Sail With Me (A Discovery Series Book) (20 page)

“Charlie, dear,” Citlali began, “are you all right?”

“I’m fine.” Everyone’s eyes were on me. Turning toward Yaretzi beside me,
I said, “Let’s go. I am eager to see the menagerie.”

Time. I needed some time to clear the air. To not think for a little
while. A tour with Tizoc’s sisters was the distraction I needed.

“Enjoy yourselves.” Citlali rose from the head of the table. “Yaoti and I
will be waiting for you this evening. We hardly had the chance to talk at the feast
last night, large as it was. Tonight, we dine here. My family and yours.” She
pulled me into a comforting hug then released me to Yaretzi who scooped up my
hand.

“Bye, Charlie,” Daniel said.

I so wanted a kiss from his enchanting lips, but courtesy stood in our
way.

“Bye.” I waved to him, thinking this was the first time we would be apart
for an entire day since I had met him. I had worked so closely with him on the
Rose.
Spent most of each day with him.

It’s one day,
Tizoc thoughts echoed in my head.
You will see
him tonight.

Stop it!
I warned.

He raised an eyebrow and grinned. Turning to Daniel, he said, “The armory
is this way.” He coaxed Daniel away from me and off the patio. Yaretzi shook
her head at her brother. Were they
talking
using their minds? It was all
so confusing!

I followed Yaretzi in the opposite direction, but not without giving
another glance toward Daniel walking away with Tizoc. I hoped a day together
would not be too much for them.

As I strolled through the Sunal menagerie, Tizoc’s sisters took turns
telling me about all the birds, reptiles, and mammals in the varied
collections. I soaked in the information and all the sights, marveling at how
beautiful everything was. Many fantastic animals I had never seen back in
England populated the menagerie. A display featuring both salt and fresh water
creatures particularly interested me.      

Had Eric and Riley ever seen anything like this marvelous city? Was
Florida as magnificent? Had any place my father had sailed to compared to the
exquisite beauty of Ezenoch?

We exited the menagerie and wandered through a botanical garden like no
other. Lady Elizabeth’s gardens had been impressive, but the variety in the
Sunal gardens produced something magical. Pleasing to the eyes and the nose,
the gardens stretched out in many directions, spilling color and fragrance
everywhere.     

“Oh, this is lovely.” I inhaled, filling my lungs with the perfumed aroma
of flowers.

“Do you have gardens in England?” Eréndira ran her fingers along the
petals of a bright orange flower next to her.

“Yes. Ones I thought were marvelous until I saw these.”

Wide smiles stretched across each of the sisters’ faces as we meandered
through the gardens.

My day with them passed quickly as we visited all of our stops. We bought
food for tonight’s dinner at an outdoor marketplace and lugged it all back to
Tizoc’s home. I helped Citlali and the sisters prepare the food, impressing
them with my cooking skills. I was happy to show them some of my techniques. It
was a beginning in repaying them for their generosity.

“
Cihuapilli.
” Citlali had taken to calling me princess, and I
enjoyed the nickname. Especially when Tizoc said it. “Do you know what these
are?” She held up something round from a basket at her feet.

“Apples,” I answered, taking it from her.

“We have this basket of them from an expedition that visited here before
you came. We have eaten them like this, skin and all. We have sliced them and
dried them and mashed them. Do you know of any other ways to prepare apples?”

Thinking of Daniel, I smiled. “I know exactly what to do with them.” I
glanced around the kitchen at other available ingredients. “I think I can make
it work.” I picked up the end of my skirt and selected ten of the best looking
apples, placing them in the fold of my skirt. “How many will be here for dinner
tonight?”

“We will have fourteen people,” Xochitl said.

“Fourteen?”

“Our mates will be returning,” she said. “They are from another
calpulli
,
or clan, you would call it. The emperor sent them to the west shores, but we
received word they are on their way back. We will go back to our homes with
them tomorrow. We only stay here when they are away.”

“I see.” I dumped my first bunch of apples on a table and selected ten
more.

“You and Daniel are not the only ones that have love,” Xochitl said with
a grin.

“I have been caught up in my feelings for him, I guess.” Just thinking of
him stirred my insides. My heart always beat extra hard when Daniel was around.
Sleeping wrapped in his arms all last night was the closest I’d been to content
in a long time.

“You’re certain Daniel is the mate for you?” Yaretzi asked.

The rest of the sisters and even Citlali paused in their work to look at
me.

“I’m sure.”
 

“Mmm,” Teiuc hummed. “That will not stop Tizoc, you understand. Be easy
on him. He is a hardened warrior on the outside, but his heart is fragile.
Always has been.”

