Moontide Embrace (Historical Romance) (36 page)

Liberty moved to the bed and picked up the pink
negligee. As she ran her hands down the smooth material,
her heart lightened. Her eyes fell on a small leather bag,
and she opened it, discovering a brush, comb, and eau de
toilette inside. Clean white bath cloths were neatly folded
beside a washbasin that was filled with still warm water.
Apparently Gabrielle had thought of everything.

Suddenly happiness sung in her heart. For whatever the reason, Judah had married her, and she was his wife. She
hummed a French song as she stripped her clothing off
and washed her body. Liberty slipped into the satin gown, loving the way it caressed her skin, and knowing she had
never had anything half so nice. As she pulled on the
matching robe, she pushed her feet into white satin slip
pers. Then she picked up the brush, released her hair from
its confines, and brushed her long curls until they crackled. Liberty declined to use the
eau de toilette
since she already
wore the exotic scent that Zippora had first given her on
her fifteenth birthday. Having folded her clothes neatly in
a stack, she placed them on a chair, wondering what to do
with herself until her husband returned.

The minutes ticked away, and Liberty realized that Ju
dah had been gone for over an hour. She now knew that
for her own peace of mind, she would have to explain to
him why she had tricked him the night of the masquerade
ball. Absently, she sat down on the bed, but quickly changed her mind and moved over to the window.

It was a beautiful night, despite the fact that a slight
wind was stirring the leaves on the magnolia trees and it had started to rain. Liberty was trying to decide how best
to explain to Judah that things had just gotten out of
control the night of the ball. She had not set out to trick
him.

She was so caught up in her own thoughts that she
didn't hear Judah return, and when his arms went around
her waist, she almost jumped out of her skin.

"I am sorry to have been gone for so long. I had a caller."

"Oh?" Liberty clasped her hands together tightly, know
ing it was time to tell Judah the truth. "About the night of
the masquerade ball, Judah—"

He rested his chin on the top of her head. "Do you know
how I first began to suspect it was you the night of the ball?"

"No. I thought I had been clever."

"Not quite. It was that wonderful scent you always wear. It smells like roses and spices on a warm spring morning. I
began to question many things the other night. I also
realized it was you in Zippora's cabin. Perhaps I knew all
along that it was you. I am just not sure."

She whirled around to face him. "You didn't know it
was me, Judah. You thought I was Bandera. I remember
you called her name."

The soft candlelight made a golden halo around her
silken hair. She was his, but there was so much he did not
understand about the two of them. How could he explain
something to her that he didn't understand himself. "Lib
erty, you are my wife. Let us put everything that happened
before now behind us.”

"I would like to, Judah. I would never have married you
if I had not thought that was possible."

He gently cupped her face in his hands, and bent his head, brushing her lips with his.

Desire was on Liberty's lips as she sought his kiss, and
passion burned in her veins like a raging fire. She quivered
when his arms tightened around her, then he took her mouth in a burning kiss. He untied the sash of the robe
and slowly allowed his hands to slide over her satin-clad
hips. "I have never had worse timing in my life," he said in
a deep voice, bringing her closer to his body.

"I don't know what you mean," she breathed past the loud hammering of her heart.

Holding her away from him, Judah drew in a steadying
breath, trying to still his quaking heart. The caller was
Etienne Banard. "I have some bad news," he groaned.
"Something is about to happen, Andrew Jackson has asked to see me." His turquoise eyes held a look of regret, arid he
groaned. "I am sorry, Liberty, but I have to go."

She reached out her hand in fear. "Is there going to be a battle?"

"Yes, and God willing, we shall win. This is our last
chance to stop the British. If they are victorious in Louisi
ana, the war is lost, and you will owe your allegiance to
England."

Liberty fought against the panic that rose up to choke
her. She would die if anything happened to Judah. She
pushed the tumbled hair out of her face and met his eyes,
knowing her first wifely duty was to let Judah go without
recrimination. "Do you need to pack?" she asked in a small
voice.

Judah pulled her to him and rested his face against
hers, breathing in the sweet scent of her, wanting to take
the memory of her into battle with him. "Everything I will
need is on board the
Winged Victory."
His eyes moved over
her face. "I travel light when I'm on land."

She reached out a trembling hand and laid it against his
cheek. He closed his eyes at her gentle touch. "There is no
time to tell you how I really feel, Liberty. Etienne is waiting
for me now."

"Then you had better go." She lowered her lashes so he
wouldn't see the tears that were gathering in her eyes. "But
I would charge you to take the greatest care of yourself,
Judah." She clasped his hand, loving him in the very
depths of her soul. "Do not take any unnecessary chances."

He smiled. "I seem to live a charmed life." His eyes
became serious. "Liberty, Etienne says that English spies
are everywhere. I want you to stay here with my mother
and grandfather so I will know you are safe."

She shook her head. "I cannot do that, Judah. Do not
ask it of me. It is my responsibility to look after the people
that depend on me."

