When he looked back to her face, it was as if he were a new man—not intimidated by such a small woman. He looked around to ensure no one overheard their conversation and turned back. “I can tell you things about yourself you probably didn’t even know, but I’d rather show you.”
Her hand shook when she fluttered it before her face. “Oh, look at that… you’re out of tea again. Let me get you a bigger cup.” At that, she picked up the tiny saucer, and leapt to her feet to disappear down the hall.
Damn. What in the world had possessed him to say a thing like that to a lady? She’s not some strumpet off the street. Although, at the moment she was acting a little off at her father’s wake. As if he had come to court her, and they were just having tea.
The only time he would ever be so brusque with his remarks was when he’d been three sheets to the wind. But hell, he hadn’t drunk so much as a sip of liquor since he took the Keeper position. It was as if he was either too shy, or too direct. He needed to find some middle ground.
She rounded the corner in a rustle of skirts and held both of their drinks.
“I don’t think you know everything about me,” she said, as she handed him his drink, and sat. “For instance, I’ll bet you didn’t know that I was practically kicked out of the Ladies Academy.”
The heat of the liquid burned his throat when he choked. “Really? How?”
“I used to play pranks on all the head mistresses. They found out it was me and wanted to dismiss me.”
“Tell me about one of your pranks.”
“One year, I knocked over our Christmas tree because I tried to climb it—but that was when I was small. It was for a good reason. I thought that if I could touch the star and make a wish, it might come true.”
“If you were a child, I can see that. Do you remember what you wished for?”
“I wished my father could stay home and not go out to sea. I wanted him home.” She took a deep breath and looked away before turning back to him. “He always said I had the heart and courage of a boy. You see, I tend to do things that polite company deems… naughty. I just hope those affected can find it in their hearts to forgive me.”
Wade let out a good-natured scoff. “All you have to do is look at them and they will forgive you.”
“I hope so,” she said in a wistful tone.
His head started to swim, and the room tilted a bit as nausea hit him with force. He shook his head to clear it and take control of his rioting stomach. The arm of the chair dug into his palm when he grabbed it to steady himself. “I’m sorry. It must be the heat. Hold on a moment.” He took a deep breath, which seemed to help. “As you were saying.” He shook his head again and peered at Laura.
Her smile was deep, her teeth white against the pink of her plump lips. On a sudden thought, he stood. “Would you be so kind as to accompany me outside?”
“I would love to, but let’s bring our drinks. It’ll keep us warm while we walk.” She stood and entwined her arms in his while she led him to the foyer where they gathered their coats. “My uncle has a beautiful garden out back. Let’s go there.”
He lead the way, but slower than normal. His feet grew heavy and breath laborious while they strolled out the back to the gardens. He scuffed his feet along the ground, and stumbled over a large stone on the path. He caught himself and continued to walk behind her.
He stopped in time to miss bumping into her as she twirled around to face him. “Do you like me, Wade?”
“What?”
“Do you like me?”
“More than the world itself, Laura,” he couldn’t help but confess.
The silence stretched, and he took a deep drink of his tea while he watched her mull over the information. Her lashes fluttered, dark wisps against her soft white face. She looked up at him, her eyes glistening with tears—sadness, need, and something else shimmered in their depths.
“Beth and I used to make bets over who would be the one to marry you.”
Stunned, he wasn’t sure he heard her right. “What?”
“Well, you were the only one in class who was a gentleman—until tonight that is.” He caught her flirtatious smile before she continued. “I remember when you beat up Jacob Milton because he kissed me behind the schoolhouse.”
“Well, you didn’t look as though you wanted to be kissed.” And I was pissed it wasn’t me. Thank God he didn’t confess the last.
“Oh, I didn’t! You can be sure, I was as mad as a hornet.” She turned to walk down the path. “I wouldn’t be mad if you kissed me, though.”
The words penetrated the fog in his brain. A fog that kept creeping in thicker by the minute. He followed her at a distance to gather his courage. His heart beat wildly in his chest.
