The Scarlet Kimono (Choc Lit) (23 page)

‘Pour some for both of us,’ he ordered. ‘It will help our thought processes.’

Hannah doubted this very much, but did as she was asked. The
sake
cups were tiny and held only a few mouthfuls each, so she ended up pouring several times during the next game. She lost count of the number of refills they had and after a while, the potent rice wine began to sing through her veins, relaxing her.

It also loosened her tongue and, halfway through another game, she blurted out a question without thinking. ‘Doesn’t your wife mind you spending time with me, my lord?’

He had been frowning at the board as he contemplated his next move, but looked up now with raised eyebrows. ‘What? I don’t have a wife.’

‘I beg your pardon? But you said … the
kimono
… And Lady Reiko is your sister-in-law. Surely that means …?’

He shook his head. ‘She is, but her sister, my wife Hasuko, died over a year ago.’ Hannah caught a strange look that passed over his features, but it was gone before she had time to interpret it. It might have been regret or sadness, but if so, it had been tinged with something else.

‘No wonder you were shocked at seeing me in her robe! You should have told me, my lord. I’m so sorry.’

‘I thought you knew and besides, it doesn’t matter. Hasuko only wore it once so she obviously didn’t want it. It’s a beautiful garment, as you said, there was no reason why it should go to waste and since you like it …’ He shrugged.’

‘I see.’

She took a deep breath. He wasn’t married.

The relief that flooded through her at this revelation almost made her feel ashamed. It shouldn’t matter to her and even if he was unattached, it made no difference to her own situation.
But it does!
She felt suddenly light-hearted at the thought that he was free. At least she didn’t have to feel guilty for taking up his time.

When she looked up, he was studying her with his head to one side and a decided twinkle in his eyes. ‘You thought me a villain, who ignores his wife night after night. Perhaps even hides her away, out of sight, and mistreats her?’

‘No, of course not!’

He chuckled. ‘Yes, you did. Because I had you abducted and therefore you don’t believe me to be honourable.’

‘Well, I … you can’t deny it was reprehensible, but now that I’m getting to know you a bit better, I do realise you are not dishonourable. At least, I don’t think so.’

‘
Honto, neh?
Is that right? Hmm, you might change your mind about that one day.’

‘Wha-what do you mean?’ Hannah wasn’t comfortable with the direction this conversation was going, but her brain was slightly befuddled with
sake
and she wasn’t sure she was following him.

He gave her a lopsided grin. ‘Don’t worry yourself about it now. Go on, it’s your turn to play.’ He nodded at the board and Hannah followed his gaze, then groaned out loud.

‘You’ve beaten me again!
Chikusho!
’ She slapped her knee to vent her frustration.

‘Really,
Akai
, such language is not becoming in a woman,’ he reproved her, but she could tell her outburst had amused him. ‘But since you are still not used to our ways, I shall forgive you and give you one more chance of winning. Are you ready?’

‘Of course. Just you wait, this time I’ll surprise you.’

He laughed. ‘You always do,
Akai
. That is one of the things I like most about you.’

Hannah wished she had the courage to ask what other attributes of hers he liked, but thought perhaps it was better not to know.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

‘Do you think I might visit the little boy, Yukiko-
san
?’ Hannah asked the following day. ‘I would like to see for myself that he’s unharmed.’

Yukiko considered for a moment, then nodded. ‘I don’t see why not. I will send someone to ask Lord Kumashiro if it is allowed, just to make sure.’

The servant soon came back and told them Hannah would be welcome, and she set off immediately with only Yukiko for company. ‘Best not to overwhelm the little one with visitors,’ the older woman said. ‘He’s still very young, we don’t want to frighten him.’

Hannah wondered if her strange looks would scare the child, but in her experience toddlers usually accepted things easily. All the ones she’d met so far had been curious in the extreme and found everything exciting. She had quite a few younger cousins and they’d loved it when she introduced them to new things.

Lord Kumashiro’s little heir had his own very grand suite of rooms and they were ushered into a large sunny one scattered with a larger than usual number of plump cushions. Among them a small, sturdy boy waddled around, stopping to pick up and inspect various items such as silk balls, carved wooden animals and intricate rattles. To Hannah it looked as though the boy had everything he could possibly want, except a mother.

There were two nursemaids presents, both keeping their eyes on their charge in an almost manic fashion. Hannah guessed they were terrified of being punished if any harm came to the child after what had just happened. She couldn’t blame them, but it seemed unlikely in this room. He couldn’t even hurt himself falling down here, since the
tatami
mats were so soft.

Hannah and Yukiko greeted the maids, then Hannah knelt on the floor in front of Ichiro. ‘Hello, Ichiro-
chan
,’ she said and smiled at him. She pointed at herself. ‘I’m Hannah. Han-nah.’

