seemed to have been assigned to her.

  “Thank you.”

  Once in the duchess’ room, she made certain the doors were locked so she would not be disturbed by anyone. She sank down to the floor, her back against the door. She pulled her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them holding on tightly. “I will not cry,” she told herself in a litany. But she could not do anything about her breaking heart.

  The other night he had given her so much hope for their future by his physical reaction to her. She knew he didn’t love her, but she thought, nay hoped, that perhaps with time that would come about. She had even felt her heart opening to him. Funny how the actions of one woman could drive a wedge between husband and wife. Wife. The word sounded hollow to her. He did not consider her a wife. He considered her a duty to save face between their families.

  She rested her forehead on her knees contemplating her future and what could be done to change the course it had taken. There were so few options, but they were there. She just had to figure out which would work best in this particular situation. She stood and crossed the room, hands out in front of her until she encountered the bed.

  Amy had draped her nightgown over the end of the bed as she had asked her. She had planned to give her mistress privacy on her wedding night. Kala laughed out loud in the silent room. She could guarantee there would be no wedding night. Kala struggled out of her dress and shift then quickly put on her gown and robe. She felt her way to a settee that took up a wall in front of the bank of windows. Kala curled herself up in a corner of the sofa, knowing she would be unable to sleep. Her thoughts ran rampantly through her mind. She pulled her knees up, locking her arms around them, and rested her cheek on them. Tears for what could have been slowly leaked out of her eyes.

  Chapter 20

  Gabe cursed the words the minute they left his mouth, but he could not take them back. He hadn’t meant to say those things, but she had pushed him, and he had had a hell of a day. He could not deal with the issue between Kala and his mother at the moment, and both women would have to be satisfied with that.

  He sat at the dinner table and attempted to eat the meal that had been set before him. He pushed his plate away, too many thoughts and images disturbed him, making eating impossible. Instead he rose and went to his study, pouring himself a brandy. He avoided the chair that held vibrant memories of him and Kala together and instead sat behind his desk.

  The day’s events rushed in on him like a wave crashing into the shore. So much had gone awry in just a few hours. He tossed back the brandy and set the empty glass on the desk. Gabe had married his best friend’s sister. Natalia was dead. The traitor remained free. He scrubbed his hands over his face.

  He went over everything they currently knew about the traitor. He worked in one of the governmental offices. He had recently made contact with Natalia. Now Natalia was dead. Most importantly the man knew Kala. That part alone shook him to the very core.

  When he identified Natalia, her dress had been ripped open and blood spattered over one wall from the gunshot wound to her temple. The manner in which she had been laid out indicated that she had either been raped or been in the midst of a rendezvous when she had been killed. There had been a note found pinned to Natalia’s ripped bodice that read, Her eyes remind me of a pair of beautiful emeralds, much like Miss Simmons when she gets angry. Wouldn’t you agree, Hawkescliffe? He felt his earlier nightmare coming true. Perhaps he had inherited his grandmother’s gift. At this moment, he considered it a curse.

  They were being toyed with, and his hands were momentarily tied. To make matters worse, he had tried to push Kala away so that he could be more objective of the situation. He needed to determine the best way to keep her safe. Gabe also knew that if people didn’t think they were close, she would be less of a target.

  He quickly made a list of the men that he knew worked in a governmental capacity in the War Office, Home Office, and Foreign Office. He had narrowed it down to those main offices since they offered the most tempting information for a traitor. Once he finished the list, he quickly scanned it again. Gabe realized all three men that had been courting Mikala made his list.

  Could they have been using Kala? Did any of them know of her superior knowledge of Arthurian legend? He thought back to the night of the explosion in Vauxhall. Southerby had run up claiming to have followed after someone but then lost them. Could his story be believed? Lady Clarissa had told him all he knew of Southerby and now she had come up missing as well.


  Dewhurst would stay on the list. The man reeked of scandal, if only he could be caught doing something. He pushed papers at the War Office, but more just to brag about helping out with the war effort, and to impress the ladies and their fathers. And McKenzie had made the list more on principle than anything else.

