Page 36 of My Gentleman Spy
As the ship began its next starboard lean, Hattie stood and with bucket in hand, quickly scrambled to the hook. By her reckoning she had fifteen counts to secure the bucket before she would need to be ready to make her wayback.
Nervous fingers hoisted the bucket onto the hook and wrapped the rope handle round and round, securing it firmly inplace.
She turned just as the ship set her staggering back toward the bed. She reached the bed and threw herself over the raised side. She had done it. The satisfaction of having achieved her goal, had hergrinning.
“Well done,” said a husky-throatedWill.
“I thought you were asleep,” shereplied.
“I was, but as soon as you left my side, Iwoke.”
Will threw the blankets over them and then wrapped a strong arm around herwaist.
“Don’t try and leave the bed again unless you absolutely have to, the safest place for the both of us is right here. You should try and get some sleep,” hesaid.
They were in the middle of a ferocious storm in the North Atlantic, on a ship which was riding up and down huge rolling waves. But, with Will beside her in the bed, Hattie felt safe for the first time in a very longtime.
As sleep finally took her, she slipped into a long warm dream of a man who always held her tight throughout the worst of life’sstorms.
When morning came, the storm had mostly blown out. Rain still lashed the decks. After a cursory view out the door, Hattie decided there was little purpose in venturing outside and she climbed back intobed.
* * *
It waslate morning before the deck was safe enough to venture out onto. The crew spent the best part of the morning checking the ropes and making repairs to the ship. Several crates of cargo had been swept overboard during the night and were lost at sea. Despite Hattie’s efforts to rouse him, she was unable to wakeWill.
“Sleep of the righteous,” shemuttered.
Only someone with a clear conscience could sleep that soundly. Finally accepting defeat, she put on Will's greatcoat and went in search ofsustenance.
The ship's cabin crew, which consisted of the cook and a young lad of about fourteen stood silently at one end of the galley table as Hattie ate her breakfast. The cook, who wore an apron which had seen cleaner days, roughly cleared histhroat.
“Would the young miss be wanting anything else?” heasked.
Hattie looked up from her contemplation of her hard-boiled egg. Both cook and cabin boy shifted on their feet. It was like watching a pair of dancing pigeons. As one moved to his left, the otherfollowed.
“Yes, please. My fiancé is still abed. He had a terrible night. Could you please fix him some breakfast so I may take it back to ourcabin?”
While Hattie waited for Will’s breakfast to be cooked, she went and sat outside on the deck. Near the captain’s cabin she found a small solid bench which was mostly out of thewind.
The sun was out and the storm clouds of the previous night had gone. The contrast of stormy night to blue sky morning was astonishing. Apart from the weary looks on the faces of the crew, and several tattered sails blowing in the sea breeze there was little evidence that the ship had been through a tumultuousnight.
“Goodmorning.”
She turned to see Will standing in the sunshine, a blanket wrapped around his shoulders. His hair was tussled from him having slept so deeply. She was heartened to see the natural color had returned to hisface.
“You look a lot better than you did last night. Cook is making you some breakfast,” shereplied.
She looked at the blanket covering the warm masculine frame which she had slept against the night before and suddenly realized why he was wearingit.
“Oh, I am so sorry, I forgot I took your coat,” shesaid.
The cabin boy arrived carrying two mugs of coffee. Will’s face litup.
“Coffee the elixir of thegods.”
Hattie laughed. “I thought ambrosia was the elixir of thegods.”
Will shook his head. “Not in my world. My brain does not function until I have had a strong brew of coffee in themorning.”
