Sizzle All Day (12 page)

"So this is revenge?"

"Well, like you said, it ain't chivalry." He twirled the tie like a watch chain. "Let me tell you something else about Texans, Gillian. We don't take kindly to being made to play the fool."

"I don't believe I ever fooled you, though, did I?"

"Not about the ghost business, no." His gaze drifted down her body, then back up again. Softly, he accused, "You did drug me, however. You tied me up and you threw me out of the castle. Because of you, I had to spend hours out in the bitter cold."

"Bitter cold?" She forced a laugh. "'Tis the middle of summer. The weather is balmy."

"And you're batty if you believe that. I owe you, Miss Gillian Ross, and in Texas where life tends to be a poker game, revenge beats gallantry nine hands out of ten." Having said his piece, he dropped the silk tie, then stood. He braced his hands on his hips and glared down at her.

Gillian restrained herself from sticking out her tongue. "Very well. You've bound me to my bed and achieved your revenge. You can leave now."

"Not on your life. Now we're gonna talk. You had questions I answered. I want you to return the favor. First off, I want to know why you kicked me out of Rowanclere."

Gillian closed her eyes and sighed dramatically. Honestly, she was in a dire situation. Why, then, did she feel so excited? So alive? "My arms have gone numb. I would think more clearly and provide you more thorough answers were I untied."

"You're not tied tight enough to go numb. The quicker you provide answers to my satisfaction, the faster you'll get loose. Now, talk to me about Lord Bennet. That's when you turned on me. What about his name set you off?"

Gillian's heart hardened and her eyes narrowed at the name. "He is an evil man. We at Rowanclere want nothing to do with him. Since he sent you here, we want nothing to do with you."

Delaney visibly bristled. "I said he sent me
in a manner of speaking
. You didn't give me the chance to explain. Instead you threw me out into the cold where I all but wore my shoulders out with a pair of oars. That just really chaps my hide, gal."

"I am sorry. I reacted instinctively, without thought. You see, the threats he made were so... " She closed her eyes and shuddered.

"Threats? What threats? What did that Englishman say and why did he say it?"

Gillian's skin grew cold at the memory. She closed her eyes and replied, "He basically stole something from Rowanclere and I went to England and took it back. It did not set well with him. He came here once and tried to force his way inside the castle, but we managed to keep him out. Rowanclere is still a fine fortress. After that he wrote letters. Made threats."

"Tell me what he said, Gillian."

Her mouth went dry, her throat tight, and she worked to force the words. "Apparently, Lord Bennet is quite a taxidermy enthusiast. He threatened to kill me and have my body stuffed for his special trophy room."

Shock registered on the Texan's face, then his mouth set in a grim line. "Damn. He'd have done it, too. You're right, the man was evil. You have no idea how much I wish I'd been the one to shoot him. At least the scoundrel died hard."

Gillian waited for a moment and allowed the words to filter through her mind. Then she lifted her head off her pillow. "Excuse me? What did you say? Someone shot Lord Bennet?"

"Yes. My sister. He was trying to kill her."

Gillian simply stared, trying hard to take it all in. He had a sister who shot Lord Bennet. "He's dead?"

"Dead as a fly in molasses. Has been since winter."

Gillian froze. He was telling the truth. She could read it in his eyes. Relief washed over her, and as her head dropped back against the pillow, she murmured, "I wish I'd known. I've been plagued by terrible taxidermy nightmares."

Jake's mouth tilted in a wry grin as he approached with a wicked looking knife and sliced through the silken ties, While he took hold of her arms and pulled her into a seated position, she imagined the look on Flora's and Angus's faces when she told them the news. The threats had made them all uneasy.

Jake sat beside her on the bed and gently rubbed her wrists where the fabric strips had bound her. Though it reflected poorly upon her to feel pleasure at another person's demise, Gillian couldn't help herself. He had just freed her from a fearsome burden and it filled her with delight. Pulling free of Jake's tender hold, she beamed a smile at him. "Oh, Texas, this is the most welcome news."

