Devil's Fire (5 page)

And what advantage would it be to live here, to become the fuel for new rumours? My father’s crimes had made me enough of a conversation piece already.

So I would go to Heaven’s Gate.

And as far as I was concerned, we couldn’t leave soon enough.

A
gainst his better judgment, Hyde agreed to drive me to Heaven’s Gate immediately after breakfast. The sky, a gun-metal grey edged with heavy clouds, promised more snow — not the best of conditions for driving up a narrow mountain road, but he sensed my eagerness to leave Mount Calvary. Sebastian Hatch helped him load large sacks of supplies into the carriage, and waved us off with a look of unmistakable concern.

‘I’m sorry to be such a Nervous Nellie,’ I whispered, clutching my cloak around the ivory and green striped gown he’d given me. ‘And thank you for fetching my sewing supplies and clothing from the Home. I just couldn’t show my face there again.’

Hyde shifted beside me on the padded seat, holding the reins that came through a slot centred before him. The rectangular black carriage was completely enclosed, with small windows on either side and a larger one that spanned the front. For several moments there were only the clip-cloppings of Beau’s hooves and the hum of our wheels on the brick street.

When he looked at me, I glanced down at my lap. ‘Are you having second thoughts, Mary Grace? About becoming my lover, or —’

‘No!’

His expression showed a vulnerability, a loneliness I glimpsed yesterday. I slipped my hand under his elbow, hoping this contact comforted him as much as it did me.

‘Then what’s happened? Yesterday you had the world by the tail and this morning you act as though you’ve seen a ghost.’

If I told him about the old crone who appeared in my room, he’d think I was insane. Yet if I didn’t explain my turnabout in attitude, Hyde would assume he’d done something for which I couldn’t forgive him.

‘I…when you were summoned downstairs in the night, I had a frightening experience,’ I began. ‘Perhaps I imagined her, but I could swear a withered old woman came in, warning me not to go to Heaven’s Gate. Her white nightgown shimmered in the moonlight, hanging so loosely she appeared not to have any substance. And her voice…that cough like Mama’s…’

The man beside me paled — or maybe that was my imagination, too. My pulse was pounding in my temples as I recalled the panic the apparition had caused, and how I’d burrowed beneath the covers like a frightened child. Hyde scooted against me.

‘I’m sorry I had to leave you, sweetheart,’ he said quietly. ‘I didn’t realise how deeply Mount Calvary affected you. I’ve grown so accustomed to its creakings and shadows, I forget others assume the house is haunted by whoever might lie dead downstairs. I had no bodies last night, by the way.’

The twinkle in his cinnamon eyes made me smile in spite of my nerves. I felt so foolish. I could almost convince myself the visitor was indeed a figment of my overactive imagination, something dredged up from those Gothic novels I’d thought of when the office door opened of its own accord yesterday.

‘Thank you for humouring me,’ I murmured. ‘I got skittish in the night and had scary dreams while Mama was so ill, and again when Papa lost his mind. He’d get up to roam around at all hours, and sometimes I’d awaken to find him gone in the morning. Just like…just like when he finally threw himself into that chasm.’

Hyde’s arm slipped around my shoulders. ‘You’ve been through some terrible times, Mary Grace. Enough to give anyone nightmares. I think it’s best you’re going to Heaven’s Gate for a fresh start, among new friends who will encourage your work. I’ll come to see you every week, of course.’

This thought, and the mischievous tilt of his grin, brought me out of my troubled mood. On impulse I kissed him, and Hyde continued the embrace with a vengeance. His mouth closed and opened over mine, becoming hungrier as our tongues explored. I was vaguely aware that he dropped the reins, and that the carriage began to tilt slightly as we started up the mountainside. As he held me close for another long, tempestuous kiss, I felt his hand slipping under my shift, slithering along my calves until his fingers found the bare skin above my stockings.

‘Hyde! What if the horse —’

‘Beau knows the way blindfolded,’ he assured me as his hand stole under the hem of my new bloomers. ‘This is our only chance to be alone for God knows how long, and I intend to make the most of it. I had to do some tall talking to keep Hatch at home. He thinks you’d be a tasty morsel, Mary Grace.’

‘But I — sweet Jesus!’

