Jamie swung around again. Sergeant Monahan was standing there,
red-faced.
'Excuse me, Lieutenant.'
'What is it, Monahah?'
'The, uh, the colonel wants to see you.'
'Right after I escort Miss. Stuart to her house.'
'Er, pardon me, sir, but no, sir. The colonel says that I'm to escort
her and that you're to see him immediately. About this business of your
going to Wiltshire.' Jamie frowned, started to protest, then sighed. He
cast Tess a warning glare, although she wasn't at all sure of what the
warning was about.
She was still trembling, she realized, still holding hard to the pillar.
Jamie bowed to her.
'Good night, Miss. Stuart. We'll leave as soon as possible.'
He walked away with long, angry strides. Tess looked at Monaham Monahan
was watching Jamie go.
'Well, that might be one heck of a confrontation,' he muttered. 'Why?'
Tess asked.
'what? Oh?' Monahan flushed, as if he had just realized she was there.
'Why, nothing, miss ...'
'Monahah!'
'Well, the colonel may try to stop him from going.'
'What do you mean, might try? The colonel outranks him, doesn't he? Or
am I missing something?'
'No, no, but Jamie is up for reenlistment.
Technically, he could have walked away from the cavalry a month ago.
Paperwork gets slow out here sometimes.'
'But why would the colonel want to stop him from going?'
'Oh, the colonel probably wouldn't. Not by himself, that ' Monahah, you
are near to frustrating me to tears! What are you talking about?'
Now Monahah was a brilliant red. He stuttered, then started again.
'Miss. Eliza is the one who might mind.'
'Eliza Worthingham.'
'Monahah!'
'Oh, you don't know! Why, miss, Eliza is Colonel Worthingham's
daughter.'
'Oh!' Tess cried, startled.
'Tarnation, I didn't mean to upset you none. Don't you worry. The
lieutenant ain't nobody's fool, and he ain't about to have his life run
by a skirt, even if Miss. Eliza is a pretty piece of fluff. Ah, hell,
not that you're not every bit as pretty--prettier!--but you see my
point? He ain't ever gonna have his mind made up by a woman. Not any
woman.
Oh, dear, this ain't getting' no better, not one wit! Come on, Miss.
Stuart, let me do one duty fight and get you home for the night!'
'Ah, yes, thank you, I think that I am quite ready to retire,' Tess told
him, He walked her through the now empty alehouse and she thought of how
disastrously the evening had ended. Then she found that her fingers were
fluttering to her lips and that she couldn't forget the way Jamie had
kissed her.
