“What a lovely idea. I’ll just take my things upstairs and I’ll help you.” Amaranda sounded chirpier than ever. Eban’s eyes narrowed as he went to follow her.
“Eban, dear, would you mind taking this tray out for me?” Jerusha intercepted before he reached the door. He huffed, but went to help his Mom.
“You really should have told her,” Jerusha said as she followed him into the garden with the food.
“I know, Mom. I was going to,” he replied sulkily.
Jerusha shook her head. “You two need to talk before things get out of hand.”
Amaranda strolled across the garden, the bright sunshine picking out golden tones in her dark-brown hair. She had such a pretty smile.
“Come and sit down,” Eban said, holding out a chair for her.
Jerusha was already sitting opposite them.
“I’ll just have this and then I need to get to the hospital.”
“Aren’t we all going?” Amaranda looked up in surprise. She felt sure they would be visiting today, as she and Eban hadn’t gone yesterday.
“No.” Eban was very blunt when he was annoyed.
“No, dear. I think Taneli’s parents might be visiting today, so I shan’t stay long myself. I just want to find out how the scan went,” Jerusha explained, pouring the tea.
“Tell him we said hi,” Eban said firmly.
“Yes, do.” Amaranda smiled.
Eban was very quiet during lunch, but Amaranda and Jerusha chatted happily. Both had thoroughly enjoyed their shopping trip.
“I don’t think Mitzi likes me,” Amaranda stated, warily watching Eban for a reaction.
“She doesn’t like most people.” His tight-lipped reply wasn’t quite what she was hoping for.
“Why is that?” she asked, “She’s very pretty. You would think she would have lots of friends.”
“She’s not all that nice, dear,” Jerusha said smoothly.
Eban shifted uncomfortably but didn’t speak. Amaranda mused about how far to push him. She knew he wouldn’t want to talk about it until his mom had left, but enjoyed seeing him squirm. After all, she’d felt uncomfortable last night when everyone knew about the relationship except her. Serves him right!
“Taneli obviously likes her.” Amaranda couldn’t resist pushing a bit farther. “But then he’s not all that nice either is he?”
Eban stared at her. Jerusha took a deep breath, as if not sure what to say.
Amaranda took a large bite from her chocolate cake.
“Well, I’d better go and see your father now,” Jerusha said, standing up after a few minutes’ silence. “I’ll leave the door unlocked, you won’t be going out will you?”
“No, Mom, we’re not going anywhere.” Eban’s tone was like ice as he stood politely and kissed his mother on the cheek. Jerusha bent down to kiss Amaranda before making her way back through the house.
Amaranda wiped her mouth with her napkin then took another sip of her tea before turning an innocent face to her fiancé.
His face was black as thunder as he glared back at her.
Here goes…
Chapter 10
“OK, Amaranda, you can cut the innocent crap, I’m not buying it.” He snarled at her.
“I don’t know what you mean, Eban. I am innocent. I was a virgin when you met me, and I’ve never been with another man. I assumed, as you never said otherwise, that you were a virgin, too, and had never been with another woman. Wasn’t I right?” Although her voice sounded innocuous, her eyes glared at him, daring him to answer.
“I never said I was a virgin when we met,” he said evenly.
“But you knew I was, and you didn’t say you weren’t.” Her voice was cool and quiet.
Eban sighed as he pushed his chair back from the table. He ran a hand through his hair and bit his lip.
Amaranda sat upright at the table and folded her arms tightly. Righteously.
“Sweetheart, there’s lots of stuff you don’t know. You’re right, you are innocent. I’m sorry. I’m not really mad at you.” His voice was a little shaky now.
“Why should you be? What have I done wrong?” She wasn’t going to give him an inch!
“No, you’re right. You haven’t done anything—well, not really.”
Her anger boiled.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” She stared at him.
“Well, you know what you did—all that stuff with Pascal, you know, flirting and all?”
He tried a weak smile. She saw red.
