Marrying William

by Trisha David

  'We should start cleaning out the fire damage from the house,' she tried, but was firmly squashed.

  'We can't do that until the insurance assessors have been through,' William told her. 'For now...you're on your honeymoon, Jenni Brand. Forget your cares for a while. Just concentrate on being married.'

  Concentrate on being married...

  How could she do anything but concentrate on being married, when William's presence was so overwhelming? Her sisters loved him. The guests loved him. Even Sam showed his affection. Beth would always be absolute favourite with Sam, but the big Labrador was quite prepared to extend his friendship to include William as well as Jenni and Rachel.

  'Even Sam thinks William's great,' Rachel whispered that night before she disappeared to study. 'Oh, Jenni, hang on to him. Keep him. This is the best thing...'

  Hang on to him...

  That gave her pause. 'Rachel, I'm not angling to keep him after a year,' she said, and Rachel shook her head.

  'If you're not, then you're a dope,' she said. 'He's starting to be nuts on you, and anyone can see that you're nuts on him. And, besides, even if it is just for a year, then a year's a year, Jenni, and you've had no fun at all in your life until now. You go for it. Just take him and enjoy him for all he's worth. Year or not.'

  And then night came and they were sent firmly back to Kingfisher.

  'Because there's one honeymoon couple at Betangera and one honeymoon couple only,' Mike and Ruby declared. 'We're happy where we are, thank you very much. And it's giving us heaps of pleasure to know you're enjoying our satin sheets.'

  But that night they didn't use the satin sheets.

  They swam again, and then William took the cotton duvets down into the sandhills and they slept in each other's arms—with the roar of the surf in their ears and the warm sea breeze caressing them as they lay enfolded in a mist of love and desire.

  And Jenni thought she'd died and gone to heaven.

  How could it get any better than this?

  This was heaven. A year of heaven?

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  They had three weeks of bliss. Three weeks of time out, where Jenni put her doubts and misgivings firmly aside.

  This was a crazy relationship. She was mad to let herself love this man when there were no promises for the future and no commitment, but she couldn't help herself. No way! It was as if she were hypnotised.

  William's presence did that. His looks. His voice. His laughter. The gleaming twinkle in the back of his eyes. The lust in his body. The way her body moulded itself to his, as if he was her home.

  She'd break her heart when he left, she knew, but that was a year away. Anything could happen in a year. She didn't want to think about it.

  The outside world was breaking in, but breaking in slowly. William made a string of telephone calls to his New York office, giving orders to his minions and asking for things to be sent—his computer, his fax machine and copiers and files...

  His business life was on its way.

  But meanwhile, before his New York life arrived, he was Jenni's. And her family's.

  Beth was learning to cook more and more, gaining confidence by the day. She went back to school on the Monday with reluctance, and bounced off the school bus each night with pleasure. The pleasure was because William was there, and Beth could cook dinner for them all.

  It wasn't just William's ability to cook that Jenni's little sister enjoyed. Beth's school taught her independence and there were few things which limited her. The cooking was a pleasure, but most of all... Most of all it was the sense of family William gave her. With Rachel at university there was usually only Jenni for Beth. Beth craved a family and the child could hardly remember her parents. A large, solid male presence was something new, and something special.

  Jenni saw Beth's increasing devotion with a qualm. It was one thing for Jenni to break her heart at the end of the year when William went back to the US, but Beth was another matter.

  Even Rachel was falling under William's spell. The day before Rachel was due to face her exams, Jenni found her sitting on the steps outside Kookaburra while William took her through her paces. William was reading from old oral examination papers. Heaven, he must know nothing about things like Guillain-Barre disease and circulatory paralysis and tracheotomies, but he certainly sounded as if he did, and his questioning technique—short and harsh and demanding—would prepare Rachel for the worst.

  Rachel departed to face her exams with extra confidence, thanks to William's help, and she hugged Jenni before she left.

  'I can't wait to come home at Christmas,' she confided. 'William's transformed this place. He's just the best thing, Jenni.'

