An Unyielding Desire (After The End Book 2) (42 page)

“I see.”

“Governor
Blaney was happy to assist me in finding out your name.”

“I’m sure,” she said with a bit more scorn than she’d intended.

He lifted a brow. “Do you doubt his helpfulness?”

She could bite her tongue off and happily would to avoid answering his question. Without knowing his relationship with
Blaney, she couldn’t afford to say anything that could be construed as unflattering. “Of course not. You’re the commander of the Federation. I doubt there’s anyone in the nine hundred-plus square miles of the Northwest Federation that wouldn’t jump to provide you with assistance.”

He made an ambiguous sound as he reached for a bottle of wine and poured them both a glass. Out of habit, she sniffed and tasted it before nodding. As she looked up, she caught his glint of amusement.

“Does it meet your approval, Madison? May I call you Madison?”

“Of course, Commander Archer, and it’s very good wine.”

“I prefer my friends call me Tiernan.” His voice dropped another octave, taking on more of a smoky tint. “And I’m sure we’ll be friends.” After a second, his tone returned to the less intimate one he’d been using. “Blaney assures me it’s the best wine available in the province.”

She gave him a bland smile. “Um hmm.”

Tiernan grinned, and the boyish expression made her heart race and her hands tighten on the glass. Thank goodness she had better manners than to hold it by the stem, or she might have snapped the fragile crystal.

“You disagree?”

Madison shrugged. “I think he’s just never tried our family’s wine. My father has a unique recipe and makes some of the best chardonnay or pinot noir you’ll ever taste.” Lifting her glass slightly in semblance of a salute, she said, “And I’m including the other wineries of the Federation in that challenge, Tiernan.” His name tasted crisp on her tongue, like a Riesling with a hint of pear.

He lifted his glass in a similar manner. “I love a confident woman.”

Her confidence fled at his words, and she dropped her gaze. “I know a lot about wine.” She toyed with the stem of her glass after putting it on the table. “It’s been a valuable skill that has sustained my family since trade resumed a few years after The End.”

He nodded. “And wine is why I’m here.”

She looked at him again. “How do you mean?”

Tiernan
hesitated for a brief second, as though deciding something. Perhaps her trustworthiness. “Would it shock you to learn Governor Blaney’s shipments have been light of late?”

Striving for a neutral expression, she said, “How odd.”

Tiernan managed a small smile. “Isn’t it? He insists there is a rebel group hijacking shipments. Have you heard anything about rebel activity?”

Madison blinked. “Rebels? In
Graceport?”

He lifted a shoulder. “According to
Blaney, it’s all throughout the Yakima-Grace region.”

“Wow. I’ve never heard anything about rebels, but I guess it’s possible.”

His smile widened a bit. “Yes, I’ll give the governor the benefit of doubt. I’m lending him a squad of soldiers to escort shipments to Seattle-Archer for a while.” He sipped the wine. “I believe Sergeant Nash is the one who brought you here. He’ll be staying in the area with nine other soldiers to monitor for this so-called rebel activity.”

She swallowed, disliking the idea of a squad of prying soldiers examining every aspect of life in their quiet province. “I think they’re wasting their time,” she said bluntly, without thought. “It’s far more likely you’re dealing with—” Abruptly, she shut her mouth with an audible click, realizing she was in danger of giving an opinion that could get her or her family killed. Just because Archer appeared to distrust
Blaney didn’t mean he actually did.

After a moment,
Tiernan waved a hand. “Please continue.”

She struggled to find something acceptable to say. “Incompetence,” she blurted. “It’s probably a paperwork error or something,” she finished lamely.

Tiernan had a way of looking at her that felt like he had stripped every ounce of flesh from her bones and was visually probing her skeleton, perhaps to pierce her heart and read the truth. “You’re lying.”

Nerves made her hand tremble as she lifted the glass to gulp. “This vintage does grow on you.”

His large hand engulfed hers, suddenly reminding her of Cleo’s assertion that the commander was very blessed. Heat coursed through her, scorching her cheeks, and she jerked away from his touch, spilling wine on the white tablecloth. “I’m sorry. Excuse my clumsiness.”

With an offhanded toss, he put his napkin over the spreading stain. “I don’t give a damn about the spill. What I care about is the wine I’m expecting from this province. It’s a valuable commodity for trading, and a great deal of the staples we all rely on only come about because of our wine. So, if you know something about why it’s disappearing, I order you to tell me.”

The change from lighthearted suitor to imposing commander was instantaneous and terrifying. She froze, clenching her hands into fists.

“Speak,” he barked.

Trying not to shake and visually reveal her fear, she said, “I don’t know anything, okay? I was just speculating Blaney has been skimming some of the wine from your shipments for his own purposes.”

His tone softened. “Why do you say that?”

She shrugged. “I don’t know. My p…some people say he’s as corrupt as the day is long. I don’t know why they say that.”

Tiernan’s
posture changed, once more looking relaxed. “I’ve heard the same whispers. For Blaney’s sake, they should not be true.”

Madison knew better than to ask what would happen to the governor if Archer found proof he was cheating on his provincial taxes. The last thing she wanted was to feed
Tiernan’s anger. Her stomach picked the perfect moment to growl.

He laughed softly. “It sounds like you’re ready for dinner?”

She nodded, eager to get metaphorically as far away from the previous topic of conversation as possible. The reminder of the power he wielded had served as a damper for the rampant attraction she’d felt for him. She didn’t need any more displays of it if she was going to get through the night.

