When at last he was free to leave he went below, where his aunt was waiting for him.
"I sent Rowena to bed," she said. "She was exhausted."
He nodded and thanked her, but he was impatient. There was so much he must say to her, and it seemed a long time until morning.
He knew he couldn't sleep. To get some fresh air he went up on deck.
Then he grew very still.
He wasn't alone. There was another figure there in a pink satin ball gown, as he'd seen her once before, on that first evening.
She turned and looked at him. Slowly he came forward and took her hands.
"I should have known that I'd met my fate that very first night," he said. "You were so beautiful and full of courage. Oh my dear, my love – "
The next moment they were in each other's arms.
"I so nearly lost you," he said huskily. "Now I'll never let you go again."
He kissed her repeatedly.
"My darling Mark," she said. "It took me too long to know that I loved you."
"When did you know?"
"When I was in that dreadful place and thought we'd be apart forever. Then I had to admit to myself that you were everything to me. But it seemed too late."
"I will never let you go again," he said fiercely. "I loved you from the first moment I saw you, although I wouldn't admit it. I was so busy running away from suitable marriages, and you and I always seemed to be fighting. You were so set against me, and I had to find a way to be in your company, to get close to you and break down your hostility."
"I was never really as hostile as I appeared," she confessed. "You seemed to overwhelm me, and I wouldn't let that happen. But then you stopped giving me orders and became my friend and brother – "
"I'm a fraud, my darling," Mark interrupted. "I never meant to be your brother, only your husband. All through this voyage I've been jealous if you looked at another man. I couldn't admit to my feelings while I was in doubt about yours. But lately I have dared to hope."
"Oh Mark, we've wasted so much time," she whispered. "I want to be married to you. I love you with all my heart, and I always will."
"Yes, our love will grow stronger every day we are together. You will always belong to me as long as we both live, and after, in that beyond that we can only imagine. You are mine and I am yours, and we will never be separated again."
He kissed her until she gave a little sob of happiness and hid her face against his shoulder.
"Let us go home," he said. "And marry as soon as possible. That's all I want in the world now, to be able to call you my wife."
"Your wife," she said longingly. "How wonderful that will be! Together for ever and ever."
Beneath them the ocean stretched away as far as they could see. Overhead the stars wheeled in silent beauty.
Eternal.
Unending.
Like the love that would unite them always.
Table of Contents
CHAPTER ONE 1877
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
The Ship of Love Page 14