Kissed by Moonlight Read Online Free PDF

with him and that he had not planned to bring her here to please her, even though she knew that because of the time factor, and because he didn’t really care for her at all, she was being unreasonable. It was cruel of him not to let her cling to her father’s dream and instead make her face up to the reality that it had brought about his destruction. Why was he doing this to her? Why was he being so unkind?
    It didn’t occur to her that he might be trying to prepare her for something, not even when he said, “I’m truly sorry, Petrina,” as if this was just the beginning of the disillusionment in store for her.
    She would not let him spoil it for her. Despite his chilling words, she felt a strange tingle of excitement at the prospect of seeing Chimera for herself. Chimera – by its very name standing for illusion and enchantment, not disillusion and disenchantment – would surely make her dreams come true, not destroy them.
    In a marginally kinder voice he said, “If I sound brusque it might be because I feel inadequate. To a man it doesn’t matter.” His penetrating gaze increased her discomfort. “I should have realized that certain things are important to a woman, and a honeymoon is certainly one of them. I’ve cheated you. I should never have brought you to Chimera.”
    No, no, he was wrong. It was destined for him to bring her here.
    â€œPoor Pet-rina.” The break in her name was deliberate, because then he said, “My poor little Pet.” He could almost have said “my poor little darling,” or even “my poor little love,” because he used the shortening of her name in a way that no one had done before, as an endearment. “The trappings don’t matter to me, but you should have had all the icing on the cake: a beautiful gown, a special bouquet and not a handful of wild flowers, bridesmaids galore, guests showering you with confetti and good wishes. Never mind the icing, you didn’t even have the cake.”
    The plane gave a spine-jarring kangaroo hop and shuddered to a stop.
    â€œOh!” she exclaimed in some surprise, because she had been so absorbed in this talk with David that she hadn’t realized what was happening. “We seem to have landed,” she said with an air of disappointment. She was enjoying his kindness and would have liked the moment to be prolonged. He had been acting almost like a real bridegroom, a bridegroom who loved his bride.
    The last remnants of color were draining from the day as she got into the car that was waiting for them. The porter who carried the cases welcomed David back with friendly deference, while his dark eyes floated a smile at Petrina.
    The cases were in the trunk, the tip was in the man’s hand, and David was at the wheel of the car preparing to drive off before he volunteered, “By the way, Manuel, this is my wife.”
    The man seemed speechless with surprise.
    The light wasn’t good enough for Petrina to see much of Chimera. They passed through the principal town, which David told her was called El Pueblo, The Town. It was comprised of a collection of whitewashed houses in a honeycomb of narrow cobbled streets that all ran into a tiny plaza dominated by a pretty little church.
    â€œThree years ago the island was populated by old people,” David informed her. “The young ones had all left for better opportunities, and who could blame them? Poverty makes for exploitation. They saw their fathers and grandfathers breaking their backs working the land with outdated methods and poor tools, while their mothers and grandmothers ruined their eyesight crocheting fine lace wear, tablecloths, and shawls, which they sold for a pittance. It used to be a sweatshop island, but thankfully all that has changed. The young men have come back to build the roads, the shops, and the hotels. The women returned to be with the men and, incidentally, to work in the shops