Rebecca Hagan Lee (30 page)

“Mr. Jack gave us chicken and noodles from Ming’s. They were wonderful, but he wouldn’t let us eat too much on account of having to go to the privy all night if you eat too much after not eating much at all.” She beamed at Julie. “I didn’t know about that.” She sighed. “I haven’t had too much to eat in a long time.” She turned to Will. “Mr. Jack wasn’t being mean. He promised that we could eat as much as we wanted when we got where we’re going. He said that there would be cookies and cakes and bread and jam whenever we want. Is it true, Will?”

Will swallowed the lump in his throat. “It’s true.”

Handing Julie her empty mug, Kathleen stood up and flung herself against Will and wrapped her arms around his neck. “Thank you, Will. I’m so tired of being hungry, so tired of the gentlemen at those bawdy houses promising me something to eat if only I would . . .” She looked over at Julie and whispered, “You
know
. That’s how I got my black eye. I wouldn’t do it.”

Will choked and turned it into a cough.

“One of the gentlemen callers at Miss Francie’s hit me,” Kathleen continued. “And Miss Francie beat me and sold me to Miss Li Toy for causing her bother. And Miss Li Toy beat me for not working hard enough and sold me at the auction and here I am. I reckon you know how it is, miss, seeing how you’ve got bruises around your eye, too.”

Julie nodded.

“You didn’t hit her, did you, Will?” Kathleen asked.

“Oh, no!” Julie protested. “Mr. Keegan would never hit a woman. He likes women.”

“And little girls?”

“Yes,” Julie assured her.

“In the good way? Or the bad way?” Kathleen wanted to know.

“In the good way,” Julie said.

Kathleen hugged him tighter. “You and Mr. Jack are the only men who’ve been nice to me since Da died.” And with that the eleven-year-old fell asleep on Will’s lap.

Kathleen’s revelations nearly broke Will’s heart. He gave Julie a rueful smile. “I seem to have this effect on little girls.”

“You mean girls have a habit of falling asleep in your arms?” she teased.

“Only after,” Will answered.

“After what?” Julie asked.

“After I kiss them good night.” Leaning over, Will brushed his lips against Kathleen’s blond hair.

“Oh
.
”

Will smiled at her. “You look tired and sleepy.”

“Do I?”

He nodded. “You look as if you could fall asleep in my arms.”

Julie looked at him from beneath the cover of her eyelashes. “Does that mean I get a good-night kiss?”

“Would you like one?” His warm brown eyes twinkled with mischief.

“I’d like nothing better.”

“Then I’ll do my best not to disappoint you.” Shifting Kathleen in his arms, Will leaned closer to Julie.

Closing her eyes, she met him halfway. “You could never disappoint me. . . .”

An hour and a half after they left the ferry and boarded the private railroad car, the train chugged into the small town of Coryville, California.

A carriage waited at the depot as they departed from the train. Julie followed Lan Chu and Gan Que off the train. Will followed Irina and Chava. He carried Kathleen, who had slept through the train ride—probably her first, and one she would have enjoyed ever so much.

He smiled at the thought. There would be more train rides and more excitement for her from now on, and none of it involved having lecherous grown men attempt to violate her innocence. Unless he missed his guess, he would bet that Kathleen would soon become a member of the Craig household, and if she didn’t, Will swore he’d make a good home for her himself. And he’d see that the other girls got the education and the training they needed to be successful. Or, if they wanted, he’d see that they were returned to their homelands. He and . . .

He stared at Julia Jane’s back as she walked ahead of him. He and Julia Jane . . . He and
Julie . . .

A short while later, the closed carriage that met them at the Coryville railway station deposited them at the rear entrance of the home of the owner and president of Craig Capital, Ltd., James Cameron Craig.

James and his wife, Elizabeth, met them at the back door.

“Will!” Elizabeth rushed forward to hug him as he passed the little girl he was holding off to James. “Welcome home! We’ve missed you!”

