“Send a man up to tell Frazer and to bring the bags,” Alex said. “And where is Devlin?”
His question was answered as Dev arrived at a run. “Lady Grant has gone!” he said.
“I know,” Alex said, not slackening his pace toward the ship.
“You bloody idiot,” Devlin said with blistering scorn.
“Everything you say is true,” Alex said, “but we don’t have time for it now. We have to catch the tide.”
Dev grabbed his arm. “You’re going after the Raison?”
“We are.”
Dev looked dubious for a second. “Who’s captaining Sea Witch?”
“Purchase.”
Dev’s brow cleared. “Oh, good. I mean—”
“You mean that way we have a chance,” Alex said. “Does no one rate my skill as a captain around here?”
“It’s not that,” Dev said, blushing. “You’re the best, Alex. But Purchase is reckless and that’s what you need now.”
“Thank you,” Purchase said. He bowed ironically. “I’ll say it again. What are we waiting for?”
Chapter 17
“JO, DARLING!” Lottie Cummings said, slipping into Joanna’s cabin on the Raison and closing the door softly behind her. “I am so desperately sorry! Please tell me that you forgive me!”
“For what, Lottie?” Joanna was not in the mood for forgiveness. “Are you apologizing for conspiring with John Hagan to steal David’s so-called treasure, or for something else that I do not yet know about?” She raised a brow. “Did you try to seduce Alex on the voyage out when I was sick? The whole of the ton knew that you slept with David the last time he was in London, so I suppose you would only be adding to your tally of my husbands.” She sighed. “It’s an odd thing, Lottie, but you have so much and yet it seems to me you always want what other people have.”
“It isn’t like that,” Lottie said, putting on her best repentant pout. “And I was incredibly discreet with David.” She met Joanna’s scathing gaze and made a little fluttering gesture with her hands. “I am sorry,” she said, “but you know David was the most ghastly lecher, darling—I was only one of many, so you can hardly blame me for that! And as for John Hagan, if I had known what a dreadful common little man he really was I would never have agreed to help him, but I was curious about the treasure, darling—it seemed so romantic, if you know what I mean…” She broke off, downcast, as she saw Joanna’s skeptically raised eyebrows. “I was unhappy,” she murmured. “I knew Devlin was only toying with me and sure enough he broke off our affaire yesterday. He said he was bored.” She sounded outraged. “Bored with me—can you imagine? And lovely, lovely Owen Purchase is in love with you, Jo darling, so there was really no one else to play with…” Lottie could not quite erase the envy from her tone.
Joanna sighed again. “It feels like a Shakespearean comedy where everyone is in love with the wrong person, except that there is nothing humorous about it.”
Lottie threw up her hands. “Nonsense, darling! You are in love with Alex and he is most certainly in love with you and he has been for ages, because he would never have turned me down otherwise. I made a pass at him in London,” she added helpfully, “but I fear he was not interested in me.”
Joanna looked at her former friend in all the immaculate finery of her striped pink-and-cream morning gown, the traces of lines and wrinkles just starting to show about her eyes and in her plump cheeks. Lottie had used cosmetics as her defense today, for her face was perfectly painted and only the unnatural hardness in her brown eyes betrayed her unhappiness. And it was a genuine unhappiness. Joanna recognized that. Perhaps she had truly cared for James Devlin and when he had ended their affair he had hurt more than her pride. Perhaps Lottie knew that age was creeping up on her and that she would not always have young men clamoring for her attention. Perhaps she was simply not happy in her pampered life with Mr. Cummings no matter how materially indulged she was, and she was searching for something else. Joanna was not sure. One day, she thought, we may repair our friendship and I will ask Lottie these questions and maybe I can help her. But not today… Today her feelings were too raw. Lottie’s betrayal was nothing, a mere pinprick, beside the pain of losing Alex, but she felt so tired and so empty that she had no resources left on which to draw.
Lottie, with the sharp social antenna that had served her so well in the past, sensed that this was the moment to leave matters for now and stood up with a rustle of scented silk.
