The Kent Heiress

by Roberta Gellis

  There was a little silence, then a little laugh, and teeth nibbled Perce’s chin gently.

  “I’m sorry,” Perce whispered, his voice shaken between desire and laughter. “I didn’t mean to be obtuse, but if I let go of the horses, we’ll be in trouble. And if I don’t let go, we can’t…”

  “Tie them up,” Sabrina urged. “Talk about foresight, there’s that rope that Sergei sent along. If you pass the reins through it and tie a long loop around a tree, that will leave them free to graze but they won’t be able to get away.”

  It was a good idea and sounded simple, but in the dark even simple tasks became terribly complicated. First they had to find the rope. Each searched the same horse by mistake, and if their hands had not met by accident, both would have been convinced that the rope had been lost. Then Perce found the rope but lost Sabrina and the other horse. That was even more ridiculous. Each spoke to the other and tried to move toward the sound, but they passed just out of reach of outstretched arms. Fortunately Sabrina walked into a tree before they wandered far apart.

  Having stopped, she realized the advantages of her position and stayed there. Perce soon found her, which gave him both horses and a tree to which to tie them. But the rope had got itself into a seemingly inextricable tangle, and when that unwound itself as mysteriously as it had appeared, Perce nearly got lost walking around the tree. By then, both he and Sabrina were laughing helplessly, which did not speed the activities of tying the rope and securing the horses.

  Even then their troubles were not at an end. Perce had to loosen the saddle girths to make the horses more comfortable. He decided not to take the saddles off. If, against all likelihood, Dom José found them, tightening two girths would be quicker than resaddling. In a real emergency they could lead the horses without mounting. While Perce was fumbling with the horses, Sabrina had managed to unstrap the blankets and their cloaks, passing front of the horses as Perce passed behind them, afraid to touch him by accident.

  She had done that instinctively, because instead of quenching desire, every delay, every ridiculous mistake and awkward accident had increased her passion. Her breasts were hard and painful against the restrictions of her blouse and tight riding coat, and her loins throbbed. That, too was utterly ridiculous. Sabrina shivered with desire and giggled at the same time. She could hear Perce’s voice, although not the words that he was saying and she knew it was best she should not hear those. The soft singsong intonation told her he was mouthing the worst obscenities he knew—and that excited her, too.

  “Where are you?” he asked at last, the words soft and slurred.

  “Holding the stirrup of the far-side horse,” Sabrina replied.

  Her giggles checked abruptly as she wondered whether the events since their kiss might have had an opposite effect on Perce than on her. He must be much more tired than she. He had probably ridden all the way from Lisbon without a real rest, and she had slept for at least a little while. Disappointment brought tears to her eyes but did not substantially quench her desire. The horses moved uneasily. Perce was coming around them. She could not see him but reached out, and her hand came in contact with his sleeve. His arm jerked.

  “Don’t touch me,” he said.

  He sounded drunk, his voice coarse and ugly. Sabrina drew in on herself with the shock of rejection. “What?” she gasped.

  “I’ll spend.” He choked on laughter. You’d think all this fumbling around with horses in the dark would have cooled me off, but you have a terrible effect on me, Sabrina. Here, take the rope and walk out as far as it reaches. Otherwise the horses may step on us.”

  Sabrina began to grope for the end of the rope, which Perce was holding toward her. Almost immediately she brushed his chest. He drew in his breath with a hiss, and thrust the rope into her hand.

  “The blankets are by my feet,” she said, her voice shaking uncontrollably.

  The rope jerked slightly in her hands, and she knew Perce was bending to pick up the blankets. Sabrina let go of the stirrup, turned her back to the horses, and began to wait, stretching one hand ahead of her, feeling with her feet. A bush tore at her pleated safeguard and she drew in her hand to undo the buttons, flinging it aside as the last came free. Her steps were slow, but she tried to make them as long as possible. At about ten, her shoulder brushed the trunk of a tree. Behind it, they would be safe. She reached out to it, and Perce, coming behind her holding the rope, walked into her arm.

