Silver Sea

by Wright, Cynthia

  "You are speaking, then, of a marriage of convenience?"

  "Yes."

  Adrienne lifted her chin. "I accept."

  Chapter 16

  The Golden Eagle was spared the calamity of hurricanes or attacking ships, and the trade winds sped her four-week voyage to Barbados. During that time, Captain Raveneau immersed himself in all the duties he'd neglected for so long. Every waking hour was spent poring over charts or on deck, overseeing the ceaseless activity of the crew. At night he slept in a hammock at one end of the cabin. Nathan explained to Adrienne that since his hours were so erratic, it was best that he not take the chance of disturbing her.

  Besides, their interactions had reached a new stage. No longer bantering and bickering as in the past, they now behaved as a cordial betrothed couple. Nathan asserted that he had already broken enough rules; until they were married, he would be the soul of propriety.

  Adrienne knew it was all an excuse to avoid her, but told herself that she could afford to bide her time. There were dozens of fine books to lose herself in, and when her thoughts wandered to Nathan, she allowed herself the luxury of fantasy. Most of the time this tactic worked. She would imagine their exotic life on Barbados, coloring in the details of a fine manor house and a deep feather bed where she and her husband would pass the sultry nights in conjugal bliss. On the evenings when Nathan was especially short with her, she sometimes lay in her bunk in the shadowy cabin and let the sea rock her until images of their beautiful, laughing babies lulled her to sleep.

  Yet, when Adrienne wore the other woman's clothing, unwelcome questions about the mysterious Eloise, whose name Nathan had called in his sleep, crept into her mind. At last she firmly reminded herself that whoever Eloise had been, she was gone and now Adrienne was with Nathan. And that was that.

  The afternoon that land was first sighted, her world grew rosier still. Nathan took Minter's suggestion to invite her on deck for a look through the spyglass.

  "The ocean is breathtaking," she marveled. When they'd first sailed from England, the Atlantic Ocean had seemed dark and dramatic. Now the tropical waters dazzled. The sea, a brilliant azure, seemed friendly with its silvery flying fish, warm breezes, and heartbreakingly stunning sunsets.

  Nathan said nothing, but watched from a distance as she looked through the spyglass. Secretly he felt that the beauty surrounding them was no match for Adrienne. Her afternoons spent reading on deck had lent her skin an appealing golden-peachy glow, and her eyes were vivid in contrast. Many a night he had lain in his hammock aching for her.

  Sometimes Raveneau wondered if Adrienne was a curse.

  "Look!" she exclaimed with a radiant smile. "Is that really Barbados? It's not at all what I expected—"

  "It's shaped rather like a pear with a lower half that swings out toward the east," Minter said. "You're looking at that side of the island, which also happens to border the Atlantic Ocean. The west coast is gentle; the east is wild, even treacherous. Bridgetown, the main port city, is on the western coast."

  "I'll have to study a map, to learn more," she mused.

  Minter pointed toward the shore. "That particular craggy-looking landscape is called the Scotland District. You'll find that nearly every village, city, house, and road is named for something English. Even Barbados itself is lovingly referred to as Bimshire."

  Adrienne was already infatuated with her new home. "Bimshire? How charming!"

  "Charming isn't the word for the Atlantic side of the island," Nathan informed her. "Farther down the coast is Cobbler's Reef, where the surf is treacherous and Xavier Crowe watches at night from his house for unsuspecting ships. He and his henchmen use false lights to fool the ships into thinking they've reached Bridgetown. Then his wrecking parties plunder the cargoes."

  "How terrible! No wonder you despise him!" She peered to the south, fascinated in spite of herself. The water was exquisite, layering in shades of vivid blue and turquoise as it became shallower toward the shoreline. It was difficult to reconcile such beauty with danger. "Xavier Crowe lives on the southeastern side of Barbados? Where is your own estate? And where is Papa's land?"

  "My home is called Tempest Hall, and it's more northeast, inland a bit." His brow arched with familiar cynicism. "Your father's fifty oceanfront acres adjoin Crowe's northern border." Nathan took a step backward. "If you two will excuse me, I'll check on the navigation. I know that you'll keep Miss Beauvisage amused, Zach."

