Sydney, Australia—a good day for a christening
‘LOOK at her,’ cooed Grace, a vision of nautical elegance and sophistication in navy blue trousers, a lightweight cream-coloured tunic, and a red and gold silk scarf tied around her neck just so. A pair of practical navy-blue deck shoes completed the outfit and gave notice to all who sailed these waters that the lady had plans to come aboard. ‘Isn’t she just the most gorgeous thing you’ve ever seen?’
‘She certainly is,’ said Sienna admiringly. She’d opted for white shorts and a deep red T-shirt made from the softest jersey, and she too had traded heels for something with a little more grip. Practical white tennis shoes graced her feet, and her fingers were bare of everything but a dazzling white diamond on her left-hand ring finger, which Rudy could remove over her cold dead body. No scarf for Sienna, just a floppy-brimmed hat and sunglasses. Newly purchased sunglasses, sourced by Georgie and dark enough so that a woman could look where she would and no one would know. No one but Lex, that was. Lex always seemed to know when she was admiring him.
Sienna smiled and raised her hand in greeting as the sleek and graceful eight-point-two-million-dollar baby, currently manned by a skeleton crew of two—one of whom she’d just been admiring—came slowly in to dock at the Watson’s Bay private jetty where she and Grace waited. Engine-powered for the moment, the yacht would unfurl its sails for the first time ever once the current skipper had picked up the rest of his crew and made for open water. Sienna could hardly wait to get on deck and feel her go.
‘What did they call her?’ she asked Grace. She’d been remiss. She’d been too busy admiring other things on board that there boat to notice her name and now it was half hidden by the jetty.
‘Rudy named her.’ Was Grace blushing? ‘Ask him.’
‘I will,’ murmured Sienna, enjoying the moment even more once she’d made out the words written in slashing black scrawl on the side of the bow. ‘Oh, I will.’
The engine purred as the craft slid ever closer towards them. Lex was there, leaning port side, hand outstretched to help them board. First Grace’s beach bag and an overstuffed picnic hamper, then Grace herself, followed by Sienna. Lex grinned, the black bandana keeping his hair in check reminiscent of a somewhat more piratical age. Pirate looked good on him. Always had. Love looked good on him too.
‘Grace,’ he said, ‘gorgeous as always,’ and brushed Grace’s cheek with his lips.
Sienna’s welcome was somewhat more lingering. Clearly his pirate attire had gone to his head.
‘Later for you,’ she murmured as her body tightened in response to Lex’s caress. ‘I have to go and pay my respects to the skipper.’ She waited until Rudy had cleared the jetty and turned the yacht around and pointed her towards the Pacific, but that was all the reprieve the big man was going to get from her today.
The bridge area gleamed white in the sunlight; the boat wheel a matt-finished masterpiece of low-gleam stainless steel. Below, she would doubtless find an engine room fitted with all the latest in radar, sonar, and communications equipment needed by the intrepid ocean-going sailor as well as a luxury galley, entertaining area, and bedrooms.
‘Grace tells me you were the one who named her,’ she said airily by way of greeting. ‘Dangerous move, what with you being such a romantic and all.’ Rudy scowled. Sienna’s smile widened, she couldn’t help it. She’d missed the big man, missed his gruffness and his cooking. Definitely his cooking. ‘Unfortunately, in all the excitement of watching the yacht slide up to collect us, Grace clean forgot to tell me what it was. I’m afraid I was too busy admiring her beauty to notice her name. I do hope I’m not turning into, you know, a male.’ Sienna beamed at him for good measure. So far Rudy had been running true to form and hadn’t said a word. ‘So about that name…Is it romantic? Does it involve chocolate?’ Sienna looked up at the shiny new rig; this really was the most beautiful craft she’d ever crewed on. Not that she’d actually done any crewing on her yet. ‘You didn’t call her Truffle, did you?’
‘She’s called the Gracie Mae,’ muttered Rudy gruffly, ears reddening as he stared straight ahead.
Yes, she was. Sienna smiled at the sky. There wasn’t a cloud in it. ‘Because she’s fast?’
‘Because she’s all I’ve ever wanted,’ the big man said simply, and she closed her eyes and breathed in deep and thought Grace a lucky woman. Almost as lucky as Sienna.
‘That’s so sweet.’
‘I hear your nuptials are to be here in Australia,’ he said next.
‘Yes.’ Sienna opened her eyes and turned to smile at Rudy, who was eyeing the high set solitaire diamond on her ring finger with wry resignation. ‘No,’ she said, preempting his request for her to take it off.
‘Figured as much,’ he said, with the hint of a smile. ‘Grace is beside herself at being asked to be your matron of honour.’ He cleared his throat. ‘I found a giant Bombe Alaska recipe the other day. It needs tweaking, but I figure I can have it sorted by your wedding day. If that’s what you wanted for a cake.’
