The Tiger Lily (33 page)

Slowly
her eyes searched his shuttered face, pondering the enigma he represented.
Where had the impassioned lover of last night gone? Why did he seem so very
cold and aloof, almost intimidating? And again it occurred unpleasantly to her
that he had never mentioned love. Hadn't even told her that he cared for her
now.

Unable
to stand the suspense, filled with an alien nervousness, Brett demanded,
"Well? Are you going to marry me?" He was aware that he was
mishandling the situation, but he was unable to do anything else. Where, he
questioned sourly, is my facile tongue? Where are the words that I really want
to say? How can I explain what I feel? How do I tell her of the yearnings, the
intoxicating sensations, she arouses within me? The pleasure and excitement I
feel whenever she is near me?

His
proposal struck Sabrina as insulting, and for one brief moment she toyed with
the agreeable notion of refusing him. But the reality of the situation held her
fast—she wanted desperately to become his wife, and despite his undeniably
surly offer of marriage, she knew what her answer would be. But there was a
sparkle of resentment in her eyes as she said almost as curtly as he, "Yes,
yes, I will marry you."

He
felt greatly relieved. A surge of nearly painful joy engulfed him, leaving him
strangely light-headed. Fatuously he grinned at her and said devoutly,
"Thank God that's over with!" And he could have bitten his tongue off
the second the thoughtless words had left his lips.

Sabrina
stiffened, and her face unfriendly, she started to make a scathing reply, but
Brett reached her in one swift stride. Pulling her into his arms, he kissed her
warmly, tenderly, almost, Sabrina thought, astonished, apologetically.

Lifting
his mouth from hers, his hands lightly holding her shoulders, he said ruefully,
"Forgive me, infant! I haven't much practice in offering for a wife."

Not
the least appeased, although she did feel a little encouraged, Sabrina sent him
a look. "I am not," she spluttered, "an infant! And in the
future you would do well to remember it!"

A
smile that made Sabrina's hand itch to slap his cheek curved his mouth.
"As you say, madame wife-to-be," he replied meekly enough, a mocking
gleam in the jade-green eyes.

Trapped
between a sudden inexplicable desire to giggle and an urge to smack that
infuriating smile from his face, Sabrina stood indecisively in the circle of
his arms. A small silence fell, and gradually the smile faded from Brett's
lips.

Intently
they stared at one another, a powerful, fierce emotion suddenly exploding
between them, and with a muttered imprecation, Brett jerked her to him and
found her mouth with his. Passionately they clung to one another, their arms
locked around each other, oblivious to anything but the sheer, heady rapture
that consumed them.

Alejandro's
polite tap on the door they never even heard, and after waiting a few seconds
longer, he tapped a little harder. Still no response, and impatient to know the
results of his matchmaking, he slowly opened the door. Seeing the embracing
couple, he sighed happily, an expression of delight crossing his face. He
hesitated and then coughed politely.

Reluctantly
Brett raised his head and slowly released Sabrina. Looking across to Alejandro,
he stated simply, "She said yes."

Alejandro
laughed and said merrily, "I assumed so!" And clapping his hands, he
ordered, when Clemente appeared, "A bottle of our very best wine—the
bottle of claret that I laid down when Sabrina was born." His voice filled
with satisfaction, he added, "Your mistress is to be married, Clemente!
Wish her well!"

Grinning
from ear to ear, Clemente did just that and then raced away to do Alejandro's
bidding and to spread the word. Their Senorita Sabrina would marry the handsome
Senor Brett! What joy had come to the household of the del Torreses.

Sabrina
remained in the circle of Brett's arms, her face glowing with exhilaration. She
was to marry Brett! She was to be his wife! Oh, but the saints and the angels
had been good to her! The man she adored would be her husband.

Appraising
the expression on her face, Alejandro chuckled. "I don't need to ask if
you are happy,
chica
. Your eyes give you away."

Sabrina
blushed, and she thought she felt Brett's mouth brush her hair the moment
before she rushed into her father's arms. Smiling at Alejandro, she confessed,
"I am happy! Are you?"

"But
of course,
chica
! Didn't I plan it?" he asked with mock affront.

A
little frown creased her forehead. "Plan it?"

Alejandro's
mouth twisted wryly. "You will not be offended and wreak your wrath on us
poor helpless males?" he demanded teasingly. When Sabrina shook her head
slowly, he continued, "I wanted a good strong man for you. Someone you
could love and respect. Someone who would insure that you had the kind of
marriage I shared with your mother. There was no one I could think of until I
remembered Brett. And that," he said with a wide grin, "is why I
wrote to him and invited him to visit with us. Why I appeared to be so
interested in growing sugar."

Sabrina
laughed with her father, but there was a, hollow feeling in her chest. Was this
an arranged marriage then, after all? she wondered tightly. Had her father and
Brett arranged things to their satisfaction while she, poor, silly fool, had
blindly gone along with their plan, even to the extent of falling in love?
Feverishly she thrust the notion away, trying frantically to recapture her
euphoria.

It
proved to be ridiculously easy to accomplish. The wine arrived, and with
Brett's warm, strong arm around her waist, the look in his eyes vanquished her
fears as her father offered a toast to them. They drank the toast from the same
glass, Brett, his gaze intent upon her face, deliberately placing his lips
where hers had touched.

