Always

Seven

To Lisa's relief, dinner was served in a small oval dining room instead of the high-ceilinged hall she had glimpsed from the foyer. The walls were hung with rich tapestries faded with age and lit with flickering candles in a silver candelabra. The oak table was also oval and gleamed in the candlelight with an age-silkened patina. The entire castle had an air of dignity and grace, reminiscent of a bygone time, she mused. Though the modern comforts of electricity and efficient plumbing had been added, they hadn't been allowed to interfere with the ambience of the place.

The maid who served them was quick and deft and appeared a little nervous as she moved around the table serving the delicious duck a l'orange. When a tiny drop of sauce dropped on Lisa's placemat,.she gasped with horror, her gaze flyingto the figure of Marna Debuk standing unobtrusively just to the left of the doorway. Marna frowned. The girl gasped again and hurried from the room.

"What was that all about?" Lisa asked.

"It was nothing," Marna said with a shrug. "I'm sorry the foolish girl was so clumsy. I will send in another maid from the kitchen." She left the room, moving with surprising grace for a woman of her bulk.

Lisa met Clancy's eyes across the table, and she grinned in amusement. "And I thought the head-waiter at the cafe was intimidating. I don't believe I ever saw any of the waiters blanch and run from the room when Monty frowned."

"But Monty wasn't a gypsy believed to be able to cast spells and hexes," Clancy said dryly. "His subordinates only have to worry about their jobs."

"She's a gypsy?"

"A genuine, card-carrying gypsy," Clancy said with a grin. "There are several tribes in Tamrovia that travel in caravans around the countryside. She belongs to one of the more powerful ones."

"But how did a gypsy become nursemaid to a royal princess?"

"Tradition. In olden times it was believed that gypsies had great magical powers, and to have one in attendance on their children was a social coup. It became a custom in Mama's tribe to send a chosen one to serve in the royal household in every generation. Unfortunately, Their Majesties made the mistake of assigning Marna to Kira when she was born."

"Why unfortunately?"

"Because combining a lawless gypsy philosophy like Mama's with Kira's temperament was like adding oil to fire." He picked up his glass of wine. "Explosive."

"Fascinating," Lisa murmured.

"If you like to play with dynamite." He smiled. "Personally I like my entertainment a little less volatile. Have I told you how lovely you look tonight? I like that caftan."

"So do I." She touched the peach-colored brocade of the bodice. She knew the color was good with her hair and eyes, and the richness of the material always made her feel festive. "Though the style is more fitting to one of your Middle Eastern palaces than this castle."

"Oh, I don't know. I imagine quite a few knights brought their ladies gorgeous garb like that from their crusades."

"I hadn't thought of that." She wasn't thinking very coherently of anything, she thought ruefully. Her palms were actually damp with nervousness. Good Lord, she was acting with all the sophistication of a teenage virgin. She should have seduced Clancy this afternoon on the plane. Then she had responded with complete naturalness and passion. Now that she'd had time to think how important tonight might be to her, she had developed a case of nerves.

"You're not eating again." Clancy's eyes were twinkling. "You mustn't disappoint Marna. She might put the evil eye on you."

"Is that why you brought me here? So that Marna could accomplish what you and Galbraith couldn't?"

He went still. "You know why I brought you here," he said quietly. "And it has nothing to do with that particular appetite."

Her chest was suddenly so tight she was finding it hard to breathe. She could see the reflection of the candle flames in his eyes, but she doubted if that was what made them blaze. The room was charged with an electricity and naked desire that was unmistakable. Why were they sitting here indulging in this charade of social amenities when neither of them wanted to be anywhere but in each other's arms? She swallowed. "You don't seem to be eating very well yourself. Shall we give it up and take the risk of incurring Mama's wrath?"

He threw the napkin on the table and stood up. "If we can manage to escape before she comes back from the kitchen." He was around the table, pulling her to her feet. "Let's go!"

They ran from the room like naughty children, only to be confronted by Marna in the hall. Braking, they skidded to a stop.

"You do not wish dessert?" the housekeeper asked, raising a brow.

Clancy shook his head. "Miss Landon needs some fresh air. We thought we'd take a walk on the battlements."

The faintest smile touched Mama's lips. "It is always wise to satisfy one's needs when they occur. It is unhealthy to do otherwise. Good night, Mr. Donahue."

