Dare To Love (27 page)

Before finding my stance, I cursed and spat
at him before running away. Gwendolyn was traipsing after me, but I
was so upset, I did not feel like talking to her just yet. She made
me angry, no; I was infuriated with her for leaving without me and
placing herself at risk. Just before I turned around to face her, I
noticed Lady Drummond observing the both of us. With one hand over
her mouth and the other on her midriff, her eyes were full of
conjecture.

Gwendolyn grabbed my shoulders; I spun around
to face her. Rage, ache and damage still choking me to death.
“What!” I yelled at her. “I don’t want to talk to you,” and then it
hit me. I was suddenly looking down into her shattered eyes. I was
taller than her and instantly, I was filled with this overwhelming
prominence.

Gwendolyn’s mouth opened wide, she was about
to mouth out the words…I watched her lips as they shaped. Her first
word was ‘I’, followed by the word ‘love’, or so I thought. She
shut her mouth tight and kept nodding her head. Before I knew it,
her arms were wrapped around my shoulders and she hugged me tight.
I closed my eyes from her compassionate embrace and draped my arms
around her as well. Her expressive body so close to mine, sent
shivers up and down my spine. It was so snug a fit, so warm; there
were even portions of her I had never felt before. Her bosoms for
one thing, just thinking about them pressed against my chest,
jutted parts of me.

“Thank you,” Gwendolyn whispered in my ear,
and then she let go. Oh God she let go! My body wanted that
closeness back! Her arms were free of me and I stood frozen
watching her run back to Gisleham.

I then eyed her mother, she smiled at me and
I stood there and stared at her loveliness. She was a beautiful
woman, breath taking, and she appeared to be moved by what she had
witnessed…

~~~~~

And then his wedding night…

They had to consummate the marriage, Thomas
remembered. Had to “close the deal” per his father’s instructions.
Otherwise, his father would instruct Jordan to compromise Gwendolyn
and the arrangement would be inescapable. Jordan would be
Gwendolyn’s husband…oh no, no, and no! Thomas had to transform into
someone else that night; had to be aggressive in order to make a
stubborn girl like Gwendolyn completely cower down. He gave her
direction, although a strict order, “you have to do what I say.” It
was not so hard to do; in fact, it felt quite natural, to be
assertive, to be so bold, and Gwendolyn seemed to recoil almost
immediately, changing her serious tune…

~~~~~

“Now, I’m going to kiss you,” I claimed next,
watching her lie still, unprepared. Gwendolyn chose me, and I was
going to make damn sure she was stuck with me.

“You are?”

She seemed surprised, but I didn’t care, I
was on a mission and kissing her first rather than violating her
body seemed the proper thing to do and more correct.

Lying on my side, I reached over and cradled
her face within the palm of my hand. Rubbing my thumb across her
mouth first, I soaked in the reality. She actually let me touch her
and my heart expanded with glee. I then leaned into her lure and
gently kissed her pucker. Her lips were nice, soft, and gently
pressed against mine. I remembered thinking why we never tried this
before. We were both certainly at that age where curiosity was our
ruler and we could have easily begun this pleasant contact long
before our forced matrimony.

She then wrapped her arms about my back and
the affect satisfied my need for her approval, her simple caresses
caused my lower regions to come alive. She began to explore my
shoulders and skin, which made matters intensify. Did she realize
what she was doing to me? I could not believe she was actually
curious about my body and I began to freely kiss her…everywhere and
anywhere. And, good Lord, I could not get enough of her…her
delicate touches were making my body do crazy things. I was
beginning to think I was going too fast for her, but as soon as I
opened up her mouth with my tongue, hers was there to caress back.
And, Oh God, the taste of her! She was so sweet, all around supple
and my body craved to get even closer. I wanted her naked now and
began yanking off her nightgown. Gwendolyn twitched only slightly
then helped me take the garment down.

