Heaven Scent (8 page)

Then it struck her.
She
was one of those
women. Minutes ago, she had forgotten everything important to her
while wrapped up in Rafe’s kiss.

She balled her hand into a fist. “Now
do you see why I fight for this?”

He guided her across the street and
onto the walk. “Why do you fight for this here, Tarin, when you can
go nearly anywhere in the world and practice freely?”

Tarin glanced up at the moon, her heart
heavy. How did she tell him of her need to save lives? To keep
others from feeling the bitter agony and utter helplessness she
felt at her mother’s passing? Yes, she had been a child, yet the
frustration and anger she felt for the London doctors had never
diminished.

“’
Nearly anywhere in the
world’ is not home. And in England, their views are just as twisted
as here in America.” She took a deep breath and sighed. “It’s about
saving lives. Making a difference.”

Rafe nodded as he strolled beside her,
his eyes ahead. “Why this? Why midwifery?”

She shook her head. “It’s not so much
midwifery as a means to an end. I want to be a physician. And Dr.
Gregory’s crusade is the best – the only – opportunity I’ve
had.”

“And you will go to any lengths to gain
it.” His was a statement more than a question.

“Yes.”

Rafe’s jaw hardened, but he spoke no
further. She wondered what he thought, what caused the muscles in
his forearm to tense.

They walked along in silence until they
reached her front door. “Thank you, Rafe… for
everything.”

He crossed his arms over his massive
chest, a sure sign she would receive a healthy dose of arrogance.
“So, now you have no reason to be out at night alone.”

Tarin felt a flash of irritation. What
a pompous bore. Did the man think he owned her now that he had
gotten her into the seminar? “Granted that is why I was out tonight
–“

“And on several other occasions…” he
rudely interrupted.

How did he know? Had he been following
her before tonight?

She jutted her chin. “That is my
right,” she boldly stated, wondering why this man could bring a
rise to her temper when no other had before him. “You have no say
in the matter.”

“I may have no say, but you have no
sense.” His stare was hard, his dark eyes as black as the night
surrounding them.

“Earlier I was intelligent.”

“When did I say that?”

The man was a professional irritant.
“Before you kissed me.”

“Oh, that’s right,” he replied with an
arrogant grin.

Tarin had never been so mad at herself.
Obviously, the man had been toying with her when he kissed her
earlier. What had been a completely bewildering, deliciously
exciting experience for her had been no more than a cheap character
boost for Rafe – the man all of the women were in love with before
he left ten years ago. Ugh!

“You are without charm, Mr.
Sutherland.”

“So you’ve said.”

She turned to go and saw her father
drop the front window curtain.

She sighed. Heavenly days, now he spied
on her, too.

Her hand touched the
doorknob.

“Tarin.”

She turned to face him.

“I catch you out alone at
night again, not only will I tell your father what you’ve been up
to, I’ll alert Dr. Gregory
and
the
Boston Daily
Times
.”

Clenching her fists, Tarin huffed.
“Well, Mr. Sutherland, should you find the need to do so, I will
make a point of also notifying them that you were my
accomplice.”

Grinning, he pointed at his chest. “Me?
Why I had every reason to be there - I’m a man.” His grin
disappeared. “You could lose all you have worked for. Be smart,
Tarin.”

With that, he walked away, leaving
Tarin to gape after him.

Was Rafe Sutherland different? A man
that would support her cause?

Hope took flight within her breast like
a pack of butterflies. In the next instant, she remembered the
arrogant way he manhandled her, the way he teased her earlier with
that incredible kiss.

Mentally kicking herself, Tarin opened
the door and stepped inside. No, Rafe Sutherland was off limits
like all of the others. Even more so.

She’d confided in him.

Chapter 4

What a damned fool.
An
idiot
.

What was he thinking, allowing himself
the indulgence of Tarin Worthington’s kiss?

And what a kiss it had been, Rafe
recalled, as he lay in bed the next morning, staring up at the
ceiling. The woman may be innocent but she excited the hell out of
him.

She’d had no idea what she did to him,
no idea that he’d needed that hour in the seminar to cool his
body.

Rafe had been relieved to learn she
didn’t have a lover. The idea of a woman with Tarin’s class and
grace involved in an illicit affair was something he couldn’t
stomach. She was above such behavior and deserved a man who would
court her and treat her right.

Then he’d kissed her and
the idea became personal. Suddenly, he couldn’t stomach
Tarin
having an affair.
Instantly, he was aroused and intrigued by
her
, and wanted no other man even
looking her way.

Rafe cursed aloud as he glanced down at
his scarred chest. As if she’d ever be interested in a man that
looked like him. She was perfect, for God’s sake.

Tarin had been desperate to get into
that seminar. That was the only reason she had agreed to that kiss.
Of course, it was dark at the time and she didn’t have to look at
him. She could’ve imagined he was someone else for all he
knew.

Someone like Kent.

Rafe threw his pillow against the wall.
He hadn’t slept worth a damn last night. All he’d done was think
about Tarin, that kiss, and her damned independence.

An hour later, Jacobs, his butler,
handed Rafe a missive as he walked out the front door. Henry
Worthington wanted to meet with Rafe – alone. Rafe knew better than
to think Tarin had confessed all to her father last night, even
though Rafe had seen him peeking out of the window when they
returned home. And to think Henry’s appeal involved that trial run
he agreed to was out of the question. Henry would wait for them to
contact him, not the other way around. Besides, a request for
Patrick’s presence was suspiciously absent from the
letter.

