He dropped a kiss on the top of her head. Another group of men approached. Will disentangled his arm from hers and went to speak with them. One man pointed farther down the dock.
“It’s that ship there,” Will said when he rejoined her.
“Right.” Charlotte strode in that direction, only slowing when she realized William couldn’t keep up. It was once they’d reached the pier that they realized there was no gangplank leading onto the ship. Only a handful of lights shone through the windows belowdecks, and the deck itself was empty.
William leaned over to study the breadth of water between them and the boat, holding his hand to his nose.
“Tell me, Charlie, do you love him enough to swim through that?”
The lamplight caught on the slimy film that covered the water. She held back a sudden heave of her stomach. “If I must,” she said weakly. “But I’d prefer to get their attention without taking a dip, if possible.”
William squatted and picked up a pebble, hefting it in his hand a few times before tossing it to her.
“You’re not suggesting I’m capable of hitting the boat with this?”
He grinned. “Surely, your love is powerful enough to give you the strength you need.”
She scowled, but then turned toward the water to lob the stone anyway. It didn’t make it even a third of the way across.
Will cocked his head. “Are you sure you love him?”
She had been praying for Will’s improvement for weeks. She simply wished his teasing hadn’t been the first part of his personality to return.
“You are a fiend. My love is very strong, thank you.” She reached down and examined the pebbles at her feet. Selecting one with a nice flat surface, she crouched, drew her arm back, and spun it across the river. It almost,almost, hit the ship.
True to form, Will saw her near success as a challenge and picked up his own stone and skimmed it. He hit the side of the boat, the stone making a quiettap.
Charlotte’s heart thrummed, and she stood on tiptoes to scan for any sign of movement. There was nothing. Will’s efforts had gone unnoticed. She huffed, picked up another stone, and spun it. It reached farther this time; she saw a splash of water against the hull. She couldn’t help giving her brother a smug look.
Will’s next stone followed with a soft clunk of pebble against wood. Again, no one belowdecks noticed.
“Drat,” she said. “Maybe it is time to swim.” A rope ladder hung down the side of the ship. She eyed the river with apprehension.
“Or we wait here until the sunrise and we catch somebody’s attention then. It’s only a few hours away.” He slid down the lamppost and brushed the dirt from the ground next to him as best he could so that Charlotte could sit.
She did, folding her skirts and leaning her head against his shoulder. “I am going to miss you, brother. I love you and Ned so, so much, but I can’t spend the rest of my life being your sister first, and me second.”
“I know.” He entwined his fingers with hers and squeezed gently. Together they sat and watched the play of light on the lapping waves.
***
“Excuse me, miss.Miss?”
As Charlotte woke, the buzzing ballroom of her dream morphed into an unfamiliar hustle and bustle. Raising one hand to ward off the brightness, she cracked an eye open. There was a silhouette against the blue sky. A man’s figure looking down on her. Next to her, a body shifted.
“Damn you, Private. It’s too bloody early to be awake.” William’s blurred tone set everything rushing back to her: her race to find John. Their inability to make contact with his ship.
Putting a hand on Will’s shoulder, she shook him awake. “Brother.”
“Charlie?”
Leaving him to wake up and realize where he was on his own, she sat upright, adjusted her sleeves, smoothed her skirts, and tried to seem for all the world as though she were expecting to wake up on a London dock surrounded by strangers.
“My apologies, Mr.…”
“Captain,” he said sternly, reaching out a hand for her to grab hold of. “Captain Ainsley. Do you need one of my men to escort you to an inn where you can sleep off the aftereffects of your evening?”
A hot flush of embarrassment crawled over her. “No, thank you.” Around them, the dock was alive with activity. Men were carting trunks and crates down the pier, looking at her rather than where they were going, curious expressions on their faces. Thank goodness the ship was still loading.
