William Tavington left the inn shortly after dawn the next morning, feeling satisfied and well-rested. After more than a week away, he was looking forward to returning to the fort and to Charlotte's arms. As he stepped through the door into the tavern for breakfast, he smiled to himself in anticipation of the welcome home that he expected that Charlotte would give him once they were alone behind closed doors
Ban Tarleton still had not appeared by the time Tavington finished a quick breakfast of porridge. The dragoon sighed in exasperation, knowing that his comrade in arms had no doubt been up all night romping with as many whores as he could manage to take on. Tavington chuckled to himself, thinking it was a good thing Hanger hadn't been with them, as he'd have likely entered the tavern this morning to find the two of them still swinging from the proverbial chandeliers.
He stepped across the street in the dim early morning light to the stables after finishing his morning repast. Unsurprisingly, Banastre Tarleton was not here, either. The dragoon found the young stable hand fast asleep on his cot in the tiny room at the back of the stable.
Sneering in aggravation, Tavington roughly jostled the snoring stable hand's shoulder to awaken him.
"Get up, you lazy urchin," Tavington growled, thoroughly put out.
The indentured boy's eyes widened in fear when he opened them to find Tavington standing over him, the dragoon's glacial blue eyes narrowed in irritation. Jumping up from his cot, he stumbled to his feet and stammered, "S-sorry, sir!"
"I need you to saddle both my horse and Colonel Tarleton's horse right away," Tavington told the sandy-haired boy in a severe tone. "I'll expect to see both horses ready in fifteen minutes."
"Y-yes, sir, right away!" the stable hand said as he hurriedly stuffed his feet into his shoes, then rushed off to do the dragoon's bidding. Leaving the boy to do his job, Tavington left the stable to go see if Ban was up yet.
As he re-entered the inn, he met Ban Tarleton coming down the stairs, flanked by Abby and Lucy, as he tucked his shirt into his breeches. All three were laughing merrily, sharing some private joke.
"There you are, Tarleton," Tavington called out briskly. "I've been out to the stable already and the stable boy is saddling our horses now. You have time to have a quick meal before we go."
"Good," the younger officer replied. Turning to the two women, he bowed to each one in turn, then said, "Ladies, I enjoyed it and I promise to come back to see you both at my earliest opportunity."
"Perhaps then you and Colonel Tavington could have us both at the same time?" Lucy asked, giving Tavington a seductive look. "I didn't get to spend as much time with him as I would have liked last night."
"If we're both here at the same time again, then most certainly," Tavington said smoothly. "I would find that most agreeable, as I'm sure Colonel Tarleton would."
"Without a doubt," Ban agreed grinning fiercely, reaching out to fondle each woman on the bum before they left the men to their breakfast.
A little over an hour later, the two dragoons caught up with the rest of their men after the group had broken camp and had just started back down the road to the fort.
"See?" Ban Tarleton told Tavington as they approached the soldiers. "I told you we'd easily be able to catch up to them. We probably could have stayed in bed another hour, too."
"I never doubted it for a moment," Tavington replied. Looking over the dragoon column as they fell into line, he added, "Everything seems to be in order here."
A short time later, once each man had talked to his respective junior officer in charge, they rejoined one another near the head of the column.
After a few moments of riding in silence, Ban Tarleton turned to Tavington and asked in a conversational tone, "So, Will, what was the matter with you last night?"
Tavington gave him a quizzical look, having no idea what the other man was talking about.
Noting the clueless expression on Tavington's face, Ban continued, "Weren't you able to properly satisfy Lucy? She came knocking on my door after leaving you, when I was halfway in the middle of rogering Abby. I nearly ended up shooting my load prematurely."
Regarding the younger man with a sour expression, Tavington replied haughtily, "Lucy was quite satisfied, if all the moaning and sighing she'd done was any indication. I would also add that she was walking in a decidedly crooked fashion when she left my room."
"I don't know, Will," Ban teased, shaking his head. "Lucy was most definitely wanting more when I let her into my room. She could hardly wait for me to finish with Abby before she was all over me. And it's mainly her fault that I was late for breakfast this morning. That little minx drained me dry, so much so that I ended up being the one who walked crooked this morning!"
