Bonds of Matrimony

by Carrigan Fox

  “Charles!” a woman cried out, reaching Chase’s side and kneeling beside her. She took her boy into her arms.

  “Bear, Mama!” he cried, pointing to the railing.

  “He accidentally threw it overboard, ma’am. He nearly went over the side himself when he tried to get the bear,” she explained.

  She met Chase’s eyes and clutched her son’s head to her bosom. “Thank you.” She nuzzled her cheek against the boy’s hair and sniffled softly. “Oh, my Charles,” she crooned.

  “I want Bear,” he sobbed.

  She kissed his head and combed her fingers through his hair. “We’ll get you another bear, baby. Thank you again,” she said softly to her.

  In spite of the fact that the little boy was unharmed, her heart was still racing in fear. And when she turned to leave the mother and child, she found herself facing Colton Webb. Chase had to look up to meet his eyes, and she felt warmth spreading to her toes when he grinned down at her.

  “That was a close call,” he replied casually. He had apparently been the pair of arms that had helped her lift Charles back to safety.

  “Thanks for your help,” she answered.

  “You headin’ for the card tables?” he asked with a grin.

  She shook her head. “My grandmother has asked me not to,” she told him honestly.

  “She’s an amazing woman, your grandmother. Not your typical woman,” he added. He pulled two cigars out of his shirt pocket and offered her one.

  She accepted. “What makes you say that?”

  He shrugged and cupped the flame of the match with his palm to keep the wind from blowing it out. He managed to light his cigar and exhaled a cloud of smoke before answering. “She’s tough. She’s not dainty or frail.”

  Chase got a little thrill from hearing his admiration of these traits. These were the same unladylike traits she had been criticized for. “Do you think she’ll survive the hard life of cattle ranching in Texas?” she asked him, curious to hear his opinion.

  He grinned up at the moon and sucked on his cigar for another moment. “I think your grandmother could survive damn near anything.”

  She struggled to light her third match and grunted when the wind blew out the flame immediately. Webb heard her frustrations and laughed.

  “Here,” he offered, taking the cigar from her mouth and putting it in his own. She watched his lips hold the cigar while he battled the wind to light it for her. When he returned the cigar to her, the tip was wet from having been in his mouth. She put the cigar in her mouth slowly, hoping to taste him. A light fluttering began in her stomach and moved lower, to the core of her femininity.

  “Tell me about Texas.”

  “What about it?”

  “Grandmother tells me you’re from Midland County. What is that like?”

  “It’s growing like crazy. It’s mostly cattle ranchers around the county. There have been some disputes recently between ranchers who share public land for grazing. Some sheep farmers have come in and put their sheep on our cattle grazing land. We’ve tried to keep them out, but it’s public land. Last Spring, old man Rothchild got shot over a land dispute. Midland itself is becoming quite a city. That’s where most of us ranchers have to go for supplies.”

  “You’re a rancher?” Chase asked, surprised. When she’d told him that Marcus owned a ranch, he hadn’t told her that he was a rancher.

  “Sure am.”

  “Married?” she asked nervously, hoping that if he heard the tremor in her voice, he’d think it was her shivering in the cold.

  “God no,” he answered with a snort.

  God no? What kind of answer was that? He sounded like marriage was a fatal disease. Never mind that until quite recently, Chase had shared that opinion with him. Now, however, she began to wonder if marriage would be more appealing if she simply found the right man to love.

  “Cochrane, if there’s only one thing you learn from me on this ship, let it be this. Marrying isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. No matter what your grandmother tells you, put it off as long as possible. In fact, if you’re foolish enough to find yourself beside a woman in the front of a church, make sure you’re in a casket. That’s my recommendation.”

  “You told my grandmother you would have married her if you’d known her when she was younger,” she pointed out.

  He grinned wryly and looked up at the moon. “You have to tell women those things. Besides, your grandmother and the Havisham sisters would spread awful rumors about me and give me a bad reputation. With two and a half days left on this ship, I may find an interesting woman to keep me company. But if word got out that I have no intention of marrying, women would run from me screaming.”

