Blackhearts (26 page)

precisely what your father is doing.”

“And you?”

Anne’s breath was faster than usual, a pulse beating in her

neck. “What?”

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Reaching for her slowly, he gave her every opportunity to retreat. When she didn’t, he took her hands in his and pulled

her close. “Will you always be there for me, no matter the cir-

cumstances?”

“You know I only want your happiness,” she said, her voice

faint.

“By my definition, that means you—”

Anne tugged her hands from his grasp and moved out of

his reach. “I don’t think this is wise,” she said, shaking her head.

“You’re upset.”

“If I’m going to die, I might as well die a happy man. Tell

me,” he said, his voice soft.

Her lashes half lowered over her crystal-blue eyes. “In

the short time we’ve known each other, I’ve come to bear a

certain . . . regard . . . for you. Your friendship is something I could not stand to part with.”

“‘Regard’? ‘Friendship’?” He approached her once again,

and his warm palm found the curve of her cheek. “Is that all

you feel for me, Anne?”

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C H A P T E R 2 4

Anne

Teach’s eyes darkened, the expression in them stealing her

breath. She should have pretended as if his nearness did not

affect her. But it did, and instead of stepping back, she stepped closer. “Yes,” she whispered, a tremor in her voice. “A very special sort of regard.”

He apparently needed no further confirmation. He cradled

her face in his hands, and his lips met hers, their mouths fit-

ting together perfectly. Anne’s heart fluttered in her chest like a trapped bird in a cage. But she didn’t pull away. She didn’t

want to.

His clever fingers found the bare skin at the nape of her

neck and wound into the strands that had come loose from her

bun, tilting her head to an upward slant.

Anne fought to control the reckless rhythm of her pulse as

he increased the pressure of their kiss. Her legs threatened to

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give way, and her hands traced down the fine linen of his shirt, feeling the solid strength of muscle underneath. For the rest of her life she would remember that moment. The sound of the

wind rustling through the trees. The earthy scent of the moss

beneath their feet, and the warmth of his breath mingling with

hers. Her first kiss.

When at last he pulled away, Anne swayed forward, slightly

dazed. “We . . . we shouldn’t have done that,” she said.

Breathing hard, his chest rising and falling steadily, Teach

gave a shaky laugh. “I’m sorry, but I’ve wanted to do that since the first moment I saw you.”

“It was a mistake.”

He cupped her cheek in his palm, his touch feather-light.

“You cannot tell me you have not wanted the same thing, Anne.”

Anne swallowed, unable to lie. It took considerable effort

on her part not to lean into his embrace. She had thought about

it, more than she cared to admit. Ever since he’d arrived, he

had haunted her dreams. “But you’re promised to another.” She

could not bring herself to speak Patience’s name.

“Promised? What good is a promise to someone else when

my heart belongs to you? What good is a promise when I might

not live to see another day?”

Anne refused to think about the inquiry. In spite of Teach’s

scorn, Anne still believed Drummond would somehow come

through for him. “What we’ve just done is no different from

what Mary did to John.”

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“Do
not
compare my feelings for
you
to those of that strum-pet. Mary never cared for John. He was a lover of convenience.

I do not hold out much hope for Tom, either. Give her a week

or two, and she’ll have moved on to someone else.”

His words did little to ease her guilt. “Still, your father—”

“Oh, yes, my father. My union with Miss Patience is his

will, not mine.”

Anne took a step back. It was too hard to think with him

standing so close. “But you agreed,” she reminded him.

“I was sixteen years old and still an obedient boy! I didn’t

know any better. Do you think I could predict the future? Back

then I saw Patience as my father wanted me to see her. She

was a pretty face with a title. My father filled my head with

stories of the aristocracy, how their life of leisure enabled them to cultivate their minds and improve their tastes. He spoke of

their power and how much they could achieve, and like a fool,

I listened to him.”

Anne felt sorry for the boy Teach had once been, blindly

believing everything his father had said. Her own upbringing

had been so different. “You couldn’t have known.”

“But how I wish I had. Who would have thought that

three years later, I’d care so little for appearance and prestige.

I’ve learned so much, Anne, about people and about life. You

seem to have had that understanding already, but I needed to

leave this place to discover who I was and what I truly wanted.

What’s truly important.”

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“You’re just upset about the inquiry. You’re frightened—”

“Yes, I’m frightened, but the inquiry is only part of it. If

I come out of this alive, as you so firmly believe I will, what

will my future hold? I refuse to wed someone whose most

pressing thoughts are about the color of her gown or what

sandwiches she should serve for tea. I want a life, a partner-

ship, with someone who has the same interests as I do. I want

to share something with someone that is greater and more

important than table settings and dinner parties. I want to

spend my life with
you
.”

“But that’s impossible,” Anne said, backing away from him.

He had no right to speak of such things, even if, deep down, she shared the same desires. “Your father . . . Miss Patience is quite intent on marrying you.”

“Of course she is. It’s not a marriage as much as it is a con-

tract.”

“She is a baron’s daughter. You are a merchant’s son. What

are they gaining from the agreement?”

“The baron has mismanaged his funds. A union with me

and my father’s money will benefit both families, for my father

will have gained a title for his family, and the baron’s estate will thrive.”

Anne was quiet for a moment, his words sinking in. “All at

your expense,” she whispered. “You’re even more of a prisoner

than I am,” she said.

Teach took her in his arms. “More than you could ever

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know. From the moment I saw you, you captured my heart and I was powerless to do anything about it.”