  She watched him turn away, then pause for a moment to speak to an old, gnomelike surgeon's mate. Next to her, Zachary Minter spoke in a tone of grudging sympathy.

  "I know Captain Raveneau hasn't been very kind to you of late, Miss Beauvisage, but he's really not a bad sort. Do you see that ancient fellow he's chatting with? Tarpeck was a crewmember on the Black Eagle, the privateer that Andre Raveneau sailed during the Revolutionary War in America. The old fellow isn't much use anymore, but we found a place for him." Minter watched her face.

  "I suppose your captain can't be all bad." Adrienne felt that it was better if Nathan thought that she was every bit as cool about their marriage as he was. If he knew that she felt giddy every time he drew near, all would be lost.

  Even now the sight of him in biscuit breeches that skimmed his lean hips and the muscles in his thighs made her heart pound. All his gestures were etched in her memory, along with each detail of his harshly handsome face....

  "Miss Beauvisage, are you all right? Is it the heat?"

  Adrienne discovered that Minter was looking at her, puzzled, and she smiled. "Actually, I adore this climate as long as there is a breeze. If I don't take care, I'll be as brown as Nathan before long." Slowly she began to stroll along the deck rail, and Zachary Minter followed, quite spellbound. "If I looked preoccupied, it was because I was considering your words. I realize that you are very loyal to Nathan, and I know that he is loyal to you and all his men. But I am a lady. Will I ever be accepted?"

  The first mate's perpetual sunburn disguised his guilty blush. "I confess that I had my doubts about this arrangement right from the start. I didn't want him to go to Harms Castle, even if it meant getting that land on Barbados, and I surely didn't want you on this ship. But," he hastened to add, "that's not quite true anymore. I'm beginning to think that there might be something to this."

  "That's rather cryptic." Adrienne glanced at him sideways, under her thick lashes. "You're telling me that you have begun to accept me, yet your captain seems to be pulling back more and more since we agreed to marry. Are you aware that in England we were friends... after a fashion?"

  "I can see that." Zach cleared his throat. "It isn't my place to discuss Captain Raveneau with you this way. We've known each other all our lives, so I sometimes forget and say more than he'd want. He guards his privacy with a vengeance."

  "And he keeps his heart tightly locked?" Adrienne suggested wistfully. "You must know all the... people in his past."

  "That's... true. Look—" Zach glanced left and right, then leaned closer to confide, "I hope you'll try to be patient with him. He's just like his father was—wild as the sea, and fighting instinctively against any woman who would tame him. Do you know what they called him in London?"

  "No." There were so many new pieces to the puzzle of Nathan. "What?"

  "The Scapegrace."

  "Oh! But—of course I've heard of the Scapegrace! He was said to be a libertine! I heard shocking stories about his conquests...." Her eyes widened.

  "Never mind those. All you need to understand is that he has always been used to his freedom. If he behaves badly toward you at times, it is not because he doesn't care, but because of his inner struggle with his nature."

  "His reputation darkens by the moment." Adrienne wondered again if she could have misjudged him so perilously. "You said he's like his father... yet even Andre Raveneau learned to love, didn't he?"

  "God, yes!" Minter laughed for emphasis. "Once he finally surrendered to loving Devon he went right off the edge. Nathan's parents have bee
n happily married for thirty-five years!" He paused. "But he hasn't any desire to emulate them."

  "I see..." Her heart sank even as she gathered the courage to ask Minter about Eloise. How could she explain the way she'd learned the other woman's name?

  "Minter!" It was Captain Raveneau, shouting from the quarterdeck. His face was dark. "You are amusing Miss Beauvisage a bit too well! Leave her now and return to your duties."

  Adrienne put one hand on her hip and shielded her eyes with the other as she challenged him from halfway across the ship. "Is it a crime for someone to befriend me?"

  To her chagrin, Nathan did not respond, but presented his back to her as if she had not spoken at all.

  * * *

  The Golden Eagle sailed around the top of Barbados, then leisurely skirted the western coast, bound for the prosperous port of Bridgetown. At dawn, Adrienne was completely packed and ready to disembark from the ship, even though they hadn't reached land yet.

