“Much better every moment, thank you, Captain,” she responded, of necessity speaking close to his ear. “I apologize for my indisposition and any trouble I’ve been to you and your crew,” she added as Stewart drew nearer.
“Pshaw. You’ve been no trouble at all, except as a distraction to Mr. Chamberlain. He has been fretting over you, you know. Fortunately, we are used to sailing without his help.” Slade laughed at his playful ribbing, and Sarah stole a quick glance at Stewart, who had cast his head downward to hide an embarrassed scowl.
Surprised by this uncharacteristic reaction, Sarah was at a loss for words, but Captain Slade appeared not to notice. He immediately began talking to her about the luck they were having with the weather and their course and she used the opportunity to study the man more closely.
He was taller than Stewart, by perhaps an inch or two, and was much thinner and more wiry. Years at sea had given his long, narrow face a permanent ruddy hue that made his crinkly bright blue eyes seem like two turquoise gems. His sandy hair was crushed beneath a captain’s cap and were it not for his youth – he was surely no older than Stewart – he would look like the proverbial ‘old salt’ of her storybooks.
“I trust you’ve found the accommodations not too uncomfortable,” he was saying. “On the contrary, Captain,” she complimented him. “My maid and I are grateful for the comforts and for the fact that you have allowed us to sail with you. I understand that many sailors feel it is bad luck to have a woman aboard.”
“Inmyexperience,womenhavebrought nothing but good luck,” Slade smiling engagingly. “Until we began our family, my wife sailed with me frequently.”
“You’re married, Captain?” Sarah asked, surprised. “But I thought you knew!” Slade replied, looking over her head at Stewart, who merely shrugged. “I am married six years to the most beautiful girl in Boston. Perhaps my brother-in-law neglected to mention it.”
“Mr. Chamberlain is your brother-in-law?” Sarah eyed Stewart with an accusing look before returning to the captain.
“That and uncle to our three children as well. Shame on you, Stewart. Didn’t you tell her she’d be staying with us in Boston?”
Before Stewart could speak, Sarah answered, “My father told me we’d be the guest of Mr. Chamberlain’s sister, but I had no idea that you were her husband.” Smiling warmly to assuage the awkwardness, she added, “I am very pleased that I shall have a chance to learn about your family before we arrive. I hope we won’t be a burden.”
“Now don’t you worry about that, Lady Sarah. Peggy and the children will be thrilled. Unlike my tight-lipped partner here, Peggy loves nothing more than company. She will talk your ears off if you permit.”
“My sister is a gabster,” Stewart finally interjected. And added dryly, “As is her mate.” Slate laughed heartily. “Guilty, as charged. It comes from spending so many lonely nights at sea. What else is there to do but spin a yarn or two?”
“Come, Lady Sarah,” Stewart said after clearing his throat. Sarah was surprised to hear him address her formally. “Perhaps you’d like to rest until dinner?”
“Yes, I would,” she answered truthfully, suddenly noticing how tired she was. “I hope you will join me and Stewart for dinner, then,” Captain Slade offered enthusiastically, “We will celebrate your resurrection.”
“Thank you, Captain,” Sarah smiled, genuinely pleased with the invitation, even if Stewart was included. “I shall be looking forward to it.”
As Stewart helped Sarah o ff the bridge, Slade could not squelch the smile that came to his lips as he watched them go. What a striking pair they make! Peggy would be pleased to see her brother in the company of such a beautiful yet unpretentious young woman – someone marriageable for a change. From the way Stewart looked so uncomfortable, the captain was willing to bet that his brother-in-law was more than casually interested in the lady – and yet, with Stewart, one could never really know for sure.
Slade was all too familiar with the carefree nature of his brother-in-law’s relationships with women. The two of them had broken many hearts in many places before Jeremiah met and married Peggy. His craggy face softened as he allowed himself a moment to reflect on those rollicking nights they spent in ports around the world.