She threw her arms around his neck and yanked him to her.

Then, Gillian kissed him.

* * *

For the first time since arriving in Scotland, Jake Delaney wasn't cold. He smoldered. He steamed. He sizzled.

He was hot.

Damn. He knew from experience that females had a talent for surprising a man. His sister Chrissy was a fine example of that. And hadn't Scooter knocked him for a loop earlier today at the watchtower when she somehow managed to catch a bird? He had been shocked senseless when the pooch approached with her trophy in her mouth.

This particular surprise didn't knock him senseless. No, this surprise kept his senses very much in working order.

At the first touch of Gillian's lips against his, he felt an instant, intense jolt of lust. Sensation bombarded him. She tasted delicious, an intriguing combination of sunshine and sweetness. She smelled heavenly, surrounding him in a cloud of jasmine and temptation. Then the sound she made when his hands clasped her waist—that little, dazzled hitch of breath—made him want to howl.

Instinctively, Jake took control of the kiss. He changed the angle, deepened it. Invaded her mouth with his tongue. She whimpered once, and then responded, seducing him completely. Every impulse in him yearned to lay her back, to strip her naked, to take her and make her his.

But the pesky voice of reason, of honor, could not be silenced for long. She was no lightskirt or lusty widow, but a young, unmarried woman of good family. Undoubtedly, a virgin.

Virgin. Virgin. Virgin.
The word echoed like a death knell in his brain.

Well, hell. If he didn't watch himself, his mother might hear those wedding bells after all.

It required a Herculean effort, but Jake pulled away. He wrenched himself from the bed and stalked across the room to the fireplace where he hunkered down and scratched the dog behind her ears. He didn't look at Gillian. He couldn't. After two bouts of serious sexual frustration in one evening, he was dangling at the end of his rope.

So he forced himself to tie a knot and hold on. He got busy thinking about something else. Though he cleared his voice, it still emerged sandpaper rough when he asked, "What were you and Bennet fighting over?"

She didn't immediately reply. As the silence dragged out, Jake finally had to glance over his shoulder. She sat as he had left her, a stunned expression on her face. Jake didn't know whether to be flattered or insulted.

He raised his voice. "What did Bennet steal from Rowanclere?"

Slowly, she turned her head toward him. The dazed look in her eyes faded. "It's not important." She reached for the robe lying at the foot of her bed and shrugged into it. "Mr. Delaney, I think I should apologize for being so forward. I didn't mean—"

"I know. Neither did I. Tell me what he took."

She straightened her shoulders and lifted her chin, visibly affronted. Jake knew better than to grin, although he found himself wanting to. When she wasn't busy being beautiful and alluring, the woman was just so damned cute.

She gave the belt on her robe a hard tug. "Something that belongs to my Uncle Angus."

"And this something is—?"

"Not your concern."

Rising to his feet, Jake grasped the fireplace poker and stirred the coals. He knew the answer, of course, but he wanted her to confirm it. Gillian was the woman who had taken the Declaration of Independence from that damned Texas Room at Bennet's country estate. The pieces all fit.

Now he had to find a way to convince her to give it up to him. Not an easy task, considering the effort she'd made to get it away from Bennet.

Jake replaced the poker in its stand, then turned to face her. Moonlight cast a luminous glow upon the highlights in her hair. Now, for the first time, Jake could believe she might in fact be supernatural. The reincarnation of Helen of Troy was who came to mind.

"Jake Delaney, you and your sister have done my family a great service. I made the mistake of sharing Lord Bennet's letters with Uncle Angus, and he has fashed himself over the threats ever since. Such strain is not good for him. I think the pain in his bones worsens with worry. Now, that burden is lifted. We owe you a debt of gratitude."

A debt?
Jake checked Gillian's hands for signs of a silver platter. Yes, there it was, imaginary but about as shiny and pretty as they came. Never in his life had he been handed such a perfect opportunity.