“I will stop pestering you now,” she said, “but I am glad that we are friends again, Jo darling, and I swear we shall have no secrets from now on and that I will never ever attempt to seduce one of your husbands ever again…”
“I appreciate that, Lottie,” Joanna said tiredly as Lottie swept from the cabin. “I will see you at dinner.” Since they were to be trapped on the same ship for several weeks, she thought, it was sensible to try to mend fences. She was not inclined to offer the same generosity to John Hagan, though. That was asking too much. He had had his servants carry the marble blocks onto the ship, carefully wrapped in blankets, and stowed the stone in the hold. He was full of plans for the mining of the marble seam, plans that Joanna simply did not wish to hear.
The sea was calm. Joanna sat in the cabin with Max—a much more luxuriously appointed cabin than Sea Witch had to offer—and wondered how she was going to pass the days of the journey since it did not appear that she was going to be sick this time. It is true, Joanna thought with a sigh. I am shallow. I have no resources for solitude. I shall sit here and feel sorry for myself and it will be ghastly.
It was considerably short of dinnertime when Joanna heard the pounding of footsteps in the passage outside and Lottie’s voice raised in excited clamor:
“Jo darling, come quickly! Oh, you must come quickly and see this!”
The cabin door burst open and Lottie stood there, her face alight with a strange sort of excitement. She came into the cabin and caught Joanna’s hands. “It’s the Sea Witch!” she said. “He’s come for you, Jo darling! Oh, I knew he would!”
Joanna felt as though something had hit her hard in the solar plexus. She did not want to hope, did not dare. “He—who?”
“Alex, of course!” Lottie was squeezing her hands excitedly. “They came up on us very fast and I think they mean to board! They haven’t even put the boat out—they have come alongside with ropes, just like pirates! Captain Hallows is furious…” She pulled Joanna’s hand. “Come and see!”
Up on deck there was almost as much mayhem as Joanna imagined they would find in a sea battle. Sea Witch had come alongside the Raison so close that there was barely a gap between the decks. Ropes were snaking over from the smaller ship to the frigate. Alex leaped across, tightening them, binding the ships together. Dev was helping him.
Captain Hallows looked furious, red in the face, shouting, “You’re a damned pirate, Purchase! You’re bloody dangerous! I’ll see you hang for this!” He turned on Alex. “As for you, Grant, you cannot board my ship! The Admiralty will hear of this—they’ll never give you another commission! They’ll court-martial you!” He glared at Dev, who was laughing so much that he almost fell off the rope. “Nor you, Devlin. No bloody discipline, that’s your trouble! You’re a bunch of pirates and you’ll all hang!”
“Then I’d better take what I came for and not trouble you any further, Hallows,” Alex said. He turned and his gaze met Joanna’s and her heart started to race. He took one purposeful step toward her.
“What are you doing here?” Joanna demanded. Her voice shook. “I am supposed to be running away from you. You cannot come after me!”
“I can and I have,” Alex said. He smiled suddenly and Joanna felt a tiny flare of hope catch inside her. “I came to ask you if you still love me,” Alex said.
There was a concerted intake of breath from all those around them. Joanna gasped, too.
“You cannot expect me to declare my love for you in front of all these people,” she objected faintly. �
�That is very bad ton.”
“I do expect it,” Alex said. He was poised, waiting. Everyone was watching her. She felt faint.
“Joanna,” Alex said, “I love you. I will always love you. I would go to the ends of the earth for you.” He smiled and her heart tumbled over. “Just so that we are clear,” he said.
There was a smattering of applause.
“Nicely done, Alex,” Dev said.
“Thank you,” Alex said. He grinned, the devil-may-care adventurer Joanna remembered. Her heart did another painful little flip.
“Now, you are coming with me,” Alex said, “before Hallows shoots us all.”
He scooped her up. Joanna felt the heat of his body, heard the beat of his heart. She clung to him, not quite believing that he was real, that he was here, that he had come for her.
“Wait!” she said. She put a hand against his chest. “My luggage! My clothes! Alex—”
“You won’t need them,” Alex said.
“I cannot be without all my luggage!” Joanna argued.
