Thurston House (1983) Read online

  In a few years, Camille, no one will care. Acceptance comes with time, and perhaps your father's ' he stumbled over the words, ' fortune ' is still very new. But they'll forget in time. By the time your children come along, all they'll remember is who your grandfather was, and how well you've dressed for the last twenty years. But he didn't quite believe that and neither did she. The South was different.

  I don't care. I'm going to get out of here some day and go north.

  Things aren't so different there. People are snobbish in Chicago and New York, and even in San Francisco sometimes, although it's a little different there because everyone is new.

  It's worse in the South. I know it is. She wasn't entirely wrong, and their eyes met again as he watched her face. I wish I lived in California with you. It was a shocking thing to say, and he suddenly wondered if she was going to assault him again, and he more than half wished she would.

  Camille, behave yourself. For the first time he sounded stern, but she liked that too.

  Why aren't you married by now? Do you have a woman in California?

  Things were getting worse. There was no stopping this girl. What is that supposed to mean? He sounded annoyed with her as he looked away.

  It means a mistress. My father has one in New Orleans. Everyone knows that. Do you?

  Jeremiah gasped and looked her firmly in the eye. Camille, that is a shocking thing to say.

  It's true. My mother knows it too. And then, Well, do you?

  I do not. He shoved Mary Ellen from his mind, she was not a mistress after all, and this child had no right to know about that. Or about anything. She was a great deal too free.

  What do you know of things like that? She was far too knowing for a girl of seventeen, and suddenly he disapproved, as they began to walk back in the direction they had come. But the way she tucked her hand into his arm suddenly warmed his heart again. You are a little minx, you know, a vixen, and if you were my child, or my 'woman,' as you put it, I would beat you every day.

  No, you wouldn't, she laughed musically in his ears, and she had read him well, you'd love me to pieces because we'd have a lot of fun

  Would we now, and what makes you so sure of that? I'd make you scrub floors, and pull weeds, and work in the mines ' But what was he saying, he was playing her game again. But how could one not? There was something absolutely irresistible about the girl.

  No, you wouldn't. We'd have a maid.

  Of course not. I'd treat you just like an Indian squaw. But it was obvious that she didn't believe a word he said, and he found himself standing too close to her as they left the park, aware of her delicate perfume, the rustle of her silks, the warmth of her slender arm, and graceful neck ' the tiny little ears ' he felt a wave of lust wash over him again, and suddenly backed away from her. What on earth was this girl doing to him? There was something devilish about her as she looked up at him.

  I like you very much, you know. It was the end of the afternoon and the light in the sky was as soft as her skin.

  I like you too, Camille.

  He thought he saw a tear in her eye and he was stunned. Will I ever see you again?

  I hope so. One day. They said very little to each other then, and walked home arm in arm, and he felt almost a sense of loss when he said good-bye to her and returned to his hotel. And all night, as he tossed and turned, he had to push her from his mind. And he was even more upset to realize how relieved he was when Orville Beauchamp sent him a note at the hotel the following day, asking him to dine with them. And when he saw Camille again, he realized how desperately he had missed her since the night before, but that was ridiculous, even to him. But his eyes caressed her face, and she seemed relieved to see him again, as though she had been afraid she never would, and they scarcely took their eyes off each other during the entire meal. Beauchamp noticed it himself, and his son looked amused, and when at last Orville and Jeremiah were alone over brandy and cigars, Orville Beauchamp looked directly at him. There was no preamble to his speech and Jeremiah felt as though he had been punched in the chest at the sound of her name.

  Thurston, Camille means everything to me.

  Like a youth, he felt flushed. I can certainly understand that. She's a lovely girl. Oh God, what had he done? Did he know that they had kissed? He felt like an errant boy about to get a ferocious scold, but it was well deserved. And he waited nervously.

  The question I want to ask you he looked Thurston right in the eye is just how lovely is she to you? He didn't mince words, and Thurston almost flinched. He deserved what was happening to him. He had no right to flirt with a girl of her age, yet surprisingly, Beauchamp didn't seem upset, but Jeremiah had to deal now with what he had asked him.

  I'm not sure I understand what you mean.

  You heard what I said. Just how attractive is my daughter to you? Oh my God '

  Very attractive, of course, sir. But I must apologize if I have offended you and Mrs. Beauchamp in any way ' I ' there's really no excuse for