Lisa stared after her retreating figure. "Maybe she is a witch. That had to be a double entendre."

"She wouldn't have to be psychic to read our minds at the moment. There's a certain look…"

He grinned. "Though I wouldn't swear that she didn't." He took her hand and pulled her up the stairs. When they reached the landing he suddenly turned to her with a frown. "Would you like to?"

She blinked. "What?"

"See the battlements. I don't want you to think I'm rushing you off to the sack. And I suppose a stroll in the moonlight would be romantic."

She gazed at him with exasperation and enormous tenderness. "Clancy, you've done your duty. You've provided me with all the romance a woman could possibly want. Now for God's sake, will you take me to bed?"

A slow smile lit his face. "Did I ever tell you how much I admire an aggressive woman? You're damn right I will."

He rushed her up the second flight of stairs with a speed that had her choking with laughter. Then he swung her up in his arms and strode down the hall. "One last romantic gesture. I was tempted to carry you up the stairs like Rhett Butler did Scarlett, but I thought you'd prefer to have me able to function when we got to the top."

He opened the door of a room at the end of the corridor and carried her into a large bedroom much like her own. Several crystal candelabra bearing long white tapers were scattered about the room, and the flames cast dancing shadows on the walls. Lisa was vaguely aware of tapestries in muted hues covering those walls, Aubusson area rugs on the stone floors, and a huge canopied four-poster bed across the room.

"Romance isn't everything." He set her on her feet and kicked the door shut behind him. "In a situation like this, stamina counts for a hell of a lot, too."

"Clancy…" She gazed up at him helplessly. Why didn't he realize how wonderful he was? "Don't you know you don't have to act romantic? You are romantic. You're handsome, brave, and intelligent."

"And sexy?" he suggested solemnly.

"And sexy." She nodded. "Oh, yes, very sexy."

"Just testing. I wanted to be sure you appreciated all my attributes." Suddenly he put his arms around her and buried his face in her hair. "Oh, God, I didn't think I'd ever make it." His hands moved feverishly on her back. His lips were on her ear, her temple, her cheek in soft, hot kisses. "It seems as if I've been aching for this for at least a decade or so."

Lisa could feel the hardness of his rigid muscles against her, but he wasn't close enough. She cuddled nearer, rotating in a sinuous little movement into the cradle of his hips. He inhaled sharply. His heart was pounding so hard she could detect the movement through his white dress shirt.

His tongue darted in her ear and she moaned deep in her throat, arching against him as if he'd jerked a hidden string.

"Naked," he muttered. "I've got to get you naked." His unsteady hands were unfastening the barrette that held back her hair and then combing through the loosened tresses until they fell in a shimmering cloud down her back.

"Clancy, that barrette wasn't exactly a significant body covering." Lia laughed shakily. "If you'lllet me go for a minute, I'll see if I can improve on what you started."

His hips moved slowly against her, rotating, stroking her sensuously, his hands cupping her buttocks to bring her in closer contact. Their lower bodies were pressed so close that she could feel the heat of his arousal with every breath. "I don't want to let you go," he said. She could hear his ragged breathing as he pressed his fevered cheek against her temple. Then he was pushing her away. "Quick. For God's sake, be quick."

He didn't need to urge her to speed. When he had pushed her away she'd felt an aching sense of loss, as if they had been joined and were now severed by a surgeon's scalpel. She needed that joining.

She moved swiftly, pulling the caftan over her head and then dispensing with her slippers and underthings with equal speed. Then she was back in his arms and was aware of the shock of naked flesh against her own. Clancy had stripped with the same frantic urgency she had.

"Clancy…" Her fingers dug into his shoulders as she rubbed her body against him with exquisite sensuous pleasure.

The cloud of hair on his chest was teasing her sensitive breasts, the hard muscles and bones of his thighs were locked and rigid with a leashed threat that was deliciously exciting. With every movement of her body he gave a little gasp that was almost a groan. She was gasping, too. Each breath was a shock of sensation as it brought her flesh in fresh contact with his. His left thigh Insinuated itself between hers, and she could feel the thickmuscles, lightly dusted with hair, pressing against her softness.

Her teeth clenched to suppress a cry that could well have turned into a scream. Heat. Wanting. His thigh moved with soft abrasiveness against her womanhood in an urgent, mindless rhythm that was making her mindless as well. "No more," she whispered. "No more, Clancy."

