Not since he was a boy had it appealed to him--though it would have driven him hard to explain what had brought him from England to the Solomons if it had not been adventure.
Sheldon certainly was not happy.

The unconventional state of affairs was too much for his conservative disposition and training.

Berande, inhabited by one lone white man, was no place for Joan Lackland.

Yet he racked his brain for a way out, and even talked it over with her.

In the first place, the steamer from Australia was not due for three weeks.
"One thing is evident: you don't want me here," she said.