by Cathy Marie Hake, Lynn A. Coleman, Mary Davis, Susan Page Davis
A peace settled within him regarding his parents. They were in heaven. They would know the truth, and one day he would meet them again.
“Uncle Ellis, where are we fishing today?”
“I thought we might go for a sail and fish for some deepwater fish, like kingfish.” Ellis picked up the fork with his right hand.
“Fishing on a boat?” Richard bounced up and down with excitement on his chair.
“Yes, we have to sail out quite a distance before we can fish. Would you like that?”
Richard bobbed his head up and down with such vigor, his entire body shook.
“Miss Smith, do you think you can handle the sun for an entire day?” Ellis asked, scooping another forkful of eggs.
“I’m not sure. I’ve been feeling stronger.” Bea’s voice seemed uncertain. Was she afraid of being on a boat? No, that couldn’t be … she had sailed here from New York. Was she afraid of being alone with him for an entire day? But Richard would be with them, he reasoned.
Ellis dabbed his mouth with his napkin then spread it over his lap again. “There’s a small cabin on the boat where you can get some shade.”
“I know you didn’t ask my advice,” Cook interrupted, “but I think a full day’s sail might be a bit much for the lady.” Cook sat herself down at the table.
“You think so, Cook?” Bea asked, fussing the edge of her napkin with her fingertips.
“I’d be waiting a bit more if it was myself.” Cook lowered her head, clasped her hands, and silently prayed over her breakfast.
“I think I’ll take Cook’s advice and stay here. I’m sorry, Richard, but I won’t be fishing with you today.”
Ellis straightened in his chair. “We don’t need to go deep-sea fishing. We could still use the boat and fish around the island.”
“No, thank you. You and Richard go ahead. I’ll browse some more through town. I barely scratched the surface yesterday.”
Richard tattled. “Nanna didn’t like the big waves on the boat from New York.”
Ellis searched Bea’s eyes. “Were you seasick?” he asked.
“A little,” Bea admitted.
“Land sakes, child. No wonder the heat got you so bad.” Cook tossed her head from side to side and ate some of her eggs.
“Did that matter?” Bea asked.
Ellis couldn’t believe his ears. Did it matter? he grumbled to himself. “Of course it mattered. You were already a bit dehydrated from the seasickness. No wonder you were hit so hard. I want you to stay home today, and don’t be spending too much time in town. We don’t want you having a relapse.”
“Is that an order or concern?” she rebuffed.
“Ew-wee, I’m not touching that one.” Cook giggled and stood up, removing her plate from the table.
“Concern.” Ellis held back his temper.
Richard’s head bobbed back and forth between the two of them, then settled on Bea to wait for her response.
“Then I’ll not be upset with your concern. And I’ll do as you recommend.”
Ellis reached over and cupped her hand under his own. “I am concerned, Bea,” he whispered.
“Thank you.”
Richard knitted his eyebrows together. Bea removed her hand from Richie’s prying eyes. He was trying to figure out what had just happened, and Bea suspected Cook knew exactly what was going on between Ellis and her. “Richie, finish your breakfast so you can go fishing and sailing with your uncle.”
“All right.” He stabbed his fork into some eggs and gulped them down.
Ellis and she had agreed to take things one step at a time, but he had thrown her with his comment about how beautiful she was. On the other hand, she couldn’t help but notice how handsome he was this morning, as well. They would have to decide fast if they were, or were not, going to court. She wasn’t sure she could take too much of this.
“All done,” Richard proclaimed, and took his empty plate to the kitchen.
“I’m sorry, Ellis,” she whispered. “I should have known you were speaking with concern, not orders. I have a tendency to dislike being ordered about.”
Ellis grinned. “I’m rather accustomed to women like that. I’ll be more careful how I word my thoughts in the future.”
“Can I have another offer for a gentle sail around the island?” Bea allowed her hand to travel in Ellis’s direction.
He picked up on her cue and cupped her hand again. She breathed in deeply. His warmth and strength blended with his tenderness and found expression in the simple gesture. Amazing, she mused.
