Holding the Fort by Regina Jennings

Author:Regina Jennings
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Historical Fiction;FIC042030;FIC042040;FIC027050
ISBN: 9781493412006
Publisher: Baker Publishing Group
Published: 2017-09-18T04:00:00+00:00

There was no mistaking the silhouette of the man in the doorway.

“Major Adams!” Her pulse sped up, and she covered her heart with her hand. “You startled me.”

A match struck. A flame flared as he lit a lamp and adjusted it. He’d dressed in a hurry, his white shirt unbuttoned, his suspenders crooked.

“Just imagine,” he said, “how startled I was to hear someone entering my house at this time of night.”

Her throat tightened. He deserved the truth, but for Bradley’s sake, she couldn’t tell him. Instead she’d accept the blame and his contempt.

She threw her shoulders back. Was this the final straw? Would he send her packing? She lifted her chin and tried to speak with confidence. “I apologize, Major Adams. I should’ve notified you that I was going for a stroll. My room felt confining tonight.”

There was no escape from the intensity of his gaze. He didn’t mock her. He didn’t call her a liar. But neither did he look away and give her the dignity of pretending to believe her.

“You may be on a fort, but there are still dangers for a woman alone after dark. And even more danger for a woman who is not alone.”

Louisa bit her lip. He’d seen her. Did he know who she’d been with, or was he hoping she’d reveal it? She had to maintain her bluff.

“I feel much better now that I’ve had some fresh air. If you’ll excuse me . . .”

“That’s it?” he asked. His hair was ruffled, his eyes tender. She shifted her weight, wondering what to do. One minute he looked like he was about to rain down judgment on her, but now he looked as if she’d hurt his feelings. “That’s all you have to say?”

“I don’t feel like talking.”

“But I do.” His voice was low, but the calm was deceiving. He had the authority to eject her from the house that very moment. He could summon a troop of men to carry her away, throw her in the guardhouse, or put her in stocks on the village green if they still had such a thing. He was calm, but he was not happy.

“I apologize again if I’ve displeased you,” she said. “In the future—”

“Why?”

“What?”

“Why?” He looked genuinely confused. “Are you lonely? It must be difficult for you, here with the girls every day, but that is the task you’ve taken. We could go to Darlington more often, if you’d like to socialize with the ladies there. Whatever it takes, because I want you to be content. You are doing a good job with my daughters, and they . . . and I don’t want you to leave.”

She was trying to find her footing. He’d gone from commander to employer to now, something else. His plea was more of a personal request than an order.

“I don’t want to leave,” she said. “This is where I need to be.”

He held her gaze, conveying how much her statement meant to him. But then he blinked, and the spell broke.

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