  He dropped the blankets; she dropped the rope. Their mouths met as if they were going to eat each other rather than make love. Sabrina could not tell whether she was laughing or crying. Her need was so violent, it was closer to pain than to pleasure. She clutched Perce with one arm and struggled with her clothing with the other while Perce did the same.

  Buttons undone, Sabrina’s skirt dropped around her ankles. She pulled her petticoat free of it, kicked it away, and fumbled underneath for the button of her pantalettes. Perce had been quicker. There was no hope at all of his ridding himself of his breeches, since he could not get his boots off. He knew he should let Sabrina go and spread the blankets, but he could not do it. He pulled her down with him, feeling her twist and wriggle as she tried to step out of the pantalettes. He did not know what she was doing but understood that she was not trying to free herself from him because her lips clung to his and she held him tightly all the time.

  Behind their locked mouths, Sabrina moaned as he entered her, thrusting up violently. Perce tried to contain himself, but it was impossible. It was apparently needless also. Sabrina was jerking and writhing under him, despite his weight, in a climax as violent as his own. In less than a minute they were finished, their kiss broken by the need for more air. Two seconds later Perce was biting his lips to hold back more laughter, afraid Sabrina would not think what had happened was funny. He felt her quivering under him and rolled off.

  “S-sorry,” he choked.

  Sabrina gurgled. “You’re a hero,” she gasped. “I didn’t think we would make it. Poor Perce. You must be near dead for sleep.”

  “Sleep? Was that what you thought my problem was?”

  She gurgled again. “Not your immediate problem, no. But you must be very tired.”

  “Probably I am,” he agreed, “but I’ve been too busy to notice. I don’t feel tired. You remember, you said the same thing.”

  He had lifted his head to talk, but dropped it again, seizing her lower lip gently in his teeth, then nibbling her chin. Sabrina ran a finger around the outside of his ear. He advanced teeth and lips along her jawline, down under her chin. Sabrina lifted her head to give him more freedom and tried to stroke his body but only found heavy clothing. Perce was having a similar experience when he attempted to run his mouth down her throat to her breasts.

  “Wait,” she whispered, “let me take off this jacket.”

  He hesitated, then kissed her lips lightly and moved away. “Let’s be comfortable,” he said, and felt around for the blankets and cloaks they had discarded.

  While Sabrina undid her garments, Perce spread the blankets, sat down, and began to tug at his boots. He took one off with considerable effort. Sabrina knelt naked on the blanket to help with the other. It was then that Perce realized he could see, or, at least, dimly perceive things around him. Perhaps the sky was lightening with false dawn, or perhaps they had found a spot where the leaves were not so dense overhead. He could see a pale glimmer that was Sabrina’s bare skin. Having her pull off his boot in that condition was almost unbearably erotic. He reached for her, but she bent aside, undoing the knee buttons on his breeches. Perce looked away, pulled off his coat, undid his waistcoat and shirt, and cast them aside.

  This time when he held out his arms, Sabrina came into them, but the wave of urgency he had felt was gone. He was aware of Sabrina, not a body, and he murmured endearments. She responded with a litany of praise, love words of adoration. They petted and kissed, slow to rouse now because of the fatigue that neither would acknowle
dge for the sake of the loving both desired. This union was as gentle as the first had been violent, but it was sweeter.

  When they came apart at last, after lying locked together long after their passion was spent, Perce drew over them the cloaks he had laid ready. He was hardly conscious of what he did, and Sabrina was already deeply asleep. A distant awareness of danger flickered deep in Perce’s mind, but fatigue swamped it. He had had no sleep in forty-eight hours and had been violently active and emotionally keyed up all of that time. Immediate need might have spurred him to further effort, but a vague uneasiness could not.

  Chapter Twenty

  At the meeting of the Lousa road and the mountain track, Dom José had to make a choice. He knew that to the right the road passed through some very wild mountain country and led nowhere beyond a few small villages. In that direction there was no road that led directly south to Lisbon, although eventually one could get to Castelo Branco. Thus, Dom José rode into Lousa instead of to the east.

