Unexpectedly Wed to the Officer--A Historical Romance Award Winning Author

by Jenni Fletcher

  ‘Children ought to climb trees. I always did. So did Anna for that matter.’ He grinned as Peter and Michael’s faces lit up with excitement. ‘I’ll look after them, don’t worry. As a matter of fact...’ He tossed his hat carelessly to one side. ‘I think I’ll join in.’

  * * *

  ‘I’m exhausted!’

  Sebastian threw himself on to the ground beside Henrietta. Fortunately, she’d brought a blanket to sit on, although one corner of it was covered with a collection of pine cones that Oliver had obviously gathered for her. The young boy had tired of climbing after only a few minutes.

  ‘I’m not surprised.’ She smiled down at Sebastian, the winter sunshine catching the hair beneath her wide-brimmed bonnet so that it shone like spun gold. ‘I feel exhausted from just watching you. That was nerve-racking.’

  ‘I didn’t let them go so high, although they’re pretty good climbers already.’ He lifted his head and looked around. ‘Where’s Oliver?’

  She gestured to a nearby shrub. ‘Building a den inside that. You’re invited to visit, but apparently girls are forbidden.’

  ‘How ungentlemanly.’

  ‘I thought so.’

  ‘That was fun!’ Michael and Peter came running over to join them. ‘What next?’

  ‘Next you need to give an old man a rest.’ Sebastian laid his head back down again.

  ‘You’re not old. Nancy says you’re younger than Papa.’ Michael dropped down on to the blanket and crossed his legs. ‘Where is Papa anyway?’

  ‘About that...’ Henrietta threw Sebastian a swift glance before continuing. ‘How would you feel about staying with me for a bit longer?’

  ‘Why?’ Peter sounded suspicious.

  ‘Well...the truth is that your father’s gone away for a little while.’

  ‘You mean, he’s left us?’ Peter’s voice hardened.

  ‘He doesn’t want us.’ It was Michael who spoke this time. ‘He loved Mama, but now she’s gone he doesn’t want us any more.’

  ‘No, it’s nothing like that.’ Henrietta put her arm around the little boy’s shoulders. ‘He loves you very much.’

  ‘He doesn’t if he’s left us.’ Peter answered belligerently, turning on his heel and stalking away.

  ‘Does he really love us, Aunt?’ Michael’s eyes were suspiciously bright.

  ‘Of course he does. I promise.’

  Sebastian waited a few moments before giving her a single nod and getting up to follow Peter. The boy was standing off to one side, his back turned and shoulders hunched, obviously trying not to cry.

  ‘Permission to join you?’ Sebastian came to a halt beside him, looking out over the park.

  ‘You don’t have to ask. You outrank me.’

  ‘But you were here first. I don’t want to intrude.’ He paused, but there was no answer. ‘You know, I used to come and climb here with my friend James when we were boys. The park attendants used to yell and chase us.’

  ‘He’s not coming back, is he?’

  Sebastian turned his head. It was obvious the boy wasn’t talking about James. ‘I don’t know.’

  ‘Michael’s right. He doesn’t want us any more.’

  ‘It’s not as simple as that.’

  ‘Why not?’

  Sebastian rubbed a hand over his chin, trying to think of a way to explain. ‘You know, in the navy each man is given a single tot of rum a day. Just one, mind, so that they don’t fall off the rigging.’

  Peter looked at him strangely. ‘What does that have to do with Papa?’

  ‘Nothing directly. I suppose what I’m trying to say is that too much drink is dangerous. It makes men forgetful and encourages them to take risks, but sometimes, when a man wants to forget something, it can be a means of escape, too. Then he can come to prefer that feeling to real life. It becomes an illness and he doesn’t know how to stop drinking.’

  ‘So, Papa is sick?’

  ‘I think so, but I know that he hasn’t left because of you. It’s more likely because he loves you and he doesn’t want you to see him the way he is now. Sometimes people need to go away in order to get better. And he made sure to leave you in good hands, didn’t he?’

  ‘Aunt Henrietta needs to run the shop. I heard her and Nancy talking. She doesn’t know how she’s going to manage.’

