AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Now come, let me take you upstairs to your suite. You must be tired after your journey.” The housekeeper waved her hand and ushered her toward a wide, winding staircase.
Her suite? From the look of the house Erin could just imagine what that looked like. Could she survive more luxury in one day? But she had to admit, she’d loved the sound of the word, not because of the affluence it denoted but because it sounded like she’d be far removed from Dare DeSouza. Of course, he would have a suite of his own.
She glanced back at him and saw that he was still standing there, his gray eyes unreadable as he watched her climb the staircase. She hastened to turn her attention back to Francine and her friendly chatter.
She was now in the lion’s den. And she would best be prepared to face what was to come. She would seek refuge in this suite of hers and there she would rest up and then plot her next course of action. At the top of the list would be strategies to stay out of Dare’s way. Little did he know it but the man, dastardly though he was, still held a place in her heart. And that, more than anything, made him the most dangerous of foes.
***
Erin was grateful to find that the trials of her pregnancy seemed to be behind her. There were no more bouts of morning sickness, no dizzy spells, and her appetite had returned with a vengeance. She’d been on the island five days now and she and Francine had developed an automatic friendship that surprised her.
She learned that Francine Lopez was in her fifties, the mother of three grown sons who had all left the island for jobs in North America. One was an engineer working in Alaska for a major oil company, another was a professor at a community college in New Jersey, and the third had opened a business in Florida, a chain of dollar-concept stores. They all had families of their own and were doing well and Francine could not have been more proud.
Francine did admit, though, that at times she got lonely and wished that even one of them had remained on the island so that she could have her grandchildren around her. Visits to the United States a few times per year were just not enough. She was glad to have gotten this job with Senor DeSouza because she now came to see him almost as her own son. But she had been hinting - subtly, of course, because he was still her employer and it was not her place - that he might want to consider settling down and starting a family. Secretly she’d harbored the dream of seeing the house full of little ones. What a joy that would be. And now, as she’d told Erin, he had finally made the big step and brought home a wife. Now the house would be filled with the laughter of children.
Erin only smiled at Francine words. If only she knew how close she was to her dream. Well, she would know soon enough. A pregnancy was not something you could hide for long.
Today again, Erin was enjoying Francine’s company as she sat at the wrought iron table on the cobbled patio that looked out onto a kidney-shaped pool.
“You used sunscreen today, yes?” The older woman’s face showed a hint of concern. “The sun, it is very strong today and your skin looks delicate. You must protect yourself.”
Erin chuckled. “Si, mama,” she teased and rolled her eyes cheekily. She was having fun with Francine’s over protectiveness. The housekeeper was like a fussy mother hen, always making sure she was comfortable and always admonishing her to take care. Erin could only imagine how this mothering would escalate once she learned her condition.
Francine looked as pleased as a kitty with a saucer of milk when she heard Erin’s reply. Maybe it was some consolation to her that she now had someone to fuss over.
And Erin did not mind one bit. In fact, Francine was now like the mother she no longer had. She remembered when the older lady asked about her family back in Canada.
“I don’t have any,” she replied and her breath caught in her throat. It had been nine years but the memory of the tragedy was still raw and painful.
“No family?” Francine asked, her tone incredulous. “How is that?”
“I am…was an only child. My parents were both killed in a car accident when I was twelve.”
Francine gasped then her face softened in sympathy. “Oh, nina, how terrible.”
“Yes,” Erin said with a sigh. “It was hard. It still is. But you deal with what life gives you. What else can you do?”
“And how did you survive without your parents?”
“Foster care.” She kept her voice neutral, trying to keep the bitterness from her tone. For her, the experiences had not been pleasant.
“I ended up moving from family to family, each one worse than the one before.” She smiled at Francine through misty eyes. “I was relieved when I turned eighteen and could move out and live on my own terms.”
“Ah, nina,” Francine crooned, “life can be very cruel. Gracias a dios, you are here now and you are safe with Senor Dare.”
Erin almost laughed at that. Safe with Dare? She doubted it.
So far he had left her to her own devices which was exactly what she wanted. Apparently there’d been some developments with his business which were keeping him busy. Whatever it was, she hoped it would continue for a long time. She could do without his attention. She’d told him she’d wanted the marriage to be in name only and she meant it.
Her ringing cell phone broke into her thoughts. “Excuse me.” She hopped up and dashed into the sunroom where she’d left the phone. It was unusual for her cell phone to ring. Since leaving college she hadn’t maintained contact with any of her former college mates. She was wondering who it could be when she picked it up and peered at the screen. Robyn O’Riley. Erin’s heart sank. If Robyn was calling it could not be good.
She clicked on the answer button and put the phone to her ear. “Hello.”
“Erin, you naughty girl, how could you do this to me?” Robyn’s words were teasing but her tone gave her away. She was annoyed.
“Do what?” Erin rolled her eyes. Robyn was famous for putting on an act. She was always the wounded woman.
“Don’t play with me,” Robyn said, the pretense falling and her voice harsh. “You went and got married and didn’t even tell me.”
Erin stiffened. How in the world had Robyn found out? She had told absolutely no-one.
“You made me have to read about it in the tabloids. How could you?”
The tabloids? Erin’s heart sank. So much for keeping all of this a secret. And why hadn’t she thought about the possibility of something like that happening?
Dare was a rich man and an eligible bachelor. The paparazzi must have jumped at the chance to break the news of his change in status. Somehow, though, because his business was all the way in Santa Marta she hadn’t expected the publicity.
“I almost missed it,” Robyn was saying, her tone growing increasingly irritated. “It was a small feature tucked in the corner of the second page. If I hadn’t caught sight of it I would never have known. You weren’t going to tell me, were you?”
“I…” Erin bit her lip. She hated to lie. It was the truth. She’d had absolutely no intention of telling Robyn anything.
“Still keeping secrets, Erin?” Robyn’s voice was low and threatening. Her true nature was showing through. “You know I’m the last person you should keep a secret from.”
Erin remained silent. The last thing she wanted was get on Robyn’s wrong side. She knew too much and was more than ready to use her knowledge to her own advantage.
“Why didn’t you tell me the guy you’d been seeing over spring break was the owner of the resort?” she demanded.
“I had no idea-”
“Do you expect me to believe that? You knew who he was and that was why you spent the night.” Robyn’s voice was hard with accusation.
Erin knew exactly what her problem was. Robyn should have been the one to snap up the most eligible bachelor on the island, not some poor church mouse of a girl like her. Robyn’s parents had money. Not within Dare’s range by any means, but she was used to enjoying the trappings of wealth and would have loved the chance to secure an even more prosperous future through marriage with a man like Dare.
It was no use arguing with her, not when her mind was all made up. The best thing would be for this conversation to end without Robyn’s feathers being ruffled even more than they already were. Erin decided to change the subject. “How are your parents?”
“Dad’s fine.” Robyn’s response was curt. For some reason, Robyn didn’t mention her mother. She was probably on one of her long trips to South America.
“I’m glad to hear your dad’s well.” Erin didn’t have a whole lot more to say to Robyn after that. After all, what would she have to say to the girl who had tormented her for the five months she’d spent in her home under foster care? “I’m glad to hear it.”
Mr. and Mrs. O’Riley had been distant but kind, providing more than adequately for her needs while she was under their roof. The first time she met them, when she’d been the insecure age of seventeen, she’d immediately recognized them as people of high social standing. For the life of her she could not figure out why they’d chosen to get involved with foster care. It was not until she’d been there a month that Erin found out that the year before they’d done a tour with a missionary group and had felt obligated to do their part in the community. And so they’d taken her in.