She sat quite still, while he stared at her with big, serious eyes. It was as if he was making up his mind whether to talk to her or not. Finally, he must have decided that she passed muster because he held out the silk ball he’d been holding.

‘For me? Why, thank you!’ Hannah widened her smile and accepted the offering. Then she threw the ball up in the air, but pretended to fumble the catch and dropped it. ‘Oh!’ She pulled a silly face and retrieved the ball. Ichiro chuckled.

‘Again?’ she asked, grinning at him. He nodded, so she went through the same routine once more. This time he laughed out loud, a lovely gurgling sound that seemed to come from deep inside him. Hannah glanced at the nursemaids, who had looked a bit dubious when she first addressed Ichiro. They seemed more relaxed now, so Hannah decided to play with the boy for a while. She loved children and knew she would enjoy it. Hopefully he would too.

Taro was determined to spend extra time with his son after the near-fatal accident in the pond. The incident had shaken him to the core. He had known the boy was precious to him before, but now he realised just how much Ichiro meant to him. The thought that he might have to leave him in Edo soon and not see him for weeks on end made him so frustrated he wanted to punch someone. It wasn’t something he could change, however; instead he was determined to make the most of the time he did have.

He was just finishing his morning meal when he was told about Hannah’s request.

‘By all means,’ he said. ‘She has my permission.’

The thought of Hannah visiting his son made him curious, however. He couldn’t help but wonder what Ichiro would make of her and why she’d wanted to see the little boy. Standing up, he made up his mind. He’d go and see for himself.

As he made his way into his son’s suite of rooms, he heard the boy’s laughter ring out. He smiled. He loved that sound and was always pleased whenever he managed to coax it out of the child himself. Little Ichiro was usually a very serious boy and he only laughed when he was truly enjoying himself. Taro was curious to see what had delighted him so much today.

He slid open the door to the play room a fraction, wanting to observe before he entered. What he saw made him draw in a sharp breath of surprise. Hannah was lying on her back in the middle of the floor on a pile of cushions. She was lifting Ichiro up and down in a way that must have made her arms ache, while the little boy held his own arms out straight as if he was a bird in flight. Each time she lifted him, he shrieked with laughter.

‘
Mo
!’ he shouted, the minute she lowered him, which was his way of saying more or again, as Taro well knew. Hannah obliged.

Taro noticed her hair had come undone and was spread out around her, but she seemed oblivious to the picture she presented. It was an enticing sight, sensual in an entirely unconscious way, which sent a swift dart of desire shooting through him, but he forced himself not to dwell on that for the moment. Instead he observed her interaction with Ichiro. It was quite clear she was having as much fun as his son and Taro was amazed.

Hannah was obviously made for motherhood.

He had never seen any of the other women playing with such abandon and he realised he liked it. He liked it immensely. And so did Ichiro, that much was evident.

He also couldn’t help but contrast this behaviour with the way Reiko treated Ichiro – with pretended concern, but never any genuine warmth. Even though he tried his best, he couldn’t come up with a single instance when Reiko had truly interacted with the boy. She only ever instructed him in a way more suited to older children, which he didn’t understand.

Taro continued to stare as Hannah finally sat up and said, ‘Enough, I need a rest. More later,
neh
?’

She didn’t let go of Ichiro though, but hugged him to her chest as she sat up with him still on her lap. The boy leaned against her, clearly revelling in the attention and safety of her embrace. When a strand of Hannah’s hair fell over her shoulder, the child grabbed it and wound it round his fist. It was as if he was trying to hold onto his new friend.

Taro saw Hannah wince as Ichiro pulled the hair tighter, but she didn’t admonish him, just pulled him closer. Seeing his son held like that, by the woman he was coming to realise he desired above all others, made Taro swallow hard. Something inside him shifted and a feeling of warmth shimmered through him. His son needed a mother and he needed a wife.

Had Ichiro just chosen for him?

‘Ah, Lord Kumashiro!’

Hannah looked up as the two nursemaids gasped and prostrated themselves on the floor, together with Yukiko. The breath caught in her throat at the sight of him and her heart skipped a beat. He was standing just inside the door, looking every bit as formidable as he usually did, but instead of fear, Hannah felt a pull of longing so strong she had to bite her lip.

‘My lord,’ she said and bowed as much as she could with the child still in her arms. She wondered if he’d be angry at her for playing with the boy, but hoped not. She held her breath, waiting to see what he’d say or do, but it soon became clear that he wasn’t annoyed.

