Taken by You (29 page)

The more diligently Jane worked over his flesh, the angrier Morgan became. No one manipulated him without his consent, and he wasn’t about to let a hot little baggage do it now. Grasping her shoulders, he pushed her away. Jane fell back on her rump, her eyes wide with disbelief. Her surprise soon turned to fury.

“What kind of man are you, Morgan Scott? Or are you a man at all? You were almost ready. Would you prefer using force? You are a pirate, and I heard they treat women savagely. If you prefer ravishment I would be most happy to oblige. You may take me as roughly as you please, be as savage as you like, I’ll not complain.” Just thinking about it made her breathless with need.

Morgan’s expression grew cold as he stretched to his feet and hastily straightened his clothing. “I do not like hurting women. As I said before, this was a mistake.”

Jane rounded on Morgan, her face mottled with rage. “Is this the kind of treatment I can expect after we’re married? I won’t put up with it, Morgan. What has that Spanish bitch done to you?”

“I wish I knew,” Morgan muttered distractedly. “When you and I marry, if we marry, you will have nothing to complain about in regards to my performance.”

Jane smiled coyly. “Come and show me then. I felt you harden in my mouth; I know you wanted me.”

“I’m only human,” Morgan replied. “But this is neither the time nor the place. I’m conceited enough to want to pick the time and place myself. Perhaps we should return to the Presence Chamber before we’re missed. Our good Queen Bess can be a tiger if she suspects one of her ladies is misbehaving. She is already angry with me. No need for you to earn her wrath as well.”

“She wouldn’t be upset with you if you agreed to set aside your Spanish wife so you can wed an Englishwoman,” Jane grumbled crossly.

Morgan heaved a weary sigh He’d heard it all before. Not only from the queen but from his friends as well. “Let’s not go into that again. My marriage is not open for discussion. Are you ready to leave?”

“I look a sight,” Jane complained, trying without success to rearrange her hair like it was before entering the gazebo. Finally she gave up and pushed it into a semblance of order. When she and Morgan entered the queen’s Presence Chamber, they looked as if they’d just returned from an illicit rendezvous.

Luca lingered at the edge of the crowd, having arrived at Whitehall only moments ago. When told she was Lady Scott, a footman directed her to the queen’s Presence Chamber, informing her that the queen had just knighted Sir Morgan Scott and that she’d find the entire court gathered for the ceremony in honor of her husband. When Luca arrived the room was teeming with people, all richly dressed in every manner of court attire. She felt drab and out of place in her travel-stained velvet gown and unpowdered hair. She searched the room for Morgan but did not see him. She started violently when she felt a hand on her shoulder. Turning abruptly, she was more than a little startled to see a black-clad Jesuit priest hovering at her elbow.

“Forgive me for startling you, daughter, but I could not help noticing that you are Spanish. What are you doing so far from your homeland? Elizabeth’s court is no place for a Spaniard right now. Tempers are running high against our people.” The Jesuit’s fluent Spanish was music to Luca’s ears.

“Are you from Spain?” Luca asked hopefully.

“Si.
I am with a delegation of Jesuits in England to convince the heretic queen to stop oppressing the Catholic population of England. We also carry assurances from King Philip and the pope that Spain has no intention of retaliating for Queen Mary’s murder, though we condemn the act as a blatant miscarriage of justice and reprehensible in the eyes of God. What are you doing here, daughter?”

“It’s a long story, Father,” Luca said, sighing.

“You seem lost. Come with me, I will introduce you to the rest of our delegation, and you can tell us what brings you to England. We must all stick closely together in this immoral court.”

Suddenly Luca spied Morgan, and her breath caught painfully in her throat. He had just walked into the chamber through a door across the room, accompanied by a beautiful woman who clung Possessively to his arm. The woman was young, blond, regal, and charmingly disheveled in a way that was unmistakable. Luca’s gaze returned to Morgan, who looked as if he hadn’t had time to dress properly. His clothing was awry, and he appeared flustered. It occurred to Luca that she’d seen that look on his face many times in the past … after making love to her. Her fingers curled into fists.
Dios,
she wanted to kill the woman!

“What is it, daughter?” the priest asked as he followed Luca’s gaze to Morgan and Lady Jane.

“Who is that?” Luca asked, nodding in Morgan’s direction.

The priest scowled fiercely. “‘Tis the vicious pirate, Morgan Scott, and his
puta,
Lady Jane Carey. He’s sent more Spanish galleons to the bottom of the sea than any other man living or dead. It was reported that he had met his death in Havana, then he turned up recently in England, very much alive. He’s made quite a splash at court. The queen fairly dotes on him. The pirate was knighted today for his loyalty to England.”

Luca’s heart sank. Morgan was knighted, and she didn’t even know about it. Clearly he chose to forget he had a wife. She was an embarrassment to him. When she saw Lady Jane whisper something in Morgan’s ear that made him smile, a sob caught in her throat.

“Forget these godless people, daughter. Come with me, we will pray together for the conversion of England.”

Too distraught to object, Luca meekly followed the priest from the chamber, away from Morgan and his mistress.

