A Bride for Adam

by Barbara Goss

  “What’s the right way? Just to be polite?”

  “Yes, and I always started with a compliment. For instance, she wanted me to stay in Fort Worth and buy a business, but I wasn’t ready for that, yet. I wanted to sail, so I said to her, ‘I’m grateful that you’re concerned for my future, but I know in my heart what I want to do with my life.’ My mother doesn’t realize how forceful she’s being. She thinks she’s just trying to help.”

  “I know. That’s why I hate to oppose her. I hate arguments, and I avoid them like the plague,” Greta said.

  “There is no need to argue. Just compliment her, and tell her what you want to do.”

  Greta smiled at him. “That’s good advice. Thank you.”

  After breakfast, Greta and Adam went ashore to send their telegram. They had a reply within the hour that everyone was fine—Sam was teaching Bethany to swim in the pond, and she talked to Greta’s photograph every day.

  Meanwhile, the crew and dock workers loaded the cotton into Eve’s cargo hold.

  Greta returned to the galley to work with Tully, while Adam studied the maps to plan their route to Liverpool. At dawn, they’d be on their way to England.

  Chapter Eleven

  Greta enjoyed working with Tully to prepare the meals. He was a rotund fellow, about Sam’s age, and with a sense of humor. She always found herself laughing as she worked alongside him. One day, he was sick, and she cooked all three meals by herself. She suspected he wasn’t sick at all, but he had let her run things alone to give her more self-confidence.

  Adam said the crew had raved about her stew and biscuits. She’d felt inspired. Lately, she found Tully finding excuses to give her more and more responsibility. She didn’t mind; she actually loved it.

  The cleaning was minimal as there were only she, Manny, Tully, and Adam who used the upper floors, and they were all rather neat. She scrubbed the hardwood floors once a day, made the beds, and dusted.

  Adam told her they were in the middle of the ocean, heading north. There was no land to be seen in any direction. According to Adam, they had a good wind, and they were bound to make Liverpool in record time if it continued.

  She slept alone without having to have Adam tell her a story. She was more familiar with every nook and cranny on the ship’s two floors now and who slept where, and she felt secure when locked in her cabin. The crew had bunks on the lower deck. Working with Tully and cleaning the upper floors had helped her get over her fears.

  Adam was busier now that they were headed for Liverpool. He and Manny spent time studying their maps and instruments, but he always found time to spend a few minutes with her at the rail each day.

  One morning when she came up on deck, Adam was standing at the rail. He didn’t greet her with his usual smile. As Greta neared the rail, she knew why: red skies in the

  morning. “Tell me again: what do red skies in the morning mean, Adam?”

  “It means that sailors should take warning or that they should be on the lookout for a storm brewing.”

  Greta had tied her hair back with Adam’s rawhide strip, but the strong wind was blowing most of it in her face anyway.

  Adam noticed. “Do you want me to braid your hair again?”

  “Do you have time?”

  He gave her one of his heart-throbbing smiles. “I’ll make the time. Turn around.”

  It gave her goosebumps whenever Adam touched her hair, but she loved it. He always managed to braid her hair too quickly for her liking.

  “There. Now the wind is changing, and I have to get the crew to adjust the sails.”

  He stood below the sails and yelled orders to the men who were climbing up to make the adjustments.

  Greta went to the galley where she and Tully were making a white sauce for chipped beef to go over their biscuits for dinner. Every meal was served with fresh fruit that Tully had canned.

  The ship had begun to rock so much, they spilled ingredients. Tully let out a mild curse. “Let’s get this sauce finished before the storm gets worse.”

  “It will get worse?”

  “Sometimes it does, but don’t worry—Adam is one of the best captains there is.”

  By the time Greta had gone to her cabin to prepare for bed, she could barely stand, and she knew why the furniture had been affixed to the floor.

  Someone knocked on the door. She asked who it was, and unlocked it when she heard Adam’s voice.