  His mind wandered back to this morning and his wedding. Had it truly taken place less than ten hours ago? Even though she had refused a wedding gown, Mikala had made a beautiful bride. Her sightless eyes had sparkled green, matching the light green print of her wedding dress. Kala’s sable hair had hung in loose waves down her back defying convention. He had truly hated to leave her, but duty had called. Unfortunately it would always be that way with him. She would eventually come to understand or hate him.

  When he had been called to confirm Natalia’s decaying body his stomach had churned with a mixture of sickness and excitement. He felt devastated for the loss of life, but it had also meant the traitor felt cornered. They would have to lay down the plans very carefully if they were going to catch their man in the act. At this moment, Gabe missed Derek. He needed someone to talk with over the plans, and work out the details.

  Gabe leaned back and looked at the ceiling. He could have talked to Kala. She had a brilliant mind, but his mother had put paid to that. His mother could be a master manipulator, but he should have put his wife first in this circumstance. At that moment, Gabe realized his grandmother was correct about his mother. Feeling trapped, he let out a sigh, and put his list away before rising. It had been a long and stressful day, and he was ready for the comfort of his bed.

  He entered his bedroom seeing the large, empty bed. So much for a wedding night, he thought to himself. After his valet helped him remove his boots, he dismissed the man. A steaming bath waited for him, and he quickly removed his clothes before easing his tired body into the water. He enjoyed the water until it began to cool. Gabe sluiced the water over himself trying to erase the events of the day. After toweling dry, he climbed into bed, forcing his body to relax until he fell into an uneasy sleep.

  ***

  Blood covered every surface of the room he entered. No one could survive the loss of this much blood. He felt ill but girded himself to continue. A light green hem of a skirt first indicated that the body would be that of a woman. He felt hot and clammy, sweat beading on his brow. Gabe didn’t know how he knew, but he just did. Mikala lay in a pool of blood that grew larger every moment.

  “Kala!”

  “Gabe?” She whispered, and tried to hold out a limp hand to him, but she had no energy.

  He fell to his knees and pulled her into his arms, her life force flowing out of her at an alarming rate.

  “Kala, you can’t leave me! Do you hear me?”

  “You’re too late, Hawkescliffe,” a voice sneered from the dark corner. A voice that he could not match with a face.

  “Gabe!”

  “Don’t leave me!”

  “Gabe!” He felt a hand on his shoulder and let Kala’s limp body fall to the floor before turning and pinning the person behind him.

  “Gabe! Gabe! Let me up!” Mikala felt his hands creeping up to her throat. She knew she had to do something before he killed her in the throes of a nightmare. She leaned up as far as she possibly could and captured his lips. Her lips teased his, and she slowly felt him relax his grip on her throat.

  Gabe awoke slowly feeling the caress of lips on his. The traces of the nightmare began to recede as the kisses became more real. He pulled back slightly to see Mikala pinned beneath his sweat-soaked body.

  “Oh,” he moaned and collapsed on the bed beside her.

  “Are you all right?” Mikala asked, concern filling her voice.

  “No,” he said before he could stop himself.

  “Are you hurt? What’s the matter? Dammit, talk to me!”

  “If you will be quiet long enough, mayhap I will!”

  “I will return to my room.” She reached out a hand, after sitting up to make certain she did not encounter any objects between the bed and the door.

  “Stop,” Gabe commanded, grabbing her other hand. “Please, I need to talk to someone.”

  Kala’s heart turned over at the hint of desperation in his voice. “I’m listening,” she remained standing by the bed.

  “I had to identify someone today. That exotic woman you heard me with on those two occasions.”

  “Has she been arrested?”

  “No, she’s dead. Mutilated.”

  “Oh.” Kala stood next to the bed, her arms wrapped about her waist, her back stiff. “And you were having a nightmare about her?”

  “Yes, no.”

  “Make up your mind Gabe. Either you were or you weren’t. Were you dreaming of another woman on our wedding night?”

  “No, dammit! I dreamed about you! You were the dead woman in my nightmare! Satisfied?”

  “Were you wishing it were me?”

  “My word, Mikala, how could you even think that?”

  “Because of so many things of late.”

  “Like?”

  “Do you really want me to start? Fine then, let me see, could it be that you called me stupid?”

  “I called your actions stupid.”