  Standing at the rail, she gazed out at the aqua water that lapped against sugary beaches lined with slim palm trees and lush flowering plants. This was the side of the island that bordered the warm, gentle Caribbean Sea. To Adrienne, it was like a dream, wrapped in the glow of sunrise. Everything about Barbados seemed exotic, and the unpredictable newness of her future was thrilling.

  "Second thoughts?"

  She heard Nathan's voice over her shoulder and felt his breath on her cheek. A familiar, euphoric feeling tingled her scalp and traveled down to the tips of her toes. Given the mounting evidence of her fiancé's rakish past, Adrienne had spent much of the night worrying that her cause was hopeless and that she might be just the latest woman to wear the silky underclothes in his cabin. Still, when Nathan was near, hope swelled within her again.

  "No second thoughts," Adrienne murmured. She didn't turn to look at him, but allowed the corners of her mouth to curve upward. "I think I may have been born to live here."

  "Indeed?" Nathan reminded himself that even marriage needn't be permanent—particularly not this sort of arrangement. He didn't care to ponder his aversion to true love but supposed that it could be traced to his parents. Their marriage was so perfect that Nathan felt that anything less would be failure.

  He also might be avoiding real romantic entanglements because of his own bitter history. Not only didn't he like to hear Eloise's name spoken, he tried not to think of her. It was easier to focus on Xavier Crowe and direct his hatred toward him. Meanwhile, it seemed likely that Adrienne would grow homesick on Barbados, and he would generously grant her a divorce.

  "Is it your belief," he inquired, "that we are being guided by the hand of fate?"

  Recalling Zachary Minter's cautionary words about Nathan's matrimonial jitters, Adrienne laughed. "Oh, no, nothing as serious as that, sir! I anticipate only a good adventure."

  His brow cleared. Slowly he nodded, smiling. "That's good. Very good. We are of one mind, then."

  "Are we?"

  The Golden Eagle was coming around Needham Point, headed for Carlisle Bay and the port of Bridgetown. Sails were furled. Nathan went off with Minter to bring the ship in safely, and Adrienne stared in surprise at the bustling city of stone buildings that curved around the bay.

  The slow voyage of imagining was over. Adrienne's dreams were turning swiftly to reality. She hadn't expected Bridgetown to look so civilized. Tarpeck was wandering the decks, getting in the way, and Minter sent him to Adrienne's assistance. The old man was half blind, but he'd sailed this route countless times.

  "That upper part of the harbor is called the Careenage," he explained, pointing with a misshapen finger to colorful rows of vessels lining the quays. "They turn the ships on their sides and scrape the hulls there. That's 'careening.' "

  Adrienne used Tarpeck as her guide then. He identified St. Anne's Barracks, which surrounded a neat square. At the other end of town was Fontabelle, now empty, where the governors of Barbados had once lived, and Pelican Island, covered with lovely palm trees. "The town's burned twice and survived some dreadful hurricanes," Tarpeck said. "Plenty o' wooden buildings and great plantations houses have been lost to fire and storms. It's the coral stone ones, with the thickest walls, that survive."

  Again Adrienne was struck by the extremes of life in this paradise. How could a place as idyllic and beautiful as Barbados be so dangerous? It was unnerving to think that one's home could be standing one day and be blown away the next....

  "Those hills out yonder are part of other parishes," Tarpeck growled. He stuck his gnarled finger out again, in the direction of low, undulating hills in the distance beyond Bridgetown. There were houses here and there, and an abundance of feathery palms. "Pardon me, miss, but I see that I'm needed. I have duties to perform, y'know."

  "I deeply appreciate your assistance, Mr. Tarpeck!" Adrienne gave the grizzled old seaman a glowing smile and was rewarded by a dip of his head, accompanied by a gruff sound.

  When the Golden Eagle's anchor was dropped, tiny native boats circled the ship. The boats' occupants offered services of every sort, from clothes-washing to baggage transport. Adrienne had seen few Negroes in France or England, so she couldn't help being curious. Dressed in light, brightly colored clothing, these people were friendly and welcoming.

  It wasn't necessary to make good-byes to the ship and her crew. The Golden Eagle would remain anchored off Barbados until her captain rearranged his life and decided what his next voyage would be. The men saw Adrienne off with warm smiles and whispers of good wishes, which made her wonder how many of them knew that she would soon be Mrs. Raveneau.

