Fortune's Flames (14 page)

“I was voicing a concern, Maren, not threatening you. But I hope you’re more willing to betray Eric than to betray yourself and America.” He ran his fingers through his light brown hair, then sighed wearily. “I think it’s best if I leave. I’m sorry for spoiling things between us tonight. But before we get together, Maren, we have to like and trust each other. Once I allow you to get under my skin, I’ll be forced to help you whether you’re right or wrong. I won’t put either of us in that awkward position, so until I decide that you’re as important to me as my country is, I have to resist you.”

Jared walked toward the door, but he halted and said, “In case you need help or change your mind, I’ll be around for a while.”

Maren’s heart was pounding furiously, but she did not know how to respond. Her mother had told her many things about men. She knew they played games with women, and she had to decide whether Jared was playing with her emotions before she reacted. Why was he hesitating in the doorway? What should she do or say?

“I promise I won’t tell Eric about your suspicions,” she finally responded. “If what you think is true, then convince me of it. That’s as far as I can bend tonight. Can you accept only that part of me until this matter is settled?”

Jared half turned to look at Maren. With her back to the candlestick, her face was in shadows. He tried to see it clearly, but could not. He wanted to trust her, but it was so hard for him to open up to a woman. Willa Barns Morgan had done such terrible things at home that he had trouble trusting any woman, especially with his life and freedom. To ease his tension, he jested, “I hope it’s settled quickly, my fetching siren, before you drown me in this flood of desire.”

Jared left before Maren could react. She then slowly went to the door, and locked it. She again wondered how he had gotten into the gambling house and into her room. Could someone else do the same? Dan Myers was no longer here to protect her and Mary, and many people probably knew he had moved. Perhaps she should get a pistol. Yes, she must do that. The next time, it might not be Jared Morgan who was sneaking into her room.

Maren returned to bed and snuggled into Jared’s indentation. His manly smell lingered and inflamed her anew. Three times he could have taken her, three times she would have surrendered, and three times he had resisted her. Was she being foolish? Too willing and eager?

Maren flung the cover aside once more and lit another candle. She retrieved the haunting letters from a drawer and read them once more. Two in particular troubled her. Those were the ones that had caused her to defend Eric, even at the expense of spoiling her time with her love.

Cameron James had written, “It amazes me, Maren, but Eric continues to improve in all areas. He’s been able to get several ships in and out of the Gulf, but only as far as the islands. He worked out a deal with a privateer in Martinique. The man picks up our cargoes there and takes them to European ports for us. Naturally we don’t earn much, having to go through another shipper who takes the main risks, but that approach is keeping us in business while others are failing…. Eric takes little reward for himself, always putting nearly everything earned back into the firm, except for what he insists that your mother and I use for ourselves and the plantation. I promised to repay him for his hard work by making him my partner after the war. You should have seen his face when I told him that news. He was so choked up he could barely speak for over an hour. He’s a hard worker, Maren, and a good man. He is cunning, yet he can be totally unselfish….

“Eric has a real patriotic streak which I greatly admire, but he is reserved about it because he doesn’t like people to make much of him. This is so unlike the old Eric who did anything for attention. But secrecy is necessary to protect Eric and to aid his missions, as we call them. If the British captured him or one of their spies (yes, spies here in our land, Maren) unmasked him, our beloved Eric could be slain. When I try to give him credit publicly for saving me during this mess, he pretends everything is my doing and he scolds me later for making him seem too important.”

