by Jane Corrie
Bestowing a lazy bronzed smile on Mrs Tonetti, he asked as he joined them, 'What do you think of the good news?'
Serena cast a wary look towards him, then looked at Mrs Tonetti, who was frankly puzzled, her brows raised in query as she glanced from Serena back to Jordan again.
Feeling the quick warning look Jordan Kerr gave her, Serena's heart sank; he was taking no chances of her backing out.
'I've persuaded your granddaughter to lengthen her stay, haven't I, Serena?' he said smoothly, meeting Serena's smouldering eyes with a glint in his.
Very clever, thought Serena, only he wasn't going to get away with it. Refusing to meet his eyes, she murmured, 'Well, let's say I'm considering it. Nothing,' she said firmly but with a stab of regret as she watched the hope in Mrs Tonetti's eyes slowly fade away, 'has been settled. And.' she added brightly, 'there'll be other times, won't there, Nan?' she appealed.
The strident voice of Mrs Simpson cut across whatever remark Jordan Kerr would have made in reply to Serena's defiant stand.
'Aren't we running a bit late, Jordan?' she demanded, unable to keep the irritation out of her voice at his preoccupation with Mrs Tonetti and her granddaughter.
His slight frown of displeasure showed that he had not liked the interruption, but he answered casually enough, giving Myrna a quick smile and brief salute in greeting as he said, 'It's all under control.'
Serena's hopes that he would now move on were quickly dashed as she saw him glance at his watch, then turn his attention back to her. 'I'll see you later,' he said softly but meaningly, and favoured Mrs Tonetti with another charming smile. 'It seems,' he drawled, 'that she needs a little more persuading. But I think we'll eventually convince her, don't you?'
Mrs Tonetti chuckled. 'Jordan, that sounded a little like a threat! Stop teasing her. Of course I want her to stay, but there are other considerations, you know—her job, for instance.'
His eyes rested momentarily on Serena before he replied laconically, 'Ah, yes, her job, of course.'
There was a deep gong-like sound and Jordan Kerr glanced again at his watch. 'Time I was moving,' he said casually, and with a brief salute went back the way he had come.
As she watched him stride away Serena knew she hadn't as yet won the game; all she had accomplished was a brief stay of execution. That 'see you later', threat would take place at the ball that evening, she was sure. Her lips tightened; it couldn't come quick enough for her; the sooner he learnt you couldn't just push people around like that, the better! She had never thought she would be grateful for Roger's attention, not to mention protection. In fact, the more she thought about the coming interview, the more she found she was looking forward to it. She had been so shocked by Jordan Kerr's disclosures thrown at her as it were out of the blue, she had temporarily lost her senses. Now she had regained them and even that autocratic chunk of masculinity would be forced to see the sense of her argument.
She relaxed and smiled at Mrs Tonetti, who had been holding a conversation with a friend of hers who had just arrived, and was now able to give Serena her undivided attention.
'I must say,' she commented with twinkling eyes, 'Jordan seems to have taken an interest in you, Serena. Perhaps we won't have to look far for an excuse for you to stay after all.'
Serena's brows went up, feigning surprise; if only Mrs Tonetti knew just how near the mark she was! Only for entirely different reasons from the ones Serena guessed she was hoping for. 'Well, he does take your welfare to heart, doesn't he?' she replied airily, deliberately misconstruing the subtle hint.
Mrs Tonetti chuckled again, then said softly, 'Yes, he does, but I've an idea there's a little more to it this time.'
Serena was saved the necessity of thinking up a suitable rejoiner as a shout went up from the crowd on the beach. 'There she blows!'
Her breath caught in her throat as she looked ahead of her—there, just appearing from the screen of palms, was a full-masted galleon. It moved slowly but majestically into the bay—an awesome, yet wonderful sight. Serena sat entranced; she felt as if the years had rolled back. This, then, was how the first Kerr had come to the island to claim it for himself and his descendants. She wondered how the inhabitants had felt when they sighted the great ship. Her eyes fixed on the flag now plainly visible and a cold feeling played along her spine as she saw its markings. It was black with crossed swords worked in gold and somehow more daunting than the skull and crossbones motif.
