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“You secret is safe with me, if that’s what you came to talk about. I won’t let on that you are one and the same as the highwayman, who kidnapped me. I know what I know, even if you didn’t outright admit to it.” She could still imagine the feel of his lips moving over hers, warm and velvet soft.

Folding her hands in her lap, she continued to stare him down. “No one let on during breakfast that they missed me during supper last night. So, if luck holds, no one will ever be the wiser that we spent the night under the same roof. You see, my parents decided to take a short trip to visit some friends yesterday and they haven’t returned yet. They’d mentioned that they might stay on for a bit, but I guess I forgot.”

André’s pulse accelerated at her announcement that her parents had gone out of town and that she intended to keep his secret. But could he trust her? And why did it rankle his ego that she dismissed him so casually?

He favored her with a mocking bow. “The promise to keep my secret is rather gracious of you. But what made you decide to absolve me of my duty as a gentleman after having spent the night under the same roof? Most young ladies would jump at the chance to marry me. Why not you? And how can I be sure you won’t let it slip that I am the notorious highwayman?”

Curious, he lowered himself to the ground and quirked a dark brow in question at her.

Plucking a blade of grass, he twirled it idly between his fingers as he waited for her answer.

Spearing him with a dismissive glare, she cocked her head to one side. “You, sir, are neither a gentleman nor would you know the meaning of duty. I on the other hand do not promise anything I do not intend to guard with my very life. As to your question why I am not clamoring to marry you, I should think it is obvious. I don’t want to be shackled to a man whom I don’t love and who would in turn not love me.”

She got to her feet so fast and unexpectedly that it took André a moment to come to grips with the fact that she meant to leave him without further discussion. Grunting his displeasure, he rose and made a grab for her.

He only meant to spin her around and take her to task about her brusque accusation about his not being a gentleman. But when he spun her to face him, he saw the sheen of tears in her eyes.

Contrition tugged at his conscience. Intending only to comfort her, he pulled her closer and enfolded her in his strong embrace. When he saw her lips part in anticipation, he dipped his mouth to hers and captured her lips in what was meant to be a tender kiss. But the feel of her softness against his hard chest, the scent of her tickling his nostrils, drove him past reason.

He plundered her mouth ruthlessly, feeding off her artless response with a fervor that shocked him.

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47

Stormy knew in the recesses of her mind that she should stop him, but his lips did such marvelous things to her insides. Something untamed skittered through her and settled in the depth of her belly, clenching and pulsing with a life of its own.

She moaned and worked her fingers inside of André’s shirt, caressing the smooth warm flesh of his torso in ever widening circles. Muscles rippled against her sensitive palm and she pressed her thighs together in an attempt to still the throbbing that seemed to increase with every passing minute.

André made every effort to stop. He tried to pull away from her, tried to hide the extent of his arousal that strained against the tight front of his breeches. God, he wanted her. Her scent took on what she offered.

A smidgen of restraint kept him from doing just that. He’d been taught young how to please a woman by the most experienced courtesans Paris had to offer; his father had seen to that. He knew how to pleasure a woman and he knew how it felt to be pleasured without having to give back. He had made love to women of different hues and backgrounds, often in daring settings and his idea of lovemaking had become rather jaded.

One thing he had never experienced was the gift of a woman’s virginity. And he did not have to ask Stormy, he could tell by her clumsy attempts at kissing, her guileless reaction just how innocent she was. No, he would not take her here on the grass, though his manhood clamored for release and his mind teased him with images of the bliss he would experience once he had entered her.

Brusquely, he pushed her away and held her at arm’s length. “You are playing with fire, Stormy. You should never be alone with a man, who felt no compunction when he kidnapped you, whose character you rightly question.” His eyes turned the color of a summer night and he bit out, “You should never be alone with any man.” The thought of her in the arms of someone else drove him to distraction.

Stormy raised her eyes to his and was stunned by the turmoil she saw in them. Shame suffused her and a blush crept up her delicate throat. Her body still throbbed with unrequited desire and she lashed out the only way she knew.

