The Man From Ti Kouka Read online

  THE MAN FROM TI KOUKA

  Rosalie Henaghan

  Trudi was torn between two worlds

  Trudi Carr loved her exciting fashion career in Christchurch. And she was determined not even marriage would steal her away from it!

  But when Dan Johnson, a sensitive yet arrogant drifter, proposed on the romantic beach of Ti Kouka, Trudi knew this wasn’t just a holiday flirtation. She was head over heels in love.

  In love with Dan, or in love with love, Trudi wondered. In her confusion she foolishly gambled away the most important thing in her life

  For my mother

  CHAPTER ONE

  ‘At last—Ti Kouka turn off!’

  ‘Oh no, a shingle road! In this heat that’s all we needed!’ Trudi, a slim brown-haired girl at the wheel of the late model car, sighed. ‘I was beginning to think Ti Kouka had joined the realms of fantasy.’

  ‘Some dream, a stone mansion on one of the richest farms in the country! I wonder if we’ll be able to see much of it from the campsite.’ The younger girl twisted her shiny gold wedding band absently. ‘John told me it has some interesting pioneering relics.’

  ‘From the heat and the dust, Maria, I’ll be a relic before we get anywhere near the place!’

  ‘Trudi, let’s stop. There’s a stream under those trees just ahead.’

  The driver, shading her eyes from the white glare of the road, pulled under the green of the overhanging willows. For a moment there was just the faint gurgle of the stream, then as the coolness penetrated both girls opened their doors.

  ‘Lovely!’ sighed Trudi in tones of relief. She eased her body from the seat, ungluing herself from the upholstery. ‘Maria, there’s a pool formed by the culvert that’s big enough to soak in!’

  Without pausing to change the girl slipped into the pool. Her hair turned into thick black strands around her pale face, making the dark-fringed eyes look darker and larger. The smile of bliss as she entered the water hid the determined little chin but not the softness of her mouth.

  ‘Hurry up, Maria. This is lovely! At last I feel as if I’m on holiday. What a shame you’ve only two days away from that man of yours.’

  ‘You wait till you’re married, Trudi. John would let me have longer, but I don’t want to be away from him.’

  ‘Love!’ snorted her older sister, standing up in the pool and brushing the water from her eyes. ‘What’s it done to you? Landed you with a husband who gets transferred three months after you’re married, and you can’t even get a position as a barrister, because you might be shifted again in a few months, or a few days, or a few years!’

  ‘That’s not accurate and you know it!’ Maria shot back, but her stricken face told how the hit had reached home. ‘I love John, we’re very happy. At least at home I’m keeping up my research, and I’m confident John will get the next long-term position. I’ll soon be working again.’

  ‘I suppose I should be glad the perfect male’s taken off to Wellington for these two days. At least I owe him that.’ Trudi looked at her sister’s disconsolate face and realised she had hurt her. Immediately she splashed over to her sister. ‘Maria, I’m sorry, I’m a beast about your John. I would have been the same about any man, no matter how marvellous, if he ruined your career. But if you’re happy then that’s all that matters. Don’t take any notice of me, I’m just an old maid who’s anti men.’

  Maria looked at her with a trace of a smile.

  ‘I love John, Trudi. One day when you fall in love you’ll understand!’

  ‘But you were doing so well!’ Trudi expostulated. She saw her sister’s stormy face and began to chuckle as she realised what she had done.

  ‘I’m like a dog with a bone! I just can’t leave it alone. Here I’ll dig a little hole in the pool and bury it right now and promise faithfully never to dig it up.’ She stood like a statue in the pool and addressed her reflection. ‘Prisoner at the pool, do you solemnly swear to leave the subject alone?’

  ‘Yes, your honour,’ she mimicked her answer gaily.