‘Rudy, that sounds brilliant.’
Rudy nodded, once, and that was that. Wedding cake sorted. ‘Mr Wentworth,’ he said in a louder voice. ‘Ready on the mainsail. The spinnaker’s yours,’ he said to Sienna. ‘Let’s get moving.
‘C’mon, my beauty,’ Sienna heard him whisper coaxingly as she headed for the foredeck. ‘Don’t be shy. You’ve shown them your quality. Now let’s show them what you can do.’
Gracie Mae’s crew played until well after noon, but finally they slowed and dropped sail and settled down to the business of refuelling their bodies. Grace’s picnic basket was a treasure trove of goodies and the galley fridge had been fully stocked. There was home-made triple-cream vanilla ice cream in the freezer section of that fridge. With chocolate chips. Sienna didn’t eat it first. She had to make her way past the sandwich platter first. The salmon, rocket and cream cheese with dill on sourdough. The king prawn and Thai salad wraps. And the strawberry, watermelon, rockmelon and lemon mint kebab chasers.
Only after she’d done full justice to the Gracie Mae’s maiden feast did she turn her attention to ice cream.
‘Rudy, you’ve outdone yourself,’ she murmured after savouring her first taste. ‘This is fabulous. I especially like the chocolate chips.’
‘They’re not chips,’ said Rudy. ‘They’re shavings.’
‘Oh. Shavings.’ She caught Lex’s smirk and hid her own smile. ‘Well, they’re very good. Mind you, it could do with a little something…more,’ she said, eyeing the magnum of champagne Rudy had seemingly conjured out of nowhere.
‘Eyes off,’ he said. ‘This is for Gracie Mae.’
‘Really?’ Sienna winked at Grace. ‘Hog.’
‘The boat,’ said Rudy.
‘I knew that.’
‘There’s one in every family.’ Rudy’s voice was long suffering, but the corners of his eyes had crinkled.
‘It seems to me,’ said Sienna artlessly, ‘that this “smashing of magnums over the bow of the boat” business could well scratch the finish. And that would be a shame. It seems to me, that a lady such as this one would prefer us to pour some bubbles into a fine crystal flute and tip it gently over her bow as everyone aboard her raises their fine crystal flutes full of champagne and whatever other additives seem to be on hand and drinks to her as well. But don’t mind me. Just a suggestion.’
‘You didn’t seriously think that would work, did you?’ murmured Lex from behind her, holding two champagne flutes towards her as Rudy headed above deck with his magnum in tow. Lex carried two more champagne glasses in his other hand. ‘There’s more champagne in the fridge.’
‘Watch and learn,’ she said with a slow smile guaranteed to drop a man at fifty paces. ‘When are you going to make an honest woman of me?’
‘Whenever you set the date,’ he murmured. ‘How long did you say that dress was going to take, again?’
‘Six weeks. The dress will be ready in two. We’re waiting on the shoes.’
‘Couldn’t you just choose a different pair of shoes?’
‘Not according to Georgie.’
‘You mean Georgie of business-suit fame?’
‘That’s the one.’
‘I stand corrected,’ he said fervently. ‘By all means, wait for the shoes. Feel free to get her to design your entire trousseau.’
‘She does have a holistic approach to these things,’ said Grace, coming up and deftly commandeering two champagne glasses from Lex. She plucked another from the galley cupboard. ‘Wedding plans aside, we seem to have a slight problem with the christening arrangements. Rudy can’t quite bring himself to risk the finish.’
‘Well, who would?’ Sienna smiled innocently.
‘He wants us all up on the foredeck,’ said Grace as she headed for the hatch.
‘Be right there,’ said Sienna.
‘What? No ice cream?’ said Lex as she swiftly set the lid back on the container and set it back in the freezer.
‘Not this time. This is Rudy’s big moment and I want to do right by him. No ice cream.’
They stood on the foredeck with blue sky above them and ocean below, and nothing on the horizon but more sea and more sky, and filled five glasses to the brim. Lex began the toasts.
‘To the best-laid plans,’ he said.
‘To dreaming the dream,’ said Rudy.
‘And following your heart,’ said Grace.
And then it was Sienna’s turn. She looked to Rudy and to Grace and saw love at play, vivid and strong, never mind that it had found them so late. She looked to Lex, her patient Lex, with his quicksilver eyes and his marauder’s soul that had so completely captured hers. He’d showered her torn and tender heart with the sweetest kind of love and she savoured every moment and knew it for a gift, such a priceless, treasured gift, and she gave it back in turn. From her heart back to his, and round and round again. She lifted her glass high and touched it to the others.
‘To those who dare to believe.’