Tavington raised an eyebrow at the other dragoon, then said, "There, you see? I didn't want to give Lucy everything I had last night and come home to Charlotte all used up. I just wanted to scratch my itch a little last night and save the rest for my eagerly waiting wife at home." After a pause, he added, "It's not as if anyone particular is waiting at the fort for you, Tarleton, so there was no need for you to hold anything back."
"That's true," Tarleton conceded. After a pause, he remarked, "I'll bet Bordon and Wilkins will be disappointed they missed out on last night once they find out, though."
"Wilkins, maybe," Tavington agreed. "But not Bordon. Not any more, at least. He's so besotted with Wilkins' widowed sister that he hardly notices other women. I imagine that now he's been wounded and will have to spend some time at the fort, he'll spend every available moment courting her. I'd not be surprised if they were married by the end of summer."
"Better him than me," Ban said, shuddering at the idea of marriage. "Would you like to make a wager on that, Tavington? I'll bet that he'll eventually come to his senses once the novelty wears off and he'll not marry her at all."
"Most certainly," Tavington agreed. "It will be the easiest money I've ever made."
"I do hope I'm proven to be correct," Ban said earnestly. "He'd be foolish to rush headlong into marriage like that. He has several good years left before he needs to even think about marriage."
"Oh, marriage is not that bad," Tavington told him. "Charlotte has been quite the amiable and agreeable wife so far." Smiling as he thought of her, he added, "You'd be surprised at how much of a difference it makes in one's life to know that there's someone waiting for you at home who gives a damn whether you live or die."
"I'll take your word for it," Ban replied. "But I'm not at all ready to find out for myself whether or not it is true."
"Your time will come, Tarleton," Tavington predicted. "Mark my words. Eventually, you'll at least want an heir."
"Perhaps," Ban said indifferently, shrugging. "But in any instance, I have brothers who will keep the family name going, even if I don't. I'm not worried about it. Really, it's much easier being a younger son, as far as such things go."
"Not being a younger son, I'll have to take your word for that," Tavington replied in a good-natured tone.
"But I must say that I'll be quite glad to get back to the fort," Tarleton admitted. "I'm worn out and I would really like to get several hours of sleep."
Laughing heartily as he glanced sideways at the younger man who looked decidedly haggard, Tavington said, "It's no wonder, considering the night you had."
"I can only hope that Cornwallis doesn't send me out again immediately," Tarleton groused. "Knowing my luck, however, he'll likely be waiting for us at the gate, with new orders in hand."
"Perhaps not," Tavington opined. "I would like the chance to get to have a couple of days of respite at the fort myself before heading out again."
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/
James Bordon sat outside his tent on a folding chair enjoying the early morning sunshine with a cup of coffee. Wilkins had brought it to him before going on duty and Mary would be arriving soon with his breakfast.
Since returning injured to the fort several days ago, the throbbing pain in his arm had awakened him each morning earlier than he would have liked. He'd spent the first night in the infirmary under observation, but the doctor had thankfully allowed him to return to his own tent the next night.
Bordon had taken it easy these last few days, not straying far from his tent the entire time. He'd had a devil of a time getting dressed and undressed with the use of only one arm, especially buttoning his breeches. He'd be damned if he'd ask Wilkins to help with such a task, however, and it was not yet proper to ask Mary to do so, so he'd struggled as best he could with the task.
The dragoon sat now with a banyan over a loose shirt and his breeches. He was lucky to have a pair of low shoes with him, as he knew he'd never be able to get his boots on and off by himself in his current condition. His hair was loose on his shoulders, but Mary would arrange it into a neat queue once they'd shared breakfast.
He sighed in anticipation of her arrival today. They'd planned to take a short walk around the fort before lunch, which would be the first time he'd left the immediate area of his tent since arriving back at the fort.
Mary Miller had come to see him each day since he'd been back. They'd mainly sat outside his tent in full view of others during the day, as was proper for a courting couple, often times joined by her brother and always with Susan in tow. They'd spent this time getting better acquainted, telling one another about the lives they'd led, along with their hopes and dreams for the future.
In the evenings, Wilkins often joined them, though Mary always left fairly early, so that Susan could get to bed at a reasonable hour.
Bordon had been delighted to discover that his first impressions of Mary had been quite correct; she'd turned out to be quite an agreeable woman that he knew would make a fine partner in life. And from observing her interactions with Susan, he was confident she'd make a fine mother for his children.