My hands had a mind of their own, come to
think of it. Gwendolyn allowed me to explore her unclothed, which
was something I thought she would never allow me to do. Up her
neck, down her lower back to her buttocks. She was so velvety-soft,
so yielding and even allowed me to handle the parts of her that
intrigued me the most. Never in my wildest dreams could I have
imagined myself being drawn to that part of her anatomy, but I was,
and I could not stop touching her breasts. But then I felt her
hesitate, which made me stop, as I watched with round eyes her hand
reaching up to mine and guiding it back down to her skin. I traced
my finger around her nipple and was swelled with emotion.

“Oh God,” I whispered, kissing her lips ever
so softly, “You are so beautiful Gwendolyn, so sweet, my sweet,
sweet girl.” Every inch of her was satisfying my senses when I
suddenly felt her fingers running through my hair. My male
instincts took power and I kissed her intently before doing what my
brother said to do. Gwendolyn continued to kiss me back…and, oh
God, her wanting me that much, set my plan into action and I
entered her quickly. I felt her wince beneath me and I closed my
eyes expecting her to retaliate, but she didn’t? But I apologized
just in case, “I’m sorry…so sorry.”

And she said nothing. Just continued to close
her eyes and lie there, looking every bit of beautiful…even more so
now underneath me, so dear. This was it, my body could not take
much more and raw passion exploded. It came on so sudden…could not
seem to stop it…when a shuddering release erupted and spread
through my body that nearly paralyzed me. I was out of breath; I
had never felt anything like that before. Gwendolyn meant
everything to me and I could not wait to tell her how much I loved
her.

Her arms remained in the center of my
posterior, gently caressing my flesh with her fingertips. Savoring
the sweet taste of her skin, I closed my eyes in bliss, as she
reached up and cupped the back of my head.

I pulled away from her nestle and asked, “Did
it continue to hurt?”

“No,” she blushed, caressing the sides of my
face.

I smiled freely, “Want to do it again?”

She giggled, and then closed her eyes. “I was
just thinking the same thing,” I heard her say. I then thought
about the next three weeks and looked forward to each and every
moment spent within her arms. If she wanted, we could stay in bed
our whole trip. She brushed back hair that mottled my face and my
heart appeared to stop. She was just about to say something, the
words I have waited to hear, but cried instead. Tears bunged at her
eyes and dripped down the sides of her face. Alarmed, I began
wiping the wetness away.

“What is wrong Gwendolyn, tell me,” I asked,
kissing her tears away.

Gwendolyn wavered and looked deep into my
eyes. There it was again…my heart stopped a second time. It was in
her eyes, I could feel it, sense it, it was there—I knew it was
there! I bent forward and kissed her with all the affection I was
feeling at the moment and reopened the passion I felt before.
Little did I know, that would be the last time I got to touch her
and the memory of this night replayed in my mind over and over
wishing it were repeated, but knowing it could never be…

CHAPTER
TWENTY-SIX

Standing on the dock, on solid ground, Thomas
surveyed the many clipper ships anchored at Le Havre, 170 foot,
massive beautés. Measuring 33 feet in breadth with a 19 foot depth,
the 907 ton ships had jutting stems with a razor-sharp bow that
flared out in concave curves. Capable of packing 1,100 tons of
cargo, the ship’s hulls were full-bodied with a rounded turn of the
bilge. Concentrating on that darn red, white and blue American flag
waiving in the breeze up above him, Thomas shook his head in
defeat. He had to start building larger ships, he realized. The
bloody Yankees were gaining the lead.

Thomas and Devin were both hesitant to be in
France, just a few years prior, the British signed the Treaty of
Amiens, thus setting the terms of peace which included the
withdrawal of British troops from several colonial territories
recently occupied. The peace between France and Britain was uneasy
and short-lived. The monarchies of Europe were reluctant to
recognize a republic as they feared the ideas of the revolution
might be exported to them. In 1805, Britain convinced Austria and
Russia to join a Third Coalition against France. Napoleon knew the
French fleet could not defeat the Royal Navy and tried to lure it
away from the English Channel in the optimism a Spanish or French
fleet could take control of the Channel long enough for French
armies to cross and invade England. However, because Austria and
Russia had prepared an invasion of France, he had to change his
plans and turn his attention to his own country. The newly formed
Grande Armée secretly marched to Germany and on October 20, 1805,
it surprised the Austrians at Ulm, but the next day Britain’s
victory at the Battle of Trafalgar meant the Royal Navy gained
control of the seas. A year later, Bonaparte would wage economic
war with an attempt to enforce an European commercial boycott of
Britain calling it the “Continental System”. It had little
success.

