room. „There’s pen, paper, and ink, Father.“
The priest hurried over to the desk and scrawled a few lines
on a piece of paper he found in the desk drawer.
Silver followed him, glanced hurriedly at the paper, and
nodded. „That should be sufficient. Thank you.“
„May I go now?“ Father Jason asked caustically. „This has
all been most irregular.“
Silver nodded absently, her gaze turned back to Nicholas as
the priest hurried from the stateroom. „It was necessary,“ she
whispered. „I couldn’t take a chance. I had to protect my child.
You don’t know the pain of belonging nowhere.“
„Don’t I?“ he asked „How can you be sure?“
„Perhaps I can’t be sure.“ She drew a deep shaky breath.
„You said we knew very little about each other.“ Her hand
tightened on the pistol. „Well, it’s over and you’re free to do
anything you wish now.“
His lips curved in a curious smile. „I fully intend to do just
that.“
She nodded and then folded the document the priest had
given her and slipped it into the pocket of her cloak. „Good-
bye, Nicholas.“
He didn’t speak but continued to look at her with that faint
smile.
„It really was necessary that I – “ She broke off, looking at
him helplessly. „Truly.“ She turned and ran from the
stateroom.
Mikhail’s huge form was blocking the gangplank when she
reached the boiler deck.
„Good-bye, Mikhail.“ Her voice was husky and she had to
clear it. „Perhaps we’ll meet again.“
She tried to slip around him but he deliberately stepped into
her path again.
She frowned. „You don’t understand, I have to leave now. I
have to catch a boat to New Orleans within the hour.“
He silently shook his head.
Her lips tightened. „Get out of my way, Mikhail.“
„You could always point your little pistol at him,“ Nicholas
said from behind her. „But I doubt if he’d be as easily
intimidated as I was.“
Silver drew the derringer from beneath her cloak. „Let me
pass, Mikhail.“
Mikhail smiled gently at her and again shook his head.
„Mikhail, I’ll shoot you.“ Silver said, trying to make her
voice convincing. It was very difficult when the big bull was
gazing at her with such cheerful affection. „Truly. You know I
– Nicholas!“
He had picked her up and slung her over his shoulder. „Let
me down!“ Her hair was cascading over her eyes and she
could see nothing as he turned and strode toward the staircase.
„What are you doing? I’ll – “
„Hush, I’m tired of threats.“ He was climbing the steps.
„And stop wriggling. This is the only way I can hold you
without hurting your back.“
„Where are you taking me?“
„Back to bed. I told you the doctor said you weren’t to get
up. I should have known as soon as I turned my back you’d be
running around as if that bastard had been stroking you with a
feather instead of a whip.“
„Etaine – “
„I told you I’d take care of delivering your little waif to
you. Why didn’t you trust me?“
„She’s my responsibility. I can’t expect you to – “
„You don’t expect anything of anyone and you don’t trust
anyone but yourself.“ The crimson carpet of the saloon
suddenly came into her line of vision. „I keep my word,
dammit.“
„Let me down. I have a boat to catch.“
„In case it escaped your notice, you’re on a boat now.“ He
shifted his hold on her to open a door. „And its destination just
happens to be New Orleans.“
„I have to leave right away. I don’t know how long
Monteith will be in New Orleans.“ Her tone was anguished.
„He may be gone when I get there.“
„I’ve given orders to Robert that we’re to leave as soon as
we finish taking on more fuel.“ He set her on her feet,
carefully avoiding touching her back, and turned to light the
kerosene lamp on the rosewood table beside the door. „Which
should be no longer than thirty minutes.“
She brushed the hair out of her eyes, noticing absently that
Nicholas had not brought her to the master stateroom, but to a
much smaller one. Perhaps it had been the first door he had
passed. „But I have to –“
„I do wish you’d stop arguing, Silver. I’ve had a very
eventful day and I find I’m quite weary. May I have this now?
You obviously have no intention of using it at the moment.“
He took the derringer she was still clutching and set it on the
rosewood table. „I think I’m taking all this quite well, don’t
you? After all, it’s not every day a man is forced at the point of
a gun into the holy nuptials.“
„I told you I had to do it.“
„But why did you have to do it?“ The amusement and
mockery faded from his expression. „Wouldn’t it have been
easier for you to come to me and tell me there was a
possibility of a child?“
She shook her head emphatically. „I needed marriage. I
know you probably would have offered your protection, but
that wouldn’t make the child less a bastard. I knew you
wouldn’t marry me.“
„Did you?“ His dark eyes narrowed on her face. „You seem
very certain.“
She shrugged. „I’m not such a fool that I don’t know that
princes don’t wed with half-breeds born on the wrong side of
the blanket. Even Father Jason did everything he could to
persuade you that marriage wasn’t necessary with a woman
like me.“
„There are no women like you,“ Nicholas said softly.
„There’s only one Silver Delaney.“
Her gaze lifted to meet his own and she suddenly caught
her breath. She felt as if she were spinning, drowning in a dark
golden pool of sensation. Drowning. For a fleeting instant she
remembered that moment when she had sunk beneath the
waters of the river, fighting for her life, knowing there was
something wonderful waiting for her if she could just stay
alive long enough to grasp it. Something wonderful. Not lust,
but something deeper, more mystical… It was coming closer.
It was just beyond the horizon. Soon she would be able to see
it.
„You could have let me go,“ she said haltingly. „After I had
my paper from the priest, I would never have bothered you
again. Why did you follow.me?“
„Because I knew you’d let no feather drift to earth for me
to seize so that I might summon you back to me.“ His hand
reached out and gently brushed a swath of silky dark hair from
her face. „What a very wary firebird you are, Silver.“
She looked away from him. „That’s no answer.“
„You don’t trust me enough for me to give you any other…
as yet.“
„And you have little trust in me.“
„But I’m learning, Silver. I was taught a very bitter lesson a
long time ago.“ He smiled. „But now we have time to learn
each other. Marriage is forever.“
„No!“ she said, distressed. „I never meant to trap you in
that fashion. You can have it dissolved.“
„There is no divorce in my family,“ he said flatly. „You
should have taken time to query me on the subject. Now
you’re just as much a captive as you were when I first brought
you aboard the Rose.“
„And so are you,“ Silver said, frowning. „Truly, I never
meant – “
„It’s done.“ He made an imperious gesture with his left
hand. „There is no use talking about it.“ He took a step
forward, took off her cloak, and began unbuttoning the shiny
black buttons on the bodice of her gray gown. „It’s time you
went back to bed. Wherever did you get this ugly gown? You