Lynna's Rogue (10 page)

Chapter Six

             
S
topping in front of the red brick plantation house
,
Joshua le
apt from his horse to grab
Beth, who had dashed down the
steps
to greet him.

             
“Joshua, I am so glad
you are
home!” She laughed gaily as Joshua lifted her from the ground to twirl her high above his head.

             
“
I am
glad to be home, Tiny.” He winked slyly, knowing that she detested the nickname he had tagged on her as a child. “And you have grown even lovelier than you were when I left.”

             
“Joshua! We were wondering when you would show your ugly mug around here!” Samuel bellowed, coming around the side of the house from the direction of the barn. “Unhand my wife, sir!”

             
“There is the rutting scoundrel who stole my one true love whilst I was away at sea and could not fight for her
,
” Joshua accused a grinning Samuel, while still holding a merrily giggling Beth high in the air.

             
“Oh, Joshua, you are incorrigible!” Beth smiled down at
him
affection
ately
. “Put me down.”

             
“
Admitted.” Joshua grinned
. “But you love me anyway. And now that I have returned for good, you can divorce that dirty dog from Georgia who wormed his way into your affections and married you behind my back. Come to Sea Grove where you belong, my sweet Beth.”

             
“Over my dead body!”

             
“Very well then. A duel it is.” Joshua released Beth and clasped Samuel’s hand warmly in his. “Choose your weapon, sir.”

             
“Hush all of this nonsense about weapons before you come to fisticuffs
, and come inside for a cool
drink.”

             
Beth's mother had died giving birth to her, leaving her to be raised by her overly stern father. He was a good man, but ever watchful where his only child was concerned. Beth had envied the loving family life at Sea Grove and spent a great deal of her youth there with Joshua's sister, and her best friend, Malinda. Joshua
had watched over both young
girls
, and dismissed any number of unsuitable suitors,
as they had grown into charming young ladies.

             
Glancing over Samuel’s shoulder,
Joshua's vision was drawn to a slight movement on the verandah. Straining his eyes in the fast approaching darkness his memory came rushing back to him. It was the girl in the red satin ball gown. Now he remembered. She was Samuel's sister. What was her name? She really was quite lovely, but try as he might he could not attach a name to the face. Casually climbing the steps
,
he took her extended hand
,
bowing low to plant a soft kiss on it. “Good evening...”
W
hat was her name?

             
“Suzanne!” She furnished somewhat crisply after seeing that her na
me altogether eluded him. B
atting her lashes demurely
,
she simpered, changing her tune completely, “Surely you haven’t forgotten little ole me, Captain Jordan.”

             
“A man never forgets a beautiful lady.” She was pretty enough, although not exactly what he would call beautiful. Joshua reserved that title for another.

             
Suzanne's face fair glowed with excitement and she was about to fish for more flattery from the
fine male specimen
before her when Beth rudely, she thought, interrupted them.              

             
“Joshua.
I’
m
sure
you are
eager to be home with your family, but surely you can spare us a toast to your homecoming.”

             
“Have I ever been able to deny you anything, Tiny?”

             
“No, a
nd you never will.” Beth teased
as she led him up the steps.

             
Immediately upon entering the house
,
Joshua noticed the striking transformation. New furniture had been brought in to replace the worn antiquated relics. The dull, faded wallpaper that had hung for as far back as Joshua could remember had been painted over with a cheerful yellow. Flimsy, feminine, ruffled curtains hung at the windows. All of the old had been replaced by sparkling new as Beth and Samuel had lovingly restored the house to life after the many years of sad neglect.

             
“It doesn’t look like the same house
,
does it?” Beth came to stand behind him as he fingered the white lacy curtains. “What do you imagine Papa would think of the place now?”

             
“He would be extremely proud that you married a good man and have made a charming and comfortable home for him.” He took her small hands in his and gazed lovingly into her eyes.

             
“Oh, how I have missed you, Joshua,” she whispered, hugging him close.

             
“If you two would rather be alone,” Suzanne whined, her jealousy overriding her common sense. “My brother and I can go back outside.”

             
“
Don’t
be ridiculous, Suzanne!” Beth gave her sister
-
in
-
law a quelling glance. “Joshua is the brother I never had.”

             
“Well, I do hope you
will not
be inclined to feel sisterly toward me,” Suzanne purred, thoroughly embarrassi
ng her brother and his wife
, evidenced by Beth's reddening cheeks and Samuel's disconcerting frown.

