Miss Lavigne's Little White Lie (6 page)

“He has had no schooling?”

“New Orleans is not England. Young boys don’t leave their families to attend school. Our father hired a tutor, but Rafe never did well with formal instruction. Papa allowed him to follow his own path.” She sighed and wilted against the chair; lack of sleep made her weary. “I don’t know if Papa did the right thing, but Rafe was miserable. He has peculiar ways about him, and I’m uncertain how to undo his habits.”

“He doesn’t eat properly.”

Lisette’s gaze shot up, expecting to see censorship, but the captain merely stated fact. “He only eats certain foods, I’m afraid.”

Captain Hillary pushed a sheet of foolscap and a pot of ink across the desk. “Create a list of what he eats. I’ll do my best to make certain our supplies last. It would have been easier if you had told me everything last night, before we left port. But we’ll dock in Port Albis and resupply.”

She blinked, unsure of what to make of their destination. What if he planned to leave them in the Caribbean? Not everyone understood or tolerated Rafe’s differences. “Do you alter your course for us?”

“You and your family are my responsibility now. I’ll not have your brother starving on the voyage.”

Lisette didn’t know what to say, so she turned her attention to scribbling the short list of foods Rafe liked. She eased the paper across the captain’s desk. “I shall pay you more for your trouble, sir.”

He grinned, putting the devil to shame with the wicked gleam in his eye. “Yes, about your payment…” Crooking a finger, he motioned her to come to him.

She gripped the bottom of the chair to hide her fit of nerves.

His brows lifted as if surprised anyone would disobey him. “Come here, Lisette.”

If only her welfare was at stake, she might test the limits of his patience, but she couldn’t chance the captain returning them to New Orleans. Perhaps she could appease him for the moment to buy more time without compromising herself fully.

Drawing a shaky breath, she rose from the chair and walked around the desk. Captain Hillary’s hands encircled her waist.

“Oh!” She jerked back and bumped the desk.

“Careful, sweetheart.” He lifted her to perch on the desk in front of him. His hands rested on her hips, and he stood where she had to roll her head back to see him.

“We never discussed the price of fare to England.” His warm breath wisped across her forehead and sent her heart into a mad dash. She squirmed to create distance between them, but his heat still warmed her and made her palms moist. “Twelve pounds apiece.”

“Twelve pounds?”

The corners of his eyes crinkled with his smile. “This is my usual fare for passengers. Do you take issue with the amount?”

“No!”
By
the
saints, no.
“The price sounds reasonable, but I thought—” She snapped her mouth closed. She should be quiet and count her blessings he wasn’t demanding something she was unprepared to pay.

“Yes, my dear? You have something to add?”

She shook her head. “No, twelve pounds it is.
Merci
.”

Captain Hillary’s smile spread as he leaned closer. Lisette’s heart couldn’t beat faster if she attempted to swim across the Mississippi. “As to the matter of comforting one another on the voyage, I shall leave that up to your discretion, of course. That is all I wished to discuss. Are we in agreement?”

So he still wanted to bed her, but he would allow her to decide when. That seemed fair-minded of him, but her conscience suffered a bit. She couldn’t possibly give him her innocence, so the day would never come.

His spicy scent wrapped around her, setting her thoughts awhirl. Her gaze landed on his lips colored like watermelon flesh. They looked sweet. Perhaps kissing him wouldn’t be a horrible thing.

She had never kissed a man, unless she counted Reynaud’s dispassionate pecks on her cheek at the conclusion of their outings. While she had endured his shows of affection, she’d never pondered what it must be like to taste him.

The tip of the captain’s finger brushed the rim of her ear, sending pleasurable shudders chasing down her back. “You seem timid, luv. Could it be amorous rites were less than satisfying in your marriage?”

Lisette’s body flamed. Men and women didn’t discuss such topics, did they? “I didn’t come here to discuss my past.”

“Why are you here?”

“I’m not certain.” She could have left the moment they had settled on a price, but she felt rooted to the desk. Her tongue swept across her dry lips.

Her breathing ceased when his mouth found hers. He did nothing more threatening than press his lips to hers, easing her worries that he might take more than she was willing to give. His kiss was gentle, undemanding, and shocking. Pleasantly so. Her head spun and she gripped his upper arms to steady herself, astonished by the strength beneath her fingers.

She tentatively moved her lips against his and followed with little pecks like she would place on her family’s cheeks. Kissing was an unexpectedly enjoyable activity, and if Captain Hillary’s churning breath was any indication, she was quite good at it. Emboldened, she applied more pressure, but she still couldn’t taste him, so she touched the tip of her tongue to his top lip.

With a throaty groan, Captain Hillary hauled her against him and drew her tongue into his mouth. She stiffened in his embrace and pushed against his chest. She wasn’t ready for this type of kissing, the kind that made her skittish inside and off balance. His hold loosened when she no longer returned his affection, and he released her, chuckling under his breath. He eased her from his desk.

“Come now, madame. You mustn’t distract me from my work any longer.” Turning her toward the door, he swatted her bottom, eliciting a scandalized squeak from her. “Run along to bed before your cousin searches for you.”

She tripped over her feet but caught herself on the edge of the desk.

“Patch is waiting outside the great cabin door to escort you.”

“Patch?”

Captain Hillary gathered a book from the top desk drawer and dropped it on the desk with a soft thwack. “Neither you, Mademoiselle Vistoire, or your brother are to go anywhere on this ship without Patch’s escort or a man he has assigned. Are my instructions clear?”

Lisette nodded once.

Captain Hillary assumed his place behind the desk and opened the book. “I would like you for breakfast, my dear. Please be prompt on the morrow. I don’t wish to come looking for my guests.”

