Sea of Desire (39 page)

“So we’re here? We’re off Charles Town?”

“Aye. And the night promises to be a dark
one. We’ll slip into the harbor tonight.”

He was pleased, she could tell that. But as
he left their bed during the night watch to steer the
Carolina
through the shoals, all Merideth could think of was
that the sojourn was over. Now she had to decide what to do.

About Daniel Wallis.

About Jared Blackstone.

By first light the
Carolina
sailed
past the American guns at Fort Johnson. If there was a blockade of
the port, Jared had seen no evidence of it through the night. Even
as they entered Rebellion Roads and could see the tall masts lining
the wharves like a forest of leafless trees, Jared doubted the
British were effectively slowing shipping to
this
city, at
least.

At the helm, Jared guided his schooner
through the inner channel between James Island and the middle
ground, the shoal that had helped protect Charles Town when the
British attacked the port in ‘76. Three of Admiral Parker’s ships
ran ashore on the shoal in the harbor. Two managed to wrest free,
badly damaged, but the third was abandoned and burned.

Jared was in France when the attack took
place. When his fellow Carolinians, in a half-finished fort made of
palmetto logs, outmanned and outgunned, rebuffed the British fleet.
He heard of it weeks later and experienced a swell of pride for his
homeland.

Rumor was, the British were now planning
another assault. Hopefully the weapons in the
Carolina
’s
hold would help the small city repel it. And this time, Jared
planned to be here to defend what was his.

“That there’s St. Michael’s,” Tim said, his
thin finger pointing toward a steeple, its roof reflecting the
morning sun. “And there’s St. Philip’s.” He shifted slightly,
drawing Merideth’s attention to another equally lovely spire.
“That’s where Cap’n Blackstone got me.”

Merideth turned to look at the boy from under
the brim of her hat. They stood on the deck as the
Carolina
skimmed into Charles Town harbor. “I thought he found you in an
alley near the docks.”

“Aye, he done that. But then he took me back
to St. Philip’s on account a they take care a the poor and the
orphaned.

“ ‘Tweren’t too bad there,” he continued.
“Had me pretty near ‘nough ta eat, but I still didn’t like it.”

“Why not?”

“I wanted ta go ta sea,” he replied,
obviously surprised she couldn’t figure that out for herself.

“I imagine you relayed your wish to Captain
Blackstone?”

“Aye.” A grin spread across his freckled
face. “And he came back for me, he did. Just like that.” Tim
snapped his fingers.

Laughing, Merideth shook her head. “You’re a
rogue, Timothy. You and the captain deserve each other.”

“What a ye, yer Ladyship? Will ye be stayin’
with him?”

The question was asked innocently enough.
Merideth was sure Tim didn’t realize all the implications of his
query. Captain Blackstone had taken him in, and he was fiercely
loyal. The boy expected Merideth to be the same.

But the captain hadn’t taken her in. He’d
kidnapped her. And though she was surely in love with him, she
couldn’t stay when it wasn’t reciprocated. She was not Jared’s
cabin boy. She was his mistress. And her future was as vague as the
mist rising over the twin church steeples.

After giving Tim a noncommittal answer,
Merideth went below to ponder her immediate future. She packed her
few belongings in the small trunk Jared had given her, then sat on
the window seat.

She thought about seeking Daniel Wallis.
Though she’d spoken to him rarely since the day he offered to get
her back to England, Merideth assumed it was still a possibility.
Several times over the last few days, she caught him staring at
her, his eyes questioning. When she looked up he raised his brow as
if to remind her that she’d given him no answer. But the captain
was always there, offering her no time to discuss the matter
further with his cousin.

Merideth pressed her forehead to the stern
windows. Her breath fogged the glass as she watched small boats
skim over the waves in the harbor. With her finger she traced
through the moisture. How could she give Daniel an answer when she
didn’t know what it should be?

By midmorning the captain returned to his
cabin. The
Carolina
was docked, and her crew was busy
unloading the munitions from her hold.

“I thought you might like a chance to walk on
solid ground,” he said as he entered the cabin. “We keep a house in
Charles Town that is a mite more comfortable than this.” Jared’s
hand swept the cramped quarters. He was dressed in a dark-blue
waistcoat. The stock of his pristine white shirt was tied neatly
about his neck. His black hair was brushed and clubbed with a dark
ribbon.

After weeks of seeing him as wild and free,
with his hair blowing in the wind, and his shirt sleeves rolled to
reveal muscled forearms, it seemed strange to be reminded that he
could appear civilized. However, Merideth doubted any amount of
polishing could completely mask the untamed spirit that lay just
beneath the surface.

He held out his hand, and tentatively
Merideth took it. Remaining on the ship would do her no good.
Perhaps at his house she could speak to Daniel in private.

She was slightly surprised when they crossed
the gangplank onto the noisy wharf without Daniel. “Isn’t your
cousin accompanying us?” she asked as her legs adjusted to the lack
of sway the solid ground offered.

“He’ll be along directly, I imagine.”

“But don’t you think we should wait for
him?”

Her question seemed to surprise the captain,
for he stopped. Merideth’s hand rested on his sleeve, and she
realized she had tightened her fingers. He looked first at her
hand, small and pale against the dark-blue fabric, then into her
eyes.