He nodded jerkily. "No more," he agreed. His chest was heaving with the force of his breathing. "Come on." He half pulled her across the room to the bed. Once there, he didn't wait to jerk down the spread but pushed her down on the cool satin surface. His eyes were glazed and almost blind as he followed her down and settled himself between her thighs. "Are you ready for me? I hope to heaven you're ready." He didn't wait for an answer but plunged deep with a low groan that was almost painful. Fire, fullness, hunger. So much hunger surrounded them. She felt it in him even as he took, feasted, filled. Her own hunger, too, seemed completely insatiable.

She arched upward helplessly as he thrust with a force and passion that sent shudder after shudder through her body. Hot, slick, driving. Her nails dug into his shoulders with unconscious force. His face above her was heavy with the same hunger and a pleasure that was primitive and exciting as the act itself. The muscles of his torso were strained with unbearable tension.

She didn't know how long that mindless rapture continued. The tension mounted constantly, spi-raling, sparking, until she didn't think she could stand it for one more minute. Her head thrashedback and forth on the satin spread, her hair splaying in wild abandon. She felt abandoned and wild and…

He was moving more forcefully within her. Plunging, rotating, thrusting deeper when she hadn't thought there was a deeper. A cry escaped from her as the tension broke and then splintered into a thousand sharp, glittering prisms of splendor.

She heard a low, harsh groan above her that sounded as if it had been torn from him, and then she was caught close to Clancy's big body. Her arms closed around him fiercely, protectively, with a loving possession that she had never known before. She had brought him this wild, mindless pleasure. It had been her body that had assuaged his hunger and then made him tremble with satisfaction. That knowledge was almost as wonderful as the passionate glory that had gone before.

His heart was slowing now, though his chest was still laboring with the force of his breathing.

"Lisa…"His voice was oddly choked. "Lord, I'm sorry."

Shock jolted through the euphoria she was feeling. "Sorry? Why on earth are you sorry?"

"You know why," he said with self-disgust as he shifted off her to one side. "I did just what I said I wouldn't do. Wham, bam, thank you, ma'am. Just as if you were some call girl I'd ordered for a one-night stand."

Oh, dear, if Clancy didn't get over these romantic illusions of what she was due as his lady, they were going to have a difficult time of it. She sat up and brushed the hair from her face, then turned to lookat him. "Do you know what a truly romantic man does, Clancy? He gives a woman what she wants." She grinned down at him. "And I assure you, that's exactly what you did just now. I wanted wham and bam, and a sincerely expressed thank-you wouldn't be far off the mark, either. I certainly feel fervently grateful to you." Her voice lowered to a whisper of tenderness. "It was beautiful. Thank you, Clancy Donahue."

He looked at her searchingly, then pulled her down to kiss her with an exquisite sweetness that caused her throat to tighten with tears. "You're welcome," he said gruffly, then fell silent again. "There aren't any words, you know. What happened was…" He shrugged helplessly and repeated, "There just aren't any words."

"Then don't try to say them." She cuddled closer, nestling her head in the hollow of his shoulder, her fingers tangling contentedly in the crisp hair on his chest. "You certainly don't need them. You do extremely well with body language."

His chuckle reverberated beneath her ear. "I'll remember which form of communication you prefer." His lips feathered a kiss on the top of her head. "Nap a little, love, and then we'll see if we can develop a few new innovations to the state of the art."

There was the lightest brushing at the crests of her breasts, then a warm, wet teasing and probing, and then a tugging. It was all deliciously gentle and lazy and right. Sleepily Lisa opened hereyes to see Clancy's dark head nestled at her breasts, and she smiled with contentment.

His head lifted and he smiled, too. "Hi," he said softly. His hand moved to cup the swelling globe that had been receiving his attention. "Did I ever tell you that you have fantastic breasts?"

"I don't believe the subject has come up, but I'm glad one part of my anatomy meets with your approval. All I've been hearing lately is how skinny I am."

"Well, these lovely things are definitely not skinny." His tongue placed another caress on the rosy peak. His hand ran down her midriff to her belly, and he began to massage it gently. "Your hips are damned narrow, though, and you're awfully tiny here." He frowned. "You won't have trouble with the baby, will you?"