             
Deciding
to ignore her brazen remark, Joshua took a seat on the plush sofa and stretched his legs to relieve the cramps from the long ride. Much to his surprise
,
an overzealous Suzanne plopped down beside him, actually, almost on top of him. Now he remembered what he
didn’t
particularly take a shine to about the frivolous female. She was too forwa
r
d.

             
Joshua was of the opinion, with most Southern men, that women should be seen and not heard except behind the closed doors of a bedroom. He had a definite aversion towa
rd overbearing women. Suzanne's
perfume reminded him of the night of a Christmas Ball when she
had
made it known, loud and clear, that Joshua was her intended catch of the day. If he remembered correctly, she
had
been visiting her brother then also.

             
Always the quick study, Joshua had been shrewd enough to realize within mere seconds of making her acquaintance that her innocent demeanor was little more than a facade. He
had
also been quick to recognize her interest in him and
had
wasted no time in asking the flirtatious vixen to dance. No sooner had they reached the dance floor than she proceeded to rub her soft body against his in a most seductive and inviting manner
,
oblivious to the stares her actions were generating.

             
“You dance divinely, sir
,
” she had whispered softly against his ear as her tongue darted out to caress his earlobe.

             
Momentarily taken aback by her forward behavior
,
Joshua had drawled, “That
’
s not all I do well.”
Then, n
ever one to resist the charms of a wil
ling female, he
had
crushed her against him
.

             
“Why not let me be the judge of that
?
” had been her heated reply, not at all put off by his boldness.

             
Joshua had then escorted the shameless debutante across the dance floor, through the open French doors, and outside into the starry, moonlit night
,
fully intending to find a secluded spot and give the amorous lady what she so desired. Leading her through the garden gate
,
he took her in his arms under the sweeping branches of a weeping willow tree, somewhat shocked by her passionate response. She had behaved as a woman star
ved, her hands moving
through his hair as she moaned deep in her throat. His lips caressed hers, kissing her long and hard until she broke away and proceeded to unbutton his trousers.

             
“Damn!” she
had sworn
, after hearing
her brother Samuel
calling her name from only a few feet away. “We
’
ll continue this later,” she had promised, pausing long enough for
one last lingering kiss. “To be perfectly honest, I am sorely tempted to ignore my
brother’s ra
ther persistent calls, since I have
no doubt that a
tumble in the grass with you
would be well worth a
few lectures on propriety. But then again, it might be best not to press my
luck. Samuel might very well b
ecome furious enough to send me home. And besides, there sh
ould be plenty of time to become better acquainted with
you,
Captain Jordan. After al
l, this is the season of parties, and I will
be attending them
all, especially now
that
you are
making the party circuit
.”
She hurried back into his waiting arms for one more kiss before darting through the garden and back into the house.

             
Joshua feared
that
she would be greatly affronted
to learn he had
not
so much as given her a fleeting thought since that night.

             
“Joshua, dear, you haven’t heard
a word I said,” Beth chided
.

             
“
I am
truly sorry, Beth. Please, forgive my rudeness. I suppose
I am
more tired than I thought. What with docking the ship, packing, and the ride home
,
I am
tired enough to fall asleep right here.” He chose not to mention the hours of strenuous activity with the nimble Resa.

             
“Well then, you should!” Suzanne leaned toward him with hard to conceal excitement and was quick to suggest, “Beth has oodles of beds in this big old house, and you could sleep here and ge
t a fresh start in the morning.
Oh, please say
you will
stay the night, Joshua! I could ride home with you in the morning.
I have
been in
tending to visit Malinda, but
just can never seem to find the time.”

             
“Joshua knows without being told that
he is
welcome to visit us anytime.” Beth cast a sharp glance at her overzealous sister
-
in
-
law. “
I am
sure
he is
anxious to inform his family
that
he
has
arrived home safely. Malinda was here just yesterday and said her parents were eag
erly waiting their son’s homecoming
, Suzanne. We can
not expect to monopolize all
his time. But, if you will recall, you complained of a simply vicious headache and did
not
venture downstairs once during his sister’s visit.” Beth rose, gave Suzanne a pointed look, and giving Joshua one last welcoming hug
,
escorted him to the door. “You
won’t
be a stranger now, will you?
I have
no doubt they
wi
ll be keeping you busy over at Sea Grove, but do stop by to see us as often as you can.”