Bobbi Smith - Captive Pride

Faith was torn between laughing and crying. He thought she had run from him because he had kissed her and she’d hated it! Inwardly she smiled. She hadn’t run from him because she’d hated his kiss; she had run from him because she’d loved it. But then he was also saying, most seriously, that the kiss would never happen again, and her heart lurched at the thought. Faith knew realistically that there could be no future for them, but she also knew that she wanted to kiss Matthew Kincade. It had been the most exciting moment of her young life, and if she could, she wanted to repeat it. Her only problem was…how? If Matthew was not interested in kissing her again, then there was no hope. She certainly couldn’t very well throw herself at him.

Faith understood with agonizing pain that it was wonderful that he’d come to apologize for something he had thought he’d done wrong, but in reality nothing had changed. Matthew Kincade was a titled aristocrat, and she was a lowly seamstress relying on her own handiwork to support herself.

“Lord Kincade…”

“Please, Faith.” His gaze darkened as he reached out to take her hand. “Call me Matthew.”

The touch of his hand on hers was electric. Startled by the sensations that flooded through her, she looked up, her eyes unexpectedly meeting his.

“Matthew, I…” She started to speak, but something in his expression stopped her and she held her breath in painful expectation as he bent slowly to her.

Matt was caught completely off guard by his reaction to the simple touch of her hand. Fiery excitement pulsed through his veins, and he was nearly overwhelmed by the need to take her in his arms. Faith was so lovely, every bit as beautiful as he remembered, and he longed to crush her to him, to keep her safe, forever. It was a new, powerful emotion for Matt, and he almost gave in to the desire to hold her. Only a sudden stroke of common sense stopped him from repeating his earlier mistake with her, and he drew back abruptly, shaking himself mentally as he released her hand.

The breathtaking moment of intimacy they’d shared was lost, shattered into jagged shards of disappointment, and Faith felt chilled by the change in him. Shifting slightly farther back on the sofa, she distanced herself from him. “Your apology is accepted, although there really was no need.”

Matt was relieved at her response, but he, too, sensed the change in the mood between them. Not knowing what else to say, he hurried to ask her about her dealings with the authorities.

“There is one other thing I need to ask you about.” In truth, there were a million things he wanted to know about her, but Matt knew he had to go slowly and win her trust before he could hope that anything else could develop between them. His gaze dropped to her lips, and he wondered if they had really been as soft and exciting as he’d remembered from the brief kiss they shared.

Faith could not imagine what he was leading up to. “Yes?”

“Did you follow through on the report to the authorities regarding the attack?” Matt directed his attention away from her loveliness and back to thoughts of his original purpose in coming here. He had to find out if the report of her assault had been dealt with fairly or if it had been disregarded as inconsequential.

“I did,” she told him, and then added tersely, “although it was really pointless.”

He frowned at her statement. “Why do you say that? You would have been able to identify your assailants, wouldn’t you?”

“Possibly, but in the end it wouldn’t have made any difference.” Her tone was flat in resignation.

“Now I’m the one who doesn’t understand.” Matt scowled as he recognized that his worst fears about the soldiers’ presence and the loyalists’ attitudes were coming true.

“No matter if I could identify them or not, the two soldiers would never be brought to justice.” Faith unknowingly affirmed his suspicions and, as she spoke, was unable to keep the bitterness from her voice.

“Are you saying that even if you had been able to positively identify the men who attacked you, nothing would be done about it?”

Faith gave a curt nod as she met his piercing blue gaze. “Mother and I dealt with them once before…”

“Something like this has happened to you before?” Matt was astounded.

“Not to me,” she explained slowly, glancing down at her hands folded in her lap, “to my father. He was killed by a British regular several years ago.”

“What happened?”

“Have you heard anyone talk of what is commonly called the Boston Massacre?” Faith asked.

“No, I’m afraid I haven’t,” he admitted.

“Well, several years ago there was a confrontation between a group of unarmed colonists and some British soldiers. The soldiers fired into the crowd and several men were killed. It was terrible…”

“Were the soldiers prosecuted?”

Faith sighed as she remembered all the pain and confusion of the time. “Oh yes, they were tried, but nothing happened. They were let go…and they had committed murder! Don’t you see! I knew even as I was reporting it that those two soldiers would never be punished for what they did to me. I only did it because you had insisted.”

“And you’ve heard nothing?”

“No one cares.” She shook her head. “I’m only a simple colonial without influence. It’s been this way for a long time, and I don’t suppose things will ever get any better.” Faith sighed, “At least, not unless Sam Adams has his way.”

“Sam Adams?”

“He’s one of the most outspoken colonists opposing British rule. He thinks the colonies deserve independence, and frankly, I’m to the point of agreeing with him.”

“You mean you support the rebels?”

Her eyes were flashing with an inner fire as she looked up at him. Faith knew he was a nobleman, but at this moment it didn’t matter. “Yes, and sometimes I wish I was a man so I could join them.”

While it was true that Matt was astonished by her declaration, all that she’d related to him had only reinforced his own disgust with the way things were being handled here in the colonies. The discovery that her father had been killed in cold blood by the British soldiers only hastened his complete conversion from loyal British subject to supporter of the colonists’ grievances.

“Parliament has been taxing us unfairly for ages,” Faith was saying. “The injustice of it all was one of the reasons why my father died. He’d been so infuriated by the abuses that he began attending the dissidents’ rallies. One thing led to another…” Her voice faded off. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have gone into all of this. I’m certain as a member of the aristocracy, you’re in complete disagreement with all I’ve said.” She felt a moment of uncertainty, wondering how he was going to react to her outburst.

“On the contrary, Faith,” Matt told her gently. “I admit when I arrived here in Boston a short time ago I was not aware of the injustices being perpetrated here, but since then I’ve become more involved. I find that I’m quite in agreement with you.”

“You are?” She was taken by surprise by his answer.

Matthew nodded. “The handling of your situation, for instance, is shameful, but from all I’ve learned, it seems that it’s not uncommon for such matters to be ignored. This time, however, is going to be different, for I intend to do something about it!”

“Matthew! No! You can’t!”

“What do you mean?”

“It will only make matters worse! Please, just let it go. For my sake, please…”

“But when I think of what might have happened to you if I hadn’t come along when I did.” He was earnest.

“I know, and to this day I thank God for your help,” Faith told him with open honesty.