The shell beads? In the dark they glistened and gave a faint tinkling sound. All the time and care Watseka had spent crafting the beads—was it for them?
Xander took the gift as Oceanus looked on, perhaps as mystified as Selah herself. Lifting one strand of beads, Xander put them over Selah’s head, where they cascaded down her bodice.
“A gift,” he told her. The other strand he wore. Against his dark blue doublet, they made a striking contrast.
Without a word, the children slipped back into the hedgerow, leaving them alone again. “You’re smiling.” She set down her plate and fingered the new necklace. “You welcome the gift of her hands and heart.”
He took her fingers in his. “I welcome the meaning behind it especially.”
“Oh? All I see are beautiful beads that took a little girl a very long time to fashion into something wearable. That itself is remarkable. Is there more?”
He gave a nod. “Watseka is wiser than her years.” He took the shells from around his neck and slowly wrapped them around their joined hands. “In a Powhatan wedding ceremony, beads encircle the bride and groom. Such symbolizes unity. Hearts as one.”
“Hearts as one ...” Joy sang through her at his poetic phrasing. “Beautiful ... romantic.”
With a mesmerizing slowness, he unwound the beads binding them and placed them again about his neck, thenhe stood and brought her to her feet. They were so close she could feel the beads bedecking them through their garments. Was that his heart she also felt? Or her own, pulsing like a hare released from a snare?
He bent his head, kissing her as she’d never dreamt of being kissed. ’Twas a declaration. A whirlwind of sensations and emotions. Gone was the uncertainty, the hesitation.
“Selah ... I am taking this as youraye.”
“Aye,” she echoed. “Aye to everything.”
She kissed him back, so many kisses she soon lost count of them. Lost in the moment. In the sweet exclusivity of his embrace.
When they drew slightly apart, she felt bereft. Foreheads touching, they welcomed the new world that had just opened to them, no longer two separate souls but nearly one.
“Lest my aunt send out a search party for me”—the amused lament in his tone brought her to her senses—“I’d best return to my guests.”
His lips met hers a final time before he left her. She followed him with her gaze, waiting to make a discreet entrance herself. Dancers swirled past the tall windows of the new wing as she made her way toward the portico and her parents, nearly colliding with Nurse Lineboro.
“Oceanus needs to be abed. The hour is growing late.” Her pointed gaze took in Watseka flitting about with the other children. “I’m afraid his companion grows wilder by the hour.”
Downcast, Oceanus looked at Selah, his high spirits gone. Knowing she had little say in the matter, Selah simply called for Watseka and took her hand.
“What are those curious beads around your neck?” Nurse Lineboro asked.
“The work of Watseka, fashioned from shells.” Smiling down at her, Selah relived the tender moment all over again.
“A far cry from the Virginia pearls one hears about.” Nurse Lineboro turned away, leaving Selah hoping Watseka had no grasp of the sour words.
Seeking a diversion, Selah pointed toward the house. “Shall we try some comfits I spy coming from the kitchen?”
Intercepting the large tray, they sampled the sweets, Watseka wide-eyed despite the late hour. Above their heads the moon foretold eleven o’clock. A few guests were departing, but the merriment carried on for most. Near the summer kitchen came the bellowing voice of McCaskey, telling a shipboard tale that made Selah want to cover Watseka’s ears. With the sheriff on hand, the factor might well be arrested for public drunkenness.
Selah led her further from the noise. “Let us stay outdoors. Soon we shall take our leave.”
As pine torches were replaced, the light of one illuminated Helion Laurent stepping off the portico. Would the darkness hide her? Nay. He approached, his swagger loosened by spirits. Rum, from the potent smell of it.
“Ah, Mistress Hopewell. So soon away?”
She drew Watseka nearer. “The hour grows late.”
“A pity soon consoled. Now that I’m residing upriver, I shall see you again soon enough.”
Dismay lodged like a stone inside her. Few welcomed the news that Laurent was spending more time upriver away from the hornet’s nest that was James Towne. “Will you turn farmer as well as physic?”
“I have an eye toward my future.” Reaching out, he lifted the beads from her bodice in a startling display of familiarity.“I daresay your jewelry is most peculiar. Surely there is a story behind it.”