  Jenni knew it.

  It was an illusion, she told herself. William had her bewitched. He had them all bewitched, but all she could do was enjoy it while it lasted. And try not to think about what came next.

  The insurance assessors did what they needed to, and then Beth and Jenni and William moved back into the farmhouse. Jenni had dreaded the work involved, but with William... They worked side by side, hauling out damaged goods, replacing charred timber and cleaning the place from stem to stern.

  After they'd cleaned out each room, they painted—a job Jenni usually loathed, but with William by her side it was fun. They ended up with more paint on themselves than on the house. It was a crazy, silly time and Jenni was falling deeper and deeper in love by the day.

  They left the master bedroom—William's parents' room—until last, to be set up as William's office when his equipment finally arrived. Jenni's lean-to-cum-pigsty they transformed into a new bedroom. With a new bed...

  A bed bought by William. And vast...

  'Because if I'm staying here for a year, then I'm enjoying myself in the process,' he declared, and he put aside Jenni's protests and ordered a king-sized bed.

  'What shall we do about sheets,' he asked as he leafed through a catalogue of fantasy bedding. 'I don't think I could stand satin.'

  'I like fine linen,' Jenni told him grinning, 'or maybe silk would do nicely.'

  She was teasing, but William paused over the catalogue and frowned. 'Silk... There's nothing here about silk sheets. Where can I get 'em?'

  'I was joking,' Jenni said hastily. 'For heaven's sake, cotton's fine.'

  'We don't really need anything at all,' William said thoughtfully. He made a lunge at her and hauled her into his arms. 'You're right, Jenni. Okay, no silk. No satin. How about the floor? How about now?'

  Crazy, crazy, crazy.

  And then, at the end of three weeks, the world broke in.

  Thursday. Mid-morning. They were back living in the farmhouse, with William and Jenni in Jenni's lean-to on their ridiculous new bed. William and Jenni were painting the front porch, for once intent on their task and not each other. William was up the ladder and Jenni was painting the lattice at the side.

  When the car pulled up Jenni didn't pause. Change-overs of guest was Saturday, so she wasn't expecting anyone. It was William who looked, and Jenni saw his face go rigid before she saw who their visitor was.

  She turned, and it was Ronald.

  'Good morning,' Ronald said urbanely, closing the door of his sleek black Jaguar and strolling towards them. He was looking his usual horrible self, still wearing his ridiculously expensive leather and with his hair even dirtier than last time Jenni had seen him. It was all she could do not to shudder. 'Quite the picture of domestic bliss, aren't we?'

  'What do you want?' William demanded, not moving from his ladder. His voice was about as welcoming as iced water thrown straight in Ronald's face.

  'I'm here for a chat. Aren't you going to ask me in?'

  'Ronald, you're not welcome here,' Jenni told him, turning to face him square on. The anger in William's voice scared her. 'Not after what you've done.'

  'What have I done?'

  'This damage is down to you.' She motioned to the smoke stains still on the porch roof. 'Plus...' Her voice hardened. She knew what h
is worst crime was. 'You kicked Beth's dog. You nearly killed him.'

  'And I'd do it again if I had a chance,' Ronald told her, smiling in remembrance. 'Stupid mutt. What a shame it didn't die. But I guess it was a bit crude. Not effective at all.' He took two steps back and stood gazing up at the house. 'Well, well. This is cleaning up nicely, isn't it? What a pity you're wasting your time. This place will be demolished in a month.'

  'What do you mean?' Jenni asked.

  Ronald wasn't allowed to answer.

  'I've had enough of your threats, Harbertson.' William swung himself down from the ladder and placed himself between Jenni and Ronald. 'Go to hell. Get off this place. You're trespassing on our property.'

  'On the contrary.' Ronald smirked. 'You're trespassing on mine.'

  'Then you'd better tell us what you mean,' William growled. 'And hurry. I'm not into play-acting.'

  'I mean that this place is mine.'

  'And what are we supposed to make of that?'