  He was clearly exaggerating. And he was starting to sound a bit like an ass. She was preparing to tell him so when he pushed away from the railing and blew out a cloud of smoke.

  “The tables are waitin’, Cochrane. Have a good night,” he drawled, already turning his back to her and walking away.

  Unfortunately, she couldn’t bring herself to shout some witty retort to his back. She simply watched him walk away and admired the view.

  ***

  The following morning, Chase was awake and dressed before her sister had even begun to stir in bed. Propping herself up on her elbows, Reese studied her sister’s face for a moment and then collapsed on the bed with a groan.

  “What’s the matter?” Chase asked.

  She sat up abruptly and glared. “You saw him again,” she accused.

  “Don’t be ridiculous,” she answered shortly. “What would make you think so?” Chastity added, suddenly curious how her sister was able to read her so well.

  Reese took her eyes off of her and swung her legs over the side of the bed. “You’re looking awfully proud of yourself. You have that same look you had the morning after you met him. I’ve never seen you like this, Chase. The only interest you’ve ever had in any man was admiring his freedom.”

  “The only interest I have in Colton Webb is admiring his freedom, as well. And he’s an American. Doesn’t that fascinate you?” she asked, down-playing her overpowering attraction to the man.

  Reese glanced at her and rolled her eyes, turning her attention to her own trousers as she struggled to stand on one foot while the ship rocked her dangerously.

  “What?”

  “I’ve met the man, Chastity. And I would bet everything I own that his freedom isn’t the quality you most admire. I won’t tell Grandmother about this, but you must promise to stay away from him,” she urged.

  “I promised once before. I didn’t seek him out. A small boy nearly fell overboard, and I rushed to catch him. Suddenly, Webb was standing beside me and pulling the boy to safety.” Chase gauged her expression for signs of belief. When her sister didn’t seem convinced, she added, “I only talked to him for a moment. I swear to you, Reese.”

  She finally sighed and buttoned her trousers. “Don’t do it again, Chase. We’ll be in America the day after tomorrow. You put us at risk every time you speak to that man.”

  Chase only nodded in response.

  But fate seemed against her where Colton Webb was concerned. When they entered the dining room for breakfast, they met him on the grand staircase. He was on his way out. On his arm was a beautiful young woman who looked very familiar. Her glossy black hair was swept off of her neck into a mass of curls on top of her head. Her eyes were an even more brilliant blue than Reese’s. Her smile seemed quick, but shy when Webb spotted the young Cochrane men and paused to greet them on the steps.

  “Mornin’, Cochrane,” he drawled. He nodded at Reese, as well.

  “Good morning, Webb,” Chase replied, feeling a stab of jealousy at the sight of him with this other woman. The woman studied Chastity’s face a moment too long and then looked away with a blush in her cheeks. Chase wondered how she knew her.

  “Grandmother is waiting,” Reese reminded softly, heading down the stairs ahead of her sister.

  She nodded, althoug
h she was unable to see her sister’s acknowledgment.

  Webb grinned and started up the stairs again. The attractive woman on his arm cocked her head to one side and watched the young men as they ascended. Turning from her scrutiny, Chase hurried down the steps. For the first time in her life, she actually wished she had been dressed in more feminine attire.

  When she reached the table where her grandmother was seated, she fell into a seat and turned her attention to the top of the grand staircase. He was standing in front of the doors with the woman, and he seemed to be introducing her to another passenger. She held out her hand daintily and laughed musically when he said something that amused her. Webb automatically grinned in response to her pleasure and then led her out of the room. Chase’s fury killed her appetite and apparently colored her cheeks.

  “Are you feeling well, Chase? You seem especially flushed this morning,” her grandmother observed.

  Chastity wasn’t sure if her grandmother had seen the scene on the staircase, so she simply grumbled, “I’m fine, thank you.”