She stiffened in surprise. She had completely forgotten that this heady delight also had a purpose. She might have a child as the result of this night. A quiet glow of joy swept over her. "I didn't with Tommy. It's the pelvis measurements that count."

He was still frowning as his hand moved down to press the tight curls at the apex of her thighs. "I'm so blasted big. Our child is bound to be-"

She reached down and covered his lips with her hand. "Hush, it will be fine. Let me worry about the actual production process. You just keep your mind on your part of the project."

His lips parted and he nipped at the fingers covering them. "That won't be hard to do. I'm having trouble keeping my mind on anything else when you're around." Suddenly his cheek was on herstomach, rubbing back and forth with loving affection. She could feel the slight roughness of his beard growth against her smoothness. It brought a sudden hot tingling sensation between her thighs that sent a ripple of surprise through her. So soon? His words were slightly muffled. "You're not sorry? You haven't changed your mind?"

"It's a little late for second thoughts." Her hand tangled in the thickness of his hair. "No, I'm not sorry. It was wonderful, Clancy."

His lips caressed her. "For me, too. I think it's very convenient that baby making is so damn enjoyable. I intend to work very hard on the project, you realize." His fingers wandered between her thighs and began stroking her lazily. "Morning, noon, and night." She gasped as his fingers suddenly plunged forward. "And in between, of course."

"What about your job?" she asked faintly. He was moving lazily, rhythmically within her, and her back arched helplessly.

"I can take a little vacation. I feel it's my duty to devote all my energies to this project at the present time." Unexpectedly, he was over her, entering her with one powerful movement. "There are certain priorities I have to keep in mind." He looked down at her and the lazy humor faded. In addition to the heavy sensuality she had expected, there was a gravity that surprised her. "And you're my top priority, Lisa." He leaned down and kissed her gently. "Always."

Then he started to move and she forgot everything but the web of passion he was weaving about her.

"Where are you going?"

Lisa settled the caftan around her hips and slipped on her shoes. "I didn't mean to wake you. I just thought I'd go back to my room and shower and change before breakfast. I wasn't exactly prepared when you decided to sweep me off my feet and into bed." She winked. "At last."

"You should have been. I was aiming at being a romantic, not a complete idiot." He crossed his arms under his head and leaned lazily back on the pillow. "But now I've decided to become a satyr instead. I've discovered I'm suited for it both psychologically and physically. Come back to bed, Lisa. I need some practice in the role."

She lifted a slightly derisive brow. "After last night?" Neither of them had counted the times they'd come together in a passion that had seemed unquenchable. Even now she was tempted to do as he asked and go back into his arms. "After breakfast we'll discuss it again. I wouldn't want you to dwindle down to a mere shadow." She crossed the room and opened the door. "I'll meet you in the dining room in an hour." She started to close the door, then stopped in surprise. "What the devil is this?" She held up a small leather drawstring pouch. "I found it hanging on the doorknob."

Clancy took one look at the pouch and a smile tugged at his lips. "Marna. It's a charm of some sort. I've seen them hanging on Kira's doorknobs on occasion."

Lisa lifted the pouch to her nose and sniffed experimentally. "Well, it doesn't smell of garlic, soevidently we're not threatened by vampires. I wonder what it could be."

"There's no telling. Why don't you go ask her? I was going to call Alex before breakfast anyway."

"Do you think I should? After all, it was hanging on your doorknob. She might tell me it's none of my business."

"I doubt that. Marna has an uncanny way of knowing what's going on around her. I'm sure she knows you were occupying this room last night." His expression grew sober. "Not only last night, I hope. I know it's not considered chic for a couple to occupy the same bedroom these days, but I'd like very much to have you move in with me." Gruffly he added, "I'll try not to get in your way."

"I'd like that, too," she saidv'Tll pack and move my things from my room right after breakfast."

"You won't miss your tower, princess? I hate to be an Indian giver. You occcupied that room for less than an hour."

"Not a bit. I've decided that towers are too lonely for me, anyway." She blew him a kiss and closed the door.

Her step was as springy and light as her mood as she strolled down the corridor. Now if she could only manage to find her room in this labyrinth, it would make her day. She hadn't been paying any attention to where they were going last night when Clancy had been playing Rhett Butler. For that matter, she hadn't noticed anything but Clancy.

