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His thin smile grew wider as she considered him. “And if I refuse?” she said finally.
The smile faded. “Then I’ll see you immediately shipped off to the Bay Colony where you’ll live with the Reverend and Mrs. Skylar.” He leaned his face to within an inch of hers. “And I promise you,” he whispered, his hot breath brushing her face, “you’ll never see your father again!”
She gasped, fear tightening her words. Her heartbeat thrummed in her ears as her mind fought back the one thought she could never bear. For how would she endure if she were to lose the hope of seeing her father?
Anne caught the look of satisfaction on Twining’s face and realized he knew he had won. He released his grip.
She squared her shoulders before she glared back defiantly, then clutched her skirts and ran from the room.
George came beside Colonel Twining, who stared after Anne. “I’ll send for Mrs. Herrick. She’ll know what to say to her—”
“It won’t be necessary, old man.” Twining faced him, his thin brows arched with triumph. “You see, Mistress Anne is like a beautiful, high-spirited filly. Reckless, perhaps, but she has a fine head on her shoulders.” Twining flicked at an invisible fleck on his crimson sleeve.
Even the small gesture, George noted, the colonel did with a self-styled assurance. The coarse black hair styled in the bowl cut of the Roundheads gave him a striking demeanor, and did nothing to dispel the man’s aristocratic bearing. Maybe it was that haughtiness some women found attractive. For a man of forty-five, his virility was well-known. Rumor had it several married women had risked their reputations with him, and it was fact that the colonel kept several mistresses in London.
“Your niece realizes what’s at stake,” Twining said with conviction. “That proud filly will come back of her own volition.” He crooked an eyebrow. “Care to wager, old man?”
The thought of the dire consequences of denying this man anything brought a well of dyspepsia to George’s throat. “I’m not a betting man, Colonel,” he managed, his damp fingers pressing against his white collar. “But I’m certain my niece will do exactly as you foresee.”
Twining responded with a smug lift of his shoulder, then turned and strode out the door.
After he had gone, George sank back in his chair and let the relief flow through him. God’s teeth, Twining still wanted to marry his niece and he was pardoning Jonathan to boot!
For as long as he could remember, his older brother had been a bane upon his life. In one fracas after another, Jonathan’s reputation would have been ruined if their father’s influence hadn’t squelched the gossip. There had been some gossip involving Twining, now that George thought about it, but he never knew the details. God’s teeth, but what did it matter now?
And another question struck him, just as it had when the colonel first offered for Anne. Why would such a powerful man as Twining desire a hellion for a wife?
* * *
Nat crept around the corner of the manor house and paused in the shadows of the dense ivy that clung to the outer stone wall of the buttery. The last of the afternoon sun slanted across the diamond-shaped panes along the gabled front, mirroring the courtyard in its golden likeness. He glanced at his reflection in the windows, then he pulled the helmet down across his forehead, straightened the crimson sash across his chest. Finally satisfied, he stepped out upon the worn path toward the kitchen.
Ahead, the sound of spurs jingling alerted him to the two Roundhead privates before they approached from around the corner. Nat returned their hasty salutes as he marched past them.
The tantalizing aroma from a dozen meat pies cooling on the open windowsill filled the air. Nat’s mouth watered, but he brushed aside the thought that he hadn’t eaten since daybreak.
Parting the thick vines, he peeked inside the window. At least ten servants bustled about the vast room. A side of mutton sizzled noisily as it turned on the jack above the fire. Several black iron cauldrons bubbled softly.
Nat crept to the next window. In the small storage room, he saw Twining’s valet, Babson, hunched over a table, unpacking candles. Nat tapped on the leaded glass.
Babson’s snowy head shot up and his eyes widened with recognition. “Quickly,” he whispered, waving him inside. “Soldiers everywhere.”
“Don’t worry.” Nat gave the old man a crooked smile while he climbed through the window. “In this lieutenant’s uniform, I’ll fit right in.”
Babson’s worried frown melted into a wry grin, as though appreciative of Nat’s boldness.
“Do you have the maps?” Nat grabbed a shiny red apple from a wooden crate beside the table and crunched a bite.
“Aye,” Babson whispered, “an’ news, too.” He glanced over his shoulder before continuing. “The maps an’ notes are ‘ere.” He pulled the folded parchments from his green tunic.