It can't be this easy.

But the sincerity he saw shining in her face suggested it was.
What the hell. Why not?
He curled his fingers and stared down at his nails. "Debt is such an unpleasant commodity. I think it's always best to discharge an obligation as soon as possible, don't you agree?"

"Yes, I do."

"Good. Because you see, I do know a way your family can pay my family for the good turn we have done you."

She must have heard something in his voice, because her eyes narrowed. Warily, she asked, "What is it?"

Jake flashed her a smile and called her bluff. "You can hand over the copy you have of the Republic of Texas's Declaration of Independence."

Chapter 6

Gillian didn't know whether to laugh or cry. That accursed document. She rued the day Uncle Angus stepped ashore on Scottish soil with it in his possession. First Lord Bennet brought trouble to the family because he coveted the thing, and now Jake Delaney wanted it. If it were up to her, she'd give him the bastartin piece of paper just to be rid of it.

But it wasn't up to her. The document was Uncle Angus's treasure, his to keep or give away. She tried her best to make her smile sincere. "I am sorry, I have no clue as to what you are talking about."

"C'mon, princess, you are no better a liar than you are a ghost. I think you know exactly what I'm talking about."

"Mr. Delaney," she protested, drawing herself up in offense.

"I think we've gone beyond the Mr. and Miss, don't you, Gillian? Call me Jake." He sauntered over to her favorite chair and took a seat, stretching his long legs out in front of him before crossing them at the ankles. "A few minutes ago you said he stole something from Rowanclere and you went to England and got it back. That something was the Declaration of Independence."

"Mr. De...Jake... I don't think—"

"Here's the way I think it worked. At some point during the years your uncle lived in Texas, the document fell into his hands. He brought it with him when he returned to Scotland. It could have happened differently—this copy could be the one we believe was sent to the Texas Legation in London—but that part doesn't really matter. What does matter is that Bennet learned of its existence and went after it. Angus Brodie wouldn't give or sell or barter away the document, so Bennet tricked Robbie into giving it to him. He swindled a piece of history away from that darlin' little girl for the price of a bag of candy and a ham."

Gillian choked and covered it with a cough. How could he know that? He certainly didn't learn it from Robyn, because shame kept the child's lips sealed tight. That bit of news must have come from Bennet himself.

Jake continued. "Once y'all found out what happened, I imagine tempers blew. Not only did Bennet take advantage of a child, he took something your uncle valued. So you set out to right the wrong and stole the Declaration back from Bennet."

He had read the situation like a book, and Gillian did her best to hide any response. She couldn't confirm or deny anything, not until she talked to Uncle Angus.

He folded his arms and tilted his head to one side, making a show of studying her. "You snatched the Declaration right from beneath the baron's pointy nose, then hightailed it home. You must have suspected he'd try to get it back, so you were prepared for him. You stopped him."

While Jake talked, Scooter had dragged herself toward the chair and plopped down beside his feet. Jake leaned over, scooped her up, and set her in his lap. "Now Bennet wasn't a man who liked being thwarted, hence the letters. You were right to be wary of the man and his ugly threats, Gillian. He was obsessed. He'd have been back for the Declaration eventually. So, what parts do I have wrong? Not much, I imagine."

Not anything.
At a loss on how to answer, Gillian kept her gaze on Scooter, who whimpered with pleasure at Jake Delaney's attentions. I know how you feel.

"Gillian? How about it? It was the Declaration you stole from Bennet's home, right?"

She avoided answering by asking a question of her own. "Is that the true reason you searched our library? You were looking for this proclamation?"

"Declaration, as you well know. Yes. Like I said before, my family almost came to real grief at Bennet's hand due to the Declaration. Because of that, I thought it best to keep to myself the purpose behind my visit when I first arrived. Now I figure it's best to lay it all out for you. I believe I mentioned I am an attorney?"