Good
Lord!
What could he mean by liking her for breakfast?

Lisette dashed from his quarters with her heart pounding. She didn’t wish to speculate, or she wouldn’t sleep a wink.

Six

Daniel contemplated the boy sitting opposite him at his desk. Rafe was fiddling with the sexton and recording numbers in his journal. Daniel didn’t know what he intended to accomplish by peering through the gallery windows lining the stern of the ship, but he didn’t mind the lad’s presence.

Rafe had begun following Daniel yesterday, and it appeared he would have the pleasure of the boy’s company again today. The crewman assigned to guard the
Cecily
’s passengers had escorted Rafe to Daniel’s quarters at sunrise. The lad had asked for Daniel by name. Otherwise, he’d spoken little, the conversations brief and centered upon maritime topics. In truth, Daniel found him more enjoyable than most adults.

A light knock sounded at his office door, and before he could respond, Lisette poked her head inside.

“Thank heavens!” She rushed forward to gather her brother in a hug, but he wiggled from her hold and returned to recording numbers.

Biting her bottom lip, she glanced between Daniel and Rafe. “You’re not bothering Captain Hillary, are you?”

Daniel waved off her concern. “He’s fine. Please, have a seat.”

She remained standing. Two nights ago she’d sat when he told her to stand. It seemed her nature to do the opposite of anything commanded of her.

“I’m sorry to barge into your quarters, Captain, but I had to know if Rafe was here. It was unsettling to discover him missing. I should have heard him waking. I feel like the worst sister.”

Daniel should have sent word when the boy arrived at his door and saved her this worry. “He’s in no danger, Lisette.”

She shot him a frown. Whether her displeasure stemmed from him using her given name or contradicting her, he didn’t know.

“Either Serafine or I must stay awake to guard him,” she said. “We’ll take shifts.”

“That won’t be necessary.” Daniel braced his hands against the desk and stood then stretched his arms overhead with a soft groan. Through the skylight, a cloudless sky beckoned to him.

Habit dictated Daniel take daily exercise on deck, helping his men with various tasks. His assistance was neither expected nor needed, but idleness had never sat well with him.

When he looked down again, he caught her staring at his chest. Her cheeks flushed a fetching shade of crimson, and she averted her gaze to the windows behind him.

Daniel had donned a pair of worn trousers and open-collared shirt this morning. Certain circles would consider his appearance scandalous, he supposed, but the Mississippi River was far from society and its dictates. And it was too bloody hot to concentrate when he dressed like a dandy.

Lisette cleared her throat, her lashes fluttering like dark-winged butterflies against her coffee-and-cream skin. “
Oui
, this is what we must do. We must take turns watching over Rafe.”

She hurried to the gallery windows, her burdensome black skirts swishing as she moved. Sunlight flooded through the glass panes and illuminated her delicate profile as she turned to the side. A surge of desire warmed his blood as he admired the gentle sway of her back and generous curve of her bottom.

“Your quarters feature a lovely view, monsieur.”

“I can’t imagine anything more lovely.”

“Indeed.”

Lisette’s shyness should have been off-putting, but instead it increased Daniel’s ardor. The challenge of seducing her aroused him, more so than the prospect of tumbling a lightskirt, or even one of the less inhibited ladies of the
ton
.

Engrossed in his scribbles, Rafe likely wouldn’t notice if Daniel whisked Lisette to his bed, but that seemed too debauched even for him.

He crossed his arms and leaned against his desk. “You needn’t take shifts to watch over your brother. I’ve placed my most trusted men outside your door. Allow them to continue their watch and get your rest. Rafe has an escort when he wakes before you and wishes to leave the cabin.”

Lisette twisted around, the lace of her ridiculous hat blocking her view. She batted at the offending material, finally holding the veil back with her fingers. Her arresting green eyes studied him. “That’s kind of you, Captain.”

“It’s Daniel.”

She puckered her mouth and sank to the padded bench lining the windows. “Really, Captain. Such familiarity among acquaintances is inappropriate.”

She was a peculiar young woman, insisting upon propriety after their kiss last night. Perhaps she was not as amenable to becoming his lover as she’d led him to believe.

Crossing the cabin, he eased her from her seat. “Walk with me, Lisette.” His hand wandered temptingly close to her bottom.

“Captain Hillary!”

She tried to scoot away, but he threaded her hand through the crook of his arm. “No need to run, dearest. I only wish to speak with you.”

“Well, leave your hands out of the conversation.”

He grinned. Her prudishness did nothing to diminish her appeal. “Rafe, do you wish to join us on deck?”

“No, sir.”

“I’ll send my man inside should you need anything.”

Daniel inhaled deeply when they stepped outside. The breeze held a hint of salty sea combined with the earthy scent of the lower Delta. They would reach Balize Island by afternoon. Once the pilot guided them over the sandbars, it would take no time to enter the Gulf, and they would be free to sail for Linmead Island.

The bell clanged four times, signaling the top of the hour, as he guided Lisette to the main deck. His second mate was in charge of the starboard watch, and everything was operating as normal. His crew busied themselves with coiling ropes, sanding the deck, and wetting down planks while others served at their watch posts.

He studied Lisette from the corner of his eye. If she noticed the efficiency with which his vessel functioned, she hid her admiration well.

“Let’s take a turn about the ship. I have something I would like to discuss.”

“Oh?” A quiver raced down her arm. His touch unsettled her and stirred his compassion. He wished he didn’t give a damn about her feelings. It would make his life less complicated, but she had that blasted effect on him. She made him question himself, to consider others’ opinions of him.

She made him care what
she
thought of him.