Page 91 of The Pearl Sister
‘You different.’ Camira leant on her brush and contemplated her mistress. ‘You lit up likem star!’ she said, then carried on scrubbing.
‘I am certainly relieved to be well again, and perhaps we have seen the last of the heavy rains for this year.’
‘Dem all good reason for happy, but I thinkum Mister Drum makem you happy too, Missus Kitty.’ Camira tapped her nose, winked and went off to get a fresh pail of water.
Kitty’s heart missed a beat at Camira’s words. How did she know? Surely she could not have seen anything – they were both so careful, leaving any affectionate embraces until after Camira was in her hut with Cat, and Charlie fast asleep in his bed. Yet the sound of laughter as Drummond teased her per petually, or tickled Charlie until he begged for mercy,wasdifferent. The house had a new energy and so did she. In fact, Kitty mused, she felt properly alive for the first time in her life.
Day and night, her body tingled with longing for Drummond, whether he was present in the room with her or tucked away in her imagination. Even the simplest pursuits now gave her pleasure if he was by her side. The merest touch of his hand shot a wave of electricity through her, and she’d wake up in the morning already longing for the evening to arrive so she could go to him and share their secret world of ecstasy.
After that first night, they had made a pact to simply live in the moment, not to let thoughts of the future destroy what they had found together. Kitty was amazed and ashamed at how easily she’d been able to do this. Though the rational part of her mind knew that Andrew would be returning in less than a month, its far more powerful emotional ‘twin’ overrode it. She justified her actions with the thought that Drummond’s presence during the long rainy season had not only saved her life, but been a blessing for Charlie too. Drummond’s inventive mind could turn a chair into a ship filled with pirates and treasure being tossed on the sea, or a table into a hut in the jungle outside which lions and tigers roamed. It made a welcome change from the monotonous card games that Andrew always suggested when it rained.
Drummond’s a child himself,Kitty thought to herself as she watched him crawl along the hall, growling fiercely. But at night, he was very much a man . . .
Since the weather had cleared, there had also been trips to Riddell Beach and in the furthest corner, shielded by the rock formations, Kitty had joined Cat, Drummond and a now proficient Charlie in the gorgeous aquamarine waters.
‘Mama! Take off your bloomers!’ Charlie had shouted at her. ‘Uncle Drum said clothes weigh you down.’
Kitty had not gone that far in front of Charlie, and had sworn him to secrecy about the swimming trips, but on a couple of occasions, she had left Charlie with Camira on the premise of business in town. She and Drummond had taken the cart to the beach and swum naked together. As he’d held her in his arms, kissing her face, her neck and licking the salty water off her breasts when they arrived back on the sands, she knew that no future moment she experienced could ever hold more happiness.
* * *
‘Darling,’ Drummond said at the end of February as they lay together in his bed, Kitty half drugged from their lovemaking. ‘I have received a telegram from my father. He wishes me to join him and Andrew in Adelaide at the end of next week when they return from Europe. It’s to do with the Mercer business empire. He wishes to apportion his interests to both Andrew and me so there will be no confusion in the event of his death. I must go home to Alicia Hall to sign the legal papers with the solicitor, and Andrew and I will draw up our own wills.’
‘I see.’ Kitty’s heart, so recently full of love and contentment, plunged down to her stomach. ‘When will you leave?’
‘I catch the boat in two days’ time. Won’t you ask what he is giving me? Find out what my prospects are?’
‘You know I care not a jot about that. I’d live with you in a gum tree with nothing if necessary.’
‘Nevertheless I’ll tell you. As you can well imagine, Andrew will have the Mercer pearling business transferred to him, which at present comprises seventy per cent of the family income. I am to be endowed with a thousand square miles of arid desert and half-starved cattle – in other words, Kilgarra cattle station. Oh, and also a few acres of land some hours’ journey outside of Adelaide. There’s talk of some form of mining in the region, and my father has duly signed up. It may come to nothing, but knowing my father’s instinctive nose when it comes to money, which is akin to a dingo catching the scent of a dead heifer, it will probably turn out to be profitable. I also inherit a bungalow in the Adelaide Hills and the vineyard that surrounds it. After my parents’ deaths, my brother inherits Alicia Hall.’
‘Oh! But the bungalow is so much more beautiful! I have been there, and the views are spectacular!’ Kitty said, remembering it vividly. ‘It was where Andrew proposed . . .’ Her voice trailed off in embarrassment.
‘Did he now? How very . . . quaint.’
‘Forgive me. That was tactless.’
‘I agree entirely.’ Drummond swept a tendril of hair back from her face. ‘Sadly, Mrs Mercer, it seems to me that reality is encroaching on our godforsaken love nest. However much we have done our best to avoid it during these blissful few weeks, the time has come for you to make some decisions.’
She knew it all too well. ‘And surely you too? After all, Andrew is your brother.’
‘Yes, a brother who had no compunction about snatching away my favourite toys when we were younger.’
‘I pray that I am not any form of retribution for his past misdemeanours,’ Kitty countered.
‘If you are, then all to the good,’ Drummond chuckled. Then, seeing her expression, he relented. ‘Kitty . . . my Kat, I am, as always, teasing you. Although it concerns me that I have never yet won any battle Andrew has cared to wage.’
‘Oh yes, you have.’ Kitty reached up and kissed him gently on the cheek. ‘You know how to be happy. And because of that, so do I.’
‘I’m likely to become extremely unhappy if we do not talk about our future, my love.’ Drummond cupped her face in the palms of his hands. ‘When I leave for Adelaide, do you wish it to be forever?’
‘Oh Drummond.’ She shook her head despairingly. ‘I do not know.’
‘I am sure you don’t. Good God, what a mess we find ourselves in. Perhaps it might help for me to tell you what I have been thinking.’
‘Please do.’
‘It’s very simple: I can’t bear the thought of leaving you. I may cry like a girl in front of you if you insist on staying with my brother.’ Drummond gave her a weak smile.