“Flirting? Like Kalliope did with you, you mean?” Rage was bubbling in her voice. He knew what she was alluding to. He had nearly had sex with Kalliope while she was being attacked by a vicious bastard. What they had done was nothing like the sweet smiles which had passed between her and Pascal.
“No, sweetheart, nothing like that.” His hands were up to pacify her and his voice was quiet and low. She felt like he was trying to placate a wild animal. Maybe he was!
“Then what? I was nice to your friend in front of you. I was polite and friendly. If you don’t want me to be friends with your friends then don’t introduce us. At least he was being nice to me—unlike the other two!” She shouted the last sentence at him venomously.
He stared at her.
“Mitzi was a bitch to you, I’m sorry. We went out together and then we broke up. She obviously felt she had one up on you because you didn’t know about us. I should have said something, it was my fault.”
“Yes, it was your fault! Mitzi was a bitch to me and you let it happen. You let the whole situation happen because you weren’t honest with me in the first place! Then your so-called best mate makes crude comments to me and ogles me! Even your mother noticed how badly he was treating me but you didn’t! You don’t even look out for me! You allowed your friends to treat me that way because you just don’t care! Well, guess what? I don’t care either! You can get back with Mitzi if you want to. Hell, you can get with Kalliope if you really want to, I’m not bothered what you do!” She yelled at him before pushing the chair back from the table and stomping toward the French doors. He was on her in one stride, his eyes blazing, his massive hand gripping her arm like a vice.
“What?” His voice was deep and loud. She winced. His deep blue eyes bore into her. His expression was a mixture of rage and despair. She gasped.
“Get off me!” Her voice wasn’t the loud order she was trying for but more of a quiet plea.
“No fucking way! You tell me what happened. Did he touch you?” He spat the words at her, demanding an answer.
She tried to look away but he locked her eyes with his stare. She trembled.
“No. Your mom called up the stairs and he moved away. He said I wasn’t being nice to him. He gives me the creeps, Eban. I know he’s your friend but he leers at me and looks at my breasts all the time. I can’t believe you don’t notice. He made comments about taking my dress off in front of you twice and you just laughed! You don’t care what he says or does to me.” Tears flooded her face.
“Sweetheart, that’s not true!” Eban looked stunned.
“Then why do you let him do it? Why do you let him treat me like that? Do you really think I’m like the Sirens on Refrainia? Do you think I throw myself at men and deserve what they do to me? Do you think I like it? Once a Siren, always a Siren? Is that what you think?” She screamed the words at him through her sobs.
“Sweetheart, you’re nothing like those Sirens. They were whores, maybe not by choice but they sure as hell didn’t seem to have a problem with it like you did. And, sweetheart, you could never murder anyone. I saw how you reacted to all that death and carnage, you’re not like them, you never could be! You’re as beautiful as a Siren, but men are attracted to you because you’re you, not because you’re a Siren. I’m so sorry. I haven’t looked after you like I promised. You’re right, I haven’t been looking out for you like I should. I swear I’ll do better.”
He took her in his strong arms and held her to his chest while
she sobbed into him. The tears just kept pouring, she thought they would never stop. She felt him rest his beautiful head on hers, lifting it only momentarily when a sudden sound took his attention, but then replacing it when he saw there was nothing there to worry about.
Eban soothed her with kisses and kind words until she finally stopped shaking and quieted. She sniffed as he slowly raised his head from hers.
“I love you, sweetheart. I’m so sorry.”
“It wasn’t your fault.” Her voice was croaky from the tears.
“It was. I should have realized what was going on. I should have known what Taneli was like. He’s always wanted what was mine. We spent our childhood fighting, he never wanted anything unless I had it. I only put up with him because our folks were friends. I’ll bet he only went out with Mitzi to get back at me, letting her come round here to cause trouble. If I had any idea she’d be coming round I’d have told you about her before. It just didn’t seem important enough until she turned up and started making snarky comments. I wished I’d told you before, but I couldn’t say anything in front of them, it was too late. I never meant to make you uncomfortable.”
