Boxed Set: Innocent Immigrant (8 page)

I remained transfixed, unable to make my legs work to take me back to my bedroom. One thing was for sure: I wasn’t staying in a house with, or marrying, men who behaved in such a perverted manner.

Of course, at the completion of the act, when they had discovered me watching, I had agreed to sleep the night in their bed when I should have called for the constabulary or the Pastor. All night I’d had to put up with the throb between my legs that returned every time I relived the images of the men’s union.

Thankfully, when I awoke in the morning both men had left the bed, and I was able to scurry back to my room to take a moment to consider my circumstances. Each time I thought I had by fortune landed in a better than expected position, something happened to show me all in my life was not as it appeared. Certainly, living in a foreign country with no friend or mentor, I was struggling to make life decisions that would serve me well.

I hoped to wait in my room until the men went off for their day’s work, but Griff was soon knocking at my door, insisting I take breakfast with them.

I dressed and met them in the kitchen. Someone had prepared porridge, and I was thankful for somewhere to keep my gaze as I spooned it into my mouth.

“Did you sleep well, Katie?” Ari asked.

My God, what did he expect? After such a shocking night, I could scarcely sleep at all, but the last thing I wanted was to discuss the previous night’s scene, so I nodded, keeping my focus firmly on my spoon.

“Look at Ari when he speaks to you, please, Katie, and answer with words.”

My face heated, and I shot a glance at the two men. My embarrassment had made me forget my manners and being reminded of them by Griff just made things worse. When I looked at Ari, his face was kind.

“My apologies; yes, thank you, I slept fine.”

“I doubt that’s true, but never mind,” Griff continued. “I’m going to see Pastor Mackay this morning, to register my intention to marry—”

“But I haven’t agreed.”

“Let me finish. If my intention to marry is registered, you can remain under our protection at this house. You will then be safe from the ideas and intentions of the other men in Kotuku, until the time you are either married or released.”

“So I will be kept a prisoner in a house of debauchery?”

Griff’s response, a simple arched eyebrow, told me I’d been too outspoken. A small burst of fear erupted in my chest, making it impossible for me to draw a full breath.

“It is polite to appear grateful when somebody is extending their kindness and hospitality, Katie. Your manners appear to have completely deserted you. Perhaps a few minutes with a birch might help you regain them.”

I cast my eyes back to the porridge setting thick and cold in my bowl. Although it should have, the idea of the birch didn’t entirely horrify me, but my emotions warred. It would be easy for poor manners and conduct to become unappealing, and despite my inability to come to a decision about my future, I would not gain anything by being dismissed from the house.

“Again, I’m sorry. Last night’s events were a shock to me. I don’t know how I feel about remaining in this house, but I can assure you a birching will not help me think well of you.”

Griff pushed to his feet and needed no more than his tall, muscular body to portray his position of power and control over my future. He bent forward and placed his hands on the table, bracing his arms either side of my breakfast bowl. This close I could smell him, and oddly his scent, which was becoming more familiar to me, helped give me strength when I would normally have cowered.

He spoke with a low, considered voice. “Weighing up the benefit of a birching versus your resulting opinion of me is my concern.”

His eyes were dark, mesmerising pools, and I ducked my head to stop myself being sucked into their might. His bent position shortened his shirtsleeves, baring his wrists and a little of his muscular forearms. I kept my focus on the smattering of dark hair that covered them, and the occasional freckle.

“Eyes on me, Katie.”

I glanced up, my mouth parted to enable the fast, shallow breaths I took. Having him this close, his gaze intent and fierce on my face, made me want to squeeze my thighs together to enjoy some relief from the sizzle of my nerves.

“Punishment is used to set the boundaries, which I expect all who live in this house to respect. If I didn’t care for you, Katie, I wouldn’t allow your rudeness to run unchecked. I’d also be putting you on the next steamer for Auckland. However, for the moment, I’m willing to overlook your behaviour because you are still learning our ways, but please understand, this is the final warning. Next time, you’ll be tied to the hitching rail at the barn and birched in full view of anyone who passes by. We employ men at the stables who I’m sure will enjoy the sight.”