  Seeing Maria’s face was smiling again, Trudi flicked water at her recumbent figure. Maria retaliated, then ordered a stay in proceedings until she had placed the drink bottle from the car into the pool. Then the splashing resumed. With much yelling and shouting the two continued until Maria sought the sanctuary of the bank and Trudi declared herself the victor of the pool stakes. She laughed as she gazed ruefully at herself. She was soaked from head to foot and her top was clinging to her. It was just as well none of the staff could see her now, she mused. They wouldn’t have recognised the usually sophisticated figure of Miss Trudi Carr, Production Manager of Maugh’s Fashions, and the Court would hardly approve the apparel of her sister, Mrs. John Benton, as suitable for a rising young barrister. She looked at her sister fondly.

  Maria was very like her, but she had a softer gamine appeal which seemed emphasised by the short cap of dark curls. Her femininity was obvious and it was part of her personality that Maria was instantly liked by all who met her. Her charm hid, too, a brain that was coolly analytical, except where her beloved husband was concerned. Even to herself, Trudi had to admit that her sister had never looked prettier or happier in her life. Quite obviously marriage suited her well.

  The ripples on the pool had settled and Trudi glanced down catching sight, Narcissus-like, of herself, a pale wraith with widely spaced, all-seeing sombre dark eyes that lost themselves in the hazel brown base of the pool. She grinned at herself cheerfully and kicked the pool into action, and the reflection smiled briefly back at her before dissolving into a thousand pieces. With a scoop of her arm she flung a stream of diamond-lit drops which dazzled briefly in an arc, before plopping into the water downstream.

  At the same time she became aware of the figure. He sat his horse as though he owned the world, an unconscious arrogance that made Trudi lift her own head proudly to meet his eyes. She couldn’t mistake his smiling admiration, but at her stare his expression changed. Discomfited, she looked away and her eyes lit on the bottle. She fished it out composedly, clambered as best she could out on to the bank and calmly poured out the drink as though she was sitting sedately at her afternoon tea table.

  ‘Excuse me, I didn’t want to spoil your fun.’

  Trudi looked at the man coolly. ‘We’ve finished.’ Calmly she handed the mug to Maria, who had sat up at the stranger’s voice and was now smiling openly at him. The man had swung down easily in a smooth graceful movement and led the horse to the creek, downstream from where they sat.

  ‘Would you like a drink? It’s still warm, but it’s better than it was, thanks to the pool.’ Maria’s voice was apologetic as she held out the full mug of orange.

  ‘Thank you.’ His voice was deep and he took the mug and drained it quickly. ‘Where are you making for?’

  ‘That’s of no concern to you.’

  Trudi spoke softly but firmly. She was aware of the quick smile that spread over the stranger’s face as he looked at her. Trudi became instantly aware of the long tassels of thick wet hair, her shirt clinging curvaceously to her body and the speculative gleam in the stranger’s eyes, as he assessed her long legs and the brief shorts she wore. If only she had been seen by this odious man in a slightly less undignified state, she thought bitterly. She knew he was finding the whole scene one of considerable mirth, and if she had known him better she could have laughed at herself too. With an overplayed attempt at a straight face he handed back the mug deliberately to her and she knew he was thinking that she was the rude mug in question. For Maria he smiled dazzlingly before turning to his horse.

  ‘Had enough, feller? Come on.’

  He spoke softly to the horse as he rubbed its neck while the creature lifted its velvet m
outh and nuzzled him affectionately. Again with an easy vault he was astride and then with a casual wave he had left, riding sedately past the screen of the trees.

  ‘That’s a real thirst-quencher, Trudi.’ Maria was at last having a drink. ‘Couldn’t let that poor man go thirsty in this heat when we have so much. Wasn’t he devastating? I always did like tall strong men with black hair and deep brown eyes. How I fell in love with my darling short blond John is still a mystery!’ she chuckled. ‘Our visitor was a real hunk of masculinity.’

  ‘And he’s probably got some poor woman who runs around after him like a slave! Hrmph! Some silly wench who thinks just because he whispered “I love you” she can throw up her own career to cook and clean and...’ She broke off, seeing the look in Maria’s eye. ‘Sorry, sorry, sorry! Peace, Maria!’

