Lynna's Rogue (36 page)

Chapter Sixteen

             
T
he searing heat of an Indian summer was a force to be reckoned with as Suzanne and Daniel perspired in rocking chairs o
n the verandah at Magnolia House. Suzanne’s
ever present slave child fanned unenthusiastically by her side, stopping often to swat at a pesky insect and causing Suzanne to cast an evil eye her way when she did. Daniel’s eyes were lowered, ashamed for having gone along with his sister’s calculating scheme to coerce Joshua into marriage, especially since the ploy had been such a stunning failure. True, Suzanne had finagled a proposal from Joshua, but Lynna was now an ocean away and Daniel accepted the fact he was partially responsible for dooming Joshua to a lifetime of misery for naught. He hung his head guiltily.

             
“Have you gotten yourself with child, yet, dear sister? The wedding is tomorrow, you know.”

             
“I know when my own wedding is, Daniel Fletcher! And no,
I am
not carrying Joshua’s offspring, yet. However,” she added confidently, “after tomorrow I should have no difficulty resolving that minor problem.” She smiled dreamily in anticipation of the many nights to come in Joshua’s arms. “No, after tomorrow it
shouldn’t be too difficult at all.

             
The wedding was a simple affair. Suzanne had
begged and pleaded for a grand event
complete with an orchestra, dancing, and hundreds of guests. But
,
for once
,
Silas had put his foot down and gone against his daughter’s wishes
,
and her mother had agreed that due to her condition
,
the ceremony would not be an elaborate one.

             
Few people saw her in the virginal, white wedding
gown that had
been painstakingly stitched by Deirdre Chisholm. The gown was magnificent and had set Silas back a small fortune, but Suzanne and her parents were certain that there had never been a more beautiful bride. Unfortunately
,
her bridegroom saw nothing at all extraordinary about her. He made the requisite responses during the vows, but his mind was far, far away.

             
After the ceremony
,
with his wife’s arm entwined securely through his, Joshua drank to toast after toast, already feeling suffocated by her cloying nearness. He relaxed somewhat as the chilled liquid warmed his insides, but no matter how much he imbibed
,
he
could not
drown out the vis
ion of Lynna’s tear-stained visage
.

             
When at last Silas claimed his daughter for a dance
,
Joshua took the opportunity to slip
outside
unobserved. He had to get away
from the crowd, the music,
the heat
and his wife
.
Wife?
God, how d
id he allow this to happen
? As he turned the corner of the house
,
his eyes fell on Lynna and Judith’s cottage
.
Would she ever return? Should he be made to pay for the rest of his natural life for his foolish mistake? The thought of his child being raised by Suzanne’s hands alone was all the answer he needed. He
would not
wish
that fate on his worst enemy, and never on his own flesh and blood. He might be made to suffer a lifetime of misery, but his child would not.

             
Long before the festivities had e
nded
,
Joshua stumbled upstairs to their room with the help of his
wife
. Their room! He could hardly abide the notion of being in the same house
with the shrew. As she undressed him
, Suzanne let her hands wander slowly over his body
,
caressing him until they drew the desired response. Leaving her expensive wedding gown in a crumpled heap on the floor
,
she ignored the sheer peignoir that had been laid on her bed and stretched out be
side him. Pressing her slim body against his, she continued
moving her hands over his muscular frame until they reached his manhood, taking it firmly in hand.

             
Joshua gasped and grabbed her close as their lips met in a rough kiss. Passionate moans erupted from her throat as his lips slid down her neck to nibble at her small breast. Suzanne smiled deliciously as his hands slid over her hip, then up the curving waist. She now had all she needed in this life. No man had the power to make her body ache for his touch the way Joshua did and he was her husband, now and forever.

             
Suddenly, Joshua stopped and opened his eyes, realizing the woman in his bed was not Lynna. No, even in the dark, and officially drunk, he could differentiate between their bodies and vastly differing curves. “Suzanne!” he slurred drunkenly.

             
All of a sudden the events of the day came rushing back and he released her, repulsed by her touch. He may have been forced to marry her, but he damn well
did not
have to share her bed! Turning over
,
he closed his eyes
,
and his steady breathing confirmed to Suzanne that
he had
fallen asleep, on their wedding night, without consummating their vows.

