To Tame the Wind (Agents of the Crown Book 0) by Regan Walker Page A

Donet’s daughter, they’d arrived at
an uneasy truce. He was polite and she was cool and remote, though from the way
she had responded to his kiss, he suspected a core of molten liquid simmered
beneath the surface. He was certain she feared her response should he kiss her
again. No future nun would have responded so. How would she explain that to the sisters in Saint-Denis? Lord knew he wanted to kiss her again. No woman
had captured his attention like the wild Claire Donet. He still remembered the
taste of her lips, the feel of her soft breasts pressed against him and the way
she had kissed him back, notwithstanding her innocence. In his mind’s eye, he
could still see the look of wonder in her passion-glazed eyes when he’d left her
in his cabin that day.
    She was a tasty tidbit he dare not touch again.
    Simon looked about his cabin, noting the feminine things
piled neatly on top of his sea chest at the foot of his bed. Oddly, he did not
resent the intrusion into his domain. And he liked the lavender fragrance her
presence left in his cabin.
    But he had more to worry about than her dreams or his
attraction to the French beauty. Yesterday’s messages from London had included
a summons from his superiors, William Eden and Lord Danvers. He must sail to
London. The night they had taken the girl from the convent, one of his men had
retrieved additional messages from the Scribe in Paris that he must place in
their hands.
    Once they were anchored in the Thames, he would leave Jordan
in command, but what was he to do with the French girl? He did not want her to
remain on the ship. Nor did he want to leave her in Rye. The Mermaid Inn was
not a safe place for a fetching young innocent who must be watched at all
times. And because of the note he had left him, Donet was now aware of Simon’s
connection to Dartmouth, so that was not an option. Not that he wanted to let
her out of his sight. There was no help for it. She would have to go with him.
He smiled to himself. She would enjoy Cornelia, Lady Danvers. After all, the
baroness, only six years older, was an American.
     

Chapter 7
     
    Claire sat in the galley listening to the cook weave stories
of Irish fairies, her mind wandering. She had been on the ship over a sennight
and anxious to escape. Once they had anchored in Rye, seeing land so close, she
had begun to devise a way to get a message to her papa. A friend would be
needed as she had no coins to bribe someone motivated only by greed. To a man,
the captain’s crew appeared loyal to him. Though she still held out some hope
young Nate could be persuaded to help her, she knew she would feel guilty for
making use of the growing affection between them.
    Elijah Hawkins had introduced her to Sally at the Mermaid
Inn, who’d offered to find Claire another gown and proper underclothes. Claire
was happy for the chance to be alone with the woman, thinking the innkeeper’s
daughter might be enlisted to help. But Sally had been more interested in why a
woman was aboard the handsome captain’s ship. After listening to her prattle on
about the gallant captain of the Fairwinds , Claire determined the woman
was too enamored of Simon Powell to be of any assistance in her cause. The
woman’s affection for the English privateer annoyed Claire more than she wanted
to admit. Had they been lovers? aHa Shrugging
off the nagging thought, she admitted any help she might find for an escape
would have to come from another source. And since the captain never left her
unguarded, it would not be an easy task.
    Claire had been reluctant to accept the captain’s generosity
in providing her clothes, but she reminded herself that none of the expense
would have been necessary had he not kidnapped her in the first instance. So,
reluctantly, she had accepted the clothing she so desperately needed.
    One advantage of being in port was that she was able to walk
about the ship without holding on to the rail for balance. But that did not
mean she was