Read Online The Shipmaster's Daughter by Jessica Wolf - Free Book Online Page B

ocean and sit on the sand. Luciana stopped at the beginning of the pier. Laughter out of pure amazement forced its way out of her throat.
    The pier was massive. At least three hundred meters long, it seemed to touch the very horizon itself. Buildings and stands rested on the walkway, people milling in and out of them. Noise ricocheted off of the buildings, filling the air with laughter and shouting. Scents of caramel and salt tinged the air.
    “Isn’t it wonderful?” Esther asked.
    “It’s like nothing I’ve ever seen before.” There seemed to be more and more people every second. Having grown up in the secluded part of town, shut away from the busy nature of Venice, seeing such a mass made her heart skip a beat.
    “Today has opened a whole new world for you, hasn’t it?” Jack asked when he reached her side.
    Luciana nodded. Words failed her.
    “But it doesn’t have to be over yet,” he added. “There’s still much to see. Come on, Esther. Let’s find the ice cream stand.”
    Just as quickly as she had taken Luciana’s hand, Esther dropped it, latching onto Jack’s as they headed down the pier. Which left Luciana alone with Reed. Again. She glanced to her left, unsurprised to see him staring blankly at the scene before him. After a moment, he looked down at her, raising an eyebrow. She shifted her gaze ahead, heat flushing her cheeks.
    “They do have ice cream in Italy, correct?” he asked. His voice was forced and gruff.
    Luciana found herself laughing. “Of course we have ice cream. Signore Hargrave, for a man who seems so sure that I am uncultured in the ways of the world, you seem to be quite ignorant yourself.”
    His eyes snapped to hers, flashing with a challenge. She should have regretted her words—a proper English lady would—but she didn’t. Not when she was right.
    “I suppose we should find the others,” was the only response he could muster.
    They began walking. His long legs formed a stride that forced her to walk quickly, but she didn’t mind. A gentle breeze blew around her feet and gulls cawed overhead. It was a beautiful day. A fresh beginning. The disappointment of earlier couldn’t keep her down for long.
    “I apologize if I offended you.”
    The last thing she needed was an enemy. Even if they didn’t see eye to eye, moving along with her life required connections, friendships. Hargrave seemed like a man with connections, and he might be willing to help her find a position should she stop acting so coarsely.
    A smile cracked his face for the first time. It was a brief smile—more of a smirk and sniff—but it held the air of humor all the same. “My pride is not so easily wounded, Miss Renaldi, but your apology is accepted if it makes you feel any better.”
    “Oh, Reed, there you are!” From across the pier, a man and woman flagged Reed down.
    Reed stopped walking. Luciana followed suit. From where she stood behind him, she saw the muscles in his shoulder bunch and his back straighten. He waited for the man and woman to cross the busy pier despite his visible anger.
    The man shook Reed’s hand with three vigorous pumps when he reached him. “I’m glad I found you. I was going to come to the house when June and I got back, but I haven’t been able to find the time.” He continued to pump Reed’s hand up and down. “I wanted to thank you.”
    Reed somehow managed to pull his hand from the man’s grasp, his mouth twisted into a smile, though to Luciana it appeared forced. “Thank me, Charles?”
    Charles nodded. He put his arm around the woman’s—June’s—waist. “For your advice.”
    “I don’t remember giving you any advice.”
    Charles sighed, but humor twinkled in his eyes. “‘Never let men dictate your means,’ you said. And it got me thinking about June and my father’s company. Well, long story short, you convinced me to finally propose.”
    Reed glanced between the pair, his eyebrows rising. “I meant those words from a business standpoint,