Too Far to Whisper (6 page)

Nathaniel chuckled and shook his head. “You are so innocent, so full or romantic notions. Did your mother never tell you that ‘tis a woman’s
duty
to pleasure her husband? It does not matter whether she enjoys his touch or is repulsed by it. ‘Tis still her duty and she still will conceive.”

Leave it to Nathaniel, Rosalind thought, to reduce her ideas of love to something as romantic as churning butter.

“Believe it or not, dear girl,” Nathaniel continued, “many women enjoy bedding men…with or without this love of which you speak. I cannot count the number of women who have frequented my cabin when my ship was in port and offered themselves to me.”

For a price
, Rosalind thought, scowling at the back of his head. “Pray tell, did you accept their offers?”

He laughed. “Some things are best kept secret.”

Rosalind already knew the answer. She did not doubt for one moment that Nathaniel shamelessly had bedded any and every woman who had set foot aboard his ship.  His notions about love and marriage greatly disturbed her.

“Are you aware that your mother anticipates you to be the first to wed?” she asked.

“Aye.” He tugged on the reins to maneuver the horse around a large branch that had fallen across the trail. “The woman is eager to be made a grandmother and feels that I, because I am her first born, should be the first to fulfill that wish. I have told her repeatedly she must wait until I find the right woman.”

Rosalind could not help but wonder what constituted the “right” woman for a man like Nathaniel Corwin. Although she first had assumed his bride would have to be chaste and untouched, she now suspected that a worldly, experienced woman would better suit him.

As if reading her thoughts, Nathaniel said, “Of course, I shall insist that my bride be pure. It is imperative that I be the first man to touch her, and, God willing, the last.”

“And how, pray tell, do you intend to keep a wife happy or be a proper husband and father when you are away at sea more oft than you are at home?” Rosalind asked.

“When I wed, I shall give up sailing and help run my father’s tavern.”

His reply surprised her. Nathaniel did not impress her as the sort who would give up anything to please a woman. “’Tis very noble of you,” she said.

“Not really.” He shrugged. “My sole purpose for remaining in town will be to keep a watchful eye on my wife. If I were away at sea, I am certain men would seize the opportunity to help ease her loneliness…for you know I never would marry a woman who was anything less than beautiful.”

Rosalind directed another glare at the back of his head.

“If she took a lover during my absence,” the captain continued, “’twould destroy both my pride and my reputation, neither of which is acceptable. Therefore, my intent is to never allow her that temptation.”

Unable to think of a response that would sound anything other than rude, Rosalind remained silent.

“And what of you?” Nathaniel asked. “Have you set your sights on a prospective future groom as yet?”

“Certainly not!” she answered, thinking it really was no concern of his whether she had or had not.

“So, pray tell, what are you waiting for?”

Rosalind gritted her teeth. “A snowy day in August!”

He tilted back his head and laughed. “You win. I shall take the hint and drop the subject!”

Rosalind was unable to mask her embarrassment when the spied the cluster of neighbors that had gathered in front of her mother’s house. It was apparent the news somehow had spread that the magistrate’s son would be visiting. As Nathaniel reined the horse to a halt in front of her mother’s weathered, clapboard, one-story house, several of the children in the group stepped forward to stare wide-eyed at the mare. One lad even was bold enough to reach out and touch the animal’s side. Silence fell over the crowd as Nathaniel dismounted, then reached up, grasped Rosalind around the waist and lowered her to the ground.

After she had smoothed her skirts and her hair, Rosalind turned to face the gaping onlookers. “This is Nathaniel Corwin,” she announced, “the magistrate’s son.”

Giggles and whispers circulated as Nathaniel, flashing one of his dazzling smiles that enhanced his dimples, acknowledged the group with a nod. The starry-eyed gazes of several of the younger maidens drew a frown from Rosalind. Nathaniel, she thought, already was too conceited for his own good. He certainly did not need to have his ego further inflated by this group of adoring strangers.

