A limousine met them at the airport and they traveled in silence, Erin flipping through a magazine or at least pretending to, and Dare engrossed in whatever it was he was reading on his iPad.
About twenty minutes into their journey the limousine turned off the main road and drove through the stately gates of what looked like a resort. As Erin glanced up she frowned. This was not how she remembered the entrance to Sunsational Resort. She sat up and looked out the window. They were traveling up a palm-lined driveway that climbed a gentle hill and then the limousine turned and there she saw on the crest of the hill a majestic mansion that made her eyes widen. Huge palms graced its courtyard and framed the gleaming ivory walls and red and gold flowers were sprinkled amongst the rich green leaves that formed a soft carpet along its base. It had the look of an opulent tropical paradise.
Was this Dare’s home? Erin stole a quick glance at him and saw that he was watching her with hooded eyes. She turned away again. If he’d hoped to impress her he’d certainly done that, and more. She couldn’t imagine living in a place like this. The resort had been luxury enough.
The chauffeur slowed the car to a halt then came around to hold the door open for them. As he helped her out of the car Erin continued to stare, admittedly overwhelmed by the grandeur before her.
Then Dare was by her side. He took her hand in his and led her up the steps and into his lavish home. As they passed the threshold they heard the sound of hurried footsteps then a tiny woman with her hair pulled into a bun entered the foyer.
“Welcome, welcome Mrs. DeSouza. We’ve been expecting you.” Her eyes crinkled in a smile so bright Erin had to respond with a smile of her own. The woman had called her Mrs. DeSouza. It had sounded strange to her ears but that was who she was now - the mistress of the house. Sort of. She had to remind herself not to get carried away. Dare had brought her here under duress. This was anything but a fairy-tale marriage.
“Erin, this is Francine Lopez,” Dare said with a warm smile that was both surprising and refreshing. It was obvious that he had genuine regard for the woman. “She’s my right hand.”
“Oh, Senor Dare, you are too kind.” The woman smiled back at him then she turned her full attention to Erin. “I am the housekeeper. I have run this house for Senor Dare for the past four years but now that you are here, senora, you will give the orders.”
That brought a smile to Erin’s face. “I don’t think so,” she said with a little laugh.
“Oh, yes.” The housekeeper nodded emphatically. “The woman, she is in charge of the house. The man, he knows nothing about the house, only about making money.”
“Hey,” Dare objected with an exaggerated frown. “Are you saying all these years I thought I was in charge I really wasn’t?”
“That is so, Senor Dare. That is why you have me.”
There was a twinkle in Francine’s eyes that bore testament to the comfort she felt with her employer. Apparently Dare had a pleasant side, one that he reserved for a select few.
“Now come, let me take you upstairs to your suite. You must be tired after your journey." The housekeeper waved her hand and ushered her toward a wide, winding staircase.
Her suite? From the look of the house Erin could just imagine what that looked like. Could she survive more luxury in one day? But she had to admit, she’d loved the sound of the word, not because of the affluence it denoted but because it sounded like she’d be far removed from Dare DeSouza. Of course, he would have a suite of his own.
She glanced back at him and saw that he was still standing there, his gray eyes unreadable as he watched her climb the staircase. She hastened to turn her attention back to Francine and her friendly chatter.
She was now in the lion’s den. And she would best be prepared to face what was to come. She would seek refuge in this suite of hers and there she would rest up and then plot her next course of action. At the top of the list would be strategies to stay out of Dare’s way. Little did he know it but the man, dastardly though he was, still held a place in her heart. And that, more than anything, made him the most dangerous of foes.
***
Erin was grateful to find that the trials of her pregnancy seemed to be behind her. There were no more bouts of morning sickness, no dizzy spells, and her appetite had returned with a vengeance. She’d been on the island five days now and she and Francine had developed an automatic friendship that surprised her.
She learned that Francine Lopez was in her fifties, the mother of three grown sons who had all left the island for jobs in North America. One was an engineer working in Alaska for a major oil company, another was a professor at a community college in New Jersey, and the third had opened a business in Florida, a chain of dollar-concept stores. They all had families of their own and were doing well and Francine could not have been more proud.
Francine did admit, though, that at times she got lonely and wished that even one of them had remained on the island so that she could have her grandchildren around her. Visits to the United States a few times per year were just not enough. She was glad to have gotten this job with Senor DeSouza because she now came to see him almost as her own son. But she had been hinting - subtly, of course, because he was still her employer and it was not her place - that he might want to consider settling down and starting a family. Secretly she'd harbored the dream of seeing the house full of little ones. What a joy that would be. And now, as she’d told Erin, he had finally made the big step and brought home a wife. Now the house would be filled with the laughter of children.
Erin only smiled at Francine words. If only she knew how close she was to her dream. Well, she would know soon enough. A pregnancy was not something you could hide for long.
Today again, Erin was enjoying Francine’s company as she sat at the wrought iron table on the cobbled patio that looked out onto a kidney-shaped pool.
“You used sunscreen today, yes?” The older woman’s face showed a hint of concern. “The sun, it is very strong today and your skin looks delicate. You must protect yourself.”