They had been quite a team in those days. Women would notice Stewart immediately for his dark, aristocratic features made him stand out in any crowd. Even in his sailor’s garb, he was always immaculately groomed. As he would coolly survey his surroundings from the vantage point of his height, women would interest through coy conversations. Jeremiah, the more gregarious of the two, would be the one to capitalize on the attention Stewart’s presence created and in no time at all they would engage in conversation with the mostly likely prospects – always convenients and light skirts – women who were both beautiful and experienced. There was no time for innocents, the hesitant, or marriage-seekers.
immediately show their
looks and whispered In those days, the two were much too busy to consider permanent entanglements. They had met in a Virginia military school and upon graduation, opted to serve their country as blockade runners, unofficially commissioned by the infant U.S. Navy to wreak havoc on the high seas in order that American goods could be transported to foreign markets without interference. At the same time, they were developing their own shipping and trading business, making the necessary European connections that would insure the success of their Endeavours.
It was a complicated, often treacherous combination of allegiances – to country and to their own private interests – but Chamberlain and Slade were equal to the task. Jeremiah had established himself as one of the most able and cunning ship’s captains in Atlantic waters and Stewart, a worthy seaman in his own right, possessed an unequaled ability to manipulate the most experienced business and political strategists. In addition, both were charming, dashing characters, able to make themselves at home in any situation.
As their reputations as sailors, businessmen and rogues grew, so did their status. In nearly every capital, Stewart and Jeremiah became sought-after guests to men of power and women of influence. When in port, they began to mingle with society and royalty in private clubs and homes; Jeremiah the engaging and quick-witted conversationalist; Stewart, the charming, yet remote and mysterious young blood.
But that free-spirited and more-often-thannot dangerous life was long over for Jeremiah and it happened the day he met Margaret Chamberlain. He had fallen in love with her the moment he’d first seen her in New York City, where she was attending school. She was a beauty, with her curling black hair and fair skin, but what had most attracted Jeremiah was the spark of mischief and defiance in her warm, brown eyes. Unlike most young girls, she was incapable of feigning shyness or reserve. Instead, she unabashedly stared at anyone who caught her eye and struck up immediate conversations with strangers, regardless of whether she was properly introduced or not. Her questions were direct and she made uncommonly astute observations about the people who caught her attention.
When Jeremiah first approached her party during intermission at a theatre, on the pretense of saying hello to an old schoolmate standing near Margaret, she immediately extended her hand to him, saying, “Sir, it is about time we met.” Ignoring her friends’ uneasiness, and finding her boldness refreshing, he took her gloved hand in both of his and squeezed it affectionately, a gesture that did not seem to offend her.
“I most heartily agree,” he answered, grinning warmly. “I am Jeremiah Slade and ....” “I know. You are a frequent topic of conversation in our home. I would have recognized you anywhere.”
“I am sure the same will be said of you, if only I might know who you are,” Jeremiah replied, pleasure showing clearly on his attractively weather-beaten features.
“I am Margaret Chamberlain, Stewart’s sister. Are you surprised?” “Delightedly so! Your brother barely mentioned your existence, let alone described your beauty. I now see clearly why he did not wish to arouse my curiosity.�
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Peggy smiled happily and made no move to take her hand away from his. “He’s told me that you are a scalawag. But I am sure that is not the sole facet of your character.”
“I appreciate your generosity. I hope you will allow me the opportunity to prove you correct.” “With pleasure, sir. If you are free, you may call on me tomorrow at the St. Regent, say 11 o’clock? We have a great deal to discuss, don’t you agree?”
“Most heartily,” Jeremiah responded, giving her hand a final pat as the lights dimmed to announce the end of the intermission. “Until the morrow then.”
And from that moment on, there was no other woman in the world for Jeremiah Slade. He was so intrigued by her beauty, her wit and her strong will that he would have done anything to make her his. She, too, was swept up by the dashing, yet sentimental and kind captain, who had been her brother’s most trusted friend for many years.