  Hush! Men always behave like fools around her. Old, young, they all go half mad when she turns those blue eyes on them, and she's well aware of her own powers, Thurston, don't delude yourself. I wasn't complaining about any affront. I was asking you a direct question man to man. But perhaps I'd best explain myself first. She's what I love most in this life. If I had to give everything up, business, money, house, wife, and save one thing ' Camille would be it. She's all I really care about, he considered his words and then thought better of what he'd said, just about, anyway. He grinned, and then his features sobered again. And I want to get her out of the South. This is no place for a bright girl. They're all fools here, overbred, overrun, with no money left, and the ones who have the money, like me he looked honestly at the man sitting across from him aren't the kind of man I want for her. They're crass and uncouth, unrefined, and more than half of them aren't as smart as she is. She's a remarkable girl in many ways, the best of two worlds, but because of that, she doesn't fit here. The men like her granddaddy are all weak and whining and poor, the others aren't good enough. Thurston, there is no one good enough for her here. Not in Atlanta, or Charleston or Savannah or Richmond, or anywhere in the South. I was thinking of taking her to Paris next year, and introducing her to the aristocracy. Jeremiah found himself wondering how Beauchamp would have managed that, although at times it was amazing what money could do. In fact, I've been promising her that for a long time. But when you walked into our house last week ' Thurston, I had an amazing idea. Jeremiah felt his entire body grow cold. His whole life was about to change, and he knew it. You're the perfect man for her. And she appears to be very taken with you. Jeremiah thought instantly of the kiss she had attacked him with the day before, and it had been far from repugnant to him. You're a good man. I've heard it from everyone, and I like you myself. And I trust my instincts above all, and my instincts tell me you'd be good for her. It's not everyone who could handle Camille. Jeremiah laughed at that, it was really an overwhelming thought, and he found himself staring at his host. Well? What do you say? Would you be interested in marrying my daughter, sir? It was the bluntest question that had ever been put to him, like buying cattle or land or a house, and yet he had an insane desire to say yes. He had to take a deep breath and set down his glass before responding to his host, and the silence sat between them like a boulder in the room.

  I'm not quite sure where to start, or what to say, Beauchamp. She's a remarkable girl, there's no doubt about that. And I am deeply flattered by all that you've said. It's easy to see how deeply you care about the girl, and she's richly deserving of the feelings you bear for her. Jeremiah could feel his heart pounding again, it seemed as though it hadn't stopped since the first time he had laid eyes on her, but what he said now could affect the rest of his life and it was essential that he weigh each word more carefully than gold. But I must tell you, sir, I am almost three times her age.

  Surely not that much ' Orville Beauchamp looked only faintly perturbed.

 
I am forty-three years old. She is seventeen. I would think that an age difference such as that would be repugnant to her. In addition, I live some twenty-five hundred miles from here, in a place far less sophisticated than this. You spoke of introducing her to the aristocracy of France. ' I am a miner, sir ' I live a simple life, in an empty house, ten miles from the nearest town. It's hardly an exciting life for a young girl.

  If that were the only thing stopping you, you could move to town. To San Francisco. There's no reason why you couldn't run your mines from there. They're established by now. You couldn't be here if they were not. Jeremiah had to concede that that much was true. You could build her a house in town, and she'd get used to your country life in time. He smiled. It might even do her good, sometimes I think her life is too frivolous here, although I have to confess, I'm partially responsible for that. I don't like her to be bored, so we take her to balls a great deal of the time. But your life might do her good. Camille's father knit his brows. But that's not the point. The real point is, could you care for her?

  Jeremiah Thurston felt a breath whistle through his lungs, as though it might be his last. I never thought to hear myself say this, sir, but I think there is a distinct possibility that I already do. In truth, I don't even understand what I feel for her, and I've been fighting it since we first met, if for no other reason than out of respect for you. She's barely more than a child, a young girl, and I am a great deal too old for this. I have a simple, quiet life, as I said, and I've long since given up such dreams. ' And yet he had met Amelia on the train, and she had touched a place in his soul, and before that he had watched John Harte's boy die in his arms ' and suddenly, for the first time in twenty years he wanted something he had never had before, a wife to love, and a child of his own ' something different than just coming home to Hannah every night, and Saturday nights with Mary Ellen Browne ' and suddenly there was Camille, like a vision in a dream, the embodiment of all that he had never had, or even thought he would' . Something's happened to me in the past week it was all he could say and I need some time to think about it. He wasn't sure what he felt anymore, after Amelia and now this.

  Orville Beauchamp did not look displeased. She's too young now anyway. And I don't want you to say anything to her.

  Jeremiah looked shocked. I had no intention of doing so, sir. I need some time to think myself. I would like to see what happens when I return to my everyday life, my empty house, my mines. He sighed, suddenly it sounded desperately lonely to him. Suddenly he felt as though he needed her there. And he had never felt that way about anyone before ' not since Jennie ' or even then. ' I don't know what I feel for her. Right now, I would ask you for her hand tonight his voice was deep and gruff with the power of what he felt for her but I want to be sure I'd be doing the right thing for both of us. How old is she now? Suddenly his mind was blank, all he could think of were her eyes, her arms ' her lips' .

  Seventeen.

  I will return in six months to ask you for her hand, if that still seems wise to me then. If not, I will advise you long before that. I will come to Atlanta, if you still agree, and ask her to marry me, then I will return again in six months and take her with me.

  Why so long? Why not just take her back with you six months from now, if that's what you decide?

  I want to build her a decent house in town, if she agrees to marry me. I owe her that much at least. Rest assured, Beauchamp, if I marry your child, I will give her a good life in every possible way. His eyes seemed to emphasize his words, and Beauchamp nodded his head.

  I have no doubt of that. It's why I spoke to you at all. I meant what I said. You'll be the best thing that ever happened to her.

