Rapture's Tempest (21 page)

Annabelle did not protest as Wade kissed her ardently, but her thoughts were on Jim and how exciting it would be to know him fully as a man.

Satisfied that she would one day be only his, Wade released her and strode from the room, intent on ending this masquerade as quickly as possible.

After she heard the front door close, Annabelle returned to her dressing table and began her toilet, anxious to look her best for the night to come…with Jim.

“Here’s the coffee you wanted,” Renee told Jim as she came bustling into the room with a heavily laden tray. “And a few goodies to tide you over.”

“Thanks.” Jim leaned forward to accept a cup from her.

“Marshall should be right back. He had to run back to the office to pick up something, but that was almost an hour ago. You don’t mind waiting for him, do you? I know he wanted to talk with you.”

“No. I don’t mind at all. You know I enjoy your company as much, if not more, than I do his.” He grinned.

Renee graced him with a loving smile. “You still know just the right thing to say to make me feel good.”

“I’m glad. I’ve always wanted you to be happy.” Their eyes met in mutual understanding.

“I know,” she told him and then quickly changed the subject. “Would you like to stay and eat with us?”

“I’d love to, but I’m dining with Annabelle this evening.” He took a deep warming drink of the hot coffee and sat back again.

“That’s nice. How is Annabelle? I haven’t seen her since the Taylors’ ball.”

“She’s just fine,” Jim replied almost indifferently and then
changed the subject. “Did Mother and Father go back out to Cedarhill?”

“Yes, they left a couple of days ago. They wanted to make the trip while the roads were clear. Dorrie went, too.”

“No wonder it’s so quiet around here. Where’s Roger?”

“Playing next door. He should be coming home soon.”

“Good. I haven’t seen him in a while.”

“He was just asking about you last week. I know he’s going to be glad you’re here.” Renee settled in the chair opposite him. “So, what’s new? How did your trip go?” she asked, her concern real.

“The trip was successful.”

His uninformative answers always irritated Renee, but she knew he was limited in what he could say about their shipping arrangements. “Will you be in town long?”

“I’m not sure. I hope, at least a week.”

“Well, good. If you’re still in town, you and Annabelle can join us Friday night.

“What’s Friday night?”

“The Montgomerys are having a party.”

“Are you sure we’ll be welcome?”

“I don’t see why not. You know your mother and Clara are good friends, and the invitation was addressed to ‘the Westlakes.’”

“All right. I’ll tell Annabelle tonight to plan on going if I’m still in port.”

“Good. The rest of the family will be back by then, too, so we’ll all make a night of it.”

“Sounds fine.”

“What sounds fine?” Marshall questioned as he came into the room.

“Hello, darling. I didn’t hear you come in.” Renee lifted her face to accept Marshall’s kiss. “I was just inviting Jim and Annabelle to go with us Friday night to the Montgomerys’.”

“Can you join us?”

“I’d like to, if Mark doesn’t send me on another wild-goose chase.”

Renee excused herself. “Well I’ll leave you two alone for a while. I’m sure you have plenty of business to discuss…as always.”

When Renee had gone from the room, Marshall closed the door to ensure their privacy.

“Have you found out anything?” Jim asked with restrained urgency.

“No. I’m sorry. I’ve checked everywhere I could think of, and there’s no record of a Del Murphy in the city of St. Louis.”

Jim sighed heavily, “Damn…I was hoping you’d have some news for me.”

“I was, too.”

“I’ve been giving a lot of thought to what we discussed before the last trip, and I think you’re right.”

“You mean about Murphy being a spy?”

“It’s the only thing that makes sense.”

“If that is the case, then I doubt that we’ll ever locate her. She’s probably long gone by now.”

“I know.” Jim nodded a little sadly.

“Then you’re content to stay engaged to Annabelle?”

“The woman I thought was Murphy doesn’t exist,” he said, a certain coldness returning to his voice.

“I see.” Marshall hesitated. “Are you going to be in town long this time?”

“I won’t know for sure until I meet with Mark, but the men need a few days off, and so do I.”

“I agree. You’ve had a lot on your mind lately, and it’ll do you good to take it easy for a while.”