To her surprise, he served them himself from a rolling cart nearby. Her mouth watered at the food he set before her. It was some kind of small bird stuffed with fruit. Since the wine and cheese had been all she’d consumed in hours, it took every ounce of self-possession not to dispense with the fancy cutlery and just pick up the bird to rip into it with her teeth. It tasted even better than it looked or smelled, and she closed her eyes for a moment to savor the taste.

“Is this your first time tasting pheasant?”

She opened her eyes and nodded. “It’s delicious.”

Tiernan nodded. “I always travel with my personal chef, and this is one of her specialties.”

She had a ridiculous impulse to ask if he slept with her too, but bit it back. Why would she care who the man slept with? He meant nothing to her, and after tonight, he’d go back to Seattle-Archer and forget all about her. With any luck, she’d be able to do the same.

As they ate, they discussed inconsequential things, with the topic eventually turning to their families. Madison relayed a scant version of her family history before daring to ask about his family.

“My great-grandmother was Celia Archer. You know who she is?”

Madison shrugged. “The name sounds familiar, but I’m not sure.”

He frowned. “What are they teaching you here?”

She blinked. “School in our province starts at seven and ends at fourteen. We mostly focused on the basics—math, reading, agriculture, and science. There was some history, but I don’t recall the lessons now. It was so long ago.”

Tiernan
chuckled. “Just how old are you?”

“Twenty.”

“Yes, school was practically a lifetime ago,” he mocked gently. “Well, my great-grandmother was part of the United States military. She led a covert group that got warning the CME was coming.”

“CME?”

“Coronal mass ejection.” He sighed. “A solar storm. The sun emitted a huge magnetic shockwave that disrupted the electromagnetic field of the planet and killed all but the most primitive electronics.”

Her eyes widened. “So, the sun caused The End?”

“You mean to tell me they didn’t teach you about what caused The End?” When she shook her head, he cursed softly. “Seriously, I’m going to have to look into the curriculum your schools use around here.” Waving a hand, he pushed aside his now-empty plate. “Anyway, the CME hit the northern hemisphere the hardest. Certain people in high places decided that was unacceptable. They couldn’t imagine letting the US return to the Stone Age while other countries, like North Korea, continued to flourish. A decision came down to Celia to activate an experimental weapons protocol her group had been charged with creating.”

Madison leaned closer, fascinated. “Do you mean the old government destroyed everyone else?”

He nodded. “Basically. The order encompassed all the other countries in the world, including America’s so-called allies. The people at the top wanted an even playing field, so they deployed electromagnetic pulse weapons at strategic places around the globe in the hours before the CME crippled their equipment.”

She frowned. “Your grandmother helped kill the old world?”

“Great-grandmother, and yes. She was following orders. However, she also put into place her own emergency plan she’d been developing and deployed people she trusted to strategic locations before the CME hit. Her plan was to preserve as much infrastructure as possible. She stayed in Seattle, which eventually became Seattle-Archer, to indicate who was in command. That tradition continued throughout the Federation, even when there was a change in power. It would have been too confusing to change a province’s name each time someone new took over.”

“Huh. So, Fred Grace came to Yakima, hence Yakima-Grace?”

He nodded. “I believe the area comprised several cities back then, before he consolidated the region.”

“And your family has ruled since then?”

Tiernan nodded. “Yes. My grandfather, then my mother, and now me.”

A word came back to her from the times her mother had made her copy words from an old dictionary to augment her thin education at the village school.
Nepotism
. She wasn’t dumb enough to utter it though. Instead, she asked, “Why do we still have a lack of electricity?”

“Not enough resources or the manpower to harness them—plus, we lack the people who understand how power plants and manufacturing facilities work. I doubt you learned about it in your school days, but almost one hundred million people died just in the old United States in the few years after The End. Disease, starvation, and violence took their toll.”

She shook her head, unable to comprehend that many people at all, let alone imagining them dead. “Why do they call it The End?”

Tiernan
shrugged. “I imagine it was originally something like the end of the world, or the end of the power, and was just shortened eventually.”

History had never been one of her passions, but she was reluctantly fascinated by what she was learning—in a horrified kind of way. “What happened next?”

“Slowly, governments formed again, and we ended up with several territories. My grandfather always dreamed of unifying them—with him at the head,” he added dryly. “It’s an impossible goal, at least for now. Most of the territories are struggling just to survive, same as us. Trade is about the only stable communication process between territories.”

She exhaled. “It must be hard to do what you do.”

He inclined his head. “It can be, which is why I appreciate an opportunity to relax.”

His tone had turned more intimate again, and she tensed, sensing the political discussion was over, and he was ready to progress to physical matters. A surge of panic hit her, and she pushed back from the table, stumbling over to the balcony across the room. She opened the door with a fumbling hand and stepped outside to breathe in the fragrant night air.

He followed. Of course he did. There was no way he was going to grant mercy and let her leave. She had to bite back hysteria. “The view is lovely.”

He made a noise in his throat that could have meant anything. She froze when he put his hands on her shoulders, pushing her hair back on one side. “I didn’t realize how many people live around here.” Not that she could see much of anything in detail, though the starlight gave good illumination. She was just desperate to fill the silence.

His lips teased her neck, making her gasp and tremble. He kissed her again before running his tongue down her skin. It took every bit of courage she had just to stand there as he touched her.

“You’re so tense.” He massaged her shoulders as he whispered near her ear. “Come back inside and relax.”

With a small whimper, she accepted the hand he extended and followed him back into the room. She was unsurprised when they walked through, not pausing at the table. He led her down a short hallway to another room, and her heart hammered in her ears when she saw the massive bed in the center.