Home?
Julie stared at the exterior of the beautiful house, with its lovely landscaped garden and paved terraces surrounding the back. This was his home away from the saloon? She glanced over at Will and her heart nearly turned over in her chest. She had known he was a gentleman, had known there was more to him than simply being the owner of the Silken Angel Saloon, before he’d explained that in addition, he and Jack worked for Craig Capital, Ltd., but she hadn’t expected him to have a family in a town like this.

Will hugged Elizabeth, inhaling the scent that was unique to her. Once the smell of her perfume had the power to make him ache with longing, just as he had ached with longing for Mei Ling all those years ago.

Five months ago, he’d left Coryville because he’d been afraid he was falling in love with James’s second wife the way he had fallen in love with his first one, but now all he felt for Beth was the deep abiding love for a dear friend. There was nothing romantic in it. He didn’t desire her. What he felt for Elizabeth Sadler Craig paled in comparison to the love and desire he felt for Julia Jane Parham.

James shifted the sleeping child to his left hip with the ease of long practice and offered his right hand to Will. “Good to see you, Will.”

Will shook James’s hand, then retrieved the sleeping Kathleen. “Good to see you, too. I’ve missed you both. And the Treasures.” He glanced around. “Where are the little darlings?”

“Upstairs in the nursery with Delia,” Elizabeth said. “It’s nap time. Oh, Will, wait until you see Diamond. She’s walking.”

“And talking,” James added.

“Diamond?” Will was clearly surprised. “When I left, she was babbling gibberish and still crawling.”

“She got tired of being left behind.” James laughed. “One day she simply stood up and walked. Now she talks and follows the others everywhere, much to Ruby’s dismay.” He fixed his attention on Julie. “I beg your pardon, but we seem to have forgotten our manners.” He’d thought, at first, that she was Chinese. She was dressed in the clothing worn by Chinese peasant girls: a white cotton tunic and black trousers, with white stockings and black cotton shoes. Her hair was braided into a neat queue and hung down her back. She had been careful to keep her eyes downcast except when she looked at Will. James noticed right away when she did that her heart was in her cornflower-blue eyes. He’d lived in Hong Kong most of his life, and he’d seen many strange things, but he’d never seen a Chinese woman with cornflower-blue eyes. “I’m James Cameron Craig and this is my wife, Elizabeth.”

“James Cameron Craig of Craig Capital, Ltd.?” she asked in a crisp British inflection that was almost identical to James’s.

“You’ve heard of us?” James inquired.

“Of course,” Julie answered. “I grew up in Hong Kong.”

He glanced over at his good friend. “You’ve been remiss in introducing us, Will.”

Will nearly laughed at James’s rebuke, because it sounded exactly like one of his mother’s. He made formal introductions even though James had already made informal ones. “Miss Julia Jane Parham, may I introduce you to my very dear friends, James Cameron Craig and his wife, Elizabeth Sadler Craig.”

“Parham?” James inquired. “Commodore Parham’s daughter?”

“The same,” Julie replied.

“What on earth are you doing here dressed like that?” James asked.

“Helping Will Keegan deliver precious cargo.” She smiled. “May I present Lan Chu and Gan Que from Hunan province, and Irina and Chava, late of the Ukraine, who have yet to reveal their surnames, and the sleeping beauty, Miss Kathleen O’Flaherty of the Strawberry Mining Camp?” She turned to the girls and translated. “Mr. and Mrs. Craig.”

The Chinese girls bowed respectfully, and the Russian girls curtsied. Kathleen slept undisturbed. Julie reached out and touched the toe of her scuffed, too-big brogans.

“Shall we go inside?” Elizabeth invited, turning to lead the way into the house by way of the kitchen.

She led them through the kitchen and up the stairs to the nursery, where Will left Kathleen in the capable hands of Delia, the governess’s helper, and the new governess, Miss Kittredge, a teacher from the same Providence school where Elizabeth had been a teacher before moving to California and meeting James Craig.

“I thought you might be tired after your journey and would like to freshen up before luncheon,” Elizabeth said to Julie. “We’ll get the other girls settled into their rooms and I’ll show you to yours.”

Julie looked at Elizabeth and frowned. “I’m afraid I’ve nothing else to wear.”