             
However, being quite sure of her charm and appeal
,
Suzanne came to the erroneous conclusion that his rejection was to be blamed on the large quantity of wine and rum consumed during their reception. She was confident that was it. After all, what man of sound mind could fall asleep with her naked body pressed against him?
She had
let him shirk his duty tonight, but no more. She
could not
afford to waste precious time. He had to plant his seed in her and quickly
,
before everyone, but especially Joshua, learned of her deceit.

             
Much later, after Joshua was sure she was asleep, he crept silently from the house and
into the barn, where he
saddled his horse. Perhaps a ride at breakneck speed would help him dismiss his current plight
from mind
. How had he gotten himself into this sorry state of affairs? It was a query that reiterated over and over in his mind as he raced through the countryside. Married to a woman he despised, while the woman he truly lov
ed was... God only knows where.

             
He had asked Judith shortly after the wedding, pleaded with her
,
in fact
,
for Lynna’s whereabouts.
She had
looked at him with unmasked fury in her eyes and informed him that if Lynna had wanted him to know her destination
,
she certainly would have told him herself.

             
Nobody would tell him where she was. Suzanne, Daniel, Silas, and Mary pretended not to know her whereabouts. Even Jasmine
could not
be persuaded or tricked into revealing Lynna’s secret hiding place. He
had
ridden into Charleston in hopes of speaking with her
A
unt Gypsie, but although her house remained standing amid the rubble of the city
,
it was locked up tight as a drum and Gypsie was nowhere to be found. Thankfully, the earthquake had done little damage to Sea Grove or Cedar Hill.

             
Joshua resigned himself to the fact that L
ynna did not
wish to be found, not by him
,
anyway. He
could not
blame her for hating him. Hell, he hated himself. He gave the horse his
head
, not yet ready to return to his dearly
despised
wife, or her bed.

             
The horse raced with the wind
,
seeming to know where Joshua needed to go
,
and halted in front of the busy establishment where he had waited for his master so many times in the past. Going around to the back
,
Joshua made his way to the upstairs apartment unnoticed and made himself at home. He was pouring his third glass of brandy when Resa waltzed in.

             
“Joshua!” she exclaimed, as he looked to her like a small boy abou
t to be punished. “What are you
doing here?”

             
Giving her his glass of wine, he poured another. “Getting drunk...
er.”

             
Is this not your wedding night? Why, the entire town is abuzz and practically every unmarried female is bawling into her pillow tonight because Charleston’s most eligible bachelor is no more.”

             
“It is.”

             
“Then why are you not with your lovely bride?”

             
“
I have come to celebrate with you.” He raised
his glass
, but made
no effort to drink.
“To Mr. a
nd Mrs. Joshua
Jordan, who already have a jump on the ‘be fruitful and multiply’ bit.” He laughed harshly as he set his glass down and moved to take her
in his arms. “Ah, Resa, my love. Why did I marry her
?”

             
“Because you are a lusty devil, Joshua Jordan. I can attest to that.” She drew his head down to hers and smiled. “But if you were
not,
it would be such a shame.”

             
Joshua was
unable to resist those ruby red lips so close to his own. Although, even though the kiss was pleasant
,
it held none of the passion that Resa knew him to be capable of.

             
“
What’s
wrong, honey?” She was silent
as he told her his reason
for marrying Suzanne. When he finished
,
she asked what was most c
rucial in her mind, “What about
Lynna?”

             
“I
don’t
even know where she is. No one will tell me. They
a
re all against me, every last one of them!”

             
“So, you gave up the woman you love, to marry the woman who carries your offspring?” She agreed he was in a mess. Hell, anyone would be
,
married to that highfaluting bitch.

             
“Yes, that about sums it up.”

             
“Joshua, are you sure she carries your child?”

             
“Yes.” H
e looked at her cur
iously. “Strange, but Lynna
had
asked the
same question
.
Why would she lie? Her father, and especially her brother Daniel, assured me it was so.”

             
Resa’s unrestrained laughter filled the room. “
For
such a worldly man
,
you are most ignorant in the ways of women. Why would she lie
,
indeed?
I will
give you three reasons. One,
you are
one of the richest men in Charleston. Two,
you are
by far the most handsome and sexy man in the county.
”

             
He looked askance at her with a devilish grin and quirked one eyebrow toward the ceiling as if greatly affronted.

             
Resa giggled, unable to contain the laughter that bubbled forth at his teasing. It was good to know that even though his life was a debacle, he could still joke about it. “Okay, make that the most handsome man in the entire state of South Carolina.
And three, Suzanne Fletcher
’
s…
or…
Suzanne Jordan’s father would agree to anything she asked of him and you damn well know it.”