She slapped him hard. “You cad,” she spat and turned to run.

André’s cheek stung from her slap, but his heart hurt worse from the contempt he had seen in her eyes. He sank back to the ground and leaned against the trunk of the oak tree. He should be elated that he didn’t have to offer marriage. He should be proud that he’d let her walk away untouched. So, why did he feel like the lowest of creatures and why did he ache from her rejection?

STORMY HEIDE KATROS

48

Bellingshire Manor loomed grander than Trevor would have expected. It surprised him that it only carried the title of baron with its entailment. The home sat on a gentle hill surrounded by beds overflowing with a wealth of late season roses.

The curved driveway brought Trevor and Annemarie’s carriage right to the palatial double doors that were overshadowed by a lovely porte cochère, which protected visitors from the weather.

Before the driver could properly bring the carriage to a halt and rein in his team of horses, the doors opened wide and William Cormac and his wife hurried forward, welcoming smiles on their faces.

Trevor jumped down, ignoring the steps the coachman pulled down for his comfort, and exclaiming his joy he rushed into the open arms of his friends.

Annemarie waited patiently for him to return and help her down, while she studied the older couple from her vantage point. Even though they were a good distance from each other and had never made physical contact, Annemarie felt an odd pull toward them.

“Come meet my wife, Annemarie.” Trevor literally dragged his friends nearer, anxious to introduce the people, who made his dream of owning a plantation become reality to the woman who completed the dream by marrying him.

He held his hand out to Annemarie, who dipped her head momentarily to make sure she would not miss the steps on her way down.

A smile on her lips, she lifted her face. Shocked, Annemarie could do nothing more but stare in horror. Her hostess had fainted dead away.

“Good heavens, Trevor, why is her husband just standing there staring like a cow at a new barn door?” Annemarie hurried forward and knelt by the unconscious woman’s side, favoring the husband with a pointed glare, before she realized that William Cormac had evidently gone into shock.

“Trevor, get some help. We need to take Mrs. Cormac inside. I have never seen anyone faint like this.” She gently patted the woman’s face. “Please, dear, wake up, please.” It tore at her heart that something like this happened just as they were about to be introduced.

Trevor hesitated to do Annemarie’s bidding, because he feared that William Cormac would follow his wife to the ground. Why, the man’s face had gone paper white.

Trevor’s gaze traveled from William Cormac to Annemarie, because his host continued to stare at her as if he were seeing a ghost. He felt uncomfortable. The whole scenario seemed surreal. He’d so looked forward to visiting his old friends and to introduce them to Annemarie.

He’d expected a joyful reunion. Instead it had turned into a nightmare right before his eyes.

Trevor was about to take a step forward, when William Cormac’s hand came to rest on his sleeve. “Marry is coming around. She is extremely sensitive and I believe the shock was simply too much for her.”

Trevor stared at his host in confusion. “But we had sent a messenger. You knew we were coming.”

STORMY HEIDE KATROS

49

“Yes, we did.” William turned his full gaze on Trevor. “We just didn’t realize that your wife would resemble our long-lost daughter.”

Trevor paled. With a start he remembered the small framed miniature he had found in the attic after the Cormac’s had left to go back to England. He’d kept it, because it reminded him of Annemarie, at the time when he had thought she drowned at sea. He shook his head. The idea that there could be any connection to their long-lost daughter simply seemed too far-fetched.

Marry Cormac struggled to sit up, refusing any help. “I am quite all right, thank you.”

She wiped her face with a lace handkerchief she produced from the sleeve of her gown. Closing her eyes for a brief moment, she opened them wide and looked straight into Annemarie’s concerned face.

“Don’t fret, child. I am truly fine.” A bubble of hysterical laughter followed her announcement. “Don’t pay any mind to an old woman, who let her fancy get away with her.”

She held out her hand and both men assisted her in getting up.

She shook her salt and pepper curls, so that they swung like fat sausages around her head.