The path opened up to a wide grassy area. Wade took the moment to focus on the scene before him. To force his mind past the haze. Well, as much as he could in his mind addled state. A white marble bench stood with pride of place in the middle. The trail of stone made its way to the bench and circled around to disappear behind. She led him to the seat and, with a very ladylike descent, sat. Her small, lithe body turned toward him, and with a flutter of her long eyelashes, she patted the seat next to her.
His drink had cooled. The bitter liquid slid down his throat and settled hard in his stomach as he inhaled the rest. In two steps, he stood beside the marble bench. Vanilla and lavender made his eyes close when he bent near her and plucked the cup from her hands.
The gentle thump of the cups as they landed on the grass barely penetrated his mind when he eased into the seat. Without a second thought he pulled her close to his body, wrapped his arms around her shoulders, and with all the pent-up desire of the last fifteen years, kissed her.
His mind swirled with a passion-induced fog while his hands roamed her back. The silky folds of her bodice made his palms tingle when he ran his hands down the small of her back.
Wade pulled her closer to him.
Her lips were petal soft. He deepened the kiss further, firming his mouth. Air escaped his lungs with a rush when he felt her tongue trace the outline of his lips.
The sensation of her soft skin on the pads of his fingers overwhelmed his thoughts when he reached up and traced her cheek. The lines of her neck slid beneath his touch. He rested his thumb on the little dip of her neck, just above her chest. Her pulse leapt and beat beneath his fingers.
He pulled his head away to catch a much needed breath. The air circulated through his lungs, and into his body, but it didn’t clear the haze in his head. He opened his mouth to speak, to confess his desire and adoration. To tell her she was beautiful. To tell her… what was he going to tell her? He tried to speak, but his vision tunneled and the scene around him blurred for a moment as dizziness swept over him.
It lasted no longer than a second, but when the fog cleared, he knew the weight of the world had been lifted from his shoulders. He felt peaceful. Detached from life. Happier than he’d been in years. He looked at Laura. Her beautiful emerald eyes questioned him and all he could do was smile. All he wanted to do was please her, give her anything she wished.
Chapter 3
A gentle sway filtered through his mind to bring him to focus on the here and now. Wade had felt the same motion many, many times before, but something seemed wrong. He felt the familiar pull of the oars against the waves and dropped the paddles into the boat. He closed his eyes to try to piece together what the hell just happened. When he finally opened them, the objects in his vision were fuzzy. He tried hard to concentrate, to clear the fog in his head.
“I feel very bad about all of this, Mother,” Laura’s voice sounded from somewhere nearby. What the blazes was she talking about? Feel bad for what?
“Oh… don’t be such a ninny. It’s the only way, and you know it. Retrieving your father from that ghost ship is all that matters.”
“Yes, I know. It’s just that I like this man, very much. I have for a very long time. What if he doesn’t forgive me, doesn’t understand w
hy I had to do it? He will never love me then.” Forgive her for what? Love her? His head reeled once again, but this time for what Laura had just said. Love her? Could it really be true that she loved him? Or at the very least, wanted his love? But what did he need to forgive her for?
“If he is so callous as to not forgive you for wanting your father back, then he is not the one for you.”
Was he imagining this? Or had the goddess of his dreams just betrayed him somehow?
The rocking motion brought his thoughts back. Finally winning the battle to focus his attention, his vision started to clear. He made out the outlines of several men and two women in the dark.
The surfboat used in rescues and water patrols crested a wave then slammed down on the water surface. Beside him lay the two oars he recently dropped. Four of his crewman sat at the rest of the positions, while Peter stood straight and proud at the Keeper’s spot up front. It looked as though they had opted for a four-man crew. He assumed they had done so to accommodate the women. But why hadn’t he stopped this from happening in the first place? After all, he was the Keeper, and he never broke the rules.