A curl of… what was it? Guilt, I suppose, swirled around me. I tried to
shake it off, but it clutched tightly. Tizoc deserved a love, deep and
complete. Surely a Sunal woman could give him that.

I set about peeling the apples, wanting to keep my mind busy so I
wouldn’t accidentally link to Tizoc’s now that I was thinking about him.

“What else do you need,
Cihuapilli
?” Citlali asked.

Yaretzi fetched the remaining ingredients for me, though some
substitutions had to be made. I peeled and chopped. Mixed and filled. I threw
all I had into my work, and some time later, two apple pies—slightly different
from the ones found in England—sat on the table.

Eréndira took in a deep sniff. “The kitchen smells like—”  

“Apple pie,” Daniel’s voice finished.

He appeared in the doorway adjacent to the patio. Tizoc was behind him,
both looking to be in good spirits.

“You made apple pie.” Daniel’s expression softened as he walked over to
me.

“Different from our mothers’,” I said. “But I think it’ll still be
delicious.” 

“I’m sure it will be.” He brushed something off my cheek with his finger.
“I can’t wait to taste it.”

“Well, you have to,” Citlali said. “Dinner is at sundown and that is
still a time away.”

Daniel pouted so only I could see him, causing me to giggle. Tizoc walked
into the kitchen and checked the fire in the wide stone hearth. He seemed to be
forcing himself not to look in my direction.  

“Come with me.” Daniel nudged me off the stool I was sitting on. “I want
to tell you about what I saw today and hear about what you saw.”

“Go on,
Cihuapilli
,” Citlali said. “You’ve helped more than you
needed to. Don’t be late to dinner.”

Nodding, I followed Daniel, but he stopped before we left.

“Thank you, Tizoc. I enjoyed myself today.”

Tizoc looked up, the fire from the hearth glinting off his eyes. “I did
as well.”

A glance passed between them as if they had reached an understanding, a
truce perhaps.

Daniel led me out of the house and down the street. We passed several
Sunal warriors and citizens along the way that bowed their heads to us. We also
encountered a few members of our crew that shouted greetings to Daniel and
tipped their hats at me.

I paused to look at where Daniel had taken me. Water gurgled a soothing
melody in a stone fountain with a wide walkway circling it. More colorful
flowers like the ones I had seen in the gardens earlier adorned the fountain, and
birdsong floated in the air.

“Oh, it’s beautiful, Daniel.”

“I knew you would like this spot.” He studied my face for a moment before
we both sat on the rim of the fountain. “Tizoc took me to the armory which was
impressive. The Sunal army is well stocked, and the training is rigorous. I
visited a school also where the boys were learning history, religion, and
military skills. Some of them were learning about agriculture. One of the farms
I saw had corn growing in it for as far as I could see.”

I closed my eyes, letting the sound of Daniel’s voice wash over me. I
could spend a lifetime listening to him.

“Girls go to school too,” he continued. “I saw some that were learning
how to dye fabric. Quite a process.” He paused then said, “It’s incredible
here.”

He shifted his blue gaze toward me, and I could tell his day seeing
Ezenoch had touched him deeply. In a quick motion, he scooped up both of my
hands in his left one and stared into my face.

“What do you think, Charlie, of staying here for a while? I know my uncle
will probably stay for a short time, but he’ll be moving along to find my
cousin, Ronald, and to deliver the supplies before returning to England. I’d
like to remain here longer. Something about this place is perfect. I want to
enjoy it. Enjoy it with you. Will you stay with me?”

I pulled one of my hands free to press it to Daniel’s cheek. “Of course
I’ll stay here with you.” I ran my thumb along his cheekbone. “I want to be
wherever you are. I can’t think of a more beautiful place for us to be
together.”

Daniel leaned forward, his grin threatening to melt me once again. He
caught my lips with his, and I knew I truly did want to be wherever he was.

“What did you see today?” he asked when he pulled away.

I told him of my day with Tizoc’s sisters and that there would be four
additional guests at tonight’s meal.

“Only Tizoc has yet to find a mate.” Again, that guilty sensation poured
over me.

“I think he has an idea of who he’d like his mate to be.” Daniel leaned
back on his arm to look into the fountain.

“He knows I love you.” I traced the veins on Daniel’s hand with my
fingertip.

“Let’s hope so.”

“I’ve told him. More than once. He knows, Daniel.”

“Well, he knows I love you.”

“What did you say to him today?” A worried feeling fluttered around in my
stomach. Tizoc had to see that he and I could only be friends, but I didn’t
want to be the cause of any pain to him.

