Rescued (Flowers of the Bayou) (11 page)

Heat seemed to course all the way from her head to her toes; unfolding the paper fan she had made earlier Amelia made good use of it, fanning her face swiftly. What in the world had just happened? That was not supposed to happen, shouldn’t have happened. It was damn near against the law. Some things were just not meant to be handled. A person can only handle so much in his or her lifetime and that, was too much.

It felt so good, so extraordinarily good. Which was another reason why she knew it was undeniably wrong. Closing her eyes Amelia let the memory of what happened only moments ago once again take hold of her mind and senses and just as quickly as they came she dismissed them. He must not have been in his right mind—after all it was a party, he surely had a drink or two. That had to be it. Jordan Bradford was drunk.

“What have you been doing Amelia? You look all hot and bothered.” Jessie stepped back from her friend to get a good look; her cheeks were turning ten different shades of red.

Letting her eyes connect the voice with the face, Amelia let out a breath. “Stop sneaking up behind folks Jessie.”

“Oh hush up. What did you do go out back to steal a few kisses under the moonlight with that old beau of yours?”

Lord if she only knew, casting her eyes skyward Amelia took her friend by the hand leading them back to all the busy bodies.

“Well Amelia you gonna answer or not.”

“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you, so no, this one I’m keeping solely to myself.”

“You aint a bit of good. We’d tell you if something wonderful happened.” This came from Lenora who looked at her with a pleading face.

“Who said it was something wonderful.” They were too nosy for their own good.

“That silly smile ‘bout a mile and a half wide on your face.” Lenora said.

“Come on Amelia we swear we won’t tell a soul.” Jessie crossed her heart trying to convince her it was so.

Amelia on the other hand stood fast to her decision, she knew better than to tell. It would be all in the streets by the end of the week no matter how hard they tried to keep it quiet. Lorraine would have her hide for sure if that happened. No she’d keep this all to herself. “What were you off doing while I was away? Didn’t I see you over by the table with Wilson, Jessie?”

“You saw no such thing.” Jessie defended, Amelia knew darn well she’d rather cut off her legs and gouge out her eyes before she admit she’d spent a moment with him. In truth she’d been with her close friend Anthony explaining to him how she planned to skin Wilson as soon as she got the chance.

“Are you sure, he’s over there eyeing you as if what I’m saying is so.” Nodding in the direction of the man in question, Amelia laughed out loud as Jessie stuck her tongue out at him like a ten-year-old schoolgirl. She had successfully turned the tables.

“Why you acting like this Jess, go on over and say hey.” Lenora said “Everybody who knows you know you like him and he likes you too. You’re both just too stubborn to say so.”

It was true everybody did know the two were crazy for one another. Amelia gave Jessie a little push forward. “You can’t stay mad at him forever for not asking you here with him, he’s too shy for that. Go on and be the one to put you both out of your misery.”

“I don’t know, wouldn’t hurt none to make him suffer a bit more now would it?”

“Jessie.” Amelia warned. “You play too hard to get he might find someone else. You’ve been mean to that man for a week.”

“Oh please he is too scared to try to court another girl. Jessie would beat him senseless.” Lenora said through giggles.

“Damn right I would.”

“Just go.” Taking her hand and leading her through the sea of people to the table Amelia smiled warmly at Wilson, said her hello and left the two to stare at each other nervously. It was a mean thing to do she didn’t know how she’d react if she suddenly found herself in a situation like that. Either way it was for the best. Jessie might think that she and Wilson were meant for each other but a wise person could see that she was really in love with Anthony and he loved her to. They just didn’t know it yet. So the sooner Wilson and Jessie figured out the were like oil and water together the better.

Parting her way through the vast herd of people she stopped for a moment trying to spot Lenora, she wasn’t where they had left her. Biting her bottom lip she stood on tiptoe so as to see over the top of one particularly tall group’s head. No Lenora in that direction either. “Your fault for leaving without her anyway.” She said to no one but herself. Giving it one last go, she pushed her way toward the back of the house and sure enough that’s where Lenora was but she wasn’t alone, she was dancing with the man that she had set her hat off for, David.

