Bedazzled

The dead eyes flicked over the older woman. 'I expect a trousseau, madame, and all my possessions, jewels, plate, linens, furs, whatever is mine I will take with me, for I shall never return here again.'

'You shall have everything, everything you want, dearest,' Jasmine said. 'You are an heiress in your own right, and the duke of Glenkirk's stepdaughter. We will not allow you to go to your husband in a beggarly fashion.'

'I wish to leave the thirtieth of May. I shall go to Queen's Malvern first. Where is Oxton Court, madame?' India asked.

'Not far from Queen's Malvern, but not in Worcester, in Glosces-ter,' Jasmine told her daughter. 'The estate is very lovely and rural, I am informed. I believe you will like it there.'

'It matters not if I do, or nay,' India replied. 'It will be my home until I die and am reunited with my beloved Caynan Reis.'

'If you die,' Jasmine said pithily, 'then what will become of young Rowan Lindley? Will you not live on the hope of finding your little son one day, India? Perhaps if the earl of Oxton is a kind man, and you win his favor, the child can come and live with you. Do not, I beg you, tell your stepfather that I said that! He would be angry with me for even thinking it, and then I would have no chance of finding your son for you, my daughter.'

'Do you think it possible?' India asked, her voice hopeful for the first time.

'If you gain your husband's love and trust, it might be possible,' Jasmine encouraged her daughter.

'I must tell him immediately, else he wonder why I am not a virgin,' India said. 'I am certain that the duke has not even considered my predicament in that matter. How am I to explain such a thing if I have never been wed? He will think me a wanton, but your husband did not think of that, did he? All he considered was a good offer and a chance to rid his conscience of my presence!'

Jasmine had no answer to her daughter's accusation, for the truth of the matter was, India was absolutely correct. James Leslie had been so delighted by a decent offer for India that he had snatched at it like a drowning man at a straw. When she had brought up the fact of India's womanly condition, her husband, in one of his maddeningly rare bouts of Scots logic, had suggested ways to give India the appearance of virginity, and Jasmine should see to them. The duchess of Glenkirk had swallowed back her humorous retort, because she could see her Jemmie was deadly serious, and that he wanted this match for India.

'I think,' she said carefully, 'that you might tell the earl of Oxton that you contracted a marriage while abroad, but that your bridegroom died shortly thereafter. There are ways of restoring the tightness of your love sheath, India, and I would advise we consider them. There is no reason you should not like your husband. Mayhap you will come to love him. As you are aware of the pleasures a man and a woman's bodies can give each other, you will surely want to give the earl sweet enjoyment. It cannot help but win him over so that he will want to please you in all matters, even that of little Rowan.'

'And when do I explain that to my new husband?' India asked, half sarcastically, half warily.

'Only when you have gained his full respect and confidence,' her mother advised. 'India, wherever your son is, he is safe. Jemmie may be a hard man, but he has never been deliberately cruel. The child is unharmed, and well cared for by some cotter's wife, delighted to have the extra income. This woman knows she must take good guardianship of her ward else she lose the silver paid her and be severely punished. Remember, the duke's own man brought her the child. I have told you, and you cannot say I ever broke a promise to you, that I will find your Rowan. Then I will begin to make personal visits to him, impressing upon his caretaker the importance of this child, his health and his happiness. While I am doing that, it is up to you to make your husband love you, or, at the very least, want to please you enough so you may ask to have little Rowan brought to you.'

'I shall tell the earl before we wed that I have a son,' India said stubbornly. 'I cannot be happy without my child, and I cannot marry this man unless he agrees to allow me to have Rowan with me.'

'India, in God's name,' the duchess of Glenkirk pleaded with her daughter, 'wait before you inform Lord Leigh of your child! If you ruin this proposed marriage, where will you be? Jemmie will lock you up in Glenkirk's highest tower, and you will never see your child again. He will make certain of that. If you are clever, you can gain everything your heart desires. Do not spite yourself, and your son, simply to gain a moment's revenge on your stepfather.'

India was silent for what seemed a very long time to her mother. Then, at last, she said, 'You are correct, madame. I would be very foolish indeed should I act in haste. Now, tell me, when is my marriage to be celebrated, and where?'

'Here, at Glenkirk, by proxy, prior to your departure,' Jasmine answered. 'The earl has left the choice of a proxy to you.'

'Since neither Henry nor Charlie are here, I think the best choice would be my brother, Patrick Leslie,' India said. 'It will be good practice for him when he weds one day. Patrick and my younger brothers seem to know little of the niceties of polite society, although I know you strive hard with them, madame. Still, they persist in being wild Scots. Fix the day for the thirtieth of May, at dawn, and then I shall depart immediately thereafter for England. Will the earl send an escort for me?'

'You will be escorted as far as the border by Glenkirk men, and the earl's men will meet you there,' the duchess told her daughter.

'I am taking Meggie with me, and Diarmid More-Leslie would come, too. He and Meggie have asked my permission to wed. I have given it. They will marry immediately after I have been wed. It is far more practical that they travel as man and wife.'

Jasmine nodded, agreeing with her daughter. 'Your father… stepfather, must give his permission to Diarmid,' she said.

'Surely he can have no objection,' India replied.

'Oh, I am sure he does not,' Jasmine replied quickly lest India fly into a temper again.

'We haven't a great deal of time, madame. We should begin my trousseau immediately,' India announced. 'And I will want a full accounting of my possessions as well. Nothing of mine is to remain at Glenkirk.'

'I am giving you the Stars of Kashmir as a wedding gift,' Jasmine said softly. 'You are my eldest child, and my first daughter. When your first daughter weds one day, see that you give the jewels to her. They are to remain in the female line. Jamal Khan's father gave them to his mother, and he gave them to me. Now I give them to you, India.'

'Mama!' India was overwhelmed. 'Surely you do not want to part with the Stars of Kashmir now, do you?'

Jasmine laughed. 'I always meant them for you,' she said. 'Besides, we live simply here at Glenkirk. I have no occasion to wear them anymore, and they simply lay alone in their case. You will enjoy them, I am sure. Perhaps the earl will take you to court, and you can dazzle everyone there with them.'

'It would be amusing to visit court as the countess of Oxton,' India remarked. 'I hope, however, this earl prefers the country. I will not leave the raising of my children to others.'

Jasmine nodded in agreement.

***

The next day, seamstresses arrived from the local villages to prepare the trousseau India would be taking with her to England. She stood patiently, being measured, and pinned. She chose the finest and richest fabrics in the castle storerooms: jewel-toned velvets, and rich brocades, and silks. The