  ***

  That evening, in spite of her promises, she went in search of Colton Webb. She lied to Reese and told her that she needed to take a walk on the deck. Not willing to believe her sister, Reese insisted on joining her. But after one lap around the deck, she was shivering brutally and hurried off to the warmth of the cabin they shared.

  As expected, Chastity found him playing cards with four other men.

  “Mind if I join in?” she asked, pulling a chair up to the table. She didn’t care if they minded or not. She had some questions for Colton Webb and was determined to get some answers.

  “Cochrane!” Webb greeted heartily. “I didn’t expect to be seeing you here this evening.”

  “Can’t sleep,” she explained shortly.

  He waved at the barkeep and asked for a round of drinks for all of the card players at the table. Chase took a long drink of the cool, frothy ale, hoping to pull some courage from the glass.

  “That woman you were with at breakfast, Webb…” she began. She trailed off, not quite sure what to say.

  “Webb? With a woman? I can’t imagine,” one man laughed loudly across the table. “Who was she, Webb?” he asked, saving Chase from the question.

  “She was nobody,” he replied nonchalantly.

  “Nobody? She was stunning!” she argued.

  He glanced at her across the table and then studied the cards he held before him. “I wouldn’t say she’s stunning. Granted, she’s attractive enough, but not stunning. Stunning is a fair blond with electric blue eyes who will stop a man in his boots outside of a saloon full of half-naked women,” he drawled.

  Startled, Chase glanced at him and studied his expression to see if he was toying with her. The very scene he was describing was the first time she had seen him. He had been captivated by Reese, the fair blond with electric blue eyes. Had he known all along that Chase Cochrane was a woman?

  “I prefer a curvy red-head,” barked the large boisterous man seated across the table from her.

  “I prefer intelligent brunettes,” she piped up angrily.

  Webb choked on his drink and laughed aloud. “Intelligent brunettes?” he snorted. “An intelligent woman is something no man should have to tangle with.”

  The other four men laughed.

  “You’ll learn soon enough, Cochrane. Leave the intelligent women to the dandies who don’t have any testicles of their own,” he suggested. “Your life will be much happier for it.”

  Chase forced a grin and then hid her scowl behind her pint of ale.

  During the next hand, she spoke up again. “If it’s fair blondes who stop you in your boots, Webb, why was that dark-haired beauty attached to your arm at breakfast?”

  He shrugged and replied, “She needed an escort to breakfast; I volunteered.”

  She remembered back to the first time she’d heard his sexy drawl. He’d been telling the story of the woman he took against the wall in an alley. “Did you make this one hum, too?” she spit out with a grin.

  He only grinned in response. “She isn’t the hummin’ kind, if you know what I mean.”

  Chase stared at him blankly.

  He shook his head in disbelief. “Texas is goin’ to eat you alive, man,” he muttered. “I’m sure you’ve met different kinds of women in England. There are the women who like to have a good time and enjoy the company of a man. And there are the kinds like Elisabeth. She’s…” he trailed off, searching for the words.

  “She’s a lady?” one of the men volunteered. Judging by his lack of American accent, Chase could tell he was from England.

  “Yeah. She’s the marrying kind. The marrying kind of girl hides herself away from the world. She would be disgusted with the thought of enjoying a man. Sure, she might flirt and tease you a bit. She might even be tempted to fall into bed with you. But if her parents found out, they’d have you racin’ for the church. This kind of girl was born and raised to be a good proper wife. This kind of girl is taught to be obedient…like a cow. No mind of her own. Typically boring as hell,” he paused to take a swig from his mug. “When I think of these marrying kinds, I don’t know which is worse: sitting and listening to their idiotic chatter or bedding their cold and soulless bodies,” he finished.

  Beneath the tablecloth, Chase clenched her left fist, wanting nothing more than to beat this man about the face. Instead, she reached for her drink and guzzled it down. She signaled the barkeep for another. “I understand,” she answered, gritting her teeth together in what might have looked like a grin or a snarl. “And since Elisabeth is the marrying kind, you merely escorted her to breakfast and endured her idiotic chatter?” she asked.

