Lessons of Love (32 page)

Cole
placed a hand over the butt of his gun and fixed cold eyes on his old partner, daring him to make a move. “
How I conduct myself is no longer your concern Gregor. All I want is to get to Natchez and be done w
ith this. Remember our agreement. You get Lily
’
s plus the money from yesterday, and you never come near
my wife or my property again.”

“
Aye,
Cole
. I know the agreement. You
’
re free to ruin your life by panting at the feet of that little bitch. I
’
ll see yo
u in Natchez.”
Gregor urged his horse forward but
Cole
mo
ved his mount
to bar his path.

“
I though
t we were traveling together.”

“
I have no use for the likes of you, nor you me. I
’
ll be there. Don
’
t worry yourself, boy. I have no use for your bitch when I
have an entire whore house at my disposal. You may think
Jolie
is a perfect little princess, but I
’
ve seen and had better.”
Cole
stared into Gregor
’
s taunting eyes, uncertainty waging a war inside him. Did he agree and simply ride on? He wanted this over
as quickly as possible and arguing in the road wasn
’
t going to get anything accomplished. They were already two hours out from the plantation, and the likelihood of Gregor
’
s going back was slim. On the other hand, nothing on earth could make him trust the
man before him.

“
I mean it,
Cole
. I don
’
t want your little bitch. I image she
’
s under lock and key anyway even if I did, right? Safely tucked away where I can
’
t put my filthy hands on her? We made an agreement yesterday
Cole
and I will keep my word. My wo
rd used to mean something to you. Hell, I used to mean something to you. I have the money and soon I
’
ll have Lily
’
s. Your wife is safe.”

“
Very well. You
’
re right that I haven
’
t the stomach to travel with you. Be warned though, my men have been instructed
to shoot on sight. Any reason for you to be near my home is now gone. You set foot near it or my wife and you
WILL
die Gregor.”

That said,
Cole
pressed his heels to his horse and rode off, leaving a smiling Gregor in his wake. Things were going exactly a
s he
’
d hoped they would. What a fool
Cole
was to think he
’
d give up
Jolie
and Celia so easily. He turned his own mount into the woods and made his way back to the plantation and the two unsuspecting women who waited there. Thoughts of the terror and pain t
hat would fill their eyes when he took them filled his mind with tempting images and swelled his cock with lust.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 

Jolie
opened her eyes to a thin ray of sunshine that was peeping around the heavy velvet drapes. She hadn
’
t slept a wink unt
il close to dawn, and her body was heavy with exhaustion.
Cole
’
s actions of the night before and the argument they
’
d had afterwards played in her head over and over, swelling her heart with pain and so
aking her pillow with tears.

What he had done to her
had run through her mind and weighed upon her heart like a stone, but still, she couldn
’
t push away the true feelings that lay beneath the anger. Yes he had been wrong. He had gone too far in his punishment of her, but she had to admit that what she had
d
one had been fool hardy. The fact that Gregor had been on the property when she had gone to the fountain made her ill, and filled her with regret. She could have been killed or worse, much worse, and that fact had scared
Cole
beyond reason. True, they woul
d have to talk about what he did. She would have to make sure he understood just how violated and hurt she had been, but inside she couldn
’
t keep but placing just a
hint of the blame on herself.

If she hadn
’
t been so impulsive, so idiotic,
Cole
wouldn
’
t
have become so scared and enraged. Yes he should have listened about the ring. It meant so very much to her, but she should have listened as well. He was her husband and she was to obey him in all things. Why
,
oh why could
n
’
t she simpl
y do just that?

Pa
rt of her had scream
ed
out in the darkness of the night that she should hate him for what he
’
d done. How rough he
’
d been and how hurtful his words were, but she couldn
’
t. All she felt for
Cole
now was love, love and an overwhelming terror that he
’
d be caug
ht by the law or harmed by Gregor. Her fear for him overrode her anger and fear of him. Celia had come in the middle of the night and lain with her, whispering soft words of comfort and smoothing back her hair as
Jolie
cried, but it had been little comfort
, as the light of day peeped in the window, she knew she needed her husband. She needed him, but it
was too late to let him know.