Suspicion, an expression of the captain’s she
knew too well, veiled his handsome features. “Why the sudden
interest in my cousin?”

They stood on the crowded dock, a small oasis
surrounded by swarms of people. But though she stood still,
Merideth’s emotions were as jumbled as the activity around her. Her
fingers instinctively reached for her locket. She caught herself
before she touched the smooth gold, and hoped he didn’t notice the
nervous movement of her hand. He’d told her once that she touched
the locket whenever she was upset... or lying. “I have no interest
in Daniel,” she lied, and turned away from him.

The raucous cries of seagulls served as a
backdrop to the noise and bustle on the docks. For a moment it all
seemed to close in around her. Then she felt Jared’s strong hand
grasp her elbow and he forged a path for them.

Men With sleek skin, black as ebony, rolled
giant barrels or hefted smaller ones on their broad shoulders.
Merideth had seen blackamoors before. There were two among the
Carolina
’s crew. But she’d never imagined to see so many in
one place.

“ ‘Tis not far to Tradd Street,” he said when
they’d cleared the busiest part of the dock. Merideth glanced over
her shoulder, catching a glimpse of the
Carolina
’s mast
towering above the Cooper River. The sight filled her with a
longing to be back on the high seas again. To be free, at least
temporarily, from the decision she had to make.

But soon Merideth’s natural curiosity
overcame even her worry of the future. The captain’s walk was
brisk, but it didn’t stop Merideth from gaping wide-eyed at her
surroundings. Everything was new and different, from the
trees—Jared called them palmettos—with their top plumage of broad
serrated leaves, to the odd-smelling mud that choked the
streets.

They crossed East Bay, where there were still
signs of earthworks thrown up during the battle two years earlier.
On Tradd Street there were pavements, six feet wide and made of
brick and mortar, that made the walking easier. The mansions along
the tree-lined street were impressive, large with gardens full of
strange, sweet-smelling flowers. In Land’s End a chill would be in
the air, but not here. It was as warm as midsummer.

The house they stopped before didn’t appear
as large as some, but as they went through the ironwork gate
Merideth realized it was really the side of the house that fronted
the street. Three stories high, with tall casement windows,
shuttered now against the sun, and a pediment-surrounded front
door, the house was covered with cream-colored stucco.

An elderly man with frizzled white hair
opened the set in front door, his face breaking instantly into a
nearly toothless smile. “Master Jared, ‘tis really you? Welcome
home, sir.”

“How are you, Seth?” Jared stepped back to
allow Merideth to enter. The hallway was wide and cool, compared to
the outside, and smelled faintly of beeswax.

“I’m good, sir. Theo done told us he saw the
Carolina
in the harbor early this mornin’ when he went to
market, but I had a hard time givin’ it credit.”

“It has been a long time.” Jared squeezed the
old man’s shoulder. The livery he wore was faded several shades
lighter than its original scarlet, but spotless. “I’ve brought a
guest, Seth. This is Lady Banistar.”

The old man bowed and Merideth thought she
could hear his joints cracking. After that he led them off the hall
into a large room with raised paneled walls painted a soft cream
like the exterior. Aubusson rugs covered the dark floors that shone
in the filtered sunlight coming through the shutters. The room was
open and bright, and though not so large as the parlor at Banistar
Hall, there were no dark corners to make one feel unwelcome.

While Seth went for refreshments the captain
absently wandered about the room, picking up a crystal bowl,
following the curve of a winged chair. It was almost as if he were
reacquainting himself with the house. Merideth leaned back and then
looked around.

Nothing was as she’d expected. Not Charles
Town. Certainly not this house. Silk framed the windows and covered
the delicate settee where she sat. Silver sconces bracketed a
gilded mirror above the carved wooden mantle.

“The main drawing room is on the second
floor,” Jared said, startling her. “My parents used to hold balls
up there. The smaller west parlor’s doors open to make one huge
room.”

“What...? Oh.” Merideth glanced around to see
Jared watching her, an amused smile on his face. Did he know what
she was thinking? Merideth felt a blush creep up her neck. He’d
obviously caught her examining the room. “Your house... It’s
lovely.”

“But not what you expected.”

“Well, I didn’t—” Merideth cut short her
statement, then slowly shook her head. “Not really. I thought it
might be a bit more...” At a loss for the correct word, Merideth
paused.

“Primitive?” Jared supplied, his dark brow
arched.

“Yes, I suppose so.”

“We ‘colonials’ are as fond of the creature
comforts as the British. Actually, the house doesn’t look near as
grand as when I left. But then I suppose the war has something to
do with that.”

Merideth glanced down at her hands, then back
at him. He was now leaning against the fireplace, his elbow on the
mantel, his ankles crossed. “You sound as if you have wonderful
memories of here.”

“I do.” Jared took a deep breath. “This house
stands on the original property where my great-grandmother
lived.”

“The one who married the pirate?”

“Aye, the very same,” he said, nodding. “The
house was destroyed when a fire swept through the city in 1740.
Some years later my grandparents built this over the ashes.” He ran
his finger along the carved scrolls. “Before my parents died we all
moved to town every winter, for the season. At first I remember
hating it, because that meant we had to leave Royal Oak.” He
shrugged, his smile revealing the dimple. “But as we grew older,
John and I decided there were far more beautiful ladies in Charles
Town than on the plantation.”