Devin and Thomas immediately transformed into
the roles they were about to play. Being well known throughout the
ports of France already it was easy to ask questions without
bringing on suspicion. Through their many contacts within the
maritime realm, the men learned that Anne had been Bruneau’s
mistress for years but was then discarded for a prettier face.
Monsieur Bruneau was a distant cousin to Empress Josephine and Anne
had been prepared for one of the Empress’ confidants and had been
very well guarded.

The Palace of Versailles was a royal chateau,
a symbol of the system of absolute monarchy. From 1682, when King
Louis XIV moved from Paris until the royal family was forced to
return to the capital in 1789, the court of Versailles was the
centre of political power in France. When Thomas and Devin arrived
at the Palace of Versailles, they were detoured by yet another
obstacle. Napoleon never stayed there, neither did the Empress and
her court and the two lords were then directed to
Fontainebleau.

Thomas then met with Captain Andrassy, a
chatty man who held high rank in Napoleon’s legion. Through him,
Thomas learned that there were rumors that Napoleon was in need of
an heir and it became apparent that if he were killed, the French
Empire would collapse. Through all the chaos of the most major
elemental necessity, Napoleon decided to divorce Josephine and she
in turn, fled to her chateau at Malmaison.

The Chateau de Malmaison was a country house
just about eight miles west of central Paris. Josephine bought the
manor house for herself and her husband when he was fighting the
Egyptian Campaign. Malmaison was a run-down estate that encompassed
nearly 150 acres of woods and meadows. Bonaparte expressed fury at
Josephine for purchasing such an expensive house with the money she
had expected him to bring back from the campaign. The house, for
which she had spent well over 300,000 francs, needed extensive
renovations and she spent a fortune doing so. Josephine built a
heated orangery large enough for 300 pineapple plants and animals
of all sorts were allowed to roam free among the grounds; and, when
it was done, Josephine was in the company of kangaroos, black
swans, zebras, sheep, gazelles, ostriches, a seal, antelopes and
llamas to name a few. After the divorce, Josephine received
Malmaison in her own right and remained there until her death in
1814.

Anne was not with Josephine at Malmaison, she
was being held back to prepare for the new Empress, Austrian
Archduchess, Marie Louise. Thomas and Devin were then sent back to
the Palace at Versailles and to the Tuileries palace to meet with
the Grand Marshal of the Palace, General Duroc.

General Geraud Duroc, Duke of Friuli, was an
agreeable fellow in terms of reputation. He was responsible for the
measures taken to secure Napoleon’s personal safety, whether in
France or on his campaigns and he directed the minutest details of
the imperial household. He looked upon Thomas’ peerage as an honor
to be acquainted with him. He was well aware of the Hollinger
Commerce Company and their many vessels created for Britain and the
Royal Navy and wanted to strike a deal with its Chief Officer to
set up berth in France. Business was business, and with all the
rumors floating around that the French would soon flee to British
shores, Thomas decided it would be beneficial to his thriving
corporation. General Duroc confessed that he was sensitive to
Burneau’s mistresses, but was completely unaware that Anne had been
stolen from her family. Admirable as he was, General Duroc
commanded Anne’s release immediately and the two actors entered the
French Parliament awaiting Anne’s freedom.

“Jordan!”

Thomas whipped his head around to greet the
Yank who apparently thought he was his older sibling. They were
standing in an open corridor, lavishly decorated in marble, gold
and oddly enough, Roman statutes. As not to bring any further
attention to them, General Duroc asked His Grace if he could await
Anne’s release amongst the other foreigners in the Compensation
Room.