Wanted: Mail-Order Mistress

by Deborah Hale

  Simon swept a glance over her as she rose from her chair. Her high-waisted muslin gown had an air of elegant simplicity that he liked very much. The colour reminded him of the unripe apples he and his brother had once hurled at each other in the orchard of his boyhood home.

  “You look fine.” He rose and offered her his arm. “Better than fine. All you’ll need is a hat and a parasol.”

  What Simon neglected to mention was that there would be no need for her to dress up. He didn’t expect to meet anyone on their little jaunt. Most of his acquaintances would be dining at this hour, then going for a stroll or a drive afterwards. He wanted to spare Bethan the necessity of introductions that might prove awkward, especially since their arrangement was still not fully settled.

  His plan worked perfectly. When they drove up North Bridge Road a short time later, the street was quite deserted.

  Bethan did not appear to notice. Perched beside him on the seat of the gharry, she peered about, trying to looking in every direction at once, firing questions at him. “What is this great empty space doing in the middle of town? Is it the market square?”

  Simon shook his head. “At present its only function is to provide the sepoys with a parade ground.” He pointed towards the military encampment at the base of the hill. “Our founder designated this part of town for public buildings. Originally he wanted them on the north bank of the river. But since that was the best commercial land, we merchants built our godowns there and Raffles was obliged to alter his plans.”

  “So trade is more important than government in Singapore?” Bethan flashed him an impudent grin that Simon could not resist returning.

  “Without trade, how would those fine public buildings be paid for?”

  She chuckled. “I think that makes sense. What about all those fine white houses overlooking the shore—do they all belong to important merchants like you?”

  There could be no mistaking the sincere admiration in her tone when she referred to him as important. Simon’s chest swelled.

  “Most of my neighbours are merchants. The lot on my right belongs to Carlos Quintéra, the local agent for a large Calcutta firm. Others are officials, like the Surgeon, Dr Moncrieff.” He nodded toward one of four houses facing into the square on the shore side.

  They drove past the soldiers’ encampment, taking a carriage road that wound around Government Hill.

  “Where are we going?” asked Bethan.

  Simon cast her a sidelong glance. “I want to show you the best view in Singapore. Several of the best, in fact.”

  “I’m certain they’ll be very fine indeed. I can’t get over the size of some of the trees here.” Plucking Simon’s arm to gain his attention, Bethan pointed toward a lofty jelawi. “That one looks as tall as the Lantern Tower of old St. Nicholas church back in Newcastle!”

  Her unexpected touch sent a bolt of heat searing through Simon’s veins. It took him a moment to master his voice. “Majestic, isn’t it? The younger trees beyond it are all spice-bearing varieties. They are part of an experimental garden, a pet project of Sir Stamford Raffles. He had a number of trees and shrubs of commercial value planted here to see if they would thrive. The place has been rather neglected since he left. Our current Resident is more interested in politics than botany.”

  He’d barely finished speaking when Bethan grasped his arm once again, holding on a little longer this time. “Oh my gracious, look at those birds! Did you ever see such colours?”

  Simon forced his gaze toward a pair of parrots with vivid dark-red plumage and bright blue markings on their faces and wings. Spectacular a sight as they were, he would rather have feasted his eyes on Bethan’s face, aglow with the wonder of discovery.

  “You’ll see plenty of those around Singapore,” he assured her. “There’s another kind even more amazing—feathers every colour of the rainbow, only more vivid. You’d swear they were cast out of emeralds and rubies.”

  In truth, he’d never paid much heed to the bright colours of the birds or the soaring height of the trees. When he’d first arrived on the island, he had been too preoccupied with helping Ford and Hadrian establish their business, and trying to forget the humiliating situation he’d left behind in Penang. Now he found himself taking in his surroundings with fresh appreciation.

  As the gharry rounded the far side of the hill, Bethan let out a soft gasp. Spread before them was mile after mile of wild, verdant jungle.

