Page 87 of Escaping Pirates
you traitorous monsieur!”
He doesn’t deserve
my brains or my flair.
Let him be content
with her gunk-filled hair.
Harsh applauded loudly, and Harlan and I joined in. Blossom turned, and her face flushed a dark red.
“That was an unforgettable poem,” Harlan told her. He held my hand so Blossom would be sure to spot the engagement ring on my finger. “You must’ve put a great deal of thought into it.”
Blossom sneered at me. “It might take you a great deal of thought to understand it.”
“I actually won’t ever think about you or your poemsever again,” I told her. “But feel free to compose as many as you want. It will make your stay pass more quickly.”
Harsh grumbled under his breath, but Harlan and I didn’t wait to hear any more.
“Thank you, Captain, for the tour,” Harlan told our guide, then raised his voice a little. “But we must be going now. My fiancée and I are stopping at the port to greet her family.”
The harbor smelled like salt and sun-warmed rope, with the faint scent of citrus wafting from the crates stacked near the merchant stalls. Seagulls wheeled overhead, screaming back and forth, while sailors called to each other as they unloaded barrels and tied off sails. The air was thick with sound and movement, but all I could focus on was the horizon where familiar silhouettes crested into view, one by one.
Ships.
Not just any ships.Myships. Or rather, my father’s.
The flagship came first, carved with the familiar crest of the Arkwright trading company, a lion flanked by twin anchors, and behind it sailed the full fleet, strung like pearls across the water. I counted an even dozen in all, each one etched into my memory from childhood visits to the shipyard, where I used to sit on my father’s shoulders while he conducted his business.
I hadn’t realized I’d been holding my breath until my lungs started to ache.
They’d finally arrived.Harlan wrapped his arms around me from behind and rested his chin on my head. I tilted myhead back to allow him to brush his lips against mine before looking forward again, counting the seconds until the ships docked.
My heart thundered in my chest as the flagship eased into port with practiced grace. Sailors leapt down to secure lines, and ramps dropped. Shouts rang out and then I saw them. My father, tall and broad and still wearing his sea coat. My mother, elegant as ever despite the salty wind tugging at her hair. And behind them were Charlotte and Alexander, my younger sister and brother, both elbowing each other as they tried to find me amid the crowd.
I ran, waving and shouting for them like a madwoman.
Father saw me first and nearly leapt down the gangplank to catch me in a bone-crushing hug, lifting me off the ground like I was still twelve years old. Mother caught up moments later, followed by my siblings, and we sank down into a mass of jumbled limbs, laughing and crying and talking all at the same time.
“I can’t believe we’re finally here!” Charlotte chirped, looking around with wide eyes at the sprawling city. “It’s a lot bigger than Haven Harbor!”
“You’ll be able to attend a new school,” Mother told her. “I heard that even Princess Tess goes there.”
“But I’ll be a princess too, won’t I? Since Elena is marrying a prince.”
“You’ll always be a princess to me,” I told her. “And speaking of Harlan—” I looked around to see where he’d got to and spotted him hanging back to give us time for our reunion.
“This is the prince?” Father asked, extricating himself to greet Harlan.
“Guilty as charged,” Harlan said, stepping forward and an easy smile on his face.
“I always said no man would ever be good enough for my daughter,” Father said after studying Harlan for a minute. “And for a long time, I was right.” He let the words hang for a breath, then extended his hand. “But you proved me wrong.”
Harlan took the offered hand, firm and respectful, and Father gripped it tightly with both hands.
“She wrote and told us everything you did,” he went on, voice thick. “How you protected her and kept her hope alive when most men would’ve given up. You risked your life for her and then you moved heaven and earth to bring her home to us safe.”
He blinked fast, once.
