Sail With Me (A Discovery Series Book)

by Christy Major

  I had learned so much in my time on the Rose about sailing, about people, about taking chances and falling in love. What if I had never decided to go? I would still be in Lady Elizabeth’s kitchen, fixing petite sandwiches and tea for her guests. I would still be leading Benjamin on secret nighttime excursions to steal a few moments aboard a ship. I would still be wondering when my brothers and father were coming home.

  No, this was far better, though the thought of Benjamin lingered in my mind. What was he doing right now? Working in his father’s store? Helping his mother shear the sheep they owned? Calling on Rachel Carnigan? I wanted Benjamin to be as happy as I was with Daniel.

  I settled deeper into the warm bath Tizoc’s oldest sister, Xochitl, had prepared for me in a huge copper basin. Dunking my head all the way under the water, I let the jasmine aroma infuse every part of me.

  Rising up to the surface, I ran my fingers through my soaked hair, which fell to the middle of my neck now. I let out a sigh as I realized I didn’t have to stuff it all under Benjamin’s cap and hide it anymore. I couldn’t wait until it was as long as it used to be. Daniel’s fingers getting lost in my long hair was going to be wonderful.

  Looking around the tidy room I had been ushered into by Tizoc’s sisters, I located a towel. Drops of water rolled down the length of my body when I stood. Wrapping the towel around my torso, I stepped out of the basin. As soon as my bare foot touched the floor, Teiuc appeared in the curtained doorway of the room.

  “Are you finished?” Her big coal-colored eyes met mine.

  “Yes,” I said. “The bath was lovely. Thank you.”

  Teiuc stepped closer to me. She held in her arms a colorful swath of thick fabric. “Here,” she said. “You can wear this while you dry off.”

  I wrapped it around me, wearing it like a robe, and slipped out of the wet towel.

  “Sit here.” Teiuc indicated a small stool in front of a rounded, jet-black sliver of obsidian rock sitting atop a simple table. She moved to stand behind me, and I could see us both at once in the glassy surface of the polished rock. I stared a bit, looking at my own reflection, which I had not seen in all the months we had been at sail. I barely recognized the image that stared back at me. The resemblance to my mother was still there, waiting to be unleashed again.

  Teiuc was lean and tall like me, but the similarities ended there. I was pale-skinned while she was dark. Sky-blue eyes against coal-black. Blonde hair versus ebony.

  “Do all the women in England look as you do?” Teiuc asked.

  “No. Some people have brown hair, or red, or black, like yours. Our eye colors differ as well.”

  Teiuc examined me in the reflective stone for several long moments.

  “Tizoc has told me stories of England. I do not think I would like it there.”

  “Not everyone in England wants to take you as slaves,” I said quietly. “I am sorry Tizoc had to have that experience.”

  “He was gone for five years before he could get away and come home,” Teiuc said. “Your Englishmen took him and did not treat him like the warrior and prince he is. They made him sick, beat him.” Her voice cracked a little as she spoke, her emotions flooding over her.

  I thought of the single scar I had seen on Tizoc’s arm when I first met him. How many more scars did he have that I couldn’t see?

  And did she say prince?

  I turned around on the stool to face Teiuc. “How did he come back?”

  At this question she smiled. “My brother is clever. He hid on an English ship heading back this way. Stayed in the hold for months, eating little, moving little. When the ship landed on our shores, he slipped out and returned home. He was not well when he came back to us, but he fought to get better. We were so overjoyed.” The sadness that had been in her eyes was replaced with a pride in her brother’s resolve to return to his family.

  “He taught you all English?” I asked.

  “Yes. Tizoc said we needed to know it so none of us would be misled by Englishmen ever again.”

  “He is a good brother,” I said, thinking of my own and fingering the seashell still around my neck.

  “He protects us.” Teiuc’s eyes softened. “Someday he will protect all the Sunal. He has been chosen.”

  “Yes,” I said. “He told me that’s why his eyes are so unusual.”

  “Sun fire,” she whispered, her own eyes growing wide. She believed in him.

  For some reason, I did too.

  Eréndira, Yaretzi, and Xochitl came in, their hands full of brightly colored fabrics. Teiuc gave my shoulder a little squeeze then turned to her sisters.

