Brogan scowled with disapproval. “If Mr. Huntley were here, he’d say you’d left your manners beneath your pillow.” He looked embarrassed for the child’s sake and offered Lorena an apologetic smile. “We were just about to leave for our duties, but please sit, Lorena, and enjoy breakfast.”
His eyes twinkled at her. Lorena found him especially handsome this morning, from the amused quirk of his lips to his strong, sharp nose and longish sandy mane. Over a starched white shirt and cravat he wore a double-breasted jacket of dark olive gray with gold ornamental buttons and tails that fell below the knee. His pale yellow trousers tucked smoothly into his black leather Hessians.
She blinked, conscious she may have stared overlong and hastened to the dining table.
Brogan led her to a seat as the men resumed theirs. “Yesterday was quite an eventful day for you. You rested well, I trust?”
She’d hardly slept a wink. “My turn of fate has worked wonders for my well-being. And you, sir? How fared the remainder of your night?”
“Captain Briggs and I shared a fitful sleep.”
Lorena noted the strain in his smile and wondered again what darkness haunted Brogan that would cause him to cry out in his dreams.
“Drew accompanies me each morning as I take first observation of the decks,” he said. “With your permission I’d like for him to continue at my side.”
From across the table, Drew’s eyes shone enthusiastic and bright. “Sometimes I help Warrick fill the ship’s lamps and sometimes I fetch coal for Mr. Mott. And I have been learning to tie knots.” He slapped a length of halyard down on the table. “See?”
“A fair rolling hitch,” Mr. Smith observed.
Warrick, to the contrary, did not look amused. “This morning I woke to find my feet bound with a reef knot.”
“Oh, Drew, I hope you haven’t been misbehaving this whole journey.” Lorena bore her correction sternly at the boy.
“The lad is in high spirits to be back with ye, miss, and it seems the wee rascal inside that has lain quiet for missing ye is returned.” Mr. Smith wiped his mouth on his napkin and, excusing himself, scrambled to his feet. “Lively now, Mr. Farragut. We’ve decks to wash down and ready for inspection. I’ll meet ye above, Cap’n. Enjoy yer breakfast, Miss Huntley,” he bid.
As the mates took their leave, Lorena helped herself to what remained of the oatmeal. “I find it remarkable the responsibility you’ve all shown where Drew is concerned,” she told Brogan. “At first I wondered how my father could have sent him on this journey, being as young as he is, but you show the child no less care than a father would his own son. Though, after last night’s exchange, I’m not entirely certain who is taking care of whom.”
He seemed to grow uncomfortable under her thoughtful gaze. He pushed his plate away, making ready to depart. “Warrick will see to anything you need. At your leisure he’ll escort you to the main deck. Perhaps you’d care to work on your needlework or read under the shade of the sails. Later, Drew and I shall fetch you for a proper tour of the Yankee Heart. I know you’ve seen her as she was being rigged, but she is quite another thing to behold, a living creature in her own right, fully manned and on the sea.”
“If you don’t mind, I think I’ll visit the galley instead. I’d like to thank Mr. Mott for last night’s supper and give him my compliments. And then I must seek out Edward Hicks. Edward was a friend of George’s and is as saddened and disappointed as I by his actions. I promised to explain the events that befell me.”
“When I see Mr. Hicks, I shall send him to you.” Brogan rose. “Enjoy your morning, Lorena.”
“And you also, Brogan.”
Lorena followed man and boy to the door with her gaze, marveling at the pair they made. A stranger could recognize their bond. She felt pride at Drew’s interest in the ship and the sacrifice he’d made last night in parting with his beloved Captain Briggs. He had accompanied Brogan on this rescue mission, a larger-than-life adventure for an imaginative child, especially one with a fondness for sea captains. Brogan had become a hero in Drew’s eyes. Not a cloth doll, but a flesh-and-blood captain on whom to bestow his admiration and awe.
And yet Lorena sensed there might be more to it than that.
“Can I bring you anything, miss?” Warrick asked, interrupting her thoughts. “Hot water for your tea?”