There was also that small matter of that whenever he was with her, his heart beat faster and his breeches became a bit tighter. He knew he would end up asking her to marry him sooner, rather than later, as he was about to self-combust with unsatisfied lust. And the sad thing was that with his injured arm, he couldn't even take matters in hand to relieve the pressure.
As he was chuckling to himself about his awkward personal dilemma, Mary walked up to the tent, approaching from the rear.
"What's got you laughing?" Mary asked, smiling broadly as she came around from the side of the tent. "I could hear you halfway down the path."
"Er, ah, um," Bordon stammered, not wishing to share with her the precise cause of his discomfiture. He was also very grateful at that moment for the loose fit of his banyan, which now thankfully hid the exact nature of his problem. "I was just thinking about something Tarleton said awhile back," he quickly lied. "Unfortunately, it's too vulgar to repeat."
"I'll take your word for it," Mary said, letting it go, as she reached inside the basket she was carrying for his breakfast and set it down on the folding table beside him. "I'm just happy to hear you laugh, no matter what the reason. I take it that you're feeling better this morning?"
"I feel a bit better with every passing day," he told her. "But it will be awhile before I'm completely my old self again."
"Do you think you're up to that walk we talked about last night," she asked in a hopeful tone.
"Yes, I believe so," he said, smiling. "I've been looking forward to it."
A short time later, the couple was strolling, hand in hand, back up the path in the general direction of the main house. Susan ran ahead of them, looking over her shoulder every so often to make sure the adults were still following.
"Susan is still a bit insecure," Mary told Bordon as Susan looked back yet again a couple of minutes later. "But she's much better now than she was when her father first died,"
"Children are quite resilient," Bordon noted. "They adjust to changing circumstances more easily than adults do, usually."
"You've been a big help in her adjustment," Mary confided. "It's meant a lot to her that you've helped her with her reading, listening to her recite. She also told me that multiplication makes more sense to her now that you explained it properly to her."
"I'm glad to be of help," he said sincerely. "It's a pleasure to help her because she's eager to learn." Laughing quietly, he said, "Perhaps I should have been a school master rather than a soldier."
"I think you would do well in any endeavour you chose," she stated.
"Perhaps," he agreed guardedly. "But as a lad I loved horses, so I ended up as a dragoon." After a pause, he continued, "But maybe once this war is over, I might try my hand at another occupation."
Changing the subject, Mary told him, "Charlotte Tavington invited us over for tea after our walk. She's been feeling rather lonesome since the Colonel has been away and could do with some company."
"I would imagine that he and Tarleton and the dragoons should be returning soon," Bordon estimated. "I'd not be surprised if we saw them today."
"I hope so," Mary replied.
The two walked in companionable silence for a few minutes. It was a measure of how comfortable they felt together that they did not feel the need to fill every available moment with conversation. Silence was not awkward for either of them because of their essential compatibility with one another.
A short time later, as they walked along the perimeter by the fence, Bordon led Mary to a ladder that led to an observation tower. Indicating upward with his good arm, he said, "This is one of my favourite places in the fort. I've come here when I was to be alone and need to think." Smiling encouragingly at her, he asked, "Would you like to see the view?"
"Oh, yes," she replied. "Will you be all right climbing with your bad arm?"
"I'll be fine," he assured her. "I don't need both arms to get up there."
"All right, then," she agreed. Looking over at Susan, who was now talking with a little girl she knew who had wandered by, Mary told her, "Wait down here, Susan, and don't wander off. The Captain and I will only be a few minutes."
"Yes, Mother," she said, plopping down on the ground with the other girl to play with their dolls.
"Shall we?" Bordon said, gesturing to indicate that Mary should go first.
A moment later, the couple stood alone in the observation tower, which was midway between two guard towers that stood at opposite corners of the fort. Unlike the guard towers, this lookout area was not always manned.
Neither Bordon nor Mary spoke for a long moment, as they gazed upon the magnificent panorama before them. Fort Carolina was at the crest of the hill and from their vantage point, they could see the road coming from the north. A large meadow, partially populated by tall grasses and colourful wildflowers stood between them and a forest consisting largely of pine, which was bisected by the heavily travelled road. Cattle grazed in the meadow closer to the fort, and off in the distance on the right, a bend of the nearby river could be seen.