Overhearing that part of her conversation with Beth, Will handed her the knapsack he’d carried on his back since they left the Silken Angel. “I think you’ll find most of what you need in there. If there’s anything else, ask Beth. She’ll see that you have everything.”

Julie took the knapsack. “Beth?”

Elizabeth laughed. “Me. Everyone calls me Elizabeth except Will. He’s always shortened my name to Beth.”

Julie joined her in the strained laughter that was all she could manage these days. “Everyone calls me Julie except Will. He usually calls me by my full name, Julia Jane.”

Will looked over and met her gaze. Heat sizzled between them. “Because you introduced yourself to me as Julia Jane Parham the first time we met. I thought it suited you.”

“Not as well as your other name for me,” she teased.

“Oh?” James quirked an eyebrow in query, his curiosity piqued by this new side of Will and the reason for it.

“Typhoon Julia,” she said, laughter evident in her throaty voice. “He and Jack named me Typhoon Julia behind my back.”

“Affectionately, of course,” Will added.

“Of course,” she confirmed, before she waved to the gentlemen and followed Elizabeth as she led Lan Chu, Gan Que, Irina, and Chava to guest rooms down the hall in the nursery wing, where Miss Kittredge and Delia had their suites of rooms.

Chapter Thirty-three

“Accept the things to which fate binds you, and love the people with whom fates brings you together, but do so with all your heart.”

—MARCUS AURELIUS, A.D. 121–180

Y
ou’ve been busy,” James said as he and Will lounged on comfortable leather chairs savoring whiskeys in James’s study. Elizabeth had shown Julie to the suite of rooms connected to Will’s suite, in the wing opposite the one she and James and the nursery occupied, and Julie had retired to rest and bathe before luncheon.

Will smiled a cat-that-ate-the-cream smile. “Jack said the same thing to me yesterday.”

“Jack usually knows about which he speaks.”

“That he does,” Will commented agreeably, as he sipped a very fine Scots single-malt. He savored the smooth feel of it as it burned its way down his throat.

“His telegram was quite informative.”

“I’ll bet,” Will retorted. “It’s been an eventful few weeks.”

It was James’s turn to laugh. “Tell me all about it. And let’s start with the Russ House Hotel. I hear you called in the overdue note and purchased it with your own money instead of the firm’s.”

“That’s correct,” Will told him. “And I’m prepared to offer you equal shares in the venture if you’re interested.”

James considered. “I may be. But before we discuss that, may I ask what possessed you to buy the hotel and fire the manager?”

“I caught Mr. Palmer mistreating a Chinese laundry girl who had gone to the hotel to collect laundry from a guest.”

James frowned. “I’ve never been overly fond of Palmer or he of me—especially after I kicked my bedroom door in when Elizabeth locked me out of it last year—but the hotel runs smoothly, and I believe he’s reasonably competent, if not good at his job.”

“Have you ever taken the Treasures there?” Will answered.

“No.” James shuddered in mock horror. “I don’t want to think about the chaos that might ensue. They’re far too young to be trusted to behave in the manner the hotel expects and the guests require.”

“Did you know the Russ House has a ‘no Celestials’ policy?” Will posed the question in a calm, matter-of-fact tone of voice and waited for James’s reaction.

“
What?”
James was clearly surprised.

“The Treasures wouldn’t be allowed inside the front door—or the back, for that matter. That’s one of the reasons I called in the overdue note,” Will explained. “The hotel was enforcing a policy that barred Chinese from the premises. Not to mention the fact that their security left a great deal to be desired. Julie was a registered guest there when she was attacked by an unknown assailant.” He clenched his fists in helpless frustration at the memory. “She escaped before her attacker succeeded in killing her. He damn near accomplished his task as it was. The only reason she escaped is that she managed to brain him with a two-pound tin of chocolates, head-butt him, and kick him in the knee.”

“So that’s what happened to her face,” James said. “I wondered.”

“If you think it looks bad now, you should have seen it a fortnight ago,” Will told him. “And her face is not the worst of it. Her body is a collection of healing cuts and bruises. She has a sprained wrist, bruised ribs, and two stab wounds.”

