Harnessed Passions (16 page)

“
No, I had a good thriving
practice of my own; Harold and I went to Oxford together and both
graduated with our law degrees, but he made Kentucky sound inviting
so I sold my share of the practice to my partners and moved across
the Atlantic. I have never regretted it.”

“
Don’t you miss your
family?”

“
Yes, quite a bit,
especially since my sister, Martha just had her first child. We are
a very close family and I hear from them weekly as well as writing
each their own letters. I plan on returning for holiday next spring
to see my youngest sister married off and to spend time visiting
the family.”

“
What about your mother;
does she still live at home?”

“
Yes, she lives there with
my sister and my uncle. He is a very good man and taking care of my
family is his top priority. He never married and has no children of
his own, so mine is a good substitute for him. I think he rather
fancies my mum; I wouldn’t be surprised if they were to get married
when my sister Anastasia is gone.”

“
Your Uncle William, he’s
your father’s brother?”

“
Yes. My grandparents only
had two sons, he and my father who was the eldest. The ranch was
left to my father and my uncle became a magistrate for London.
After my dad died, he took over the ranch.”

“
What kind of ranch is it?”
Julia felt a need to know as much about this man as she could,
though she assured herself it was simply polite
conversation.

“
It’s a horse ranch,
similar to what you have here, but nearly twice the size. My father
was a Marquis and his family has raised the finest horses in all of
Britain for over a hundred years. Noblemen and royalty from all
over Europe purchase our horses.”

“
So you’re royalty?” she
asked with wide eyes.

“
Yes, from birth. Does that
bother you?”

“
No, I suppose not.
American’s don’t hanker up to royals the way they do across the
ocean. But with your background, that means you know more about
what goes on around here than I do?”

“
Yes, on several levels.
When your father hired me as his solicitor, we developed an instant
friendship. I offered my services and he accepted. I didn’t feel
right about retaining him as a client, so I passed him on to
Harold.”

“
Do you still practice law,
or do you just hang out here all the time?”

“
You are a curious one,
aren’t you?” he teased her with a half grin. “Yes I still practice,
though I’ve not been able to help much lately with all that has
been happening here and your father being so ill, I wanted to do
what I could to make things easier on him and your mum.”

“
I know they appreciated
all your hard work; my father couldn’t stop praising you when he
was trying to brief me on the activities of the ranch. He kept
saying that I should trust you; you were here for me to lean
on.”

“
And you can trust me; you
know that, don’t you?”

“
I know it now, but at the
time I didn’t really want much to do with you. You were an employee
and nothing more.”

“
But I’m not an employee.
Does that mean I can hope for something more rather than nothing?”
Julia blushed a deep scarlet and was about to comment on how only
the future could tell what happened, when Jeremy joined
them.

“
Mom said to come eat
before Harold arrives.” Daniel watched Julia standing, walking past
him, his eyes never leaving her beautiful face as she stopped by
the door to the sitting room and smiled back to him, nodding her
head for him to follow.

He stood and slowly followed her back into
the house; he was not anxious for this particular night to proceed
and was regretting ever agreeing to Victor’s insistence that he
become half owner of Turner Stables. If he had known for a moment
that the man’s children were not what he had described, he would
never have allowed such an act to occur.

Victor played on his sense of family, his
chivalry and he agreed for the sake of Louise alone; she could not
lose her home or her only means of livelihood because he was lead
to believe her children were spoiled rotten brats who had no
interest in being a family. He knew without a doubt, those same
children were going to be furious; the friendship they were
developing was about to end with a harsh slap from reality.

Right now, he felt the ticking of the clock
had suddenly become his enemy; each step was as though he were
taking his final walk toward the guillotine and the beautiful Julia
was the executioner.

Supper was much less appreciated then it
should have been. The steaks were cooked to perfection, the
home-style potatoes were as delicious as they ever were, and the
fresh corn and biscuits were buttered and eaten, though not really
tasted. Nobody seemed to notice if they had eaten the food or oats
for the horses.

Dessert was saved for after Harold arrived,
though nobody was very interested in eating it. Mrs. Lester had
made her blue ribbon peach cobbler, but only he seemed to
appreciate the flaky crust and sweet fruit.

Once Louise was certain their guest had
eaten his fill, she ordered Thompson to serve the coffee in the
library, and to gather the servants together. She knew that
everyone of household staff had been listed along with the many
distant relatives.

Jeremy followed Harold and Louise into the
room near the front of the house, while Daniel lingered behind to
escort Julia. He was certain there would be no more friendly
communication once the will had been read, so it was his last
chance to be alone with her. They walked out of the dining room and
down the hall in silence, Julia’s hand inside Daniel’s bent elbow,
when he suddenly pulled her into a cloak room across from their
destination. He pressed her tightly against the back of the closet,
his lips capturing hers without a single spoken word. His actions
were filled with passion and desire and a desperation Julia
couldn’t quite understand. His tongue caressed her soft lips before
thrusting into the sweet cavern beyond, teasing and tasting every
inch of her. His large hand moved slowly up to her breast, gently
massage it through the thick velvet material of her gown, until she
moaned softly. At last he released her lips and smiled down at her,
his arms embracing her tightly.

“
No matter what the next
few minutes bring, don’t forget how this feels, Princess,” he told
her in hushed whispers. She smiled back at him then frowned at the
serious gleam in his eyes.

“
What’s wrong? What is
going to happen?” she asked him softly, but Daniel just shook his
head.

“
Just remember how you felt
in my arms and how desperately I want you back in them.” He
cautiously opened the door, unseen by those who gathered around the
door of the library.

