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“Calm down, child,” Fiona reached for the teakettle and filled it with water. “Now, what exactly happened?”
“He snubbed me! He actually had the gall to literally snub me. In front of my friends, no less!” With a loud thump, she sat down on one of the chairs in the kitchen.
“Who snubbed you?”
“Jay Colby, of all people.”
The woman didn’t look moved. “Perhaps he just didn’t see you.”
“Oh, he saw me, all right.” Her forehead wrinkled horribly from the rage burning within. “I stood directly in front of him.”
Fiona sighed and placed a delicate china cup and saucer in front of Erika. “Can you blame the boy? You did have him sent to the gaol. If that isn’t a public humiliation, than I certainly don’t know what one is.”
She froze in her seat, her anger hovering just nearby. “I didn’t have anything to do with that.”
“Ha!” Her ample breasts pushed up as she placed her large person in the opposite chair. “You may have convinced yourself of that, child, but I know better. And don’t you forget it.”
Erika shifted uncomfortably in her seat. “I honestly don’t know what you’re talking about, Fiona. If the law says that Jay Colby did a crime, then I most certainl
y am not one to object.”
“Never known it a crime to save a person’s life,” she muttered to Erika and reminding her how far too intelligent the woman truly was.
A heavy sigh escaped Erika’s throat and she bit her bottom lip hard before saying, “My grandfather is a very determined man, especially if he feels injustice has been served.”
“Doesn’t always make him right, though.”
Something Erika had already figured out, but feared even thinking as much. Her grandfather had always been such a powerful and authoritative figure in her life. He dictated almost every aspect of it, to the point Erika had trouble making her own decisions. Nevertheless, even if she had trouble discerning right from wrong, her gut instincts were loud and clear.
As the days that followed brought a nagging and hopeless feeling in Erika, she felt her spirits at their all-time low. She blamed it entirely on the subsequent events that occurred as a result of her excursion to the remote farms, and the now tarnished riff created between her and Ryan’s family. Which couldn’t be more obvious than when she spotted Lillith Colby in the square one afternoon.
Planting her friendliest smile upon her face, she greeted Ryan’s mother with genuine sincerity. Yet, the woman merely acknowledged her in return with a simple nod before brushing past her without uttering a word.
From that point forward, Erika fell into despair. She had seen the rest of the Colby family several times after that incident, and was repeatedly greeted with the same intolerance. Except for Jay Colby, who continued to ignore her altogether. More and more she found herself staying away from town and locking herself within the confines of her garden. As the days shifted into weeks and a month nearly passed, Erika began wandering down to the port in anticipation of Ryan’s return. Surely, he would right things.
The morning of his expected arrival, she strolled down the wooden dock with her shawl wrapped protectively around herself. Not that she was cold, for the warm spring weather had arrived at last and that sunny day was no exception. After dressing herself that morning, she brushed her hair but didn’t bother to fasten it in any particular fashion. Instead, she allowed it to flow freely down her back.
She spotted Jay’s fishing boat sitting idle along the pier as it had every other morning she appeared in the harbor. For some reason, seeing it made her feel wretched. Feeling as if she perhaps may become ill, she slumped down onto the nearest docking post. She simply lacked her usual jovial spirit. If only Ryan would return, all would be fine. A tear escaped down her cheek unchecked, and Erika brushed it aside annoyingly with the back of her hand.
“How many times have I told you not to sit on my docking post, Erika?”
She spun around to see Jay approach. So stunned by his appearance and the fact that he actually spoke to her, she simply sat there staring up at him. He tossed some equipment he was carrying onto his boat before stepping off the wharf with ease and into the craft. Then when it looked as if he would ignore her again, she stiffened her spine and got to her feet, telling him, “I’m not sitting on your post, Jay Colby.”
He glanced over as indifferent as could be and gave her his full attention for the first time since that day in the wilderness. His gaze slid to her cheeks where the evidence of tear stains were still visible, and a nerve twitched in his jaw. Then, to her surprise, a softness crossed his face. He made a low drawn out sound, which she thought sounded terribly like a weary sigh.
“Then perhaps you wouldn’t mind moving your rump, princess, and toss me my rope.”
Erika never thought she would be so happy to hear him refer to her as princess again. Biting her bottom lip to prevent him from seeing the smile threatening to break free, she turned her back to him and unraveled the rope that held his boat to the docking post.
“A bit early to be waiting for Ryan’s ship, isn’t it?”
This time she did smile as she turned back and threw the rope onto his boat. “I’ve missed him dreadfully and can hardly wait to see him.”
“Well, that’s assuming he’s even on board.”
“Oh, he’ll be on board.” She crossed her arms, their familiar banter creating an unexpected warmth within. She looked down at him with the best haughty expression she could muster, but a gentle twinkle danced along the edge of her eyes. “Rest assured.”
“I’ll rest just fine, princess.” Then he gave her a tip of his hat and disappeared into the deckhouse.
