“But not clearly enough to tell if he was large or small?”
Merideth returned Jared’s stare for a moment, then threw off the blankets and scrambled from the bed. While he watched, annoyed that he noticed the way the fine linen of her shift clung to her body, she grabbed up her gown. “I saw the knife clearly enough,” she insisted as she poked her arms into the sleeves.
Jared regretted it when she yanked the bodice up to cover herself. “What are you doing?”
“Obviously, I’m getting dressed. It’s apparent you don’t believe me, and frankly I don’t care. But I have no intentions of lying abed and waiting for whomever it was to return.”
“Just what do you intend to do?”
His unconcerned tone infuriated her. The trembling fear was only now leaving her limbs, and he acted as if nothing had happened. “I intend to stay awake and keep watch.”
“ ‘Tis hours till dawn.”
“I don’t care.” Merideth strained against the window, shutting it with a bang, fighting to ignore the feeling that the room was closing in on her. Suddenly the air seemed suffocating. But she sat on the only chair in the room and crossed her arms.
“What will you do if he returns? You barely have a door.”
“Apparently a locked door didn’t help last time. In any case, I shall scream.”
“For me?” Jared’s brow arched, and his lips lifted in a mocking grin.
“For anyone who will help me.”
“I see.” Jared leaned against the wall, one ankle crossed over the other. He let out a deep breath before continuing. “First of all, I never said I don’t believe you.”
Merideth’s snort sounded unladylike. “You didn’t have to. I think I know when someone thinks I’m lying.”
“In this case you’re wrong. It happens I do think you saw someone.”
“With a knife,” Merideth reminded.
“Aye, with a knife. But I imagine it was simply a local ruffian infatuated with your comeliness.”
“So he decided to kill me?”
“Nay, chances are he had nothing more in mind than to partake of your charms.”
“Partake of my...” Merideth leaped from the chair, crossing the room to stand before him in four angry strides. “I am Lady Merideth Banistar. People do not break into my room to... to...” At a loss for what to say, Merideth lifted her chin. “You may leave now,” she finally said, her voice and countenance regal... haughty. To Jared’s way of thinking, amusing.
But he didn’t have the time or inclination to be amused. He was tired, and sleepy, and wishing he could be done with this business soon. Though he doubted the intruder would return after all the commotion, he wasn’t taking any chances with Lady Merideth Banistar while he was responsible for her. And thanks to his cousin, Daniel, that would be until they reached Paris.
“Come along.”
“Where? What are you doing? Let go of me.” Merideth batted at the hand clasping her arm.
“I’ve no intention of sleeping in here with the door broken, and you obviously need someone to watch out for you.”
Regardless of her reluctance to accompany him, Jared pulled Merideth into the hall. Several faces reappeared at the doors, but no one seemed willing to offer her assistance against the captain. When he ushered her inside his room and shut the door, Merideth could have sworn she heard a collective sigh of relief from the other passengers.
This room was similar to hers, with a chair, broken-fronted chest of drawers, and a ratty-looking bed that took most of the space. It was there that Merideth focused.
“If you think I shall be so grateful for your questionable concern for my welfare that I’ll... I’ll...”
“Listen, Lady Merideth. Despite what happened in the courtyard, I’ve no interest in you other than the information you have about a certain traitor.”
“But I have no—”
Jared held his hand up to stop her protest. “Therefore, if you would simply climb into that bed and get to sleep, I’d be most grateful.”
Merideth pursed her lips. “Where do you intend to sleep?”
“In the chair.” Jared’s jaw jutted toward the rickety piece of furniture. “I assure you it will be fine. I’ve done it before on board the Carolina.” Without further discussion Jared settled onto the rush-bottomed chair and leaned it back on two legs.
Merideth slowly climbed into the bed. The mattress was lumpy and smelled of unwashed bodies, but Merideth imagined it considerably more comfortable than the captain’s chair. She was about to make some comment about it when she heard his muffled snore.