“Ouch!”

“Ouch is right,” Will continued. “She’s wrapped from her waist to her chest. Wearing dresses that require a corset and petticoats is out of the question.”

“Hence the Chinese peasant costume,” James concluded, taking a sip of his whiskey.

“She wore the tunic and trousers because we were traveling through the tunnels, but the fact is that until a few days ago, tunic and trousers and Chinese cheongsams were the only things she could wear. And then only while wearing that hideous wig.”

“Wig?” James looked puzzled. “That’s not her hair?”

“No. Her hair is a glorious dark red, but there’s a bounty on her. Li Toy paid a policeman to kill her. That’s why she was attacked at the Russ House. Li Toy fled the city for China, but she didn’t cancel the contract. Julie’s not safe in San Francisco. She has to wear the wig because she’s too easy to recognize with her shining hair, but she refuses to leave until she completes her mourning for her friend Su Mi.

“We got your letter and were very sorry to hear about her friend,” James said.

Will nodded.

James got up from his chair, walked to the sideboard, and refilled his glass from a crystal whiskey decanter. He held the decanter up so Will could see it.

Will shook his head. “I’d better not.”

“That’s right,” James remembered. “According to the telegram I received last week, you also had a close call at the hands of Madam Harpy.”

“If she wanted to kill me I’d be dead,” Will affirmed. “It was a strange sort of warning. Li Toy was letting me know that she considered me to be her special friend.”

“I don’t want to think about that abomination for fear of losing my breakfast,” James replied.

“How would you like to be the object of her affection?” Will posed the question.

“It doesn’t bear thinking on.” James looked at him. “I’m just so glad that you’re alive. And so obviously happy.”

“Crazy, isn’t it?” Will said. “I ran from Coryville to San Francisco as fast as I could because I was dreaming about your wife—your wives—and was afraid I was falling in love with Beth.” He looked at Jamie. “And the strangest thing happened. A Salvationist missionary girl invaded my saloon, my life, and my heart. I’m not sure quite how it happened, but suddenly I find myself in uncharted territory for the first time in my life.”

“I can see that,” James said.

“I’ve dreamed of Mei Ling for as long as I can remember, and the dreams became more real after she died. When she started to transform into Elizabeth in my dreams, it scared the hell out of me. To think I could make the same mistake twice . . .”

“And now?” James asked.

“All my dreams—sleeping and waking—are filled with Julie.” He smiled at the thought. “I love her, Jamie.”

James knew how much it had cost Will to make that admission. “From what I’ve observed, the feeling is mutual.”

Will shot him a smile.

“You should see how she looks at you when you aren’t aware of it,” James said. “Now why don’t you tell me how you met?”

Will complied, telling him everything that had happened since Julia Jane Parham had marched into the Silken Angel Saloon singing “Bringing in the Sheaves” and banging her tambourine. Since she’d barged into his place of business and left with his heart.

“I thought I would die when Zhing Wu told me Julie had left the safety of the Silken Angel to confront Madam Harpy,” Will said. “And my heart skipped a beat when I walked through the door of that hellhole of a cellar and found her.”

James leaned over and clapped Will on the shoulder. “I’m afraid your condition is incurable, my friend. I feel the same way about Elizabeth.”

“I never knew love could be so overwhelming or so completely terrifying,” Will said. “The thought of losing Julie . . .”

“Is enough to drive you mad—if you let it,” James told him.

“How do you survive?”

James laughed. “You don’t survive. You live with it.” He looked Will in the eyes. “Living with it is the key. For better or for worse. And I promise you it’s worth it. All the pain, all the terror, all the chaos are nothing compared to the love and the joy and the pleasure and the deep sense of belonging they give us. And that feeling is the holy grail and the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow all rolled into one. It’s what we spend our lives searching for, why we fight dragons and tilt at windmills and rescue the damsels in distress. We give them our hearts, Will, and they give us the world and all its endless possibilities.”