Nat took them and rolled the papers inside his jacket.
Babson lowered his voice. “Last night, while I served brandy to Twining an’ ‘is aides, I ‘eard ‘im say that Cromwell believed the king would probably be ‘eadin’ back to France through Scotland.” Babson’s face beamed with satisfaction.
“Good they think it.” Nat took another bite out of the juicy fruit. “Anything else?”
“Aye. Twining said Cromwell ‘ad agreed to the requisition for extra troops. ‘E plans to stretch a trap to catch the Black Fox.” Babson’s eyes twinkled. “Later, I snuck back an’ copied the marked locations of the roadblocks from ‘is charts.” A smile crossed his thin lips. “‘E thinks I can’t read or write.”
“Good work, my friend.” Nat patted him on the shoulder. “It would seem the colonel hasn’t forgotten the night I lightened his purse in the name of Charlie Stuart,” he added.
Babson chuckled. “That pompous ass speaks o’ nothin’ else.”
“The added note I found in your purse, Babson, was well received. The list of the locations of their ammunition depots were clearly marked.” Nat’s expression became serious. “It’s a brave thing you’re doing, as well as a dangerous one.”
Babson beamed with pride. “I’m honored to serve our king any way I can, Nat.”
Nat nodded, feeling the familiar tug of kinship for the people who risked their lives for their king. “It’s almost time for me to leave. If you need to get in touch with me, you know how.”
“Aye, Nat, an’ God be with you.”
* * *
Nat had no sooner crept around the rear of the manor on his way to the stables than he heard footsteps pounding along the path. He darted back into the shadows and flattened himself against the shrubbery. The footsteps grew louder. Suddenly a young woman hurried past toward the rose bower nearby.
Anne Lowell! Nat frowned as he watched her dash across the leaf-strewn lawn, her gray skirts billowing behind her like a bell. Reason told him to ignore her. He had a job to do, and he didn’t believe in allowing personal feelings to get in the way of duty. Yet something he couldn’t quite explain drove him, instead, to want to follow her. It was more than the liking for clouds of coppery hair and blue-green eyes. She had gotten the best of him, and he couldn’t help admiring her for that. He glanced across the courtyard at the stables nearby. Aye, he had a few minutes before it was time to leave. Enough time, surely, to satisfy his longing to see her for one last time.
A sweet fragrance drifted from the last of the summer roses and invaded Nat’s senses as he approached the heavily entwined bower. The sound of muffled sobs came from the hidden bench; his heart went out to her, but he fought back the unreasonable response. She hadn’t heard him approach, and for a brief moment, he watched her weeping, before he spoke.
“Rather far from your flock, aren’t you, lass? Your sheep must be scattered all over the hillocks by now.”
Anne lifted her white-capped head. “You?” she gasped, straightening. Her cheeks pinked at the realization he knew by her proper dress she was obviously not a shepherd maid.
Her eyes darkened and he noticed how the dappled foliage heightened the emerald shards of light in her eyes.
Nat reached for her hand. “The lady weeps as though her heart were broken.” He brought her dainty fingers to his lips. “Agh!” He made a face. “How I hate the salty taste of tears.”
Anne jerked her hand back. “What an ungentlemanly thing to say,” she snapped, obviously forgetting her discomfiture. But when she saw his grin, she knew that he had made the joke only to take her mind off her troubles, and she rewarded him with her lovely smile.
“I’m glad that you’ve retrieved your...boot,” she said finally, the memory lightening her eyes.
“Are you?” He felt pleased to see a spark of her former spirit.
“Aye,” she answered, her fingers dabbing at her eyes. “And I’d be grateful if you said nothing to anyone of what happened this afternoon.”
He leaned over her. “Would anyone perhaps be your uncle? Your uncle,” he repeated with mock exaggeration, “Master George Lowell?”
He watched her pink blush deepen as she realized he’d known her identity all along. “Rest assured, Mistress Anne, you have my promise not to reveal our...adventure. However, to seal our bargain, little mermaid, there’s a price.”
She squinted her eyes knowingly. “You’re a gull if you think I’d allow you to take any liberties with me. I’ve heard the kitchen maids whisper of what you soldiers do to a maid who forgets to keep up her guard.”