Another letter, written shortly before her father’s death, followed a similar vein. “Despite his previous loudness, Eric is really quite shy and sensitive. It’s taken me nearly a year to force some confidence into him; John made him feel so useless and inferior. I’m ashamed of my brother for almost destroying his own son…. Eric’s very proud of what he’s done for me and for himself, but what seems to matter most to him is that I recognize and appreciate his growth. I often wish he were my son instead of John’s or that he could become my son-in-law. Of course that is not possible since you are first cousins. Nonetheless, he misses you terribly and wishes you had married someone closer to us (we assume you went ahead with the wedding when war was declared). He’s told me about some of the pranks you two played. It’s clear you’re Cameron James’s daughter. Eric really loves you, Maren, and talks about you often. All of us wonder how you’re doing, and we hope you’re happy
with Daniel. Naturally your mother worries about your having a child without her there at your side, and every morning and night we pray for this war to end so we can visit you. We love you, Maren, more each day.”

That was as much as she could read before anguish overtook her. Her father and mother had admired Eric James. In fact, it seemed that he had gotten better and better, which was certainly possible under her father’s influence and guidance. Several times the letters had stated that Eric was helping the American cause in secret ways, but that more could not be revealed in a letter. And twice he had mentioned that Eric had financed certain missions out of a “special fund which you will understand later.” Maren hated to think Eric had used the missing money from the bank box, the money she had accused him of stealing.

If she had not finished reading the letters this afternoon, she would have answered Jared’s questions, she admitted. But having read them, how could she betray the man her parents had loved so dearly? Eric had almost become a son to Cameron and Carlotta James and, through their letters, a brother to her. All of the good times and feelings she had shared with her first cousin in the first eighteen years of her life had resurfaced, and she had been unable to reveal anything about him to Jared Morgan. Even if Eric was guilty of some crime or foul deed, it would have to be someone else who betrayed him.

* * *

When Maren got out of bed at eleven the next morning, she knew Mary Malone was attending church and would then have lunch with friends. She washed her face and brushed her hair, but did not dress before going downstairs to prepare her wake-up tea. She smiled as she realized that Mary had left a fire in the stove for heating water and for warming the fresh pastries which were on the table. She set the kettle in place and turned to the pastries. Suddenly she screamed, and Jared chuckled.

“Damn you, stop sneaking up on me! Did you stay here last night?” she asked, trying to sound vexed, but it was difficult because he looked so appealing in a billowy white shirt, snug ebony breeches, and shiny black boots.

“No. I slept in my room at the hotel.”

“How do you get in?” When he merely grinned, she shouted, “Blast you, Jared Morgan, tell me! This could be dangerous for me and Mary.”

“Not anymore, I moved into Dan Myers’s old room. I’ll be here to protect you and Mrs. Malone. That tea about ready?”

Maren gaped in disbelief. When she found her voice, she shrieked, “You can’t move in here! Who do you think you are?”

“Your partner. So I have every right to live here, just as you do, Miss James. After we have tea and pastries, I’ll show you the papers your father signed years ago making me half-owner of Lady Luck. By the way, I haven’t received any earnings since the war began. After breakfast, we must figure out how much you owe me. Your father was to hold my earnings
until I came to collect them, and I do hope you haven’t spent them. Somehow I doubt that you want to be indebted to me. Oh, you also owe me for my winning streak last night. But since I was a patron, I do hope you don’t pay me with my own money. As to how I get in and out,” he added, dangling keys in the air, “I have my own keys. Cameron gave them to me on my last visit.”

After a lengthy silence, Maren demanded, “What are you trying to pull, Jared Morgan? You can’t be my father’s partner.”

“I’m not, Miss James—I’m yours.”

Maren did not like the way Jared grinned. “Give me those keys. You can’t come in and out of here like you—”

“Own half of this place.” He teasingly completed her statement.

Maren observed him intently. His teeth looked exceedingly white in contrast with his tanned skin, and his brownish gold eyes appeared to be balls of warm honey. He had not shaved yet, and his stubble was very dark for a light-haired man. Though his hair was combed, it still settled into windblown waves with sun-laced tips. She eyed his features. They were strong, manly and appealing, as was his lean and muscular physique. Like his stubble, the
hair on his chest, visible because of his half-open shirt, was very dark. She had trouble accepting what he’d said. Jared Morgan, the man whom she had dreamed of since the age of fifteen—Captain Hawk, the roguish privateer who had romantically besieged her three times—was her mystery partner. The man was sharing her home and…

“You can’t live here, Jared. People will gossip. You might not care about your reputation, but I must protect mine. Vicious rumors can ruin me and my business. After you sail away, I’ll be living here. What are you really after?”

