Prince Charming (18 page)

No, he wasn't about to take any chances. He didn't want anyone sniffing out the truth after the war was over. And so he did what any meticulous man would do. He buried the evidence.

The shout of rage building in the back of Lucas's throat woke him up. Sweat was pouring down from his brow and he was gasping for air. His mind was quick to clear, and with it his rage, but he still spent several minutes pacing the deck until the tightness inside his chest eased up.

He was accustomed to having nightmares about the war. Finding Taylor in the middle of his dream was another matter altogether. How in God's name had that happened? He wasn't worried about her. He knew she was all right, yet even though he was certain she was sound asleep down in their stateroom, he needed to look in on her just to make certain.

She didn't stir when he walked into the room. She was sleeping on her back with her hair spread out like a golden halo all around her head. She looked angelic, serene, peaceful. She was probably dreaming about afternoon teas and handsome suitors. Damn but he almost envied her. Demons always filled his dreams. He and Taylor were complete opposites in every way imaginable, and perhaps that was why he was drawn to her. She represented warmth and sunlight to a man who'd been denied both for long, long years.

Lucas stood by the side of the bed and stared down at her for several minutes. He couldn't seem to make himself leave. He knew she would be disgusted by the very sight of him if she knew about his background. In the name of war and honor, he had done unspeakable things in order to survive.

He shook his head. He didn't want to fight the temptation any longer. The lure of her innocence and her purity was too powerful to turn his back on. He didn't even try. He sat down, took off his boots and his socks, and then stretched out next to her. She scooted closer to him. He rolled onto his side and pulled her into his arms. He buried his face in the crook of her neck and closed his eyes.

He was sound asleep a minute later.

God proved merciful. The demons left him alone.

—William Shakespeare,
Hamlet

 

 

 

 

P
romptness wasn't one of Taylor's attributes. Lucas waited for well over an hour for her to join him up on deck. He had plenty of time to think about the night before. Whatever had possessed him to get in bed with her? What weakness drove him to take her into his arms and hold her close? He didn't ever remember sleeping so soundly or so peacefully. It was galling. And damned confusing to him. He let out a sigh then. Thank God he awakened when he did. He remembered being sprawled on top of her sweet, warm, soft body and immediately forced himself to stop thinking about it. She hadn't awakened and that was all that mattered.

He wanted to get going. He ran out of patience and was just about to go down below and drag her off the ship when she came hurrying up the stairs.

She looked flustered, worried, and lovely. She wore a pale pink dress that had tiny white threads embroidered into rose buds along the high, square-necked bodice. The color of the gown complemented her skin, and Lucas thought she was probably the most feminine thing he'd ever seen.

He let out a sigh that sounded very like a growl of a bear and frowned at her.

She smiled back. She assumed her tardiness was the reason behind his irritation. She apologized for making him wait, all the while looking around the deck for Victoria. Her friend was nowhere to be found. Since most of the passengers had already left the ship, Taylor decided Victoria must be waiting for them wherever the luggage had been deposited. She'd already gone to Victoria's cabin to make certain she wasn't waiting for her there, but the cabin was empty.

“I'm very anxious to step on American ground,” she remarked.

“Could have fooled me,” he replied. He latched onto her arm and turned to leave.

The remark he'd just made was an obvious jab because she'd made him wait. Taylor ignored his sarcasm and turned her attention to the harbor.

At first glance, the city skyline reminded her of London, though on a larger scale. She noticed almost immediately one primary difference between the two cities, however. London always had a gray film looming over her buildings. The sky above Boston was pristine clean, or so it seemed to her.

Taylor didn't say another word to Lucas until they reached the luggage carts. She was so overwhelmed by the sights and sounds of her new homeland, she could barely form a coherent thought. She wanted to close her eyes and listen to all the vastly different accents and try to guess the name of the country each had come from. So many different foreign languages soon blended together, however, and she gave up her game. She tried then to look everywhere at once. There was so much to see and to explore, so much . . .

“Taylor, will you pay attention to what I'm telling you?”

She finally looked up at him. “Isn't it wonderful, Lucas?”

The wonder in her voice made him smile. “Boston?”

“America,” she qualified.

He nodded. “You've yet to see America,” he told her. “But you'll like living in Boston. It's very cosmopolitan,” he added. “Very much like London.”

“I already like Boston, but I don't want it to be anything like London.”

After making that statement, she turned her attention to the chaos surrounding her. Lucas stared down at her for several minutes. When he realized what he was doing, he became disgusted with himself. He was acting like a besotted farm boy, but damn it all, it was her fault.

She was an enchantress all right. He was certain she was deliberately enticing him with that come-and-kiss-me smile of hers. The way she brushed her fingers through her hair and tossed her head back was a definite provocation meant to attract him. Even the way she looked up at him with those magical blue eyes and that trusting look on her face was meant to capture his full attention.

“Shouldn't we collect our luggage?”

Her question interrupted his thoughts. Lucas forced himself back to the business at hand.

“Stay right here,” he ordered. “I'll be back in a minute.”

Taylor only had enough time to nod before he walked away. She had the luggage tickets clutched in her hand. Lucas had secured reservations at the Hamilton House just outside of Boston proper, per Madam's explicit instructions. It was one of the best hotels in America, certainly on a par with the States Hotel, though on a smaller scale. Madam had read all the literature on both establishments and had declared that Hamilton House was a bit more exclusive. She told Lucas the States Hotel catered to too many businessmen, and she didn't want her granddaughter mingling with what she called the ordinary working man. Lucas didn't argue. He would deposit Taylor wherever her grandmother wanted her deposited, spend one or two more nights in the city, depending upon the bankers' meetings, and then head for home.