Her big brown eyes looked up into his dark-blue ones. His had tears welling in them and he blinked hard to stop them falling.
“I love you, Eban. I didn’t want to tell you about Taneli because I thought you’d hate me. I didn’t know if you’d believe me. I thought he was your friend.”
“He’s no friend of mine, sweetheart.”
She felt his hold on her tighten and she hugged him round the waist. His body was big and strong. Warm. Loving.
“You can’t turn your back on him now, Eban.” She spoke softly.
He pulled her back slightly in surprise. He arched an eyebrow.
“Pascal said he might be in some kind of trouble. He might need you.” She spoke matter-of-factly.
“I’m not helping the fucker!” Eban growled as he pulled her closer.
His lips came down to rest on hers and his tender kiss became more aggressive as his tongue demanded entry to her mouth. She complied and he dominated her orifice, his tongue covering every millimeter a thousand times until he was satisfied. She gasped.
“I’d better get cleaned up,” she said when he finally released her. “Your mom could be back any minute and I don’t want her seeing me like this.” She could imagine how red and puffy her eyes must be and her cheeks were most likely tear-stained. Even her dress had become wet and crumpled from all the crying and hugging.
“I’ll clean up down here,” he said with a glint in his eye. “’Cos if I come up there with you we won’t see my mom again until tomorrow morning.”
She giggled as she made her way through the house. As she passed the hall, she noticed the front door was slightly ajar. Just like on Refrainia, you can leave your door open and know it is safe. She smiled to think how trustworthy people must be on the mainland, they had much more valuable items in their houses and yet it was obviously still safe to leave your door open!
Eban was sitting in one of the big patio chairs with a glass of wine when Amaranda returned to the garden. She had showered and put on one of the new dresses Eban had bought her, along with some pretty lingerie. The skirt swished around her legs, and she could feel cool air permeate her thin cotton underwear. This was much more comfortable than the thick, elasticized bikinis she usually wore. The dress had a sweetheart neckline and short sleeves, and it was the palest shade of blue. She had tied her hair in what Eban would call a ponytail, using a piece of ribbon she had removed from a label. She had seen this style on other women on the mainland and thought she would try it. The air breezed around her neck, making her beautifully cool. She wore little flat sandals that had rhinestones, which glistened in the sunlight.
“Wow! You look gorgeous!” Eban whistled his appreciation as she neared him. He moved his finger round, silently bidding her to give him a twirl, which she did with a giggle.
She bent over him and gave him a kiss, tasting the sweet wine on his lips. He pulled her effortlessly into his lap and kissed her again.
“I think we should go out for dinner tonight,” he announced.
“What do you mean?”
“We can go to a restaurant,” he said, offering her a glass of wine.
She took a sip. It didn’t taste quite as sweet as it did on Eban’s lips, but it was very nice. Refreshing. It smelled of fruit.
“Like on the ship?”
“What? Oh, yes, the restaurant on the ship. Only not on a ship. In a building on dry land.” He seemed to forget sometimes how new all this was to her.
“With your mom?”
“If you like.”
“Hmm, I like your mom,” she said with a smile as she pulled his head down for another kiss. His tongue tickled its way around her fruity lips and she opened her mouth to welcome it in.
“Oh, sorry.” Jerusha had walked up behind them.
They quickly pulled apart in surprise.
“Hi, Mom. We didn’t hear you,” Eban explained, holding Amaranda tightly around the waist as he felt her try to jump from his lap.
Amaranda flushed with embarrassment, but relaxed her body and stayed where she was.
“Sorry, I thought you must have heard the car. You opened the front door for me.”
“No we didn’t.” Eban looked up at her with a frown. “We were out here. We haven’t been near the front door.”
“It was open when I went upstairs,” Amaranda said in a small voice, “I thought you had left it that way on purpose.”
“Why would I do that, dear? I knew I wouldn’t be back for a couple of hours or so.”
