Wings of the Morning (Kensington Chronicles) (29 page)

"We're going to talk after dinner, do you hear me?"

Smokey could only nod

"And one more thing/' Dallas' voice dropped to an intimate

whisper. "I'm going to kiss you tonight, so if my attention

is unwanted, Smokey, you had better make yourself scarce."

Smokey couldn't have replied if she had wanted to. Dallas

held her for a moment more before he released her, took her

hand within his own, and led her in to dine.

dallas heard vekv little of the evening's conversation.

His mind and eyes were so centered on Smokey that someone

could have set his boot on fire and he wouldn't have noticed

As he had thought many weeks ago while aboard her ship,

Smokey was far and away the most fascinating creature he had

ever encountered He now realized he was very much in love

with her.

Both Brandon and Sunny, as well as Darsey, saw the change

in him that evening and sensed his need to be alone with

Smokey. The night was still young when the three made their

excuses and Dallas finally found himself alone with Smokey

in the parlor. Smokey became rather nervous but tried hard

not to show it. She kept thinking about Dallas* words before

dinner. The thought of his kissing her was very exciting, but it

was also a little scary.

"You're not tired are you? I was rather hoping we could

talk," Dallas said from his chair by the fire as he watched

Smokey on the sofa. He wanted to join her but knew that for

the moment he would need to keep his distance.

"I'm not tired," Smokey replied and licked her lips, a sure

sign, as Dallas had come to learn, that she was nervous. As

much as he wanted to tell her all that was in his heart, he made

a firm resolve not to rush her.

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"I was surprised to come in and see you dueling with

Hawk," Dallas began.

"You weren't surprised," Smokey countered, her voice

calm. "You were angry."

"I wasn't angry, Smokey. I was flabbergasted. I thought you

told me at Willa's that you'd never fenced before, and I come

in to find you giving Hawk the duel of his life."

Smokey frowned at him, trying to recall what she had said.

"I've been fencing since I was a child What I'd never done

before was go for a person's face."

Dallas' eyes slid shut with remembrance. That was what

she had said, but she'd been a bit flustered and talking very

fast; he had completely misunderstood her.

"No wonder you didn't believe that I'd escaped him."

'You can't know how I've regretted my words and actions

that day." Dallas' voice held pain.

"It's all right," Smokey told him before he could berate

himself any longer. Dallas stared at her for a quiet moment.

"Did he hurt you, Smokey?"

"Not physically. He planned on it, but I escaped" Dallas

watched as she wrapped her arms around herself as though

cold, and wished he hadn't asked

"He was so big; he loomed over me," Smokey continued

softly, speaking to the fire. "He said if I didn't put the dress on,

hewouldputitonforme." Smokey shook her head "I couldn't

let him do that, so I felt I had no choice. I felt so cheap in that

dress."

Smokey had begun to tremble. Suddenly Dallas, no longer

able to keep his distance, was there, his arms lovingly surrounding

her. He held her for a moment and spoke gently.

"I'm sorry I asked you. Don't think about it anymore. He

can't get you now, and even if he tried, you'd protect us."

Smokey's surprised gaze flew to Dallas' face. He was grinning

at her, and Smokey, forgetting the pirate, laughed with

delight. Dallas joined her and snuggled her against his chest.

The silence in the next few minutes was warm and easy. After

just a moment of quiet, Smokey continued to talk.

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"I was really anxious on the docks. When you wouldn't let

go of me, I pictured Haamich Wynn coming and killing you in

his rage. I couldn't stand the thought, and so to save you, I ran

away.

"I'm sorry I threw myself at you that way," Smokey went

on. She felt Dallas' chest move. "Are you laughing?" Smokey

shifted to see his face again.

"Yes, I am. The woman of my dreams comes out of the

dark, kisses me in a way that makes my blood boil, and then

apologizes for it."

"You didn't feel used?"

"Definitely not. I did wonder, however, where you learned

to kiss like that."

"I don't know; it was my first time." Smokey didn't go on to

tell him that she thought it was always like that when a woman

was in love.

Dallas shifted then and could have easily kissed her. In

fact, if either of them moved their heads, their lips would

come together.

"You could kiss me again," he told her softly as he caressingly

studied every detail of her face

"You would like that?" Smokey's voice was just as soft. He

was the kind of man a girl dreams of. Warm and caring for

those he loved and with a deep love for Christ. Smokey was

finding it hard to believe that he really cared for her.

"Oh, yes," Dallas told her. "I would like it very much, and if

you kiss me, then I'll know I'm not pushing you where you

don't want to go."

"And if I don't kiss you?"

"I'll wait until you're ready."

