Within a Captain's Treasure

by Lisa A. Olech

  Alice waved the smoke away from her. “I’m assuming you’ll tell me.”

  “You. This morning. Swallowing my brandy as if it were mother’s milk.”

  “Did you bring me another?” She looked at his hands before raising her gaze to his all-seeing eyes.

  “Afraid not.” He grinned. His eyes twinkled with amusement.

  Alice crossed her arms and dropped her chin. “That’s probably for the best. It’s not a proper thing for a lady to do. Swilling brandy.”

  “All I can offer you is a smoke.” He smirked holding his smoldering cigar toward her.

  Alice plucked the cigar from his fingers. “Do they taste as horrible as they smell?”

  “You’ve no intention—” He reached for it, but she was quick to pull it away from his reach. Lifting it to her mouth she took a puff, grimaced, and handed it back to him.

  “Worse than I imagined.” She wiped at her mouth with the backs of her fingers.

  Emerson threw his head back and laughed. “Who the devil are you?”

  “Poor stock. Not a proper lady, obviously. But a tired one. Good night, Mister Blake.”

  “It’s Emerson,” he called after her.

  Chapter 24

  “Come on, Rebecca, you can do it,” coaxed Alice.

  The child stood in the dark, wide doorway of the massive stable and sucked her thumb. Alice crouched down and rubbed at the child’s arm. “I’ll be right here and Starr is very gentle. She’ll love the apple you brought her. Let’s go give it to her. I bet she’ll whisper ‘thank you’ in your ear.”

  “I need the tooth.” Rebecca lisped around her thumb.

  “I left the lion tooth in my room, but you don’t need it. You’re already brave and strong like that old lion. Come on. Starr is hungry.”

  Alice cajoled and nudged the girl enough to enter the stable full of intimidating horses. Rebecca could either be afraid all her life and swoon at the sight of a spider, or she could inherit some of the determined fortitude of her father and brother. It was in her to become a strong, capable young woman, if she’d allow herself to be.

  When the child walked those last few feet and lifted the offered apple, Alice silently whooped like a pirate swinging from the rigging.

  Before long, Rebecca was climbing trees and bringing Starr apples and carrots each afternoon. She even knocked her brother on his backside after he’d stolen one of her toys.

  Isabelle noticed the change, too. She mentioned it at dinner one evening. “I see you’re teaching my daughter to be as strong as my son.”

  “Rebecca is every bit as strong as Brighton. She’s coming out of her shell.” Alice frowned at the concerned look on Isabelle’s face. “Is that a problem?”

  Isabelle shook her head. “No, I think it’s wonderful she’s becoming less timid, but there are proprieties that need to be remembered as well. A man rarely chooses a headstrong woman to be his wife. Rebecca needs to learn the proper etiquette for a young woman.”

  “I agree. There’s no harm in helping her find a bit more self-confidence. Brighton is such a strong boy. He tends to over shadow her. Encouraging Rebecca also teaches Brighton things like respect and compassion for others.”

  “I hadn’t thought of it that way. It’s a wonderful prospect for both of them,” smiled Isabelle. “You are a wonder, Alice.”

  “I’ll draw the line if she suddenly wants to wear britches.”

  * * * *

  Weeks passed, and Alice finally begun to relax. Her bruises had faded and she’d not heard any news from Carlton or Emerson Blake regarding the Scarlet Night or Gavin. They’d questioned her again as to whether she’d remembered anything more. She told them Gavin may have mentioned a sister living near Boston. No doubt, at this very moment, at least one British Naval ship was headed north in search of a wild goose.

  Gavin headed south for sure. All the safe ports for him are there. By now, the mast had been repaired. She imagined he’d be heading back to intercept more slave ships and fill his coffers again. After witnessing a slave auction last week in town, men and women chained like animals, giving Emerson Blake any tiny tidbit of misinformation well justified the lie in her mind.

  Neither Carlton nor Emerson was pleased about the fact Gavin and his crew had escaped the hangman’s noose. They grumbled about it often. Alice would nod sympathetically, all the while relieved they were well away from danger. You’d have thought that fact alone would help her sleep at night.