Nat reached out and caught her by the waist with his left hand while he cupped her chin with the other. “I’m not some randy soldier...” His dark brown eyes flashed. “I’ve never had to beg a lady’s favor, and I’m not about to begin with you.”
Ignoring his boast, she jerked her chin free, then her gaze dropped to his hand at her waist. “Perhaps, but please let me go, should you decide to change your technique.”
He chuckled as he released his hand and watched her spread out her skirt becomingly on the garden bench. “You’re a tempting morsel, little mermaid,” he drawled. Brushing aside her skirts, he sat down beside her. “All I had in mind was to ask you what happened to make you cry.”
Anne gazed up at him with those incredible eyes. For a disorienting moment, he felt bewitched by their promise—huge liquid jewels fringed by dark sooty lashes. It must be the heavy scent of the roses that was weaving a spell over him, he decided.
Her delicate brows furrowed, her lips pursed as he watched her. She looked so vulnerable that, for a brief instance, a surge of wanting to protect her shot through him.
“It’s a private matter,” she said. Then, as though reconsidering, she added, “It’s... that sometimes...I—I miss my father.”
Nat remembered that Anne’s betrothal would be announced later tonight. No doubt she was torn by her desire to marry Twining and being disloyal to her father. He felt a flash of regret at her judgment, but he cast it aside. It was no business of his, he reminded himself. “Your father is Jonathan Lowell?”
“You’ve heard of him?”
He caught the flicker of wary surprise on her lovely face. “Every Roundhead knows of the fearless Colonel Jonathan Lowell,” he said in truth. “His name strikes fear into his enemies’ bones whenever the king’s men yell his name like a battle cry. With a price on his head, your father must be far away from England.” No need to worry her if she was unaware of the many Royalists who had fallen by their swords at last week’s battle at Worcester.
She shook her head. “Nay, he’ll never stop fighting until Charles Stuart returns to the throne.” Fresh tears glistened in her eyes.
“I see,” Nat said gently. “It’s natural for you to miss him.” A pang of regret washed over him again as he thought of all the separation and suffering of innocent lives since the civil war. Yet he couldn’t help thinking that if Lowell had died at Worcester, it might have been more merciful than to discover his daughter was betrothed to as cruel an enemy as Twining.
She brushed an errant copper tendril from her cheek. “When I was little, my father would listen to my childish troubles and offer his wise advice,” she said wistfully.
He remained silent, watching her. After a while, he took her small hand in his large callused palm. “Now, you’re a young woman. If your father were here, I’m certain he’d encourage you to make your own decisions.”
Anne met his eyes. Her lovely face appeared so profound it nearly took his breath away. “Aye, I think he would,” she said finally.
He considered encouraging her to go on, in fact, he would have enjoyed listening to her dulcet voice all evening, but it was time for him to leave. He knew he should offer her a simple solution: Forget her father and remember the solid future with one of the most powerful men in the Commonwealth. Besides, it would prove dangerous, if not impossible for Twining’s wife to hold overt loyalty to the king.
“When I have a weighty matter to decide and I’m not certain what to do, I find that if I...” He watched her expectation grow, and for some strange reason, he couldn’t encourage her to forget her father. Instead, he offered her what was in his own soul. “I find that if I listen to my heart the answer will always be there for me.”
“But what does that mean?”
“It means the answer is within you, along with the courage to carry it through.”
“But how?”
“You’ll know.” He stood and pulled her to her feet. Her hand felt warm and soft in his and she made no move to release it. “It’s time I must leave.”
“You’ve given me much to think about,” she whispered. “Much to think about.”
Nat smiled. “I’d escort you back to the manor, but my orders are to...to stay with my troops. They’re expecting me.”
“Of course.” Anne stood for a moment, her heart fluttering beneath her breast like a captured bird. What a strange man! This handsome lieutenant was her enemy, her father’s enemy, yet he had spoken of her father with respect, without judgment. She might never see this lieutenant again, but she’d always be grateful to him for that.
Impulsively she stood on tiptoe, only thinking to brush her lips to his. But the moment their lips touched, a jolt slammed through her and his mouth seized hers with an urgency that caused her heart to thunder. She went still with shock as a strange sensation poured through her.
His mouth felt firm and warm. Her heartbeat quickened when his lips moved over hers, deepening their kiss.