Lisa only lost her way once in the twisting corridors before she found the right wing. Next time she ventured in this area, she told herself, she'd have to leave a trail of bread crumbs like those childrenin the fairy tale. However, Marna would probably not appreciate bread crumbs in her immaculate halls, she thought ruefully. The gypsy housekeeper would soon be putting a pouch on her doorknob to attract vampires instead of keeping them away.

She opened the door to her room and went directly to the closet to get a robe. She stood stock still, a puzzled frown creasing her brow. The closet was almost empty. There was a terry-cloth robe, a blouse, and a pair of slacks on the padded hangers. What had happened to the rest of her clothes? She had unpacked and hung up everything last night before she'd dressed for dinner.

She slipped the robe from the hanger and crossed to the bureau. One set of underwear remained in the middle drawer. Everything else was gone. In the adjoining bathroom her makeup and toiletries remained on the vanity. Whoever had removed her belongings had been very selective. Marna? Lisa doubted if any of the maids would have dared touch her things without Mama's approval; she clearly had them all under her control. It was evident there was something to discuss with the housekeeper besides the talisman.

After Lisa had showered and dressed, she set out to try to locate Marna for that discussion. Finally she tracked the housekeeper down in the kitchen, which proved to be a converted scullery in the cellars of the castle. Marna was standing beside a modernistic microwave oven, consulting in a low voice with a white-clad boy.

She turned an expressionless face as Lisa approached her. "Breakfast will be served in twenty minutes. You wish something special?^”

"No, anything will be fine. I just-"

"This is Hassan, Miss Landon." She gave the boy a surprisingly warm smile. "He is the cook. He was responsible for your dinner last night."

"It was a wonderful dinner, Hassan. We enjoyed it very much." She turned to the housekeeper. "I wonder if I could speak to you for a moment, Miss Debuk."

"Marna," she corrected as she turned away from the stove. "I'm through here, we can go upstairs now." She gave the cook another fleeting smile and led the way through the scullery and up the curving stone steps to the hall. "Hassan is a good boy with sense in his head. Not like those other chitkas."

"Chitkas?"

"Fools. It is a Tamrovian word. They fear everything they don't understand."

"Well, there's a few things I don't understand that I'd appreciate your explaining."

"But you are not afraid to ask. Those chitkas run away and hide instead of asking. I have no use for them. You remember that clumsy girl who served you dinner last night?" When Lisa nodded she went on with a scowl, "Lia ran away last night before I could even talk to her. She left a message that she was returning to her village and would not be back. Now why would she do that?"

"She seemed to be afraid of your disapproval." Lisa paused. "And I got the distinct impression that you enjoyed the image you were projecting."

There was a flicker of grudging respect in Mama's dark eyes. "I do," she said with a shrug. "I grow bored with these chitkas. If they fear, whyshouldn't I feed it a little?" She frowned. "But not that much. Lia makes good wages here and she needs the work. I'll have to go to the village and bring her back this morning."

It appeared there was a soft streak beneath that fierce exterior. "Could you answer a few questions before you go running after her?"

Marna looked at her without expression. "Of course. What would you like to know? Should I get my tarot cards?"

Lisa could feel her lips gape in surprise. Merciful heaven, the woman did believe she had psychic powers!

"No, I don't think that will be necessary. You won't need a crystal ball to answer this one. Where are my clothes?"

"They should be in Mr. Donahue's room by now. Last night I had a maid take them downstairs to press and freshen them a little. She was told to take them to Mr. Donahue's room this morning and put them away." She frowned. "You must tell me if she hasn't done it properly. She is achitka, too."

That appeared to be the woman's favorite word, Lisa thought. "But why would you do that?"

"You wish to occupy Mr. Donahue's bed and his room," Marna said simply. "And Mr. Donahue wishes you to be there. There was no need for you to pack yourself. I took care of it for you."

"But how did you-" Lisa broke off, totally bewildered. The question of the change of rooms hadn't even come up before this morning, and Marna had put the wheels in motion Jast night.

"You did want to move?"

"Yes, but-"

"Good. I will send the girl for the few things that were left in the tower chamber at once." Marna turned back toward the scullery. "It is good that you do this. Mr. Donahue is a disek. He will have a fine strong son."

"Disek?" Lisa repeated numbly. She felt as if she'd been caught in the middle of a tornado.