She didn’t like being left alone but she was happy for both her friends and their beaus. Things were as they should be. Now the task of finding somewhere to sit out the wait. If Morgan had come she’d have spent the night hanging off his arm as he played a game of poker in the back. Being by herself for a moment outranked that a thousand times.

Besides, tonight had turned out better than she could have ever hoped. Just like Jessie said something wonderful had happened she thought, smiling a smile that went right down into her bones.

CHAPTER NINE

Jasper McMahan had paced the office floor going on more than a half an hour and Jordan still hadn’t shown. He’d been biding his time trying to figure out how best to bring up a certain event that occurred last week. Sipping his port Jasper replayed what he was going to say over in his mind.

Opening his study door Jordan was greeted by the sight of his close friend “What brings you here today, better yet what do you want?”

Jasper let a wide grin spread across his face. “Is that the way to treat your best friend?” Setting aside the glass Jasper took the seat across from the large desk Jordan now rested in. “Late night?”

Jordan grinned over at his friend. “Of course.”

“Of course you say.” Getting out of his chair Jasper went to stand a good distance away. He was a big man and could hold his own but he knew Jordan and any good man could admit when he was defeated or could be defeated. Jordan could best him in a fight.

But it was just a safety precaution after all. He was planning on pricking Jordan’s nerves today. All in good sport of course, what else were friends for? “How is that girl, you know the one, your sister loves her. Margaret’s friend, what’s her name again? Amelia is it?”

“You know her name is Amelia, what are you getting at?”

“How’s she been since the cotillion?”

“I’m not sure, she is barely here anymore. I’ve been looking for another maid to help.” Taking out a cigar Jordan lit the tip and blew out a small puff of smoke.

“Margaret voiced that you might have an interest in her.” Jasper nearly choked with laughter at the cold stare that was being directed at him. “I never really figured her to be your type.” He managed to bark out.

Reclining back Jordan kicked his feet up onto his desk ignoring Jasper completely. He had business to attend to. By the end of the month he would be setting sail for England.

Jasper quieted his laughter until there was no more than a faint smile upon his lips. He was getting nowhere with this. Sometimes it was easier to tame a wild boar than it was to get under Jordan Bradford’s skin.

The main reason he had brought the subject up was Margaret. The two of them had been getting some fresh air when they stumbled upon Jordan and the young Ms. Marriott engaged in a kiss. She had been so upset after seeing it she wanted to go straight home. Telling him the whole time how it was wrong for Jordan to take advantage of an innocent woman. That he should care more about others and stop thinking only of himself, and also that he shouldn’t even carry on with a woman like Amelia if not for obvious reason, but for the sheer fact that she was soon to be married. “Margaret would like to have some words with you, consider it fair warning.”

“Tell Margaret she needs to mind her own affairs and stay out of mine.”

Jasper drained his port quickly. “You tell her yourself, this has nothing to do with me. I try to avoid war when I can.” Taking his seat once more he continued.” She does have a point Jordan; you would be doing yourself a favor and her. You know better.”

“For God sake what are you babbling on about? I said the woman had a nice smile I didn’t know it was a crime.”

“You also kissed her.”

Jordan fell silent for a moment. Never once did he contemplate being seen. “It was just a kiss; I didn’t take her back to a barn and ravish her.”

“That’s not what I’m getting at.”

Jordan stared his friend in the face and let a smile come back to his face. “I know she’s colored. I know exactly what you’re getting at.”

Turning toward the window Jordan let another puff of smoke waft out into the room. “No need to worry. I don’t want her.”

“If you say so.” Jasper ran his hand through his hair. He knew Jordan almost better than he knew himself. “Just make sure that when you do want her, you hightail it into Melanie’s arms instead.”

CHAPTER TEN

I’ll say I’m ill, I am ill it wouldn’t be a lie. Amelia turned over in her straw bed for at least the thousandth time she was sure. Her mind just refused to run straight whenever she looked Lorraine in the face a deep blush would come to her cheeks and she felt as if the world could see into her soul and would know just what it was she did last week.