  “Looks as if they’ve brought many choices for you,” she said.

  “Choices?” I eyed each of Tizoc’s sisters.

  “Well,” Yaretzi said with a laugh, “you can’t wear boy’s clothing to the feast.”

  Teiuc, Xochitl, and Eréndira joined in on the laughter. Xochitl’s eyes softened as she stepped closer to where I sat.

  “We don’t mean to make jokes,” she said, “but we’ve never met a girl who would choose to be a boy for so many months. We love being females.”

  All four of them nodded in agreement, their dark eyes shining at me.

  “I only did it so I could have an adventure.”

  “Is life in your England that tiresome?” Eréndira asked.

  “Most people like it, I suppose,” I said, “but I wanted to sail.”

  “Tizoc admires your daring,” Teiuc said.

  At the mention of Tizoc, all four of the sisters giggled.

  “He speaks highly of you,” Yaretzi said, a grin playing on her lips—one that made her look more like Tizoc’s twin.

  My cheeks flushed, and I stood, not enjoying the fact that four sets of eyes drilled into me.

  “Come,” Xochitl said, recognizing my discomfort. “Let’s get you dressed and see if we can make a proper cihuapilli out of you.”

  At Xochitl’s order, the other three hopped into action. Each of them held up a dress. It was decided amongst them that a pale blue one, flowing and without sleeves, would be the best on me. Though back home I hadn’t much cared what I wore, anticipation washed over me at the prospect of slipping the dress on.

  “Here.” Yaretzi held the dress out to me and motioned to a wooden changing screen in the room.

  Once behind the screen, I shed the robe and put on the dress. I didn’t even get a chance to see myself before Eréndira clamped onto my arm and dragged me out into the room.

  She edged me toward the stool again and pushed on my shoulders until I sat. Running her dark fingers through my still-wet hair, she sucked in a long breath.

  “Not the best haircut, I know,” I said, thinking of Benjamin chopping my hair. “It was done in a moment of insanity and by someone who is used to shearing sheep, not humans.”

  Eréndira met my eyes in the dark looking-glass. “I can do something with it.”

  She motioned to Yaretzi with her hand, and her younger sister placed a pair of shears in her open palm. I swallowed loudly and folded my hands in my lap.

  “Relax,” Eréndira said.

  I took in a deep breath and did as she said.

  Furrowing her brow, she set to work. I sat as still as a statue, closed my eyes, and let my mind wander to other things.

  Daniel, of course, was the first “other thing” to pop into my head. I closed my eyes and conjured up an image of us somewhere in the future. A simple house on a beach somewhere in the Americas sketched itself before my mind’s eye. Rolling green hills hugged the back of the house while the ocean sprawled out in front of it. Bobbing off a mooring just off shore was a good-sized vessel, the name Charlotte emblazoned on its transom.

  “All right,” Eréndira said.

  I opened my eyes and peered into the obsidian. My mouth opened, but I couldn’t think of a single thing to say. Tizoc’s sister had worked a miracle. The unevenly chopped hair that had spilled haphazardly about my neck had been transformed into a wavy masterpiece.
She had parted it on the right side and cut layers so my naturally curly hair fell in loose coils about my head. So soft and feminine. I caught a glimpse of the old Charlotte—of my mother—in the image that reflected back to me.

  “Oh, Eréndira,” I whispered. “How did you manage it?” My eyes had filled as I gaped at myself.

  “She’s got our mother’s artistic eye,” Xochitl said, looking at me approvingly.

  “Thank you so much.” I got up to study myself in the looking-glass, tears spilling onto my cheeks now.

  Xochitl stepped around her sister and hugged me close to her, the faint smell of jasmine seeping up to my nose. She held me until I stopped crying.

  “Happy tears, yes?” she asked. “You look wonderful.”

  I nodded, not able to speak just yet. Their kindness had overwhelmed me, and seeing my female form again was like meeting an old friend, only that friend had changed. Changed for the better.

  “Now some jewelry.” Yaretzi adorned me with two of her arm cuffs. One was smooth, polished silver while the other was made of delicately braided strands of silver, gold, and copper. “There, you’re almost a cihuapilli now.”

