Authors: Rebecca Hart
A quick squeeze of her hand and Mama withdrew. “He has trusted you with the truth, Ellie. There was no reason to tell you before now.”
“What do you mean, before now?” What had changed to make the truth more important one day to the next?
Mama returned to her sewing. “Before you were engaged to be married. At that point, it became his duty to tell you the whole truth.” She shoved the needle through the linen material. “And he’s done that. Now it is for you to accept it, or tell him you cannot.”
Ellie slumped in her chair. She hadn’t really thought of things in those terms. Did Mama’s rule mean she needed to tell Daniel she’d spent the past decade pirating? The marriage idea had been nothing more than a means to an end when she’d made the offer. What she thought would be the easiest way to look out for her father’s men and offer her a way to sail safely in Daniel’s close company while maintaining a small shred of decency.
She rubbed at her temples. Vivid images of the night she’d lain with Daniel rushed to the forefront of her mind, her cries of pleasure mixing with his. Ellie’s hand pressed her flat stomach. She could be carrying his child. Would Daniel’s offspring be cursed like him? The possibility made her head hurt.
Ellie jumped up from her seat and flicked a glance at her mother while she fumbled for the front door. “I’m going to take a nap before dinner. Thanks for the talk, Mama.”
Her mother didn’t look up from her darning. “All right, dear. I’m happy to listen anytime.”
Ellie scrambled into the house, heart racing. She shut the door and fell against it, panting as panic clawed its way up her throat.
What the hell have I done?
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Fluffy gray clouds drifted across the full moon hanging high in the night sky. Daniel lay on the beach staring up at it, his thoughts centered on Ellie. It’d be a long journey to Gibraltar if she could barely stand the sight of him.
His body sang with the pent-up energy rippling just below his thick skin, making his whiskers twitch. Daniel focused on the current of warmth surging though his veins and the tingling sensation growing stronger in his tail flipper. The tithe to his curse had been paid and the time had come to return to human form.
He gulped a lungful of crisp evening air, closed his eyes, and released the tension from his body. He visualized his human form, welcomed its return. The familiar prickle in his lower half intensified, cramping his muscles. He bit down, fighting the pain that always accompanied the reconfiguration of his body.
Cracking and popping noises filled his ears, while colored spots swarmed his vision. A groan burst from him as his front flippers stretched and contorted into hands. His fingers dug into the sand as the waves of pain washed over him. His stomach twisted while the burning in his limbs slowly waned.
After a few deep breaths, Daniel pushed up to his knees. Dizziness blurred the edges of his vision as he adjusted to a new center of gravity. Hands resting on his thighs, he waited for the vertigo to pass.
Daniel gathered up his sealskin and pressed to his feet. The cool air rushed over his nude form, raising gooseflesh. He swung his gaze to the rocks. As much as he wanted to believe he could trust her, he couldn’t take the chance she’d not steal his skin again if he used the same hiding spot. For the time being, he’d have to store the skin in the shed. At least until he could figure out how to get it aboard ship without Ellie noticing.
He tucked the skin under his arm and headed across the moonlit beach. Daniel had never taken it on a voyage before and preferred to store it outdoors where it was easier to change form, but a niggle at the base of his skull convinced Daniel to bring it on the trip to Gibraltar.
He breathed a sigh of relief when he reached the top of the path to find the windows of the cottage dark. He didn’t have the energy for another confrontation with Ellie just yet. Daniel snuck across the yard and pushed open the door to the shed.
A shuffle in the darkness drew him upright. “Who’s there?” The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end as Daniel squinted into the pitch. The faint beam of moonlight streaming in the tiny window by the table did little to aid his cause. He stared into the dark as he fumbled to light the lamp. With only one way in or out, whatever lurked in the shadows would have to go through him to escape.
As if the intruder read his thoughts, a hulking shape separated itself from the surrounding blackness and rushed at Daniel.
Heart hammering, Daniel tossed his skin to the side and grabbed hold of the dark form as it crashed into his chest. The air left his lungs in a whoosh, while his fingers grasped wool-clad shoulders. Daniel held tight to his assailant as he fell back against the door. Grunting, he pushed off from the barrier and dove at the struggling shadow, bringing them both crashing to the floor.