* * *

THE CHILDREN HAD EATEN LUNCHEON IN THE NURSERY. THE
adults and the older girls had taken advantage of the unusually mild day and had eaten on the terrace. James and Elizabeth, Will and Julie had watched as the girls all got acquainted.

Delia did her best to put the Chinese and Russian girls at ease as they scampered across the lawn chasing the Treasures, James and Elizabeth’s adopted Chinese daughters—Ruby, Garnet, Emerald, and Diamond—who, upon seeing him, had run to him at full speed shouting, “Will! Will!”

When they reached him the three oldest Treasures had flung their arms around his legs and hugged him, while Diamond had lifted her arms in a gesture demanding that Will bend and pick her up so she could love him.

Ruby had demanded treats. “What you bwing us, Will?” And they had been rewarded when Will magically produced penny candy from his waistcoat pockets. Kathleen had stood off to one side watching the scene, until Will beckoned her closer by dangling pieces of candy from his fingers to tempt her. Soon she was caught up in the thick of things, demanding treats like the other little girls, following six-year-old Ruby’s lead, learning how to play like a child again.

James, Elizabeth, Will, and Julie joined the girls in fierce games of lawn croquet. The Treasures were veterans of family lawn croquet tournaments. The new girls had never seen the game, but they were eager to join in, and the game proved to be the miracle necessary to bridge the cultural and language barriers.

It was a glorious Sunday afternoon. Julie had forsaken her wig after her bath and donned the sky-blue cheongsam Will had packed in his knapsack for her.

When they tired of lawn croquet, the girls had played tag and hide-and-seek in the late-afternoon sunshine; the young ones had hidden and the older girls, led by Delia, had gone in search of them. And then they’d reversed the procedure. The wide expanse of back lawn was filled with the laughter and squeals of ten girls.

And when Elizabeth clapped her hands and rang a silver dinner bell, the girls had come running to find an elegant dessert table filled with cookies and cakes prepared by James and Elizabeth’s housekeeper, Helen Glenross, along with the vat of ice cream James and Will had taken turns churning.

Kathleen O’Flaherty, blue eyes sparkling and face flushed with color, had run to Will and flung herself at him. “Oh, Mr. Will, this is the most wonderful place and the most wonderful day in my whole life! Thank you for bringing me here!”

Will’s eyes had shimmered with unshed tears, and it had taken him long minutes after Kathleen scampered off to inspect the dessert table to regain control. He was standing on the terrace, almost overcome with emotion, when Julie slipped her hand in his to let him know that she understood how much this afternoon meant to him.

Supper had been soup and sandwiches, and everyone had pitched in to help with the cleanup. It was a traditional Sunday afternoon at Craig House, with the entire day devoted to family and friends.

* * *

“I DON’T BELIEVE I’VE EVER SEEN WILL HAPPY,” ELIZABETH
said as she sat at her dressing table brushing her hair in preparation for bed.

“It’s been a long time,” James agreed.

“I like her,” Elizabeth told him. “She’s exactly the sort of woman he needs.”

“What sort of woman is that?” James was eager to hear Elizabeth’s assessment.

“The sort who will challenge him, who will keep him on his toes and love him with all her heart.”

“Do you think that’s the case here?” James asked.

“I know it is,” Elizabeth told him. “Because Julie looks at Will the way I look at you.”

James smiled and pulled his wife down onto his lap in front of the fire, where he’d sat watching as she’d brushed her hair and readied herself for bed. It was a shame she had gone to so much trouble to find the perfect nightgown, because he was about to dispense with it in order to make love to her. “It’s a shame she and Will are relegated to separate rooms.”

“They’re not.”

“What?”

“I put her in the suite that connects to Will’s in the bachelor’s wing.” She looped her arms around her husband’s neck. “We didn’t observe strict proprieties before we married, and I wouldn’t deny either one of them the pleasure of this.” Leaning forward, Elizabeth planted a kiss on James’s mouth. Seconds later, he untied the drawstring ribbon at the neck of her nightgown and shoved it over her shoulders, past her waist, and eventually over her hips and down her legs, where it puddled on the floor, forgotten.