Page 34 of My Gentleman Spy
Edgar. She had not thought of her brother for some time. The sudden memory shookher.
“Are you alright? My words about dancing perhaps came out a little askew. I meant we would move around the dance floor as one. I meant nothinguntoward.”
She looked up to see Will studying her, a concerned look on his face. He cared about her, that much was evident. There were certain mannerisms that gave his frame of mind away at times. Right now, he was worried he had offended her in someway.
“Yes of course I am. You just gave me a reminder of my old life. I sometimes forget my family life was not always this way. My parents used to love to dance when I was younger,” shereplied.
While she was prepared to talk about her parents, Edgar Wright was the one person she was not going to share with Will. The one person in London Will could take her to was also the last person who would want to seeher.
She had treated Edgar and his wife Miranda terribly. Shunned them for not having taken up the mission of serving the poor. When the time came that she sent word pleading for his assistance to avoid going to Africa, Edgar had rightly abandoned her to her fate. There was no going back to being loving brother andsister.
She willed herself to think of the task at hand, of trying to eat before the storm hit. Pulling the knife from out of the block of cheese, Hattie proceeded to cut the cheese into bite sized portions. When she was done she wrapped some of the cheese up in a piece of bread and handed it toWill.
As he took it from her hands, their fingers touched. A frisson of heat raced up Hattie's spine. Sheshivered.
Will slowly withdrew his hand. Whatever she had felt, she knew he had felt ittoo.
They were as close as they could be without being on the bed together, yet she yearned to be even closer to him. His touch made her heartrace.
She should not feel this way about Will. The struggle was real. Hattie tried to force the feeling away, to calm her turmoil, but it was too strong tofight.
In another time and place, she might have called this attraction love, but here and under the present circumstances she was at a loss to find the right word. Her body was sending signals she had never known before. It both frightened and thrilledher.
“Are you a good sailor?” shestammered.
He looked at the bread and cheese in hishand.
“Not particularly,” hereplied.
He took a bite of the sandwich and sat chewing it slowly. For the first time since she had met Will, Hattie sensed he was not entirely comfortable. The self-assured man of the world now revealed a vulnerable side of himself. She could tell he did not likeit.
Hattie looked around the cabin, relieved when she spied a bucket in the corner attached to the wall by a smallhook.
“So, what you are saying is that we may have need for that at some point tonight?” shesaid.
A pensive looking Will nodded and retrieved the bucket. He placed it on the floor next to thedesk.
There was a knock at the door and when Will answered it, the first mate stepped inside. He doffed his cap toHattie.
“Captain says to tell you to stay in your cabin until he sends word that it is safe to come out. There is a big swell building and we are likely to be tossed about a bit,” hesaid.
Hattie's heart sank. It would be the ultimate irony for her to die at sea on the way home toEngland.
The first mate read her mind, and gave a reassuringgrin.
“Nothing to worry about miss, we sailors travel these waters all the year round. With the ship getting thrown around, some of the cargo may come loose from the ropes. It won’t be safe up on deck. Me, and the rest of the crew will be taking shelter soon to ride out the storm. By tomorrow morning it should have blown over and we will be making our way up the coast of Portugal. We should reach England in ten days after that. I’m sure your Mr. Saunders will keep yousafe.”
Will locked the door again after the first mate had left. He stood and surveyed the cabin before starting to take things from the top of the desk and putting them in his trunk. Hattie silentlywatched.
When he finally completed the task of securing the cabin, Hattie offered him some more cheese and sliced apple, but Will waved themaway.
“It might not be a good idea for me to have too much food in my system as the stormhits.”
Hattie hastily packed up the rest of the food, stowing the plate and knife in one of the desk drawers. Will retreated to his makeshift bed on the floor and laydown.
“When I said I wasn't a good sailor, what I meant was that I get a tad dizzy when the ship rolls up and down the waves. Silly for a grown man to suffer in such a way but there you have it,” hesaid.
The ship gave a sudden, violent lurch, tossing Hattie back on to the bed. Before she could sit back up, a second wave hit the ship and forced her downagain.
