Their driver had parked the limo back on Hong Kong Island, then followed them onto the ferry. He now spoke to Nathan in rapid Chinese before grabbing Tracy’s suitcase and taking off at a run. She had enough time to gasp before Nathan smiled. “He is going to get the car. We will meet him up at the road.”
She looked around at the pristine walking paths, the railings that led to a raised pagoda, and the signs that pointed to a seafood restaurant. Nowhere did she see any cars. A few bicycles, yes. Even rickshaws with smiling runners hoping for fares. But a car? The road wasn’t large enough. But she dutifully followed Nathan up a path to a long track of what looked like honeycomb pavement with Bermuda grass poking up everywhere. Then before she could comment on that, the cutest three-wheeled vehicle decorated in zebra stripes appeared. She burst out laughing at the solar panel on top, only to subside into surprise as she climbed inside. It was comfortable, air-conditioned and really quite roomy.
“This is Stephen’s ZAP car,” Nathan said in a bland tone. “He paved the road, as well. Both are very environmentally friendly.”
Tracy twisted to look at Nathan. “He paved the road?” She tried to conceive of that much wealth. Of a man who could build a road—miles and miles of it—simply for his convenience. “Just how rich is this Stephen guy?”
Nathan didn’t answer as he twisted, straining to see out the left side of the little car. “We will climb a bit now. Five minutes by car, but…” He shook his head, a smile lighting his features. “Forever if you are carrying buckets of water.”
“You love this place,” she murmured.
“It was my home.”
They traveled the rest of the way in silence while a mangrove field sped past. The switchbacks in the road were frighteningly tight, but the beauty was unmistakable—and utterly foreign.
She tucked a little tighter to Nathan’s side though one glance at his animated profile reminded her that she was the stranger here, not him. “I don’t suppose there’s any place to grab a burger here, is there?”
He smiled, his eyes trained ahead. “There will be food at the temple. My sister makes the best tea eggs in all of China.”
Tracy remained silent. She hadn’t felt hungry so much as out of place. A fast-food burger joint would have given her a welcome sense of familiarity. The promise of tea eggs didn’t ease the anxiety knotting her stomach.
Then they arrived. The ZAP car rounded a corner and stopped dead in a brick courtyard before a large, exotic building with clay roof tiles shaped into dragons and tigresses. The walls were painted white except for the two large red columns that flanked a large, red double door. Red banners hung down either side, their gold Chinese characters flowing gently in the breeze.
“I know it is very shabby looking,” Nathan said just before the driver opened the car door. “But our fame comes from the beauties within, not the walls without.”
She didn’t have the words to explain that she found it stunningly beautiful. Only now that she looked did she see peeling paint and the frayed fabric. Then Nathan offered her his hand. She grabbed it like a lifeline as she stepped out into the humid, subtropical air.
She was just meeting his gaze, holding on to the familiarity of his dark eyes and sexy eyebrows when a high squeal cut through the air followed by a rushed flurry of Chinese. Nathan turned immediately, releasing Tracy’s hand to wrap a stunningly beautiful woman in his arms. She squealed and cried and spoke all in one breath while Tracy stood to one side and tried to guess who this was. Sister? Lover?
Her age was hard to estimate, but her skin was dewy soft, her hair sleek and jet-black. Was this one of the women Nathan had fallen in love with? Was she a former lover? Tracy tried to suppress a surge of jealousy as Nathan finally unwound the woman’s arms and set her back down. Then they both turned to look at her. Tracy forced herself to smile despite the envy biting deep. The woman defined willowy beauty. Looking at her now, Tracy judged her to be forty years old. She wore no makeup, but her eyes were dark, her lips a soft pink and her small body was perfectly accented in a silk skirt and tight bodice.
“Tracy,” Nathan said as he smiled warmly at the woman. “This is my aunt Li Li. You may call her Tigress Lily. She speaks no English, but she has a good heart.”
Tracy nodded politely, her mind grappling with details. “Your aunt? But she is so young—” Her words were cut off as the tigress abruptly grabbed Tracy’s hand and shook it vigorously. She was all smiles as she gestured inside, her words flowing like a babbling brook.
“She says Stephen told them we were coming, but not when. She is very happy it is so soon, but they did not have enough time to prepare a proper welcome for a new tigress.”
“Tell her that I don’t need—” Tracy began, but Nathan interrupted.
“Don’t bother,” he said with a laugh. “She won’t stop speaking long enough to hear you. Just smile and follow along.”
Tracy had no choice but to agree as she was half dragged inside. The front hallway was dark, but pleasantly cool compared to the outside heat. Tigress Lily kept up a running banter as she led them into a cushioned sitting room. Sparse wood furniture decorated the space, but mostly there were silk cushions everywhere—the floor, the chairs, even on the low coffee table. Lily swatted them aside, then guided Tracy to one of the lower chairs.
Another voice sounded, again in excited Chinese. Nathan turned to the door only to wrap his arms around a girl of maybe sixteen. She was dressed in light cotton, her hair in two long pigtail braids. Her happy smile was more than returned, especially when Nathan pointed out the flour that coated her braids.
“My sister Cai Ting, the chef,” he said as the girl jerked her hair out of his hand.
“Hello—” Tracy started only to have the girl bow deeply before her.
“My greetings, Tigress Tracy. We are honored to have you here.”
Other voices—all female—came around the corner. She’d thought temples were quiet, holy places, but she was obviously wrong. This was a place of noisy, chattering women all pushing forward to greet Nathan before bowing formally before her. Tracy nodded back, becoming more bewildered as bodies crowded into the small sitting room. And then, almost as if someone had hit a mute button, the room fell abruptly silent.
Tracy had been about to say some greeting, but managed to choke her words off before hers was the only voice in the suddenly hushed room. She looked to Nathan for a clue, but he was surrounded by gorgeous women and was blocked from her view. Then the women began to part, some dropping their heads in respect, some looking with rapt adoration to…
A young Chinese woman of stunning beauty and elegance. In her thirties, she was near the peak of her sexuality. Her body stalked through the air: sleek, supple and entirely predatory. Her face had the dewy softness of youth, but with a lush beauty to her full, moist lips. Her hair fell behind her in a curtain of perfect black silk, and her eyes seemed dark and mysterious, as if she looked upon great secrets of the universe. But it was her body that caught one’s attention as it seemed to offer every exotic, erotic delight.
While Tracy stared, Nathan stepped away from his gaggle of women to stand at the beauty’s side. “Tracy,” he said, “may I present to you the leader of our order, Tigress Mother Pin Ya.”
Tracy had the strongest urge to curtsy, but she didn’t quite know how. So instead, she dipped her head in greeting, not even bothering to offer her hand. “I am honored to meet you,” she said.
The Tigress Mother didn’t speak, but her gaze studied Tracy from head to toe, no doubt seeing the wrinkled clothing and the extra pounds on her hips. It was ridiculous that a beautiful woman could make Tracy feel so inferior, but then the woman was extraordinarily beautiful.