  I hope so. Jeremiah's eyes were strangely bright. He felt as though he had just made the biggest deal of his life. The nine hundred flasks agreed to only days before meant nothing to him. But Camille ' she was a dream come true, and he already knew that he would be back in six months. It made him look differently at Camille when he and Orville emerged from their seclusion in the dining room.

  What did my father say to you? she whispered to him. Did someone see us kiss? She didn't seem overly concerned about it though, and Jeremiah was amused. As he looked at her now, it was he who wanted to grab her in his arms and plant a kiss on her lips.

  Yes. He whispered back, teasing her now. He's sending you to a convent, to be guarded by nuns until your twenty-fifth birthday.

  Oh he is not! She squealed with laughter and shouted at him. He'd never do such a thing. He'd miss me too much! It reminded him of what a sacrifice Beauchamp would make, if Jeremiah married her and took her away, but he was right in a way, it was better for her. In some ways she would never be accepted in the South, and she knew it herself. Her blood was tainted by Beauchamp's, and they wouldn't be forgiven for that for at least a hundred years, if then. Her brother seemed not to care, but it was obvious that Camille was bothered by it. Even her mother constantly behaved as though there were a bad smell in the house, and she talked of Savannah like a land forever lost to her, no matter how many times she visited it each year. She lived in exile.

  Actually Jeremiah felt strangely relaxed for a man who had just sealed his fate, or as good as we were discussing another deal. I might come back to Atlanta to discuss it with him in another six months.

  Camille looked intrigued. More quicksilver? She seemed surprised. I thought the consortium bought enough to last them a year. He was constantly amazed at how much she knew, and more than that, how much she understood.

  It's more complicated than that. I'll explain it to you some other time. He glanced at his watch. But it's getting late now. I should get back to my hotel, to make sure that they've packed my things. I'm leaving in the morning, little one. He suddenly felt oddly possessive about her, but he didn't want it to show. He turned and said something to her mother then, but she seemed not to be paying attention to him, and she drifted away, leaving them alone again.

  Camille looked up at him with big sad eyes. If I have time, before you come back, perhaps I'll write to you.

  I'd like that very much. But he wanted time to think as well.

  She looked at him strangely then, as though she knew' . Daddy said he was going to take me to France this year, perhaps I won't be here when you come back. ' But he knew she would. Or perhaps he should let Beauchamp sell her to some minor count, or duke. And then suddenly the idea revolted him. She wasn't an object to be sold, not even to him. She was a woman, a human being ' a child ' suddenly, more than ever, he wanted time to think about whether or not she would be happy with him. He wanted to look across his rolling hills and out the windows of the room in which he slept, and try to imagine her there with him. California is so far away ' Her voice sounded tiny and forlorn, and he reached out and pressed her hand.

  'Til be back again. It was a promise as much to her as to himself, and he wondered if he truly would. His life would never again be the same, but he wasn't sure he wanted it to be. He looked down at the exquisite girl beside him then and said the only words she wanted to hear. I love you, Camille ' remember that' . He gently kissed her fingers then, and then her cheek, and then with a firm handshake and a knowing look exchanged with Orville Beauchamp, he was gone, leaving none of them quite as they had been, and least of all himself.

  THE boat arrived in Napa bright and early on a Saturday morning, and Jeremiah expected to hire a coach to take him home to St. Helena. He had wired the mines that he would be back in the office on Monday morning, and he had a whole weekend at home to sort through his papers and mail, and check on the vineyards. He looked around as he stood on the dock, and took a deep breath of the familiar air. The hills in the distance looked even greener than they had three weeks before when he'd left Napa, and then suddenly as he stood there he saw the boy who had driven him to the station, the boy he had promised the Saturday morning job to. Little Danny Richfield.

  Hey, Mr. Thurston! He waved an arm from his perch on the carriage, and Jeremiah walked toward him with
a slow smile. It was nice to be met, even by a child he barely knew, and as he walked toward him he realized that the boy was only a few years younger than Camille. It was a strange thought as he flung his bags up and smiled at Danny.

  What are you doing here, son?

  My Dad said you'd be coming in today, so I asked if I could use the carriage to pick you up. He hopped up beside the boy and caught up on the news on the drive home. The two and a half hours sped by as Jeremiah looked happily around him. He fell in love with the Napa Valley each time he saw it. You look happy to be back, sir.

  I am. He smiled happily at the boy. There's no place in the world like this valley. Don't ever fool yourself about that. You may get the itch to wander one day, but if you do, you'll never find a place you'll like better. But the boy looked doubtful at his words. There were more exciting places in the world, and he knew it. Besides, he wanted to be a banker when he grew up, and how exciting could it be to be a banker in the Napa Valley? At the very least, he wanted to go to San Francisco ' or St. Louis ' Chicago ' New York ' Boston' .

  Did you have a good time, sir?

  I did. But as he sat looking at the boy, once again thoughts of Camille raced into his head. How was she? Where was she now? How would she like it here? Questions like that had been pressing into his mind during the long trip back, and even more so now that he was back in Napa again. Suddenly, he saw everything as though through her eyes, imagining what it would be like to bring her here for the first time.