Lilac Temptress (29 page)

Kyle trudged into the house behind
Drake—his face still sullen.

“
Kyle, it’s not at all
awful,” Drake chuckled, not sounding the least bit
consoling.

Kyle ran his fingers through his
freshly cropped off hair, into the air, clutching for what was no
longer there.

“
So you’ve gone and finally
taken it all off?” Sierra teased, sneaking up behind Kyle, tickling
his ears from behind and then she asked Drake, “However did you get
him to do such a thing? I’ve been trying to convince him to let me
cut his hair for years.”

Rosaline beamed from ear-to-ear
joining Sierra. The women giggled together. Kyle sidestepped
them—still too stunned to speak since leaving the
barber.

“
How’s my favorite
brother?” Rosaline planted a kiss on Drake’s cheek.

“
I am your only brother.”
Drake winked at her. “I see you two have gotten to know each other
a little better,” Drake said, clearly pleased that Rosaline took
his plea to heart.

Rosaline smiled sincerely. “We
have—though it has been a long day.”

“
A long day indeed for me
as well,” Drake agreed as he slowly removed his hat by its brim,
“Although, not a day entirely spent working.”

Sierra’s eyes sparkled at the sight of
Drake’s new haircut, and his clean-shaven face. It was like she was
seeing him for the first time. The smooth contour of his jaw made
him look more youthful somehow, not that she thought him old at
all.

Drake smiled back at her, his eyes
focused only on her.

“
You look more acceptable,
Kyle—more unlike a vagrant,” Rosaline smirked as she glanced
sideways at Kyle.

Kyle simply huffed, turned on his heel
and followed the servants, who were still carrying bags from the
stagecoach to his room down the hall.

Rosaline watched Kyle as he strode
away, then she glanced at Sierra who didn’t even seem to notice
that Kyle had stormed out of the entryway. In fact she beheld Drake
and Sierra both looking at each other as if no one else were even
in the room.

“
It’s very becoming,”
Sierra said, complimenting Drake on his new look. Just being in his
presence made her stomach flutter.

Before Drake could respond, Rosaline
interjected, “Just the usual style when he’s not all unkempt from
his travels.” Rosaline took Drake’s arm into hers. She was not
ready to hand Drake over to Sierra just yet. “Now tell me brother,
how has your day gone? Tell me about all the troubles you’ve gotten
yourself into today.”

“
Only if you tell me the
troubles that you’ve stirred first,” Drake countered without taking
his eyes off Sierra while he spoke to Rosaline. He had missed
Sierra while he was out, and the feeling of missing her had come to
him as a surprise—there was so much that he had wanted to show her
in New Orleans.

“
Was there much trouble,
Sierra?” Drake asked, his lips curling into a smile, his blue eyes
sharp and glistening.

“
I’ll let Rosaline answer
that for you. If you will excuse me, I’ll leave you to each other.
I really must go see to Kyle. He seems to be in a foul mood and I
shouldn’t ignore him right now,” Sierra said reluctantly. She only
wanted to be with Drake at the moment, but Kyle needed
her.

“
Certainly,” Rosaline said
cheerfully as she tugged on Drake’s arm, leading him down the hall,
chattering away. Drake looked back briefly with wistful eyes
following Sierra. He wanted to sit with her for a while and listen
to her tell him about anything.

* * *

“
Just how bad was it,
Kyle?” Sierra spoke as she strolled into the room. She held her
words when she noticed two female servants unpacking bags,
packages, suit covers, small boxes, and putting away countless
items. Sierra watched as they hung exquisite coats, shirts,
trousers and more.

“
Oh my...” Sierra
exclaimed, noticing a fine pocket watch coming out of a small
burgundy box and being placed on the dresser. “Such wonderful
things!” Sierra looked at her brother who was leaning against the
wall, staying out of the way of the servants, glaring into
space.

“
Drake insisted that I have
these things. He is as stubborn as you are if you can believe
that.” Kyle laughed coolly as a maid shot him a disagreeable
glance. Having those things wouldn’t kill him, but what it would
take to pay Drake back for all of it, probably would.

Sierra marched over to Kyle, took his
arm, and then dragged him outside through the bay doors of his
room. It did not come as a surprise that Kyle’s patio had a clear
path to the stable and looked much different from hers with its
more contemporary outdoor decor, but she spared no time to take in
its glory. She gently closed the doors behind them and motioned for
Kyle to sit at the court table.

The sky grew orange and
scarlet as the sun began to set.
Where has
the day gone?
Sierra thought to
herself.

“
Drake is impossible—just
like you are,” Kyle vented, flashing his irritation. “At first I
thought it would be simple enough. I would ride with him into town
and once at his office I would go out and look for work. But he had
other plans for me!” Kyle said exasperated. “Drake insisted that I
wait for him to complete his business so that we both could go out
together. He said he had errands in the city and would show me
around. If I hadn’t been dallying with his pretty little
bookkeeper, I might not have been so agreeable.”

Sierra lifted her eyebrow,
uncomfortable at the mention of the assistant, but kept
silent.

“
Instead of hunting for
work we hunted for a tux for some party his family his having
tomorrow night. I spent most of the day being fitted!” Kyle
complained. “Then, when I thought it couldn’t get any worse, I
discovered he wasn’t done with me.” Kyle lifted some of his hair,
which was still slightly lengthy on top but revealed a clean cut to
the nape of his neck.

Sierra tried to keep a straight face,
but had trouble withholding her strong urge to laugh.

“
This is not funny!” Kyle
all but roared. “After we left the barber, Drake took me to a
gentlemen’s club. Can you believe it?”

“
I... I...” Sierra, still
too worked up, lifted her hand to cover her mouth to prevent her
laughter and offending Kyle even more.