The cold eyes and harsh voice of Jordan Kerr came unbidden to her as she watched the long boats being lowered slowly down the sides of the ship. Mrs Tonetti had said he was the image of the first Jordan Kerr, and Serena could well believe it! And not only in looks, she thought; this man would be just as ruthless in obtaining his objective, as she had good cause to know!
Making a mental effort to shrug off these thoughts, Serena asked Mrs Tonetti about the galleon. 'Is it the original one?' she queried.
'Yes, dear. Of course, it's had to be renovated from time to time, timbers replaced and so on, but it's been faithfully reproduced each time. It's kept in the blue lagoon, beyond the palms over there. There are some natural caves that provide an ideal shelter for it. It's quite an attraction for the tourists on its own.'
The first of the long boats was just heading into the beach, and Serena watched as its piratical occupants leapt out on to the shore uttering bloodcurdling shouts and waving wicked-looking cutlasses. By the way the crowd scattered, accompanied by the shrieks from the ladies, one would almost think it was for real, Serena mused as she watched, then suddenly she stiffened. The leader of the first boat ashore was none other than Jordan Kerr; there was no mistaking his height and the way he carried himself. His hair touched by the rays of the sun was a fiery red and as she watched him he suddenly lifted his head and she felt as if he were looking straight at her.
Trying to still her racing pulses, she told herself she was imagining things again. Myrna was up there, wasn't she?
The shouting on the beach had now turned to laughter and squeals of mock terror, and Serena turned her attention there and half-smiled when she saw the reason. The pirates were capturing the girls of their choice, slinging them over their shoulders and making their way back to the boats. So that was why Jordan Kerr had been looking up there—he was warning Myrna!
When the awesome figure of the pirate captain hove into view, Serena felt no qualms but only wondered whether Myrna would put up a mild struggle or charmingly surrender.
As it turned out, Myrna had no choice, nor had Serena! Her eyes opened to full capacity as he stood before her and with a slight ironic bow said quite distinctly, 'My prize, I think.'
Before she could move Serena found herself flung over his shoulder and being borne off back down the incline to the beach. His hold was not gentle either —he might have been carrying a sack of potatoes, she thought furiously as she struggled to free herself. Her hat parted company from her as he landed on the beach. 'Put me down!' she hissed angrily. 'I've lost my hat and it's the only one I've got!'
It was as if he hadn't heard her, yet Serena was sure he had. 'Do you hear?' she demanded, making another frantic attempt to dislodge herself from his hold.
'I hear,' he said in a clipped tone. 'Someone will collect your hat. That's the least of your worries right now. You and I are going to have a little talk.'
'So we talk,' snapped Serena, vainly trying to keep her hair out of her eyes, but held as she was hanging over his shoulder it was no easy task. 'For your information, I'm not a yoga addict,' she added icily. 'Put me down, will you?'
'And worry Mrs Tonetti?' he said sarcastically. 'Oh, no; this is the way it's got to be done. Take it or leave it.'
Making a grab at her shoulder bag which was threatening to join the hat, she thought bitterly, as if she had any choice !
Serena's uncomfortable journey was over when they reached the boats and she was unceremoniously dumped in the nearest one. As she sat trying to get her breath back she looked up and met
the amused eyes of a vaguely familiar pirate and when he spoke she placed him; it was Gerald. 'Seems I wasn't quick enough,' he said in a low voice, glancing at Jordan Kerr now busy organising the oarsmen for the return journey to the ship.
Following his glance, Serena saw Myrna Simpson, her pert straw still miraculously in position. Gerald, then, had 'captured' Myrna, and from the sulky expression on her face, Serena presumed Myrna had not liked that one bit. As if she felt her gaze on her, Myrna looked straight at her and Serena almost held her breath. It was a look of pure dislike, and Serena was sure she knew the reason for Jordan Kerr's interest in her. He would, of course, have had to make her promise to keep the information to herself. Not an easy task, Serena thought, particularly when it made someone like Myrna take a back seat for probably the first time in her life.
At a sharp order from Jordan Kerr, Gerald was pulled into service, obeying the order with a wry grin at Serena.