  He came into the cabin, wearing clothes that were soaking wet. “I need my rain slicker,” he said. He opened the wardrobe and removed it. “I’d advise you to stay in the cabin. We’re in for a storm.”

  Adam must have seen her face pale, because he added, “But don’t worry. I’ve seen us through worse. It’s just a lot of work in the poorer conditions.”

  Lightning flashed through the portholes. Greta screamed when thunder shook the room, and she ran into Adam’s arms.

  Adam’s arms tightened around her. “You’ll be all right. Do you want me to send for Tully to sit with you?”

  Greta reluctantly pulled away. “No, I’ll be fine. How long will this last?”

  “Probably all night.”

  Greta grimaced. The ship rocked to one side, and she nearly fell onto the desk.

  Adam helped her to stand. “You’d best stay in bed. If we get another hit like that, grab hold of the bed post. And no lanterns or lamps.”

  Greta laid on the bed. “With all the clouds, there’ll be no moon, and it’ll get very dark. I don’t even have my nightgown on.”

  “You can forget it for one night. Just remember: it will soon pass.” Adam put the slicker on and opened the cabin door. “I’ll lock you in, but I’ll check on you when Manny relieves me at midnight. The crew will be up all night to ride the storm out. We’ve all experienced worse than this.”

  After he’d gone, Greta felt a bit better, knowing the crew had been through worse. She had to grab the bedpost several times. How she fell asleep during the storm, she’d never know, but she did. Perhaps she was tired from cooking and cleaning all day.

  A huge clap of thunder woke her, and she stiffened; something was different. The ship rocked, but she didn’t need to grab the bedpost; someone was holding her.

  “Adam?” she asked, hoping it was him.

  “Go back to sleep. I’ve got you.”

  Greta let out a breath of relief. Adam was lying beside her, holding her around the waist. Despite the storm, it felt heavenly.

  “Aren’t you needed out there at the helm?” she asked.

  “I have two more hours before my watch, so hush and go back to sleep. Manny is handling things just fine.”

  Greta reached down and squeezed the hand that held her.

  When Greta awoke in the morning, the room was still pretty dark, but Adam was gone. If she thought she’d loved him before, she loved him even more now. She wished she could stop the annulment, but that was impossible from the middle of the ocean. There was no one she wanted to spend the rest of her life with more than she wanted to spend it with Adam. Greta wanted to spend every minute with him. She felt different when she was with him. He made her feel confident and useful. He appreciated her more for herself than for just being Seth’s wife.

  She stood on the bed and peeked through the porthole. There were still black clouds in the sky, but the ship wasn’t rocking as much, and the thunder, lightning, and rain had all stopped.

  Greta smiled as she smoothed out the quilt on the bed. Adam had slept beside her and had even held her. She picked up the pillow his head had been on and hugged it, dropping it quickly when she heard Adam’s key in the door.

  He knocked before entering. “You’re up.”

  Greta smiled. “I can stand without falling over, too.”

  “We rode out the storm, and the only damage was a broken yardarm.”

  Greta frowned up at him. “Can we still get to Liverpool?”

  “Sure, we can, but Calvin is making a new one in the workshop as we speak,” he said. “We ju
st need to lash more of the pole to what remains. If we’re lucky, it will hold.”

  Adam continued, “I’m sorry I had to invade your bed last night. I climbed into mine with wet clothes, but I didn’t relish sleeping in a wet cot. I knew you were unsettled about the storm and wouldn’t mind if the Captain held you in place for four hours.

  “I also wanted you to know why my bed was wet when you made it today.”

  Greta smiled. “I might have wondered.” She felt herself blushing. “And I didn’t mind your company at all.”

  “Can I walk you to the galley?”

  “I’d hoped for some water to wash and do my hair.”

  “I think it’s calm enough for me to bring you some, and then I’ll braid your hair.”

  Greta gave him a smile that she thought would tell him what her heart was feeling.

