Page 5 of A Wicked Game

Permanently.

True, they rubbed each other the wrong way, but that constant friction created a delicious kind of heat—a heat he planned to kindle until it burst into flame. Heknew perfectly well how good the two of them could be together. Not just physically, but intellectually too. They shared a quick wit, a love of the absurd, a thirst for knowledge and adventure.

Harriet, of course, would need convincing of their compatibility. They’d been enemies for so long that irritating each other had become a habit, but the glint of attraction in her eyes whenever they spoke was undeniable. He would show her they could be more than adversaries. Much more.

Their three kisses would be just the beginning. He wanted all of her; body and soul. Nothing less than total surrender would do.

But first, the matter of that misleading map.

The steps of the Admiralty loomed in front of him, and Morgan took them two at a time. His brisk knock was answered by a grizzled old seaman in the uniform of a midshipman, who lent him a friendly smile.

“Captain Davies? His Lordship is expecting you.”

Morgan removed his hat, tucked it under one arm, and followed the man along a series of sumptuously appointed corridors until he was ushered into a small private room.

Viscount Melville, a stately man in his early forties, stood behind a vast leather-topped desk, but it was the unexpected second occupant of the room who garnered Morgan’s immediate attention.

His heart stilled in his chest.

Lord Melville cast him a smile of welcome.

“Ah, there you are, Davies. You’re acquainted with Miss Harriet Montgomery?”

Chapter Two

It took every ounce of Harriet’s poise not to laugh at the expression of shock on Morgan’s face when he saw her across the room.

To his credit, he recovered with admirable speed. He sent Lord Melville an easy smile and treated her to a polite bow.

“Acquainted? Yes, indeed. It’s a pleasure to see you again, Miss Montgomery. Although I admit I’m surprised by your presence. Lord Melville and I have an important matter to discuss.”

Harriet sent him a sweet smile, even though her heart was pounding as if she’d run a race.

“Yes, I’m aware of that. It was Lord Melville who invited me here, actually. You’ve been asking after a particular mapmaker. As a cartographer myself, I have some information relevant to your request.”

“Quite so.” Lord Melville indicated an ornate gilt chair to his left. “Please, Miss Montgomery, do take a seat. You too, Davies.”

Harriet sat gratefully. The sight of Morgan in full naval regalia was enough to make her weak at the knees. Some men looked ill at ease in a uniform, but Morganlooked as if he commanded the world and everything in it.

He took the chair on the opposite side of the desk to Melville.

“Captain Davies, you wanted to know the identity of the mapmaker Crusoe.”

A muscle tightened in Morgan’s jaw. “I do, sir. I have unfinished business with the man.”

Melville nodded. “In that case, I must let you in on a secret. I trust I can rely on your discretion?”

“Of course.”

“That name was a nom de guerre to protect the identity of one of the Admiralty’s most valuable assets.”

Morgan’s brows lowered. “Asset? Forgive me, but your trust was grossly misplaced. The map of the Caribbean that man produced was so inaccurate it caused my ship to run aground on a reef that shouldn’t have existed. My men and I were captured by the French and held on Martinique for six miserable weeks as prisoners of war because of it.”

Melville nodded. “Yes. I heard that was the case and I offer you my sincere condolences. I quite understand why you might bear a grudge against the mapmaker. But what if I told you that it was not a mistake? Or rather, it was adeliberatemistake.”

“What?”

“The Admiralty is well aware of the misleading nature of that particular map, Captain Davies. We did, in fact, order Mister Crusoe to make the amendments.”

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