“Joanna,” Alex said, his voice so firm she abandoned all thought of protest. “I am not waiting two hours whilst you pack a portmanteau. Hallows will have had me clapped in irons by then.”
“Oh, very well,” Joanna said, bowing to the inevitable. “Max!” she added suddenly as Alex was about to swing her over the side into Purchase’s arms. “Oh, Alex, I cannot leave Max behind!”
Alex swore. “Get the damned dog, Devlin,” he shouted, but Max had already found his way up on deck and with one bound he was over the side and onto the Sea Witch.
“You see,” Joanna said, laughing. “I told you he had plenty of energy. He simply does not choose to exert himself.”
There was a strange banshee wail behind them and for a second time Alex stopped. A figure was emerging up the companionway, a man apparently oblivious to all the commotion on deck, covered in dust, and holding what looked like a small piece of stone in his hands.
“Cousin John!” Joanna said. “What on earth…”
Even as they watched, the stone in John Hagan’s hands seemed to crumble and slip through his fingers. Alex took one look at the pile of white dust and shook his head.
“I do believe,” he said, “that Mr. Hagan has just discovered that his so-called fortune is worthless.”
“You knew that would happen!” Joanna accused, looking at his face. “You knew that David’s treasure had no value?”
“As soon as I heard it was marble I knew,” Alex said. “It freezes in the ground and when it warms up it cracks and crumbles to dust.”
The wind blew along the deck, scattering the white powder until there was nothing left.
“How like David,” Joanna said, sighing, “to leave his daughter an empty legacy.”
“A legacy his cousin stole,” Alex said, “and all for nothing.” He smiled down at her. “Meanwhile, you and I, my love, have much to talk about.”
He strode to the side of the ship and tossed Joanna across into Owen Purchase’s arms. Purchase set her on her feet.
“Much as I would like to hold on to you, Lady Grant,” he said, “I fear I have renounced my claim.”
“Before you abandon me entirely,” Joanna said, “I believe that I owe you my thanks.” She reached up and kissed his cheek. “You were the one who sent Jem Brooke to protect me against David’s violence, weren’t you?” she whispered. “It puzzled me for a long time until I remembered that you had been on the same expedition as David that winter and returned to London with him. You must have known what happened even though he tried to keep it a secret.”
For a long, long moment Owen Purchase looked into her eyes and then he smiled. “I don’t know what you are talking about,” he said, and walked away, back to join Mr. Davy at the wheel.
Alex leaped down onto the deck beside her. Devlin was releasing the ropes and Sea Witch seemed to leap forward, leaving the larger frigate floundering in her wake.
“If I were Hallows,” Alex said, looking back at the Raison, “I would hate Purchase, too.”
They stood looking at one another. Suddenly everything seemed still and quiet. The very mountains were holding their breath.
“You gave me Sea Witch,” Alex said, “and the freedom to go where I wished.” He smiled suddenly. “That was very generous of you, Joanna, but I do not want your gift. I want you.”
Joanna swallowed hard. “I do love you,” she whispered, “but I could not believe that you might forgive me.”
Alex took her hands in his. “Joanna, I love you, too,” he said again. “I understand why you did what you did. I was very angry, but I do understand. So, yes, I have forgiven you. And I swear those things I said just now are not merely pretty words and empty promises.”
Joanna was shaking. “But I lied to you, Alex,” she said. “I tricked you, deceived you.”
“And then you told me the truth,” Alex said. He held her gaze. His own was very steady. “There are lots of things I want to say, Joanna,” he said, his voice rough with emotion, “but first I must tell you that I know about Ware.” She heard him take a deep breath. “I know what he did to you.”
Joanna’s heart gave a lurch of dread. There was a feral light in Alex’s eyes. It scared her even though she knew his fury was not for her. If David were not already dead, she thought, he would be meeting his maker very swiftly indeed.
“Who told you?” she said. She let out her breath on a soft sigh. “Owen, I suppose. It was a secret. Not many people knew.”
“Why?” Alex said fiercely. His hands tightened on hers. His touch was warm and strong. “Why did you never tell me, Joanna? Did you not trust me enough?”