  “What more do I need?” I inspected my improved self.

  “Footwear.” Teiuc handed me a pair of brown sandals, and when I slipped my feet into them, they fit perfectly.

  I walked around the room in the sandals. They were lightweight and comfortable. A definite change from the heavy boots I had been wearing since September.

  Xochitl rummaged around in the fabrics she had brought and extracted a multicolored triangle of sheer fabric. Blue feathers embellished the two shorter sides of the triangle, tickling my bare arms as she draped the fabric over my shoulders. I settled into my new garb by wrapping the shawl-like piece around me a little tighter.

  All four of Tizoc’s sisters examined their work. I wasn’t as uncomfortable about their scrutiny as I had been when they started. They had done an amazing job. So amazing I almost forgot what it was like pretending to be a boy aboard the Rose. There wasn’t a sliver of boy left in the reflection before me.

  Charlie Hamden was gone.

  A soft knock on the threshold around the curtained doorway of the room broke the silence. Tizoc’s sisters whisked up all of the materials they had brought with them and fluttered to a door at the opposite end of the room.

  “We’ll leave you to your company,” Xochitl said with a slight bow. “You look wonderful. We’ll see you tonight.” She smiled and was gone with the rest of her sisters as another light knock came.

  “Yes.” I fiddled with my clothing for an extra moment. “Come in.”

  Before I saw the face that went with the hand on the curtain, I knew it was Daniel. I sat on the stool, fussing with my dress. My heartbeat filled my ears as I waited for him to enter. What would he think of my transformation?

  The look on his clean-shaven, handsome face said it all. He froze in the doorway, his mouth half open, his blue eyes wide.

  “Charlotte?”

  “Mmm-hmm. What do you think?”

  He stared at me a moment longer before shaking his head as if waking from a dream. “I’m pretty sure I’m not capable of thought right now. You look… you look like an angel. You can’t be real.”

  He entered the room. Someone had cleaned and mended his tunic and breeches. The knot that usually hung from his empty right sleeve was gone. Instead, the sleeve had been trimmed further, folded, and stitched neatly. His boots had been replaced with sandals similar to the ones I wore and along with a shave, his hair had been washed, combed, and gathered into a knot at the base of his neck. As he neared me, a fresh citrus scent mingled with the jasmine aroma swirling about me.

  I stood when he was an arm’s length away from me. “I’m real,” I assured him, taking his left hand in my right one and pulling him several inches closer.

  His grin was slow to come as he came out of his shock. I was not usually so self-indulgent, but cripes, I enjoyed every moment of his reaction.

  “You were beautiful to me as you hid in your brother’s clothes,” he started, searching my face with his eyes, “but this is a beauty I’ve never seen anywhere before.”

  He lowered his head and brushed his lips against mine, sending floods of heat sweeping throughout my body. I leaned against him and wrapped my hands around the back of his neck. He slid his hand under the sheer wrap about my shoulders. His palm was warm through the fabric of my dress, and my heart fluttered.

  “So you like it then?”

  “Very much.” Daniel’s lips found mine again.

  My legs felt weak as I gave in to the desire. I was hot and chilled at the same time. I trailed my hands down to Daniel’s shoulders and found myself wanting to get him closer somehow. We kissed for what seemed like an eternity, and I would have been happy to die in that exact embrace, but another knock at the doorway had him pulling away from me.

  “We’ll finish this later,” he whispered, playfully nipping at my ear.

  “Promise?”

  “With all that I am.” He sat on the stool and looked to the doorway. “That’ll be my uncle.”

  “Come in, Captain.” Although I enjoyed the captain, I wished he would disappear and let Daniel continue his exploration of Charlotte Denham, English female sailor and Sunal cihuapilli.

  Captain Finley stepped into the room then stumbled backward, banging into the curtain. “Oh, my. You sure do fancy up nice.” He noticed Daniel sitting on the stool. “Both of you.”

  “You too, Captain,” I said.

  His garments had been freshened, his beard and hair groomed.

  He crossed the room to take my hand in his. He kissed it and shot Daniel a sly look. “Quite a treasure here, boy. Quite a treasure.”