  'I mean I own this land.' Ronald looked over William's shoulder to address Jenni, cutting William out of the conversation as if he didn't matter at all. 'Jenni, my dear, this farm is yours only if you're legally married to my loving stepbrother here. And I'm desolate to inform you that you're not. You're not married. No matter what he's been telling you, your marriage certificate is worth less than the paper it's written on.'

  'But... You saw us marry.' Jenni managed to speak, but she was suddenly breathless. She was afraid of what would come next. She knew it was something bad. Ronald's face was flushed with malevolent triumph, and he always had his reasons.

  'You might have thought you were married, Jenni, my dear.' His voice was now mock sympathetic. 'But that's a nonsense. Because how can you marry a man who already has a wife?'

  'A wife...'

  'Is that what all this is about?' William said angrily. 'You've found some evidence—'

  'Not some evidence,' Ronald said smoothly. 'The evidence.' He reached into his top pocket and withdrew a piece of paper. With his eyes not leaving William's, he carefully unfolded it, and the malicious smirk grew wider. 'I have here a copy of a marriage certificate,' he said softly. 'For one William James Brand and Julia Maria Avetner. The marriage took place in New York eight years ago. And I've had my lawyers check the files. There's been no divorce. Has there?' His voice grew insistent and triumphant.

  'No divorce at all,' he repeated.

  And then there was silence. It went on and even the ocean seemed to still as it waited for William to respond.

  Let him deny it, Jenni thought desperately, but William did no such thing. Finally—finally—he nodded and when he spoke his voice was flat and dead.

  'No. There's been no divorce.'

  'See? See?' Ronald's tone rose an octave. The man was almost beside himself with delight. 'You're not divorced, and nor could you be in the time stipulated by my mother for you to marry her!' He pointed to Jenni as if she were some repugnant form of lowlife.

  'So you thought you'd con me,' he gloated. 'Ha! I've still got enough friends in high places to do my checking for me. You thought I wouldn't even bother to check. You're wrong. Your marriage is invalid, so now you can both get off my land. Now. And never come back. The pair of you.'

  'Is that all you've found out?' William asked flatly. 'Is that all? That I married Julia?'

  'It's enough. Why would I look for more?' Ronald sneered. 'Or have you any more wives hiding in cupboards? I only need one, you bastard, to get you off my land.'

  'I only have one wife.'

  'Yeah. And that's this Julia.' He waved the certificate again.

  'No. My wife is Jenni.' And William reached behind him and took Jenni's hand. Tugging her forward, he placed his arm possessively around her waist and met Ronald's gaze head-on. 'This won't work, Ronald. Jenni's my wife. I'm no bigamist and our marriage is legal.'

  'Then where did you get your divorce?' Ronald yelled. 'Cuba? A dash over the border to Mexico for a quickie divorce? That won't wash. I've checked with the authorities here. If you married in the States then you need to have registered your divorce in the States before the Australian authorities will accept it. You're still legally married.'

  'I'm married to Jenni.'

  'Then where's this Julia?'

  'You haven't done your homework very well,' William said softly. His hold on Jenni tightened. 'You could have thought of the obvious. Why a man remarries. Only your mind doesn't work like that, does it, Ronald? It looks for corruption and deception and intrigue. There's no intrigue here. No deception at all. I'm married to Jenni, but you're perfectly right. I have been married before. But you should have checked more than just divorce records. Julia is dead.'

  Again there was silence, and this time it was deathly. It wasn't a silence of waiting. It was the silence of shock.

  Ronald's ground had been cut from under him and he was fighting to stand upright. Jenni could see his brain turn William's statement inside and out, fighting to reject something he desperately wanted to disbelieve.

  William simply watched. His expression was calm and thoughtful. And patient. Waiting for Ronald to make another move.

  And as for Jenni...

  She stood within the confines of William's hold and she suddenly felt as cold as she had ever felt in her life before.

  A wife... William had a wife? No. William was a widower. There had been...who? Julia?

