Bouquet for Iris (16 page)

Nathan shrugged and let her hand go. “You should at least consider it before you condemn my uncle. I know he can be a bit overbearing, but he is a good man. Uncle Richard is much more likely to fight honorably than resort to underhanded means.” He left her alone then, his words echoing in her mind.

Iris hated to admit it, but there was some truth to what Nathan said. Alcohol often stripped away the morals of honorable men.

Could Adam have taken the deed that night? Was she being foolish in trusting him to defend the Spencers? Yet he seemed so intent on working with her to keep the Spencers in their home. Was it all a facade? No. She shook her head. It could not have been Adam. He might not be perfect, but Adam Stuart was not a thief … she hoped.

Adam could feel anticipation welling up as he turned onto Wayha Spencer’s land. He couldn’t wait to see the beautiful, courageous Iris Landon. When she had turned to him for help two weeks ago, she’d turned his whole world around. He would do everything in his power to see that Wayha kept his land.

Earlier this morning he’d gone to visit Lance Sherer about the missing deed. The paper had not turned up, so everyone had to assume it had been stolen. But who had taken it? Who could have known that it was being stored there? When Lance had first suggested that he keep it, Adam had been certain it was the perfect solution. If Iris’s God did exist, He certainly did work in mysterious ways.

Adam had been about to return to town, but then he decided to ride out to Wayha’s home. He tried to tell himself it was a logical way to gather more information to help the case, but deep inside, he knew he was hoping to see Iris. What was it about her that drew him? He was like a callow youth who had fallen in love for the first time. He could not get enough of her beauty and spirit.

He dismounted and handed his horse’s reins to the slave who met him at the front entrance. Josephine greeted Adam, but before she could lead him to Wayha’s study, he heard the clatter of feet hurrying down the staircase.

He looked up to see the granddaughters. Although they were of different ages, they looked very much alike with their dark hair and shiny brown eyes. When they spotted him, they stopped their headlong progress and looked back up the stairs.

His gaze followed theirs, and he found himself drinking in Iris’s beautiful visage. No wonder her parents had named her after a flower. There was something so clean and bright and sparkling about her. She looked like a fresh blossom, especially in the lavender dress she was wearing.

She descended the stairs gracefully. “It’s a pleasure to see you, Mr. Stuart.”

“Likewise,” he answered, wishing he could think of something intelligent to say. What was it about Iris Landon that tied his tongue in knots? “Are you taking these young ladies outside?”

Iris reminded them of their manners with a glance. “June, Anna, you remember Mr. Stuart. He’s working for your grandfather.”

The older girl curtsied, followed by her little sister.

He bowed. “My, how grown-up you’ve become. I’m sure your grandfather is proud to have such lovely young ladies about the house.”

“Miss Iris, can he come with us?” June asked.

Iris shook her head. “I’m sure Mr. Stuart is here on business. We must let him meet—”

A door opened, and Mr. Spencer came into the hallway. “I thought I heard voices.”

“Yes sir,” Iris answered the older man. “The girls and I are going on a picnic down by the stream. We’ll leave you and Mr. Stuart to your business.”

Wayha shook his head. “I have matters to attend to in Ross’s Landing.” He turned to Adam. “I’m sorry you came all this way, and I can’t stay.”

June tugged on Adam’s pant leg. “That means you can come with us.”

Adam smiled down at her. “There’s nothing I’d like better.” He glanced toward Iris. “If I wouldn’t be in the way, that is.”

Anna, not to be outdone by her sibling, moved closer to him. “We have lots of food. And Miss Iris is going to show us how to catch fish.”

He noticed a heightened flush in Iris’s cheeks. Was it caused by anger or excitement? He hoped it was the latter. He was certainly anticipating an enjoyable afternoon.

The house slave handed a basket to Iris, but he took it from her. “The least I can do is carry the food since you have been so kind as to invite me along.”

Iris tied shawls on the girls and straightened her hat before they headed outside. Adam offered her his arm, pleased when she rested her hand on it. They ambled slowly down the path that led to the stream behind the house. She didn’t seem to mind his uneven gait, a fact he was thankful for.

“Be careful. Don’t get too far away,” she called out, admonishing the girls who had skipped ahead of them.

“Are they always this excited?”

Iris nodded. “They have a natural ability to enjoy the simplest of things. It’s such a pity that their mother and grandmother died. They are starved for affection.” She blushed slightly and looked away. “Not that Mr. Spencer doesn’t love them. He’s just … just reserved.”

“My father was much the same.” Adam looked ahead to the sparkling blue waters of the deep stream. “But I never doubted his love for me.”

“I thought we could spread our blanket near that tree.” Iris pointed to a tall maple. “That way we can get out of the sun if it grows too hot this afternoon.”

Adam set the basket down and took the blanket from atop it, spreading it out on the ground and anchoring it on all four corners with rocks. At the same time, he picked up several smaller flat rocks and dropped them in his coat pocket. When he was done, he joined the girls, who were exploring the banks of the stream.

“Did you see that?” June pointed to a ripple in the water. “It’s a fish.”

Anna pointed, too. Her eyes grew round as a dark shape broke the surface once more. She jumped up and down on the sloped bank, and Adam reached to grab her before she could fall into the swiftly flowing water.

“Be careful. Miss Iris would be very upset if she had to jump in the water to save you.”