“Tossed oars!” He shouted over the crash of waves against the hull of the surfboat. At once, the crew pulled the oars in and raised them high in the air, which made the boat rock violently in the waves. Laura and her mother turned to look at him, clutching their seats. Both women were frightened, whether at the motion of the boat or his sudden change in demeanor, he didn’t know.
“As you were!” Peter shouted to the crew. The men dipped the oars back in the water to steady the pitching boat. Peter turned his gaze to him. “What the blaze is going on Wade?”
“I might ask you the same question.”
“Ask them.” Peter waved to the women, huddled tight in one of the surfman seats. “But, I’m talking about your sudden wish to overturn the vessel with 'tossed oars.’ This isn’t the time or sea state for that.”
“What the hell is going on?” He pierced Laura with a stare meant to intimidate.
“I have to get my father back,” Laura choked out as tears formed in the corner of her eyes.
“What did you do to me?”
Her chin quivered as the tears fell down her soft cheeks. “I put opium in your tea.”
His heart shattered, or more like crushed, in her tiny hands. “Why?”
“We have to get my father back!” She wailed. “The fisherman at the docks said he wouldn’t take us ’cause there’s a storm due any day now. We couldn’t risk losing him for good… and you wouldn’t take us. We did what we had to do, Wade, can’t you see that?”
“There is no one left on that ship, Laura. After the storm, my crew checked every corner of the vessel. I already told you that.”
“He’s there! We know he is.”
“Hell woman! Don’t you ever give up? He’s not there. More than likely he was washed out to sea during the wreckage.”
The harsh reality flashed in her eyes, but she shook her head. “No, I don’t give up. We saw a light shining from the hull. We’ve even seen smoke rise from one of the stacks.”
“Laura, it’s been gray and dreary since the wreck. There is no way you saw smoke. Not in this weather. And the light could have been an illusion from the sun.”
“No. He’s there. We know it. If we could just go and look, I know we can find him.”
He peered over to her mother who sat huddled close to Laura, clinging to her like a lifeline. His gaze fixed on the wreckage. They were already close enough to the ship, so why not appease her? Not that he liked any of this. “Fine. We’ll continue on. When we get back, though, you and I are going to have words.” He pierced her with another glare.
“Okay.” She nodded.
He glanced up into the face of his best friend. Peter stood tall and searched the men, then brought his gaze to rest on him. Wade inclined his head, and Peter did the same. The slight abrasion from the paddle as he picked it up and pushed hard into the water felt good as they glided toward the once proud trade ship. Within minutes, they hit the hull of the large vessel, just below the rope ladder left from the rescue.
The crew tied the small boat to the ship. Most would stay behind, but a few would join in the search. After two crewmen shimmied up the Jacob’s ladder, Peter helped the women climb. Wade was the last to scale the large ship.
Once onboard, he looked around to find that the crew and women had already started the search.
“Okay, so what’s going on?” Peter asked when he stepped up beside him.
He turned to see his friend’s face more fully. “It’s all a bit fuzzy. One minute I was kissing Laura, and the next I’m in the middle of the ocean. I don’t even know how they convinced me to bring them here, but I remember doing it.”
“I figured as much, but I couldn’t be completely sure.”
“What do you know about it all?” Wade ran a hand through his hair.
“You came into the station, rousted me and the crew and informed us we were going to take the women to the ship. I could see in your eyes that you weren’t quite right, but you’re the boss, and I figured you knew what you were doing.”
“They did something to my drinks at the wake.” Wade studied the women, struggling to open a portal to the inside of the ship.
Peter’s rough laugh brought Wade’s head around to watch his friend. “Then that explains how they got you to come. The two women secretly drugged you and then convinced you to bring them to the skeleton remains of a trade ship? The question is, why?”
“They think Laura’s father is still onboard, and no one else would take them out.” Wade let a sigh escape. “If he is… he’s dead.”
“Should we help them?”