‘Good morning,’ he said and moved forward, dropping down to sit cross-legged next to Hannah and his son. He held out his arms and Ichiro made a joyful little noise and scrambled off Hannah’s lap to go to his father. Taro gathered the boy close for an instant and then lifted him up in the air the way Hannah had been doing, but with the added thrill of throwing him a short distance before catching him again. Ichiro laughed even more.

‘So you’ve come to visit my son,’ Lord Kumashiro said between throws, giving Hannah a look she couldn’t quite decipher.

‘Yes, I hope you don’t mind? I wanted to see that he was all right and … well, I love children.’

‘That was evident.’ He gave her a smile and she relaxed a little. ‘Do you think I should give him a new mother?’

Hannah blinked. She hadn’t expected such a forthright question and didn’t know how to answer. ‘I … er, surely that is for you to decide, my lord? I mean, he seems very well looked after and … but of course, every child needs a mother.’

‘My thoughts precisely. I will think on the matter.’

With that, he abruptly changed the subject, and focussed his attention on Ichiro for the next half hour.

‘I should go back to my quarters,’ Hannah said at one point, but he shook his head.

‘No, stay,’ he ordered, so she did, even though she knew she shouldn’t.

‘Will you walk with me in the garden for a while, Hannah-
san
?’

Hannah wasn’t sure whether this was a command or a request, but in any case, she was happy to comply so it didn’t matter. It frightened her how much she yearned to spend even more time in Lord Kumashiro’s company, but she was helpless to resist.

They set off along one of the paths, walking in silence with Kumashiro’s body guards trailing slightly behind together with Yukiko. Hannah tried to walk a few steps after him, as was proper, but just like in Hirado, he waved her forward.

‘Do you like my garden?’ he asked.

‘Of course. How could I not like it?’ Hannah smiled. ‘It’s incredibly beautiful, but then I’m sure you know that.’ A gurgle of laughter escaped her. ‘If you had ever seen the garden at my parents’ house in England, you would have been horrified. This seems like the domain of a king to me in comparison.’

He shook his head. ‘The
Shogun
has even bigger gardens.’

‘But you prefer this one?’ Hannah guessed.

‘Yes, because it’s mine and my ancestors have all added to it over the years. That makes it special to me.’

‘And you? Have you added anything?’ Hannah dared to ask.

‘Not yet, but I am thinking about it. It has to be something different and yet it has to blend in with what is already here so that it will look as if it’s always been here. Not an easy thing to achieve. Perhaps you could tell me about foreign garden designs some time? That might give me new ideas.’

‘I’d be honoured to.’

They had reached a part which Hannah’s ladies called the garden of harmony. It was a section entirely made up of gravel or tiny pebbles, which was raked into patterns. Interspersed with these were large boulders, most of unusual or beautiful shapes, which seemed to add calm to the picture. Hannah could see why looking at it would give someone inner
wa
.

‘Let us sit down,’ Lord Kumashiro said and beckoned a servant forward with a blanket that had obviously been brought for this purpose. He seated himself cross-legged at the edge of the gravel and Hannah knelt beside him. ‘Now, teach me to write like the foreigners, please.’

‘What, here?’

‘Yes. This is a good place to practise. Look.’ He brought a small bamboo stick out of his sleeve and scratched a
kanji
into the gravel. ‘My
Sensei
used to bring me here when I was young. Saves on paper.’

‘Of course, I see.’ Hannah took the stick when he held it out to her. ‘Very well, our writing is much simpler than yours, so you should be able to learn it quickly. There are only twenty-six symbols, or letters we call them, each representing just one sound. They are as follows …’

He did catch on fast, and they both became absorbed in the lesson. At one point Hannah put her hand over his to guide him when forming one of the more complicated letters, and the small touch sent a frisson of awareness through her. She let go as soon as she could, but not before he’d turned to stare into her eyes for a moment.

‘I … uhm, you’re making progress,’ she said.

He nodded and smiled. ‘I know.’

Somehow Hannah had a feeling there was a hidden meaning in his words, but she didn’t allow herself to think about it. She was probably just imagining things anyway. There was no reason why he should feel the spark of attraction that ignited inside her at the merest touch, she told herself. To him, she was no doubt still an ugly foreigner.

‘Are you married, Hannah-
san
?’ he asked suddenly.

‘I was.’ Hannah bit her lip, wondering how to explain the unusual circumstances of her marriage. ‘The marriage is to be annulled though. My, er, husband and I agreed we didn’t suit.’

‘I see. So you’re a free woman. The marriage is over.’

‘Yes.’ Hannah didn’t bother to add that it was a bit more complicated than that. She had no idea how such matters were handled in Japan, but as far as she was concerned, her marriage was finished. She’d never agreed to it in the first place and she had Rydon’s consent to the annulment in writing. There was no going back.