His voice lowered. “You feel it too?”
She nodded.
“We’ll talk some more tonight.” Ellis looked back to the kitchen. Cook seemed to have given Richard a chore. “Thank you for last night. I feel so at peace with my past.”
“You’re welcome.”
He squeezed her hand slightly. “Later,” he whispered.
Bea nodded and removed her hand. As much as she didn’t want to, she knew she had to. Richard was bound to come racing through those doors any minute.
As if on cue, the door banged open. “Uncle Ellis?”
“Yes, Richard.” Ellis winked at Bea.
“Cook says I need sailing clothes. What are they?”
“You’ll need some oilcloth clothes to protect you from the rain. But we’ll be okay today. Just gather a set of warm pants, a shirt, and a sweater or winter coat.”
“It’s too hot.”
“It’s in case of a storm on the water, Richard. You need to be prepared.”
A storm? Could they run into a storm? Bea implored Ellis’s gaze for some assurance. “Truth be told, there aren’t many storms down here in the winter months. Hurricane season is over.”
“Hurricanes?”
Ellis chuckled. “An ugly Nor’easter—but these come from the south.”
“Oh.”
“Go get your change of clothes, Richard. We need to get going if we’re going deep-sea fishing.”
Richard scurried off.
“Is he safe out there?” Bea asked in Richard’s absence.
“He’ll be fine.”
Bea tried not to worry. She didn’t know anything about sailing. Her first sail was on the Justice.
“Trust me.” Ellis now stood beside her and placed his hand on her shoulder. “We’ll be fine.”
Bea nodded.
She watched Ellis retreat from the dining room. Bea gathered up the few remaining dishes to take to the kitchen. Cook’s remaining in the kitchen meant she was deliberately giving the two of them some privacy. But Cook being Cook, she would have plenty of questions when Bea entered the kitchen. Bea took in a deep breath and pushed the kitchen door open with her hip.
“Here’s the rest of the dishes, Cook.”
“Thank you. Put ’em by the sink.”
“May I help?” Bea offered.
“I’d be a fool to turn down a good offer. Water’s hot, you can start washing.”
And Bea went straight to work.
“Nanna,” Richard yelled.
“In the kitchen,” she called back.
“ ’Bye. Uncle Ellis said we’d be gone until supper.”
Bea wrapped her damp arms around Richard and gave him a great big bear hug and groaned, “Have fun, Richie.”
Richard ran out of the kitchen and grasped his uncle’s hand.
“He sure took to his uncle,” Cook said.
“There seems to be a connection.” Bea went back to the dishes.
“Seems to be one between Mr. Ellis and you, too.”
Ugh, here it comes. Bea continued to scrub. What could she say?
“I told the man to make peace with you, I didn’t tell him to …”
Bea rewashed the plate for the second time. “Oh, for pity’s sakes, Cook. We’re just …”
“Just?”
“Oh, all right, we’re attracted to each other.”
“If you don’t mind me saying so, I knew it.” Cook’s grin slipped up to
her eyes, causing them to sparkle.
“What?”
Cook laughed. “I could tell the first time I saw you. You were smitten by Mr. Ellis. Thing is, I’ve seen that in other young ladies before. But I must say, you’re the first one to ever have him return the interest.”
“We’re going to take it slow. Be friends. See if anything develops.”
Cook continued to laugh as she cleaned her counter. “I say you’ll be married before the end of the month.”
The woman was crazy. The end of the month was next week. There was no way she and Ellis would … well, maybe it was possible. A flicker of desire stirred in Beatrice. She thanked the Lord she wasn’t facing Cook and closed her eyes to calm her emotions.
“Do you love him?” Cook tenderly asked. Having come up beside her, she placed her firm hands on Bea’s shoulders.
Bea turned and faced her. “I don’t know. I can’t say what it is I’m feeling for him.”
“Give it time, Child. Give it time.”
