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Adequately chastised, she whispered a quiet, “Sorry.”
After giving her a fatherly scowl, Barney continued. “I can’t imagine what it must have been like for Morgan. I wasn’t there when he found Penelope, but I know how much she meant to him. It’s probably a good thing he couldn’t find Winston right away, ’cause I’m sure he would have killed him with his bare hands.”
Not that she would blame Morgan for the killing. Indeed, a man like that should be horsewhipped!
“Where was Winston?”
“Butter beans, butter beans!” the bird demanded.
“Sh,” Barney soothed. “I’ll feed you in a bit.” He repositioned Pesty on his shoulder. “Winston had caught word that Morgan was coming for him, and he took off. No one knew where he was. So, Morgan got his sister and took her to an island to watch over her. It was there she died.”
“And Winston?”
“Morgan caught up with him about a year after her death. He’d already ruined the man financially, and he came damn near to killing him.”
“But he didn’t?” she asked incredulously.
“Just as Morgan was about to finish him off, he realized the worst thing would be to leave Winston to his duns. But as he turned away, Winston came at him, and in the fight, Winston was killed.”
They fell silent for a few minutes, lost in their own thoughts, while the winds howled and the ship tossed. Lightning flashed again, and Pesty demanded more butter beans.
Serenity looked up at the ceiling, wondering where Morgan was now. He’d had such a hard life. And he’d lived it virtually alone. It was such a pity that a man so noble and kind had no one to love him.
And she wondered if a man who had lost everyone he held dear could ever love someone again.
Jake and Morgan stood at the helm, trying to stay on course in the midst of the storm. Of course, without the stars, and being buffeted around, it was impossible.
“Why don’t you go below and rest,” Jake shouted. “I’ll take the first watch.”
“I’m the captain, I should take the first watch!”
Jake laughed. “Which means the crew doesn’t need you to go sailing overboard. Besides, Morgan, you don’t want to leave me on your ship without you. You know what I’ll do with her.”
In spite of the seriousness, Morgan smiled. “All right. I’ll be back up in an hour to replace you.”
“Just bring me a bottle of rum when you do.”
Nodding, Morgan made his way below deck. His ears roared from the winds and he felt chilled to his bones.
His limbs heavy, he opened the door to his cabin.
Serenity looked up and gasped as Barney broke off his storytelling. Morgan stood in the doorway, his hair and clothes plastered to his body as he dripped his way across the cabin. He had his teeth clenched and she was sure he was freezing.
Acting without thought, she scooped the quilt off the bed and threw it around his shoulders.
“You take care of him, lass,” Barney said, jumping to his feet, “while I go get some food and ale.”
“My goodness, Captain,” Serenity said in awe. “You look like you’ve battled Poseidon himself.”
Morgan didn’t say anything as she led him to sit in Barney’s vacated chair.
“Don’t try and talk,” Serenity said as she left him to go searching through his trunk. “I’ll get you some clothes and we’ll have you dried off in just a minute.”
She pulled out a dry pair of pants, a shirt, and a jacket. As she returned to him, he was toweling off his hair with a corner of the quilt. “Ifeellike I’ve battled Poseidon,” he said, his voice hoarse.
His hair was free from its queue. Damp and tousled, he reminded her of an impish child. Only his stern features and countenance were those a man who had lived a hard life.
“We have to get you out of those clothes before you catch a chill.” She helped him peel his jacket off, and it wasn’t until he’d pulled his sodden shirt over his head that it occurred to her that she was undressing a man.
