Florence dragged out the traveling bags and started emptying Corinne's bureau. There was one thing she hadn't considered. Could Corinne bear to be parted from Michael for so long? Would she rather take the risk than be away from him? Just how long did Jared plan to keep his wife?
Jared appeared in the doorway. "You're going to have to hurry, Mrs. Merrill," he said impatiently. "It's a hellishly long trip to Sunset Beach, and I need at least a little sleep tonight."
"It takes time to pack," Florence replied indignantly. "Cori has quite a few belongings here."
"I can see that," he retorted curtly, looking about the room. He walked over to the open wardrobe, his eyes caught by the Hawaiian clothes there. He took out a muumuu and laughted heartily. "I can't picture my stylish wife in this thing. Does she really wear it?"
Florence's eyes widened in alarm. "Cori bought a few of those on impulse, because they looked so comfortable." She said the first thing that she could think of. "But she's never worn them."
She knew it wasn't necessary to lie, but she felt she had to keep anything connected with Michael a secret. She was beginning to panic.
"My wife does like to waste money, doesn't she? Oil clothes ... on her lovers," Jared said scornfully. "It will take forever to pack all these dresses." He stood back, frowning. "There is an easier way," he said and scooped the entire length of dresses into his arms and started out of the room.
"Mr. Burkettl" Florence gasped, running after him. "Those dresses will be ruined, and they cost a fortune!"
"A few wrinkles doesn't ruin a dress, Mrs. Merrill," he called over his shoulder as he moved toward the door. "I told you I'm in a hurry. Now finish getting the rest of my wife's belongings into her bags."
Florence turned in a huff and went back into Corinne's bedroom. The man was impossible. How would Cori ever survive living with such an overbearing husband? Her temper would be forever on the rise, and Florence knew all too well that Cori did wild things when riled.
They should never have come here. Florence had warned Cori enough times that no good would come of her outrageous scheme.
Jared loomed in the doorway again. "You're not finished yet?"
Exasperation arid anxiety made her shout, "You do it, then! But you wait and see what Corinne thinks about the mess you make of her things!"
Her raised voice woke Michael in the next room.
Florence blanched, hearing his cry. Now the lies would begin. There was no help for it.
Jared looked dumbfounded as she turned accusing eyes on him. "Now look what you've made me do," she said reproachfully and hurried from the room into the nursery.
Florence quickly picked up Michael and soothed him against her breast. Jared had followed her into the room and stood watching her for several moments before he spoke.
"Whose baby is that?"
Florence looked at him warily. His voice had been dangerously low. His eyes were narrowed, dark and menacing. He stared at Michael. Michael continued to cry, paying no attention to the drama going on around him.
"Mine, of course," she answered quickly, keeping Michael's face turned away from Jared. "Whose else would he be?"
His expression didn't change. Lord, what was he thinking?
"You mean to tell me my wife brought you all the way here with a newborn infant?"
"Michael is older than he looks, Mr. Burkett," Florence said defensively. "He was old enough to travel when we came. I would not have brought him otherwise."
"And your husband didn't object?" he demanded incredulously,
"I—I'm a widow," she explained, finding the lie difficult to get out. "And I have no family. Cori—Corinne didn't want to bring us with her, with Michael being so young. But I insisted. I wasn't about to let her come all this way without me. She's all I have—besides Michael."
"I'm finding this very hard to swallow, Mrs. Merrill," Jared said coldly. "Corinne should have had more sense than to take a newborn baby on a long journey. From the size of him, your son couldn't have been but just born. And you couldn't have been in any condition to travel, either. How could Corrine have been so foolhardy?"
"I told you Michael is small for his age, Mr. Burkett. He is five months old. He—he was two months when we left Boston. That was old enough to travel."
Florence knew she didn't sound convincing. She just wasn't any good at lying. Please let him believe her, she prayed silently.
"Well, change him or feed him or something," Jared said harshly as Michael's wailing continued. "I can't stand to hear a baby cry."