"A disek is one of the exceptional ones, an individual with power and strength," Marna said. "Did he tell you that he helped Kira when she was trying to smuggle me out of Tamrovia?"

"No, he didn't tell me that."

Marna nodded. "That chitka, Stefan, thought he would gain the upper hand, but Kira and Mr. Donahue fooled him."

"King Stefan?" It appeared that nervous servants weren't the only chitkas in Mama's estimation.

"Kira's brother," Marna confirmed, nodding.

"Stefan is not a disek?"

Marna shook her head emphatically. "A chitka."

"I see." She didn't, but she was afraid to increase her confusion by delving any deeper. "Then you must be very grateful to Clancy for his help."

"Of course. Why do you think I made the nathal and hung it on his doorknob?"

Nathal. Lisa reached into the pocket of her slacks and pulled out the small pouch. "This is a nathal?"

Marna nodded with satisfaction. "The most powerful nathal I have ever made."

"Just precisely what does a nathal do?" Lisa asked warily.

"Why, what you wished it to do." She turned and crossed back to where Lisa was standing. "May I touch you?"

Lisa nodded, puzzled.

Marna put her large hand gently on Lisa's abdomen and closed her eyes. It was only for the briefest instant, and then her hand was gone and she turned away. "Yes, there was no problem. I thought not. It was a very strong nathal."

"You didn't answer me," Lisa said, exasperated and close to desperate. "What does a nathal do?"

"It is a fertility talisman," Marna said calmly as she glided down the hall. "You both wished for a child, and now you have it. A fine son who will grow into a disek like his father." She glanced over her shoulder. "But you must eat more than you did last night from now on. It is not good for the child for you to be so thin."

Lisa watched as the door closed behind her. Good heavens, now Marna was nagging her about eating, too, she thought half-hysterically. Would the woman make a charm to increase her appetite if she wasn't satisfied? Oh, Lord, the whole thing was crazy. Yet there had been something so serenely confident in Mama's last statement. And how had she known they wanted a child?

She shook her head to clear it, but it did little good. She still felt as if she'd been transported back to fantasyland.

"What's wrong?" She turned to see Clancy coming out of the library down the hall. "Don't you feel well?"

"I don't know. I've just been talking to Man don't know which side is up at the moment.

A little smile tugged at Clancy's lips. "I should have known. It's not an unusual reaction. Did you find out what the talisman is for?"

She nodded. "It appears you don't have to work so hard on our little project after all. Marna has fixed everything." She held up the pouch. "Fertility talisman."

Clancy chuckled. "I suspected as much."

"Well, why didn't you tell me?" Lisa demanded.

"Because, my love, Marna can't be explained. She has to be experienced. I thought this was the quickest way for you to do that."

"I certainly 'experienced' her all right. Heavens, the woman is strange." She hesitated. "What do you think? Is there anything to this talisman stuff?" She put her hand to her head and groaned. "Just listen to me; she's got me half believing it. I must be as strange as she is."

Clancy's expression was thoughtful. "I've lived long enough that I don't discount the possibility that powers like that exist, and I've seen Marna do some very impressive hocus-pocus. Who knows?"

Lisa unconsciously touched her abdomen where Mama's hand had rested only a short time ago. Was it possible that the woman was right and even now the seed of a child was growing within her? "A son," she said softly.

"What?"

"Marna said the talisman had worked and I was carrying your son."

He went still. There was an expression on his face so beautiful that she wanted to remember it forever.

"She may be wrong," Lisa whispered. "How could she know?"

He crossed the few paces between them, then reached out and lifted her chin so that he could look into her eyes. His own still held such wonder that she felt her throat tighten with emotion. Then he kissed her with exquisite gentleness. "Well, we certainly won't stop trying. It's far too enjoyable an exercise." He laughed huskily. "I think, if anything, we should redouble our efforts. As you said, how could she know?"

He kissed her again and turned her toward the small room where they had dined last night. "Breakfast," he said firmly. "And it wouldn't hurt you to try to eat a little more. Just in case she's right."

"That's what Marna told me," Lisa said with a sigh. "I'm glad Galbraith's not here. At least I only have the two of you to contend with."

"You'll find that quite enough, acushla."

Lisa nodded gloomily as she allowed him to propel her toward the dining room. She had an idea that withstanding the machinations of a protective gypsy witch and a possessive Clancy Donahue would be more than enough of a challenge for any woman.