It was locked. Lee patted his coat pockets, then his trouser pockets, searching for his key, but it wasn't there. He checked the pockets of his duster, but except for Mary's drawers and the two hair ribbons, his duster pockets were empty as well. Never mind, Lee told himself, he was a master at breaking and entering. He could easily pick the lock. He reached for his ever-present leather satchel before he remembered that he had left it with Ned Sampson at the depot. So Lee reached into his duster pocket for Mary's unmentionables. He wrapped the muslin around his hand and stared at the stained glass panel of King Arthur beside the front door. The stained glass picture was a work of art. Lee couldn't bring himself to break it. That left the windows.
Moving as quietly as possible along the porch, Lee walked over to the floor to ceiling windows of the red parlor and found the wooden shutters were locked. He couldn't get to the window without breaking the shutters. He checked the windows along the front porch. They were all shuttered and locked. Lee stroked one side of his mustache absentmindedly. Hell's bells! Mary had the place sealed as tight as a fortress. He could yell for Mary to come downstairs, but he didn't want to risk waking Maddy or Judah. This was the night he planned to make love to his wife. To show Mary, once and for all, how he felt about her, and he didn't want Judah or Maddy interrupting it. But yelling for Mary was better than scaling the walls to the second floor and Lee knew he might have to resort to yelling. While he felt he was perfectly able to make love with his wife, he doubted he could climb to the second story to do it. And if by some miracle, he gained entrance to Mary's bedroom, Lee knew he'd be too tired to do anything about it. For now, the only other place he could try on the ground floor was the door to the kitchen.
Lee gritted his teeth and jumped off the porch. He grunted in pain as his hard landing from the high porch jarred the wound in his side. The puppy whimpered sympathetically. Using the exterior walls of the house as a guide, Lee found his way through the darkness to the kitchen door. It was also locked. But this time, Lee knew he could break in because half of the back door was paned with glass. Lee selected a window pane close to the door lock, then placed the heel of his muslin wrapped hand against the glass and pushed. Hard. His efforts were rewarded by the muffled sound of glass giving way to pressure and the satisfying sound of it shattering against the brick floor. Grinning at his success, Lee reached through the empty window frame, quickly unlocked the door, and pushed it open. Once inside the kitchen, he quietly closed the door. The broken window glass crunched beneath his booted feet.
Lee took off his hat and tossed it onto the kitchen table as a signal to Louisa. Do not disturb. The head of the household was home once again and was upstairs making love to his wife. For the very first time. Lee's pulse quickened and his heart began to pound in anticipation as he negotiated the hallways leading from the kitchen to the main staircase.
"Stop right there and put your hands in the air!" Mary's voice broke through the quiet as Lee climbed the last stair to reach the landing. "I have a gun and I'll shoot."
"Don't! Please," Lee said, raising his hands slowly over his head. "Judas Priest, Mary, I've already been shot once this week."
"Lee!"
Sudd
enly Mary was in his arms.
Lee groaned and the puppy squirmed.
"What's this?" Mary stepped back, then placed her hand on Lee's chest and felt the fuzzy little head. "You seem to be a little furrier than I remember," she teased.
"Come into the bedroom and find out." Lee took Mary's hand and walked down the short hallway, and through the open doorway of his bedroom.
A lamp burned low on the night table, and the quilts and sheets on the bed were thrown back and rumpled. Lee glanced over at the bed, then smiled at his wife. "Who's been sleeping in my bed?" he teased, a gruff voice.
"Me," Mary admitted.
"Have you been waiting for me? Keeping my place warm?"
"Uh huh." She nodded.
"Then close and lock the door, and come stand beside the bed by the night table," Lee ordered gently. "And close your eyes."
She did as she was bidden. "I don't like surprises," Mary said.
"You'll like this one." Lee set the terrier pup on the floor, then stood up and leaned against the bedroom door, soaking in the sight of Mary silhouetted by the light of the lamp. Her silky black hair was loose and hung nearly to her waist. He had dreamed of her this way, in her white nightgown with her hair unbound, her body exposed by the transparency of her nightgown, yet shadowed and mysterious. His body tightened in reaction.
The puppy waddled over to Mary and licked her bare toes. Lee ached to do the same. She giggled. "May I open my eyes now?"
"Not yet." Lee hurried took off his duster, his suit coat, shirt, and waistcoat. He unbuttoned his trousers, then pushed the fabric down over his lean hips. He balanced first on one foot and then the other as he removed his boots and socks.
Mary heard the whisper of fabric and the barely discernible sounds of clothing falling to the floor, following by the thump, thump of his boots. She felt herself flushing. "Lee?"
"Not yet."
When he was completely undressed except for the bandage covering his gunshot wound, Lee walked over to Mary and gently nudged her back against the bed. She reached out to him, but Lee kept his distance and didn't allow her to touch him. "Climb in bed, love."
Again Mary did as he asked without protest, but her ears picked up on Lee's casual endearment and she pressed it to her heart like a floral love token pressed in a book.
"Mary?" Lee asked softly.
"Yes?"
"Did you mean what you said about granting me your favor when I returned from Washington?"
"Yes."
"Will you trust me?"