Julia walked beside Daniel through the group
of servants, to the vacant chairs in front of the desk Victor would
use for his work, holding her hand for as long as he possibly
could. Harold pulled out the file from his brown leather case and
sat down behind the desk. He glanced up at his friend and smiled
briefly, then cleared his throat.

"I wish we could skip this," Julia whispered
more to herself than anyone around her, but Daniel heard it. He
couldn’t have agreed more. A few short weeks ago, he could only
speculate about this moment, but now he dreaded it as much as a
convict looked forward to the hangman’s noose.

"Mrs. Turner,” Harold began, clearing his
throat. “I’m very sorry for your loss.” Louise nodded her head
silently, then smiled softy.

“
Congratulations on your
new baby,” she added causing the frown to escape his face for a
moment as he smiled proudly.

“
Thank you ma’am,” he said,
then cleared his throat and began again. “We come together tonight
for the reading of Victor Turner’s last will and testament,” he
said in a tone filled with years of training. He seemed distant as
he continued, though his pulse was racing and his palms sweating.
He could only await his friend’s reaction to what he was about to
say.

"Forget the formalities, Harold,” Jeremy
began bitterly. “Just tell us what the old man did." Harold looked
to Louise who nodded her approval.

"Yes, alright then; in regards to his many
assorted relatives, he has left a cash settlement to each of his
two sisters, Margaret and Ellen and to his brother Ralph, as well
as his nine nieces and nephews. Each will receive ten thousand
dollars as their inheritance. He has further left his assorted
cousins and in-laws five thousand dollars, as well as several close
social acquaintances. As for his staff here at the stables, Victor
was very appreciative of your service and has requested that if you
wish to remain here, your positions will be secure as long as each
one desires. Furthermore, he left each of his staff a healthy
allowance for their service if they do remain, and a gratuity
consisting of fifteen thousand dollars each.” A uniformed gasp
sounded outside the room when the staff heard this.

“
For Bernard Thompson, he
has added an additional fifty thousand dollars for your years of
loyalty and his apologies for his temperament over the years. He
appreciated your friendship more than he ever told you and he
wanted you to know that now.

“
An account has been set up
to take care of the expenses of the stables with an annual amount
being deposited into it from the many business holdings that will
continue to be maintained by a private organization set up by
Victor himself, with consideration to increased living costs and
expenses over the next ten years.

“
Jeremy and Louise have
been given a cash inheritance of five hundred thousand dollars
apiece, and a trust of an additional hundred thousand dollars has
been established that is to be divided between whatever legitimate
heirs Jeremy should produce and awarded to them upon their
twenty-first birthdays. Victor knew Jeremy didn’t plan on returning
to Kentucky after his graduation, therefore, he has left him the
property he owned in South Carolina and West Virginia. The property
Louise inherited in Europe and used as her dowry is reverted back
to her ownership, with the condition it be divided between whatever
grandchildren there may be, at the time of her death." Harold
paused taking a drink from his coffee cup.

"Now, as for the stables themselves," he
continued, glancing first to Julia, then to Daniel, watching the
expression of remorse cross his friend’s eyes. "He divided the
property in half, to be shared equally between Julia and Daniel
Browning."

"What?" Julia shouted, without thinking; her
tone sharp with surprise and etched with the feeling of treason as
she jerked her hand away from the man next to her. She had expected
to share the land with her brother, not her hopeful lover.

"May I continue?" Harold asked, looking at
Julia with authority.

"You have to believe me Julia," Daniel
began, ignoring his partner, his voice filled with a regretful
plea. "I didn't want it this way. Your father felt he owed me. I
swear I tried to talk him out of it."

"You knew about this all along and you never
told me?"

"I wanted to, but I gave Victor my word. I
promised I wouldn't tell you before the will was read."

"You used me. What were you trying to do,
seduce the other half of the stables out of me?"

"Damn it Julia, it wasn't like that. I
didn't want your father's property. He convinced me that you would
ruin the stables and sell them off as soon as he was dead and
buried. He told me all you were concerned with were your parties
and your friends in Boston. This land was important to him and he
was determined his family be taken care of. I believed him, until I
met you; I knew he wasn't seeing you for what you were. You're not
like that."

"Oh, but I am Mr. Browning," she snapped,
standing up abruptly. "I'll sell this land and go back to Boston
the minute I can figure a way out of this mess. I hate this place,
I hate Kentucky and I hate the smell of horse shit!" The staff that
had remained to hear the rest of the will stood whispering in the
hall outside the room, the echo filled with interest.

"If I may continue?" Harold shouted,
bringing a tense order back into the room. Julia continued to glare
at Daniel, who was now eyeing her with the same contempt.
Reluctantly the two sat down and remained quiet, so Harold could
continue with his task.

"Now then, Victor made several conditions in
his will regarding the stables."

"Victor never told me about any conditions,"
Daniel accused his partner.

"He made it, after you turned things over to
me. Daniel, I'm sorry about all of this, but he knew you would
never agree if he told you."

“
Agree to what?” Daniel
frowned.

"Get on with it," Julia ordered; her voice
still thick with anger and her face red from the heat of it.

"His orders are simple," Harold continued
quickly. "Neither of you can sell, trade, or give your half of the
stables away. He also made it clear that you cannot, under any
circumstances, use them to settle gambling debts or as a gift of
charity. It was his intention to keep the stables intact. Along
with the horses and land, Julia and Daniel each inherit half of the
mansion. How you divide it up, is your problem."

"I don't believe any of this," Julia
growled.

"That conniving bastard," Jeremy spit out,
standing up from his seat. "I told you Julia. He just wanted to
control your life and you allowed him to do it!"