  Day after day at sea, and it seemed like some of the glamour of the trip had worn off. Greta was bored, and she missed her daughter, yet, as soon as she saw Adam, her spirits rose. She wondered what he thought of her. Did he think of her only as a duty he had to perform for Seth, or had he become a bit enamored with her? The way his hands had lingered on her hair, the way he looked after her every need...was it possible he cared for her, too? Should she turn to Miles Tanner? She had promised him that as soon as the annulment went through she’d allow him to court her.

  Miles Tanner. She hadn’t thought about him in weeks. He was tall, lanky, and muscular from working on his family’s farm and in the lumberyard. He wasn’t handsome—he was a bit on the plain side—but he did have a charismatic smile.

  How could she find out if Adam’s only reason for his “courting” her on this trip was to carry out his promise to Seth? Was he truly fond of her? She wanted her marriage to be a love match.

  Greta awoke one morning to notice that something had changed. The ship wasn’t moving as it once had. She quickly dressed and tied her hair back before running up on deck to see that Eve was docked in Liverpool. The wharf was a busy place, and it amazed her that so many people were hustling about. Some were climbing onto ships; some were disembarking. There were kiosks selling fish and other things that Greta couldn’t make out from the distance. Carriages pulled up and down the alley near the wharf. She decided then and there she’d stay on the ship; she was only bound to get lost out on the shore.

  She sighed. That meant there was just one more sail before they’d reach Philadelphia, and then she’d be just a train ride from Bethany—how she missed her.

  Adam wasn’t around. She supposed he was supervising the unloading of the cargo. She turned and looked upward to see the crew taking down the sails, and Greta wondered how long they’d stay in port. She was anxious to set sail for home.

  It started to rain, so Greta returned to the cabin. In her haste to go up on deck for a view of Liverpool, she’d failed to lock her door. She let out a gasp when a man with a scraggly beard and yellowed teeth was standing by her bed. Greta backed up against the desk. “What do you want?” was all she could think of to say.

  “Well, now,” the scraggly man said, “we’ve decided our captain was too bossy, and we’re sailing without him. I’m the captain now.” He turned to the three men behind him. “Check the room for another key to the door.”

  Chapter Twelve

  “What have you done with Adam?” Greta asked while cowering near the desk.

  “He’s somewhere in Liverpool,” the scraggly man said. “We’ve sent him on an errand. When he returns, we’ll be gone.” He laughed, and the other men joined him.

  “Would you please put me ashore, too? I’ll be of no use to you.”

  The men laughed again. “Oh, we’ll find a use for you, all right.” The men continued laughing.

  Greta shivered. “Please, I have a daughter waiting for me at home.”

  The scraggly one laughed again. “We’re going to have a game of dice to see which one of us gets to enjoy your company first.”

  Their ghoulish laughs made Greta’s stomach feel queasy, but all the while she moved closer to the desk drawer. While the leader’s head was turned toward the men, she opened the drawer, slid the key out, and placed it in her pocket.

  One man said, “You know how lucky I am at dice, Simon. I know I’ll win.” The man rubbed his hands together.

  Greta now knew the leader’s name: Simon. She edged away from the desk.

  Simon yelled, “Never mind. You guys get up on the rigging and get those sails hoisted. We don’t have too much time. I’ll search for the key to the room.”

  The men turned and left, still laughing. Simon opened the wardrobe, and searched through the pockets and shoes. He felt the bed pillows and even lifted the mattress before turning to search the desk drawers.

  “Where’s the key?” he asked with a snarl. Greta nearly gagged on the stench of his nasty breath.

  She had to think fast. “Adam gave it to Tully so he could wake me when we reached Liverpool, and he never gave it back to me.”

  The man swore. “Tully’s with Adam.”

  He’d found her apron hanging on a hook by the door. The keys to all of the rooms were in the pocket. “Well, well.” He held up her ring of keys. “I have this. I’m locking you in here until someone wins the dice game. Then, the fun will begin.” She heard him trying several of the keys before the lock clicked, and she saw his wicked smile.

  Greta gasped.

  “Don’t worry your pretty head off. Everyone will get a turn.”