“Why, my rightful earnings, among other things. Perhaps I’ll use the money to make an investment while I’m waiting for Eric’s return. I’m not one to let money sit in a bank.” When Maren shifted apprehensively, Jared asked, “You do have my money, don’t you?”

Maren knew she had to think of a way to delay him until she could replace his stolen earnings. If she told Jared that Eric had taken them, it would make her cousin vulnerable to this clever deceiver. Obviously Jared had come here about Lady Luck and Eric, not to locate her. Maybe he had known who she was all along! Perhaps he had been playing mischievous games with her! No, she decided, not unless he had been pretending on that first night. But, her warring mind argued, what if he had discovered the truth after his arrival but before he saw her that night?

“You’re not answering me, Maren. Your father said he was keeping my share in a special fund.

Surely you were told that you have a partner?”

“Special fund.” Maren thought of her father’s letter. Things looked worse now than before; there were not two years’ earnings and records in the bank box! “I spent some of it. The rest is in a box at the bank, and it’s closed on Sunday.”

“Why would you spend what isn’t yours?” Jared inquired. He walked to the stove and removed the hissing kettle. After calmly preparing two cups of tea and placing them on the table, he took a seat.

Maren remained standing so she would not feel more trapped in the chair than she felt on her feet. “I used some of it to buy wine and liquor from pirates, privateers as you call yourselves. We can’t run this place without a supply, and they charge heavily because of the blockade. I recorded my expenses. I had to pay my hotel bill and buy some new clothes. They don’t come cheap during these times either. After my father’s death, I had nothing left except this place, and you know how much money I had with me when I left London. It was all in that little pouch you so generously didn’t steal,” she said sarcastically. “And since you recall my wardrobe, you know I couldn’t wear those prim gowns in a gambling house. It made my customers nervous to see me dressed like a proper lady. I reminded them of their wives and daughters or of a church social. Don’t worry, Mr. Morgan, you’ll get every dollar coming to you. But there is one problem.”

“What is that, Miss James?” he asked, barely controlling his mirth.

“I have no record of your earnings before my father’s death. I didn’t even know he had a partner until my return on June eighth. Whatever your arrangement with him was, I know nothing about it. Eric was the one who started putting my mysterious partner’s share in a bank box, and he told me to continue to do so every week to prevent trouble or a takeover in case the half-owner of Lady Luck ever appeared. I’ve followed his advice. It’s all there except for the expenditures, which are noted in your records. Now I would like to see the paper which confirms your claim to the partnership. And I advise you not to settle in here until I have a lawyer study your partnership agreement.”

“I can give you the same advice, Miss James. I only have your word you’re Cameron’s daughter and heir,” he teased merrily.

Maren frowned at him as he chuckled. “How do I know you didn’t steal that deed from the rightful owner during one of your raids?”

“Because it has my signature on it, as well as your father’s. You see, my lovely siren, we had the papers drawn up again after my father’s death to make certain there was no misunderstanding. I’m sure you’ll recognize your father’s handwriting. You’re fortunate I believe you’re Cameron’s daughter. Still, during the last two years he could have willed his share of the place to someone else to cover a debt. I have proof Lady Luck is half mine. Do you? And I wonder what the law would have to say about you… borrowing my earnings without permission.

It sounds a wee bit like fraud and theft, don’t you think?”

Anger and alarm surged through Maren, and her golden brown eyes revealed it. “How could I obtain your permission when I didn’t even know who you were?. And if I had known, what if you had been killed or captured at sea? What if you had never showed up to make your claim? Did you expect me to allow Lady Luck to go bankrupt or fall into disrepair while that money stayed nestled in the bank like a fragile egg?”

