Ashes and Ecstasy Read online

  Dear Reader,

  I am so pleased that my titles have been converted into e-books for your continued enjoyment in the new format. Per the request of many loyal readers, and my own desire to contrive more adventures with these delightful characters, Ashes and Ecstasy is the sequel to Fire and Ice, and continues the saga of Kathleen and Reed, their pirate escapades, and their lives near Savannah, Georgia. May you enjoy reading it as much as I took pleasure from writing it.

  Catherine Hart

  “Ashes and Ecstasy” Copyright © 1985 by Diane Tidd

  ASHES AND ECSTASY First Ebook edition October 2018 ISBN: 978-1-944654-22-1

  All rights reserved. No part of the Ebook may be reproduced, stored in, or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both copyright owner and Class Ebook Editions Ltd., the publisher of the Ebook. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

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  “What could be more exciting than an adventurous, swashbuckling romance like Catherine Hart's FIRE AND ICE? – Romantic Times

  “ASHES AND ECSTASY will keep you captive in its colorful world from the first page” – Romantic Times

  “An absolute delight, pure fun and sizzling romance from the first page to the last, with a twist in the plot that makes it stand apart … a book I'll always remember. Wonderful characters! Witty dialogue! In SPLENDOR Catherine Hart proves herself to be a master.” — Bestselling author Catherine Anderson

  “A rollicking swashbuckler that's full of laughs and loads of fun to read... Enjoy.” –New York Times Bestselling author Kat Martin on SPLENDOR

  “A real page turner, sparkling with verbal wit filled with that special Catherine Hart touch of magic.” – Romantic Times 4 starred review on SPLENDOR

  “Bold and audacious.”– Publishers Weekly on CHARMED

  “Veteran historical author Catherine Hart branches into time-travel romance and takes lucky readers on a wondrous journey. CHARMED combines magic, history, and romance into a most enthralling read.” – Romantic Times

  “Hart offers a gripping, sympathetic portrait of the Cheyenne as a proud people caught in turmoil by an encroaching world.” – Publishers Weekly on SUMMER STORM

  “Hart again demonstrates an unusual sensitivity to Native American traditions [and] presents the Cheyenne way of life with great respect and sympathy.” – Publishers Weekly on NIGHT FLAME

  “TEMPEST is more than a romance, but a novel that teaches us about forgiving and building a new life. An extraordinary novel.” – Romantic Times 4 starred review

  “This is a light-hearted, charming, delightful, classic Catherine Hart romance. Hart has incorporated her unique sense of humor with a powerful clash of wills and a highly sensual love story. Fans are in for a real treat.” – Romantic Times 4 starred review on TEMPTATION

  “Catherine Hart has written a delightful love story filled with some wonderful characters. A fast-paced page turner.” – Romantic Times 4 starred review on DAZZLED

  “IRRESISTIBLE is tantalizing—a love story that will make you laugh and cry and lift your spirits. Catherine Hart has created a story of love triumphing over all obstacles. This is the ‘feel good’ read of the season.” – Romantic Times 4½ starred review on IRRESISTIBLE

  “Action-packed, thrilling HORIZONS is an exhilarating tale of courage, ingenuity and survival. With this novel as her launching pad, the talented Ms. Hart makes a spectacular jump into contemporary fiction.” – Romantic Times 4½ starred review

  “Hart chooses to set her latest tale of romantic suspense in the high-profile world of professional sports. Those looking for danger and passion spiced with humor will find she delivers.” – Romantic Times 4 starred review on IMPULSIVE

  Ashes and Ecstasy

  Catherine Hart

  Class Ebook Editions, Ltd.

  New York, NY

  Table of Contents

  Cover

  Reader Letter

  Copyright

  Praise for Catherine Hart

  Title page

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Author Biography

  Also by Catherine Hart

  Excerpt

  CHARMED Chapter 1

  Chapter 1

  The carriage drew to a jarring halt at the front of the dock where the Kat-Ann was moored. A tall, broad-shouldered man stepped out and made his way toward the frigate. His hair was as midnight black as that of any of the inhabitants of this inland riverport of Córdoba, Spain, his skin nearly as bronzed by the hot sun. Only his brilliant blue eyes gave the lie to the impression that he was a native of the region.

  Halfway up the boarding plank, he was met by an excited bundle of silk skirts, long legs, and flying red-gold hair who promptly launched herself into his embrace. Her slim arms twined intimately about his neck and she kissed him soundly on the lips. Then, still clinging to him, she leaned back with a gamine grin.

  “Hello, Captain! Haven’t we met like this before?” Her emerald eyes twinkled with unsuppressed merriment.

  He carried her to the ship’s deck, where he promptly set her on her feet and planted a firm whack on her backside. His answering grin belied his admonishment. “Behave yourself, Kat! Is this any way for a wife and mother of two young babes to act?”

  Kathleen smiled up into his face, twitching her hips and retorting saucily, “That depends on whose wife she is, I suppose, Captain Taylor.”

