Lynna's Rogue (18 page)

             
Turning to go into the dining room
,
Lynna felt a warm hand pressing her elbow and relaxed. She needed Daniel's calming presence and reassuring touch. Clutching his arm
,
she breathed deeply and leaned against him for support as she tried to still her racing heart.

             
“I should be more than happy to escort you to your boudoir should you feel the need for repose before the meal,” Joshua whispered insolently for her ears only.

             
What? A second ago
,
Beth had him firmly by the arm and was leading him into the dining room. The odious oaf! Did he expect her to fall breathlessly into his waiti
ng arms again, as she had on his
ship? Did he imagine her to still be the young naiveté that had capitulated heedlessly to his lustful advances? 

             
He would soon learn that she
was no longer the dewy-eyed child, unversed in the ways of the world that
she had
been on his ship. Her uncle had forced the harsh realities of life down her throat shortly after her arrival at Magnolia House. And now, hearing Joshua’s smooth, southern drawl so close to her ear caused the memories of
his
cold, callous treatment to return in a rush. Lynna froze for a second before jerking away from him faster than a duck after a June bug. She turned toward him, lambasting him with her eyes.

             
“Is anything amiss, my sweet?” he questioned guilelessly.

             
Moving a few steps away to a more respectable distance
,
Lynna chose to disregard his question an
d ask one of her own. “I am not
your sweet, Captain Jordan, and shouldn’t you be escorting Suzanne?
You are her dinner guest, are
you
not
?”

             
He once again flashed a disarming smile that se
nt her heart to flutter wildly.
“I have terrible manners, to be sure. I almost
did
no
t
come tonight.” He moved closer and slid his hand down her arm to rest on the small of her back. “Only now I see what a grave error in judgment that would have been on my part. Believe me
,
Lynna, I would
not
have missed this night for the world.”

             
Trying to remain aloof
,
she gave him a withering glare and calmly moved out of his reach. “Sir, you forget yourself. Please do
not
attempt to besmirch my reputation by forcing your unwanted attentions on me.”

             
Joshua threw back his head and laughed uproariously, then leaned toward her to whisper, “Madame, I have never found it necessary to force myself on any woman, as you should well recall.”

             
Lynna's outraged gasp drew the attention of everyone, including Suzanne
,
who glared at her with blazing eyes. Then she hurried to the table, relieved to find her place between Daniel and her aunt, who were observing her with questioning eyes.

             
Suzanne had made a point of being seated next to Joshua, but try as she might
,
she
could not
gain the man’s full attention. He dutifully answered her questions, but his gaze remained firmly fixed on Lynna. It was Silas who succeeded in g
aining Joshua's interest
with a question about Sea Grove.

             
With Joshua's head turned to answer Silas, Lynna took the opportunity to peruse him more closely. He was just as she remembered, not a hair on his head had chan
ged. And s
he remembered him well. She should. Each night her dreams were filled with him. She watched as he carelessly brushed a lock of raven hair from his forehead. Lynna was just getting to an inspection of his broad, muscular shoulders when his head suddenly turned toward her and their eyes locked. She quickly pivoted her head toward her aunt. Unfortunately
,
no
t before seeing his emerald gaz
e
dip
purposefully down to her
breasts.

             
Her cheeks flushed crimson as she realized the man had lost none of his brash effrontery. Ignoring him, she placed a trembling hand to her throat
,
hoping to slow her erratic pulse, which now pounded in her temple. She turned to her aunt to speak, deciding that under no circumstances would she look his way again. At that very moment
,
Samuel drew everyone's rapt attention by tapping on the side of his glass with a spoon and addressing her with a broad smile. “Lynna, darling, rumor has it that I may soon be permitted to claim you as my sister
-
in
-
law.”

             
His sister
-
in
-
law! Oh, good Lord! This night was taking disastrous turns by leaps and bounds. Lynna nearly choked on her food as her aunt commenced to pounding her back. When she could breathe again
,
she took a sip o
f Madeira and turned to Judith,
who seemed as confused by Samuel's startling announcement as she herself had been. How dare Daniel! He
had
informed Samuel they were to be wed? When she had yet to accept his marriage proposal! However
,
one glance at Daniel's apologetic expression assured her he was every bit as startled by Samuel's remarks as she herself had been.

             
She took a deep, steadying breath, released it, and asked in as calm a voice as she could muster under the circumstances, “May I ask where you gathered this information, Samuel?”

             
Samuel had known Lynna long enough to
realize
that even though her temper was rare, she was indeed in possession of one. He could also tell by her glittering eyes th
at th
e emotion she was trying so desperately to conceal was threatening to spill forth at any moment. “Evidently, I was misinformed. Perhaps I was a bit hasty in my eagerness to welcome you into the family fold, Lynna. Now,
don’t
go getting your feathers all ruffled. Suzanne was the rumormonger, as usual. He glanced askance at his sister, but she only shrugged. “She was so overjoyed at the news she had to tell someone. You know my sister never could keep a secret.”