Alejandro
was ecstatic, full of plans, full of satisfaction and a strange sense of peace.
Lightly he touched the turquoise and silver bracelet Elena had given him. She
will be happy,
querida
, he promised silently.

Happily
he called to Clemente again, insisting that the house servants come immediately
and join in the toast. The hacienda was soon full of laughter and excited
chatter, the news spreading like wildfire down to the stables, to the vaqueros
and their families.

Flushed
and jubilant, eventually Alejandro and the betrothed pair found themselves
seated on the patio, recovering from the irrepressible outpouring of good will
and good wishes the engagement had occasioned. And it was then that Carlos
arrived at the hacienda.

That
something momentous had occurred was obvious from the animated buzz of
conversation he heard when he rode up to the front of the hacienda and
dismounted. Clemente's beaming smile and his, "Oh, Senor Carlos! Such good
news! But come, come to the patio and let Senor Alejandro tell you!" gave
him a further inkling of what was to come.

Carlos
hid his fury well. Alejandro never suspected the rage and hatred that churned
in his nephew's breast when he called out gaily, "
Hola
, Carlos!
Come and join us! If we all seem a trifle giddy, it is because just this
afternoon, shortly before you arrived, Brett and Sabrina became
betrothed."

The
black eyes opaque, Carlos flashed a coldly polite smile to the trio. ''My
congratulations," he said punctiliously, his voice without warmth or enthusiasm.
Fixing Sabrina with an assessing stare, he added, "I trust that you will
be happy, cousin, with your choice."

Brett
had risen when Carlos appeared, and standing next to Sabrina's chair, he laid a
strong hand lightly but meaningfully on her slender shoulder. His dark green
eyes full of challenge, he promised softly, "She will be, you have no
concern over that."

The
hostility between the two men could almost be felt, and Alejandro moved
uneasily. With a forced joviality, he said, "Join us, please, in a toast
for their future together."

Just
short of rudeness, Carlos declined. "I am sorry, Tio," he said
coldly, "but I cannot linger. I only came to tell you that the bandits are
active again."

"
What?"
Alejandro demanded sharply. "When and where have they struck?"

Expressionless,
Carlos replied, "Last night, as your guests were leaving the fiesta.
Apparently they were waiting for them and managed to rob several of our
neighbors and friends as they rode toward their homes. No one," he
finished remotely, "was harmed, but the ladies were much frightened, and
in some cases, family jewels of great worth were taken,"

"This
is an
outrage!
" Alejandro burst out furiously. "My guests!
Robbed as they leave my home!" His cheeks flushed with his emotions,
Alejandro rose to his feet, his fist slamming down on the iron table.
"Something must be done this time! They must be stopped! No one is safe
from them!"

Watching
Carlos's face keenly, Brett asked abruptly, "How did it happen? Were they
robbed all at once, in a group? Or separately?"

For
a second Brett thought Carlos wouldn't answer him, but then the Spaniard
glanced at him and said flatly, "Separately. From what has been said,
there were no more than three or four bandits and they waited to strike until
each family was alone on the road."

"Three
or four? Doesn't anybody know how many there were?"

Carlos
shrugged. "Some say three, some say four. Who knows? There is such fear
and anger over what happened that there could have been a dozen armed men, but
the victims cannot remember."

Dismayed,
Alejandro looked to Brett. "What is to be done? We cannot let this
continue. Now no one will be safe."

Tightly
Carlos snapped, "There is to be a meeting tonight at our hacienda. We will
devise a plan to trap the bandits then."

Brett
said dryly, "I seem to remember something like that last April, but
nothing came of it."

Carlos's
face whitened. "And do you have a better suggestion, gringo?" he
demanded hotly.

Brett
nodded his head. "A trap. A trap we three concoct." He slanted a
teasing look down at Sabrina, his fingers unconsciously curling one of the
silken locks of her bright hair. "We four, rather," he added.

"Bah!
You don't know what you are talking about!" Carlos bit out angrily.

"Yes,
I do. Have your meeting tonight. But let us now make a plan of our own. A plan
that only we shall know about—making it highly unlikely to fail because of
wagging tongues." He sent Carlos a level glance. "With only the four
of us, five if you count my man Ollie, there is no chance of failure."

Alejandro
was nodding his head slowly in agreement, although there was a slight frown on
his face. "What do you intend for us to do,
amigo
?"

"Tomorrow
is Sunday," Brett began easily. "As usual we will ride into
Nacogdoches to attend Mass. But after Mass, when we are talking with all of
your neighbors and friends, we will mention that you are most concerned for all
the many treasures that are here at the hacienda, Sabrina's jewelry and other
valuables. We will tell everyone that you intend to bring them into town on
Monday for safe keeping."

"Just
like that?" Carlos questioned sneeringly. "No guards? Nothing to
protect them from thievery? Do you really believe the bandits are that stupid?
They'll know it's a trap!" His lip curled contemptuously, and he added, "If
they even know about it!"

Brett's
eyes narrowed, but he appeared unmoved by Carlos's statements. "I think
you've forgotten precisely how swiftly talk travels in a small community. I
would be willing to wager a goodly sum that by tomorrow afternoon, there will
be hardly a soul in the Nacogdoches area who doesn't know what was discussed
after Mass in the morning."

Alejandro
nodded his head judiciously. "That's true. Conversation after Mass is
almost as good as a town crier for spreading the news."

"Very
well!" Carlos conceded ungraciously. "The bandits will hear of it,
but why won't they smell a trap?"