“That’s exactly what I intend to do, beginning right now.” Jim stood up and started for the front door.

“Jim…” Marshall started to say more about Murphy, but he didn’t know how to begin.

Jim turned to face him. “What?”

“Have a good time.” Marshall offered lamely, sensing that his brother did not want to discuss his elusive “cabin boy” any further.

“Right.” Jim frowned at Marshall’s confusing remarks as he left the house and started on his way back to the steamer.

It was exactly six thirty when Jim arrived back at the Morgans’ for dinner. The maid let him in and directed him into the front parlor where Annabelle was waiting for him.

“Good evening.” Her voice was throaty as she came to him. “I’ve taken the liberty of pouring you a scotch.” She handed him a crystal tumbler filled with a generous portion of the amber liquid.

“Thank you.” He kissed her lightly as he took the glass from her. “You look lovely tonight.”

Though demurely styled, the royal blue gown Annabelle had donned for this evening fit her in such a way that it emphasized her tiny waist and the fullness of her breasts. “Thank you.” She had chosen this dress purposefully for her seduction of Jim, knowing how it enhanced her air of elegant innocence. “Are you ready to eat?”

“If you are.” He sipped from his drink as they moved off toward the dining room.

The meal was delicious and afterward they settled in the parlor to enjoy their time alone. Annabelle kept talking of the wonderful life they were going to have once they were married, but for some reason Jim couldn’t explain, her words left him on edge.

He stayed on a while longer, sharing several passionate kisses with her, before he realized he needed to leave.

Annabelle was surprised that he didn’t want to stay later. She’d hoped to work her wiles on him tonight.

“Are you sure you have to go?” she pouted.

“I need to get back on board. You know business comes first.”

Annabelle’s smile was slow and sensuous as she regarded
Jim in the soft light, his striking good looks stirring her and making her eager to be in his arms. “When the war is over and our lives get back to normal, we could dine like this every night.”

Damn!
He thought viciously,
Where was she?
Unless he found her and convinced himself completely that she was guilty, he knew the memory of her so freely given love would haunt him forever. She had become an obsession to him, and he had to locate her, so he could put his mind at rest. Until then, he knew there would be no real peace in his life. And certainly not in Annabelle’s arms.

His determination to find Murphy having returned, Jim felt inordinately better. And though the change in his mood puzzled him, he did not attribute it to the reborn hope of possibly seeing her again. Instead, he merely suspected that he felt better because he knew the cause of his problem and he knew now how to solve it. Once he had seen her again, he was sure he would be able to dismiss her from his thoughts and go on with his life with Annabelle.

It was late and the Westlake house was quiet. Lying together, wrapped in the warmth of their love, Renee and Marshall courted sleep.

“Darling?” she said softly, nestling against his side. “What’s really bothering Jim?”

Marshall was jarred by her perceptiveness. “What do you mean?”

“He looks…I don’t know…unhappy, maybe. Anyway, I think there’s something going on that I don’t know about.” She raised up on an elbow to stare down at him.

He grimaced. “You’re too smart.”

“Don’t flatter me in hopes of distracting me. And I have a feeling you know what it is.”

“I do,” he confessed uneasily. “But I don’t know if Jim would appreciate my talking about it yet.”

“Why? Is it that bad?”

“It’s not bad at all, really…” Marshall hesitated.

“Well?” What ever was going on sounded most intriguing, and Renee plumped her pillow and sat back up against the headboard in expectation of her husband’s story.

“Do you remember Murphy? Jim’s cabin boy?”

“Yes, although I never really met him. I just heard him out in the hall that night…”

“Well, it turns out that Murphy was a girl in disguise.”

“A girl?” Renee couldn’t hide her surprise.

“Maybe I should say a woman. At any rate, from what I can figure out, she fell in love with Jim while she was working for him. And on the night of his engagement party, she made love with him.”

“She what?”

“Evidently Jim was well in his cups and didn’t think it too odd that a woman climbed into his bed. At least not until the next morning.”

“Oh, no.”

“He was furious and before he had time to calm down and talk with her about it, she had disappeared.”

“Poor Jim. And he’s been looking for her ever since?”

