“Ruenna?”
“Her wee daughter. She’s the sweetest, prettiest babe.”
The lighthouse was visible now, the sun striking the glass of the tower. He stopped for a moment, taking it in. She searched his face, seeking reassurance he was safe from the pox. Aside from faint, sun-weathered lines, his skin was smooth, no telltale marks of any scourge evident, past or present.
He brought her hand to his lips and kissed her fingers. “I’ve much to tell you,ma belle, but first a bath and a hot meal are in order.”
CHAPTER
sixty-seven
Soon a bowl of hearty stew and crusty bread restored Henri. He and Ned had talked at length in his cottage while the women kept to theirs, preparing supper and minding the children. Lucy did slip out to reunite with Cyprian, who’d walked from the Flask and Sword, a gift of oranges and lemons in hand.
To Henri’s surprise, a veiled Eliza had presented Ruenna to him with pride in her voice upon his return to the lightkeeper’s cottage. Esmée wasn’t far, arranging a table for four in advance of an early supper and minding the light. A linen cloth was laid, anchored by a pitcher of dried flowers, not the seaside goldenrod and sweet everlasting of summer.
Would Eliza join them?
He could sense Esmée’s concern. Though he wished it could be just the two of them, he was grateful for Ned’s engaging presence and Eliza’s sincere if subdued welcome.
He stood by the hearth, adjusting to life outside wooden walls. After so many wintry weeks at sea, he couldn’t seem to get warm.
Esmée lit the candles at table. She’d lost the look of a mermaid anddrew his eye like solid ground for a drowning man, her figure in floral chintz a veritable garden, her curled hair beribboned.
She turned toward him with a smile. “Are you hungry, Captain Lennox?”
“Aye, for more than supper.” He winked as Ned came into the cottage, accompanied by Eliza, her head down.
How proud she’d once been, the belle of any function, charming everyone near and far. Now he schooled his dismay to see her unveiled, her once flawless complexion a dim memory. Quinn’s absence was especially felt, for he’d never been far from her side. It doubled Henri’s intent to marry as soon as possible. Tomorrow was never promised. All they had was the enviable present.
“What news do you bring from the mainland?” Ned asked after saying grace.
“Very little.” Henri took up a knife to carve the chicken and chose his words as carefully as he could before a newly bereaved widow. “April’s legislative session has been postponed. Many shops remain closed in York and in Williamsburg as well.”
Eliza raised her gaze. “Did Father say when he’d return to the island?”
Henri shook his head. “Till he does, he feels you and your daughter are safer right here.”
“Wise of him.” Esmée passed a basket of bread. “Eliza is welcome to stay as long as she likes. Besides, we’ll have one less in our cottage soon.”
“Which begs the question”—Ned smiled as he buttered his bread—“when will your nuptials be, and where?”
Esmée glanced at the window where clouds gathered, as if contemplating wedding on the beach. Next she looked to Henri as he finished with his carving.
“On the morrow.” He didn’t look back at Ned till she nodded in agreement. “The license to wed is in my pocket. We’ve only need of you to officiate before you return to Mount Autrey.”
“My pleasure. I can think of no better sendoff,” Ned told them.
“You’ve been good to stay on the last fortnight.” Though Eliza’svoice was calm, Henri detected a beat of dismay beneath. “I shall remember all your counsel.”
“Keep close the Bible I gave you.” Ned’s features softened as he forked a first bite. “Within its pages you’ll soon have need of little else.”
Talk turned to the light, the last storm, and the moment theIntrepidovertook the French fleet. Esmée seemed on tenterhooks as Henri recounted the details.
“Your mission is finished then, at least for now,” Ned said. “Virginia is never long satisfied.”
“Our success has only intensified colonial officials’ desire for further cruises, aye. Immediate ones.” He could feel Esmée’s eyes on him, the dismay his words wrought. “But we’ll wed and have our honeymoon before any more pressures come to bear.”
“A honeymoon at a pox-ridden time while tethered to a lighthouse is quite a feat.” Eliza’s voice held a touch of asperity. “I fear Virginia is still riven with the scourge.”