“How can I be sure you spent my money as you say? You might have lost it playing cards? And why should I trust you to run this place for us? You’re a woman, Maren James, a very young one, inexperienced and a temptation to our patrons.”

“I’m a damned good card player, one of the best. Ask the patrons; I’ve lost very few games, only small ones. Not that it matters to you, Jared Morgan, but I’m using my winnings to repay you. Check the books since I took over. You’ll see that I’m more than qualified to run Lady Luck. If you don’t trust me or believe me, check with Dan Myers.”

“How do I know he wouldn’t cover for you? He did move out to protect your name, and he came to your rescue on the street.”

“I’m not going to answer any more of your questions until you prove you have a right to ask them. Why did you keep your partnership a secret?”

“Cameron James and Benjamin Morgan were the original partners; we inherited their shares when
they died. My father bought into this place to give me an inheritance. He knew my older brother would get Shady Rest, the family’s plantation in Savannah, so he wanted to give me a business to fall back on when I had to quit the sea. I didn’t know about this for a while; he wanted to make certain Lady Luck was successful before he told me about it. My ship, the
Sea Mist,
was purchased with earnings from this place, but over the years, things changed. My father remarried—he’s dead now—and my brother Jeremy was hanged by the British after he was impressed. He refused to bend to the Royal Navy, so he was killed. A lawful execution, I think they called it.”

Jared sipped the hot tea to wash down his bitterness. Maren remained silent and watchful. “My father didn’t want anyone to know about his interest in Lady Luck, not until the business was prosperous and it was time to hand it over to me. He might have wanted to make sure I had settled down enough and had the brains to keep it going. Since you met me years ago, I don’t need to tell you I was a wild and reckless youth. Nonetheless, my father willed his partnership to me and asked me to keep it as long as I could. So far, I’ve had enough money to live on without selling my share, and I’ve had no reason to disclose my partnership. Besides, as long as people here thought your father owned this place, it made him appear more prosperous, more of a man to trust with their business. And if anything happened to me, no one could approach your father about my debts.”

A playful tone laced Jared’s voice when he added,
“There was another reason to keep the partnership a secret: your protection. If you didn’t know who to contact and couldn’t sell without my signature, you would always have a source of income. That would prevent a greedy husband, or cousin, from selling this place and leaving you penniless and homeless. Admit it, Maren, if it were not for this secret, you wouldn’t have Lady Luck today. I’ve heard that Eric sold Cameron James’s holdings and took over the shipping firm. Why haven’t you tried to recover your fortune?”

“Who told you such things? Are you spying on me?”

“Why, Miss James, it’s common knowledge he’s cheated you out of a fortune. Or I should say, cleverly beguiled you into giving up one.”

“Then you must also know how and why he sold everything. It was done legally, and out of necessity. My father loved and trusted Eric; he gave my cousin the authority to manage his holdings. Eric wouldn’t have sold anything of mine if he had known I was… That’s all you need to know. I’ll turn over your money and records tomorrow.”

“And then we can discuss how you plan to repay your debt to me.”

“Stop worrying about the blasted money. You’ll get it back.”

“I assume it’s a great deal or you wouldn’t be so upset about it. Have you asked Eric about that money and the earlier records?”

“How could I? I didn’t know they were missing
until you told me. Besides, I only have your word that you haven’t been paid since the war began. What did Papa say he would do with your earnings?”

“He said he would keep them in a safe place, in a special fund.”

Maren couldn’t reveal that she knew anything about a “special fund” without letting Jared read her parents’ letters, and she could not do that. When Eric returned, she would straighten out these dismaying matters with him, then deal with Jared. “I left here in June of 1812 and had no contact with my parents during my absence. When I returned, I went through their belongings, which were stored in Eric’s warehouse, but I found no money or records among them. That’s all I can tell you, Jared.”