He was asleep. Some protection he would be if the intruder returned. Even so, Merideth found she felt safe. Before she knew it, dawn had paled the eastern sky and it was time for their journey to continue.
For nearly a sennight they followed the same routine. Merideth would ride in the cramped coach by day surrounded by French-speaking strangers and roasting in the captain’s heavy cloak. At night they would share a room.
He kept his distance.
After that first night the captain made arrangements at every inn to have an extra cot or pallet moved into the room. He stayed downstairs until Merideth had slipped out of the gown and covered herself, then he entered, removed his shirt, and settled in for the night.
He fell asleep quickly, always before Merideth. But he was also quick to wake. When the dream recurred, the suffocating feeling that walls were closing in on her, it only took a strangled sob from Merideth for him to be at her side.
One night she woke with his knuckles tracing a gentle path down her tear-streaked cheek. “What is it? What’s wrong?” His voice was so low and soothing, Merideth hesitated before turning away. But she knew better than to share her fears. Her father had simply found them amusing. He’d teased her often. And in the light of day, inside a large-enough room, Merideth could laugh too. But the terror was still there.
Miss Alice’s reaction had been different. The governess had felt the only way to conquer fear was to face it. And if you couldn’t do that on your own, you could always be forced. Memories of the times she was locked in the huge wardrobe in her bedroom made Merideth tremble. Her breath caught and she leaped from the bed, knocking Captain Blackstone aside.
“What the hell are you doing?” Jared stood and watched her frantic movements, his hands resting loosely on his hips.
“Opening”—Merideth paused to shove—“the window.” A rush of air escaped her when the sash gave.
“For God’s sake, it’s raining. You’ll get... wet.” His last word was only murmured as she stuck her head outside.
Two steps brought him to her side. Cupping her shoulders, Jared pulled her inside. Her hair was soaked, the water drooping her curls and spiking her long lashes. “Are you daft?” Jared looked down into eyes as bright and prismed as the droplets on her skin “What’s gotten into you?”
“I don’t like to sleep with the window closed,” she said before trying to twist away.
His hands tightened. His laugh held no mirth. “Drenching yourself is not the answer.” As he spoke, Jared’s gaze roamed over her. He almost groaned at what he saw. Her shift was nearly transparent, made so by the wetness that also caused it to cling to her body. Pink nipples, tight from the chill, beckoned. His own body responded, hardened.
God, he wanted her.
Tomorrow they’d reach Paris. And he’d hand her over to Dr. Franklin, or Daniel, if he was there. He’d never have to see her again. He never wanted to see her again.
Their eyes met, and though she tried to make her expression defiant, Jared saw burning in those blue depths the same hunger that he felt. In the past, whenever he’d touched her, she’d opened to him, responded in a way that no other woman ever had. She would this time too. The moisture on her body nearly sizzled.
She swallowed and Jared watched the sweet curve of her neck. Then, as if trying to fight the inevitable, she twisted away.
Jared jerked her back. Closer. Contact
with her dampened his skin. The feel of her warm, wet breasts against his bare chest turning his blood to boil. His arousal pressed her stomach and her eyes drifted shut.
Surrender.
Jared could taste it. Anticipated tasting her.
But though his lips hovered near hers, he hesitated. At one point he’d thought to seduce her; now he greatly feared he was the one being seduced. By a traitor.
Jared closed his eyes, trying to steady his ragged breathing. Slowly he pushed her away, separating them, denying himself the erotic sensation of her body against his. “You’d best get out of those wet clothes,” he said, his voice gruff.
“What...?” Merideth’s eyes snapped open. “Oh... oh, yes.” Moments ago, she thought, he had planned to kiss her... and heaven help her, she’d wanted him to. But his expression had hardened. Hands that had caressed now turned her toward the bed.
“Hang your shift on the chair. It should dry by morning.”
“Where are you going?” Merideth watched as he grabbed up his shirt, pulling it over his head with jerky motions. He strode to the door, removed the key from his breeches, and opened the lock.