After a six-month courtship, made up mostly of long and loving letters, Jeremiah asked, indeed begged Peggy to wed him, promising to give up his responsibilities as captain, if only she would consent. Much to his amazement, she refused, declaring she would find no happiness with a “landlubber.” But, she countered, if he promised to allow her to accompany him, she would accept his proposal.
Despite his concern for her safety and wellbeing, Jeremiah loved her too much to lose her, and finally acquiesced. But the road to matrimony was further impeded by one irate and overprotective brother. Jeremiah sighed to himself as he remembered the one time he had ever seen Stewart completely lose his temper.
“I’ll see you planted twenty leagues under before I allow you to wed my sister!” Stewart had bellowed. “You conniving lecher! You may have fooled Peggy but I know you better than anyone alive and I won’t have you stealing her virtue – if you haven’t already, you bastard – and breaking her heart because of your penchant for warm brandy and hot women.” His tirade had continued with a detailed description of all his vices, capped by the exhortation that no decent captain would ever marry and leave a sea widow. When Jeremiah explained what Peggy wished to do, Stewart had become more belligerent, accusing his partner of further charming her out of her senses.
The epithets continued until the calm, controlled Slade was forced to play his ace. “I am sorry, Stewart, that after all these years you have found not one virtue within me that is good enough for your sister, but the matter, quite frankly, is out of your hands. Your father has already given his consent.”
His waning control shattered, Stewart reacted out of blind, senseless rage. Before Jeremiah could even recognize the threat, Chamberlain had smashed him square in the face with an incredibly forceful blow from his right fist. While picking himself up off the floor, Stewart had fled. Fortunately for Jeremiah, a broken nose was the only damage and it mended well in time.
Jeremiah had been willing to forgive and forget the whole episode, understanding that Stewart was moved by an extraordinary love and concern for his sister, as well as a firsthand knowledge of Slade’s dubious past. But Peggy was livid. It was a year before she would read any of Stewart’s letters and even longer before she acknowledged that the affection between them was greater than the rift they had suffered.
In those first two years of Peggy and Jeremiah’s marriage, Stewart removed himself from the business and on an impulse, signed up as first mate on an independent Spanish trading schooner, managing to see the world and learning a great deal about emotional and physical survival for a young man completely on his own.
When he finally returned to Boston, his entire family, including Peggy, Jeremiah and their infant son, young Jeremiah, found it easier than they expected to convince the wayfaring Chamberlain to take up his life exactly where he had left it.
He found Jeremiah eager to continue their business relationship. And even though there was to be no more bachelor camaraderie as in the olden days, both men found their partnership as enjoyable as before ... and even more profitable. CHAPTER 15
Sarah took special pains with her appearance that evening on the rather weak excuse that dining with the captain demanded elegant attire. But deep down, she hoped to see the light of approval flicker in Stewart’s warm, brown eyes. She had the disturbing notion to compete with the beautiful woman he had so passionately kissed at the dock, and yet, she was still quite certain that she must, for her own safety, spurn Stewart’s attentions. This conflict made her uncharacteristically cross and poor Tegan was forced to bear the brunt of her moodiness.
“’Tis a blessing to see you looking so lovely again, mum,” the maid encouraged as she skillfully coiled Sarah’s glossy locks into a fashionable chignon. “I’m sure Mr. Chamberlain will have trouble keeping his eyes from you in that gown.”
“Then I shall change forthwith,” Sarah snapped, plucking the low-cut bodice of the sapphire-hued gown of silk satin. “The last thing I need is Stewart Chamberlain ogling me in front of Captain Slade.”
Tegan sighed patiently. “You haven’t much time, mum. Besides, I doubt there is a dress in your wardrobe that would not become you. You and the Duchess took ever so much care to make sure those Colonists ....”
“Don’t remind me,” Sarah hu ffed, moving her head away from Tegan’s last-minute pats. “My mother insisted on putting me in such immodest costumes. Sometimes I wonder about her sense of propriety.”
“You are a young woman,” Tegan said fondly. “’Tis only natural that you should dress like one.”
