Madeline put on her prettiest smile, then reached for Lee.
He leaned closer so she could hug him, and then Maddy moved in for the kill. "Maddy sleep Poppy. 'Kay?"
Mary looked at Lee knowingly as she raised one elegantly curved eyebrow. "You were saying?"
"I was saying that I defer to your superior knowledge of children," Lee improvised. "And that you were right about it being time for our little girl to take a nap. In her own room," he added hastily when Maddy's blue eyes brightened. "In her own bed. Alone."
Mary nodded in agreement. "Maddy's on her way to bed right now." She turned toward the door, then stopped. She hadn't seen anything that even resembled a little girl's room across the hall. Mary looked back at Lee. "Any ideas where her bed is?"
"There." He pointed to a door on the opposite side of the bedroom. "Through the dressing room. It connects Maddy's bedroom to this one."
"Thanks." Mary headed toward the dressing room door with Maddy in her arms.
"Mary?"
"Yes?"
"Are you coming back to join me?"
"I don't know," she teased. "What did you have in mind?"
"A few more kisses," Lee replied.
"Is that all?" Mary asked.
"We'll start with kisses."
"And then?" she prompted.
"And then, I'm open for suggestions," Lee replied as he stretched his arms over his head, then yawned, and lay back against the pillows. "Hurry back," he urged. "And we'll discuss our options."
Mary tried to follow Lee's suggestion and hurry back to his bedroom, but Madeline wasn't cooperating. She fought sleep and balked at Mary's authority. Maddy whined when Mary removed her dress and pinafore, cried when Mary took her to the pretty pink-and-white-papered water closet adjoining her bedroom, and refused to close her eyes and go to sleep until after Mary tucked her into bed and read two stories.
By the time Maddy fell asleep, Mary was tired, cranky, and close to tears herself. Although she wasn't normally given to tantrums and tears, Mary knew she was in danger of succumbing. A half hour battle of wills with a determined two-and-a-half-year-old girl left her feeling more like the evil witch in the fairy tales than the beautiful princess. But Mary knew the remedy for what ailed her. A few private hours with Lee and a few more of his magical kisses would restore her good humor before she knew it and make her feel like a princess once again.
Mary pulled the covers up to Madeline's chin and tucked the ends beneath the mattress. She bent and pressed her lips against Maddy's flushed cheek, then smoothed the tangle of curls off the child's brow.
"Mama," Madeline murmured.
Mary leaned over and retrieved the doll from the foot of the bed, where Maddy had thrown her in a fit of temper, then lifted the layers of sheets and blankets to place the doll beside Madeline. "Mama's here," Mary said softly as she nestled the doll in the curve of Maddy's arm.
Maddy sighed in her sleep, turned onto her side, pressed her face against the feather pillow, and felt her way across the cool sheets until she touched Mary's hand. "Mama?" Maddy tightened her grip on Mary's fingers.
"Mama's here, little one," Mary whispered again. "Right beside you for as long as you want me." She didn't move from the bed, but sat quietly until Madeline let go of her hand.
"I'm sorry," Mary announced from the doorway of Lee's room some thirty minutes later. "I didn't mean to be so long, but Maddy took longer to fall asleep than I thought." She crossed the room and sat down on the side of the big brass bed. "Lee?"
He answered her with a snore.
"Lee?" Mary touched his shoulder.
But he didn't wake up.
She felt like crying once again—this time from disappointment. Lee Kincaid had fallen asleep on her. Mary considered her options. She thought about removing her dress, stripping down to her chemise, slipping into bed beside him, and pressing herself against him. But she rejected the idea as an act of a desperate woman, and she wasn't desperate. At least, not yet. Besides, she wanted her first time to be special. She wanted Lee Kincaid to make love to her because he wanted to—because he desired her—not just because he awoke to find a warm, willing body in his bed. Mary stood up. She grabbed hold of the covers and pulled them up around Lee, tucking him in bed the same way, she'd tucked in Judah and Maddy, then quietly left the room. She still had her unpacking to do, supper to fix, and other chores to see about. And she might as well take advantage of the solitude while everyone else slept.
* * *
Unpacking proved to be more of a job than Mary thought, Her trunks were too heavy for her to carry. She had to make numerous trips up and down the stairs from the entrance hall, where Lee had left the bulk of their luggage, to the bedroom she selected for her use in the back turret above the kitchen and down the hall from Judah's room.