  “I never thought there could be so many different shades of green,” she whispered.

  Simon hadn’t either, though, in his opinion, none of them could match the elusive, mutable grey-green of her eyes. Until now, he’d thought of the surrounding jungle as nothing but a source of danger, harbouring tigers and bands of outlaws. Bethan made him see something more.

  They drove on in silence for a while, privately contemplating the lush, untamed grandeur. Only when the road wound higher, bringing the town and the sea back into view did Simon venture to speak again. “The Malays call this Forbidden Hill. They say their kings of long ago are buried here.”

  “Does that other hill have a name too?” Bethan pointed towards a slightly lower rise to the north.

  Simon nodded. “Selegi Hill, which I’m told means something to do with spears. Captain Flynn and his family live there. He is the harbour-master.”

  “Harbour-master?” Bethan sounded more intrigued by that than tales of ancient Malay kings. “Does he have any children Rosalia’s age? Do you ever go there to visit?”

  Her questions struck Simon as a trifle odd, but then again Bethan had proven herself an unusual young woman. “The captain does have children—a stepdaughter who’s almost grown and an infant daughter. He has a son Rosalia’s age. Ah-Sam used to take her to visit until the boy was sent to live with relatives in England.”

  “A child that age sent so far away from his family?” Bethan fairly trembled with outrage. “How could his parents do such a terrible thing?”

  “They didn’t have much choice, I’m afraid,” Simon replied. “His elder brother died and the climate did not agree with him. Surely the child is better off in England than lying in the cemetery.”

  Bethan did not seem convinced.

  In an effort to distract her, Simon began to point out other sights of interest. “Over there is the dhobi village. They are the Indian laundry folk who wash clothes on the banks of the Kallang River and down there in Bras Basah stream. They have raised the task almost to a science. It amazes me how they get all the laundry back to its proper owners without ever losing a single scrap of linen. I wish I could keep as good an account of Vindicara’s inventory.”

  His distraction seemed to work.

  Bethan’s frown eased and she surveyed the view from the top of the hill with interest. “I can see your house and your godown by the river. My, what a lot of ships there are at anchor.”

  By now they had reached the hilltop. Simon stopped the gharry some distance away from the tall signal flagpole and hurried around to help Bethan out. He did not release her hand when she had alighted, but tucked it into the crook of his elbow and led her towards the best lookout spot. He was gratified when she betrayed no hesitation in taking his arm. He hoped it meant she was growing more comfortable around him and not simply that she was too fascinated by the vast number of ships to notice.

  “Do many of the crews come ashore?” she asked.

  Simon shook his head. “Only the odd few. There isn’t a great deal for them to do. Very little of our food is grown here, so Singapore is not the best port for provisioning.” He sensed her dissatisfaction with his answer. “Why do you ask?”

  “No reason.” The bright, carefree tone she affected struck a false note. “I’m interested in everything about the place, that’s all. Tell me, what’s that cluster of buildings over there near the shore?”

  Simon recognised an evasion when he heard one, though he could not fathom why she felt it necessary. “That’s the Sultan’s istana. A palace of sorts.” />
  A melodious trill of her laughter made him forget his niggling suspicions. “Living just up the road from a sultan’s palace, am I? What would the folks back in Llanaled make of that, I wonder?”

  He turned towards her, gazing down into her eyes. They reminded him of a Lancashire meadow swathed in springtime mist. “If those people have any sense, they’ll say you belong in a palace, showered with the best of everything.”

  “If any of them could see your house, they’d think it was a palace.” She lowered her gaze briefly, only to look up at him again through the delicate fringe of her eyelashes.

  Was that an invitation to kiss her? It made Simon incapable of resisting his inclination. The best he could manage was to proceed slowly so as not to alarm her. That took every scrap of will-power he possessed.