  Lying back on the bank, she closed her eyes against the glare of the sun to allow it to dry her clothes and hair before getting back into the car. She had to admit that Maria had been accurate. The man was physically attractive. Even in those few moments he had shown a sense of humour, as well as pride, and he had cared for the horse, stroking it sensitively, which showed he had a gentle side to him. Still, the way he had seemed to expect the rapid offering of the drink, before Maria had even slaked her own thirst, proved that he considered himself as one of God’s gifts to women. His smile at Maria had been full of charm, but the long challenging look he had given herself had been maddening. Obviously he was one of the dangerous ones, she told herself, a man to be avoided by any young woman of sense. It was just as well that their paths would not cross.

  Conscious of a vague irritation, she packed up the drink and mugs neatly, then pulled Maria up.

  ‘Let’s get going, Sis.’

  She didn’t want to admit that the wretched man had upset the even tenor of her day, evaporating all the joyful expectancy of her two-day break. When she had first heard about the campsite at Ti Kouka’s Bell Bay from a friend she had been in the thick of winter orders. The heavy tweeds and leathers had made the sound of sea, sand and bush sound like heaven. Best of all had been the fact that it was very private, being owned by the Ti-Kouka estate who kept it as a camping ground for their own friends. She had written to make enquiries and had received a detailed letter back stating dryly that the facilities were limited to cold water showers and toilets in a bare paddock. Obviously they were not wanting additional business. The letter had delighted her. Such isolation was just what she wanted—peace, quiet and not a telephone for miles.

  A neighbour had loaned them a tent and they had been shown how to erect it; modern materials had made it simple. Tales of difficulty Trudi had laughed away.

  It was typical, she supposed, of man’s need to brag, to make fools of women who were quite capable of managing alone. Types like that ‘hunk’, as Maria had called him. She pursed her mouth firmly and combed her hair, relaxing into a grin when she saw the look on her face.

  ‘I’ve been looking at the letter. According to my calculations we must be close to Ti Kouka. I don’t suppose we’ll see much of it from the road at any rate, more’s the pity.’

  ‘The farm’s been handed down in the same family from the first surveying of the land. One of the few estates that haven’t been hacked to pieces over the years,’ Maria commented.

  ‘Well, we might be able to glimpse a little, seeing they mentioned that the camp was only a kilometre from the homestead.’

  Trudi eased the car out on the road. The dust which seeped in didn’t seem quite so bad as it had been before their halt.

  Now relaxed and cooler, Trudi drove steadily, as the stones formed ridges in the road. Within a minute they had entered a valley and the countryside had undergone a change. She noticed the richness of the fields and the lushness of the pasture that was totally different from the dry hills. Easing down a steep turn, she paused instinctively.

  ‘Look at that!’

  Even without Maria’s gasp of admiration she pulled over and stopped. Massive trees enclosed a park-like lawn which led up to a grey stone house, its many large windows glinting in the sun. From where they sat the view was partly obscured by a band of trees, but there was no mistaking the grandeur of the property.

  ‘It’s fabulous,’ admired Trudi sincerely. ‘Just the sort of mansion I’d love to call home.’ She turned to her sister with a grin. ‘A bit different from my current abode!’

  ‘Imagine living there! They would have terrific views over this valley and straight through the gap to the sea. Look, the sea, the sea! Let’s get cracking. A proper swim would be gorgeous.’

  Trudi pulled out again and shortly passed the drive which led towards the now hidden house. The road deteriorated sharply and all her concentration was focused on to the rutted track that was all that remained.

  Beside her lay the sea and on the other side the steep hills. The scenery was magnificent, but she had little chance to appreciate it as she was concentrating on her car’s movements. A minute later the track levelled and she pulled over to look around her.