“I don’t know what to do, Cook. I’m supposed to go home in a few days. I can’t very well stay here in his house or even his cottage if we’re courting. It wouldn’t be right. And yet, I don’t have a job to support myself and stay on the island. I have some funds saved, but they’re back home in a bank.”
“Like I said, give it time. The good Lord understands all your needs, desires, and confusion. He’ll help you out.”
Bea sighed. “I was up most of the night praying. I’ve never been so attracted to a man, and yet is that grounds to get married?”
Cook’s eyebrows went up. “He asked you?”
“Well, no, not exactly, but the subject did come up.”
“Land sakes, he’s hit worse than I thought.” Cook slipped her arm around Bea’s back and led her to a chair at the kitchen table. “Mr. Ellis has been asking me to move in ever since he bought this place. Guess maybe the time’s come.”
“What about your family?” Bea asked.
“They could use my room for some of those young ’uns who’s growing up. I’ll start moving my things in today.”
“Don’t you think we ought to approach Ellis about this?”
“Fiddlesticks. I won’t let silly town gossip compromise him or you. I’ll move in, and you stay in the cottage.”
Bea giggled. “That’s an order, isn’t it?”
“Yup, and I’ll be watching you two. Don’t you worry yourself none. With me and the good Lord, you’ll be behaving yourselves.”
Bea laughed and threw her arms around Cook. “Thank you. You don’t know how much your being here will help.”
“I believe I do, Child. I was young once, too.”
Bea flushed.
Cook roared with laughter. “I say, you young folks have a terrible time realizing us older ones were ever your age.”
“With you around, Cook, I don’t think I’ll be forgetting it.”
“Good. Well, if I’m moving in today, you’ll be giving me a hand.”
Bea gave a mock salute. “Aye, aye, Captain.”
Chapter 15
I like the waves, Uncle Ellis,” Richard hollered, standing on the bench of the sailboat.
“Richard, get down, now!” Ellis roared. The surf rocked the boat and battered the hull as it crashed down on the waves.
Richard slipped back down on the bench. “But it’s fun standing up,” he pouted.
“It may be fun, Son, but it is dangerous. If you’re going to sail with me, you have to obey the rules.”
“Yes, Sir. I’m sorry.” Richard lowered his head and looked at his dangling feet.
“Thank you. Now, it’s time to go back home. The sun is low on the horizon.
“But I didn’t catch a big one, like you.”
“Next time.” If there was a next time. He had had no idea how hard it would be to keep a four year old contained on a boat. And it wasn’t that big a boat. Yet he still managed to get into everything. Ellis’s nerves were shot. Not with the child, but with the fear that something might happen to him. He would take him again only if he brought Bea along. She could help watch Richard.
Ellis turned the bow toward Key West and began the long sail back to the island.
“Richard, cast your rod. Let’s see if you catch anything on the way home.”
His head bobbed up and down as he picked up his rod and placed it over the side, letting the line go out farther and farther.
“That’s enough, Son.”
Richard secured his rod and placed it in the mounts Ellis had put into the boat long ago. Richard lay back on the bench and watched the top of the rod to see if he snagged a fish.
“Uncle Ellis?”
“What, Son?”
“Do you like Nanna?”
Oh dear, the child had caught him placing his hand upon Bea’s. “Yes, she’s a nice lady.” There. That’s honest, and not too leading. He hoped.
Placing his hands behind his head, Richard leaned back and said, “Are you going to marry Nanna?”
Ellis held back an audible groan. “I don’t know. Why do you ask, Son?”
“Billy’s mommy and daddy hold hands, and they’re married.”
“Holding hands doesn’t mean a man and woman are married.”
“Oh.” Richard sat up. “What makes a man and woman married?”
“First, they have to love each other.”
“Do you love Nanna?”
Ellis closed his eyes and whispered a silent prayer for guidance. “I don’t know. Nanna and I just met. We need to get to know one another. Love has to develop; it doesn’t just happen overnight.” While he had felt an instant attraction to Bea the first time he met her, he wouldn’t call such an attraction love. On the other hand, his feelings for her today were far stronger and closer to love than attraction.
