Catherine Archer - Lady Thorn

Victoria replied with equal civility, though she could feel the force of Jedidiah’s resistance. Clearly he was still not happy with the notion of purchasing clothing to wear in London. Yet something told Victoria he would not admit to this. Jedidiah McBride seemed a man of his word, and he had agreed to do this. It would be done.

As if he had read her mind, the American came farther into the room, his features set with determination.

The next few minutes passed in surprising tranquillity. Victoria did not try to lead Jedidiah in his choice of fabric. He just seemed to prefer the more subdued colors himself.

In point of fact, he chose only dark colors when he began. It was Mr. Randsome who suggested some of the lighter tones, to add contrast to his new garments.

Jedidiah seemed uncharacteristically content to follow the older man’s lead. Only a short time had passed before they began choosing specific cuts of jackets and trousers from the sketches Mr. Randsome and his assistant had brought with them.

Victoria was beginning to feel she did not have to be there at all. There was other work she was neglecting. Still, she stayed on in case she was needed. Not because she liked seeing Jedidiah relaxed and as at ease as he seemed now with Mr. Randsome. Not because she liked the deep sound of his voice as he talked. Not because of the way the light gilded his hair every time he passed in front of the tall windows.

It was not until the tailor began to speak of the quantity of coats and other clothing that Jedidiah balked, shaking his head. “I will not require so many coats, nor—”

She interrupted, addressing Mr. Randsome directly. “We will take all of those items you mentioned, and a riding jacket of the dark gray, as well.”

The American swung around to Victoria with a forbidding scowl. “Do you realize that you have ordered fifteen coats in all?”

Victoria turned from speaking to Mr. Randsome, with a frown of her own. The very fact that she had been surprised by his ready compliance with everything thus far had left Victoria somewhat prepared for this reaction.

Yet she could not help feeling frustrated by it. She had no wish to discuss this in front of the tailor. She tried to answer with careful courtesy. “Yes, of course, Mr…. Cousin.”

He shook his head. “That is too many.”

Victoria could feel the interest of both Mr. Randsome and his assistant. She moved closer to Jedidiah, telling herself that he was likely very pleased to have found something to disagree with her about. She answered him through tight lips. “Please, Cousin, might we discuss this later?” She raised her eyebrows meaningfully.

Jedidiah McBride paid her signals no heed. He only looked down at her with clear disapproval, his own brows raised in reaction to her expression. “I will not have it, Lady Victoria.”

She forgot the other two men, in her amazement at those words. Victoria was not in the least accustomed to being spoken to that way. She sucked in a deep breath, raising her chin. “You… you will not have it.”

To her utter stupefaction, his reaction was to take her by the arm as he addressed the two men. “Excuse us for just a moment.” Jedidiah then half pulled her to the other side of the room, next to one of the tall windows. So shocked was she that Victoria made no effort to resist him.

But as soon as they came to a stop with the long brocade drape partially blocking her view of the room, she recovered herself enough to jerk her arm from his grasp. “How dare you!”

He stared down at her in abject surprise. “How dare I? ”

She resisted the urge to rub the spot where his fingers had held her. “You are not to lay your hands upon me again.”

Jedidiah had the grace to appear chagrined. “I…” His lips thinned, and he took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. It was clear that it cost him dear to admit, “You are right, I had no reason to grab your arm. I only wanted you to listen to me.”

Now that Jedidiah seemed to have found his right mind once more, Victoria, too, began to calm down. As she looked up at him and into his stormy green eyes, she realized that she was not really angry. In fact, what she was feeling was a very different emotion. One she would not even hazard to try to name. The tightness in her breast, the thumping of her heart and the quickening of her breathing were all clear signs of this unknown emotion.

It was quite unusual for anyone to even dare raise his voice to her, let alone physically lead her about. Jedidiah had not actually hurt her, and for some reason his resistance only gave her a stronger sense of respect for him. Her position meant nothing to the tall, lean man. He thought of her as nothing more than a woman who had driven him to the point of forgetting himself.

Victoria could not help liking the notion of being thought of as a woman. For was she not just that?

She looked up at him from beneath her lashes, her gaze grazing the lean line of his jaw, the irate curve of his supple lips, his straight nose, those stormy green eyes. He really was very handsome, this proud sea captain of hers. She stopped herself, glancing away from him even as the words formed in her mind. Jedidiah was not now, nor would he ever be, hers.

Victoria’s gaze came to rest on Mr. Randsome’s assistant, who was now openly peering at them from across the room. Dear heaven, but they were making a spectacle of themselves.

Chancing another glance up at Jedidiah from beneath her dark lashes, she saw that he, too, had noticed how the other men were staring. He scowled with chagrin.

Biting her lip, Victoria took a deep breath before whispering, “Mr. McBride, I realize that it might appear as if I am being overly extravagant.” Her gaze locked on his, her eyes pleading with him to heed her. “I assure you that I am not. When we go to London, we will be attending many social gatherings. It is the only way I am to meet a man so that I may marry. It is equally important for you to accompany me in order to search for your child. You do recall that those reasons are why you are here? Why we are going?” She halted, feeling unexpectedly cheerless at the idea of her future marriage. A fact that puzzled her greatly, for it was unlike Victoria to bemoan her fate once she had accepted it.

She brushed the thoughts aside, concentrating on the moment as she willed Jedidiah to see her position. “You must have the proper clothing to take me to these social gatherings. It would not do for you to be seen in the same coat day after day, or even from morning to evening. Have you forgotten you are my cousin? You must appear to be so in all things, in order to remain in my household without the benefit of some other chaperon. It is absolutely necessary for everyone to accept you as who we say you are.”

He continued to stare down at her, but Victoria could see the wavering in his eyes. Then, as he stood there, a strange sort of light came into those compelling eyes, and for a heart-stopping moment, Victoria nearly forgot that they weren’t alone.

He smiled, a slow, knowing smile. “Very well, then… Victoria.”

It took her a moment to realize that this was the second time he had called her by her Christian name. It was even more intimate in tone when he said it so deliberately. No one besides Mary called her Victoria.

Then she was distracted by that light that was still there in his eyes. She pursed her lips, wondering what had brought it on. He answered her unspoken question mockingly. “I suggest that you call me Jed, even when we are alone. That is what I usually go by.”

She blushed. Really, he was going too far. The nickname was just too familiar, especially without the appellation “cousin” to formalize it. And there was no need, when no one was around to hear them. “I could not—”