Anne looked up, unable to bear the sadness in his voice, for

it mirrored her own. He kissed her again, hesitantly at first, but when she responded, he pressed his lips hungrily to hers. Teach

held her close, and Anne sighed as he trailed kisses across her

face to her throat.

“A life with Patience would be no life at all,” he murmured

into her hair.

“Don’t say that,” she said.

“It’s true. I would rather face the gallows than marry

her. It’s you I love. You with your tender heart and fierce

strength.”

Anne pulled away, leaning her forehead against his shoulder.

“No, you’ll see. Your father will have the charges dropped. And

once that happens, you . . . you will do as you’ve promised and

marry Patience. You’ll still have a roof over your head and someone to come home to.”

“But that someone cares more for baubles and trinkets than

she does for me. What good is a warm hearth when the heart of

my future wife is as cold as ice?”

“That’s a far cry more than what I will get. The illegitimate

daughter of a dead merchant and a slave. Do you think anyone

would have me, as different as I am? I have no prospects and no

family to claim me.”

“I will take you! Come away with me, Anne. Just the two

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of us. The devil take my father and everyone else. You and I can leave this place, together.”

Hope flared within her breast at his words, but she quickly

extinguished it. As much as she wanted to leave with him, she

could not. “And where will we go, Teach? Where in the world

can we go where people will accept us? Until the inquiry is com-

plete, you will be a wanted man. To leave now would only pro-

claim your guilt. But I cannot stay here. People will forever look at me and see our differences, not our similarities.”

“What I want more than anything else in this world is to

be with you.”

“But for how long? Will you tire of me, just like you tired

of Miss Patience?”

Teach regarded her with a mixture of surprise and outrage.

“I would never tire of you. We are too alike. Even you must

see that.”

“It would never work,” she said, desperate to stop this mad-

ness, for that was what it was.

He stepped forward, his face flushed with emotion. “Please,”

he whispered. “I love you, Anne. Nothing is more important

than that.”

Anne shook her head, shutting her eyes in an effort to clear

her mind. “No. I’m sorry. It’s not right.”

Teach stood still, his mouth a thin line. “I’m not giving up,”

he muttered through clenched teeth. “You belong with me, and

I will make you see that. I’ll talk to my father—”

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“You know he won’t change his mind. Please don’t make this more difficult than it has to be,” Anne pleaded, tears running down her cheeks. “Please, just stop.”

He studied her, anguish visible in every line on his face.

Without another word he turned on his heel and strode off,

ripping at the hanging branches of the willow. Anne held one

hand to her stomach, sick with despair.

Teach was right. She loved him. Anne wasn’t sure how or

when it had happened, but she recognized as much as he did

the strength of her feelings. It could have been the time they’d spent together, reading and discussing Dampier’s book. Teach

saw Anne as his equal, and wanted to hear her thoughts and

opinions.

It could be that their visit to his mother’s cottage had stim-

ulated the first stirrings of affection. He’d been so pleased when she’d recognized its simple beauty.

Anne had missed Teach when he’d been away at the Hervey

estate, more than she’d been willing to admit. It was Teach who

set her heart racing. When she closed her eyes at night, he filled her dreams, and when she opened them the next morning, he

filled her thoughts. All of this should have acted as a warning, but Anne was untested in the art of love.

If Anne or Teach went against his father’s wishes, Richard

Drummond would not hesitate to throw them out. Without a

penny between them, where could they go? What kind of a life

could they lead? Teach was drawn to the sea, like a willow to

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water, but as adventurous as Anne was, a ship was no place for a woman for an extended period of time.

She pressed the heels of her hands to her eyes, in an effort to

stop the thoughts swirling through her head. She hoped to be

able to talk Mr. Drummond into giving her the three thousand

pounds her father had left her, more now than ever.

She could not stay here and idly stand by while Teach married

another woman. Nor could she stay in the same city where she

might run into him at some point. She needed to leave England. It was clear that when the
Deliverance
set sail, Anne had to be on it.

But she would have to wait until the inquiry was resolved,

before she could approach Teach’s father.

Drained of energy, as if her stroll through the garden had

been twice the distance, Anne headed back to the manor. With

a heavy heart she entered the courtyard. Hearing the sound

of an approaching carriage, she turned. After pulling the two

horses to a stop beside the house, the driver jumped down to

open the door. Miss Patience had returned.

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C H A P T E R 2 5

Teach

Lord Hervey directed the coachman regarding the unloading of

their trunks, which signified a rather lengthy stay. The Herveys were early. His father had said they wouldn’t arrive until the

next day.

“What is she doing?” Patience snapped, looking over Teach’s

shoulder.

“She lives here,” Teach said, turning to see Anne approaching.

Patience shot him a sharp look, not bothering to hide her

displeasure at his short remark. “Yes, I know that, but why is

she in that cloak? Is that one of mine?”

“No. My father had it made for her.”

“Why?”

“Because she is his goddaughter,” Teach said.

“How can that be? She’s a maid.” Patience did not lower her

voice, and there was no doubt that Anne heard her.

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Teach attempted to speak in quieter tones, hating the fact that Patience spoke about Anne as if she weren’t there. Neither

he nor his father had told the Herveys of Anne’s true identity.

“She is no longer a maid. There was a misunderstanding.”

“What kind of misunderstanding?”

Anne arrived at their side as Lord Hervey turned back to

them, and greetings were exchanged. The four moved toward

the house, but Anne allowed both Patience and the baron to

separate her from Teach.

“Mr. Drummond was not given an accurate account of

my family’s standing,” Anne said. She looked so calm walking