  He gave a barely perceptible nod while he felt his breast pocket for his cigars. He passed them around the table, and Chase grabbed one, eager to hide herself behind a cloud of smoke. As she held the match to the cigar, she suddenly remembered where she’d seen the dark haired beauty who Webb had escorted to breakfast.

  “Elisabeth Davies?” she nearly hollered.

  Webb looked up, startled. “You know her?”

  “I recognized her from somewhere.” Chase took another puff off of her cigar and snorted deliberately.

  It was the first dance of the Season, and her mother had spent a large portion of the evening introducing her and Rosalie to various women and their daughters. Every time they had walked away from one group, she had informed her daughters of any gossip surrounding the family and had prattled on about the faults of their daughters.

  One particularly intriguing family had been that of Lady Elisabeth Davies, eldest daughter of the Earl of Bracknell.

  “She was engaged to marry Lord Bradford of Cardiff, but he jilted her at the altar,” her mother had whispered to them. “The rumor is that he was carrying on with her mother. Her father died shortly thereafter, and there has been speculation that the new Earl of Bracknell is entertaining the apologies and regrets of Lord Bradford and that Lady Elisabeth will become Lady Bradford after all.”

  Chastity had watched the young beauty from across the ballroom and admired her poise and grace under pressure.

  Knowing now how she fawned over a man only slightly more honorable than her betrothed made Chase respect her a little bit less. Then again, she was fawning over this same less-than-honorable man herself. If nothing else, Chase could at least respect her taste in men.

  “Funny. She didn’t mention that she knew you.”

  “She doesn’t. I’d seen her once at a ball. And naturally, everyone knows the story of her betrothal to—”

  “Rumors,” Webb interrupted. “A part of her life she’d rather leave in England, I imagine,” he nodded. He was warning her to keep it to herself; that was undeniable.

  She cocked her head to the side and met Webb’s eyes. “Awfully protective of a stupid, soulless cow,” she muttered.

  Webb’s eyes darkened for a moment. She’d never seen him angry before, and the dark look in his expression wa
s terrifying and also somewhat satisfying. “So I’m better off staying away from women, unless I want to find myself married?” she asked, hoping to see the laughter in his eyes again.

  “Not all women, Cochrane. If you’ve got an itch, there are plenty of women who enjoy sex. Many American saloons have brothels upstairs. You’ll find all kinds of women there eager to please a man…for the right price,” he added.

  “Whores?” she asked, mortified.

  Webb laughed. “I sure hope your brother isn’t as naïve as you. There’s a lot you need to learn about life, Cochrane.”

  Chase folded for the fifth time and pushed her chair away from the table.

  “Leaving so soon?” Webb asked, eyes meeting hers in a challenge.

  She simply shrugged. “Not my night,” she answered.

  ***

  Her heart was still racing in fury after walking the deck three times. Colton Webb was the most arrogant, selfish, chauvinistic man she’d ever met in her life. Just this morning, she had woken up thinking what it would be like to be married to him. Just this morning she had thought that marriage wouldn’t be so detestable with a man like Colton Webb. Just this morning she had been eager to bump into Colton Webb, in spite of the promise she’d made to her grandmother and sister.

  And only a half hour ago, she could not get away from him fast enough. Although she envied men their freedom and lifestyles, Chase never seemed to have much luck with their gender.

  Only months before, her father had arranged her betrothal to a loathsome man named Jett Stockton. Mr. Jett Stockton was the youngest son of Viscount Sunderley. True to his name, his hair was black and generally worn slicked back from his face. His eyes were a piercing steel blue color. Unfortunately, his arrogant leer could not be hidden behind his small black mustache. Instead, the mustache only enhanced his perpetually lewd expression.

  After dinner was complete, the men had met in the parlor to share some sherry and cigars while they discussed their brilliance and natural superiority. Chastity had been grateful to escape Mr. Stockton’s sneers for a bit.