Anger seared through his veins. “I don’t want to. Why should we? They tricked me, used me. Laura said she wanted me to kiss her, and then she drugged my drink. She doesn’t want me to console her. She used my authority to get what she wants. She’s a spoiled debutante, just like the rest of the women in this town.”
“Oh, I don’t know. I don’t think it’s all that bad. At least she kissed you, right? You need someone to get you away from all of this.” He waved his hand over the expanse of the shipwreck. “Do you realize this was the first day you’ve been away from the station since you took the position?”
“You know why,” he growled while they walked down the ladder, deeper into the pit of the ship. “I took the surfman post on this island to be closer to Laura, but when Keeper Abbott died, and I took his position, I feel that I—”
“Yes, I know. You feel you have to work extra hard to live up to his reputation.”
“That’s not it at all. I’m responsible for his death. Anything less than what I give now will be an insult to his memory.”
“You are not responsible for his death, Wade. Keeper Abbott would not want you to live your life solely for the station. Hell, even he had things to do outside of lifesaving, and he was one of the best Keepers I’ve ever known. The only insult to him would be for you to work yourself to death. Wearing yourself thin and not giving yourself a break from lifesaving is not the way to cope with it. Keeper Abbott died because it was his time; not because of anything you did.”
“If I had aimed the Lyle gun right, he wouldn’t have taken the crew out to rescue the ship.”
“You were training, Wade. It wasn’t your fault that the wave overturned the boat and caused them to drown.” Peter opened the door to the captain’s stateroom and walked inside.
“Today’s February 3rd, you know.”
“Yes. The day he died. But nothing bad will happen today.” Peter searched the room while Wade leaned against the doorframe. “And if it does then it was meant to be.”
“I don’t accept that answer. If it’s in my power to prevent people from getting hurt, I will.”
Peter stood and turned to face him. “You’re in the middle of a ghost ship and talking to me. If you forgive her, what you should be doing is following her around to make
sure a loose beam doesn’t fall on her, or that the weathered floorboards don’t give way and she plunges to her death.”
“I guess you’re right.” The soles of Wades boots ground on the wooden floor when he turned and made his way back to Laura. He didn’t forgive her. Maybe in time he would, but he also knew he would never forgive himself if anything happened to her.
He heard his best friend’s voice echo down the bulkheads while he walked away. “I’m always right, Wade. You should know that by now.”
After doing a quick search of a few dark compartments, he located Laura and her mother next to an entrance, half-hidden behind a large pile of rubble that he’d assumed blocked the room during the wreck. Wooden beams, planks, and dust took up the area in front of the door. Laura and her mother picked at the wood and tossed the pieces nearby.
“What the blazes is going on?” he asked in his most commanding voice.
The two crewmen near the back wall turned to face him and shook their heads. An expression of stunned confusion dominated their features.
Laura stiffened when he neared and turned around. “I don’t think your crew checked this room when they searched.”
“Judging by the pile of rubble in front, I’m inclined to agree.” He turned his attention to the crew. “Who checked this deck?”
“Randall did, sir.”
Wade swore under his breath. He turned to Laura to explain. “Randall was dismissed two days ago for dereliction of duty. He had been caught on multiple occasions sleeping on watch and gun decking his rounds.” He pulled Laura and her mother away from the mess and motioned for his men to take over. With his help, they made a large dent in the mess by the time Peter caught up with them. Like any good surfman, Peter dug in without question.
After the planks were cleared, the men pushed with their shoulders to open the heavy, blocked door. The grunts of the men and scrape of feet against the grimy floorboards echoed off the walls while they heaved. Inch by grueling inch, the portal opened to reveal the mess deck and galley.
A soft light shone into the hall when he stepped through. He did a visual sweep of the room. A candle had been lit and placed in the corner on an overturned crate. The flame burned the wax to a stub—a good sign of human habitation. No one spoke from inside. “Quick, search the room,” he said and stepped aside to allow the others to follow.
The Lighthouse Romance Anthology (The Life Saving Series) Page 7