When Rosalind entered her family’s home, she was taken aback by the amount of cleaning, scrubbing and furniture rearranging that apparently had been done in preparation for the visit.

“Mother!” Rosalind rushed to embrace the slim, dark-haired woman. “I have missed you so!” Before her mother could respond, she gathered both Nellie and Elizabeth into her arms for a hug.

“Nathaniel,” Rosalind finally directed her attention to the man she had left standing in the doorway, “I would like you to meet my mother and my sisters, Nellie and Elizabeth.” Nellie, petite and apple-cheeked, with an abundance of golden curls, and Elizabeth, tall, slender and dark like her mother, both smiled shyly at the handsome captain.

“Pleased to meet you,” Nathaniel responded, smiling, as he stepped into the room. “Rosalind neglected to mention that the three of you were so lovely.”

Rosalind suppressed the urge to roll her eyes and groan as her sisters and, heaven forbid, even her mother, tittered and blushed in response.

“We have eagerly been awaiting your arrival,” Rosalind’s mother said, directing her comment to Nathaniel rather than to her daughter. “Please, be seated. I shall fetch you some refreshment.”  She beckoned to Nellie and Elizabeth, who followed her to the corner of the room that served as the kitchen.

Nathaniel straddled a stool and then scanned his surroundings. Rosalind wondered what he was thinking as his eyes swept over the plain, well-worn furnishings and dirt floor.

“Cozy,” he finally said. “’Tis exactly what I had imagined it would be.”

“It seems so small and cluttered now,” Rosalind said, seating herself on a plain wooden bench. With a cupboard, great chest, table, benches, stools, kettles, pots and even a bed crammed into the single room, it seemed ready to burst. “I fear I have grown too accustomed to the spacious accommodations at your house.”

“And of having a bed all to yourself?” he added, glancing at the bed in the corner. “Do you not miss sharing a bed with your sisters?”

“At first, I did. But I now have come to appreciate the solitude. Also ‘tis nice to be able to sleep in the center of the bed if I so desire.”

“Well, do not grow too fond of sleeping alone,” Nathaniel said, smiling slightly.

Rosalind regarded him curiously.

“Sorry for the delay,” her mother, with Nellie and Elizabeth at her heels, interrupted. The three stood directly in front of Nathaniel and offered him food and drink, then stood staring at him.

Nodding his thanks to the trio, Nathaniel accepted a mug of ale and piece oatcake. As he ate and drank, six adoring eyes burned into him. Rosalind witnessed the look of discomfort on his face as her family continued to watch him eat. Perhaps now, she thought, with a small measure of satisfaction, Nathaniel might comprehend how she had felt when he had stared at her throughout supper the night Ben and Faith had come to dine.

Several minutes passed before Rosalind reluctantly decided to come to the captain’s aid. “Nellie, Elizabeth,” she said with more than a touch of enthusiasm, “Captain Corwin’s mare is tethered out front. Would you not like to go out and see her?”

“May we?” Nellie asked, her brows arching.

“By all means,” Nathaniel answered, his tone hinting of his relief. “And be sure to scratch her neck. She likes that.”

Both girls quickly disappeared, slamming the heavy door behind them. Rosalind hoped that by the time her sisters returned, some of their wide-eyed fascination with Nathaniel would have faded. In truth, her family’s behavior was beginning to try her patience.

“May I have something to drink?” Rosalind was forced to pose the question to her mother’s back.

“You know where it is,” he mother absently replied with a wave of her hand. Her gaze remained riveted on Nathaniel as he sipped his ale.

Sighing, Rosalind rose to her feet, but Nathaniel held up his hand to halt her.

“Please, Rosalind,” his command was spoken gently, “remain seated for a few moments. There is a matter of great importance that I wish to discuss with you and your mother, and ‘twould be best to do it now, while the three of us are alone.”

Bewildered, Rosalind dropped back onto the bench and turned her attention to Nathaniel. Her mother moved to sit next to her.