"I can see why you like to come here," Mary finally said. "The view is beautiful."
"America is beautiful," Bordon asserted. "Throughout this war, I've been to many different regions in America, and though the scenery varies depending upon the region, it's all magnificent to me."
"I'm sure England is beautiful as well," she ventured.
"Oh, yes, the countryside most certainly is, but it lacks the sense of vastness that is so uniquely American," he told her.
"Sometimes, the vastness can be lonely," she told him honestly. "And after the war, I'll likely have to sell the farm and move. Even if England wins the war, I'll not want to live near the people who killed my husband. I have no idea where Susan and I will go, especially if Jim doesn't end up staying in this area" Sighing loudly, she said, "And I don't know if I want to move in with him, as he's likely to have married by then, and I wouldn't want to live under his roof as a burden to him."
"Perhaps you won't have to," Bordon said suddenly, with a shy smile. "Maybe you'll bet a better offer."
Looking up at him and searching his eyes, she saw the sincerity there. "Are you saying what I think you're saying?"
"I believe I am," he said softly, his green eyes twinkling in merriment. "I would be quite pleased if you would consent to be my wife. I know it's very soon after your husband's death and that we've only just begun to know one another, but I've learned enough about you to know that we are especially well-suited to one another."
"I feel the same way," she confessed. "I know that you're a good man who cares about me and I know that Thomas wouldn't want me to grieve forever for him. And I know that it's in the best interests of both Susan and I for me to marry again."
Taking a deep breath, she put a gentle hand on his arm, then added in a breathy voice, "And I melt every time I look into your eyes. It does not hurt at all that you are most pleasing to the eye." After another pause, she concluded, "So, yes, James Bordon, I will marry you."
Grinning broadly, he said, "You don't know how much that pleases me, Mary. I promise that I will be the best of husbands to you and do everything in my power to make you and Susan happy."
He leaned down then and took her lips with his own, taking her into his arms as he felt hers surround him. Their kiss was long, unhurried, and searching, as they explored one another's mouths for the first time.
The reluctantly broke away when they heard a distant rumbling rapidly growing louder. Looking out toward the road, they saw the dragoon column rapidly approaching led by Colonels Tavington and Tarleton, with infantry and wagons following slowly behind them.
"Oh, they're back!" Mary said. "I suppose this means we won't be having tea with Charlotte, after all!"
"No, I would guess not," Bordon said chuckling. He knew that Tavington would have better things for Charlotte to do than take tea with her friends.
"But I want to share our happy news with her!" Mary declared. "Let's hurry and get to the stables, as she'll likely hurry over there to meet the Colonel. It might be awhile before I get a chance to tell her if I don't do so now!"
Several minutes later, the newly engaged couple reached where Charlotte Tavington stood waiting, just as Colonels Tavington and Tarleton pulled up beside her.
Calling out to her friend, Mary Miller announced, "Charlotte! James and I just became engaged! I wanted you to be the first to know!"
William Tavington laughed out loud, then turned to Ban Tarleton with an evil grin. "Pay up, Tarleton!"
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Historical notes: Though love was increasingly becoming an important factor influencing the choice of a spouse in the late 18th century, it was by no means the only consideration or even the most important one. Practical considerations, such as economics and security still played an important role. In Mary's situation, she had a child's safety and welfare to consider and in a society where there were few opportunities, especially in rural areas, for a woman alone to support herself, she could not afford the luxury of marrying again strictly based on romantic notions. While Bordon, who would be marrying for the first time, could afford to marry strictly for love and take his time finding a wife, he was also of a traditional and practical nature, and was looking for a woman of good character and temperament who would be a true partner in life for him. Marrying a widow was a smart move for him, as he saw that she'd already been a good wife and mother for another man. The fact that their personalities were compatible and that they each found the other sexually desirable was simply icing on the cake for them. So, while their engagement might seem sudden after such a brief courtship, they saw no need to delay things once they'd deemed one another compatible.
A banyan was the 18th century version of a men's bathrobe, but it was sometimes also worn in public as casual wear over a shirt and breeches.
My inclusion of a folding chair and table for Bordon is historically accurate, as I looked it up and also found reproductions of them on a website selling gear for reenactors.