Smokey's smile was so tender that Dallas' heart melted

Smokey reached up and touched the gold loop in his ear

before her hand went to the back of his head and she brought

his lips to hers.

The kiss was sweet with yearning and passion, and when

Dallas could speak, he whispered, "I love you."

"Oh, Dallas," Smokey breathed "Do you mean that?"

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"Every word I have for a long time, but you're such a will-o'the-wisp

that I could never keep you with me long enough

to tell you."

"I love you too," Smokey said before her small hands came

up and gently cradled his face. She'd never had someone care

for her romantically in the way Dallas seemed to care for her

now. She found herself feeling so cherished that it took her

breath away. It certainly didn't hurt that Dallas was so handsome.

Smokey thought she could stare at his face forever. She

was suddenly so overcome with joy that she reached up and

kissed his chin.

'You missed," Dallas teased her.

Smokey shook her head "I never miss; I was aiming for

your chin."

"Ah. Then allow me to aim for your mouth."

Smokey chuckled, but the sound was cut off as Dallas

kissed her again. Neither one knew it could be like this, so

sure and so in love. Wrapped in each other's arms, they continued

to talk for the next hour. Smokey was just starting to get

sleepy when their host knocked discreetly and came back in.

Dallas removed his arms, but took Smokey's hand in his own

and stayed beside her on the sofa.

"I can hear Darsey pacing in his room, so I thought I'd

better come down in order to rescue him." Brandon had taken

a chair by the fire and now sat grinning at the couple on the

sofa.

"You look as though you've ironed out your differences."

Dallas and Smokey smiled contentedly in return, and

Brandon felt a little surprised that they didn't tell him they

were getting married

"It's not very easy for me, but we've talked some about

Haamlch Wynn," Smokey told Brandon. "Will I have to tell the

magistrate everything that happened?'*

"Probably, yes. I know it won't be easy, but we don't want to

do anything that will give Lord Lynne a loophole."

"What did you call him?" Smokey wanted to know.

203

"Lord Lynne. He's the Baron of Farmington, and his

English name is Lord Darrell Lynne. Why do you ask?"

"During the second capture I heard one of his men say his

name, but I thought he said Lordlin and was referring to

someone else. It never occurred to me that Haamich Wynn

wasn't his real name."

Brandon's look was grim. "We've known for some time

that he was a peer of the realm with an assumed name."

"So you've known all along who he was, you just couldn't

catch him?" Smokey asked

"Not really. But it was coming quickly. You see, he hung

himself with his own method A group of us met together

about six weeks ago in order to compare notes. Lynne hit only

ships owned by someone against whom he had a personal

vendetta. He's never liked me, although I'm not sure why, and

it was the same with everyone else who'd had ships attacked

"When a few names were mentioned and investigated, it

didn't take long for Lord Lynne to stand out. He's been sloppy

lately; he hasn't even been pirating, just roaming the seas."

"He was looking for me," Smokey put in and both men

stared at her.

"He told you this?"

"Yes. He said he'd been following me for quite some time."

She shivered a little, and Dallas put his arm back around her. "Can you tell me what he wanted?" Brandon asked carefully.

"Me." Smokey told him simply, although her eyes were

pained

Brandon stared at her and nodded slowly. "The magistrate

may ask you all of this. It might be easier if you tell me now."

After a moment's hesitation, Smokey did as he suggested

She left out nothing this time, although a few times she spoke

with her flushed face averted, so as not to look at the men.

Brandon's jaw was clenched in anger over some of what

she revealed. It sounded as though Lynne planned to make

her a permanent part of his life. Brandon told Smokey that

the pirate had been married for years. If rumors could be

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believed, his wife was a bedridden shrew, but he was married

nonetheless.

Suddenly Smokey was very tired. The day had been so full.

As much as she wanted to stay and be with Dallas, she knew

she had to get to bed With a soft-spoken word, she excused

herself, thinking that the men would want to talk. Dallas

surprised her.

"I'll walk you to your room," he offered, and Brandon rose

as they left, taking note of the fact that Dallas rested his hand

tenderly on Smokey's back.

He was about to follow when he spotted his wife's shoes

on the floor. Sunny was forever taking them off and leaving

them wherever she had been sitting. Brandon liked to tease

her that h^rrwilHi-rwi^b-*"""**---- -*

"I didn't know you could ride," Dallas said to Smokey the

next morning as she and Sunny returned from an early morning

jaunt.

"A woman likes to keep some things a mystery," Smokey told him with a cheeky smile, and Dallas started toward her,

his eyes watching her intently.

Without so much as a by-your-leave, he reached for her

waist and swung her off the horse's back. As her feet touched

ground, Smokey smiled up at him and Dallas dropped a kiss

on her nose. He knew they weren't alone, but he couldn't help