The idea was monstrous, and I looked to Ari for support.

“No use turning to Ari to rescue you; he’ll be the one administering the birch. I believe I told you last night, he’s very handy with a bunch of manuka. He’s capable of binding a suitable implement in minutes, although he does prefer to prepare one in advance and soak it in a brine.”

I felt powerless as I switched my gaze between the two men. Within seconds, I had been robbed of my state of arousal so that I was filled with dismay. The unfairness of my situation welled inside me, pushing tears to the forefront of my eyes. I blinked, and they ran in two rivulets over my cheeks. “You are a bully...both of you are bullies.” I waited for Griff to effect his threat of a birching, when instead he grinned.

He took hold of my chin, keeping my tear-streaked face turned towards his. “Dear, sweet Katie. Look at you, all angry and hurt.”

“Don’t patronise me.” I struggled to pull out of his grip, but he easily followed the movement of my head with his hand until he locked his arm in a manner that prevented any movement at all.

“I’m not here to be a source of amusement,” I insisted.

“I’m not laughing at you; my smile is because your feisty spirit mixed with an appealing dose of timidity is so appealing. I love that you stand up for yourself when you feel overwhelmed.”

He released my chin and came around the table, pulling out a chair alongside me. He took my shoulders and gently turned me on the stool where I sat so that I faced him. Then he sat in the chair, shuffling it close until his legs bracketed mine. As he leaned forward, he snaked his legs around the stool, and it felt as though he’d hooked his feet together behind me.

I was imprisoned in a manner that startled me because again I’d become aroused. A growing part of me wished he’d envelop me with his arms in a similar manner to the way I felt trapped by his legs. At that moment, I wanted all of the responsibility for my future taken away from me because making a decision had suddenly become too hard.

“Relax here.” He tapped the top of my thighs, which I’d clenched together, not to relieve that intermittent ache between them, but to prevent them resting against his. To do so would be giving in, letting him win, and even worse, I knew I would enjoy the feeling.

“Here, Katie.” He slipped one hand between my thighs, just above my knees, spreading his fingers to push my legs apart. As I allowed my muscles to relax, my legs did indeed fall against his, bringing that beautiful smile to his face. I noticed for the first time a small dimple in his left cheek, and the way his smile reached his eyes, lightening their colour.

“Why don’t we stay with the eyes a moment, Katie? Keep looking at me, and let your mind be easy.”

I did as he asked and felt myself relax, my breathing steady. I wanted to stay looking at him this way, studying his face properly for the first time. His eyebrows arched in gentle curves, framing the deep blue pools of irises many women would envy. Like this, his eyes were kind, his mouth quirking a little at the corners, showing his pleasure in me. His jaw was strong, without the puffiness of many men equal to his position I’d seen on the ship. They had taken too much rich food and liquor, and not performed enough physical labour, so that their cheeks hung slack, draping over the bony structure of their faces.

Indeed, Griff Tucker was a handsome man.

“Shall we start today again?” he asked gently.

“Yes...yes, I’d like that.” I glanced towards Ari, to gauge his reaction.

“Uh-uh, stay looking at me.”

I slipped my gaze back to his eyes.

“Now, I’m going into the Mission as I explained before. You can spend the morning with Ari and the horses. If you have any questions about last night, you can ask them now, or talk to Ari through the morning. I know what you saw was a shock to you, but if you agree to become my wife, you will become accustomed to these acts, and dare I say, take much pleasure from them. That is Ari’s and my duty to you. Do you understand?”

For some reason, it all now made sense and wasn’t as frightening as it had seemed before. “Yes, I understand,” I told him.

“Good. Don’t forget now, if you misbehave, Ari has the birch.”

I blushed at the idea, and again came the thought that even the birch didn’t seem so much of a threat.

He stood, and I immediately missed the heat and comfort of his thighs. As he passed me to gather his jacket, he pressed his lips to the top of my head, creating a warm spot that I found I could recall as a physical memory most of that morning.