Judah wanted to protest, but he knew Liberty could be
stubborn when her mind was set on something. "If you will
get dressed, Etienne and I will see you safely to Briar Oaks," he declared.

She would have moved away, but he caught her and
pulled her back. Laughter lit his eyes as he clasped her to
him. "There are three hundred and sixty-five days in the
year. You would have thought I could have picked a better
day for a wedding, wouldn't you?"

Liberty was too worried about his safety to be amused
by his light-heartedness, but she knew he would go off to
war, and she would stay at home and weep for him. "I should get dressed now," she said.

Judah released her and crossed the room, knowing if he didn't put some distance between them he would not leave.
"I am going to tell my mother what has occurred. I will
meet you downstairs. Hurry!"

Etienne quickly kissed Liberty on the cheek, and wished her happiness. Then Judah helped her onto her horse, and they rode away in silence. The ride to Briar Oaks was an
unreal one. Everything was too quiet, as if even the
elements were waiting for something earth shattering to
happen. The three riders traveled speedily and urgently.
When they reached Briar Oaks, the morning star was
twinkling in the night sky.

While Etienne waited with the horses, Judah walked his
new bride into the house to bid her farewell in private.
Once inside, he pulled Liberty to him and stared at her for
a long moment. "You will have a care for your safety?"

"I will, and you do the same, Judah."

He bent to kiss her tempting lips, knowing it would only
make parting all the more difficult. "Don't forget, Liberty,
you owe me a wedding night. When this war is over, I
promise you, I intend to collect."

Before his lips could touch hers, Liberty whirled away from him and clasped the edge of the hall table so tightly
that her knuckles whitened. "I will hold you to that promise," she whispered.

"Will you not kiss your husband good-by?" he asked.

With a broken sob, she ran into his outstretched arms and buried her face against his stiff cloak.

He raised her face and gently kissed away her tears.
"Dare I hope that you hold me in some kind of regard,
Liberty?"

"You are . . ."—a sob broker her voice—"you have been
my best friend for a long time, Judah."

He softly touched her lips with his finger. "Well, that's something anyway." Placing a quick kiss on her mouth, he
turned and moved out the door.

Liberty raced to the sitting room and stood at the
window, watching Judah mount his horse and ride away
without a backward glance. Tears gathered in her eyes and
a deep loneliness pressed down on her.

Everything had happened so quickly.  Little had she
known when she had gotten up that morning that before a
new day dawned she would become Judah's wife, though she scarcely felt like a bride. In the back of her mind, a
question nagged. Why had Judah decided to marry her?
She rested her face against the frayed blue draperies, and
watched Judah until he was out of sight. "God keep you
safe, my dearest love," she cried to the empty room.

December Twenty-third

Judah and Etienne were among the privileged few who
had been called to Andrew Jackson's headquarters.

As he addressed the assembled men, General Jackson
raised his voice and pounded his fist on the table, while his eyes spit fire. "The British are advancing along the bayous.
Some are in boats, others boldly march along the river
banks I swear no Englishman, be he private or general, will
set foot in New Orleans. We shall hold them back or die
trying."

The general looked at each man before he continued.
"Gentlemen, this morning, the enemy advanced on Villere
Plantation and captured one of our militia detachments,
and in doing so, scored a tactical advantage. Furthermore,
the British fleet is in a position that suggests a landing."

No one spoke, for each man realized how critical the
situation had become. Jackson made a pretense of straight
ening papers on his desk, and Judah realized he was trying to control his emotions before continuing. "Gentlemen, I
propose we hit the enemy tonight! The British are tired and
our men are fresh. We will have not only the cover of
darkness but also the element of surprise."

Jackson moved across the room and stood at the win
dow, his hands elapsed behind his back. When he turned,
there was a grim expression on his face. "Our ship the
Carolina
is moving into position, and she will let loose a
volley against the foe. That will be your signal to attack.
This will also give our troops a chance to move into place.
I want you all to leave now and assemble your men with great haste. Be prepared to march immediately!"

Silence ensued as each officer took his leave, but when
Etienne and Judah were prepared to depart, Jackson nod
ded for them to remain behind.

When they were alone with him, Jackson handed
Etienne a sheet of paper. "You know your friends and neighbors, Etienne. Read this proclamation from the Brit
ish and tell me if you think any of your fellow Creoles will
cooperate with the enemy?"

Etienne read the paper and looked at Judah. "This says
that if the Creoles will cooperate and remain quiet, their
properties and slaves will be respected."

"What do you think, Etienne?" Jackson pressed.

"I have to be honest with you, sir. There will be those
who will not support us in this fight. I pray God, they are
few in number."

"Let us hope you are right." As Jackson talked, he was
buckling on his saber and making sure his pistol was
loaded. "Etienne, I want you to bring your ship up behind
the
Carolina
in case she needs to be reinforced. Can you
manage that in so short a time?"