  Closer and closer he leaned, watching for any sign of reluctance, which he hoped would not come. Bethan had ample time to evade his kiss or fend him off with some remark about the view. But she did not speak or move, except the slightest quiver of her lips as his whispered over them.

  Ever since their first evening together, the memory of her kiss, her scent and the feel of her in his arms had clung to Simon. By day they distracted him from his work and by night they invaded his dreams. Though they made a pleasant change from the nightmares that sometimes plagued him, they were a sweet torment, whetting his hunger for her to an even sharper pitch.

  Now the glancing brush against her warm, pliant lips unleashed a tempest of urgent desire within him. Simon clung tight to Bethan’s hands in case the temptation to take further liberties overwhelmed him.

  He was fighting so hard to control his hands that he had no will-power to spare for his lips. Bethan’s kiss tasted like sweet cider to a man parched with thirst. How could he imbibe it by slow, cautious sips when he longed to quaff it in great, lusty draughts?

  His lips ranged over hers and she responded with natural, innocent desire that only made him want her more. When her lips parted, he slid his tongue between them, immersing himself in the delights of her soft, sweet mouth even as he strove to ignore the hungry ache of arousal they inflamed.

  Then suddenly Bethan tensed and jerked away from him.

  Silently cursing himself, Simon struggled to regain his composure. He’d intended to maintain tight control of his desires, to tempt Bethan without frightening her. It vexed him to realise how relentlessly she tested his self-restraint. His flash of frustrated anger sought an outlet.

  The low murmur of voices jolted Bethan out of the dark, lucious depths of Simon’s kiss.

  On their drive up Government Hill, they’d seen no one but a few soldiers off in the distance. As Simon introduced her to the many exotic wonders of Singapore, it had felt as if they were off in a world of their own.

  She’d tried to concentrate on gaining information that might help her track down her brother, yet it troubled her to be keeping the truth from Simon. What would he think if he knew she had only used him to reach Singapore in search of Hugh? Could she risk confiding in him when he seemed so grimly determined to tell her as little as possible about his past?

  Those conflicting thoughts slipped into the background whenever some new sight caught her fancy. Every fresh wonder Simon showed her felt like a precious gift. In truth, they meant more to her than his fine house, his fortune or his position in the community.

  An even greater distraction was her deepening awareness of Simon as a man. It was difficult to concentrate on the things he was telling her when the mellow timbre of his voice caressed her ears. It was hard to take in the layout of the town when her gaze so often strayed to the strong lines of his profile. When he took her hand and stood close beside her, every particle of her flesh tingled in response to his nearness, and she could think of nothing else.

  She hadn’t been angling for a compliment when she said how strange it felt to be living so near a sultan’s palace. But when Simon had declared that she belonged in a palace, something inside her rose up and took wing. When he turned towards her and stared into her eyes, Bethan lost herself in his bracing blue gaze. The next thing she knew, he was leaning towards her, his lips slowly approaching.

  She quivered with anticipation.

  The passionate intensity of his advances their first evening together had bewildered and alarmed her. Or rather, it was her fierce response to him that had made her pull back as she would from a dangerous, fascinating flame. But she had not been able to forget the delicious heat of his mouth. The sultry smoothness of his lips and tongue. The lush sweet taste of mango pudding mingled with the smoky richness of Java coffee, both laced with a faint bitter tang all his own. Often since then, her lips had tingled with the memory of his kiss and her mouth had watered with a hunger for more.

  As she was about to get her wish, Bethan wondered if it would feel and taste as good the second time. When at last his lips grazed hers—inviting, promising, enticing—she was delighted to discover it thrilled her even more.

  Then, out of nowhere, the muttering of voices, the shuffling of feet and the muted rattle of chains shattered the intimacy of the moment.

  Who was coming? Who might have seen them? Much as she hated to break from Simon’s kiss, Bethan stiffened and pulled back, her gaze searching for the source of the sounds. It did not take long to discover.