As the boat slowly put out to sea, Serena, watching the oarsmen, found her eyes inescapably drawn to Jordan Kerr. He led the stroke and his powerful shoulders bent forward and backward with the dip of the oars. She noticed that unlike the rest of the men he wore a peacock blue bandanna, and although his dress was of the same period as Jake's and the rest of the men, that was as far as the resemblance went. His shirt was of fine linen with lace cuffs that fell in soft folds against the tan of those strong hands of his. Serena wondered if it could be the original worn by his predecessor, and was almost certain the sleeveless jerkin of black velvet with gold threaded stitching in intricate patterns was indeed as old as it looked.
She glanced up as they neared the ship, then wished she hadn't as it loomed up in front of her like a gigantic whale. Surely they wouldn't be expected to scale that? But as they neared the side it became painfully obvious by the rope ladders hanging in wait that that was just what was expected of them. She glanced quickly at Myrna to find her watching
Jordan with a possessive glint in her eye. She didn't, thought Serena, look a bit perturbed at the prospect of scaling what appeared to Serena as the side of a mountain! Her glance then fell on Myrna's shoes; sensible navy blue pumps. Myrna would know the drill, of course. Serena then looked at her own footwear, surveying the slim platform soles with dismay; there was nothing there to give her grip. Well, she didn't know what the point was in hauling the girls to the ship, and they would have to return the same way they came anyway, so she would stay right where she was, ready for the return journey.
Unfortunately for Serena, Jordan Kerr had his own ideas on what she would do and made no bones about it. He was the first on the rope ladder and indicated briefly that she should follow. Serena stared at him, then at the swaying ladder, and went pale. She was hopeless at heights; she gave a decisive shake of the head. 'I'll wait for the return journey,' she announced firmly.
'You'll only get wet if you fall,' drawled Myrna behind her.
'My weight holds the ladder firm,' said Jordan Kerr in the sort of voice that told Serena she was going up that ladder whether she liked it or not.
'I'm right behind you, Serena,' Gerald offered encouragingly.
'I still think I'll stay,' said Serena, making a last- ditch stand, and remembering her shoes held one foot slightly in the air. 'I couldn't possibly get a grip in these, could I?' she appealed to Gerald, who she felt she could rely on to protect her interests.
Jordan Kerr's eyes narrowed and he gave her another ironic half bow. 'You have been snatched by pirates, milady, and therefore have no choice.'
About to argue the point, Serena for the second time that day found herself hauled up and over Jordan Kerr's shoulder. While marvelling at his strength for he had still kept one hand on the ladder, she rather felt things had gone far enough and kicked out in an attempt to dislodge his hold. She wasn't afraid of falling in the water; anything was preferable to this sort of treatment.
Myrna gave a derisive, 'Really! I know we're supposed to be entertaining the visitors, but there's no need to overdo it. For goodness' sake, Jordan, if she's so scared, leave her. We'll not be staying long anyway.'
Gerald heartily agreed with this sentiment. 'It's the height, I expect, old boy. And she's not like the rest of the girls, they knew what was coming.'
Neither need have spoken, for Jordan Kerr had started the ascent with a hold of iron against Serena's kicking legs and useless protests.
'I say,' began Gerald indignantly, 'aren't you carrying…'
'You look after your catch and I'll look after mine,' Jordan Kerr interjected, adding smoothly,
'All's fair in love and war.'
Serena closed her eyes—and this was war, there was no doubt about it! Her face brushed the smooth velvet of his jacket and felt the slight roughness of the worked-in stitching. It was a lie, she thought hysterically, that first piratical character that took the island hadn't died at all! He was still here; just as ruthless as he had been all those years ago!
CHAPTER SEVEN
Once they were on deck Serena found herself put down with the same carelessness as she had been dumped in the boat. With an abrupt, 'Follow me,' Jordan Kerr went on ahead with Serena languidly following.
To ease her frustration at such treatment Serena worked out ways as to how she could make this ruthless character pay for her humiliation. An apology simply wouldn't be good enough, she thought. Not even if he went down on his knees! Almost tripping over a heavy rope, she decided she would sue him. He was a very rich man, wasn't he?—well, she wouldn't have to worry about her mother's expenditure in future; in fact she would encourage it! It would be Jordan Kerr's money they would be spending!
