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“We need to get you something to put on your cheek. Hold on.”
She left for a moment and returned with a small jar. “This should help with the healing.”
Val walked over to the large mirror hanging above the fireplace mantel, and dabbed a bit of the creamy substance on her cheek.
“It has witch hazel in it, so it shouldn’t sting.”
“It doesn’t. Thank you.” She handed the jar back. “I’ll put more on this evening. I need to wash my hands.” Remnants of the salve were on her fingers.
“Let’s go to the kitchen. Are you hungry?”
Val heard hammering off in the distance. “I am.”
“Come. Little Reba will whip something up for you.”
“Just toast will be sufficient.”
Julianna stopped. “I’ve worked hard to provide a good life for myself and my children. We have more to offer you than toast.”
The soft scolding made Valinda drop her head and smile. “Yes, ma’am.”
Little Reba turned out to be a small well-built woman about Val’s age. She had a ready smile and sandy skin dotted with freckles. Hertignonwas gray and decorated with cowrie shells. While Val dried her hands after washing them in the sink, Reba said, “I’m cooking chops for Drake, along with some yams and collards. He’s going to be hungry when he gets done. Would you like some?”
Val went still at the mention of Drake’s name. “Um.”
“Or if you want something a little lighter, I’ve bacon, shrimp and grits, and eggs.”
Val preferred the second offering but didn’t want to make more work for her.
Before she could ask for the chops, Julianna, as if reading her mind, said, “Give her the shrimp grits and eggs. She just awakened. Chops and the rest may be a bit heavy for now.”
Little Reba nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”
Val tried to protest. “Mrs. LeVeq—”
“It’s LeVeq-Vincent, but please call me Julianna. My husband, Henri, is currently in Cuba.”
Val wouldn’t think to be that familiar with a woman of her age. “But—”
“Julianna,” she voiced again, a bit more firmly. “Everyone calls me that. Even my sons at times.”
Val sensed she stood little chance of winning this, so she surrendered. “Julianna.”
“Good. Now, let’s step outside while Little Reba fixes your food. I want to check on Drake’s progress. He’s repairing the roof on my greenhouse.”
Mentally preparing herself to see the captain, she followed Julianna down the gravel path that cut through the well-groomed landscape of shrubs and trees to a large glass-sided greenhouse. Her son was on the wooden roof hammering nails into shingles. At their approach, he stopped, and when his gaze met hers, Val’s heart skipped in her chest. With his dark skin, close-cropped beard, and Herculean build he was breathtaking, a description she’d never attached to a man before. The men she knew back home were fine upstanding examples of their gender, but none as riveting as Drake LeVeq.
“Good afternoon, Miss Lacy.”
“Captain.”
He picked up a towel and wiped the perspiration from his brow, his eyes still on her.
Julianna asked, “Are you done?”
“Almost,” he replied, but kept his attention focused on Val. She’d never had a man view her with such intensity before. She wanted to look away but the will to do so seemed beyond her grasp.
“Did you sleep well?” he asked.