He marched from the room and Florence let out a sigh of relief. She put Michael back in his bassinet and began to change him. She knew he must still be hungry. She had fed him ground vegetables earlier, but he didn't take well to the cow's milk she was forced to give him. He needed his mother. Now that Jared knew about him, and had apparently believed her story, there was no reason anymore for her and Michael to go back to Boston without Corinne.
After she got Michael quieted, she went back to Co-rinne's bedroom. She found Jared packing the rest of Corinne's things with little care, just dumping the contents of drawers into the bags.
When Jared noticed Florence at the door he growled, "Anymore damnable bags and I'll have to bring along a cart tomorrow!"
"You will probably have to do that anyway, Mr. Burk-ett," Florence replied. "For I've changed my mind about going back to Boston. After seeing how cantankerous and disagreeable you are, I'm not about to leave my Cori alone in your care."
"Cantankerous, am I?" Jared scowled.
"You certainly are," she assured him, determined to hold her ground.
Jared finally showed a smile. "Well, don't just stand there, woman. Get busy if you and the little one are coming with me."
A little over an hour later, the open carriage was jammed full of clothing, trunks, and bags. There was no room left for Florence, so Jared helped her up onto the drivers seat beside him. She held the baby on her lap.
Michael had slept through the packing of his room, but he was awake now, and gurgling softly, fascinated at the starlit sky above him. Jared leaned over to look down at him, though he couldn't see him clearly in the dark.
He shook his head as they started down the hill. "I still can't believe Corinne would travel with a baby," he remarked casually. "Babies require patience, and that's something my wife doesn't have."
"You would be surprised, Mr. Burkett," Florence replied, hiding her smile. "Cori has even more patience than I do where Michael is concerned. She's really quite fond of him." Then, cleverly alleviating any future suspicion he might have, she said, "Why, you sometimes think she is his mother, not I."
Florence was shocked at herself. The lie had been just the right thing to say. And it had come so easily. What was happening to her?.
Chapter 25
DAWN was nearing, the sky a somber gray and getting lighter. But the house was still dark, and Jared carried a lamp along with the change of clothes he had for his wife when he entered his bedroom, quietly locking the door from the inside. Corinne was still asleep.
He walked over to the bed and laid Corinne's clothes down, then held the lamp high to cast a better light. He remembered the last time he had looked down on her sleeping form, on the night of their wedding. How long ago? He recalled the date and was shocked. It would be a year ago tomorrow. Would she remember?
Jared had thought about that night often before Corinne came to Hawaii. He had dwelled on the beauty of it, on her beauty, on her surprising response to him, her wild passion that had inflamed his own. During those exquisite moments, he had forgotten why he had married her. For that short time, it had been a true marriage.
But hate had rooted in him first. And so he had put her behind him, had worked desperately to forget those wonderful moments.
Corinne stirred and smiled in her sleep, making Jared wonder what she was dreaming about. Her glorious hair was fanned out behind her. Gold and copper glinted in the lamplight. She looked
so innocent, so childlike. But, of course, he knew better. Yet he still had an almost irresistible urge to reach out and touch her, to feel the silky texture of her skin. His lips burned to taste hers, recalling the sweetness.
Jared's better judgement returned and, with a dark scowl, he marched over to the bathroom and started cold water running in the sunken tub. He made enough noise to wake Corinne, then came to the door to see if he had succeeded.
She was just sitting up in bed and looking around, bewildered.
Jared was furious at himself for the weakness he had almost succumbed to, and he directed that anger at her. "Get dressed!" he heard himself shouting. "I want to be on the road by sunrise!"
Corinne turned startled eyes in Jared's direction, only to see the bathroom door slammed shut. As she stared at the closed door, her eyes changed from yellow-green to sparkling emerald. Taking a deep breath, she mastered her fury. It would not do to anger Jared. She had to get back to Michael, yet she couldn't tell Jared about the baby. Somehow, she must talk him into letting her go. She had already been separated from her son for nearly an entire day.