She sat up in bed and put her head in her hands, feeling the weight of the world on her shoulders.
Cole
would be gone for si
x days,
s
ix long days where
she wouldn
’
t know if he were hurt or in trouble. Why did they have to fight and why had she gone to get her ring? She should have waited for him to return and asked him to find it for her. He would have been far less angry with h
er for losing her ring than he had been for her going outside when she
’
d been told not to. What a fool she
’
d been. As much as she loved her ring it hadn
’
t been worth risking her life. Now
Cole
was furious and thought she was a reckless little fool. And as
for the other, the nasty business in Natchez, she should have simply let him make the decision he had to without fighting him. If she
’
d been using her head instead of acting like a ninny she
’
d have known that
Cole
didn
’
t have a choice in the matter. Gregor
was evil and it would take unsavory means in order t
o remove him from their lives.

Celia stirred beside her and
Jolie
turned, a small smile forming on her lips. Dear Celia, they
’
d be
en
through so
much together. What a wonderful
friend she truly was. What
would she do without her, especially in the trying days to come? Thank goodness
she wouldn
’
t have to find out.

“
Good morning, Mistress.”
Celia looked at
Jolie
, a bit embarrassed by her own boldness of the night before. When she
’
d heard
Jolie
crying hour a
fter hour she simply hadn
’
t been able to stand it any longer. What had transpired between the two lovers? It was obvious by the lateness of the day that they weren
’
t traveling w
ith the Monsieur this morning.

“
Good morning, Celia. Thank you... Thank you fo
r last
night. You are a true frien
d.”

“
I only hoped it helped ease your sorrow a bit, Mistress. It pains me to see you distressed. Are we not going to the city with the Monsieur,
Jolie
?”

“
No. We are staying here.
Cole
decided it wasn
’
t for the best. He..
. Oh that
’
s a lie! We had a terrible fight and he was so angry with me. You know how furious he was that I
’
d gone out and instead of meekly accepting my husband
’
s discipline I was a cold nasty shrew and now... now he
’
s gone and he hates me.”
Jolie
dissolve
d in a fit of tears at the mere thought of
Cole
no longer loving her.

“
No, Mistress. The Monsieur would never hate you. Yes he was angry but it will all be better soon. When he returns you will patch this all up. You shall see. That monster will be gone a
nd our lives will become happy again. Your husband loves you so very much, Mistress.”
Celia
’
s words were interrupted by a soft knock on the door, Jonathan had heard
Jolie
’
s sobs and though he was still distressed at her actions yesterday, his soft heart co
uldn
’
t bear to hear her cries.

“
Is everything all right ladies? Do you need anything? Would you like me to have cook make up a breakfast tray?”
Celia rose, quickly putting on her dressing gown as she went to t
he door and opened it a crack.

“
Everything
’
s
fine, Jonathan, a breakfast tray would be wonderful, thank you.”
Celia fetched
Jolie
’
s dressing gown, giving her a sad smile as her Mistress rose, head hung in sadness, trying to catch
Jolie
’
s eyes to cheer her. “
Mistress, the Monsieur is quite capable of
handling himself. Please don
’
t fret. I
’
m sure things will go w
ell and he
’
ll b
e home soon.”

Jolie
merely nodded and moved to the vanity so Celia could untangle her hair. Jonathan arrived with the tray just as Celia was finishing.
Jolie
bade him to enter
and invited him to stay for coffee as had become his custom. The small smile Celia bestowed on Jonathan was not lost on her Mistress, and
Jolie
was glad that at least someone was in love and happy. Celia poured tea for
Jolie
and herself, and the stronger c
offee for Jonathan.

“
The Monsieur left this for you, Mistress.”
Jonathan pulled a letter from his pocket and handed it to
Jolie
. She stared at it, tears welling in her eyes before slipping it in the pocket of her dressing gown. He had thought of her befor
e she left!

“
Thank you, Jonathan.”
Jolie
raised her hand and stifled a huge yawn that had suddenly come over her. She looked down, embarrassed. “
I.. I didn
’
t sleep well last night. I su
ppose it
’
s catching up to me.”

“
Let me clear these dishes and you can
rest, Mistress. If you need anything I
’
ll be right outside.”
Just as
Jolie
was about to tell him that she didn
’
t need to rest, another wave of fatigue washed over her. It
seemed her sleepless night had a
ffect
ed her more than she thought.

“
Perhaps that
’
s
a good idea. Thank you, Jonathan. Celia, would you fetch my book of poetry from the drawing room. I
’
d like to read a bit before I go back to sleep. Jonathan can go with you, and I
’
m sure you wouldn
’
t mind the walk.”
Upon seeing the look of worry on both
t
heir faces
Jolie
shook her head. “
I
’
m not going anywhere, and I shall lock the door behind you, I promise. It is for your benefit that I asked you to go Celia. I have n
o intention of slipping away.”