“I’m going out. You get some sleep.”
Before Merideth could remind him that it was raining, the captain closed the door behind him. Instinctively she followed his instructions, removing her wet shift and climbing into bed. But she couldn’t go to sleep.
The chafing of the bed linens against her skin made her long for the feel of his hands. Try as she might to ignore the sensation. Try as she might to call herself a fool. It did no good.
And when slumber finally did come it wasn’t the nightmare of confinement that filled her mind. ‘Twas the far more frequent dream of Captain Blackstone.
The coach entered Paris in midafternoon, rattling along the narrow cobblestone streets. Merideth had her usual seat by the window, which by this time the other passengers gave her without argument. When the coach stopped, Merideth stepped out, her head turning with the splendor of all she saw. Before she could take in a fraction if it, Merideth was hustled into a rented chaise and she and the captain were driven to the Hôtel du Hambourg.
“Damn,” Jared mumbled after speaking with a man in powdered wig and silk waistcoat.
“What is it?”
“Neither Dr. Franklin nor Daniel are here.”
“Who is this Daniel?” Merideth inquired, but received no answer. The captain was busy asking questions of his own.
“Is Samuel Dayton here?” Jared remembered Daniel telling him Samuel Dayton had also been sent to France by the American Congress.
“Oui, Monsieur Dayton is registered and, I believe, in his rooms.”
After receiving the room number, Jared led the way up the stairs. The door was answered by a small, swarthy man who spoke little English. His head bobbed as Jared explained who he was and why he wished an audience with Monsieur Dayton. The man motioned them into an ornately decorated drawing room and backed into the hallway.
Jared offered Merideth a seat, which she refused. She was much too concerned about her welfare to do aught but pace. She measured the length of the Aubusson rug twice before turning on the captain.
“Who is this Daniel, and what does he have to do with me?”
Jared crossed his arms and looked at his captive from heavy-lidded eyes. “He’s the person who arranged this fiasco.”
“Exactly what fiasco are we discussing?” Merideth tilted her head, but her eyes remained locked with his.
“The one where I went to England acting as a courier to receive information about a spy.”
“Ah... so you admit now that the entire incident was a mistake. My father would no more sell out his—”
“Oh, he would sell out, all right. He was more than willing to do that, as I’m sure you will once sufficient payment is offered.” Jared ignored the angry jut of her chin. “It was other circumstances that made the trip ill fated.”
“Such as my father’s untimely death at your hands.”
“His death was unfortunate. I believe we both know it wasn’t at my hands.”
Merideth turned away. In truth she had no ready answer for that, because against all evidence to the contrary she almost believed him. But if the captain hadn’t killed her father, who had? That unanswerable question always formed a stone wall in Merideth’s reasoning. She walked to the window and looked out on the street below.
She didn’t think she had ever seen so many people in one place. The narrow roadway was packed with ladies and gentlemen from all walks of life. Peasants in their ragged brown wool mingled with the gentry in their bright-colored silks. And now and then a chair would pass below, the bearers dressed in the livery of some noble family. Merideth was so absorbed watching the events, she didn’t hear anyone enter the room until he spoke.
“Ah, Captain Blackstone, it is a pleasure to finally meet you. I’ve heard so much of your exploits. All Paris is abuzz with them.”
“Thank you.” Jared stood and returned Samuel Dayton’s bow. “I’ve come to see you on an unrelated matter that involves Daniel Wallis.”
“He’s not here. Off to London, I believe. Oh, perhaps I shouldn’t have let that slip.” Samuel’s gaze slid toward Merideth, who watched the exchange from the alcove surrounding the window. “ ‘Tis a secret, I fear.”
“Lady Merideth understands all about secrets,” Jared said before introducing the two.
“A most charming and lovely young lady,” Samuel said with such intensity Jared was surprised he didn’t drool.
For her part Merideth was polite, but cool. She seemed not to notice Dayton’s popping eyes or lewd smile.
“When do you expect him to return?”