She would reason with Jared, cajole him. She could not afford to anger him any more. Michael was at stake now, not her pride.
"You have to be reasonable, Jared," Corinne ventured, calling through the door, forcing a pleading note into her voice. "I have a maid on this island. I can't go off and just leave her stranded."
Jared came out of the bathroom wearing white trousers that molded his powerful thighs. He was still putting on a cream-colored shirt and didn't bother to look up at her when he answered.
"Your maid is here, Corinne. So there will be no stops on the way."
Corinne's eyes widened and her face turned white. Florence here? Dear God, where was Michael? Had Jared seen him?
"How?" she managed to whisper.
"I picked her up last night, along with the rest of the things you kept in your lovers' hideaway. The poor woman spent half the night sorting out the mess I made of your clothes once I got her here. Soon Ho is packing a cart now—more damnable weight to make the journey slower. You really are a good deal more trouble than I had bargained for. A maid and a baby, too! How you talked her into sailing to Hawaii with a tiny baby, I can't understand. Now hurry and get ready, Corinne. I have even less patience than usual this morning."
Corinne turned away so he wouldn't see the giddy relief on her face. Florence had done it! She had remembered their story and stuck to it! Her Michael was safe . . . and he was here! For just a moment, Corinne almost wished she could hug Jared. She had Michael again!
When Corinne and Jared approached the carriage, she saw Florence already seated, the bassinet on the seat beside her.
"You'll have to put a cover over that bed if you don't want the little one to get sun stroke," Jared mentioned to Florence as he got into the driver's seat.
"Why can't you just put the carriage top up?" Corinne demanded. "Or is it all right if we get sunstroke?"
"I don't trust you enough to put the top up, dear wife," he told her coldly. "I want you where I can see you."
"So Florence and I are supposed to just suffer in the heat?"
"Make use of those straw hats on the seat. That's what they're for."
She let it go at that, eager for him to be occupied with driving so she could talk to Florence. Florence was just as eager. As soon as they turned onto Beretania Street, she leaned towards Corinne.
"Are you all right?" she whispered.
"Yes, yes, but what about Michael? What did you tell Jared?"
Florence smiled reassuringly. "That story we concocted."
"Did he believe it?"
"Yes, I'm sure he did. He was only surprised that you would bring a baby along with you."
"Thank heavens." Corinne sighed. "Oh, Florence! I was frantic at being separated from you and Michael. Jared has been a beast."
"He wasn't none too pleasant last night, I'll tell you," Florence said huffily.
"Was Russell there?"
"No, he was out looking for you. He'll have a fine surprise when he returns and finds the house empty."
"But tell me everything you told Jared about Michael. I can't take the chance on contradicting anything."
"I will, Cori, only let's not take the risk of him ovehearing us now. I'll tell you as soon as we get a moment alone."
They went slowly through the city streets, which were congested even at that early hour. But once they passed through Kalihi and rode on towards Aiea, there was less traffic. Then Michael started fussing, no longer content to let the ride lull him.
Florence dug into the casket Soon Ho had packed and drew out a bottle of sweetened water.
"I didn't feed him this morning," Florence confessed. "I knew you would be hurting. But I didn't know we would be in an open carriage. This water will have to do him for now."
"No, give him to me," Corinne ordered.
"Cori, you can't!" Florence gasped. "Jared will see youl And so will anyone we pass on the road.'*
"Jared and I are back to back," Corinne whispered back. "And I'll use Michael's blanket to hide what I'm doing. But I can't stand this pain anymore. I've got to nurse him."
"Very well," Florence said reluctantly. She handed Michael to her. "I just hope your husband doesn't lean over to see what you're about."
Chapter 26
Stars were winking in a blue-black sky when the carriage finally pulled off the beach road. They turned onto a sandy drive that led to a sprawling single-story house set far back from the road.
