Captain Of Her Heart (12 page)

“Stop ribbing him.”  Cara smiled.  “How are you, Jason?”

“I am quite well, thank you.  And I am never unaware, at sea.”  Jason narrowed his stare and stuck his tongue in his cheek.  “Because I have no distraction below decks.”

“Scandalous, Captain Collingwood.”  Cara cast a pout, but it lasted all of two seconds before she giggled and gazed at Lance.  “I do so love sailing with my husband.  Perhaps, someday, you might take Alex on a mission.”

At the mere mention of his lady’s name, he sought her face among the small crowd that had gathered to welcome home the Brethren of the Coast.  There were ten in the original group of close-knit friends, but their number had grown as each had charted their course for love.

The first to wed, Caroline had been mistaken for a courtesan and kidnapped by Trevor.  Then fate brought Dirk a wife, when he was tasked with the beautiful former spy for the Counterintelligence Corps, in a plot to catch a traitor.  Sabrina, Cara’s brash younger sister, landed next in the parson’s noose, when Lord Everett Markham decided she was the bride for him.

But Cupid’s arrow had spared Blake Elliott, duke of Rylan, his partner in all conquests of the fairer sex, Damian Seymour, duke of Weston and Alex’s elder brother, and Dalton Randolph, nicknamed the Lucky One for his way with the ladies and familiar habit of tossing a coin.  Lady Elaine Prescott, Lance’s young cousin, presented the only unattached Brethren woman.

And that brought Jason to his curiously absent Alex.

“Welcome home, Captain Collingwood.”  Admiral Mark Douglas, the legendary naval man and head of the Nautionnier Knights, slapped Jason on the back.  “How was your journey?”

“Long, sir.”  He scanned the immediate vicinity.  “I was wondering—”

“Where is Alex?” Damian inquired.

“At Penhurst Castle.”  Although Admiral Douglas spoke to Damian, he stared at Jason and frowned.  “She removed to the country in April, where she has remained.”

“How unusual.”  Damian scratched his temple.  “Is she ill?”

The Brethren women gathered near, and they favored Jason with a discomposing array of harsh expressions, which left him tugging at his cravat.

“No, she is not ill, per se.”  Admiral Douglas shuffled his feet and cleared his throat.  “But you should depart for East Sussex, at once.  Given the urgency of her situation, I have taken the liberty of summoning your traveling coach, and you may forgo tonight’s debriefing.”

“Thank you, sir.”  Damian groaned.  “Please, don’t tell me her accounts are in arrears again.”

“You could say something is in arrears.”  Sabrina scowled, and Jason gulped.

“Hush, my lady wife.  Not another word.”  Everett wagged a finger at his bride and then leaned close to whisper to Jason, “Brother, were I you, I should sail for the East Indies, as you will never escape the mess you have made.”

For some unknown reason, Jason shuddered.  “I beg your pardon—”

“But I am for the country.”  Damian bowed.

“Weston, wait.”  Jason glanced at the admiral.  “Sir, if I may eschew our meeting, I should prefer to journey with Damian, as we have business to discuss.”

Admiral Douglas nodded once.  “Of course—”

“As well you should.”  Caroline humphed.

“Darling, why so angry?”  Trevor bent, as his wife cupped her hand to his ear.  Then his eyes grew wide, and his mouth fell agape.  “
Bloody hell
.”

In that instant, Jason surmised Alex had shared the details of her ill-fated trip to Plymouth and his subsequent rejection.  But had she taken drastic measures in the wake of his refusal to marry her?  The second such nonsense formed in his brain, he quashed the idea.  “Are you amenable to such proposition, Weston?”

“I should be glad of the company.”  Damian smiled and arched a brow.  “I gather our business involves my sister?”

“It does, indeed.” To his men, he said, “Deliver my trunks to the Duke of Weston’s coach.”

And thus Jason’s course was set.

#

The following evening, as they passed the little village of Penhurst, and neared the Weston ancestral pile, Jason assessed his appearance and then glanced out the window.  The coach veered from the main road and traversed a route along the English coast.  Soon the escarpment yielded spectacular vistas of the Channel.

“Nervous, Collingwood?”  Damian grinned.

“Would you expect otherwise, were you in my position?”  In reality, Jason had no idea what waited at Penhurst Castle, given his last disastrous meeting with Alex.  At least, he had secured her brother’s permission to wed.