  A dozen men, all wearing dun-coloured trousers, tunics and turbans, marched past them in a line. Each one was chained at the ankle to the man ahead of him and the one behind. As they filed past, with a pair of soldiers guarding them, the men stared at Simon and Bethan. Some of them grinned. Others sniggered.

  Bethan’s face felt as if she’d been bending over a roaring fire for several hours!

  “Who are they?” she asked when the line of men had shuffled on down the road and disappeared around the bend. “What were they doing up here?”

  “Convict labourers.” Simon scowled after them. “They must have been doing some work around the Resident’s bungalow.”

  “What sort of labourers?” Bethan wondered if she’d heard correctly.

  “Convicts from India.” Simon adjusted his neck linen. “A shipment of two hundred arrived a few months ago. The authorities there are relieved to save the cost of keeping them and it provides Singapore with cheap labour for public works.”

  “What did they do,” Bethan wondered aloud, “to deserve such a cruel sentence? I wonder how many of them will ever get back to their families?”

  She’d wanted to come to Singapore and had landed in the lap of luxury. Still she yearned to be reunited with her brother.

  “Perhaps they should have thought of that before they broke the law,” Simon growled. “There is too much crime in this part of the world…pirates…outlaws. What about that thief who stole your necklace? Don’t you want him caught and punished?”

  “I…suppose so,” Bethan muttered. Though Simon’s sudden severity troubled her, she wasn’t about to back down. “But I care more about getting my locket back than taking revenge against the man who took it. Come to that, I’d let him keep the locket if only he’d let me have the picture from inside it.”

  “That is very lenient of you.” Simon seemed taken aback by her response. “But if the thief escapes punishment, it will only encourage him to rob again or perhaps do worse. If there is to be any order in society, criminals must be punished.”

  His words made Bethan shudder.

  Simon took her arm again and turned toward the gharry.

  “We should be getting back to the house.” He spoke as if nothing had happened. “Cook will be in a temper if we’re late for dinner.”

  As they walked back to the gharry, then drove down the hill, Bethan struggled to concentrate on what Simon was saying. It was information about Singapore that she would have found fascinating half an hour ago. Now her thoughts were only half with him. Instead she pondered his comment about the punishment of criminals, relieved that she had not told him anything about her brother.

  Clearly, sh
e needed to keep her guard up around Simon Grimshaw.

  Cursing himself in a colourful mixture of languages, Simon returned home from work three days later.

  So much for his plan to win Bethan’s trust and engage her desire. Ever since he’d lost control of their kiss on Government Hill, she had seemed subdued, even skittish, around him. Her reaction convinced him more firmly than ever that her virginity must have been taken by force.

  Much as he hated to raise the distressing subject, Simon feared he had no choice. It took him a while to work his way around to it, though. He made several attempts during dinner to turn their safe small talk in a more serious direction, but all without success.

  Finally, when Ah-Ming withdrew after serving the sweet course of pandan cake, he swept aside his misgivings and tried again. “Er…I wanted to talk to you about…the other day…on Government Hill…and what happened. I fear I may have upset you.”

  “Not at all,” Bethan insisted. But the way she avoided his gaze and fumbled her cutlery contradicted her words. “I had a nice time.”

  Simon understood her reluctance to talk about what had happened, but now that he had broached the subject he could not drop it again without having his say. “I’m certain that is true for most of it. But there was one incident I know affected you. What is more, I believe I know why.”

  “You do?” All the colour drained from Bethan’s face.

  Simon nodded. “I guessed the very first night you arrived.”

  “You did?” Her voice sounded breathless.

  “It was quite obvious there must have been…difficulties in your past that led you to come here. I was reluctant to raise the subject at first, but in light of recent events I want to assure you that I do not hold you responsible in the least for what happened.”

  “You don’t?” She sounded bewildered..

  Did she not believe him capable of taking her part against one of his own sex? Had she assumed he would blame her for the mistreatment she’d suffered?