“For a moment I thought you were our dear departed daughter. You look so much like her, it almost hurts.” Tears sprang up in her soft blue eyes and she delicately dabbed them away.

In a no-nonsense way, she waved a dismissive hand through the air. “Now, let’s begin from the beginning. Welcome to Bellingshire Manor. We are so glad you could come.” She offered both her hands. “Let’s go inside and have some refreshment after your long trip.”

William Cormac nodded his approval. “We hope you can stay at least overnight. It gets a bit lonesome in the country, but it helps to rest up for the season in London. We love to attend the holiday balls and parties. Of course, at our age, we can’t last the whole night anymore.” He winked at Trevor in that way men convey that they understand each other, even if neither is quite sure what the other is trying to say.

No one noticed Annemarie’s sudden paleness. Ignoring Marry’s hand, she slipped her arm in the crook of Trevor’s. Her knees shook beneath her travel gown and her heart beat an uneven tattoo. The two older people before her carried no resemblance to her dead mother, why should she even take Marry’s remark out of context?

“Oh, come now, you two. I can’t remember ever having the vapors and I am quite sorry that it happened. Follow me. I have tea waiting and fresh scones and once we sit down, I hope we all can put this incident behind us.”

The foyer was lavishly appointed and lit by a huge chandelier that held at least a hundred candles. Annemarie fell in love with the spiral staircase that wound gracefully to the second story.

“You have a beautiful home here. I don’t blame you for wanting to return to England. In fact, there are many points of attraction in this country. I love the rolling green hills, though I must admit I don’t much care for the sudden downpours.”

Annemarie said the last so wistfully that everyone burst into laughter. It broke the awkwardness Marry’s fainting spell had provoked.

Marry fluttered her hands before her face. “I don’t know how to explain it, but I believe in saying what’s on my mind. It’s best you unburden your soul, even if it means you might be ridiculed for it.”

Annemarie smiled. “I am much of the same mind. I say what I think. Of course, it gets me into trouble all the time, but Trevor swears his shoulders are broad.” She leaned forward and looked expectantly at Marry.

STORMY HEIDE KATROS

50

“You won’t believe an old woman’s folly, but when I laid eyes on you … when I saw you step from the carriage … for a moment I thought our daughter, Anne, God bless her soul, had returned to us from the dead.”

Annemarie blanched. “Your daughter Anne?” It was a mere whisper.

“Anne left us when she was barely twenty years old. She packed her bags and left us one night.” Tears gathered in Marry’s eyes. “It still hurts.” Fluttering her hands in agitation, she continued, “We know now that we are not blameless. You see, we insisted she marry this no-good for nothing John Bonny. He beat her and mistreated her in other ways. But in our defense, we didn’t realize it at the time.”

Everyone’s eyes turned toward Annemarie, who had fallen back against her chair with a gasp, her face as white as a sheet. “I believe I knew her.” She gulped several deep breaths of air.

“She was my mother.”

Silence followed her statement as they all exchanged bewildered glances.

“I will gladly fill you in on your daughter’s life, and maybe you can tell me some things about her.”

Tears streaming down their lined faces, both Cormacs came off their chairs and opened their arms. Annemarie got up on shaky legs and walked into their embrace.

When they finally felt calm enough, they all sat down again and Marry rang for tea and scones. “Please tell us all you know.”

Annemarie smiled. “Before I recount history, let me tell you that you have a great-granddaughter as well. I regret that we didn’t bring Stormy, but we can remedy that soon with another visit.”

Annemarie launched into an account of her earlier years, of the time of her years growing up on Sans Souci plantation, her parents’ abiding love for each other. She was tempted to tell them that their daughter had taken up with the notorious pirate Calico Jack. The words were on her tongue, when she happened to catch sight of Trevor and he shook his head ever so slightly.

Annemarie took a deep breath and continued her story.

“Mother died of consumption, when I was barely seventeen. Father did his best to keep her comfortable, but I doubt he ever got over the fact that he could not help her more. It is hard for a doctor not being able to help the one he loves.