Nathaniel set down his drink and stood. Then, with his hands clasped behind his back, spoke directly to Rosalind’s mother. “Mrs. Chandler,” he began, his tone formal, “I normally would address this question to your husband, but under your unfortunate circumstances I, of course, cannot.” His eyes briefly cut toward Rosalind, and she spied a flicker of amusement in them. He then returned his attention to her mother. “I seek permission to marry your daughter.”

A shocked, outraged gasp escaped Rosalind’s lips.

“I realize I have known Rosalind but a short time,” Nathaniel calmly continued, “but at first sight, I knew she was the woman I have been waiting for. Not only do I adore her, my entire family is completely smitten with her.”

Rosalind’s mother’s hands flew up to her face, which suddenly was bright with color. “Dear Lord in heaven! Tell me I am not dreaming!”

“I assure you,” Nathaniel said, smiling, “you are fully awake.”

“I knew it!” her mother cried, her eyes lifting heavenward as if to deliver a silent prayer of thanks. “I knew my lovely Rosalind would win your heart – albeit, not quite so swiftly – but I knew it!”

“When I set my mind to do something,” Nathaniel said, “I do not delay. In fact, if you are not opposed, Mrs. Chandler, I would like to make this betrothal but a brief one.”

“I support your decision completely,” the woman responded, her eyes brimming with tears of joy. “Lengthy betrothals serve little purpose other than to frustrate the young people who are so eager to begin their new life together.” She rose from the bench and rushed to Nathaniel for an embrace. “Welcome to our family, my son!”

Clutching her chest, Rosalind stared at her mother and Nathaniel, her eyes wide with disbelief. The two of them, paying no mind whatsoever to what
she
wanted, were planning her future! She shook her head to clear it. This could not be happening, she thought, refusing to believe the conversation she had just witnessed. For what purpose, she wondered, was Nathaniel doing this to her…to her family? Solely to entertain his ego? He knew all too well that she had no desire to wed him, nor any other man, yet here he stood, giving her mother false hope and seemingly enjoying every moment of his ruse. Rage coursed through Rosalind with such force, it robbed her of her breath and the room began to spin. She grasped the table’s edge to prevent herself from falling off her bench.

“My dear, dear Rosalind,” her mother tearfully breathed, oblivious of her daughter’s stricken expression and sudden pallor. “You and Captain Corwin have made me the happiest woman alive!  I
must
send word to Benjamin posthaste!” She dabbed at her eyes with a corner of her apron, then turned toward the door. “I shall engage either Elizabeth or Nellie to deliver the wonderful news to him!  I am certain he will be as thrilled as I am!”

By the time Rosalind found her voice, her mother already had disappeared outside.

“Surprised?” Nathaniel asked her, his expression so smug, Rosalind wanted to leap up and claw it from his face. He returned to the stool and seated himself. Tilting back, he clasped his hands behind his head and leaned against the wall.

“Furious!” Rosalind shot back. “I do not know what game you are playing, Captain, but I shall
not
allow you to make a mockery of me or my family! I insist you put an end to all of this ere it goes any further!”

“Too late.” His tone was matter-of-fact. “I will wager that at this very moment your mother is out there spreading the news to everyone within earshot!  In fact, the news probably will have reached my parents ere we even get home.”

“Well, then,” Rosalind said through gritted teeth, “you shall have a good number of people to explain the truth to, for I have absolutely no intention of wedding you – not now, not ever! And I cannot fathom what it was I ever said or did to give you the mistaken impression that I would!”

Nathaniel leaned forward, returning the stool to its upright position. He smiled at her. “Dear girl, ‘tis what you did
not
do that enticed me! Since you have been in my parents’ employ, you have shown very little interest in me, have rebuffed any and all of my attempts to get close to you, and have made no attempt whatsoever to pursue me. I find your aloofness incredibly…stimulating. In truth, the more you avoid me, the more I desire you. And ‘tis certainly no secret that my parents adore you. ‘Twould not surprise me in the least if my mother miraculously recovers her health when she learns of this news. What better reason for us to be wed?”

“
Love
!” she snapped.