“To be honest, I cannot even fathom what you must suffer, as of this moment.”  Truer words were never spoken.  All of a sudden, Damian burst into laughter.  “Upon my word, but I must send Blake a message.”

“Why?”  Confused, Jason rubbed the back of his neck.  “What has he to do with my situation?”

“Nothing, really.”  Damian slapped his thighs.  “But I gave him a ration of angst when he forced Caroline and Trevor to the altar, and he wished me similar difficulty with Alex.  Just wait until I deliver the news that I have managed my willful sister’s nuptials with nary a headache.  And I have you to thank for such happy developments.”

“Well, let us not place the cart before the horse.”  Jason shifted in the squabs and recalled Alex’s parting words, last January:
But I am for London, and you may go to the devil
.  “She has yet to accept me.”

“What is this—do you anticipate complications?”  That was putting it mildly.  Damian compressed his lips and averted his gaze.  “As I, for one, doubt not her fondness for you.”

Jason came alert.  “Has she spoken of me?”

“On occasions too numerous to count.”  Damian rolled his eyes.  “And I have witnessed, firsthand, evidence of her regard.”

“I beg your pardon?”  Jason crossed and then uncrossed his legs.  “I know not—”

“Give me some credit, brother.”  Damian folded his arms.  “I know a well-ravished woman when I see one, but fear not, as I have no plans to schedule a dawn appointment at Paddington Green.  But had my sister objected to your...compliments, and had I any indication your rendezvous had progressed beyond a few illicit kisses, you would, even now, stare down the unfriendly end of my best flintlock pistol.”

Facing the man known by his friends as the voice of reason, Jason gulped, as the coach passed between two massive stone gateposts, bearing the eight-pointed wind-star insignia of the Brethren of the Coast.  After traveling a trail that hugged the cliff tops, a huge silhouette rose in the distance.

Penhurst Castle manifested the ancestral seat of the Weston dukedom, and Jason knew well its history, as Alex had often spoken of the grand estate.  Gifted to the first duke of Weston, along with the title, in the fourteenth century for services rendered to the Crown, his lady had described it as a monumental structure of mystical qualities, which often provoked visions of medieval knights in armor.  As the sun sat well below the yardarm, he could note nothing more than a few stone turrets and frieze carved parapets.

When the coach entered the forecourt, Jason glimpsed the impressive residence in which Alex had been reared.  Lanterns cast a saffron glow over the front access, and double doors of polished mahogany had been set wide, as the driver drew the horses to a halt.

Standing in the foyer, just visible, with her back to him, Alex directed the staff, and comforting warmth pervaded his chest as he gazed upon her.  Every adroit entreaty failed him, and the well-honed diplomacy of a lifetime abandoned him when he needed it most, as he pondered a greeting.

“Ready to meet your doom?”  Damian chuckled and descended the coach.

“Welcome home, Your Grace.”  A very proper butler bowed.

While Damian conversed with the servants gathered at the steps, Jason studied his lady.  When she whirled about, a radiant smile lit her expression.

Their eyes met and held.

Her countenance of joy faded, in a flash.

Jason teetered on the brink of unconsciousness, when he fixed his gaze on her belly, which had grown fat with what he had every reason to suspect was his heir.  And his goose was well and truly cooked.

#

“What is
he
doing here?”  Nestled in a high back chair, Alex folded her arms and made a point to avoid his stare.

Jason perched on a daybed and attempted to blend into the background.  To say that he was shocked by recent revelations was too pale a description.

“You are not to ask questions.”  Damian grabbed a crystal decanter of brandy and drank directly from the container.  “You are to answer questions—specifically, what manner of blackguard got you with child before wedding you?”

Alex thrust her nose high and sniffed.  “That is none of your affair.”

“I beg to differ, my dear sister.”  Damian slammed the cut glass bottle on the blotter.  “As head of this family,
you bloody well are my affair
.”

Now Jason understood the chilly receptions with which the Brethren wives had welcomed him at Deptford.  And Everett’s warning made perfect sense, as well as Trevor’s reaction to Caroline’s whispered comments.  But what puzzled him were Alex’s actions.

To what purpose would she hide the truth of parentage?

Had she not pushed for their union?  Had she not followed him to Plymouth in said endeavor?  Their impending delivery aided her campaign and left him no quarter.  For good or ill, he had to marry her.