  ‘But she will.’ Sebastian glanced over his shoulder to where Henrietta was now holding a crying child in each arm. ‘I haven’t known your aunt long, but if there’s one thing I’m certain of it’s that she won’t let you down.’

  Peter looked pensive for a moment. ‘Are you going to marry her?’

  ‘What?’ He let out a startled cough. Suddenly the solid ground beneath his feet felt ten times more precarious than the branches he’d just been swinging from.

  ‘Is that why you’re helping Aunt Henrietta to take care of us?’

  ‘No-o.’ He cleared his throat. ‘We’re friends, that’s all.’

  ‘But you won’t leave, too?’

  Sebastian tensed. Staying beyond the end of the week wasn’t what he’d intended, but something about Peter’s anguished expression at that moment reached inside him and pulled at his heart strings... He’d seen that look on other boys’ faces before, but at least this time he could do something about it.

  He put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed. ‘I’ll stay for as long as your aunt needs me. How about that?’

  ‘Thank you.’ Peter nodded stiffly.

  ‘Now, do you know what we need?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘A cricket bat. You need to vent those feelings.’

  ‘We don’t have a cricket bat.’

  ‘But we do have branches and pine cones.’ He looked around, searching the ground for suitable candidates. ‘That’s another trick you learn in the navy. Improvisation.’

  And that, Sebastian realised, was that. He’d just made a promise to a ten-year-old boy that he wasn’t going anywhere. Oddly enough, he couldn’t even bring himself to regret it.

  Chapter Ten

  Knots.

  Henrietta wandered slowly around the gazebo, listening with amusement as her nephews were tutored on the apparently ancient art of knot-tying inside. Overhand knots, square knots, granny knots, bowline knots, oyster knots, reef knots, thief knots, figure-eight knots... So many that she’d quickly forgotten the names of the rest. She’d declined the offer of instruction herself, preferring to enjoy the winter sunshine than play with bits of string—a choice of words that had earned her a stern look and lecture from Sebastian.

  She laughed softly to herself at the memory of his outraged expression, though he’d been unable to maintain it for more than a few seconds. He seemed almost incapable of not smiling for long, as if his sense of humour were irrepressible. Somehow, it suited his general air of dishevelment, the way he never tightened his cravat or fastened his coat, as if he were too busy being cheerful to notice or care about such details.

  Now they’d reached a clear understanding about his reasons for staying in Bath to help her, it was surprising how much she enjoyed his company. She’d known he’d felt guilty about leaving Anna to run Belles alone, but she hadn’t realised quite how much, and his honesty endeared him to her more than she would have expected. As did his behaviour generally. They’d come to the park together with the boys for a couple of hours every afternoon that week, after which she took over the running of the shop and gave Nancy the rest of the day off, and his good nature had never once wavered.

  After a week, there was still no sign or word of David, but Sebastian seemed determined to stop her from worrying, distracting both her and the boys with his so-called nautical training. Overall, it was surprisingly pleasant to have him as a friend. She felt as relaxed with him now as she had on the first night they’d met, so much that she was even wearing her blue dress today, having eventua
lly decided that Nancy was right and it wasn’t her fault or responsibility how anyone chose to interpret her clothes or behaviour. So why shouldn’t she wear her favourite dress if she wanted? As for Mr Fortini specifically, she felt safe with him. She trusted him. Which meant that she could wear her best bonnet, too, for good measure!

  She propped her shoulder against one of the gazebo columns and peered in through the archway. The boys were all sitting cross-legged on the floor while Sebastian crouched beside them, making corrections and smiling encouragement—of course smiling! He wasn’t classically handsome by any means. His features were far too rough hewn and irregular for that, yet his lopsided smile made his face a thousand times more attractive than that of any other man she’d ever met. Which was exactly the sort of thing she ought not to think about a friend!

  ‘Look, Aunt Henrietta!’ Michael scrambled to his feet when he saw her, holding aloft a piece of string with a triumphant expression. ‘It’s called a cat’s paw.’