Daniel scrambled for the upper hand, pinning the intruder beneath his weight as his hands grappled for his attacker’s flailing arms.
A fist smashed against his temple, unleashing an explosion of light behind Daniel’s eyes. He threw a punch downward, catching his attacker in the gut, drawing a satisfying moan from the dark.
Daniel captured an arm and, using his weight, pressed it to the floor. He lifted his torso, locking out the arm as he struggled to find the intruder’s other hand.
Moonlight cast its beam on the squirming shape beneath him, stopping Daniel’s movements.
What the hell?
He gaped down at a struggling Nelson.
Nelson lurched his body to the left and swung his free hand upward, but Daniel was ready, catching him easily by the wrist. He forced Nelson’s other arm to his side and stared down at him, anger boiling in his stomach. “What are you doing here?”
“Let me up and I’ll tell you.” Nelson huffed. “You weigh a ton, and in case you hadn’t noticed, you’re naked.”
Daniel released Nelson’s arms and climbed off his chest. He got to his feet and wrapped a wool blanket around his nude form. With the aid of a stream of moonlight, he made short work of lighting the lamp on the table.
A yellow glow illuminated the interior of the shed.
Nelson sat up, rubbing at his wrists.
Grabbing a chair, Daniel pulled it to the center of the room, wooden legs squeaking as they scraped over the floorboards. He placed the chair beside Nelson and patted the seat. A malicious smile curled his lips. “Please, sit down. Make yourself at home.”
Keeping a wary eye on Daniel, Nelson picked himself up from the floor and settled in the offered chair.
“What brings you by,
friend?
” Daniel hissed the last word through clenched teeth.
“I know you must be wondering what the hell I’m doing rummaging around your place in the dark.”
“Damn right I am.” Daniel clamped down on the desire to shake the truth from the man. Instinct told him Nelson’s presence had everything to do with Ellie. “So how about you tell me.”
“Would you believe I was worried about you?”
“No.” Without concern for his modesty, Daniel dropped the blanket and pulled on a pair of trousers, fastening them at his waist before returning his attention to the familiar intruder.
Nelson folded his hands in his lap. “I was looking for anything that might tell me where you had disappeared to. You were supposed to have been back from Truro three weeks ago.”
“I don’t remember having to clear my appointments with you. What does that have to do with you breaking into my home?” Daniel took a seat in the room’s other chair. “What were you looking for?”
Nelson shrugged. “Anything that might shed some light on what you have been hiding.” He flicked his gaze toward the mound of skin in the corner. “Like that, for instance.”
Daniel kept his voice even, despite the anxiety rippling through his muscles. “Like what?”
A smile lit Nelson’s face, as if the answers to life’s great mysteries had been laid at his feet. “That’s how you managed to lose me in Truro. I was looking for a man.”
“What the devil are you talking about? You were in Truro?” His eyes widened. “Ellie had you follow me.” It wasn’t a question. “How long have you been tailing me?”
“Since the day we arrived here in Newquay. She knew her papa had heaps of faith in you, but something about you just didn’t sit right with her.” He shook his head. “Nor with me, though I never would have pegged you for one of the Roane.”
Daniel cocked his head. “One of the what?”
“The Roane, cursed Irish souls of the Celtic Sea. You saying that skin in the corner,” he inclined his head toward the pile, “isn’t yours, lad?”
He talked in circles like Ellie, but Daniel refused to be tricked into an admission. “I haven’t done anything but ask you what the hell a Roane is.”
“The Roane are what my people call those like you, cursed to live trapped between land and sea. While human, they ache for the salty freedom of the ocean, and while in the underworld, they pine for a life among those on solid ground, never quite belonging in either realm. Many believe them to be merely legend, but you and I know better.”
A shroud of sadness settled over Daniel. Never had anyone described his tortured existence, the utter loneliness of his life, so perfectly.
Silence stretched between them.
“You can’t love her if you’re not honest with her.”
Daniel turned hard eyes on Nelson. “Horse shit. I was honest with her, and she turned away from me in disgust. I’ve become nothing more than a means to an end to her, but it doesn’t make me love her any less.”
Nelson studied him as he rubbed at the dimple in his chin. “You are truly in love with her?”
