Page 13 of Stolen by My Knave
CHAPTER FIVE
The look of shock on his face told Elizabeth all she needed to know. HewasCaptain Jack Morgan. She wasn’t sure how it was possible, but she’d never been more certain of anything in her life. His hair was a tad shorter than she recalled from the mirror. It still skimmed his shoulders, and was every bit as wild and unruly. The golden blond locks beckoned for her to touch them. His eyes though—that sea-green hue sucked her in. Ever since she’d caught a glimpse of him, she’d wanted to meet him in person. Not once had she believed him to be real. How wrong she’d been... She had so many questions and wasn’t sure where to begin.
He continued to stare at her. The confusion didn’t leave his features once. The poor man—Elizabeth almost felt sorry for him. But she understood him in a way no other woman would. She let him ponder on her pronouncement a few moments and straightened the pieces on the chessboard. She put them all back in their correct positions in preparation for a new game.
“Do you wish to play again?” she asked.
“I don’t think I could withstand such tactical precision. You’d demolish me into nothingness if I tried.” He gestured toward her in a mocking bow and teased, “I’m at your service, my queen.”
“I’m no monarch.” She frowned.
“But you’re a worthy opponent, and the queen is the strongest piece on the board. You, my dear, are equipped to make mere mortals bow to your will. I’m only a man, and I’m not worthy of your greatness.”
What craziness was he spouting off now? “Lord Whitewood, I can’t declare to understand what nonsense you speak of. I thought you’d have better things to discuss than my prowess at chess.”
His lips tilted upward. “You mean the Captain thing you mentioned?”
“Yes,” she agreed. “You are Captain Jack Morgan, are you not?”
“That’s statistically impossible. Wasn’t he a pirate in the early eighteenth century?”
Elizabeth wasn’t a fool. He was deflecting and expected her to accept that answer as the truth. What he didn’t quite understand was her family had a history of time travel. Her mother did it, and it was becoming evident her grandparents had as well. Jack’s appearance in front of her confirmed it, or it would once he fully admitted who he was.
“I’m aware,” Elizabeth replied boldly. She stared at him for several moments, batting her eyelashes. “My grandmother was rather fond of telling the tale of how she was kidnapped by his crew on her way to marry the Duke of Southington.”
He clenched his jaw and stared at her for several moments. “Your grandmother must have been quite old when she gave birth to your mother for that to be possible.”
Elizabeth nibbled on her bottom lip. She had him, but he didn’t quite realize that fact yet. He wanted to play games—so be it. She was the master of them. Something he should have realized already when she trounced him at chess.
“I doubt it. From my understanding, she was quite young still when she gave birth to my aunt Regina. I think she was merely six and twenty. My mother was the eldest, and five when her younger sister was born.”
He scowled at her with enough menace that she could see how he might have made a fine pirate. Jack didn’t scare her though. Perhaps he might if she hadn’t grown up hearing him romanticized. Poor thing didn’t seem to have a clue.
“What was your grandmother’s name,” he finally asked.
“I’m so glad you decided to concede defeat.”
“I didn’t do any such thing. Answer me.”
Elizabeth shrugged. “Have it your way—for now.” She grinned. “I’m right, and there’s nothing you can do to change it. My grandmother was Lady Evelyn Beckett.”
He sighed and lifted his hands to cover his face. Perhaps she’d dumped too much on him too soon. There was no helping it though. If she hoped to finally understand the situation, she needed him to take part in the discussion. Somehow, he traveled through time as her mother had. The storm surge before he disappeared must have been the culprit. She couldn’t be sure because there was no rhyme or reason for the occurrences. Oh, how she wished she could have a conversation with her grandmother.
“Is Lady Evelyn still—alive?”
What an odd question. Why would he think—well, in a sense, she probably was. She lived in the century her mother had come from. Should she tell him that much? She wasn’t sure she wanted to give him any more information without gaining a little from him in return. “Why do you care?”
“She was important to me.”
Finally, a concession... Had he been in love with Lady Evelyn? She found she was a little jealous at the idea. Elizabeth had become rather attached to the idea of Captain Jack. Her grandmother had met him first, and while that was a tad odd—she couldn’t help how she felt. A long time ago, she’d started to think of him as hers.
“In what way?”
“Bloody hell, Elizabeth. Tell me already,” he yelled.
Well, he was becoming quite testy. Still, she wasn’t ready to give in and tell him everything. He wanted to keep everything closed up tight inside of him. She wasn’t having that. Elizabeth had two brothers with quick tempers, so she could deal with a little male temper tantrum.
“She’s not in this century.”
