Starfish Island (6 page)

“Of course I don’t want them,” Nicole said. “I’ll send for the key today and have the closet cleaned out.”

“That’s very generous of you; I know that’s what Caroline would have wanted. By the way, will you have dinner with me tonight? I’ll take you to the Beach Club. It’s a private club to which you are now a member; your grandmother’s membership transfers to you.”

She snatched back an impulsive, “No.” She was new here, and the sooner she got out and met her neighbors the better, but she wasn’t sure she was up to spending another evening with Ellis. She’d rather the invitation had come from Michael. She touched her cheek, thinking of his soft kiss there last night. This morning in the meeting, she’d drifted off, daydreaming about what it would feel like to really kiss him.

“Sounds great,” she said. “What time should I be ready?”

“I’ll come by for you at seven.”

A few hours later, after the bedroom had been cleaned and the furniture switched out, she moved her suitcases and two small boxes into her grandmother’s room with the assistance of the frightened maid. The rest of her belongings would arrive by truck later in the week. Nicole needed to hurry, as her neighbor would be arriving soon. She looked at herself in the mirror and sighed, pulling on a pair of knee-length gaucho-style cotton-knit pants and a long-sleeved shirt. Her feet still sore from wearing heels all day, she opted for sandals, happy about her fresh pedicure. Then she went downstairs to meet Cecilia.

The woman had an elegance about her. She was strikingly beautiful, with translucent skin and dark shiny hair, which was swept softly into a knot at the nape of her neck but gave the impression of being very long and held in place by only a few pins. Her face was flawless: tiny, with delicate features, enormous dark-brown eyes, and a gently curving smile.  Looking sophisticated in her linen pants and blouse, she stood and held out her hand. “Michael said I would like you,” she said graciously.

“Do you mind sitting in the garden room, or is it too cool for you?” Nicole asked.

“I’d love to.”

Nicole led her to the garden room, where the windows overlooking the terrace were open and welcoming in a breeze that drifted off the water. The walls were soft green, comfortable furniture and plants flourished in every corner, and the bamboo ceiling fans were on low. 

“I love the smell of the air in this room,” Cecilia said. “Reminds me of my early morning jog around the perimeter of the island. It’s so fragrant, just like a greenhouse.” She selected a straight chair and sat, shoulders back, posture perfect.

Nicole seated herself at a low table on which Chester had set a pretentious silver tea service.
I certainly have inherited some beautiful possessions,
she thought, noting the china cups and saucers and choice of silver. But she didn’t care for the formality; Chester must have forgotten her request for iced tea.

Cecilia smiled. “I’m sorry, but Michael couldn’t make it today. Something unexpected came up concerning an upcoming stockholders meeting, and he had some calls to make.”

“Maybe another time.” Nicole tried not to sound disappointed.

“Isn’t the view beautiful?” Cecilia’s eyes were on the limitless stretch of water. “We have a wonderful view at our house, but it doesn’t compare to this. Look! The ducks are going for a late-afternoon swim.”

“It surprises me that this stretch of water attracts ducks.” Nicole loved watching the baby ducks trail after their mother in single file; duck moms must be quite strict to get them to fall in line so young.

Cecilia smiled and nodded to Chester as he came into the room, Ava right behind him. “I hope you’ve brought extra hot water. You know I love nothing better than a cup of weak tea.”

His weather-lined face broke into what seemed to be a smile as he set two teapots down on the silver tray. “I never forget what you like, Miss Cecilia,” he said. He ordered Ava to leave the room, saying he’d take care of serving. The dictatorial way in which he spoke to Ava was in startling contrast to the greeting he’d given Cecilia, which bordered on syrupy sweet. One would’ve thought this was Cecilia’s home, as Chester’s attention centered on her.

“Chester, I’d prefer a glass of iced tea, extra ice,” Nicole reminded him.

Whatever he wanted to say, he bit it back and motioned to Ava, who stood at the door, dismissing her with a wave of his hand.

“How are you doing, Ava?” Cecilia inquired. Her smile and friendliness cleared the tension.

“Very well, thank you, Miss Cecilia,” Ava answered before she scurried away.

“You needn’t wait, Chester. We’ll serve ourselves once my iced tea arrives,” Nicole instructed.

He clearly didn’t like being dismissed and departed reluctantly after checking on the teapots several times.

