By nature a restless man, Raven paced Eden’s bedroom waiting for her to wake until the sight of her wistful smile and graceful pose drove him so mad with desire he had to ask Amy, the youngest of the half-dozen maids, to take his place. He went down to the study to sort through the invoices for the portion of the cargo that he planned to sell in Kingston, but he found it impossible to keep his mind from wandering so badly he got little accomplished. It was his wife that mattered most to him, not how much he would earn from the voyage.Jamaican Wind’s
When Amy came to tell him Eden was awake, Raven dashed up the stairs two at a time. He paused outside her door to smooth the curls off his forehead and catch his breath, then strode into the room as though he had nothing more pressing on his mind than wishing Eden a good day.
Despite Amy’s protestations that she was not to leave her bed, Eden had not allowed the girl to send for Raven until she had gotten up and made herself presentable. She had returned to bed, but planned to get up again as soon as she had assured her husband she felt fine. When he leaned down to kiss her, she raised her hand to caress his cheek fondly.
“I’m so sorry about last night. I feel very foolish now. What must Julian and Rebecca think of me?”
Raven sat down beside her, and took her hands in his. “It really doesn’t matter what they think. You’re the only one who matters. How do you feel?”
“I’m always a little queasy when I wake, but other than that, I’m fine.”
“Good, but you mustn’t rush things. Julian wants you to stay in bed for a day or two.”
“But why? Did I make that great a fool of myself?”
“No, not at all. I told him about the baby, and whose it is. He just wants to see that you get plenty of rest and don’t become so upset ever again. I’m sure you must know as well as I do that it isn’t good for the baby.”
Eden thought it exceedingly unlikely that the babe could discern her state of mind, but she wanted no repetition of the previous night’s emotional turmoil for her own sake as well as her child’s. “You told me Yadira made that oil,” she reminded Raven self-consciously, concentrating on their clasped hands rather than risk meeting what she feared would be an impenetrable stare.
“That’s only one of the many things she does, Eden. She makes the scented candles, the fragrant soap, our cologne.”
At the mention of the cologne that had once caused her to mistake him for Alex, Eden’s head shot up, but she was relieved to find Raven’s expression sweet rather than hostile. She prayed that he would remain in such an understanding mood for a few more minutes. “She’s obviously very clever so it shouldn’t be too difficult to find her another position. Would you arrange that, please? Just find her a housekeeper’s job elsewhere.”
“You want me to dismiss her just because of that oil?”
“No,” Eden responded. “I think you know why I want her to leave. Please don’t make me say it.”
Raven had hoped Eden would never question the intimacy of Alex and Yadira’s relationship, but obviously she already had so he did not insult her by denying it. “Alex hired Yadira nearly ten years ago, and I can assure you it was because of her talents for running the household, not for any other reason. He was not yet thirty, a recent widower, and she took advantage of his loneliness. She was merely convenient, Eden, he never loved her. As far as I know, he hadn’t slept with her in several years.”
“He just used her. Is that what you’re saying?”
“No! She used him. I think she hoped that eventually Alex would marry her, but he had no intention of remarrying, and most especially not to her. They had an affair, but it meant nothing to him. There’s no reason to dismiss Yadira when Alex is dead and whatever existed between them was over a long time ago.”
“Did he stop sleeping with her because of his heart?”
“I don’t know what excuse he gave her, but believe me, it was over long before he met you.”
Eden clung to Raven’s hands more tightly as she tried to make him understand the reason for her request. “I don’t want to have to share this house with Alex’s former mistress. Don’t ask that of me, Raven. It’s positively obscene.”
“You’re pregnant and not feeling completely well. We ought to begin looking for a nanny to be certain we’ll have one next spring. This is no time for you to take on the added burden of hiring a new housekeeper too.”
Eden could not believe that Raven would be so obstinate, but she would not give in. “I want Yadira gone, Raven. We can find her a new position when we’re in Kingston next week, and send her to it with a generous severance bonus when we return. I won’t live in this house with Alex’s mistress. I won’t do it.”
There was not a trace of moisture in Eden’s glance now, but instead the menacing glow of fierce determination. Cut to the quick by her narrow view of the world that included no one but Alex, he released her hands and rose to his feet. “It hasn’t even occurred to you that there might have been something between Yadira and me, has it? Probably because you wouldn’t care one bit if there were. All you care about is your precious Alex. Well, the man is dead and I’ll not send Yadira packing just because she once slept with him. Christ almighty, if every woman fired all the servants her husband had slept with, there wouldn’t be a single English lord with a female on his staff!”
Raven stormed out of her room and slammed the door so loudly Amy came running to find out what was the matter. When she found Eden staring into space, she grabbed her shoulders and shook her. “Oh my lady, what’s wrong with you now?” she began to wail.
The girl’s pitiful cries jarred Eden from the shock of Raven’s bitter farewell and Eden brushed her hands away. “There’s nothing wrong with me. I want to bathe, Amy. Go heat the water and I’ll be there as soon as I gather my clothes.”
“But you’re supposed to stay in bed.”
“Do as I say,” Eden scolded, in no mood to argue. She and Raven had far too much to straighten out for her to lie in bed all day waiting for him to cool down enough to return. He had been right, of course, she had not stopped to consider what his relationshi
p might be with Yadira, but that he had failed to understand how that possibility hurt her now, was heartbreaking.
When Eden didn’t find Raven downstairs, she walked down to the docks. While the decks of the Southern Knight were alive with activity, the crew of the Jamaican Wind were either fishing in the river or huddled in small groups playing cards. Randy MacDermott directed her to the captain’s cabin, and thinking Raven would be alone, she did not bother to knock before she opened the door.
Both Nathan and Raven turned when she entered, but Nathan alone looked pleased to see her. “Can you give us a few more minutes, sweetheart? We’re discussing something important.”