  I curtsied to the captain, holding the ends of my dress out properly, and Daniel stood, his arm coming around my waist.

  “The more time I’ve had to think about it, Charlotte, the prouder I am to have had you as my first female crewmember,” the captain said.

  “It is I who am proud to have served on the Rose under your expert seamanship, sir,” I said. “I know I… lied… to you, but do you think you’ll take other women on as crew?”

  “I’ve learned my lesson,” the captain replied. “Yes. The next hard working female who wants to work on the Rose shall have her chance.” He shifted his gaze to Daniel. “Maybe I’ll hire one my age and see if I can find some love for myself.”

  I leaned forward and kissed Captain Finley on the cheek. “I completely understand why Daniel has turned out to be such a wonderful man.”

  The captain’s eyes softened then he rubbed his hands together. “Looks as if we have a feast to attend. I’m starving.” He walked to the doorway, pulled open the curtain, and stepped into the hallway outside.

  “Do you think they need any help in the kitchens?” I asked, nudging Daniel in the ribs with my elbow.

  “We’re off duty tonight, Charlotte,” he said. “Besides, you’re far too beautiful tonight to be cooking.” He let his gaze sweep over me and I felt the caress of it all the way down to my soul.

  Chapter Twenty-two

  “I know I was wary about trusting Tizoc at first,” Daniel began as we walked toward the patio behind the captain, “but his family has been kind. Citlali asked about my arm when she was mending my shirt. When I told her what happened, she put down her work and gave me this enormous, motherly hug.” He paused and swallowed, a swell of emotion pouring over his face. “It was nice.”

  “Xochitl did something similar to me, and all of Tizoc’s sisters were wonderful.” I gestured with my hand to my garments and hair.

  “Yes,” Daniel said, looking at me. “Remind me to thank them for their expertise.” He trailed light kisses along the length of my arm, and I wriggled at the tickling sensation he caused.

  We arrived on the patio where Citlali and Tizoc’s sisters sat waiting for us. Each of them was dressed as I was, only in different colors. Together we were a rainbow of
flowing fabrics.

  Citlali cast an appraising eye over me as she reached out her hands for mine. She twirled me around. “Stunning. A cihuapilli for certain.”

  “Thanks to your daughters.” I allowed Citlali to bury me in an embrace that warmed me from the inside out.

  As she released me, Tizoc strode onto the patio. His gait had been confident and smooth until his tiger eyes rested on me. He halted and regarded me for a long, silent moment. No one moved or spoke for what seemed like forever.

  Finally, Xochitl cleared her throat. “We should be getting to the temple. Tahtli will be waiting for us.” Her voice broke the trance, and she brushed Tizoc’s arm as she passed him. “Come.”

  He turned stiffly to follow her, but I could still feel the energy his stare had radiated out to me.

  Daniel sidled up next to me, his hand settling on my back. “I may trust his family,” he whispered, “but not him. I don’t like the way he looks at you.”

  I shrugged in an attempt to show indifference, but Daniel was right. Tizoc’s reaction to me was as awestruck as Daniel’s had been.

  Maybe a little more so.

  ****

  We climbed the steps to the top of the temple pyramid and were led to a table under a huge canopy of stone. Sunal warriors, armed with spears, stood like statues at posts along the edges of the temple—a clear sign for us visitors to behave. Torches blazed orange-red flames around the perimeter of the feasting site, and most members of the crew that had come with us were seated. Citlali motioned for us to follow her, and she brought us to a line of tables at the head of the area. Yaoti stood as his wife approached.

  “Citlali.” He stretched a hand out to her. She accepted it with a slight bow and took the seat next to his. Tizoc’s sisters filed in next to Citlali and Tizoc slipped in next to his father.

  “Sit here, Captain.” Citlali indicated a chair next to Yaretzi on the end. “Charlie, Daniel, next to Tizoc.”

  Daniel was quick to make sure he was seated next to Tizoc instead of me. A quick scowl zipped across Tizoc’s face, but he buried it.

  We were on display. The gathered crew and other Sunal occupied tables in front of ours. Long tables stretched out on either side of Yaoti’s table. Some of our crewmen looked at me, and I smiled at their confusion. Let them wonder where Charlie had gone.