The Governor's Daughter (Winds of Change Book 1) (3 page)

He had a square jaw, about which her father always said showed strong character. His eyes caught hers, bold, dark eyes that Cathryn couldn’t read, but they showed no sign of weakness.

“I can see that neither of you listened to Governor Blankenship’s
request,”
he
said
as
a
fact.
No
question
lay
in his
tone.

“I believe you said your name
was
Pennington…Lieutenant
Pennington,
if
I’m
not
mistaken.
This
isn’t
your concern…you don’t know Miss
Blankenship
well enough
to
understand…”
William
stumbled
over
his
words.

“I
know
her
father,
well,
Mr.
Peyton.
My
advice
to
you would
be
to
leave
immediately
or
face
the
consequences
of your
actions.
A
gentleman
would
never
encourage
such
behavior.”

Cathryn
stared
in
disbelief
as
William
hesitated,
glancing apprehensively at Cathryn and back at the
lieutenant.

“It
is
your
call,
Mr.
Peyton.
My
patience
has
worn
thin this night. I thought I had made myself perfectly clear earlier, but if you want me to fulfill my threat, I assure you I will have no
issue.”

Lieutenant Pennington stepped only once toward
William before he mounted up and tethered back his
horse.

“You can tell your father, Cathryn, I will make my presence known first thing in the morning to clear up this misunderstanding.”

Before Cathryn could utter a retort, he galloped down the road.

“William!
William
Peyton!”
she
cried.
Her
eyes
flamed at his desertion. “Coward!”

The sound of the horse’s hooves clattering fast away slowly waned in the distance. She sat frozen on her mount,
refusing
to
look
down
at
the
impertinent
man.
How dare he, not once but twice, interfere with her
plans!

Frustration surged. She yanked her reins to take off down the lane herself, but the lieutenant’s hands were quicker.
He
gripped
tight
to
her
reins
and
in
one
quick
motion
with
his
other
hand
pulled
Cathryn
down
off
her
horse straight into his
arms.

“Let
go
of
me,
you
horrid
beast!”
she
uttered,
trying
to catch her breath. She twisted in his hold. “I will
scream.”

“I have no control of such an action,” he said. “If you want
to
cause
another
spectacle,
it
isn’t
in
my
power
to
stop you.”

She struggled against him. She hit back his hand, but his
grip
didn’t
ease. She
didn’t
stop.
Finally,
he
whipped
her around, pulling her to his face, so close she could feel his breath against her
skin.

For
a
brief
moment,
her
thoughts
fell
back
to
the
scene she
had
stumbled
upon
only
minutes
before.
She
wondered what it was like to be in an ardent embrace. She had never been in such close proximity to a man. His face, his lips
so near.

His thoughts, though, seemed far away from hers. His chest heaved as if trying to restrain his annoyance with
the situation.

“Your plan, I am afraid, Miss Blankenship, has been foiled. Can you not behave for one moment? Your father only
asked
if
I
could
watch
over
your
safety
on
your
voyage, since I was returning to England upon the
Victoria
. Nothing more.

“Tonight was requested because he feared you would try something reckless which it seems was warranted. In truth,
Miss
Blankenship,
I
have
found
your
maneuvers
rival some battle-worn generals I have served
under.”

“Then I would have to assume you have served under some
extremely
deficient
generals,
Lieutenant,
for
I
haven’t been very successful. Pray, let me
go!”

“Only when I have delivered you back to your father.”

“Sir, I can assure you I’m perfectly capable of finding my
way
around
my
home,
from
which
I
am
being
so
unmercifully dragged.”

“I would be negligent in my duties if I didn’t.”

“I
will
happily
relinquish
you
of
such.”
She
swung
her head
back
in
an
attempt
to
regain
any
dignity
in
her
circumstance.

“Miss
Blankenship,”
he
replied
coolly,
“I
have
commit
ted to
the governor
I
will
take
care
of
you
during
your
journey to England. This I will do whether you want my assistance or not. I will see you safely to your grandparents
and after
that
you
can
do
as
your
heart
desires.
Believe
me
w
hen I say I have no desire to watch over a spoilt little debutante.”

Without
warning
her
hand
swung
back.
The
aggravation
from the day
welled
in
her
action.
She
slapped him, hard.

He caught
her
arm,
pulling
her
to
him.
She
met
his
stare
with
the same
intensity,
refusing
to
be
intimidated.
His
free
hand
went
to
her
face, touching
it in a
manner which greatly disturbed her.

The
moment
passed.

He
laughed.
“I
quite
deserved
that, my
lady.”

Her
eyes
locked
upon
his,
challenging
him.
He
had
laid clear
his
intention.
He
grabbed
her
hand
and
almost
dragged her
up
the
path.

She
said
nothing
more
to
him,
but
raced
by him as they came upon the back entrance. She ran up the steps and into the house. She didn’t stop until she reached her
room.

* * * *

Cathryn
sat
dutifully
in
her
father’s
study.
He
had
sent for
her
before
sunrise
and
ranted
at
her
for
over
an
hour.
She
had
never
seen
him
so
upset.
She
doubted
he
had
even
slept.

“To
think
a
daughter
of
mine
was
throwing
herself
at
a gentleman!” he roared. He ran his hand through
his silver-white
hair.
He
hadn’t
donned
his
wig
this
morning.
That
in itself
worried
Cathryn
to
no
end.
Her
father
never
presented himself without proper attire, especially with guests
in
the house
and
there
were
several
of
them
left
from
the
previous night’s activities.

At fifty-seven, her father had married late in life. He had
doted
on
her
without
question
and
she
idolized
him.
But at the moment she found herself under the scrutiny of his shrewd, piercing blue
eyes.

Cathryn had the look of her father, she had been told, except
for
the
color
of
her
eyes.
Her
eyes
were
a
hazel,
giving
way
to
green
depending
upon
the
color
she
wore
or
her temperament.

She
turned
her
head
slightly
and
caught
her
reflection
in the window glaze. She frowned. Her thick unruly hair had fallen
out
of
the
bun
that
she
had
quickly
pulled
back
when she
rose.
Dark
brown
waves
framed
her
oval
face
calling
attention to her large expressive eyes, while her long eye lashes flickered back her
frustration.

Her father told her when she smiled, the whole of her face illuminated. She wasn’t smiling at the moment.