The next morning Vivian woke to a soft knock at her door. Thinking that Gabi had come to wake her for breakfast, she tumbled out of bed and padded across the room to open the door without donning her dressing gown. To her surprise, there stood Jack, eyes filled with mischief. Dressed to go riding in buff-colored breeches and a fitted, navy jacket with brass buttons, he looked more handsome then anyone should this early in the morning. She shoved a hand through her hair in a desperate attempt to tame what must be a wild mess.
“Good morning.”
“What are you doing at my bedroom door?” She peeked down the hallway, letting out a breath of relief. It was empty. “This isn’t proper at all.”
“Would you like to come for a ride with me?”
“What time is it?” Vivian asked, hiding a yawn behind her hand.
“Half-past six, I believe. No one else will be up for hours. I asked Mrs. Tuttle to pack us breakfast.” He reached out and tugged gently at one of her curls. “What do you say?”
“I am not very good at riding sidesaddle, you know.”
“Never mind-ride astride if you want. I won’t tell anyone I saw your ankles.”
“All right, I will meet you out at the stables. Go on and let me get dressed.” She shut the door in his face. Smiling to herself, she rang for her maid.
****
Jack grinned as the wooden door shut in his face. Vivian looked good enough to eat this morning. Just wearing a thin nightgown, her hair tumbled artfully down past her shoulders in tangled waves. Her eyes were still heavy-lidded with sleep. He could easily see himself waking up next to that beautiful face every morning.
He turned and whistled softly to himself as he headed down the hallway. Last night, he’d been seated next to the brainless Miss Fairly at dinner. As he half listened to her drone on, he caught Vivian’s eye down the long table. The minx had the audacity to laugh into her napkin at his predicament. At that moment, despite Lord Winters’ warning, he decided to pursue this woman. She was worth the risks.
He would just have to figure out a way to convince Jamieson he was good enough for his daughter. That is, if they could ever locate the captain. He resolved to redouble his efforts to find the man. In the meantime, he vowed to be the gentleman Vivian deserved. This morning would be the first step in his new plan to woo Miss Vivian.
A half hour later, they rode out of the stable yard, heading east.
“I thought I would take you to my favorite hiding spot when I was a boy.” He looked over at her. “It’s a nice ride, about twenty minutes, and then we can sit there and have our breakfast picnic.”
She nodded. “Then let’s work up an appetite.” She took off on her horse across the field. Jack spurred his horse to a gallop, grinning as he came up next to her. She returned his smile. They rode with the wind in their faces for a bit, eventually slowing the horses to a walk.
Jack led them up a hill to an enormous tree, where he stopped to peer up into the branches. “Yes, this is my tree. I would climb up as high as I could get and sit up in the branches whenever I needed to escape. Up there surrounded by the leaves, no could see me, and even my brother couldn’t climb as high as me.” He glanced over at Vivian, feeling a little foolish for his enthusiastic response to the tree.
But she didn’t laugh at him. She glanced up through the leaves, “That’s quite high. Good practice for a future that would include climbing the mainmast.”
Jack laughed. “Shall we eat?”
He dismounted and came over to help Vivian off her horse. She had already swung a leg over when he put his hands around her waist to assist. As he lifted her down, her backside skimmed tantalizingly along his body. He took in a sharp breath and let go of her to turn and get the food from his saddle bag. He must remember to keep his hands off her. Her luscious little body tempted him like no other.
“Let’s see what treats Mrs. Tuttle has for us.” He spread out a large blanket in a sunny spot a few yards away and began unpacking. “Scones and jam, cold ham, bread and butter, and oh, she remembered.” He held up two large oranges with a smile.
“Your favorite?” Vivian asked.
“Yes, the best thing about living in the islands is the availability of fresh citrus. I also adore grapefruit. What about you? What do you like for breakfast?”
“Hmm, if we are talking about fruit, I love pineapple, but since coming to England I have become quite fond of-don’t laugh-porridge.”
“But porridge is for children in the nursery.”
“Well, I like it. It’s warm and sweet on cold winter mornings. But I cannot abide kippers. How does anyone eat fish first thing in the morning? Yuck. Ooh, I also love hot chocolate.”
“Then you’re in luck.” He pulled out a large canteen from the bag. “Mrs. Tuttle knows I love hot chocolate in the morning too.”
****
They ate companionably for a few minutes. Vivian slathered jam on scones while Jack put together ham sandwiches. This was going better than she had hoped. Of course, there was more she wanted to know about Jack than his favorite breakfast foods, but it was a start. After they ate, she lay back on the blanket with her eyes closed and soaked in the sunshine. He lay on his side near her, his head propped up on his hand.
“Why did you come back to England now?” Vivian asked.
