By the time the sun set, he was almost staggering with weariness. His arms ached with the effort of lifting sick women, allowing them to sip from proffered ladles, brimming with water.
“Lord William?” He squinted in the rapidly-fading light. “Cousin Grace- Oops. I mean,” the small girl gathered herself. “Captain O’Leary’s compliments, and will you join her in the captain’s cabin for the evening meal?”
Somehow, he kept his lips from curling up in a grin which would have destroyed the child’s hard-won sense of dignity. “I would be honored. Would you please show me where my belongings are stowed, so that I may make myself presentable to the captain?”
“Oh!” Jenny flushed, but gathered herself. “This way, my lord.”
According to your cousin, you should not be calling me that. He kept the tho
