Seeing a storm brewing on the captain’s brow, Dinah gently twisted her hand from the lieutenant’s grasp. “How kind of you, sir.” She honored them with another curtsey before focusing on her kinsman, whose expression now seemed as protective as her own brother’s. How strange that the idea brought on a twinge of disappointment. Strange and foolish. The captain was a seafaring man and as such could never become the object of her romantic interest. Why, she would as soon marry the little merchant as a man who always deserted his wife for the sea. No, this man could be her friend, as he was to her brother Jamie, but no more.
“What brings you to St. Augustine?” Dinah gazed again into the captain’s warm blue eyes. “Have you brought news that the war is over? That the rebels at last have been defeated?”
The other men responded with condescending chuckles, but Thomas’s expression turned grave. “Would that it were so, dear lady. Unfortunately, each time we think we have crushed them, they return like the phoenix.” Sorrow flitted across his eyes, but he seemed to blink it away. “To answer your question, my crew and I have been assigned to join the other two frigates now patrolling these waters and to defend St. Augustine and the St. Johns River from invasion by the Spanish fleet and pirates.”
“Effectively taking us out of the war.” The lieutenant’s tone echoed with annoyance.
“Yes.” Thomas shot him a frown. “And giving us a respite from death.”
“Not to mention—” Mr. Brandon’s brown eyes twinkled. “Giving us an opportunity to enjoy a decent roast beef at one of the fine taverns in this fair city. A man wearies of salt pork and weevil-ridden biscuits.” He shuddered comically, and the other men voiced good-natured agreement.
His remark sparked a scheme in Dinah’s mind. “If you gentlemen will excuse me, I must take my leave. I hope you will enjoy St. Augustine. It truly is a lovely city, and we appreciate the regiment at Fort Saint Marks and the naval ships in our harbor.” She turned to Dr. Wellsey. “Doctor, the lavender is on your desk. Will you see to it?”
He glanced over his shoulder toward his office. “Ah, yes. Thank you, Miss Templeton.”
After the appropriate au revoirs, Dinah added, “Until we meet again, Captain Moberly.”
She restored her hat to her head and paused to re-tie the ribbons and renew her plan. As soon as they left, she would come back and ask Dr. Wellsey where the officers were lodging, then send Thomas an invitation to supper so they could share family news. Perhaps he had information about Jamie, whose merchant ship was always in danger from pirates. And no doubt the captain would like to hear about his sister and brother, who dwelt on a plantation deep in the East Florida wilderness.
Before she could think of how to word the missive, the captain emerged from the building and stopped her with a light touch on her arm. Looking up from beneath her hat brim to see a smile as gentle as his gaze, she stifled the foolish giddiness threatening her composure. Gracious, he was handsome. But how featherbrained of her to think such things. After all, she had heard from his sister that this gentleman was one and thirty, an entire decade older than her own one and twenty years. Another reason not to make him an object of her interest. And with all those marriages between their families, he was practically her brother. Wasn’t he?
“Yes, Captain Moberly?” Could he hear the squeak in her voice?
“Perhaps we can arrange to see each other soon to exchange family news.” Thomas clamped down on the strange wave of feeling that surged through him in response to her glorious smile. This was the lady his good friend Jamie called his “delightful little sister.” But instead of the child Thomas had expected to meet one day, here stood a tall, beautiful young woman in a pretty lavender frock that enhanced her dark-brown eyes. Eyes that exuded kindness and generosity. Eyes a man could get lost in. He mentally shook himself. What foolishness. He’d been too long at sea, too long out of society and the company of lovely ladies.
“Why, yes, I would like that very much, Captain.” Her voice had a pleasing, mellow tone. “Will you come to supper this evening? I cannot promise roast beef, but perhaps something just as tasty.”
The innocence of her invitation gave him pause. No matter how much they regarded one other as a family member, other people might not see the matter in that light.
“You know, of course,” she said, “that I live with my foster sister and her husband. They will be more than pleased to meet a true British naval hero.”
Thomas grinned, feeling foolish. Had she discerned his hesitation? “And I would be honored to meet them. Where and what time shall I come?”
She gave directions and named the time, but while he committed them to memory, he fought the urge to shift his manner of viewing her. Not since his wife’s death had he seen a woman of such innocence and genteel grace. But whereas dear little Ariel had flitted through life without a serious thought in her brain, Dinah’s steady gaze invited confidence in her intelligence.
Guilt stung him for making such a comparison. After four years, he still missed Ariel, still missed the hopes he’d held for the infant son she could not safely deliver. In time, he had come to think it best for a naval officer not to marry, for service to his father, his king and his God—in that order—took precedence over one’s personal interests. But even if he found his heart engaged by some winsome lady, Thomas had no intention of emulating his sister and brother, both of whom had married common Americans. While a man could have good friends of a lower rank, such as Dinah’s brother, Jamie, these ill-advised unions no doubt had caused some grief. But he would not think of that until he stood face-to-face with his sister, Marianne, and brother Freddy.
“Until eight o’clock, then?” She bestowed another of her pretty smiles upon him, striking a chink in the four-year-old wall around his heart.
Belay that, you dolt. He must regard her as a sister and no more.
“May the hours hasten by until then.” He bowed with an extra flourish, hoping to lash down his wayward emotions through humor. His reward was an equally overdone curtsey. What a delightful creature.
She turned and walked away, leaving behind a hint of lavender in the air.
Thomas withheld a sigh. At least now he understood the temptations into which his sister and brother had fallen.
Chapter Two
Her heart merry over the unexpected encounter with Thomas, Dinah hurried back down St. George Street toward the Parade. Whether or not she saw much of him, his mere presence in St. Augustine would help to mitigate her usual sense of being cut off from her family. With Jamie at sea most of the time and her cousin living at Bennington Plantation, Dinah often felt lonely.
Of course she realized the handsome, charming captain would become the object of matchmaking for every mother of an eligible daughter in the colony. She tried to think of someone who might suit him, but for some reason, the idea nettled her. Moreover, what colonial miss would be worthy of such a distinguished gentleman, a renowned captain in His Majesty’s navy and the son of a British earl? No, Dinah would leave the matchmaking to the ambitious mothers. She would turn her efforts toward giving the captain a pleasant supper as a reward for his heroic naval service.
The thought of seeing him again so soon warmed her heart, and she became aware of May’s humid heat rolling over her face. On days like this, she longed for the cooler summers of her childhood home. But in Nantucket, winters could be deadly, while in East Florida winter generally offered a pleasant respite from both heat and cold. Still, when she pulled a linen handkerchief from her pocket and dabbed at the perspiration on her forehead, she recalled the need to complete her errands before the late-morning sun began to scorch the city and intensify its less pleasant odors.
In the Parade at the poultry vendor’s cart, she purchased two plump hens and asked the man to deliver them to her house. Artemis would fuss at the expense, but she was spending her own money. And no doubt he would be more than pleased when he learned they would have such an illustrious