  He gathered a huge handful of her flowing hair, a decidedly possessive look on his handsome face as he drew her up to him once more. “You are my wife, Kathleen O’Reilly Haley Taylor, and don’t you ever forget it!”

  “Yes, Reed,” she murmured in a rare moment of docility as his lips descended on hers with forceful mastery.

  For long moments, they were oblivious to anything around them as they lost themselves in the kiss and one another. Their lips met and clung, hers softening and molding beneath the firm warmth of his. At his unspoken command, her lips parted to permit entrance to his invading tongue. Tongues touched and tangled in a mating dance that sent hot spears of desire darting through them both. Reed’s hands tightened in her hair; his other at the small of her back brought her body into smoldering contact with his, leaving her in no doubt of his ardent arousal.

  In retaliation for the waves of heat he was sending through her, Kathleen’s tongue snaked out to trace and tease the soft inner edge of his lip. She felt him shiver in response, and then his strong white teeth were nipping sharply at her full lower lip, mingling little shafts of pain with fiery pleasure.

  With a low groan of unfulfilled need, Reed tore his lips from hers and raised his head, obvious regret reflected in the sea-blue depths
of his eyes. Kathleen’s thickly lashed eyes fluttered open slowly, revealing emerald eyes still clouded with unbanked fires of desire.

  “Shall we depart to the captain’s quarters and conclude what we’ve begun in more privacy?” Kathleen suggested huskily, only now aware of the smothered chuckles of several members of the Kat-Ann's crew.

  “You tempt me, wench,” Reed admitted with a heavy sigh, “but I haven’t spent the morning tracking down your schoolmate's address and hiring a carriage for nothing.”

  Kathleen’s face lit up with delight. “Oh, Reed! You’ve located Isabel?”

  “I’ve got an address for her parents, Kat,” he corrected. “Don’t forget, it’s been five years since you were together at that English boarding school. She’s probably married with a family of her own by now, so don’t raise your hopes too high. Isabel may live in Madrid or Granada or heaven knows where.”

  “But we will go see if we can find her,” Kathleen insisted excitedly.

  “Yes, kitten. Now, go get yourself ready and see that Della has the children in hand. I need to give a few instructions to the crew before we leave.”

  Reed shook his head and smiled as she dashed off. Kat never did anything by half measures. Her volatile Irish nature left no room for complacency. When she was happy, the entire world knew her delightful smile, her joy, and her infectious laughter; and when she was angry, everyone near her felt the lash of her tongue, the flash of her expressive green eyes, the heat of her wrath. In turn, when she was sad, Reed almost expected clouds to shut out the sun in response to her tears; and when she turned to him with the full measure of her passion, he swore he felt the earth tilt and catch fire as he held her in his arms. In every area of her life, she gave all of herself or nothing at all.

  The past three years had been comparatively peaceful. He and Kathleen were secure in the love they shared and with their two lovely children. For Reed, contentment was waking up next to her each morning, basking in the glow of her smile each day, and hearing her glorious cries of ecstasy when he made love to her. All Reed wanted in this world was to spend the rest of his life with Kathleen.

  Below deck, Kathleen was-saying goodbye to her son and daughter. “Now you be a good little boy, Katlin, and don’t give Della any trouble,” she told her twelve-month-old son, fluffing his soft jet-black baby curb.

  He looked up at her and gave her the same crooked grin his father often displayed, his new baby teeth gleaming, his clear blue eyes alight with glee. “Dell,” he repeated.

  Kathleen kissed his chubby cheek. “Yes, my smart boy. Dell.”

  “I’m smart, too. Mommy,” piped up the little girl standing next to Kathleen. Her auburn hair caught the glow of light streaming through the porthole and held it.

  Kathleen laughed and stooped down to hug her daughter. “You are a very bright little penny, my adorable Alexandrea. Give Mommy a kiss before I go.”

  “I want to go, too!” Alexandrea Jean Taylor, more commonly called Andrea, thrust out her lower lip in rebellion. Her unusual aqua eyes, a perfect blending of her mother’s vivid green and her father's sky-blue, clouded in anticipation of Kathleen’s refusal. At two and a half, she was by turns angelic and precocious.

  Kathleen kissed the protruding lips. “Not this time, Andrea.” She stood and straightened the folds of her gown. “Mind Della and I’ll be back soon.”

  “An’ pull in dat lip afore yo’ steps on it,” Della advised. Tall, black, and an absolute jewel with the children, Della was a godsend to Kathleen. And, wonder of wonders, she hadn’t even gotten seasick the entire six weeks, though they’d hit a couple of nasty storms between Georgia and Spain.

  “Don’t hurry on our account, Miz Kafleen. Deze two gwine eat some lunch an’ take a nice long nap.”

  Kathleen nodded and hurriedly took her leave. Behind her, she heard Andrea arguing, “I don’t want to take a nap! I’m a big girl now. Babies take naps!”

  Kathleen was still grinning as she climbed into the carriage with Reed.

  “What’s so funny?” he wanted to know.