She drank in the smell of him. It reminded her of a cedar forest filled with sunshine. Her arms rose timidly around his neck, her fingers lacing the dark hair at his nape.
She felt her cap loosen and her hair cascade down her back. His hands roved up and down her spine, his fingers tightening the rebellious curls. She felt her breasts yield against his hard chest and her body trembled with delightful sensations she had never experienced before. She should beg him to let her go, but she didn’t want to move. She wanted to remain like this, forever.
Her hands timidly explored his face. She heard him moan softly when her fingers lingered on the scar along his cheek. His breath shuddered as he lifted his mouth to kiss a line across her cheek, down toward her neck.
“I’ve wanted to taste those lips ever since I saw you at the river, little mermaid.”
Her head buzzed with a light-headed feeling. Then suddenly, he released her. “And now, I’ll always know your taste of honey, warmed with sunshine.” His dark eyes glinted with something she didn’t understand. “But if I don’t leave immediately...”
Anne’s swirling senses returned and she felt a blush rise to her cheeks. She lowered her lashes at his warm stare. Her fingers shook as she brushed her collar, straightened her skirts and snatched her cap from the bench.
A song thrush flew to an overhead vine. The throaty warble was answered by its mate nearby.
Nat reached up and plucked a rose from the bower and placed it in her cupped palm. “Farewell, little mermaid.”
She clutched the rose and, with bittersweet longing, watched him disappear into the shadows and out of her life.
She sat back on the bench, not trusting her shaky legs to support her if she were to stand. Besides, for a few more minutes, she needed to gather her wits.
Never had she imagined a kiss could be so thrilling. She smiled, drinking in the fragrance of the roses as she trailed the blossom along the path of his kisses, across her cheek, down to the soft hollow of her throat, and her heart skipped a beat.
But never had she been so bewildered by her conflicting emotions. He was a soldier of Cromwell’s New Model army. What would her father say if he knew? God’s bones, it would kill him, as readily as if she fired the shot herself.
But she must be honest with herself. She had wanted to touch his sun-bronzed face, feel the shine of his tousled hair, the sinewy, corded muscles of his arms. She had wanted the enemy officer to kiss her.
Even though he was the enemy, Nat had helped her work through a difficult decision, without even knowing it. Without his gentle coaxing, she might have made a fatal mistake.
The acknowledgment gave her the jolt back she needed. Aye, she had made the decision. The answer had been in her heart all along, just as the lieutenant had said. How could she have forgotten that her proud father would never want her to bargain for his life? “Twining be damned!” he would have shouted.
For the next few minutes, she clutched the rose while she planned her escape from Wycliffe Manor, the first step in her journey to find her father.
And her only regret was she’d not be there to see Twining’s pompous expression fade to surprise when he discovered she would refuse him, after all.
Chapter Three
By the time Anne returned to her chamber, she had decided how to put her plan into motion.
She smiled as she carefully pressed the pink rose in between the pages of her favorite romance novel. Her fingers lingered over the faded book cover for a moment before tucking it inside her bulging traveling valise.
“If you listen to your heart, the answer will follow,” Nat had said. It was true. Her father would want her to follow her heart and search for him. To remain at Wycliffe Manor and cave in to Twining’s threat was the coward’s way out.
Her fingers shook with excitement as she tied the straps on the valise and lifted it from the bed. She would hide upstairs in one of the vacant bedchambers until dinner, then she’d sneak through the back stairs to the barn where her mare waited.
But first, she had to slip the note she had written to Mrs. Herrick under her door. Once Jane read that Anne had developed a megrim and had taken to her bed, even the callous Colonel Twining would realize his odious threats had made her ill. At dawn, when the maids would discover her missing, she’d be far away, searching for the king’s scattered army and news of her father.
Surely someone would have heard of Jonathan Lowell. Then once she found him, they would sail for France with the other exiled Royalists until Cromwell’s armies were driven into the sea and they could return to England. Hope surged through her.
A few minutes later, Anne arrived at the back stairs landing. She peeked down the passageway. No one was in sight. She tiptoed along the creaking floorboards toward Mrs. Herrick’s room, the third doorway on the left. As she knelt to slip the note beneath the portal, she heard a hushed voice coming from inside the chamber.