“So if a man and woman love each other, they’re married?”
“No, they have to decide they want to get married.”
Richard knitted his eyebrows.
Ellis continued. “A man and a woman have to go to a preacher to ‘get’ married. When they do that the preacher declares them married, and they kiss.”
“Have you kissed Nanna?”
The sudden intense heat on Ellis’s cheeks made him acutely aware he was blushing. “No, Son. I haven’t.”
“I love you, Uncle Ellis. And I love Nanna. If you get married, we’ll be a family, like Billy’s.”
Ellis couldn’t respond. The child longed for a family like his friend’s back home. A part of Ellis would love to jump in and marry Bea just to give the child some security. But marriage was far too serious a venture to jump into for the wrong reasons. What would happen after Richard was grown? Would they separate, no longer needing to be together, or would they slowly grow in love with each other? No, Ellis resolved. The child needed stability, and he wasn’t going to jump into a marriage unless love, friendship, and honesty were a part of it right from the very start.
“Richie, look—a porpoise jumping in the waves.” Ellis pointed to the gray bottle-nosed dolphin near the bow of the boat. “They’re swimming with us.”
“Wow.” Richie leaned over the side. Ellis grabbed the boy by his britches and held him fast. Thank You, Lord, for dolphins.
Bea couldn’t believe the pack of children gathered at Cook’s home. It was a simple home, clean and well-kept. Several bedrooms ran along the left side of the house, while a large living area, dining area, and small kitchen ran along the right side. Little brown children of all shapes and sizes looked at Bea. No wonder Cook runs things with a firm hand.
“Grandma, can I have your room?” a young girl with braided hair pleaded.
“It’ll be up to your parents. But you can’t move in until I move my things to Mr. Ellis’s house.”
The young girl nodded and walked off.
“That’s Darlene. She’s the oldest of my son George’s children. That’s Ben, he’s eight, and my daughter Lizzy’s oldest.” Cook pointed to a thin boy with a wide gri
n.
“How many live here?” Bea questioned.
“Let me see … George, his wife and their three children, Lizzy and her four children. Lizzy’s husband died fighting in the war. And myself, so I guess that makes eleven.”
More than seven children filled the house. Bea slowly scanned and counted the children. Cook laughed. “Kids from around the island come here for Lizzy to teach ’em some math and reading.”
“Oh.”
“We try to pass on to the children things they’ll need in the future.” Cook walked down the hall to the back bedroom.
“I might have some books Lizzy could use,” Bea volunteered. “I bought them for Richard.”
“That’d be nice, Dear. Let’s get to packing my clothes. We’ve got a heap of work to do.”
“Grandma, can I help?” Ben asked.
“Sure can. I’ll be needing your strong arms to help me carry some of my things to Mr. Southard’s house.”
“Mother, are you certain?” the tall, thin, elegant woman asked.
“Quite. Lizzy, you know I’ll still be over here pestering you. Don’t you worry none.”
Lizzy laughed. “I’m sure.”
“Forgive me my manners. Bea, this is my daughter, Lizzy. Lizzy, this is Bea Smith.”
“Hello.” Bea reached out to shake Lizzy’s hand.
Hesitantly Lizzy reached hers out. When Bea gave her a firm handshake, Lizzy smiled. “A white woman who’s not afraid. I like you.”
Bea laughed. “Your mom’s a gem, but I’m sure you know that.”
“She certainly can be. Other times she can be a real nag. Don’t try and keep a secret from her.”
Bea continued in her laughter. “I’ve already discovered that.”
The three women wrapped some of Cook’s clothes into a quilt. With the three of them it didn’t take long to pack everything. Soon Bea found herself and Cook unpacking everything in Cook’s new room.
“Sure takes longer to unpack,” Bea commented, placing a dress on a hanger in Cook’s closet.
“Mr. Ellis will sure be surprised.” Cook giggled. “He’ll think I got a touch of the heat.”
Bea laughed. Having Cook around would be a blessing in more ways than one. “I like your family.”