Page 19 of The Moonstone Marquess
Phoebe also thought the jest humorous. “Tobias, you really are a cheeky fellow. It is a good thing the marquess has a sense of humor. One of these days you are going to pull that jest on an important lord and he will impound your vessel.”
“Nah, I can tell the nice ones from the humorless boors. You’ve got yourself a nice one here, Lady Phoebe.”
“I can assure you, he isn’t—” She must have realized the girls were listening to her every word, and she cleared her throat. “He isn’t a humorless boor. Yes, he’s quite nice. His nieces certainly think so.”
Cormac grinned. “See how easy that was? Tossing that compliment didn’t hurt at all, did it?”
“No, I suppose it didn’t.” She laughed softly, her eyes alight.
They spoke little for the rest of the ride, enjoying the breeze and the swell and dip of the boat upon the waves. Cormac held on to Imogen while Phoebe kept a firm grasp on Ella. Those girls were so little and light, they could easily be blown overboard with the slightest gust.
The girls enjoyed every moment of the ride, especially as they started to circle back to the dock. Dolphins surprised them by gliding alongside the vessel as it cut along the water toward the shore.
Ella and Imogen cheered and squealed in delight as the dolphins began to jump in and out of the waves beside them and put on a magnificent show just for the girls. “Twirl!” Ella shouted to them.
“Flap your tail!” Imogen cried.
The dolphins seemed to understand what the girls were saying, for they obliged, and then approached the boat to chatter at them in their own high-pitched squeals.
By the time the four of them walked off the boat, Ella and Imogen had the biggest smiles Cormac had ever seen on their little faces. Their cheeks were pink and their eyes sparkled with excitement.
Most beautiful of all was Phoebe, with her soft smile and sparkling eyes.
They walked over to Mrs. Halsey’s tearoom, and the girls immediately began to chatter about their adventurous boat ride. The lovely proprietress listened patiently as they told her about the boat and the dolphins.
Imogen began to tell her about the ghost as well.
Cormac was not listening very closely until he heard Imogen say, “And Captain Arundel was on the boat with us and told me not to be scared.”
He saw Phoebe turn pale. “Imogen, are you certain? Were you perhaps thinking of the story I told you earlier in the village square?”
Ella nodded. “We were thinking of it. That’s why the captain told us not to be afraid, that you and Uncle Cormac would protect us. And if you couldn’t, he would.”
He saw tears well in Phoebe’s eyes. “Girls, go to the cake display and tell Mrs. Halsey what you’d like for your treat.”
While the girls were distracted, Cormac drew Phoebe aside. “Blessed saints. Now you have them seeing ghosts. Did you see him too?”
“No, but I wish I had. He isn’t scary. We adored him growing up. I believe them when they say they saw him. I can hardly catch my breath knowing he was with us on the boat and standing beside your nieces. This is how he was with me and Hen when we were little. With Chloe, too.”
She shook her head in dismay and looked up at him with imploring eyes. “If he is here, then it means my aunt is also still with us. They’ve been silent for so long, my sisters and I thought they had left us. I wish I could still see him and Aunt Henleigh. I hate to think I have closed myself off to dreams and childhood wonders as I’ve grown up.”
“Phoebe, we cannot be certain… Indeed, how are such things even possible? To cross time and the barriers of space? You cannot believe in such nonsense.”
She shook her head. “But I do. And it isn’t nonsense. How could your nieces see him if he wasn’t there? It does not upset me, nor should it trouble you. In truth, my heart is soaring now that I know they are still with us.”
“Phoebe—”
“Don’t you understand? This is what love is all about. Brioc and Aunt Hen. They must have felt I needed the reminder. He stayed with her. Protected her. Nothing could keep him away from her. This is the beauty in finding the one special person who is meant for you. The one who will understand you and love you as no one else can. Two hearts becoming one. Inseparable in life and in death.”
“Blister it, Phoebe. Are you going to cry? Lord, don’t you dare cry. Then the girls are going to start, too.”
She cast him a tremulous smile. “I am not going to cry.”
He took the handkerchief she had just removed from her reticule and used it to dab her eyes. “You have the prettiest eyes,” he whispered. “Lord, you’re a beautiful thing.”
She laughed. “Careful, my lord. You may actually start to like me.”
He handed her back the lacy handkerchief that had her initials embroidered on it. “I’ve offered to marry you. How can you think I do not like you? Are you feeling better?”