He didn’t hesitate. “Aye. I’ve loved her for ten years. The best gift her father gave me was the job of keeping an eye on her. How could someone meet her and not love her?”
Nelson chuckled. “I know quite a few men who would disagree with your assessment, lad, but I do appreciate your conviction. I find I regret not having had the opportunity to meet Captain Winters.”
Confusion rolled through Daniel’s skull. What did the captain have to do with it? “I’m sorry?”
A wide smile split Nelson’s face. “I believe your captain was a very wise man indeed.”
***
After a quick stop at the office, Ellie made her way along the docks toward
The Siren’s Call
. She practically gushed with pride upon spying the ship’s new mast reaching into the azure sky. They would be ready to sail by week’s end, twelve full days ahead of schedule.
Whether Daniel’s ready to come with us or not.
She climbed the gangway. With a nod to the crewmen she passed, Ellie crossed the deck in resolute strides. She had a shipment of supplies arriving in an hour and she needed to crosscheck them against her order lists.
A trot up the steps of the quarterdeck brought her to the captain’s quarters. Her hand stalled on the latch as muffled voices reached her from the other side. She pressed her ear to the door, realized what she was doing, and pushed her way in.
Daniel sat in her father’s chair with his heels propped on the desk looking just as delectable and fleshy pink as she remembered, and Nelson reclined in one of the two chairs facing him.
Her gaze flipped from one to the other.
This doesn’t bode well.
She pasted on a calm exterior. “Morning, gents. What’s going on?” She shut the door and moved to the empty chair beside Nelson, kicking his foot out of her way as she passed.
“Nelson was just updating me on everything you’ve managed to accomplish in my absence.” His smile warmed her to her toes. “He says we’re all but ready to go. I’m really impressed, Ellie.”
She settled back in her seat, shaking off her unease. “Aye, we are. Another two days and the last of the supplies will be here.”
Daniel nodded. “I’ve given this some thought while I’ve been away, and the easiest way to get close to Jashir is to make it well known we have something he needs. If we play things right, we won’t even need to seek him out. He’ll be more than willing to come to us.”
“Sounds like a fair enough plan, but how do we know what he needs?” Nelson asked. “Jashir is famous for having a hand in everything. What carrot does one dangle before the pirate who already has it all?”
“Leave that part to me,” Daniel said.
Ellie threw up her hands, tendrils of anger spreading through her. “What dark little secret are you keeping now?”
“I’m not hiding anything, El. You’re well aware that Jashir and I have unfinished business. It is my intent to complete our transaction, nothing more.”
She gripped the arms of her chair. “That doesn’t tell us anything. You expect us to trust you?”
Daniel pulled his feet from the desk and dropped them to the floor. “Jashir will come to us. What difference does the how of it really make, so long as you have your vengeance?” His eyes held a challenging glint. “You’re willing to give yourself to me in a loveless marriage and risk your life to make him pay for killing your father. Do you really care what means I use to help accomplish that goal?”
Ellie gasped, her mind trying and tossing away no less than a half-dozen sarcastic remarks. Instead, she opted for a simple “no” in response.
“I didn’t think so. Now, to the matter of our nuptials. If we are to be ready to sail by Friday, as you’ve said, then that leaves us only the next two days to plan our wedding.” He folded his hands on the desk. “I’ve gotten your mother’s blessing. We have but to tell her when the happy occasion is to take place.”
She tried to ignore the look of pleasure smeared across his features. He seemed to revel in her discomfort, which only served to annoy her further. Two could play his little game. Ellie curled her lips into an overly indulgent smile. “Why, the sooner the better, my love,” she cooed, earning an eye roll from Nelson. “You know how anxious I am to be joined to you for the rest of my life. It’s all I can think about.”
His laughter arrived harsh to her ears. “No more anxious than I, my dear. Tomorrow morning works for you, then?”
Nelson looked from one to the other, his head shaking. “Ellie, I officially withdraw any objection I had to this union.” He pushed from his seat and stomped to the door. As his hand twisted the latch, he favored them each with a hard glare. “I’ve come to the conclusion that the late Captain Winters was a genius. The two of you are a matched set. Both of you are infuriating enough to be made for each other.” He spun about and stalked from the cabin, slamming the door so hard the walls shook.