“
Drake told me it would be
good for me to learn some self composure and discipline. I wanted
to hit him,” Kyle blurted.

“
He can have that effect,”
Sierra stated, trying to suppress a smile.

“
You still find all of this
amusing, don’t you Sierra?”

“
Kyle, your hair looks
wonderful. And there are so many fine things in your
room.”

“
Then you should have
them,” Kyle grumbled.

Sierra tried to hold her lips together
tightly, but to no avail, burst into insensitive laughter. “Forgive
me Kyle, I can’t help myself,” she said, thinking that Kyle looked
better than ever, but his pride wouldn’t allow him to accept
Drake’s generosity for what it was. “Really, you look incredible,
different but still as handsome as ever, if not more so. Can you at
least be grateful?” she asked trying to keep her voice free of
amusement.

“
Why—especially when
I don’t want these
things
? Pfft. I told him
that.”

“
And how did he respond?”
Sierra asked, her eyes calm and more serious now.

“
He said that clothes
make the man—and that in order for me to find respectable work, I
must look the part. He said that I should consider myself borrowing
everything until I can afford to pay him back. But even with a fine
job I cannot afford those things.” Kyle paused for a moment,
weighing his thoughts, before speaking again. “Sierra, Drake
offered me work at
McCalister Shipping
Company
.”

“
I was surprised to hear
it, but Rosaline mentioned this to me, pointing out that you
rejected his offer,” Sierra said, giving him a telling look that
she didn’t understand why he had refuse.

“
I didn’t reject it—I just
didn’t give him my answer yet. I told him that I would think about
it,” Kyle said. “The work might be interesting, but Wil had always
decided for me which jobs I took, whether or not I liked them. I
want to do something that I will be good at, and Drake said I would
need a decent job to take care of you. I agree, but the idea of
working for him makes me feel uneasy. I want to earn a living on my
own merits.”

“
I understand and I won’t
push you to make your decision, but I believe Drake’s intentions
are sincere, and that he offered you work because he wants you to
earn a respectable living.”

Kyle looked at her for a moment and
half-smiled. “I guess I should ease up on him a bit.”

“
I’d like that.” Sierra
smiled back. “Will you be attending the event with us tomorrow
evening?” she asked, hopeful.

“
I thought you wouldn’t
turn the party down.” Kyle sighed, releasing the last strand of
hope he held that Sierra would refuse to attend. “Besides, Drake
didn’t really offer me a choice. He said that attending was just as
good a place as any to mingle amongst people and get to know them.
He said the right people would remember me and that I must become
dignified, courteous and committed,” Kyle puffed.

“
Drake thinks of me as a
man with a huge responsibility to you, Sierra. I suppose he is
right. I didn’t argue with him, but I’m just so used to being your
little brother. He wants me to become too much
overnight.”

Sierra modestly gazed down at her lap.
She understood the pressure Kyle was under. She felt an incredible
pressure herself. But she agreed with Drake. It was far time for
Kyle to grow up. Back home in Jadesville, Kyle had taken the
younger sibling role to heart, including all the squabbles about
staying out of his life, which came with his immaturity. Things
were different now. Kyle would have to be more careful about the
decisions he made in New Orleans.

“
And you—what of your day?”
Kyle asked, ready to take the attention off him and his miserable
day out with an insufferable man.

“
It was much the same as
yours,” she said raising her head.

Kyle’s mood improved greatly with his
easy laughter while Sierra shared in detail the inner workings of
her day—until they were both interrupted by a servant for
dinner.

Chapter 13

Drake couldn’t take his eyes off
Sierra while they stood at her bedroom door. It was already
nighttime. The muted hallways, which were softly lit by ceiling and
wall fixtures made of iron, spelter or red brass, were dimmed in
the usual fashion, shedding delicate light on them.

“
Kyle did much better at
the dinner table tonight,” Sierra remarked. “I don’t think I have
ever seen him so well mannered. You certainly have a way with
him.”

“
I only hope he doesn’t
despise me after today,” Drake awkwardly laughed. He had been
concerned with what Kyle might have thought of him after the
demanding day. Drake knew he had not gone easy on Kyle, but Drake
wished to be a role model and help Kyle begin to behave as an adult
would. He wanted to prevent Sierra’s worry over Kyle. She had
already shouldered so many burdens in her past. He never wanted her
to worry about anything ever again.

“
Perhaps he will hate you
just a little,” Sierra jested.

Drake sucked in his breath. “I might
deserve it... just a little. Though surprisingly, he and Rosaline
were not at each other’s throats tonight. Should I commend you for
having something to do with that?” Drake’s inquisitive look brought
a deep blush to Sierra’s cheeks.

“
I only told Rosaline that
I thought they might get along a little better,” she spoke proudly,
though at the time she hadn’t thought her remarks resonated with
Rosaline.

“
Well, I was relieved to
still find you here when I returned. I thought Rosaline might have
driven you off somewhere.” Drake chuckled. He knew what Sierra
might have faced if his sister became callous and
unwelcoming.

“
She wasn’t so bad once I
got to know her a bit. I’m rather fond of her now.”

“
Really?
Drake asked, the lilt in his voice conveying his
surprise. “That’s good to hear. Rosaline told me earlier that she
would like you two to be as sisters while you are staying here,”
Drake muffled the last part of his comment. He didn’t like the
thought of Sierra leaving, though he knew the day would eventually
come.

“
Did she?” Sierra
contemplated how she had once wished that if she could have
anything Drake owned, it had been his family. She peered at him,
examining him more attentively than she should be, tracing every
detail of his angular likeness. She pulsed at the thought of him
touching her again. She wanted him to touch her again.

“
How are you feeling?”
Drake asked, taking notice of the sudden waver in her stance. “I
know that it has not been very easy for you these past few
days.”