Chapter 15

“A
h, here we are, daughter,” the priest said as he opened the door to his chamber and ushered Luca inside.” ’Tis small but adequate. We are accustomed to simple pleasures.”

Luca entered the chamber, and three other priests turned from their prayers to stare at her. “Sit, daughter,” the priest said, motioning to the only chair in the room. “I am Father Pedro and these are Fathers Juan, Bernadino, and Raphael.”

Luca greeted each in turn. “I am Luca Santiego, from Cadiz.”

“Don Eduardo’s daughter?” Father Pedro asked. “I know your father well. He is a benefactor of our order. I heard you had married Don Diego del Fugo, governor-general of Cuba. What in God’s name are you doing in England?”

“I am here with my husband,” Luca explained, recalling now that she’d heard her father speak of Father Pedro and his order.

The priests grew very excited, speaking among themselves in whispers. Finally Father Pedro turned to Luca and said, “We had no idea Don Diego was in England. We must confer with him immediately.”

“Obviously you haven’t seen or spoken to my father or brothers in a very long time. I am married to Morgan Scott.”

Never had Luca seen such an open display of shock as evidenced by the expressions on the faces of the Jesuits. “El Diablo, the pirate?
Dios!”
They crossed themselves and looked at Luca as if she had suddenly grown horns. “How did such a travesty happen, my child?” Father Juan asked, reserving judgment until he heard the entire story. “Obviously there is more here than meets the eye.”

“I’m not sure where to begin,” Luca said, reluctant to bare her innermost secrets to the priests.

“At the beginning,” Father Bernadino prodded gently. “Afterward, if you like, I will hear your confession and give you absolution. You may begin, daughter.”

Luca swallowed past the lump in her throat and started with her abduction at sea and how she had assumed the guise of a nun in order to protect her virtue. The priests exchanged knowing looks when she admitted that the pirate had seen through her ruse. Without going into intimate details, she explained how her brothers rescued her and insisted upon an impromptu wedding ceremony. The Jesuits were dismayed when she described Morgan’s escape from Havana on the eve of his execution and her abduction from Don Diego’s home.

“You poor child,” Father Pedro said, shaking his head in commiseration. “You have experienced Hell. How you must hate the pirate for what he has done to you. We will pray for you. Are you aware that your husband is committing adultery with immoral women? Since we’ve been at court, we have seen Captain Scott and Lady Jane together often. Rumor has it they will wed soon, that the queen is pushing for the marriage. Surely these heretics aren’t allowed two wives, are they?”

“Morgan will probably annul our marriage and send me back to the convent.”

“You are married in the eyes of God. No heretic marriage can take place without the Holy Father’s approval of an annulment. What God has joined no man can set asunder,” Pedro quoted piously. “Do you wish to return to Spain, daughter?”

Luca frowned. What she really wanted was to pull out every golden hair on Lady Jane’s regal head. But if Morgan cast her aside, she’d be content to spend the rest of her days in a convent. One love in a lifetime was all she could tolerate.

“It might be best for all concerned,” she admitted.

“We will be leaving England as soon as the Spanish Armada hoves into sight of English soil,” Father Juan confided, lowering his voice to a whisper. “You must tell no one about this. If we are caught in England when the great armada arrives we will likely be imprisoned or put to death.”

“Why are you here?” Luca asked curiously.

“We were sent by King Philip and Lord Parma to learn what we can of England’s defenses and the queen’s intentions.”

“You’re spies!” Luca said, aghast.

Father Pedro shifted uncomfortably. “That is a harsh term, daughter. We are on a peace mission. If you wish to return to Spain we will take you with us, and I will personally see that you are reunited with your father. We are entrusting you with our secret, but you must tell no one what we have just revealed. Shall we pray together for the success of the expedition?”

The Jesuits dropped to their knees, joining in prayer with Father Pedro. Luca scrambled quickly to her knees, but her mind wasn’t on her prayers. She wondered if Morgan realized how close the armada was to sailing and if the queen’s navy was sailing out to meet them. She had seen the fleet at Plymouth, but she had gotten the impression that no preparations were being made to leave the port any time soon.

After a long interval of prayer, Luca rose to leave. “We will keep in touch daughter,” Father Pedro said. “If you wish to leave England you must be prepared to move at a moment’s notice. Meanwhile, you can perform a great service to your king and God by relaying anything of importance to us that you learn through your husband. When we reach Spain we will encourage the pope to declare your marriage to the heretic pirate invalid.”

Luca left the Jesuits’ chamber in a state of confusion. She had been surprised to learn that the Jesuits were Spanish spies and even more shocked when Father Pedro asked her to spy on her own husband. Morgan might be ruthless and utterly unscrupulous, but she could not force herself to spy on him.

In the first place, she doubted Morgan would reveal anything of importance to her. In the second, he’d probably be so angry at seeing her in London he’d send her forthwith back to Scott Hall. Her presence here would definitely hamper his activity with the ladies, particularly Lady Jane.
I certainly hope so,
she thought with a hint of malice.

Luca wandered down the corridor, having little idea where she was going, and caring less.

After the queen left the Presence Chamber the crowd began to disperse. Having grown bored with Lady Jane and her possessiveness, Morgan excused himself politely.