“Spare me, Teeg. I understand completely my mother’s designs. She wants to arrange me as window dressing for sale to the highest bidder.” Sarah frowned. “She thinks I would be happy as a wife, a life I cannot see for myself. Who wants a partner who would rather read than prepare teas? Or prefer to go riding rather than ... than ....” Tegan smiled broadly and Sarah knew she did not have an ally. “Than ... never mind. But thanks to her, I own not one costume that any could call ‘maidenly’ anymore.”
A knock at the cabin door silenced her complaining and immediately a nervous lump rose in her throat. “Get the door,” she whispered, cold fingers pulling up the material that barely shielded the swell of her firm young breasts.
Tegan did as she was told. “Good evening, sir,” she smiled warmly at the tall figure dressed in a dark blue coat and white shirt with a conservatively tied stock. How her mistress did not melt at the very sight of him, Teeg would never understand.
“Hello, Tegan. Is your mistress ready?”
Before Tegan could reply, Sarah snatched a cloak as she crossed the room and announced, “Yes, Mr. Chamberlain. Shall we go?”
If Stewart were surprised by her curtness, he did not show it. Taking her cloak as she passed him outside the door, he skillfully draped it over her shoulders before she moved out of his reach. Sarah walked the few steps to the captain’s quarters and looked back at Stewart, who was eying her quizzically. “Well?” she intoned, wondering why he had not followed her.
“Jeremiah was detained slightly. He asked that I entertain you while he finishes dressing,” Stewart said pleasantly as he came toward her. “Shall we take a stroll on deck? It’s not too cool.”
Sarahnodded,shieldingherembarrassed flush by turning toward the stairs. Silently she cursed herself for her haste. If she’d stayed in the cabin, Tegan would have saved her from being alone with this disturbing man.
But as they stepped onto the main deck, Sarah was immediately distracted by the luscious beauty of the evening. A full moon bathed their surroundings in silvery white light. The gentle roll of the ship and the rhythmical voices of the schooner singing through the calm waters created a relaxed, almost intoxicating, atmosphere, and Sarah gasped at the wonder of it all. “I have never seen a setting so exquisite,” she cried, forgetting her nervousness and her restraint as she moved swiftly to the railing. “Look how the ocean reflects the light. ‘Tis as bright as a winter’s day!” she whispered, completely in awe of the fantastical vision seen only by those at sea. The air was pleasantly cool and smelled clean
and fresh; a soft breeze stirred the tendrils around Sarah’s face as she arched her slender neck to catch the lovely sensations.
As she drank in the setting in silent reverence, Stewart allowed his gaze to rest on her dramatic profile. She appeared a part of the scenery in her ice blue gown, the moon glowing white on her pale, delicate skin. It was so bright he could actually see the vibrant blue of her eyes, fringed by those impossibly thick eyelashes. She was indeed a diamond of the first water, exquisitely beautiful and rare. Such a vision was she that his breath was nearly taken away by a sudden and tremendous urge to touch her. Never had a woman affected him so spontaneously and he wrestled silently with his masculine urgings.
Turning to hide his struggle, he leaned against the railing, his coat sleeve lightly teasing her arm. Reawakened to his presence, Sarah inclined her head slightly to glance at his moonlit profile. She had not looked directly at him until now and was again struck by his classical handsomeness. The strong features were softened somewhat by the curling dark hair that gently blew round his face and the strangely vulnerable expression he wore. Was something troubling him perhaps? She had thought him happy to be on this voyage, sailing for home after such a long absence. But obviously he was not at the minute the carefree soul she had always believed him to be.
Somehow this realization strengthened her, allowing her to relax in his presence in the beautiful moonlight. “I never knew the high seas could be this peaceful, this inviting,” she offered tentatively.
With a blink, the boyish look was gone. The old confident Stewart reappeared, his voice deep, assured. “The seas hold many nights like this, which is why some find it difficult to live their lives without it.”
“Areyousuchaman?” “I was,” he replied, his eyes sparkling in the full light, “when I was younger. But no longer. I prefer the adventures to be encountered in business. The sea can extract too dear a price.”
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