Page 29 of A Captain For Clarissa
“Then let us continue,” he said, leaning closer, their proximity creating an intimate bubble amidst the bustling ship. “This one is important: ‘Obrigado pela hospitalidade’—’Thank you for your hospitality.’”
“Obri-gado pela hos-pi-ta-li-da-de,” she recited, her voice gaining confidence with each syllable.
“Perfect,” Rafael said softly, his admiration for her growing with every word. “You will do wonderfully, Clarissa. My family will be most impressed.”
“Thank you, Rafael,” she said, her eyes shining with appreciation. “Your faith in me means more than you know.”
“Let us try something a bit more challenging,” Rafael suggested.
“More challenging than ‘Muito prazer em conhecê-la’?” she teased, raising a mischievous eyebrow.
“Indeed,” he replied with a grin. “Repeat after me: ‘O jardim da minha mãe é muito bonito.’ It means, ‘My mother’s garden is very beautiful.’”
Clarissa took a deep breath, her lips forming the unfamiliar words with deliberate care. “Oh zhar-deem dah mee-nya may eh moo-ee-to bo-nee-to.”
“Almost there,” Rafael corrected gently, his fingers tapping the rhythm of the sentence on the wooden rail. “Listen closely: ‘O jardim da minha mãe é muito bonito.’ Pay special attention to the nasal sounds.”
“Of course, those tricky nasals,” she said, rolling her eyes playfully. She tried again, this time with increased precision. “O jardim da minha mãe é muito bonito.”
“Perfect!” Rafael exclaimed, clapping his hands together in genuine delight. “You have an ear for languages, Lady Clarissa.”
“Or perhaps just a highly persuasive tutor,” she countered, her eyes twinkling with amusement.
“Flattery will get you everywhere,” he responded, his tone light but his gaze lingering on hers a moment longer than necessary.
“Then I shall continue to employ it liberally,” she said, laughing. “What is next on our list?”
“Try this: ‘A comida está deliciosa,’ which means, ‘The food is delicious.’”
“Ah co-mee-da es-ta de-li-ci-o-sa,” she repeated, her accent still tinged with her English roots but improved nonetheless.
“Excellent!” Rafael proclaimed, his pride in her palpable. “With every word, you grow more confident. Your efforts are paying off splendidly.”
“Only because you make it so enjoyable,” she admitted, her cheeks flushing slightly under his approving gaze.
“That is the best way to learn,” he said, his voice warm and encouraging. “When it is more than mere study, when it becomes a shared adventure.”
“An adventure indeed,” she echoed, smiling up at him as the evening shadows lengthened around them.
Chapter Eleven
The Santa Dorotéia glidedthrough the morning mist, slipping into the bustling harbour of Lisbon. Clarissa stood at the bow, clinging to the wooden rail with white knuckles, her hands betraying her anticipation. The tang of salt was sharp on her tongue and fresh against her cheeks, already rosy with excitement and the cool sea breeze.
“Lady Clarissa.” Rafael’s voice cut through the screeching of the seagulls and the shouts of dockworkers. She turned to see him standing beside her, his dark hair tousled by the wind.
“Captain de Silva,” she replied, a teasing note in her voice. “It seems my new adventure is about to begin.”
“Indeed,” Rafael chuckled warmly. “Shall we disembark? I have arranged for a carriage to collect the ladies and children, takingyou to my family’s estate, and horses for Lord Glenkellie and myself.”
“We’ll be ready to leave directly,” Clarissa said, though she knew Jean had everything packed and ready to go, their trunks only needing to be loaded aboard the waiting carriage.
Within an hour, they stepped off the ship onto the cobblestone dock. The city of Lisbon spread out before them, narrow streets and sunlit squares beckoning, a kaleidoscope of activity and colour. Clarissa could hardly look from one thing to the next, her eyes wide with curiosity as they darted from one scene to another - a group of children chasing an errant dog, a fishmonger shouting about his catch, a woman in a red shawl balancing a basket on her head.
“Lisbon is… lively,” she finally said, clearly fascinated.
“One might say it reflects you, my lady,” Rafael teased, and Alex, standing nearby, raised his brows and laughed quietly.
“Flattery will get you nowhere, Captain,” Clarissa replied, though she couldn’t help but smile.