So why had she not played her advantage?

“Alex, I insist you reveal the identity of the scoundrel that fathered your babe and abandoned his commitment.”  Damian pounded his fist to the desktop.  “You will tell me, now.”

In the line of fire, and given the consequences of his bad behavior, Jason withered, as
he
was the scoundrel Damian sought.

“I will not.”  His lady remained steadfast, and then and there she gained newfound respect.

She could have handed Jason to her furious elder sibling and loomed large at dawn, as he fell to Damian’s shot.  Instead, she protected Jason.  And as Alex guarded their secret, he availed himself of the opportunity to appraise her profile.

While the face mirrored that which haunted his dreams, without fail, her body had undergone some rather pronounced changes.  Even though she was clothed, he noted her breasts had grown considerably, and he was quite pleased with that prospect.  But her protruding belly gave him cause for concern.

Jason had seen myriad increasing women in his lifetime, and he could not recall a single pregnant female that presented so...huge.  It was only last fall that Everett had teased Sabrina, in regard to her girth, suggesting she had eaten a whole pumpkin.  Alex appeared to have swallowed an entire patch, as her lap had all but vanished beneath her burden.  Yet, to him, she had never been lovelier.

“Damian, for the love of Christ stop shouting—”

“The child is mine.”  Jason had spoken before he realized he had uttered a single word.

The study grew silent as a tomb.

Alex blinked and then mouthed,
No
.

The center of attention, he sighed and tugged at his cravat, which was a nervous habit he had acquired as a midshipman, while serving a captain who had insisted every crewmember wear the neck cloth.

“What did you say?”  Damian narrowed his stare.

Jason squared his shoulders and braced himself.  “Alex carries my child.”

“Are you telling me you claimed my sister’s maidenhood without first taking the vows?”  Damian rested hands on hips.  “Form your response carefully, as it may be your last.”

“Yes, I own her bride’s prize.”  Jason speared his fingers through his hair, which was another norm he had tried but failed to break.  “And I am prepared to do the honorable by her.”

“No, you will not.”  Alex stood and hugged her belly.  “Because I refuse to marry you.”

Now that was the one declaration Jason had fully expected upon arrival at Penhurst.  “Alex, we must—”

“Lady Alex, to you.”  Her notorious temper resurfaced with a vengeance and alleviated his concern for her health, to some degree.

“We have long since moved beyond formalities, love.”  How he wished he could have spared her the shame and humiliation of her circumstances.  No wonder she had retired to the country.

“I am well aware of our past affiliation, Captain Collingwood, as I bear the proof of your fickle fancy.”  Then she smiled, which had not fooled him for a second.  “While I thank you for the offer, I have no wish to wed anyone—ever.”

“Are you out of your mind
?”  Damian bounded around the desk and stood toe-to-toe with his sister.  “As you chose him, you will marry him.”

“Damian, please, calm down.”  Alex inhaled a shaky breath.  “Perhaps Captain Collingwood and I can negotiate an arrangement.”

She could not have hurt him more had she struck him.  How ironic it was that their positions had reversed since that fateful day in Plymouth, when she had sought a betrothal, and he had suggested an arrangement.  And now he comprehended the justification for her ire.

“Calm?”  Damian snorted.  “You want calm?”

“Now see here, Weston—” In that instant, Damian grabbed a fistful of Jason’s cravat and hauled him to his feet.

“Good God, man, and I use the term loosely, what were you thinking?”  Damian bared his teeth.  “Brethren do not defile and debauch our women.  We preserve their honor, as we revere their bodies.  We protect our ladies—we do not ruin them and sail into the sunset, leaving them to face the consequences, alone.  You are unworthy of the Nautionnier Knight’s badge, but you leave me little choice, so you will restore her reputation, or you will die.”

“Damian, stop this nonsense, at once.”  Inching to the edge of her seat, Alex frowned and then stood.  “Captain Collingwood is blameless, so you must release him.”

Confronted with such potent anger, many a hired sailor would have withered beneath Damian’s glare, but Alex had not so much as flinched when she defended Jason.

“Evidence to the contrary precedes you, dear sister.”  Damian wrenched hard and set Jason on his heels.  “She is but nine and ten, and you?”

“One and thirty.”  Jason blanched, as the difference in their ages highlighted his copious culpability.  “And I—”