  Her days were packed full of activities with the children. Alice would fill the hours with a busy array of lessons and walks, trips to the stream, picnics. All so when she dropped her exhausted body into bed, her nights might be filled with dreamless sleep.

  Gavin only whispered into her thoughts during the day; however, he would ride full-sail into her dreams at night. The passionate images were so vivid she would awaken certain she was not alone in her bed. Realization would collapse atop her heart and punch the air from her lungs while frustration and want raked across her body. Try as she might, she couldn’t put him from her mind. He was there each time she closed her eyes.

  Today she and the children secured a basket lunch from Cook. Taking fishing poles and a wide-mouthed jar of earthworms, they headed down to a small pond near the very back of the property. The day was crystalline clear, the sky a cloudless swath of vivid blue. Alice and Rebecca wore straw hats and drank cool, tart lemonade from a thick stoneware pot. Brighton hunted frogs and skipped stones over the dark, flat surface of the water.

  Following their lunch of cold chicken, fresh apples, and leftover cornbread from breakfast, Brighton was patient in showing his little sister the proper way to stick a worm on a fishhook. All were proud when Rebecca mastered the maneuver with no squeamishness at all.

  Hours later, the trio rushed happily into the manor house. Brighton was so excited about the three fat fish he caught, he couldn’t wait to show his father. Rebecca had caught one small sunfish, but by the look upon her beaming face, you would have thought she’d hooked a whale.

  Both children raced through the house calling after their father, holding their prize catches high. Alice hurried after them. “Keep your voices down. Don’t run in the house.”

  Ahead, Brighton ignored Alice’s warnings and burst into his father’s study.

  Carlton Whitmore jumped to his feet. “Brighton, don’t you knock, boy?” scolded his father.

  “Sorry, Father, but look.” He held up his fish.

  Rebecca was right behind him. “Father, me too, look.”

  Alice was less than three strides back and came up behind both children. “I’m terribly sorry,” she huffed, out of breath. “The children were excited.” Emerson Blake stood. Since the night in the garden, she’d done all she could to avoid the man, but he seemed a constant visitor. “We didn’t mean to disturb you.”

  She patted the children’s shoulders. “Say ‘good day’ to Mister Blake, children.”

  “Good day, Mister Blake,” they repeated before excitement caught hold again. “Aren’t they the biggest fish you’ve ever seen?” Brighton insisted. “I caught mine all by myself, Father,” Rebecca added.

  As Carlton examined the children’s prize catch, Emerson stepped closer to Alice. “We were actually just talking about you.”

  Uneasiness washed over her. She focused her gaze on the children and tried to keep the rise in her breathing under control. “Me? I can’t imagine a less interesting topic. What were you saying?”

  “The subject of pirates came up again.”

  “And you were wondering if I’d ever scaled a yardarm or sported an eye patch?” She gave him a quick smile and watched his dimple flash. “Children, your father has seen your fish, and we’re being rude to Mister Blake.” She tried to pull the children back out of the study.

  Carlton Whitmore smoothed the front of his waistcoat and smiled at his children. “Those are the finest fish I have seen in quite a long time.” He lea
ned forward. “They look delicious. Why don’t you take them to Cook and ask her to fix them for our dinner?”

  “Cook makes the best fish dinners,” agreed Brighton while beaming with pride.

  “But, Father,” cried Rebecca, “my fish isn’t for dinner. I want to keep him. He’ll be no trouble. He’s quiet, and he only eats worms.”

  Alice bit her lip and soothed Rebecca. “Let’s talk about this outside and let your father get back to his meeting with Mister Blake.”

  Carlton walked them to the door. “Thank you for sharing your good fortune with me, children.”

  Rebecca frowned. “They’re not fortunes, they’re fish.”

  “Come along.” Alice ushered the small fishing party through the doorway. She kept her gaze away from Emerson. There was no telling what he’d read on her face. “I am sorry we interrupted you.”