  “You wrote to my father demanding that he come and take me home. You were forced into marrying me. You took your mother’s word over mine. Does that sound like a man who is overly fond of his wife to you?” All of a sudden she felt firm hands gripping her upper arms causing her to jump. “You said our marriage was not your choice.”

  “Mikala, sometimes I swear you push me too far.”

  “Did you ever stop to consider it was not mine either?”

  “I, oh, bloody hell,” he said before pulling her against his nude form and kissing her firmly and deeply. At first he felt her sink into the kiss as well, then she started pushing against him.

  “Stop! You don’t like me. You don’t want to be married to me.”

  “Maybe not, but we are, and I want you,” he growled before kissing her once more.

  “And you think that will be enough for me?” She demanded after tearing her mouth away.

  “It will have to be.” Kala struggled at first then he felt her become passive. “Dammit, I would rather you fight me.”

  “And I would rather you shrivel up.”

  “Oh, but I am far from shriveling up, Pest.” He captured her lips and invaded the deep recesses of her mouth. He felt her struggle but wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close. He knew the exact moment she felt the proof of his attraction to her. She jumped slightly in an attempt to pull away, but finally began to relax bit by bit. Gabe couldn’t help but smile.

  Kala savored the sensation of his mouth moving on hers and found herself wrapping her arms around his shoulders. Her hands touched warm skin with hard muscle beneath it. She desperately wished she could see what he looked like, but she had to rely on her other senses. Rough palms pushed her dressing gown off her shoulders and she dropped her arms to let the silky material slip down her arms and puddle on the floor. Soon fingers worked feverishly at untying the strings of her gown. Her breath hitched a little, either in excitement or fear, she couldn’t exactly be sure which.

  “Trust me, Kala?” One of those palms cupped her cheek gently.

  “I shouldn’t,” she replied bluntly.

  “I know. I need you so much, though. Need this. Need to know that you are alive and well, even if you hate me.”

  “I don’t hate you. I don’t always like you, but I don’t hate you.”

  “Always honest.”

  “Kiss me.” Once again, she felt his lips plying hers. She tunneled her fingers into his hair, enjoying the silky feel. The warm air caressed her legs as he lifted her gown. Mikala felt it pulled over her head and then lost track of it. He stopped kissing her, and she could feel him step back from her. She felt self-conscious and started to cover herself.

  “No, just let me look a moment.” When a moment turned into several, Mikala s
tarted feeling uncomfortable.

  “This was a mistake.” She bent down and searched for her clothes.

  “Mikala, you’re beautiful.”

  “What?” His words stopped her.

  “You are beautiful, and you’re mine.” He stepped towards her and swept her up in his hard arms before gently laying her on the bed. Gabe quickly crawled up beside her, kissing her once more.

  She couldn’t quite decipher where he was in relation to her; she only knew he seemed to be everywhere. His right hand ran up her left leg starting at her ankle, gently skimming and caressing. He paused at her hip, using his thumb to rub gently back and forth. She felt his calloused hand skate up her ribs until he reached the underside of her breast. He gently squeezed and caressed the small globe causing her to go a little breathless.

  “Gabe,” she moaned huskily when he finally let her breathe. She felt him drop kisses along her chest and the upper slope of her breast before he captured her tender tip in his mouth and suckled gently. Her back arched off the bed and she clung to his shoulders. Never before had she felt anything like this.

  “Just the beginning,” Gabe breathed into her ear before returning to suckle her other peak.

  How would she survive this? She wondered desperately. Already she felt as if she had caught afire. Beads of perspiration popped up on body, and her apex had come to life in a way she had never known before. She pressed her thighs together tightly, attempting to ease the ache. She felt his hand at her knees, caressing, working his way up her inner leg.

  “Relax, sweetheart,” he whispered as he moved up to kiss her once more. His hand massaged her inner right thigh, his thumb moving closer and closer to where she so desperately needed his touch. She let her left leg fall open at an angle hoping to coax him to touch her as he had the other night. “What do you want, Kala?” He asked between kisses. She whispered in his ear exactly what she wanted and, if possible, he felt himself harden even more. His calloused hand dropped to cover her womanhood, and then she felt one of his finger’s gently enter her channel. “You are so ready for me,” he moaned.