Anna looked back toward the tree where Iris was setting out food for their lunch. “Miss Iris can do anything.”

Adam laughed at the faith in the little girl’s voice. “I’m sure she can. But let’s not try swimming this afternoon. Would you like to learn how to throw rocks and make them jump across the water?”

Both girls nodded, so Adam pulled his stones out. He gave one to each child and chose another for himself. He bent down and showed them how to hold a rock between the thumb and forefinger. Then he tossed his out across the surface of the stream where it bounced one, two, three times before sinking below the water.

June bent her arm back and threw her rock with all her strength, but it only plopped into the water. When Anna tried for the first time, her rock did not quite reach the water’s edge.

Adam pulled more of his rocks from his pocket, and the three of them tried again and again. After a little while Iris wandered down to where they stood. He could feel her gaze on them and turned to catch her smiling.

“Come here and show us how well you can do it.”

Iris couldn’t help but compare Adam’s ability to entertain and charm her girls with Nathan’s discomfort the day he’d cometo see her. Of course Nathan had his own charm and many excellent qualities, but it was Adam who was winning June’s and Anna’s hearts.

She clapped her hands as Anna managed to get her rock into the water. “What talented girls you are.”

“Did you see me?” asked June. “My rock bounced two times.”

Anna ran to her. “Can you bounce a rock, Miss Iris?”

“Oh, I doubt it.”

“Come on. Mr. Stuart can show you how. He showed me.”

June added her own endorsement. “And me, too.”

“Here.” Adam handed her a rock. “This is a good one. I’m sure it will bounce several times.”

Iris took the rock and turned it over in her hand. She had no idea how to throw the thing to make it skip. Skipping rocks was something she and Camie had never tried. She tossed the small stone toward the water, twisting her arm to add extra power. The silly thing didn’t bounce a single time.

“Try again.” Adam’s voice was encouraging as he handed her another one.

“I don’t know. We don’t want to fill the stream with all these rocks.”

Adam’s laughter made her smile. “I don’t think there’s any danger of that.” He moved directly behind her. “Here let me show you how to do it.”

Iris’s heart jumped up to her throat as she felt his arm encircling her. Her back and shoulders stiffened, but he didn’t seem to notice as he took her hand and turned it sideways.

“Hold the rock loosely.” His breath tickled her ear, and his nearness reminded her of the day he’d shown her the citadel of rocks.

She’d been breathless that day, too.

Iris tried to concentrate on the method he was trying to teach her. She let him manipulate her wrist back and forth. Then he snapped her hand forward. The rock flew out of her grasp and sailed out over the water. Her eyes widened as she saw it skip again and again before falling below the surface.

“I did it!” She twisted around in her excitement and came face-to-face with him. Their lips were only inches apart. If he puckered slightly, he would be kissing her. Everything seemed to slow down. As if from a distance, she could hear June and Anna congratulating her. But all she could see was Adam’s face. Some shred of sanity made her pull away from him, but it took several seconds before she could breathe normally. Apparently she was no more immune to his charm than June and Anna.

Iris herded the girls back to the blanket, relieved that their chatter covered her embarrassment. She sat down and took several deep breaths in an attempt to calm her still-racing heart. Why did it beat so hard against her chest when Adam was present? And why wouldn’t it even flutter when she was around Nathan?

Adam took a deep breath to steady his racing heart. He’d been so close to kissing Iris. Right out here in the open and in front of her charges. What had he been thinking? If she had not pulled away, he would have yielded to the temptation. While he was thankful her reputation was still intact, a part of him longed to pull Iris back into his arms and never let her go.

He stood alone on the bank of the small stream and watched as she settled the children on the blanket and handed each of them a piece of chicken. Maybe he should leave them alone. Just then, Anna looked toward him and waved her arm.

“Come and eat, Mr. Adam.”

He walked to where they sat, wondering what he could say to reassure Iris. “Perhaps I should return to town.”

June’s eyes rounded. “But you’ll miss the best part if you leave now.”

“That’s right.” Anna nodded solemnly. “Miss Iris promised to tell us a story.”

He tried to read Iris’s expression, but she had her face turned away.

“Well, perhaps I can stay for a little while.” Adam sat down on the blanket. “Is Miss Iris a good storyteller?”

“The best.” June looked toward Iris. “What story are you going to tell us?”

“Tell the one about the lost sheep,” Anna suggested. “I like that story.”

Iris placed a piece of chicken on a plate and handed it to Adam. “But you already know that story.”

Anna’s bottom lip protruded. “Please, Miss Iris.”

“Well, if you’re certain.” Both girls nodded at her, so Iris took a deep breath. “Once upon a time, a young shepherd boy loved his sheep very much….”

Adam munched on his chicken as Iris began to talk. This should be interesting. He was familiar with the story, but it had never held much meaning. What kind of shepherd would leave his flock to find one lost sheep? Better to protect the ones left in his flock.

Yet as Iris talked about the shepherd’s concern, he felt a tug on his heart. Then she described the shepherd’s joy, and he felt it, too. The excitement of finding something that was lost. The celebration of not only the shepherd but also the other sheep, as they welcomed the lost lamb back to the fold.

He was so lost in contemplation that Adam didn’t realize Iris had finished the story until he felt a small hand tug on his shirtsleeve. He looked down into June’s earnest face.

“Don’t you like that story?”