Eban got it, “They leave their doors open on Refrainia.”
“Yes, I noticed it was a little open when I went past and thought that was what you did here, too. I’m so sorry.”
“It’s not your fault, sweetheart,” Eban said, giving her a squeeze, “You weren’t to know.”
“Oh no, don’t worry, dear. I can’t have closed it properly when I left. There’s no harm done. This is a nice neighborhood anyway, we don’t get much trouble here.” Jerusha smiled kindly at Amaranda, obviously aware that she must be feeling a little awkward. She went back into the kitchen.
“What does she mean by trouble?” Amaranda whispered to Eban once his mom had gone.
“Burglaries and stuff.” He took another sip of wine before obviously realizing that she wouldn’t know what he meant. “Years ago, some people used to let themselves into other people’s houses or shops and steal stuff.”
She shifted uncomfortably in his lap.
“It wasn’t out of necessity, it was out of greed,” he elaborated, guessing that she was thinking of the Sirens raiding the shipwrecks.
“Greed?”
“Yeah, wanting something that someone else has.” His lip tightened and she figured he was thinking about Taneli again.
“Don’t you look lovely, dear?” Jerusha returned with a wineglass. She took a seat beside them, smiling at Amaranda.
“She is lovely, Mom,” Eban replied, a smile creeping across his face.
Amaranda flushed. “Thank you.”
“We’re all going out to dinner tonight, my treat,” Eban announced, pouring his mom some wine.
“Oh, that would be nice. Raizel and Seth have invited us for a drink later. We could meet up with them after dinner.” Jerusha sounded excited.
Amaranda felt Eban tense in his seat.
“Were they at the hospital? How’s Dad?”
“He’s much better, dear. The scan showed good news. He might be home sooner than we thought, maybe in a few days if he continues to improve.” Jerusha glowed with happiness and took another sip of her wine. “Raizel and Seth were already there when I arrived. I haven’t seen them for a few weeks, so it was lovely to catch up a little. We said we’d meet tonight to talk properly. I think they’re a little worried about Taneli.”
“They should be.” Eban growled.
Chapter 11
The meal was lovely and the restaurant very picturesque. Their table was by the window, and alongside it ran a canal with barges that floated up and down all evening. Jerusha was obviously elated that Lamech was doing so well, and the three of them laughed and made plans over dinner.
“The old tradition was to wear a long white dress to get married in,” Jerusha explained to Amaranda. “But nowadays you can wear anything you like. Lots of girls still like to wear a big, fancy dress, as it is such a special occasion, but it no longer needs to be white.”
“Refrainia is steeped in old traditions,” Amaranda told her. “So it might be nice to follow one of your traditions for the wedding.”
“We can go and look at some dresses and see what you think,” Jerusha enthused. “This is going to be so much fun!”
They chatted away happily until the waitress appeared again.
“Would you like to take coffee in the lounge?” she offered, “There’s a lovely view of the ancient lock.”
“Oh yes, that would be wonderful. Thank you.” Jerusha smiled as she elegantly rose from her seat.
Eban was already behind her as she steadied herself and picked up her purse. She looked beautiful in a pink dress with sequins around the neck. Eban then helped Amaranda to her feet and followed them through to the lounge area. Jerusha chose a small round table in front of the window, with plush, deep red chairs that enveloped her body as she sat down.
“This is gorgeous,” Amaranda said happily, as Eban held out a chair for her. Eban pointed out the lock and explained to them how it worked. It was an ingenious invention for making the water go up and down “steps.” People waited patiently in their barges as the water basin filled up, rising the boats up to the level of the next part of the canal so they could continue their journey. Although it was a very outdated mode of transport, and nowadays used only for fun, it was a fascinating process to watch.
“There you are.” A friendly-looking gentleman with gray hair and a large moustache approached them as they sat with their coffee. Behind him trotted a little round lady, who also had gray hair, and was tottering on high heels with some difficulty.
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