Corinne was exhausted and she knew Florence was, too. Heat had suffocated them most of the day. They were deplorably filthy too, from the red dust that had settled on them as they passed the miles and miles of cane fields.
Once they rounded the end of the majestic Koolau mountain range and started traveling on the windward side of the mountain, the view became fascinating and made the rest of the journey tolerable. The landscape was almost junglelike, and wildly beautiful on the mountain side of the road. On the other side they skirted bays, the ocean always present. Sometimes the road veered right to the shoreline. And then came the sunset in all its splendid colors, and Corinne was spellbound. She marvelled, and forgot for a short while why she was in the carriage.
Now they were at their destination, and Corinne stared at the white house, bathed in moonlight. She was relieved to find that it was not the shack she had been expecting. The house was wide in front, and set on pillars high above the ground. Tall pine trees, spaced closely together, formed walls on both sides of the house from the road all the way to the beach behind it. Only one space was open between the pines, in front of the house on the left. This space led to a small stable on the other side of the trees.
The huge long yard in front was a garden. Flowers grew everywhere—around trees in the yard, along pathways,
around the house. Scents came to her through the warm salt air, scents of fruit and ginger, the blossoms a muted white, yellow, and red. Gardenia grew in profusion. There were stunted plumeria trees in full bloom, and a magnificent colvillea tree with its red-orange buds carpeting the ground beneath it. Stately coconut palms skirted the road like a gigantic fence, swaying gently in the ocean breeze.
Corinne reached across the carriage and gently shook Florence's shoulder while Jared stepped down from the driver's seat. "We have arrived."
Florence woke with a start. "Michael?"
"He's still sleeping," Corinne replied.
Michael had been a darling all day since she had fed him, not fussing at all because of the heat and dust. Corinne had been able to nurse him three times, and the pain in her breasts was completely gone now.
"We shouldn't have let him sleep so much today," Florence said as she sat up and rubbed her eyes tiredly, forgetting Jared's presence. "Now he'll keep you up half the night."
Corinne nearly choked. She looked at Jared hi panic, but he didn't seem even to have heard. He was looking at
the house and grinning. Corinne followed his gaze and saw the front door open slowly. Someone was peering out, holding a lamp high in the air, trying to see who the visitors were.
Suddenly, the door flew open, and the lamp was set down on the porch. Corinne stared aghast as a woman of mammoth girth came bouncing down the porch steps and, despite her size, seemed to fly toward them. Jared met her halfway and Corinne watched in amazement as he picked the huge woman up off the ground and swung her in the air.
"Ialeka, put me down!" the woman ordered sternly, then laughed as she tried to get out of his bear hug. "You break your back lifting this old woman."
Jared chuckled and let her down. "The day I can't sweep you off your feet, I'll be an old man, Aunty Akela."
She hugged him to her, then pushed him abruptly away as if the show of affection embarrassed her. She stood back and folded huge arms across an equally huge bosom.
"I like know why you no send word you coming?" the woman asked, that stern note in her voice again. "And why you no come sooner, huh?"
"I've been busy, Aunty."
"Too busy to come home after you return from mainland?" she asked gruffly, then threw her hands in the air. "Auwe! Malia mad as a shook bee. You wait till she see you!"
Jared smiled tightly. "Where is Malia?"
"Where you think this time of night?" Akela said, as if the answer was obvious. "She sleeping."
"Well, don't wake her tonight. I'm too tired to put up with any tantrums. Just heat up some water for a couple of baths, then you can go back to bed yourself."
"What you mean, couple?" she asked, looking suspiciously toward the carriage.
"My wife and her maid are with me," Jared explained reluctantly. When the revelation didn't seem to surprise her, he grimaced. "You already know?"
The woman nodded with a grunt. "Now you know why Malia so mad. Naneki not so happy too. Good thing she stay Kahuku, visit my cousins."