  “Your daughter. She’s giving Della trouble about taking a nap. Andrea is a real minx sometimes.”

  Reed laughed. “What did you expect? She takes after her mother!”

  Kathleen could not honestly argue that point, especially to Reed; not after what she had put him through.

  It was true that Kathleen’s father, Lord Edward Haley, had spoiled his only child. When she had returned from boarding school in England, he had taken her sailing with him on business trips for his shipping firm, teaching her to sail the eight frigates he owned. She learned everything she could from the crewmen, and soon she was acting as captain on most of their jaunts.

  The crew didn’t mind, for she was an excellent captain. In addition to a quick mind and good reflexes, Kathleen had a special feel for the sea; something rare and inborn, as if the sea were divulging her closely hoarded secrets to the girl. At times, the link was so strong that it was eerie, as if Kathleen could communicate with the gods of the deep; as if she had been born on the waves, a part of the mysterious depths and its creatures.

  When Kathleen had begged and pleaded persistently enough, her father had also allowed her to take fencing lessons, and soon she was besting her teachers. The heavy rapier soon became almost an extension of her arm, and with her natural agility, she became an expert duelist. Rarely could anyone best her, even Reed, as good as he was...

  As the carriage slowed to enter a private drive leading to a palatial estate, Kathleen jolted out of her reverie. A sidelong glance in Reed’s direction told her he was eyeing her quizzically.

  “What were you thinking, kitten?” he asked.

  Kathleen smiled softly, her hand reaching automatically to brush back the errant lock of black hair that fell across his forehead. “About the past, and about how much I love you,” she said.

  Reed’s smile answered hers. “And I love you, my darling, more than life itself.” His lips reached down to touch hers softly as the carriage pulled to a stop.

  The building before them was an imposing structure; three and a half stories of solid stone with balconies and high, narrow windows behind iron grillwork. A shiver ran over Kathleen’s skin as she thought it more resembled a fortress than a residence—or perhaps a prison.

  Reed let out a low whistle. “Awesome, isn’t it, even if it is slightly depressing?”

  “Shouldn’t it have gargoyles guarding the entrance?” Kathleen suggested wryly. She almost wished she hadn’t made the comment, as she watched Reed reach for the doorknocker. It was large, heavy, and in the shape of a fierce, fire-breathing dragon. “Oh, Lord!” she whispered, choking back a giggle.

  The gentleman who opened the door was dressed severely in black, enhancing the somber effect of the exterior. His face held no sign of emotion as he asked in Spanish, “May I help you?”

  “We’d like to speak with Isabel Fernandez,” Reed replied, also in Spanish.

  A frown barely registered on the servant’s face. “She’s not here.” Immediately he began to shut the door.

  Reed put out a hand to hold it open. “Then may we speak with Señor or Señora Fernandez?”

  “Do you have an appointment?” came the haughty reply.

  “No, but we have traveled a long distance, and my wife was looking forward to a visit with her friend.”

  Indecision flitted across the man’s features. Finally he opened the door wider. He motioned them into a lofty dark hallway. “Wait here. I will get the master.”

  When he had left them, Kathleen let out the breath she’d been holding. “Good grief! You’d think we were asking for an audience with the queen!” Then another thought struck her. “Heavens! I can only wonder what Isabel thought when she came to visit me in Ireland the summer after school was out! She probably thought us a tribe of uncouth barbarians!”

  Reed shook his head and smiled. “Somehow I doubt that.”

  “Oh, but Reed!” Kathleen moaned in mortificat
ion. “I even talked my fencing instructor into letting Isabel share my lessons!”

  Reed rolled his eyes. “Why is it I am not surprised?”

  Further comment was cut short as the manservant returned to usher them into a small parlor off the hallway. This room, too, was deeply shadowed and decorated in dark tones. “Please be seated. The señor will be with you in a moment,” he said.

  No sooner had he left them than a man and woman entered the parlor. The man was tall and thin, with a prominent nose that gave him a distinctly hawklike appearance. The woman was petite, with dark hair and eyes. In spite of her pale, ashen complexion, Kathleen noted her resemblance to Isabel, and was sure this must be her mother.

  At first no one spoke, and the tension in the room was nearly palpable. The man seemed tense, even wary; and the woman was visibly nervous, perhaps frightened, as she repeatedly twisted her handkerchief.

  At last he spoke. “I am Rafael Fernandez, and this is my wife, Carmen. We are told you are looking for Isabel. I would like to know who you are and why you seek her.”

  Frowning slightly at Rafael Fernandez’s imperious attitude, Reed stated, “I am Captain Reed Taylor, and this,” he gestured toward Kathleen, “is my wife, the former Lady Kathleen Haley. My wife and your daughter were classmates in England a few years ago. We are in Spain on business for a few days, and Kathleen wished a short visit with Isabel, if it could be arranged.”

  “Yes,” Kathleen inserted. “Surely you recall that you let Isabel visit me in Ireland one summer. Is she still living here with you? Will she be home soon?”