It wasn’t as if she had committed the worst of sins. She wouldn’t even say that it was a sin; no it wasn’t a sin at all just a very big mistake. The worst mistake she’d ever made. Still she couldn’t use that as an excuse. She could just picture it now. “Lorraine I cannot go with you to church today because I have made a mistake.” Wasn’t that what church was for? To ask forgiveness for one’s mistakes.

Then again maybe she had it all wrong. Maybe for the last several days Lorraine wasn’t asking what was the matter because she figured there was something amiss, maybe she really thought she was sick. That was it, she was sick. Sick in the mind or body, all the same it was sick. “Lorraine, I don’t think I can make it to church today I’m feeling a little down.”

Placing her hand on her niece’s forehead Lorraine then placed the other upon hers. “You don’t feel hot”

“No…” Amelia cast her golden eyes skyward in mock shock. “Well it’s mostly stomach pains.”

“Hmm.” Lorraine disappeared into the kitchen, that child was no sicker than the sun was green. Nonetheless she wouldn’t say anything. If she didn’t feel like attending the church service that was to be on Amelia’s conscious not her own. Still she would fetch her a cool glass of water.

Taking the cup from the cupboard Lorraine decided to pour a glass of fresh lemonade rather than water. It might just perk her up. She couldn’t put her finger on why Amelia was acting so funny the last couple of days. She blamed most of it on jitters which she understood. But it wasn’t as if it was news she’d just found out.

Wiping the subject from her mind Lorraine made her way back into the living room where Amelia now sat slouched over in a chair. Handing her the glass Lorraine gave her one more once over before giving her a disapproving glare. “I will be back shortly, I want this house spotless you hear.”

Waiting impatiently for the tell-tale soft clicking of the door shutting. Amelia hopped from her position as soon as it sounded. She was going to drive herself out of her mind’s wits if she kept this up. She had sent a note to the Bradford house saying she had come down with a cold and wouldn’t be able to come in to work. Completely forgetting the fact that she had been allowed to work at the Bradford’s just three days a week for going to the party and not asking permission.

Aunt Lorraine might need money but she felt that soon enough she would be set for life and could deal with having Amelia about a few extra days. Even if that mean the girl would be bringing in less money.

It was all for the best in the end she figured, after all she just couldn’t picture strolling in the house preparing breakfast, lunch and dinner as if nothing had happened. Something had indeed happened.

Shutting her eyes tight Amelia groaned in desperation it was coming near close to having a second job keeping Jordan Bradford off the brain and even harder a job keeping it all to herself.

Kisses now were taking on a whole new meaning. She never even knew that a kiss could make the world around you feel like it was spinning. Matter of fact, she never knew that a kiss could make your whole body feel as if it had just caught fire. Morgan never made her feel those things.

Amelia groaned loudly at the remembrance of that name. No, Morgan no doubt would never make her feel as if the earth was shaking when he was around. Of course that didn’t really matter one bit. He would give her a home, a name, maybe even a few children to call her own and that had to be enough. And maybe down the road, she could learn to love him, but if not who needed extravagant kisses anyway. Kisses, there she was again. She was never going to let it go, no matter how hard she tried to push Jordan out of her mind, he would always find a way to creep right back in and take top priority.

Well the least she could do was get dressed. She needed to get started cleaning if she wasn’t going to let Lorraine come home to an untidy house. Around noon she would throw on her old scratchy wool dress and go outside to dig around in the garden. Sighing Amelia looked around her; she was quickly becoming tired of what was her life. Spotting a large brown package at the foot of her bed, Amelia smiled to herself. She hadn’t even opened it yet. It was the dress she had ordered it came all the way from New York. There was no time like the present to try it on.

Tearing away the brown paper, Amelia laughed at meeting yet another layer of it. At least they didn’t want it sent damaged. Pulling away the last of it, she carefully pulled out and unfolded the material on her bed.

“Oh my.” It was more than what she had expected she had to say. She had gotten more than her money’s worth with this dress. It was of pale yellow, and all around the hem they had embroidered golden flowers that faded out and then reappeared at the bodice. It was done in the new more modern style so there would be no hoop, she would need her crinoline for the tons of layers that fell down behind it.