He returned to Taylor with a clerk from Hamilton House a few minutes later. He was in the nick of time. Taylor was in the process of handing over their luggage tickets to a man who had convinced her he was a representative of the hotel and would take care of the baggage.

Lucas snatched the tickets out of the thief's hands and sent him running. Taylor was appalled by what she deemed rude and certainly improper conduct. When she noticed the man Lucas handed the tickets to was wearing a hotel badge on his hat and the man she'd almost given her possessions to hadn't been wearing any such credentials, she became horrified by her own naïveté.

“He would have stolen our luggage.”

Lucas nodded. Taylor wasn't about to let the matter drop. She lifted the hem of her skirt and went running after the thief. Lucas grabbed her before she got lost in the crowd.

“Where in God's name do you think you're going?”

“To catch the scoundrel,” she explained in a near shout. “Someone should alert the authorities.”

Lucas let her see his exasperation. He anchored her to his side and turned toward the line of public vehicles.

“Aren't you going to do something?” she demanded.

“He's gone, Taylor. We'd never find him in this crowd.”

“I remember his face,” she boasted.

Lucas didn't laugh. She sounded so damned earnest. “What would you do if you caught up with him?”

She hadn't thought that far ahead. She considered the matter for a minute or two, then shrugged. “I would hold onto him while I shouted for assistance.”

He rolled his eyes heavenward. She was beginning to see the folly in her plan but would go to her grave before admitting her foolishness.

“What would happen if he didn't stand there peacefully while you did your shouting, Taylor?”

“I suppose I'd have to pound him.”

It was an empty boast, and they both knew it. “I think you should begin to think about consequences,” Lucas remarked.

He was barely paying her any attention now. They reached the vehicles. He stopped to give their destination to the driver.

Taylor was trying to get him to unhand her. He finally noticed what she was doing when he turned to open the door to the conveyance for her.

“Get in.”

“We can't leave just yet. I'm waiting for my friend. She's going to ride to the hotel with us. You'll have to be patient, Lucas. I was supposed to meet her by the luggage. Excuse me for one minute while I go look for her.”

“You'll never find her in this crush.”

“There she is,” Taylor cried out. She called Victoria's name, but her friend didn't hear her. Taylor couldn't get Lucas to unhand her long enough to go after her friend, and so she gave the errand to him.

“Do go and fetch Victoria.”

Lucas let go of her. He turned to look at the crowd. “Who is Victoria?”

He was talking to air. The second he unhanded her, she took off. Lucas muttered an expletive and went chasing after her. Because he was so much bigger than she was, he couldn't slip through the crowd as easily as she could. He resorted to shoving several men out of his path. He caught up with Taylor just as she came to a stop behind a red-headed woman.

“Victoria, do turn around,” Taylor requested.

Her friend was obviously taken by surprise. She jumped a good foot and then whirled around. The relief on her face was pronounced, and there were tears in her eyes.

“Oh, I'm so happy to see you, Taylor. I thought you'd left me behind. I couldn't remember where we had agreed to meet,” she added in a rush.

Victoria tried to hide her panic. In truth, she'd been terrified. She felt ill now. Her stomach was queasy, and she thought she was going to be sick. Dear God, she didn't know what she was going to do. She wanted to weep with relief because Taylor hadn't left her behind but knew such undignified behavior wouldn't be at all appropriate.

Taylor could see how distressed her friend was. She hurried to soothe her. “I also became confused about our meeting place,” she said. “I thought we were supposed to meet on deck where the luggage was being stacked for transfer. It doesn't matter,” she hastily added. “I would never have left you. Besides, if something,had happened and we hadn't found each other, you knew the name of the hotel. You could have gotten there on your own.”

Victoria nodded. She was too embarrassed to admit she didn't even have sufficient funds to pay the driver. She would have had to walk to Hamilton House. Still, Taylor was right. Victoria felt she was resourceful enough to find a way. She just wished she wasn't so emotional. The past week had been a test of endurance for her, what with all the changes in her life and her body, and she seemed to cry almost hourly.

“I'm not usually so emotional, milady,” she announced.

And then she burst into tears. Taylor pulled a lacy handkerchief out of the cuff of her sleeve, handed it to Victoria, and then took hold of her hand. She turned to Lucas and quickly made the introductions.

“Victoria is a dear friend of mine,” she informed him.

“Why is she crying?”

Taylor frowned at Lucas for bringing up the topic. Victoria was valiantly trying to control herself. “she's had a difficult time of it,” she explained. “She's in mourning.”

“I am?” Victoria asked in a whisper.

Taylor nodded. “Yes, you are.”

She turned back to Lucas. “She's mourning the death of her beloved husband.”

He didn't ask any questions. He knew very well who she was. He still remembered well every word the two women had exchanged the night Taylor had come to Victoria's assistance. He'd been about to haul the crazy woman down off that warped crate and ask her what the hell was the matter with her when Taylor intervened. And so he'd stayed in the shadows. He wasn't deliberately eavesdropping. He was simply making certain Taylor stayed safe. He was keeping his part of the bargain he'd made with her grandmother. Hearing that Victoria was pregnant and unmarried had struck a chord with him. He felt pity for her, of course, as well as a little compassion. She wasn't going to have an easy time of it. His own mother hadn't.