I slid my hips forward, eager for the feel of him. His fingers found their mark and had me quivering against the back of the bench, shameless with desire. Hyde then crouched between the seat and the front wall of the wagon, lifting my leg over his shoulder as he tossed my skirts out of his way. He grasped my arse, planting feverish kisses along my stockings and into my soft, inner thighs until my lacy bloomers were all that came between his mouth and my sex. Undaunted, he licked and sucked and pressed his lips into me until the silken seam cut into my aching clit.

I was panting, my cries punctuating his urgent grunts. With his thumbs, he lifted the cushion of my mound and ground his mouth against me until I could feel his teeth riding up and down the seam in a quickening rhythm. I screamed, parting my thighs to thrust against him as the spasms overtook me. Wetness shot out of me, and Hyde pulled at the straining silk until it split open along the stitching, to lap at me with greedy satisfaction.

‘Mary Grace…Mary Grace,’ he whispered when I fell back. ‘Sol’s so desperate to be inside you, I can’t stand up without splitting my pants.’

I giggled, still half out of my head. ‘And who am I to deny a king his every wish?’

‘I thought you’d see it that way. Climb over the back of the seat.’

Slowly the world around me came into focus again: the rising, narrow road before us, the steady sway of Beau’s sleek haunches, the creaking wheels that made an occasional pebble ping sideways at the mountain on our right. Hyde cupped his privates, which were creating quite a bulge in his trousers, and then stepped cautiously on to the upholstered bench. Once he was over the back of it, he extended his hands in an invitation to follow him.

But when I sat up, I could only stare. All I saw to the left of us was sky. Growing darker by the moment, those storm clouds rolled towards us like sacks of quarrelling cats. The edge of the road disappeared over a drop-off, and except for the rugged rise of terrain on our other side we appeared to be ascending on air.

My heart dropped into my stomach. I was certain the carriage would plunge over the cliff. ‘Hyde, I — I can’t breathe!’

‘You’ll be fine if you concentrate on something else, love,’ he insisted gently. ‘And I have just the diversion in mind, back here where you won’t be so aware of the winding curves and rising elevation.’

I didn’t believe him for a minute. I was certain Beau’s next step would send us careening into a rocky grave. I stiffened, the bile rising in my throat.

‘Close your eyes, sweetheart,’ his baritone tickled my ear. ‘I’ve made this drive countless times, and I’ve always returned, haven’t I?’

I did as he instructed, squeezing my eyes shut.

‘Now turn, slowly. I’m right here for you, Mary Grace. I’ll never leave you.’

Such tender words from a man who could so effortlessly control me. I reached around for him. As soon as my foot found the padded seat, Hyde’s hands spanned my waist and I felt myself floating over the back of the bench, into his embrace. He held me close for a moment, reassuring me with soft kisses along my hairline.

Such a kind, gentle man he was. How could I not trust him to get me safely to my destination? And how could I deny him the pleasure he’d given me? Hyde Fortune had allowed me to choose my future, putting my need for independence ahead of his own desire for affection. The least I could do was set aside my fears and return the favor he’d granted me. It was the best way I could imagine to ignore the disorienting sights outside the windows.

As if sensing my thoughts, he pulled the curtains across the glass. The back of the carriage dimmed cosily, and he turned me so I faced the rear wall, where he and Hatch had stacked my quilting materials as well as mammoth sacks of flour and pecans and coffee. Scents of cinnamon, cloves, and cocoa mingled with the perfume of my sex, coaxing me to breathe deeply.

I relaxed. With Hyde standing behind me, caressing my breasts while he kissed the sensitive skin beneath my ears, I forgot all about being afraid. I began to move in his rhythm, rubbing my backside against his blatant erection. He coaxed me forward, and I nestled against the stack of sacks, which cushioned me like a soft pillow. Flour wheezed out and made me laugh as it landed on my nose.

‘If you bend at the waist and lean into those bags, you’ll discover a whole new range of sensations from this direction.’

I stiffened. ‘You’re not going up my arse, are you?’

‘No, no,’ he assured me, his breath sending streaks of lightning down my spine. ‘Simply entering that same little gate from another way. You’ll love it. I know you will.’

His words were becoming thick with desire, his movements more desperate. I leaned forward as he’d suggested. Seconds later, I felt a draught when my gown swished up over my back and my drawers fell to the floor. Hyde fumbled with his fly buttons while he placed his other hand between my legs.

‘Spread for me. Lord, I’m so thick and heavy, I might —’

My gasp drowned him out, because he’d parted my folds and shoved two fingers inside me. I was dripping already, so the friction of our skin made a secretive, sucking sound — yet another sensation to add to the repertoire I’d begun yesterday. With a moan, Hyde slid his cock between my folds, rubbing the outside of me with quick, frantic strokes.

