“You disappoint me, dear boy. I thought surely premature baldness. Only big pointy ears?”
She smiled despite herself. His droll wit was really quite amusing. And who would have thought him capable of being amusing, autocratic brick wall that he was otherwise? If that wasn’t surprising enough, where had she gotten the nerve to banter with him? Even more surprising was she hadn’t taken him seriously, his calling her brat and threatening to pin her ears back, even though he’d looked quite serious when he’d said it.
“Ah,” he said now, taking in her smile and giving one in return. “The boy’s got teeth after all. I was beginning to wonder. And pearly-white, too. ’Course, you’re young. They’ll rot soon enough.”
“Yours haven’t.”
“Meaning I’m so old that I should have lost ’em all by now?”
“I didn’t—” She stopped, flustered. “About my duties, Captain?”
“Wasn’t Connie specific enough for you when he signed you on?”
“He said I only had to serve you, not the other officers. But no, he wasn’t specific, stating only that I would have to do whatever you required of me.”
“But that’s all there is to it, don’t you know.”
She gritted her teeth until the exasperation passed, enough to get out, “Captain Malory, I’ve heard of cabin boys having to milk cows—”
“Good God, they’ve my complete sympathy!” he said in mock horror, but only a moment passed before his grin came back. “I haven’t a fondness for milk myself, lad, so rest easy. That’s one task that won’t be yours.”
“Then what will be mine?” she persisted.
“A catchall of numerous services, you could say. You’ll act as footman at table, butler when you’re in the cabin, servant in general, and since I’ve left my valet behind this voyage, that job will also be yours. Nothing too strenuous, you see.”
No, just waiting on him hand and foot, exactly what she had figured. It was on the tip of her tongue to ask if she had to scrub his back and wipe his arse, too, but although he’d said she wouldn’t get her ears boxed, she didn’t care to tempt him to change his mind. It was almost laughable. For God’s sake, Drew’s cabin boy had to do no more than bring him his meals. Yet out of all the captains to choose from in London harbor, hers had to be a blasted Englishman, and notjustEnglish, but a useless aristocrat. If he’d ever done a lick of work in his life, she’d eat her cap.
None of which she said to the arrogant man. She was annoyed, not crazy.
James had to bite back his laughter. The wench was making such a valiant effort not to complain of the load he’d just heaped on her. He’d had to make up half of it, particularly the valet part, since he hadn’t had one for more than ten years. But the more she had to do to keep her busy in his cabin, the less she would see of his crew; more in point the less they would see of her. He didn’t want anyone else discovering her secret until he was ready to discover it himself. Then, too, the more she was in his cabin, the morehewould have her to himself.
Right now, however, he needed to put more distance than the space of the room between them. Seeing her curled up in his bed this long was giving him ideas that were not for the immediate future.
Self-discipline, old boy, he admonished himself. If you ain’t got it, who does?
That was a bloody good joke at the moment. It had been too long since he’d faced an actual temptation, of any kind. Self-control was a simple matter when the emotions were deadened with boredom, something else again when they were hopping-around alert.
Georgina had decided conversation with Captain Malory wasn’t worth the aggravation it was turning out to be. Besides, silence might prompt him to seek some other diversion, like maybe captaining the ship. It might get him to leave the cabin, at any rate, and the moment he did, she could, too. She hadn’t thought it would bring him to the bed to check on her, but alas, she wasn’t having much luck with impromptu plans today.
She opened her eyes and found him looming over her. “Still pale, I see,” he said. “And here I thought I’d done a commendable job of putting you at ease to remedy that nervous stomach.”
“Oh, you did, Captain,” she assured him.
“Not nervous anymore?”
“Not even a little.”
“Splendid. Then you shouldn’t have to lie abed much longer. But there’s no rush, is there? Come to think of it, there’s nothing more for you to do until you serve the next meal. A nap might be just the thing, to get the color back in your cheeks.”
“But I’m not the least bit—”
“You aren’t going to argue with every suggestion I make…are you, Georgie?”
Did he have to look like a yes would get her clobbered? He’d lulled her with his affable chitchat into forgetting that he was, after all, a dangerous man.
“Now that you mention it, I didn’t get much sleep last night.”
Apparently that was the right answer, for his expression altered again. It wasn’t quite friendly—well, he’d never really looked all that friendly—but certainly it was less severe, and once again, tinged with amusement. “You’re too young to have been doing what the rest of my crew was doing last night, so what kept you awake?”