  Their luggage went to the docks first, and then Adrienne and Nathan, with Minter, descended the accommodation ladder and found places in the longboat that would take them to shore. Dressed in a simple muslin promenade gown with green ribbons to match her eyes, Adrienne was becoming more and more aware of the heat as the morning advanced. There was a nice breeze, but the humidity was a condition she had never experienced.

  "I feel rather silly with my parasol," she confessed to the men. "Everyone will think me a spoiled Englishwoman."

  "I don't doubt that you'll be an unladylike shade of golden brown in no time at all," Nathan replied, "but I would advise that you use your parasol, or a bonnet, as often as you can bear it. Too much sun too quickly will make you ill, and very pink!"

  "Besides," Zachary chimed in jovially, "the Bajans will expect you to act the part of a wealthy planter's wife. You ought to—" He broke off under the fire of Raveneau's stare. "Did I say something amiss?"

  "Your captain doesn't like to contemplate his approaching nuptials," Adrienne said tartly. "I daresay he'd like to lock me in my room after the wedding so he won't have to admit to anyone on the island that he's gotten married at all!"

  Nathan gave her a menacing stare. "I was hoping you had left that acid tongue in England!"

  Meanwhile, Zach tugged at his collar. "God's foot, isn't it getting hotter by the minute? And I think this boat is shrinking! Ah, here's the quay, and not a moment too soon!"

  If she hadn't been so furious with Nathan, Adrienne would have laughed. As it was, she caught sight of Minter's reassuring wink and gave him a tiny smile in response.

  Raveneau was looking around as he jumped onto the dock and took the luggage Minter handed up to him. "What a relief. There's Philip, reliable as ever. Thank God some things don't change."

  An old white-haired Negro gentleman made his way through the people, barrels, crates, and coils of rope that covered the quay. Somehow, perhaps because of his direct gaze and dignified bearing, Adrienne guessed that he must be Philip, the person Nathan was so happy to see.

  "I be happy to be findin' you, Captain," he said in a low, melodious voice.

  "Philip, you are a sight for sore eyes!" Nathan's temper was replaced by high spirits. "Look at that handsome waistcoat! Did Orchid make it for you?"

  A warm smile creased the older man's face. His ensemble of loose beige trousers with a white shirt was crowned by a vest
of tangerine and lime striped silk. "You do be a kind man, sir. Sorry to say dat Orchid feelin' weak dis pas season. We daughter, Lily, make de waistcoat for me."

  Nathan looked concerned. "Orchid will be all right, won't she? I've been away too long. I want everything to be unchanged when I come home, but how can that be when I am at sea for so many months?"

  "I wonder dis too, sir," Philip murmured with a nod. His brown eyes wandered toward Adrienne.

  "You must be curious about this young lady." Nathan took Adrienne's arm in time to save her from being knocked over by a passing sailor. "This isn't the place for conversation, but I should perform an introduction. Philip Smythe, this is Miss Adrienne Beauvisage." As they exchanged smiles and greetings, Raveneau grew paler. "I—uh—I should add, Philip, that Miss Beauvisage is my—uh—intended."

  "Sir! It can be so? Dear Lord, we do have blessing! Orchid be so happy. She t'ink dis day not come in she lifetime!"

  Adrienne gave her betrothed a sidelong glance, imitating his own arched eyebrow. "My darling, why would Philip and Orchid think that you would not be the marrying sort?"

  His grip on her arm tightened. "I haven't a clue. Let's go before we're pushed into the water."

  Minter helped them transport the baggage to a waiting wagon, then took it upon himself to hand Adrienne into the neat little carriage that Philip referred to as a sulky. As she took her seat under the sheltering hood, the small man leaned closer.

  "Good luck, miss. I mean that sincerely." He gave her another wink. "Try to be patient with him, even though he won't deserve such mercies."

  His words made her smile, but her face fell as she realized Zachary wasn't coming with them. "Must you stay with the ship?"

  "Don't look so terrified. He won't gobble you up, no matter how loudly he may growl." On impulse, Minter reached out and patted her creamy cheek.

  Nathan was climbing in on the other side, and Philip perched in front, gathering the reins. "Zach," Nathan warned with a satirical undercurrent, "don't grow too attached to Adrienne. It's not seemly."