Jared noticed how softly she had spoken his name, although she had done it unconsciously. He could tell something was troubling her, something she could not or would not share with him. “We can question your father’s lawyer when you have him go over my deed. He might know something about this matter.”

“Papa’s lawyer! Why didn’t I think about that? It’s just that things have been so hectic since my return. It was harder to visit their graves and go through their things than I had imagined. And trying to get settled in this place… Why am I telling you all of this? You can’t live here, Jared. Please, itcould hurt me and our business.”

“With Dan Myers gone, you and Mrs. Malone need a man here to protect you. People won’t talk after we
announce our partnership.”

“You’re going to tell everyone?”

“Why not? There’s no need for secrecy anymore.”

“But people will think you’re running the place because you’re a man. They’ll give you all the credit for our success. I was doing fine before you showed up; I don’t need such an intrusion. Go back to sea and leave me alone. You’ve been nothing but trouble since we met.”

“Is that a fact, my tempting siren?”

“Don’t start that again, Jared Morgan. I know why you came to New Orleans, and it wasn’t to look up Maren Slade!”

“I swear you are one of my main reasons for being here, Maren.”

Maren declared curtly, “Because you think you can trick me into turning Lady Luck over to you, that you can charm me into betraying Eric?”

“Why is it that Eric James always seems to be coming between us? I think he owes you about as much as you owe me. Why don’t you sell me your half of Lady Luck and settle down?”

“Never!” she shouted at him. “It was a gift from my father, and it’s all I have left. I don’t want any man taking care of me as if I were one of his possessions. I like being on my own.”

“How much do you owe me, Maren? Enough to permit me to legally take over Lady Luck, like Eric took over your firm and your plantation?”

“You’re trying to scare me or to trap me into helping you, aren’t you?”

“I’m only trying to force you to see the truth, Maren. You owe me a sizable amount.”

“If you take Lady Luck, I won’t have anything, Jared. Why are you doing this to me? You were my father’s friend, his partner.”

Jared recalled that she had admitted dreaming of him for years and he thought of how she had behaved since finding him again. He wished it hadn’t been so long since he had seen Cameron because so much had changed. And he wished he had met Eric so he would have an idea of what the man was like. For that matter, he felt if he and Maren had met long ago matters wouldn’t be so difficult to settle. He deliberated on how he wanted to use the edge he had over her because of the debt. Maren had lost her fiancé and her parents, and most of her inheritance. She was afraid, by her own admission, to trust him. He had confused and angered her. To win her, he had to be sly and firm, to play the devilish rake. He had not meant to handle things this way, but doing so could be helpful to both of them. Yes, there was only one course to sail….

“You can have the ruby necklace, the one I hid from you on the ship,” Maren offered. “I’ll sign a paper stating how much more I owe you, and if I can’t repay you within a year, I’ll sell you my half of this place. Is it a deal?”

“No,” Jared replied. He watched her become pale.

“No?” she echoed hoarsely. “Then, what do you want from me?”

“It isn’t what I want from you, Maren. What I want
is you.”

A sharp inhalation left her dry lips. “You can’t be serious. I know I behaved wickedly on the ship and the beach, but I’m not a harlot. It may sound stupid, but I had reality and fantasy all mixed up. If any other raider had attacked our ship, I would never have acted that way. Believe what you will, but that’s the truth.”

Jared realized that she had misunderstood him. She thought his only interest in her was physical; that was not true. Oh, he wanted her badly, but he had to make certain she wanted to belong to him in all ways before he possessed her. His father had told him over and over that sex did not prove love, only desire. She was embarrassed by her past behavior, and he didn’t want her to be uncomfortable about their special attraction. He had to make her aware of how much, and of how seriously, he craved her. “I believe you, Maren, and I’m glad those girlhood dreams caused you to respond to me. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have chased you. I’ll give you six months to repay me. If not, I get you. Everything about you, Miss James, including all you are and know.”