“No, I did not,” Joanna said. “Not at the beginning.” She looked up at him, her gaze begging him to understand. “I knew you would not believe me,” she said. “Why would you, when David had poisoned you against me?” She sighed. “Later on I wanted to tell you, but I knew that you thought David a hero.” She cast a look down at their entwined hands. “It would have been a terrible betrayal of all you believed of him.”
“He was a damnable scoundrel,” Alex said violently.
Joanna raised her hand and pressed her fingers against his lips. “No, Alex. He was just a man. He could be harsh—he had faults, but he had virtues as well—” She broke off as Alex gave a hard, disbelieving laugh, and she smiled, a wobbly smile. “They were a few, very small virtues,” she added, “such as having the courage to save your life.”
“It astounds me that you have the generosity to say that,” Alex said gruffly. He drew her close and put his arms about her, resting his cheek against hers. Joanna wanted to sink into the warmth and intimacy of the embrace, but she dared not. Alex knew the whole truth now, but it changed nothing. Even though he had forgiven her for the deceit, it could not change his need for an heir.
“That was why you believed that you could not have children,” Alex said. His voice was still harsh, the anger palpable. “You quarreled with Ware because he accused you of being barren and then the insufferable bastard assaulted you and made your fears a reality.” His hands were gentle on her even though his tone was vicious. “For that alone,” Alex said, “I could kill him.”
Joanna started to shake. “As the months of our marriage went by and I did not conceive he grew more and more angry,” she whispered. “There was no reason, no explanation, but I started to believe that it must be my fault. And then we quarreled and he hurt me and—” She stopped. Huge tears were rolling silently down her cheeks.
Alex drew her close. “Joanna, we need never speak of Ware again, except this one thing—” He hesitated. “After he hurt you—” Joanna shivered and felt his arms tighten about her “—when the doctors came, did they tell you that you would never bear a child?”
Joanna rested her cheek against his jacket. She felt frightened to open up her mind to those memories again, but she knew she had to do it. She had to let the light in and trust that this time Alex would be there to help her.
“N-no,” she said. “You know what doctors are. They could not be certain. It was just that I felt it.” She drew away from him. “I felt different,” she said. “I felt empty. It is difficult to explain. I had lost all hope, I suppose, all belief that it might happen.”
“But now,” Alex said, his tone so gentle that she marveled at his tenderness, “could you begin to hope again and see what happens?”
Joanna looked across the blue, dancing sea. “I do not know,” she said honestly. Then, with a rush of feeling: “Alex, I am afraid to hope, afraid to allow those dreams and desires back in. I don’t want to give them the power to hurt me again.”
“Yes,” Alex said, “I understand.” He kissed her hair. “But if you love me, Joanna, as I love you, then the worst that can happen is that we shall never have a child—but we shall still have each other. That is enough for me. Is it enough for you?”
Joanna smiled. “A little while ago I thought that I had lost you, too, lost all hope.” She sighed. “But I am afraid, Alex. You are an adventurer, an explorer. Your first love will always be to travel.”
“That was what I told you, was it not?” Alex said. “I was unconscionably selfish, offering nothing of myself to you or to Devlin or Chessie or to any of the people who cared about me.” He sighed. “It is true that I shall always wish to travel. It is a passion, but I do not think it is my first love anymore. You changed that the day you came to find me at the Villa Raven.” He shifted a little, raising a hand to Joanna’s face, where the strands of hair danced in the breeze. “I was already half in love with you then,” he said. “I had been even in London, I think, though I pretended it was only lust not love.”
He touched her cheek. “It would be dishonest of me to say that I will stay in one place for the rest of my life,” he said. “But I thought that to start with, we might go back to London—I have my peace to make with the Admiralty—and then perhaps to Balvenie and Edinburgh, and I can show you my home…”
He released her and made no further attempt to touch her and Joanna knew that he was waiting for her to make her decision. She looked at his face, the dark, stern face of the man she had once thought of as her enemy, and felt submerged by the force of her love for him.
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