“Have I broken some custom by banishing him from the room?” Nicole asked when she and Cecilia were alone.

“Suppose you have? This house is yours now to do with as you wish.” Cecilia drew her chair closer to the table. “I’m glad he left. Chester is the most efficient butler you could ask for, but it limits one’s conversation to have him around. That man knows everything that goes on around this island. Not that I think of him as a gossip, but he does get around.” She helped herself to a slice of homemade cranberry bread.

“He seems to like being in charge,” Nicole observed. “I met his wife briefly when I arrived and haven’t seen her since. Do they have any children?”

“A daughter named Lucia,” Cecilia told her. “She lived here for a while, but she and Caroline had some sort of misunderstanding and she left suddenly without a good-bye. I doubt the Greys ever hear from her.” Her smile, like Michael’s, was warm and friendly. Nicole blushed; he only looked that way after nearly kissing her. “Don’t let Chester intimidate you.”

“Did he intimidate Grandmother?”

“Caroline Alexander? Never! No one intimidated your grandmother,” Cecilia said in surprise. “I forgot for a moment that you never met her. She was truly a great lady. No one got away with anything with her, except perhaps Ellis Sadler; she had a soft spot for him. And he adored her, although I don’t believe she returned the intensity of his feelings. But he had a way of charming her that she responded to, and it’s my opinion that he managed to keep a powerful spotlight on Robert’s weaknesses and failures. Did you know your cousin or uncle well?”

“No, neither of them. Did Kirkland have many weaknesses?” Nicole wished she’d met her cousin. She’d always wanted to know her entire family and had never understood what had torn them apart.      

“Who among us doesn’t?” Cecilia answered. “I’d hate to have someone pointing out my flaws all the time.”

“But why would Ellis want to discredit my cousin? What would he gain by doing that?”

“Ellis might have thought Caroline would make Kirkland heir, since no one knew about you until the reading of the will. More than likely, though, he just wanted to cause trouble. I’ve always thought he enjoys stirring up problems for others for his own amusement. His eyes sparkle when he gets a front seat to witness the fallout. There are people like that, you know.”

Nicole remembered Ellis’s remarks about Michael. He’d been trying, she realized, to turn her against Michael. Now she wondered if he’d had a specific reason to cause trouble by telling her about Michael’s refusal to marry her and if there was even any truth to the claim.

“One thing I have to say for Chester,” Cecilia admitted. “He knew Kirkland’s faults and always covered for him. It must have been out of affection because he had nothing to gain by it. Kirkland certainly never had an extra cent to bribe him with. Caroline gave him a generous allowance, but money seemed to burn a hole in his pocket. You can see why she wouldn’t have wanted to leave her estate to her grandson. She could be generous, but she didn’t believe in squandering anything.”

“I can’t help but wonder…” Nicole started off tentatively. “I’ve heard about a first will, so maybe she did want everything to go to him?”

“That doesn’t matter. Kirkland is dead and left no heirs. Your grandmother adored him, you know; she raised him after his father died. She tried to instill discipline in him, but he rebelled at every turn. She worried about the type of girl he might marry someday, and she didn’t like that he seemed to be attracted to strippers…” She broke off. “Curious, isn’t it, the attraction some men can feel toward a certain kind of woman?” Teacup suspended, Cecilia’s eyes roamed the garden below. Nicole wondered if she was reliving her own romantic experiences.

Chester appeared at the door with Nicole’s glass of iced tea. “Mr. Templeton,” he announced and stood aside to allow the tall blond man to enter.

“Greg?” She narrowed her eyes at him. “What in the world are you doing here?”

“Nicole, darling! I missed you, so I followed you all the way to Starfish Island because I want us to reconcile.” He swept into the room, a hint of
“what are you going to do about it”
in his declaration. “In fact, I’m going to marry you.” He raised an eyebrow at Nicole, stroking the scraggly hair on his upper lip that wasn’t quite a mustache, his forefinger none too steady.

They stared at one another as if turned to stone, but the spell hadn’t penetrated Nicole’s mind. Her thoughts raced. “Gregory Templeton, you have a bizarre sense of humor,” she declared, trying to make light of the awkward personal moment taking place in front of her new neighbor. “I would never marry you.”

In her memory, she heard Michael’s laughing voice saying, “Perhaps Caroline Alexander did leave you a husband.” She knew this wasn’t what Grandmother had in mind.