~o0o~

I spent the morning with Ari on the farm. On the way to the paddocks, he pointed out his favourite manuka bush, asking me if I could see any obvious places he’d removed the thin branches to make a birch. When I looked aghast, he laughed and told me he was teasing.

We went to a paddock where three mares and their foals grazed. I waited outside the gate, but Ari entered the field, walking around the mares, scratching and petting them before applying his touch to the skittish foals. Remarkably, each settled to his hand as he scratched the place where their tails met their rumps, making their heads rise and their lips curl in pleasure.

As the morning passed, watching him with the livestock, his careful touch shifting or soothing the animals, made me yearn for his hand myself. What would it be like to have such knowledgeable hands on my body, calming me or bringing me to delight?

It was indeed astounding the way my body had already been brought to life in such a short space of time.

Book 2, Part 2

GRIFF

Elder Kant, Pastor Mackay’s right-hand man, was at the doorway of the main community building when I arrived at the Mission of Perpetual Divinity.

“Good day to you, Mr. Tucker,” he said.

It was a greeting that lacked any sincerity.

“A very good morning to you too, Elder Kant,” I replied.

He stepped to the top of the porch steps as if barricading the building’s entrance. “What can I do for you?”

“Nothing at all, Elder. It is Pastor Mackay I’m here to see.”

“Unfortunately your visit is a waste of time. Pastor Mackay is away in Coromandel, so you will have to be satisfied with me.”

Nobody would be satisfied with Elder Kant. He was an odious creature, and I felt sorry for the women in his care at the community. The only thing that favoured him over many of the other men in the Kotuku Valley was that as far as I was aware, he wasn’t a drunk.

I considered coming back once Pastor Mackay had returned from Coromandel, but our issue with Katie carried a degree of urgency.

“I’m here to register my intention to marry.”

The man looked surprised, as well he might. I could see him working through in his head the names of the few single women in the town, and I know he would have made a short list.

“Marry? And who might you be marrying, Mr. Tucker?”

“Miss Katie Masefield.” He didn’t require any more information than her name.

Elder Kant certainly looked puzzled now because the name was very likely familiar to him. Then a knowing grin opened his face. “She’s the woman who came out to be Sid Watson’s wife, isn’t she?”

I nodded. “That she is, Elder,” I said, “and given that the death of Sid Watson means any rights to Miss Masefield were forfeited, she is now under the protection of Ari Raukura and me.” I bluffed, As far as I was aware there was no law of forfeiture, but I was certain Katie was not bonded to Pastor Mackay’s community, or to the Watson family.

“I think Pastor Mackay might have something to say about that. Miss Masefield should be under the protection of the Mission if her previous arrangements haven’t worked out. That is the guarantee we give to the institutions in England from where we...shall we say,
source
, the girls.”

“She does not have any need for the Mission’s protection, Elder.” The idea of Elder Kant getting his hands on Katie turned my stomach. There was no way Ari or I would allow that man to touch her. “Katie is with us now, and she has agreed to marry me. All I need is for my intention to marry to be registered, and I’ll be on my way.”

“I’m not prepared to do that, Mr. Tucker. Pastor Mackay would have to make the registration for you under these unusual circumstances.”

The man was as infuriating as he was ugly. “Come now, I see nothing unusual about the circumstances. Surely it’s just some paperwork. Unless of course you’re incapable of doing that,” I added.

Elder Kant bristled and pulled himself an inch taller. “As you know, Mr. Watson’s cousin had permission for access to Miss Masefield. I think his claim for the young woman would be valid. Perhaps we should meet with him and get his authorisation.”

“I will not have Miss Masefield’s future placed in the hands of an abusive fool like Herbert Watson; we both know how he treats women. He’s banned from every house of pleasure from Waikato to Cape Reinga. Tell me when Pastor Mackay is expected to return, and I’ll be on my way.”

Kant seemed reluctant to give me further information, but I took a threatening step towards him and the small man relented.

“Pastor Mackay is due back on Friday.”

“Thank you, Elder, you’ve been most helpful.”

I set off for the hitching rail where my horse was tied.

“Mr. Tucker.”

I paused in my step, not giving the man the courtesy of facing him when he spoke. “What is it?”