Savage Destiny (The Hearts of Liberty Series, Book 1) by Phoebe Conn Read Free Book Online

atop the others and angrily shoved the dresser drawer closed. "Let's not fight over an Indian who'll swiftly be gone," she bargained. "Why don't I ask Ian to bring one of his friends with him the next time he comes to dinner? I'm sure they're all as nice as he is and I'd like for you to have a beau, too."
    Melissa's abrupt change of subject wasn't lost on Alanna, but she could readily see by the defiant tilt of her cousin's chin that she was not going to reveal anything of any importance that afternoon. She prayed that Melissa was right, and that Hunter would be gone before anything dangerously improper occurred between them. It was plain the warning she had meant to deliver would fall on deaf ears, and reluctantly, she ceased to try.
    "Ian's friends are undoubtedly nice," she agreed, "but I'm not interested in meeting them."
    "Do you plan to spend your entire life alone?"
    "I'm not alone here," Alanna pointed out.
    "No, of course not." Melissa dismissed her objection with a nervous wave. "You're not alone in the strictest sense of the word, but you most certainly are in every way that matters. Don't you wish to marry and have children?"
    Alanna could not even look at a small child without feeling a sickening sense of dread. All she had to do was close her eyes to instantly view the bloody scene where her baby brother and sisters had died. The cursed image had been burned into her memory for all time.
    "No, I don't think I'll ever marry. I'm content here, and your parents have told me innumerable times that I need never leave."
    "Well, of course not," Melissa cried. "They'd never make you go, but don't you want to live your own life?"
    "I already do."
    Melissa was delighted by how easily she had distracted Alanna from her appalling innuendos, but failed to recognize that her inquiries were equally unsettling to her cousin. "Here are the new ribbons. I bought pink and yellow for me, and lavender and blue for you."
    Alanna reached out to take the satin streamers. "Thank you. It was kind of you to think of me."
    "Nonsense. You should have come into town with us."
    "Perhaps next time."
    "Yes, do." Grateful to have extricated herself from an embarrassing confrontation, Melissa breathed a sigh of relief as she turned away. Alanna's fear of Indians was certainly understandable, but she did not share it. In her view, Hunter was a fascinating man, and she immediately began to plot another opportunity for them to be alone together.
    * * *
    Hunter spent the afternoon with Elliott preparing for the upcoming trip, but thoughts of Melissa's supple grace were never far from his mind. From what he could tell, the Barclays lived a good life on their plantation, and without too much difficulty he could picture himself becoming part of it between forays into the wilderness. John Barclay was one of the organizers of the Ohio Company, the group sponsoring the exploration of the Ohio Valley. Hunter thought he might be able to exploit that tie as a reason for frequent visits, without any mention of the man's beautiful daughter.
    Then again, he had not seen enough of his friends' father to know whether or not John Barclay would be easy to fool. Hoping to remedy that situation, he began to ask discreet questions. "Don't most of the plantations have slaves?"
    "Yes, they do."
    "Then why haven't I seen any here?"
    Elliott frowned slightly as he struggled to provide a coherent answer. "Our grandfather owned quite a few," he admitted, "but when he died, Father set them all free. That's a decision he's never discussed with us, but whenever he's questioned about it, I've heard him mention that in the beginning the plantation was worked by indentured servants from England. He claims to prefer to surround himself with the same hardworking class of men. We no longer have bondsmen, but we pay good wages, and have loyal workers as a result."
    Hunter sincerely believed he could be described as hardworking, and made a mental note to see that his value to the