The uneven deck made her stumble suddenly and as her shoulder-bag swung open, scattering most of its contents on to the deck, she cast a look of fury at the tall form striding in front of her. As she stooped to pick them up. her fingers were just too late in reaching her passport. One large brown hand was there before her.
Giving Jordan Kerr a look of pure dislike, she held out her hand for the passport. "Thank you,' she murmured coldly.
To her further fury he calmly ignored her outstretched hand and placed it in his jerkin pocket, then without a word walked on in front of her again.
Wanting to scream at him but knowing it wouldn't get her anywhere, Serena was forced to follow him. She almost stopped in her tracks as a thought hit her-—her passport! Why, oh, why hadn't she thought of that before—you couldn't manufacture passports! Her name was on it— just let him argue that one away!
Precisely two minutes later that was exactly what he did do! Seated in what she presumed was the captain's quarters, Serena listened while her brainwave went up in smoke.
'I have to hand it to you,' he drawled. 'On anyone else, it might have worked. Unfortunately, I know a little too much about you. When I said I'd given up the search for you, it wasn't strictly true. I just passed the odious task on to a highly reputable detective agency. I know for a fact that you have two aliases, so why not a third? The sort of company you kept you'd know how to get your hand on a passport. That information is now paying off, isn't it?—but not to your advantage, I'm afraid.'
Serena's glimpse into the wily ways of the underworld was something of a revelation to her. However, she felt she could have done without it at this particular time. She was now getting slightly desperate. 'Look!' she began, forcing herself to remain calm, knowing it was imperative that she somehow got through to him. 'Can't you see it would be better for me to go? I promise to write to Mrs Tonetti and keep in touch.'
'You can't even call her Grandmother, can you?' he said harshly. 'As for keeping in touch, I don't believe a word of it. Once back to the bright lights and you'll conveniently forget she exists.' His eyes narrowed. 'There's nothing for you to come back for, is there? There's nothing left for you to inherit, you really shouldn't have been quite so greedy before.'
Serena's eyes flashed; she wanted to hit out at him, but knew he was having trouble keeping his hands off her and would dearly love an e
xcuse to throttle her, so provoking him would not help. 'All right!' she said bitterly. 'I only wanted to explain the position—and believe it or not prevent Mrs Tonetti from…' she faltered a little on seeing the tigerish flash her constant use of the name produced, then went on firmly, knowing it was no use trying to convince him she wasn't Lisa Tonetti. 'How will it look,' she demanded, 'when the man I'm practically engaged to charges in on the next plane? You won't be able to bully him, I can assure you; and Roger knows nothing about Mrs Tonetti,' she paused, biting her lip. 'For goodness' sake! Can't you see the result? How can I explain a grandmother he never knew existed—let alone explain that I've decided to stay with her? If you think Roger will leave it at that, you're very much mistaken. He won't rest until he knows the whole story, and that you're keeping me on the island by force. Just how are you going to explain that part of it to my—er—grandmother?'
Seeing the start he gave at her last question, Serena felt a surge of triumph. He couldn't argue against that—not if he wanted to protect Mrs Tonetti. She pressed on with her advantage. 'Short of kidnapping Roger at the airport,' she purred, 'there's nothing you can do about it. Roger,' she said sweetly, 'will not take kindly to being pushed around. He also has business connections,' she added airily, feeling as if a great weight had been lifted off her shoulders. 'I'm quite sure he can match whatever influence you think you have in certain circles.' She flashed him a smile of triumph. 'So in the circumstances I think you'll agree it would be better if I went, don't you?'
Noticing the small muscle twitch at the side of Jordan Kerr's mouth, Serena felt like cheering. He was furious and she could feel the inward struggle he was having not to shake the daylights out of her. She had him cornered; not a position he was used to; she doubted whether such a thing had ever happened before to him. Her relief that it was all over made her magnanimous. 'I meant what I said about keeping in touch with my—grandmother,' she added kindly.
Completely ignoring her last remark, Jordan Kerr shot out, 'Roger who?'
