Read Online A Pirate's Ransom by Gerri Brousseau - Free Book Online

shall read more tomorrow, I promise,” I said. But next time I shall find a place out of his line-of-sight.
    “Thank you, Mister Smith.”
    “It weren’t nothin’, me Lady,” he answered, and turned to walk away.
    “Mister Smith?”
    “Aye.”
    “Come, sit with me a moment.”
    The wiry man chanced a quick glance up toward the Captain, but complied with my request and sat upon a crate next to me.
    “Wot can I do for ye?”
    “Mister Smith, I would like to teach you to speak as a gentleman.”
    “A gent, ye say?”
    “Yes, Mister Smith, a gentleman. Now, repeat after me. How do you do?”
    “‘ow doo ye doo?”
    “No, no, no. It’s not ‘oow doo ye doo’ ... it is ‘how do you do?’”
    “Aye, me Lady, that be wot I said.”
    I fought to control the twitch of my lips upward. After all, he was trying.
    “Mister Smith, when you meet another gentleman you must say ‘I am pleased to make your acquaintance.’ Now, you try it.”
    “I be pleased te be makin’ yer acquaintance.”
    “I am. Not I be.”
    “I am pleased te be makin’ yer acquaintance.” He smiled with pride.
    “That’s better, but we must practice.”
    “Aye ... er ... yes, that be true.”
    I frowned.
    “Yes, tis true?” He smiled.
    “Very good, Mister Smith.”
    “Do ye really be thinkin’ ye can teach me to be a proper gent?”
    “It will take some time, but I am sure any man can be taught to be a gentleman. Why, Mister Smith, I can see you now dressed in your finery and attending parties in the grand salons of London.”
    We laughed together, but I noticed Mister Smith’s eyes traveling toward the man standing behind us at the wheel of the ship.
    “Beggin’ yer pardon, me Lady, but I best be gettin’ to me work now. We can practice another day.”
    “Certainly, Mister Smith,” I replied. As much as I wanted to, I refused to allow myself to steal even a glance in Edmund’s direction, though I desperately wanted to. I feared if I looked at him, he would know of my wanton dreams and of the feelings I had for him. Feelings I could not deny.
    “Seems there be lots o’ lessons bein’ given aboard this ship of late,” Mister Smith murmured under his breath as he scurried away.
    Later that day as I sat atop a barrel that rested at the base of a large mast, I gazed out at the sea wondering if there was any truth in the conversation I had overheard between the two pirates that morning. Could Edmund Drake really find me attractive? Surely that must be the case or why would he kiss me so? But if that were the case, how could I be the cause of the Captain’s bad temper? The memory of our encounter of last night played in my mind, and I sighed as a feeling of warmth washed over me. Deep in my thoughts, I failed to hear Edmund’s approach until he rested his warm hand upon my shoulder.
    “Milady,” he said, “I wonder if I might interest you in some company?”
    Perhaps there was some truth to the pirate’s theory after all. I faced him, and a shy smile slipped across my lips. “Certainly, Captain.”
    He took a seat upon the barrel beside mine but seemed to fidget a bit. So out of character. He portrays the rough and confident pirate, and at other times an elegant gentleman, yet he seems unsure of how to carry himself here with me. Then I noticed the book in his hand.
    “What have you there, Captain?
    “Tis a book of sonnets,” he said, handing the small tome to me. “I wish to give it to you, Countess, as a gift.” I couldn’t help but notice how his eyes seemed to grow a lighter shade of green and twinkle with his genuine smile.
    Accepting the small leather-bound volume, still warm from his touch, I felt a lump rise in my throat. No man had ever given me a gift before and my heart swelled with joy.
    “How sweet of you, Captain,” I answered in a voice just above a whisper.
    “It would give me great pleasure if you would call me Edmund.”
    “Edmund, I hardly know what to say.” I said, looking up at