I don’t want to hurt you, Tizoc,
I thought in the deepest recesses
of my subconscious.

I know
, came the response I hadn’t expected.

I didn’t mean to reach out to Tizoc. It just happened. I could feel him
waiting for me to think something more. The link was open. We were connected.

You deserve someone who was made for you. Someone who is going to give
you all of her love.

Xochitl said that very thing to me after you left.

She’s right.

My head knows she’s right, but my heart doesn’t agree. I’ve never met
anyone like you.

I shook my head.
As I’ve said before, you don’t know me.

I want to know you,
Cihuapilli
, but I see that you and Daniel belong
together. He is a good man and will treat you like the princess you are. I, on
the other hand, will be content to protect you if that is what I am bound to
do.

I sensed the amusement in his thoughts.
I’ve become a mere duty then?

Not a duty. Friends, Charlie. We will be friends.

For a long time, I hope.

For a long time, I promise.
He ended the link, and the sound of
Daniel’s voice reached my ears.

“… getting back to the house.” And then, “Charlie? You coming?”

“Yes.” I focused on Daniel standing in front of me. I rose and gave the fountain
one more glance. “A lovely place. A lovely people.”

Daniel led me back to the street. The sun was sliding to its resting
place below the horizon, and we quickened our pace back to the house. The
kitchen was full of waiting food but empty of people.

“They must be cleaning up for dinner,” I said.

“As should we.” He tugged me toward the steps leading upstairs.

With a parting kiss, Daniel and I slipped into our respective rooms.
Inside the walls of my quarters, I walked over to the full washbasin on the
small table in front of the polished obsidian. I freshened up and met Daniel
back in the hallway.

When we arrived on the patio, Citlali turned away from Tizoc and spread
her arms out to Daniel and me. She embraced us both and waved a hand to the
table where the rest of her family was gathered.

“More introductions are necessary.” Yaoti rose from his place at the head
of the table. He turned to Xochitl who was seated beside a bulky looking Sunal
male. A simple vest of dark purple fabric covered his upper body, which was all
I could see of his attire. He smiled, revealing a set of gleaming white teeth
and a jovial expression.

“This is Acalon,” Xochitl said, resting her hand on her mate’s shoulder.

Acalon tilted his head toward Daniel and me. “Xochitl has told me about
you both. You are enjoying our city, yes?”

His coal black eyes searched our faces, waiting for our reply.

“We saw quite a bit of it today,” Daniel began as he approached the
table, “and it is impressive.”

Acalon smiled again, wider this time, pleased with our appreciation for
Ezenoch.

“My brothers,” he announced, indicating the other Sunal males sitting
next to Tizoc’s sisters. “Chimalli, Itzli, and Matlal.”

Each of the men were dressed similarly to Acalon but in colors matching
their mates. Blue for Chimalli and Teiuc. Red for Itzli and Eréndira. Green for
Matlal and Yaretzi. Yaoti and Citlali also corresponded in pure white. Daniel
and I did not match, and I felt as if I were back at one of Lady Elizabeth’s
fancy dinners where I did not belong.

Looking around, I noticed that no one matched Tizoc’s attire either, gold
tonight. 

Shaking my head at my own disorganized emotions, I dragged Daniel over to
two of the four empty seats. After we got settled and Xochitl had poured
drinks, Captain Finley appeared on the patio.

“Good evening.” He took the seat next to Daniel. “I have come from the
accommodations you have given to the rest of my crew that arrived today. Yaoti,
your kindness is without limits. My men are comfortable and in awe of your fantastic
city.”

Yaoti held up his glass in acknowledgement. “They came with only daggers
as you did, Captain. Your men trust you deeply.”

“Most of them have been with me on the
Rose
for many years. All
good men and loyal to a fault. Know how to follow orders.” Captain Finley
patted his nephew on the shoulder. 

The only open seat left was next to me. As Daniel and the captain
discussed matters of the crew, Tizoc stood next to his mother. His eyes, of
course, were on me, looking more golden because of the garments he wore
tonight.

As he studied me, I lowered my eyes to the seat next to me then looked
back at him. He lithely crossed the distance between us and sat. Daniel didn’t
grumble about it, and I raised an eyebrow in wonder.

What did he say to you today?
I thought, looking at Tizoc.

Lots of things,
came the reply, a hint of amusement in the
thoughts and on his lips.

He’s been jealous of you. Now, all of a sudden, he seems less so.

We came to an agreement.

What does that mean?

Anything you want it to.

You’re not being helpful.