She wanted to wipe the smug look off Greg’s face. She needed to make it clear that she had no interest in falling back into his arms and that they would never get back together.

Cecilia discretely cleared her throat, setting her cranberry bread down on her small plate. “Perhaps I should give you two a moment alone?”

Nicole cringed and glared at Greg before turning to Cecilia. “I’m so sorry. Where are my manners? Cecilia, this is Greg Templeton; Greg, Cecilia. And, no, please don’t go anywhere. This conversation is over,” she said, looking pointedly at her ex.  Though she was shaking with anger, she made herself speak calmly so Greg wouldn’t know how rattled she was. “Apparently, Greg, you haven’t heard that among my grandmother’s bequests to me was a fiancé. I intend to accept him, along with the rest of the property. This estate is just too big to handle alone.” Her face burned with the big lie, but her fingers gripping the sides of her chair were ice cold.

“I hope I’m not too late?” Michael asked from the threshold. He stood looking from one to another, smiling and handsome in casual shorts and a shirt.

Had he heard her crazy announcement? Would he think she’d taken his laughing statement seriously?

“It’s a surprise to find you here, Templeton,” Michael said, drawing a chair up next to Nicole’s. His voice suggested neutrality, but she sensed he loathed the man and wondered how in the heck they’d ever met.

Greg dropped into a chair with a speed that suggested weakening of the knees; the situation was apparently more than he’d bargained for.

Even the unflappable Chester stammered as he said, “I’ll bring more hot water and bread.”

“Excuse me, Chester,” Nicole said before he could get to the door. She looked at Michael. “What would you like to drink—and you, Greg?”

Michael gave her a big smile. “I’ll have beer, Chester.”

“Me too,” Greg said. Chester straightened and nodded, his eyes shooting darts. He gestured for Ava to leave, but planted himself inside the door. Greg turned back to Nicole. “I believe I need some clarification,” he announced with an attempt at a light touch.

“I think it has been completely clarified,” Nicole countered. “You made a rather dramatic uninvited entrance and started talking about marriage. I’m telling you now that marriage to you is out of the question. I don’t want you. I want someone else.”

That brought Greg to his feet, fair cheeks turning dark red, blue eyes narrowed in anger. “Our interests matched up just fine a few weeks ago, when we spent every night together. Or are you going to lie to yourself and forget that you love me?”

“You over-exaggerate our relationship,” Nicole declared. “You’ve apparently forgotten the last night we spent together, when I told you that I never wanted to see you again and the reason why.”

“I can’t believe that’s the way you really feel about us.”

“I think I expressed myself perfectly.”

“Nicole, you don’t mean it.” His eyes probed hers, his voice tender. “You don’t fool me. I don’t believe this fiancé business. This is something you’ve dreamed up to keep me at arm’s length. Nicole, it isn’t me you’re afraid of, but yourself.”

“Of all the arrogant—” she started.

Greg cut her off. He turned to Michael and said, his voice dripping with anger, “Just where the hell did you come from? I suppose I have you to thank for this brush-off, Edwards? You interfered in my life once before, and you’re damn well not going to do it again.”

“On the contrary,” Michael said, his eyes hard blue dots, “I didn’t know that you and Nicole had met. But if I had, I certainly would’ve warned her.”

Greg rushed to speak, as though fearing what would come next. “Don’t think I’ll give up on what I want so easily, Nicole. You’ll be seeing a lot of me.” He turned and stomped out.

Nicole let out a rush of air, running her fingers through her curls. “I’m so embarrassed you had to see that. I don’t know what’s come over him. Let’s hope that’s the last I see of him, despite his bravado.” But she knew Greg would be back, which made her nauseous. She chewed the corner of lip, unable to let go of the question of how exactly Michael knew Gregory.

Ava chose that moment to return with a tray of drinks, which Chester took from her and set on the table. Even then, he didn’t leave the room, presumably so he could continue listening in.

“What’s this about a fiancé left to you by Caroline? Are you sure that isn’t something Ellis dreamed up?” Michael asked.

Nicole shook her head. “I’m responsible for that startling announcement. I faked the fiancé as an emergency invention to get rid of Greg. I met him several months ago and enjoyed his company for a short time, but for several reasons, I decided not to see him again and told him so. Now you know the whole story.”