  Children and fish were delivered to their respective places. After debating with Rebecca, she agreed perhaps a drawing of a fish was better than a dead fish. Even if he was quiet. They found him a shady spot in the garden as his final resting place.

  Using the children’s respite, Alice found her own shady spot. Taking a book she’d borrowed from the Whitmore’s library, she settled herself beneath one of the huge oak trees that graced the edges of the garden. Beneath its wide shadow, it was blissfully cool and comfortable.

  Alice plucked at the clover next to her, rolling the tender stalks between her fingers. Dropping it into her lap. Try as she might, she couldn’t concentrate on the words within the book. Her encounter with Emerson Blake still nagged at the back of her mind.

  Perhaps she was being paranoid, but the way he looked at her at times, was most disconcerting. They were talking about her. In what context?

  Alice turned the page without reading a single line, and picked another stem, absently twirling the small round blades of its leaves like a top. Perhaps they were still determined to capture Gavin. Had something else happened? Seems there were new reports of pirate activities all along the coastline and throughout the outer banks.

  She sighed in worried frustration and leaned her head against the rough bark of the oak. She even tried to convince herself it wasn’t just Gavin she was concerned about, it was everyone. MacTavish, Robbins, Bump, and the rest. But in her heart she knew the truth of it. The ache of Gavin’s rejection had lost some of its edge. She understood why he’d pushed her away. Had the boot been on the other foot, she might have done the same thing. If she had been the captain of the Scarlet Night and feared for a member of the crew, she’d have put them ashore, too.

  So why didn’t that knowledge and conviction ease her worries more? Because of the one thing all the rational thought and distance and practical understanding couldn’t explain away? The love. What was she supposed to do with that? Try as she might, she couldn’t stop loving him. In fact, if anything, her feelings for Gavin had only grown since she’d been here.

  She missed him with all her heart and even missed that infuriating look he would give her when she had exasperating the hell out of him. But it was the look in his eyes the day they had made love. He never said the words, but she saw the hunger and passion in his eyes.

  It was in his touch and his kiss. The way he put his lips to the scar upon her thigh before lowering is mouth to—

  “A picture of quiet contentment.” Emerson Blake’s voice startled Alice out of a dream.

  She leapt to her feet, heart pounding, brushing bits of green from her skirt. “I-I didn’t hear you approach.”

  “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to frighten you, but I’m most anxious to speak with you.”

  Short of shimmying up the tree to escape him, she couldn’t think of any way to avoid him. “What did you want to talk about?”

  “May I sit with you?” He indicated the grass.

  “If you wish.” They sat upon the soft ground. Alice kept her back to the stout tree trunk with her book in her lap.

  Emerson sat facing her. “That was impressive earlier.”

  She gave him a questioning glance.

  “The children.” He smiled.

  “They run faster than I.” She lifted one shoulder.

  “You handled them brilliantly. Carlton and Isabelle rave about you.”

  “They’re not difficult to handle.” She plucked another piece of clover. Curiosity made her ask. “Did you finish talking about me after I left?”

  Emerson’s smile tipped up on one side. “Actually, yes. Carlton and I were celebrating a small victory. The British have agreed to increase their patrols along the coast, and we heard the Scarlet Night was spotted leaving port farther south. With any luck Captain Quinn will sail right into their hands.”

  A cold finger of fear ran down Alice’s spine. She fought to remain calm. Struggled to think of what she could do without bringing the entire British Navy down upon her head. Her heart thundered in her chest while Emerson Blake kept chatting away. She’d lost track of what he was saying. Something about safe futures and higher profits on shipments.

  Emerson leaned forward. “I’m a man of action.” He reached for her hand, crushing the clover’s tender stem she held between her fingers. “I work hard. When I see something I want, I take it. I’m direct. It’s my nature. I want you, Alice.”

  She jerked as if he’d struck her. How had the conversation moved from Gavin being captured to this? “I b-beg your pardon?”

  Emerson released her hand and stood. “It’s no secret. I want a wife. I want children.”

  Alice’s mind spun. She was back on a pitching deck trying to find her footing. “Weren’t you courting Harriet Appletree?”