“Yes. I’ve even been looking, but there’s no record of a Del Murphy anywhere. It’s a dead end.”

“Surely, she couldn’t have just disappeared completely?”

“That’s what we thought. But the more things fall into place, the more suspicious her behavior becomes.”

“Suspicious? What are you talking about?”

“She may have been a spy. Right after she disappeared, Mark told Jim that the word was out that we were carrying the gold. Murphy had access to those contracts the night that she came by our house.”

“Then you have to find her. If not for Jim, then to help Mark.”

“We’ve been trying, but so far we haven’t had any luck.”

“But where could she have gone?”

“I wish we knew, love. I wish we knew.” He pulled her down
beside him then and kissed her deeply. “Now are you satis-fled?”

“After one kiss?” she teased, catching him off guard. “Never!”

And with that, Marshall proceeded to satisfy her completely.

Renee lay in a half sleep, her mind still subtly active. As she rested between consciousness and forgetfulness, the name was haunting her—Del Murphy, Del Murphy…but she could put no face to that voice that had seemed so familiar. Finally drifting off, Renee dreamed of parties and dancing and of Jim and his elusive cabin boy.

Delight stood before her full-length mirror, critically surveying her own reflection. “Well, Rose, what do you think?”

“I have never seen you look lovelier.”

Her answer was reassuring, and Delight smiled in relief. Turning to her friend, she hugged her. “Thanks.”

“You don’t have to thank me. It’s the truth.”

Swirling, Delight enjoyed the feel of the full skirt as it swayed gracefully with her movements. “Well, I guess I’d better be getting downstairs.”

“Your mother and Martin went down about twenty minutes ago,” Rose told her as she parted the drapes and looked down as a carriage halted below. “And your first guests have just arrived.”

Delight hurried toward the door.

“Delight?” Rose’s voice held a note of warning, and Delight
looked back at her questioningly. “Stay away from Martin tonight.”

“I fully intend to. I just hope he doesn’t press me in front of everybody like he did at the Taylors’.”

“He’ll probably try.”

“I know.” Delight was not anxious to fight off Martin’s subtle advances again. “I’ll just have to be ready for him.” And with that she was gone, unaware that the events of the next few hours would change her entire life.

Martin was standing in the front hall with Clara, greeting guests, when Delight started down the stairs.

“Delight, darling.” Clara smiled her approval. “You look marvelous.”

Pivoting slowly, lest he seem too anxious, Martin let his gaze wander up the circular staircase to his stepdaughter. A wave of heated longing shook him at the first sight of her. God! How could he be with Delight all night and keep the desire he had for her under control?

“Delight, my dear.” He met her at the bottom of the steps and extended his hand to her. “Come and greet our guests.”

Taking his hand, she allowed him to escort her to her mother’s side.

Jim sat with Marshall and Renee in companionable silence as their carriage made the short trip to the Morgan home to pick up Annabelle. The entire week had been an exercise in frustration for him. Originally, Mark had scheduled them to leave port on Wednesday, but the gold shipment had been delayed and they had been forced to remain for an extra week. Not that Jim had minded, for it had given him the time he needed to continue his search for Murphy, but each new avenue he’d explored in his quest to locate her had been a dead end.

Thwarted at every turn and almost ready to admit defeat, he had found new energy once again when Marshall had suggested bringing in the authorities. Despite the fact that she
very well might be a Confederate agent, the memory of her vibrant loving held him captive, and he knew that he had to be the one to find her. And when he did…

Jim realized then that he had been so caught up in the search that he hadn’t decided what to do if he ever really did locate her. The possibility of her involvement with the spies was very real. But surely, Murphy would have been more effective in that capacity if she’d remained and fed information about the actual shipments to them, rather than leaving as abruptly as she had. Confused, yet more resolved than ever, Jim continued on in his single-minded pursuit of his elusive cabin boy.

To Annabelle, he had said not a word, for he felt there was absolutely no reason for her to know his business. And, while he had spent every night in her company dining and attending various social functions, he had spent every day tracking down leads and investigating all possible Southern connections, in hopes of turning up some new information about Murphy.