  'Take yourself off, Harbertson,' William said at last. 'Tell your snooping little friends that they can search for the records of Julia. She kept her maiden name and was buried as Julia Avetner so the records should be easy to trace. Julia was killed at Aspen two years after we were married. That's all you need to know. Now get off Jenni's land before I call the police and have you carted away. It would give me considerable pleasure to do so.'

  'You're lying,' Ronald growled, but Jenni could see by his face that he didn't believe it. It was a forlorn hope. He'd been so sure he'd win...

  'I'm not lying,' William said. 'Now leave.'

  There was nothing for Ronald to do but to leave. He did, slamming the car door behind him and spinning the wheel so the gravel blasted out behind him as he turned. It was a futile protest.

  Which left Jenni and William—to say what to each other?

  It seemed William saw no need for comment. 'My paintbrush is drying,' he said, releasing his hold on Jenni's waist. 'I'd best get back to work.'

  And say nothing? Jenni thought, stunned. As if what had just happened was of no import at all?

  Jenni closed her eyes. Maybe things hadn't changed for William, but her world had just been given a monumental heave.

  'William, tell me about Julia.'

  'What do you want to know?' he asked flatly, heading back up his ladder. 'We met, we married and she was killed. It was a long time ago, Jenni.'

  'You didn't tell me.'

  'No.' As informative as a brick.

  'Aren't you supposed to declare it?' she asked carefully. 'When you marry? That you've been married before?'

  'I did,' William said, dipping his paintbrush in the can and starting to paint again. 'I put it in the forms we had to fill out. You needn't worry, Jenni. I've told no lies. Our marriage is legal.'

  And that was that. Jenni stared up at William's back but there was nothing more forthcoming. End of story.

  So what to do? What was there to do?

  Nothing. Jenni could think of nothing. She went back to work. William worked as steadily as before, but Jenni's heart wasn't in it. The joy had gone out of her day.

  The bubble had burst.

  Finally she gave up. She washed her brushes and came back to where William was still painting. 'I'm going for a walk,' she told him. 'I'll be back before Beth gets home.'

  William looked down from the ladder, his face impassive.

  'Are you okay, Jenni? Is something wrong?'

  'I don't know,' she said carefully. 'I don't think it should be—but maybe it is. I just don't know.'

  W
hat business was it of hers that William had a wife before her?

  Jenni asked herself the question over and over as she walked along the beach. She walked for miles, and every step she took she asked herself the question.

  'What's between me and William isn't a marriage,' she told herself carefully. 'This is a business arrangement which has turned into an affair. It's the same as sleeping with the boss; Exactly the same.'

  Oh, yeah?

  Well, if it was, then she was head over heels in love with the boss. And she cared—cared deeply—that he should love her right back.

  'It's gone too far,' she told herself. 'And why have I let it go so far? William never promised to love me. That wasn't part of the bargain. He's enjoying our affair. He's enjoying the novelty of this life, but he has another life—a life I know nothing of. For all I know, he really does have another wife in a cupboard somewhere. A wife and six kids on the other side of the world...'

  Kids...

  Good grief, if he'd been married then there might be children!

  She knew nothing at all of William Brand. Nothing! And she'd imagined herself in love with him!

  All she'd done was marry him and sleep with him—and let him take her heart as his own.

  He was keeping his world apart, she knew. Look at him now! Painting on as if nothing had happened. He enjoyed what he was doing. He lived and loved for the moment, but he kept his life compartmentalised. His dead wife—well, that was six years ago so that wasn't to be thought of now. His businesses in the US... Jenni knew nothing of them.

  And... His love life?

  He had to have a love life, she told herself. William was too hot-blooded a man to have stayed chaste for six years.

  So what?

  So at the end of this year he'd go calmly back to his life in New York and to whatever women were part of that life. He'd divorce Jenni and she'd go into the Betangera compartment of his life— 'Oh, yes, I was married for a second time, but it was only for a year for business reasons and now we're divorced.' She could imagine him saying it to another bride somewhere down the track—with just as much unconcern as he'd dismissed Julia.