As soon as Rafe entered Worthington’s
study, he knew what kind of game Worthington played. Henry sat
behind his desk without acknowledging Rafe’s presence. Rafe gave
him several seconds before he turned to leave. He’d be damned if
he’d be made to feel inferior.

“Where are you going?” Henry
demanded.

Rafe continued to walk, his boot heels
clomping on the wood floor. “I don’t have time to play games,
Worthington. I have a business to run.”

“This is no game, Sutherland,” Henry
bellowed. “It is of utmost import and seriousness.”

Turning, Rafe walked back to the desk.
His height made him eye level with Worthington. He stared at the
man, hands on hips, waiting for him to speak.

“I’ll get right to the point,” Henry
said, pulling the spectacles off his nose and tossing them onto the
desk.

“By all means…”

“I’m willing to give Sutherland all of
my shipping. Are you interested?”

Rafe’s heart rate kicked up a notch. Of
course he was interested. Signing all of Worthington’s business
would be a godsend.

But, Rafe knew a catch when he heard
one. He had to tread lightly where Worthington was concerned. His
daughter had gained her sly intelligence from somewhere.

“Go on,” he said with a brief
nod.

“Not only am I willing to give you all
of my shipping, I am willing to offer you my prized
possession.”

Rafe’s gut swirled in dreaded
anticipation. This was not good. The last time he’d felt this way,
he was skinned alive minutes later.

“And this prized possession
is?…”

Henry leveled his gaze on Rafe.
“Tarin.”

Rafe’s gut clenched
painfully before he let out a bellow of laughter. “You could no
more
give
away
Tarin than I could win a contest for beauty.”

Breaking eye contact, Henry went back
to work on his papers. “So, you are not interested...”

Hell. Rafe clenched his
jaw. “I didn’t say that,” he replied. “But you and I both know your
daughter has a mind of her own. She will not tolerate being
given
away.”

“I didn’t say
give
, Mr. Sutherland.”
Henry sat back in his chair and templed his fingers. “I believe the
word I used was
offer
.”

Rafe crossed his arms over
his chest. “So, what does
offering
Tarin, and your shipping business, have to do with
one another?”

Henry smiled. “The bargain, Mr.
Sutherland, is this – marry my daughter and you have my business
for life.”

It took all of Rafe’s willpower to keep
his eyes from bulging out of his head. “You can’t be
serious.”

“I am deadly serious.”

Rafe dropped his arms. “Why? Your
daughter is a beautiful, intelligent woman.”

Henry smiled. Rafe ignored
him.

“Any man in Boston would kill to marry
her. Why would you saddle her with someone like me?”

Henry sat forward in his chair. “You
are the first man I have met that can handle her. Tarin needs
someone that is her equal. She does not need a man who will bow to
her every wish or one that will try to control her.”

Rafe thought about last night at the
seminar, and the dinner party at his home. Any other man would have
scolded Tarin for her behavior, or banished her to the
house.

But he had seen too many women fall
victim to the strong arm of a man. Too many suffer as a result of a
man’s pride. To not help her into the seminar, or not allow her to
state her opinion on the vote, had not even entered Rafe’s
mind.

Handle her? Hell, he admired her. But
he would not make her marry a man that repulsed her.

“I may be able to handle her but I am
not the man for the job.”

“You are if you want my
business.”

Rafe cursed under his breath as he
moved to the window to collect his thoughts.

“We both know Sutherland Shipping will
go under within a year’s time if more capital is not gained,” Henry
stated. “There is other business out there, yes, but none as
lucrative and forthcoming as mine. If you take my offer, Isabel and
Patrick will never know life outside the Brahmin.”

Leave it to Worthington to tighten the
right noose. As the eldest son, Rafe had the responsibility to
ensure his family’s prosperity. And the thought of telling his
mother they had no money was not an option.

Rafe turned from the window. “Even if I
accepted, Tarin would not willingly marry me. She is too intent on
her career.”

Henry stared at him long and hard. “She
will marry you – with a little persuasion on your part. Once you
are wed, it will be up to you to keep her happy and with child so,
God willing, she will have no time for this midwifery
nonsense.”

Rafe’s blood jumped to a roiling boil.
Patrick said Worthington was honorable. Hell. The man was using
blackmail to keep his noble daughter from living her
dream.

Worthington asked Rafe to go against
his own beliefs. Tarin had a right to live her life as she chose.
He would not want anyone telling him how to live, why would he
expect her to feel any different?

How could he agree to this when the
arrangement was so unfair to Tarin? How could he go against every
moral fiber in his body and marry her under false
pretenses?

Then again, how could he
deny his family the money –
if
he could get her to marry him?

What Worthington didn’t know about was
the scars. How could Rafe marry Tarin without revealing them to her
beforehand? Once she saw them, she would never agree to marry him.
She would turn away in horror and never look back.

He was in an impossible situation all
the way around. He was doomed regardless of what avenue he
took.

“Come now, Mr. Sutherland,” Henry said,
leaning back in his chair and folding his hands over his stomach.
“You’re an intelligent man – Harvard law. This is a
once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. You would have financial solvency,
success, noble status, and the most beautiful woman in Boston. What
is there to think about?”

Imminent failure.

“I’ll get back with you.”

Worthington stared at him with wide
eyes. It would do the arrogant son of a bitch some good to stew a
little.