“Who?” Samuel turned his attention back to Jared reluctantly.
“Daniel Wallis.”
“Ah, yes. I haven’t a clue. Would you care for some wine?” Dayton took Merideth’s arm and drew her toward a marble-topped side table with an array of decanters glistening in the light streaming through the windows.
“Nay, she doesn’t want wine.” Jared grasped Merideth’s arm, effectively halting her progress across the room. “Nor do I. We do wish, however, to see Wallis.”
Though obviously taken back by the captain’s manners, Samuel tried to remain composed. Only the dabbing of his upper lip with a lace handkerchief indicated he’d failed. “I told you at the onset that I have no idea when he shall return, or even where he is for certain.”
Jared dropped Merideth’s arm and stood still for a moment, trying to calm his impatience. “Listen,” he said at last, startling Dayton, who was now nervously twisting the fine linen in his hand. “Daniel Wallis asked me to act as courier for him... a matter of national security. Don’t concern yourself with her knowing,” Jared added when he saw Samuel’s small eyes dart toward Merideth. “She’s part of the entire scheme.” Jared forged ahead before Merideth could repeat her denial. “I was to go to Land’s End, meet with Lord Alfred Banistar, and retrieve certain information. Daniel impressed upon me how important this information was to the success of the revolution.” If Daniel hadn’t been so persuasive, Jared thought, there never would have been an agreement. “I was to meet him in Morlaix, but he wasn’t there. I’d hoped he might be in Paris.”
“Which, obviously, he isn’t.”
“Obviously.” Jared clasped his hands behind his back to keep from grabbing the front of Samuel’s dandified waistcoat. “So my question is, since I am a sea captain and need to return to my ship, what am I to do with her now?” Jared didn’t intend his smile to indicate good humor.
“Very well, then.” Dayton went to the delicately carved writing desk and with a sigh settled into the chair. “Where is the information? I suppose I can see that Daniel receives it.”
“Lady Merideth is the information.”
“Pardon?”
Jared decided Dayton had been in France too long if he was speaking the language when flustered. But as long as he was ridding himself of this
obligation so he could return to the Carolina, he didn’t care. He couldn’t keep himself from meeting Merideth’s eyes, however.
“Lady Merideth is in possession of the information Daniel wanted.”
“I most certainly am not.” Deciding she’d had enough of sitting quietly and listening to these two men decide her fate, Merideth sprang to her feet. She was by Captain Blackstone before he could stop her. Leaning over the desk, she grabbed Dayton’s hand. “I don’t know anything that will be of use to your country. And as a loyal Englishwoman, I wouldn’t tell you if I did.”
“She simply needs the right monetary compensation,” Jared injected. When Merideth bent forward, the cape still covering her gown slipped open. Jared resisted the urge to yank it shut as he watched Samuel Dayton follow the rise of her chest, from the gold of her locket to the shadowed valley between her breasts.
“Don’t believe him,” Merideth said, clutching Dayton’s fat hand in both of hers. “This man broke into my home, killed my father, and kidnapped me—”
“Damn!” Jared thundered. “She knows that isn’t true. I simply—”
“He did! He was to be hanged when he escaped from the jail and—”
“She’s a traitor, pure and simple.” Jared joined Merideth in leaning over the desk. Palms flat on the glossy surface, he scowled at Dayton. “You can’t trust a word she says—”
“I do not lie. And I most assuredly am not a—”
“Enough?” Dayton clasped his hands over his ears, knocking his wig awry in the process. “I’ve heard enough!”
Jared and Merideth straightened as one. Their expressions were accusatory as they glared at each other.
“I won’t listen to another word,” Samuel continued. “You will have to take your argument elsewhere.”
“This isn’t an argument,” Jared said, holding up his hand when Merideth started to disagree. “I simply need for you to take charge of Lady Merideth until Daniel returns.”
“And I simply need for you to see that I’m returned safely to my home in England,” Merideth said.
Sea of Desire Page 12
