She lowered her gaze.“You don’t know that for certain.”
Caleb slipped a finger beneath her chin and raised her eyes to his.“You don’t know my family.”
She attempted a smile and glanced past him toward the sea—sunlight dancing across rolling waves, the air warm and fragrant with salt and flowers.So beautiful.This was her world now.Hertime.
From the house came the sound of laughter—bright and unrestrained—followed by the lilting strains of a violin.Family.Something she’d never truly had.Not like this.
“I’ve only recently come to know the Lord,” she murmured.“And they’re all missionaries.”
“Missionary pirates.”Caleb laughed, mischief glinting in his eyes as he tugged her forward once more.“Believe me, love—most of them have done far worse than you ever did.”
She had no chance to argue.
The front door swung open, and a man stepped onto the veranda—his tall, commanding presence unmistakable even from a distance.Though surely near fifty, he bore the rugged handsomeness of a man shaped by sea and storm.A woman followed him—his equal in age, yet radiant in a way that stole Desi’s breath.
Caleb’s parents.
The resemblance between Caleb and his father was striking.
The older man descended the steps and drew Caleb into a crushing embrace, then held him at arm’s length, hands gripping his shoulders as though confirming he was real.“Welcome home, my son.You’ve been sorely missed.”
“I have missed you as well,” Caleb replied, emotion thickening his voice.Then he turned.“Father, this is Miss Desi Starr—the lady I wrote you about.”
Desi dipped into the curtsey Caleb had taught her.“My lord.”
The man barked a laugh.“Nay, none of that.Call me Alex.”He cast a knowing glance at Caleb.“Or father, for I hear a wedding is soon to follow.”
Heat flooded Desi’s cheeks.Engaged to a pirate from 1718—she still hadn’t quite wrapped her mind around it.
Yet the warmth cooled quickly as Caleb’s mother stepped closer, studying her with open curiosity.Desi’s throat tightened.Fathers were easy.Mothers… less so.
“The Ring?”Alex asked.
“In the sea, where you instructed,” Caleb said.
Alex clapped him on the back.“Well done, son.That cursed thing is gone at last.”
Caleb’s mother halted, arching a brow at her son before turning her attention back to Desi.“So,”—She cocked her head—“this is the woman who finally stole my son’s heart?”
Alex chuckled.“Egad, what a feat you’ve accomplished, Miss Starr.We feared he’d never settle for just one lady.First Hannah, then Margaret—”
“And Sarah,” Juliana added.“Don’t forget Mabel.”
“That will quite suffice,” Caleb muttered, raising his hands.“There’s no need to recount my entire sordid history.”
Alex winked at Desi.“The lady should be warned.”
Desi met Caleb’s gaze, his embarrassment endearing.She faced his parents squarely.“You’ll find I’m not easily frightened away.”
Juliana smiled—and then, without warning, wrapped Desi in a warm embrace.The scent of jasmine and lavender enveloped her, soothing her frayed nerves.
“Then you will fit in well,” Juliana said.“Welcome to our home.”
Drawing a deep breath, Desi attempted to settle her nerves as they entered the front door.However, when at least twenty people, including several children, stopped what they were doing and stared at her, she nearly bolted back outside.If not for the lady’s arm entwined with hers, she would have.Caleb must have sensed her angst, for he grabbed her other hand and gave it a squeeze.
The main room was large, spanning nearly the length of the home.Comfortable chairs and couches were scattered atop beautifully woven rugs.Tapestries and paintings of ships at sea decorated the walls, along with lit sconces that cast the room in a golden glow.Cutlasses, long knives, and flintlocks filled a cabinet quite in contrast with a huge cross hanging above the fireplace and a stack of Bible on the mantle.A long table covered with food stood off to one side, while shelves full of books lined the other.
“There you are, brother.”A beautiful woman in her early twenties drew near, her gaze briefly traveling over Desi.“We send you to get rid of a Ring, and you bring back a woman!”