  The mistake was not as costly as it might have been. Because of his noisy awakening of the regador and the groom’s rousing of the doctor, a number of people were still stirring and popped their heads out of windows to call questions when they heard more horses pounding through the town. Dom José seized the opportunity to ask in turn whether two fugitives had ridden through. No one had seen or heard anything, he was told.

  Then his quarry had gone the other way. It seemed stupid, but it was possible the shots had frightened out of her silly head the little wits Lady Elvan had. Dom José had no choice but to try the eastern route. Despite the delay he could not believe he would not catch her. God could not be so cruel as to take everything from him, his pride, his dreams, even his freedom or life, without some recompense. He knew the commandment Thou shalt not kill, but there was also one that said Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s wife. He had always been a good and faithful son of the church. Surely God would not permit that blonde bitch to escape. She was a heretic well as an adulteress because she had assisted her husband’s lechery. He rode back along the roads alternately cursing and praying. Soon the moon set, and the curses predominated. They could continue only slowly, and the men began to murmur among themselves that it was not sensible to continue. None of them said anything to Dom José, however. Then the false dawn came and they went faster, all of them yawning and clinging to their saddles except Dom José who seemed quite impervious to fatigue. The men were surprised. He was old and not used to such exertion.

  It was true dawn when they saw the village of Góis around a bend in the road. Dom José could find no sign to indicate that Lady Elvan and her escort had preceded them. He felt helpless and simultaneously powerful, for the rage inside him gave him an explosive energy. He was filled with a conviction that if he could find the woman, he could brush aside her escort and punish her as she deserved. But he had to find her. His eyes roamed the village desperately and then fixed on a house in which a dim light burned.

  His knock and question brought disappointment. A priest answered the door. He told Dom José that that the householder’s mother was dying, and he and the son had sat awake all night waiting for the spirit to pass. There had been no travelers through the village, unless they passed on foot after dark. Even that was unlikely, the priest said. He had been looking out the window much of the time. Although Dom José contained himself sufficiently to be polite, he was again bursting with rage. Where had the devil woman gone?

  When he turned away from the door, the sky was much lighter. Very soon the sun would rise. Two other doors had opened, people had heard horses and wakened. At one door a man called an offer of refreshment. Dom José was about to refuse, driven by the need to do something, but he had nowhere to hurry to now, and he dared not go home. He needed time to think. He gave thanks, instead of refusing, and told his men to dismount and take what was offered.

  The years Perce had spent with the Russian army had marked him, particularly the last six months, when there had been much maneuvering and more than one small surprise attack in addition to the major battles. His body was accustomed to lack of sleep, and any sense of danger or anxiety made him unusually alert and easy to waken even when he was tired. Thus, the sound of Dom José and his men riding hard had brought him upright, reaching for his gun and sword. His hand had fallen, naturally, on Sabrina, and her yielding warmth had surprised him into complete awareness.

  Although Perce could no longer actually hear the horses that had passed, he was quite sure something outside a dream had awakened him. He was also reasonably sure that it must be the men who were pursuing them. He wanted desperately to close his eyes and go back to sleep, but that would be stupid and dangerous. He and Sabrina had left a well-marked trail, he feared. The pursuers had passed, but they might return, and it was impossible to guess how soon or whether they would notice the broken underbrush where he and Sabrina had entered the forest.

  Even if the sounds that had wakened him were not their pursuer, Perce thought it would be wise to move on. He could already see moderately well. As soon as it was light, they could better avoid leaving so clear a trail. He groaned softly and forced his tired body upright. Sabrina had stirred when he touched her but slipped back asleep at once. He leaned lower intending to wake her with a kiss, but drew back before he touched her. Already there was a stirring in his loins. He was almost too tired to keep his eyes open, yet he wanted her again. It would be stupid to make love now, he told himself firmly. They had their whole lives to make love in peace and safety.