             
Daniel smiled lovingly at Lynna and took the opportunity to set the record straight. “It is true. I have asked Lynna to become my wife, that is no secret. As yet, she has not consented. Rest assured, however, I will keep trying until I eventually wear her down. Although, I did have my heart set on a June wedding.”

             
“June?” Lynna cried, incredulously. “But Daniel, this is May already.”

             
“I know. I
do not
mean to cause you undue pressure, my darling. But by the same token, if the matter were left exclusively up to me
,
we would be man and wife before the sun sets tonight.”

             
“Perfect timing,” Samuel joked, teasing his younger brother.

             
“Now, Lynna dear, you take all the time you need to
be sure.” Mary smiled, giving
Samuel a chastising glance for his off
-
color remark. “Daniel will simply have to be patient. Why, I myself have always been partial to fall weddings.”

             
Lynna lowered her eyes, feeling miserable. How could she tell Daniel's mother that after tonig
ht, after the effect the handsome
sea captain was having on her emotions, she was more sure than ever
that
she
could not
marry her son?

             
Then, as usual, Suzanne jumped in feet first to make matters much worse. “Oh, Mother, honestly! We all know Lynna and Daniel will eventually wed. We
have known it for months now
. Why not proceed with the festivities? We haven’t had a decent party in ages. Why, their wedding would be the social event of the season.”

             
Lynna marveled at whether she was to have any input whatsoever on the subject of her own betrothal
.

             
Mary hushed her outspoken daughter with a stern glance. “Darling, you
do not
make a decision as important as marriage simply because
it is
the social season. Whenever they decide to wed will be reason to celebrate.”

             
Joshua had held his br
eath during their conversation, fearing that Lynna might
even
be
considering accepting Daniel's proposal. Then, when he caught her eyes and witnessed the pain reflected in their sorrowful blue depths
,
he knew he had nothing to fear. It was obvious she had no desire to wed Daniel Fletcher. But his family, each of them
,
it seemed, was pressuring her into holy matrimony. Why did that thought rip at his gut so?

             
Inwardly Lynna groaned. She loved Mary and Silas deeply and hurting them was what she least wanted to do. If she refused their son, evidently they
,
too
,
would feel the sting of rejection. It was a hopeless situation, one with no easy way out. No way to avoid someone ge
tting their feelings trampled
.

             
A deep voice speaking her name brought Lynna out of her reverie. “How long will you be visiting Charleston, Lynna?” Joshua queried before biting into a chunk of
savory
venison.

             
It was some moments before she found her voice as his twinkling green eyes fused with hers. “
I am
not sure, exactly.” She
didn’t
miss the sparks that shot from Suzanne's eyes at his soft words. If looks could kill! “Samuel and Beth were kind enough to invite us and we certainly hope not to overstay our welcome.”

             
“
Impossible,” Samuel
assure
d
her. “You and Judith are family
,
and more than welcome to stay as long as you wish
.” T
urning to his wife
,
he added
, “Right
,
darling?'

             
“Absolutely, our home is your home.” Her warm smile convinced them her words were sincere.

             
Lynna was grateful
that
Daniel had been engrossed in conversation throughout dinner and had
no
t noticed Joshua's unwavering attention. She
didn’t
dare hope Suzanne had, by some grand stroke of luck, overlooked it as well. She
had
glanced up from toying with her food several times to find Suzanne glaring at her with untold volumes of hatred shining in her eyes. The message her eyes had imparted was clear,
“
He is
mine
!
Stay away!”

             
After dinner, during which Lynna had been unable to take a single bite of food for fear her fork would fall clattering to her plate, or she would choke on a mouthful of turnip greens, the group adjourned to the parlor. Lynna went to stand by the open side doors to breathe the cool scented breeze as flashes of lightning began to play across the sky and distant thunder rumbled.

             
“Joshua, Suzanne tells us
you are
the Captain of your own ship, but
that you have
docked the vessel while you oversee your family's plantation.” Mary seemed quite interested in her daughter's latest beau.

             
“That is correct, madam.” A hint of sadness crept into Joshua's voice and he looked at Lynna with
undisguised
longing. “The
Windjammer
will weather her storms without me henceforth.”

             
Hearing the name of the ship caused another flood of memories to wash over Lynna
,
leaving her visibly shaken. Ever observant, Joshua
did not
fail to notice her reaction.

             
“That
is
very admirable on your part,” Mary stated. “But after all your years at sea
,
I fear plantation life may be a drastic change and even a bit boring.”

             
“Now,
don’t
go feeling sorry for Joshua, Mother. It is without warrant, I assure you. Captain Jordan has enough memories stockpiled to last the average man a lifetime.” Samuel grinned, slapping Joshua on the back. “Don’t you, my friend?’