  Simon left, and she heard him lock the door behind him.

  Greta knew she had to get off the ship before they left Liverpool, but how? She’d have to be fast or the men in the rigging would surely see her. She’d rather die trying than stick around for what they’d planned. Greta would jump overboard if she had to.

  She listened to Simon’s footsteps until she heard him going up the stairs. Greta figured he’d either be at the helm or giving orders to the men up in the rigging, and she used her key to quietly leave the room. She crept up the stairs, cringing when one of the steps creaked. Greta didn’t go up on the deck but peeked around the corner when she reached the top step. The ramp to disembark was between the helm and the forecastle. Greta got on her hands and knees and crept along the rail to the ramp. She was just about to stand and run for it when a hand clamped around her upper arm.

  “Where do you think you’re going?” Simon asked, jerking her roughly to her feet.

  Greta was shaking too hard to answer him.

  A cutlass suddenly flew by her and landed on Simon’s chest near his neck.

  “Get your hands off my wife!” Adam snarled.

  Simon dropped his hold on Greta.

  While Adam had Simon covered, Tully and Manny aimed the ship’s guns up at the men in the rigging. Manny yelled, “Climb down and stand with your hands up or by God, I’ll shoot all of you—you’re no good to us now.”

  Greta leaned against the railing and watched the men climb down, put their hands above their heads, and Manny and Tully escorted them off the ship. She didn’t know where they took them, but she breathed a sigh of relief. Her eyes flew to Adam who was still holding Simon with the blade of his cutlass.

  “Turn around, you bilge rat,” Adam yelled. When Simon turned, Adam led him off the ship by poking his cutlass into the man’s back. He turned to Greta and said, “Go back to the cabin, lock the door, and stay there. I’ll be back as soon as these men are locked up.”

  “He has the ring of keys,” she cried. “It’s in one of his pockets.”

  “I’ll get it,” Adam said. “Lock yourself in and wait for me.”

  Back in the cabin, Greta paced the floor. That had been a close call; she was still shaking. When Adam knocked and entered, she flew into his arms.

  “Are you all right?” he asked, tightening his hold on her.

  “I’ve never been so frightened in my life. They were going to all...” She shuddered. “They planned to...” Greta felt relief in Adam’s arms, but it also released h
er emotions, and she wept.

  He rubbed her back, and she thought she felt him kiss the top of her head.

  “You’re safe now. We’ll be leaving for home as soon as possible.” He put his finger under her chin and wiped away her tears. “It won’t be long, and we’ll be home.”

  “Where did you, Tully, and Manny go?” she asked between hiccoughs.

  “To find you!”

  “Me?”

  “Simon told me minutes after we’d moored that you’d run off the ship and made him promise not to tell me you’d gone. Naturally, I ran off the ship, taking Tully and Manny with me. We each went a different direction looking for you. I asked people if they’d seen you after describing you, but no one had seen you which I found surprising. It’s not every day a beautiful woman with hair the color of buttercups flees from a ship and onto the wharf. Someone had to have seen you. Tully and Manny reported having the same experience. That’s when I got a strange feeling, and we ran back to the ship.”

  “You think me beautiful?” she asked.

  “Definitely.”

  Greta smiled coyly, before asking, “You seriously thought I’d leave the comfort of the ship to run among strangers?”

  “I didn’t think it through. I wondered if, perhaps, you wanted to escape being with me.”

  “Why would I want to escape you?”

  “I’ve made things rough for you lately. I wanted to make you tougher and connived with Tully to give you more responsibility.

  “Sometimes you’re too nice. You let my mother boss you around...why, I’ve never seen you angry. I’m afraid if you don’t stay married to me, some other man will take advantage of your overly agreeable nature.”

  “It’s too late for you to fear we won’t stay married. The attorney told me the annulment would take only a two or three weeks. I’m almost positive we’re no longer married.”

  Adam put his hands on her shoulders. “We’re still married.”

  “No, I’m sure we aren’t.”