Her Holiday Miracle

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He grinned. ‘You’re probably right.’

Rebecca sent him a fleeting, thoughtful glance. Was it possible William was more perceptive than she’d given him credit for? Maybe through his own experiences William understood deep down how it was to be out of sync with everything around him and his general air of good humour was something of an effort for him.

She was conscious all the time, though, of Cade’s watchful gaze. He still wasn’t happy about her getting to know William to any great extent—she could feel it in her bones—and he’d even managed to arrange the seating at the table so that his cousin was placed next to Emma and sitting diagonally across from Rebecca. Of course that could have come about in the natural course of events—maybe she was reading too much into things.

Cade said now, ‘Perhaps you were quiet because you were thinking about that man on the plane—the one who was taken ill?’

‘Yes, that was probably it.’

William and Emma listened interestedly as she quickly recounted what had happened.

‘That must have been so worrying.’ Emma frowned. ‘I wonder how he’s doing?’

‘His condition’s stable,’ Rebecca said. ‘I phoned the hospital this morning. Apparently he’s been assessed, and they’ve made the decision to do heart bypass surgery tomorrow.’

‘That must have cheered you up—to know that you enabled that to happen.’ Cade smiled. ‘It’s good that you followed up on him—I was wondering how he was doing, too.’

‘From the way the nurse spoke, I’m sure he’ll be fine. I think he’s in good hands.’

William was momentarily subdued. ‘I’m surrounded by medics,’ he said, in a voice tinged with awe. ‘What I do is nothing in comparison.’

‘You shouldn’t feel that way,’ Emma said. ‘We all have something to offer.’ She studied him briefly. ‘You work on Cade’s plantation, don’t you? What do you do there?’

‘I help out in all areas—getting to know the job from the bottom up, so to speak. Cade thinks that’s the best way for me to start.’

He told them about his role in ordering new seedlings and supervising the planting.

‘When we took over the plantation there were a number of mature trees that were viable—a lot of them are ready for harvesting now,’ Cade put in. ‘They have to be at least three years old before they produce pods—five years is best for a good crop—but we want to plant seedlings every year to ensure quality and continuity. You’ll be able to see what we’re doing when you come and take a look around tomorrow.’

‘I’ll look forward to that,’ Rebecca said.

Emma nodded. ‘Me, too … Provided I’m not called away to work.’ She pulled a face. ‘I’d arranged to take a few days off, with Rebecca coming over, but we’re not sure if there’s some kind of outbreak happening up in the hills.’

A waitress brought their food over to the table and they spent the next hour or so talking about this and that while sampling the delicious dishes on offer. Rebecca ate shrimp sautéed with peppers and onions in a spicy ginger and lime sauce, along with crab cake and rice accompanied by a tasty green salad. Dessert was a delicious concoction of caramelised pineapple with a drizzle of lime, vanilla and rum syrup, and a scoop of ice cream.

‘Mmm … that was heavenly,’ Rebecca murmured, pushing away her plate when she had eaten her fill. She laid a hand on her stomach. ‘I don’t think I’ll be able to eat another morsel for at least a week!’

William laughed. ‘Let’s hope it’s not as long as that. I was thinking of tempting you with my own recipe for melt-in-the-mouth chocolate tart when you come over to the plantation tomorrow.’

‘Oh … chocolate … you’ve found my weak spot—stay away from me!’ She laughed with him. ‘So you’re planning on being there, too? That’s great. But what about your friends on holiday in the north of the island? I thought you would want to be with them?’

‘They’re going back to Miami,’ he said, his mouth turning down a fraction at the corners. ‘To go on with their university courses or work commitments. I met them over there, when I was studying food and agricultural sciences, and we stayed in touch after I finished my course. But my vacation ends today, and I’m due back home tomorrow—so, yes, with any luck I’ll see you there. I live in one of the cottages on the plantation.’

‘That’s handy.’

‘Yes.’ He leaned towards her and spoke confidentially. ‘It’s rent-free, courtesy of my cousin, so I’m more than happy. I owe him—though he’s very dismissive of his generosity.’

Rebecca returned his smile. Cade couldn’t hear what they were saying, but all the while she felt his brooding gaze resting on her. He obviously felt great responsibility towards his cousin. She understood his concerns, at least in part, but outwardly William was fun and that was what she needed right now. She responded to his lively, engaging manner, but it wasn’t as if she was setting out to capture his heart.

Emma was in a playful mood, too, unwinding after her busy time at work, and was more than ready to let her hair down. She teased William and laughed with Cade.

Both girls drank mojitos, and then at Cade’s persuasion Rebecca tried another cocktail, made up of dark rum, lemon juice, grenadine syrup and Angostura bitters. The evening passed quickly and in a bit of a haze after that. She was enjoying herself, but the others had to prepare for work the next day, and so all too soon their night out came to an end.

‘I’ll drop by the cabin around three-thirty tomorrow, if that’s okay?’ Cade said as he delivered the girls safely home.

The moon was a silvery orb, glimmering through the branches of the trees, casting shadows all around and highlighting the night-scented jasmine. The heady fragrance of the white flowers lingered on the air.

‘Yes, that should be all right. All being well, we’ll be ready and waiting.’ Emma waved him off as he slid back into the driver’s seat of his car and disappeared into the night.

Things didn’t turn out quite as they’d expected, though. Rebecca was disappointed when, early the next afternoon, Emma received a text message calling her out to work. Several more people had gone down with the mystery illness in the village high up in the hills, and the nurse in charge wanted extra staff on hand to be available to deal with the ailing patients. They were very ill, apparently, with high temperatures and headaches.

‘We think it’s some kind of bacterial infection,’ Emma told Rebecca. ‘We’ll probably have to give antibiotics as a precautionary measure.’