  “Applegate.” He smirked. “She’s a fine woman. Everything I wanted in a mate.” He knelt before her and lifted her hand. “But then I met you.”

  Alice tugged her hand away and stood, dropping her book. She stepped clear of him. “You’re confused. You hardly know me. I’m sure once Harriet returns, the two of you—”

  “I don’t want her. I want you.” He reached for her again.

  Alice dodged his hands. “Stop saying that.” She turned her back on him and placed her hand over her pounding heart.

  He moved to stand behind her. “It’s true. I find you captivating.”

  She spun, catching her skirts as they brushed his legs. “Proper. You said she was a proper woman. Fine stock, remember?” Alice took another step back, shaking her head. “I’m neither of those things.”

  “You’re a rare find, Alice Tupper. Intelligent. Strong. You know your own mind.”

  “Translation,” she laughed. “Odd. Opinionated. Stubborn.”

  Emerson smiled. The dimple in his cheek flashed. “I can be just as stubborn.” He closed the space between them. Alice moved to step back and met the tree. “I realize you’re unconventional. Spirited.” His gaze lowered. This close he had a clear view into the top of her gown. She was breathing so hard, he was getting quite the show. “It may be against my better judgment, but I don’t care. I’ve decided.” Emerson’s voice was low. He was so close. Alice could smell his cologne. The lingering scent of cigar smoke on his clothes. The brandy on his breath.

  If she moved a fraction of an inch, he’d be kissing her. “You’re drunk.”

  His eyes locked with hers. “I’ve never been more sober in my life.” His gaze moved to her mouth. “I can offer you so much. I have land. Wealth.” He moved to touch her, his fingers a whisper away from her skin. “I’d never raise a hand against you. Never hurt you.” Emerson closed his eyes and released a deep breath. “You don’t love me. I know. But in time.”

  She waited for him to lift his gaze before she shook her head. “Emerson, you have no idea who I am.”

  He eased back, opened his arms wide and smiled broadly. “I’ll learn. I’ll court you. You’ll see, I’ll win your heart.”

  Alice pushed away from the tree and skirted him. Picking up her book, she held it to her chest. “That’s impossible
.”

  “I don’t know the meaning of the word.” He caught her arm as she tried to leave. “Nothing is impossible.”

  She pulled out of his grasp. “I’m afraid this is.”

  Chapter 25

  The flowers began to arrive within the hour. An invitation to tea interrupted the flow of blossoms. Alice replied with a curt refusal together with an insistence Emerson cease sending her flowers.

  At dinner that evening, Alice apologized for the uproar caused by the persistent Mister Blake.

  “I’ve told him to stop, but he is determined.”

  Carlton laughed. “You’ve underestimated him. Emerson is like a dog with his teeth in a new bone. He can be relentless.”

  Her patience snapped. “I’m not a dog’s bone, Mister Whitmore. His proposal is ridiculous.”

  “I wish you luck persuading him otherwise.” Carlton chuckled. “Tell her, Isabelle.”

  Isabelle dabbed at the corners of her mouth with her napkin. “He’s right, Alice. Emerson can be most single-minded. But in truth, he’s a wonderful man. He’s the most eligible man in the county. You’d want for nothing. He’d make you a fine husband.”

  Alice couldn’t believe she was hearing this. “I just became your governess. Now you want to marry me off?”

  “Of course, we’d hate to lose you as our governess, but the opportunity to marry a man like Emerson doesn’t come along every day. We could still be the best of friends. We’d still see you all the time.”

  The fish course was served. Brighton’s fish. Alice fiddled with her fork. How could she get them to understand short of telling them the truth? She’d need their help in dissuading Emerson from this ridiculous notion. She’d make as fine a wife to Emerson Blake as Rebecca’s fish would make a lovely pet.

  Isabelle took a sip of her wine. “If he’s planning a wedding after the last harvest, that wouldn’t give us much time to make all the proper arrangements.” She turned to Carlton. “People would need sufficient notice and travel days. I suppose we could put some of the wedding guests up here.”