  Perce slipped out from under the cloak, shivering, slightly. It was not really cold, but he was weary and sluggish, and lying still on the damp ground had chilled him. He collected his clothes and Sabrina’s, smiling and repressing another urge to lie down and take her in his arms when he saw her apparel strewn around even more wildly than his. As well as he could, he straightened her clothing and laid it alongside her, hoping it would pick up a little warmth. Then he went off a little way to relieve his bladder and bowels. When he returned, he knelt beside Sabrina and kissed her.

  “Perce?” she murmured sleepily.

  “It’s dawn, darling,” he replied. “We must move on.”

  She opened her eyes reluctantly and began to stretch, but desisted with a little cry. “Good Lord, I feel as if every inch of me is black and blue.”

  “What an ass I am,” Perce sighed. “I should never have dragged you out into the woods.”

  Sabrina raised her brows and smiled. “Yes, and it wasn’t too bright to make love to me on a thorn bush, either.” She moved slightly and touched herself with care. “Whatever isn’t black and blue is scratched to pieces. And I think there are splinters…”

  “Shall I look?” Perce asked, his face idiotically blank, his spirits soaring in spite of his weariness. He should have known Sabrina wouldn’t make a faradiddle over a few bruises as most other women would. “I could kiss them and make them well.”

  Sabrina considered the fish-eyed stare bent on her and shook her head. “Oh, no. I know that look. You’re more likely to try to remove those splinters with your teeth to get me on my feet. I’d rather get up on my own.”

  The glazed blankness crumbled as Perce shook his head and lowered his eyes. “It wasn’t my teeth I was planning to use,” he said softly, “and I’m afraid I’d be more hindrance than help in getting you on your feet.” Then, as Sabrina stretched a hand to him, he sighed. “We’ll have the world and time enough. It’s not safe, my darling.”

  “No, you’re right,” Sabrina agreed with regret.

  The scratches were from twigs and other debris on the forest floor that she had rolled on or been pressed against by Perce’s weight, but the bruises and aching muscles were from falls and the blows Dom José had dealt her. And if last night’s guesses were right, he was still looking for her. Sabrina shivered, remembering the terrors of La Casa des Ermidas, and bent to pick up her clothes. It was better to pretend she was cold, better to try to forget than
to talk about that horror. Perce helped her dress. He said nothing, but he no longer felt so grateful to Dom José. Sabrina looked as if she had been beaten, and when she went off to relieve herself, she walked stiffly.

  They ate a little, but they were too tired and too thirsty to relish the bread and cheese, which were the first provisions Sabrina’s hand fell upon, or to try anything else in the bag. Perce remembered he had heard water when he was on the road. If they could find it, they could drink and finish their meal when their thirst was quenched. He untied the horses and coiled the rope, slinging that and the food bag over his shoulder. The blankets they just threw over the horses, and Sabrina left off the heavy safeguard of her riding dress. They went slowly, picking their way carefully now to avoid breaking or crushing the undergrowth. It was not too difficult since the crowns of the trees met overhead and there was little sunlight to encourage shrubs.

  In about fifteen minutes they found a stream. Sabrina sank down beside it with a sigh. Now that fear and passion were both gone, she ached, and the hour or two she had slept seemed to increase her tiredness rather than relieve it. She looked anxiously at Perce, who was watering the horses before he drank himself. He had looked worse—that time he had walked in after the battle of Eylau—but he was clearly not much better off than she. He was clumsy with fatigue, fumbling as he looped the reins around a bush on the bank of the stream. There was grass there, tall and rank and the animals began to graze peacefully.

  The reins were not secure; they slid up along the stem of the bush as Sabrina’s mare reached toward a spot that seemed more lush to her. Perce shook his head slightly as if to clear it and reached for the rein.

  “Leave it, Perce,” Sabrina said “They won’t go anywhere. Have a drink and sit down.”

  He hesitated, looked vaguely at the horses, which were indeed quite quiet, and came upstream toward Sabrina. The slight glaze in his eyes was no pretense now. He shook his head again, knelt, and began to scoop water into his mouth, then rubbed it over his face and his hair. It was bitterly cold and woke him up. He became aware that the knees of his breeches were getting soaked. The ground near the stream was very soggy.