  ‘What a lovely name.’ She bent over to admire it. ‘That looks tricky.’

  ‘This is the most important knot!’ Peter held up his own piece of string. ‘A bowline.’

  ‘They’re both very good.’

  ‘And wait until you see this...’ Sebastian gave Oliver a nudge. ‘It’s an overhand knot. One of the best I’ve ever seen.’

  ‘Goodness me.’ She made a show of examining each in turn. ‘I hope you aren’t planning to tie my feet together.’

  ‘Umm...’ Michael and Peter exchanged looks as if that was exactly what they’d been planning.

  ‘Oh, dear.’ She shook her head, looking around the gazebo at each of them in turn before her gaze settled on Sebastian and she smiled. It was a smile that seemed to come from deep within, as if her very heartstrings were tugging at the corners of her mouth. Maybe it was contagious, she thought, all this smiling. Despite her worries about David, at that moment she couldn’t have stopped if she’d tried. She was aware, too, of a strangely dizzy feeling, as if the gazebo itself were spinning around. She actually had the bizarre impression that all her thoughts and feelings were up in the air, rearranging themselves somehow, and that when she stopped spinning and they settled down again, as they eventually had to, then nothing would ever be the same again.

  It was outlandish and unexpected and alarming. And yet here she was, still smiling. And so was Sebastian. They were both smiling at each other. For almost a whole minute before Michael asked what they were doing.

  * * *

  ‘I enjoyed that.’ Sebastian chuckled to himself as they walked home an hour later, the boys scampering ahead, still comparing and competing over who’d tied the strongest knots. ‘It was just like old times.’

  ‘They enjoyed it, too.’ Henrietta turned her head to smile at him, that genuine smile that made him feel as if his lungs couldn’t draw in enough air. She was looking exceptionally pulchritudinous today, he thought, like a rare and precious orchid escaped from a hothouse. She was dressed far less sombrely than on any of their previous excursions, too, in a blue-green gown the exact same shade as her eyes, not that he’d said so. Or allowed anything even remotely resembling a compliment to pass his lips, though it was getting harder and harder to stop himself. He must have thought at least a hundred complimentary things since he’d collected her a couple of hours before. Frankly, he was starting to wonder if he had masochistic tendencies, agreeing to simply be her friend.

  ‘I’m afraid you’re making life at sea sound far too appealing,’ she went on, still smiling. ‘No offence to the navy, but I’d rather keep the boys closer to home.’

  ‘I recall my mother once saying something similar.’

  ‘I’m not surprised. It must have been very hard for her when you left.’ She winced. ‘Sorry. I’m not trying to make you feel any guiltier.’

  ‘I know. I suppose I just hoped she’d get used to the idea eventually. They say sailors’ wives do.’ He blinked at his own words. What on earth had made him say that? They’d been talking about mothers, not wives.

  ‘Really?’ She gave him a sideways look, so quickly that he couldn’t catch her eye.

  ‘They say it gets easier anyway.’

  ‘I suppose it’s just a different way of life.’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘But it must still be lonely.’ She seemed determined to look straight ahead now.

  ‘I suppose so. Of course the men miss their wives, too.’

  ‘Of course.’

  ‘So it’s hard for both of them.’ He paused. ‘I’m not sure it’s the kind of marriage that I’d want for myself...’ And why was he telling her that? ‘Although my naval days are behind me.’

  ‘They are?’ This time, she did look at him. ‘Have you decided for certain?’

  ‘Yes.’ He nodded firmly. ‘I don’t know what I’m going to do next, but it won’t be the navy.’

  ‘Oh.’ There was a faint crease between her brows. ‘I see.’

  ‘You sound disappointed.’

  ‘No, just surprised. Anna said you were so desperate to join.’

  ‘When I was seventeen, yes, as soon as I could convince my father to let me go.’

  ‘And you’re an acting lieutenant already? You must be good at what you do.’

  ‘It’s easier to be promoted in wartime. My captain thought I had a talent for navigation so he made me a midshipman. Then, when we were short of officers, he promoted me to lieutenant.’

  ‘Why were you short of officers?’

  ‘Enemy action.’