‘Bend lower,’ he rasped.

As I did, he entered me. Hugging the soft, pillowy sacks, I braced myself to withstand his thrusts. I felt myself rising quickly towards climax again. His guttural cries told of a need only I could satisfy, while the thumb he pressed against my aching nub reminded me that he still put my pleasure first. His cock pumped relentlessly; his privates made a slapping sound each time he buried that column deep within me. A now-familiar tightness devoured me and I cried out with my own release. It sent Hyde into a series of spasms that filled me with his hot, gushing seed.

When he collapsed against me, our weight caused an avalanche of supply sacks. I landed beneath him with a squeal, giggling helplessly as more of the flour and coffee fell around us. The carriage air grew hazy with white powder, which settled on our clothes and faces, but we were too busy kissing to care. Hyde rolled on top of me, his low chuckles vibrating against my chest.

‘I might have to visit the monastery more than once a week,’ he teased. His eyes glowed as he brushed flour off my cheeks. ‘Leaving you there among the monks might not be such a good idea. I know damn well they’ll want you as badly as I do, sweetheart.’

‘Ah, but they have their vows of celibacy,’ I reminded him. ‘And what you said yesterday is true. You’ve cast your spell, Hyde. I couldn’t possibly want another man.’

His smile sent little streaks of joy through me. After we caught our breath, he helped me up from the carriage floor and we straightened our clothing, sharing playful kisses. It felt so wonderful to engage in these things without being spied upon, and without the morbidity of Mount Calvary pressing upon me.

When we returned to the seat, however, reality set in. Beau’s back was now laced with snow and the sky churned with whiteness. The horse instinctively kept close to the mountain, shaking his massive head to clear his vision. Hyde took the reins again. Although his face remained calm as he surveyed the landscape — or lack of it — I sensed he’d require his total concentration to guide us safely through this impending blizzard.

I sat silently beside him. My panic flared again, yet I knew better than to distract him with nervous chatter. I tried not to think about what disasters might lie ahead; tried not to see phantasms and eerie, shifting faces as the snow hissed and swirled against the windows. Pulling my cloak closer around my shoulders, I shut my eyes. Hyde had assured me the weather at Heaven’s Gate remained balmy enough for the vineyards to thrive, so I told myself that once we passed through this atmospheric layer, we’d ascend into sunshine again. After all, he had no reason to lie to me. Did he?

How many desperate young women had he escorted up this mountain? How many had been so flattered by his attention — easy prey for such a handsome man of means — that they gave themselves to him as eagerly as I had? For all I knew, I’d arrive at the abbey to find Hyde’s previous conquests awaiting his return. Each believing herself Mr Fortune’s favourite, these women would snub me and do their best to intimidate me.

I must have shuddered, because his arm slipped around me. ‘You can open your eyes now, Mary Grace,’ he said softly. ‘We’ve passed through the worst of it, and we’ll arrive within the hour.’

How much time had gone by since our lovemaking? I’d lost all track, so it was a great relief to hazard a glance through one eye and see only dull grey rain hitting the window. I relaxed against him. He pressed his lips to my temple, and I decided I was foolish to fret over his other women. My stay at Heaven’s Gate would allow me time to consider my feelings for Hyde, and a chance at an income, as well. I would simply have to have faith in the future, and in my ability to make the most of it.

Poor Beau struggled along a stretch of the road where rocks and mud had washed down the mountain. The carriage lurched precariously, but we made it around the obstacles without sliding over the canyon’s edge. Had I not been so preoccupied with whether solid ground remained under our wheels, the view would’ve been breathtaking. Higher we climbed, until we left the stately stands of lodgepole pine and spruce behind us. The sky remained heavy and dark, and the rain pelted us like a barrage of gunfire.

But then we rounded another bend, and there it was. Even from a distance, Heaven’s Gate exuded the quaint charm drawn into the labels on its products. On a brighter day, I could imagine it resembled a fine cathedral, up here close to God, so I held that image in my mind while we plodded along. Beau’s breath encircled his head and his muscles bunched with the exertion of hauling such a heavy load. The man beside me had relaxed, so I fantasised about the fine quilts I would soon design. No sense in dwelling on the ominous shadows behind those towers, or in the sense of foreboding that loomed around the abbey when the clouds covered the sun.