  The sense of isolation pleased her. They might have been alone in a primeval world. It was majestic country, the sleeping giants of the hills, covered in the greens of the bush, reaching to the sea. The waves pounded down ferociously, as though angry with the silent hills, and the rocks, white and black, stood like an advanced guard across the sand. The waves, blue-green, crested, and smashed in white foam, retreated, then gathered force to try again, crashing on to the strange rocks in some ceaseless rhythm.

  The road led round a curve and the track opened into a paddock, where a couple of brightly coloured tents and two caravans announced that they had reached their destination. Two children looked up at their arrival, then scampered off towards the beach. In the centre of the paddock a line of trees formed a natural division. Someone had pitched a tent under the cliffs and looking out to sea. Two caravans were parked side by side and beside them was a jeep and a trailer loaded with a small boat.

  ‘What about over on the other side?’ pointed Maria. ‘There’s a small rise which would protect us from any southerly likely to spring up and we could look straight out to the sea and the cliffs.’

  ‘And it’s nice and private,’ commented Trudi.

  A few moments later they were gazing round with delight at the crescent of the ground shaped by the line of bush-covered hills leading to the steep white cliffs which formed such a landmark. A small curve in the line of the shore meant that further down the force of the waves was not so strong, although the beach immediately in front of them was littered with driftwood like the bones of a drowned forest.

  ‘Someone may have just moved away from this site. Look, it really is a beauty—there’s a natural fireplace with those stones, someone must have lugged them there. One thing we don’t have to worry about is firewood.’ Maria looked around again. ‘We’re a long way from the toilets and showers, though.’

  ‘That’s just as well, Maria. From what I’ve heard of those sort of places at camping grounds, it’s wise not to be too close!’

  They both laughed and together they began positioning the tent.

  The small bag it fitted into was light and while Maria carried the bag, Trudi began unfolding the material. They made swift work of it, tightening the cords on to the metal pegs. When the main ones were in at an angle they secured the smaller pegs, then adjusted them so that the tent stood taut. Over it went the bright orange fly cover that would protect them in the event of rain.

  It was simplicity itself to fit, and the front long cord Trudi fastened to a handy fence-post as a clothes line. Proprietorially they ran inside, giggling with success like a pair of teenagers again. They began unloading the car, putting in additional groundsheets to fit the floor of the tent and then the broad thick piece of foam which fitted the area to provide a comfortable base for the sleeping bags or as a seat. Under the protection of the orange cover but outside the tent Trudi placed the large box and the foam chilli-bin for the food.

 
With most of the car unpacked they felt quite pleased with their effort, and Trudi offered to make their first cup of tea. Instead of utilising the small stove they had purchased, the girls decided to light a fire to try out their skills. To their joy the large barbecue grill they brought with them fitted over the fireplace exactly, and while Maria went towards the tap with an empty bucket for water, Trudi gathered driftwood from the beach. Some of the shapes were so peculiar she instinctively found herself imagining birds and trees and space fiction characters. Smiling at the thoughts, she took the pile back and soon had a fire glowing.

  ‘I do wish John could see this spot,’ said Maria. ‘Isn’t it heavenly? Tomorrow let’s explore those hills. Look at those cabbage trees on the top of those cliffs. They look just like a warrior’s top knot.’

  Trudi smiled, agreeing to the aptness of the description. ‘All right, but I’m voting for the beach now. By the way, you didn’t tell me just why John had to fly up to Wellington?’

  ‘I don’t know. It’s a surprise,’ Maria said equably.

  Trudi was flabbergasted. That her sister’s husband should calmly leave his wife for two days while he flitted off on a pleasure trip staggered her. Her face must have said volumes, for Maria burst out laughing.

  ‘Darling, he’s not Bluebeard!’ she chuckled. ‘His boss asked him to check with the Wellington section of the company, so it’s partly work. He’s quite the white-haired boy since he pulled off those two deals which were hanging fire before. But there’s another reason. You remember those lovely deep blue pottery bowls we were given as a wedding present? The potter lived in Wellington, and I feel sure John’s gone to fetch a big vase for an anniversary present. In three weeks we’ll have been married for a year.’