  ‘You mean in a battle?’

  ‘Not quite. We were set on by a French Squadron a couple of years ago. Fortunately Captain Marlow hid us in a fog bank, but we sustained a lot of damage.’

  ‘How frightening.’ She shuddered. ‘Is that why you were out of contact with the Admiralty for so long?’

  ‘Not because of that, no.’ He hesitated, tempted to tell her the truth, the things he hadn’t told anyone, even James, but it was hard to find the words to begin...

  ‘Forgive me.’ She seemed to notice his expression. ‘It’s none of my business.’

  ‘No, it’s not that...’ He slowed his pace, suddenly wanting to tell her. ‘The reason we were out of contact started a few months later when we were sent in pursuit of a Spanish frigate. She led us across the Atlantic and down the coast of South America.’

  ‘Around Cape Horn? I remember you said you were stuck in the Pacific for the past year.’

  He grimaced, swallowing against a sudden constricting sensation in his throat. ‘That wasn’t quite true, I’m afraid. That is, we did round Cape Horn, but then the frigate turned around again. We never did find out why.’

  ‘Oh.’ She looked faintly puzzled.

  ‘Forgive the deception. Only the truth is difficult to talk about.’

  ‘Then you don’t have to.’

  ‘But I think I’d like to. You see, our Captain fell ill just off the coast of Brazil not long afterwards and we were forced to berth in the West Indies for him to get medical treatment. He was a good captain: honourable, strict, but fair, too. Unfortunately, his replacement, Captain Belton, was the opposite. He had no honour at all. He was a bully and a fool, determined to find the lost frigate and prove himself no matter what the cost. He got information that it had gone north so we followed, all the way up to Lower Canada, never mind that it was nearly winter and we were all practically freezing to the masts.’

  ‘Couldn’t you object?’

  He made a face. ‘Objecting isn’t really an option in the navy. Naval vessels have a strict hierarchy. Obeying the chain of command is everything, even when the commands in question don’t make any sense. There’s only one punishment for mutiny.’

  ‘But surely if he was endangering your lives...?’

  ‘That’s not something for the crew to decide. A ship’s doctor can diagnose
madness, but stupidity isn’t the same thing, not in the Admiralty’s eyes anyway.’ He shook his head. ‘We were off the coast of Newfoundland when a blizzard set in. We were blown off course into a bay and trapped. Literally trapped. When the storm abated, the ship was held fast by ice.’

  ‘How terrifying.’

  ‘As I recall, I was too cold to feel a great deal of anything except numb. Fortunately, at that point our worthy captain decided to barricade himself in his cabin.’

  ‘Fortunately?’

  ‘It left smarter men in charge. We’d restocked on provisions in the West Indies so we had enough food to wait for a thaw and we all stayed below deck together, trying to keep warm and desperately hoping the ice wouldn’t crush the ship. It wasn’t easy. Some of the men came close to despair. Most of the boys, too. They tried to act like men, but they were frightened.’

  ‘Like Peter is now?’ She tightened her grip on his arm. ‘No wonder you’re so good with him. I think those boys were lucky to have someone like you with them.’

  ‘I don’t know. I tried my best to keep their hopes up, but I felt so powerless, as if I were failing them. But we were lucky and survived. Any further north and we’d have been done for. A few men lost fingers and toes to frostbite, but after a few months, we were able to escape.’

  ‘So that’s why Anna didn’t hear from you for so long?’

  ‘Yes. We made it back to the West Indies eventually, but needless to say, the Admiralty wasn’t impressed. We were forbidden from sending messages home while there was an investigation, but in the end the whole thing was hushed up.’

  ‘But wasn’t your captain punished?’

  ‘Retired.’ He gave her a pointed look. ‘His brother is a marquess.’

  ‘Ah... So then you came home?’

  ‘Then we had to wait for the ship to be repaired, but, yes, then I came home.’

  ‘Well, that explains it.’

  ‘Explains what?’

  ‘Why you always dress as though it’s the middle of summer.’

  He chuckled. ‘I believe there are parts of my body now permanently immune to the cold.’